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There is a pressing need to develop a coherent and appropriate conceptualization of ‘resilience’ in the context of agricultural production as well as a tool for its practical assessment. Here I do both. I use a systematic and integrative approach to review and assess recent conceptualizations of ‘resilience’ and analytical frameworks. Following this review, I develop six conditions enabling resilience in agroecosystems, which inform the development of a conceptual framework and the selection of variables and indicators. Applying the conceptual framework to the Canadian agroecosystem in a general manner serves to identify opportunities for farmers and policy-makers to assess, discuss, and manage agroecosystem resilience. The high-level assessment demonstrates that important changes underway in the Canadian agroecosystem support resilience through re-organization, adaptation, and learning. However, the current focus on maximizing productivity and efficiency often leads to reduced diversity; increased connectivity; protection against disturbances; reliance on anthropogenic inputs; and missed opportunities for shared learning and experimentation. This focus on productivity may not support the long-term resilience of agroecosystem. Therefore, ensuring that agroecosystems can adjust to big and small disturbances in the future requires that we shift our thinking to recognize and support the complex adaptive nature of agroecosystems and adopt adaptive management approaches.

Beware, towing in effect -- Whitehorse exchange students at Malaspina -- Lovick to head heart campaign -- Videodiscs, yesterday, today, and tomorrow -- There is still time to register -- Three free events scheduled -- Weigh your salads and fries -- Scholarships and bursaries deadline -- Early childhood education film series -- Office changes -- Dance club resumes classes -- Universal gym and fitness training demonstrations -- Know television job training program -- Tennis, anyone -- For your diary https://viuspace.viu.ca/bitstream/handle/10613/744/MainlyMalJan25-83.pdf?sequence=3

New funds for college announced -- Streamlined institutional evaluation comes to Malaspina -- Board elects new chairman, vice chairman -- Board approves tuition changes -- College people -- Canadian daughter's league scholarship -- Environmental consciousness through the arts in China -- Medical services plan premium increased -- Annual ceramics seminar set for April 5 -- Last chance for Expo passes group rate -- Please pick up your Expo passes -- A South African woman speaks -- On with the show -- For your diary https://viuspace.viu.ca/bitstream/handle/10613/838/MainlyMalMar8-86.pdf?sequence=3

Canadian post-secondary institutions cumulatively deliver over 300 programs online or at distance as alternatives to on-campus teaching, and student enrollments in online programs are expected to increase (Canadian Virtual University (CVU), 2013). However, little is known about online degrees as credentials for employment. Focusing on bachelor's degrees awarded by Canadian universities for online and distance education, this mixed methods study investigated the views of a convenient sample of 87 employers using hypothetical hiring and job promotion scenarios. A total of 84 surveys and 4 interviews were conducted with management and human resources personnel at Canadian organizations in the public, private, and social sectors. The findings indicated that 75% of participants considered online degrees equivalent to campus-based face-to-face degrees in the hiring scenario, and over 90% had no preference between campus-based and online degrees in the employment promotion scenario. Four themes emerged related to credibility of online degrees, educational quality of online degrees, affordances and constraints of online education, and gaps in awareness. The findings are relevant to graduates and students of online education as well as educational institutions offering online degrees.

In this autoethnographic personal narrative, I share my multifaceted journey of developing ecological embodied cognition in the context of climate change, specifically in the West Kootenay region of British Columbia. Through spending time alone with the other-than-human world and using a deliberate practice of mindfulness to develop a participatory postmodern worldview, I seek to integrate multiple ways of knowing to complement my existing strengths of scientific, positivist understanding of the world. I suggest that expanding my (our) metaphoric construct of self to include ecological self, is vital to deepening sustainable relationships with nature and with other humans. I depict and evoke for readers my personal experience as a potential model of adaptation and worldview change. As environmental educator and education leader in the public school system, I will bring these new skills and ways of knowing and being to the classroom, to more meaningfully promote sustainability initiatives and behaviors.

Menu from Beef King restaurant in Hong Kong. Text in Chinese. From the Imogene Lim restaurant menu collection https://viuspace.viu.ca/bitstream/handle/10613/3161/LimBeef.pdf?sequence=3&isAllowed=y

This study takes a modern approach applying the TOFHLA to Torontonians in order to identify some of the contributing factors impacting the physician-patient divide. The TOFHLA questionnaire with added customized pre-screening questions was administered to 100 participants who were directly approached, further using a snowball sampling method. The Test of Functional Health Literacy Assessment (TOFHLA) is used to assess a patient’s level of comprehension of health-related material. The TOFHLA was validated by researchers Baker and Parker et al. in two separate studies in 1995 and 1999. This study has proven that age, gender, and English as a first or second language has no effect on health literacy level (P>0.05), education (P=0.024) was the main variable involved with positive health literacy levels. This study has successfully outlined areas of improvement such as, patient experience and engagement which influences recovery time.

As the sport for development and peace (SDP) movement continues to gain momentum within a variety of contexts, from the international to the grassroots level, there is an increasing need to better understand how SDP organizations and programs are impacting communities at the local level. Program accountability and monitoring remain a challenge for SDP researchers and practitioners, and this study therefore sought to engage with community stakeholders on a small-scale level in order to track program development and progress in a collaborative and case-specific way. This Participatory Action Research (PAR) study sought to develop a deepened understanding of the potential role of sport in an ongoing grassroots, community-level peace building process, with the intention to explore how the community had rebuilt and evolved since a period of conflict, and where community members felt there was potential for using sport in an ongoing peace building process. The research incorporated a series of semi-structured interviews, small group discussions, and a photovoice project with youth participants. Though the program activities are early in their implementation, the findings of the project indicate that participants see possibility and potential for sport’s role in the development of their school culture and the wider community peace building process. The findings also prompted reflection on the PAR process and point to a useful model for conducting PAR studies at the grassroots, community level: following a community – case – community sequence that first seeks to understand the community context before focusing on a specific case, then broadens the research scope back to the larger community.

Senior administrators, September 16 synopsis -- Area chairmen, September 14 synopsis -- Note, tow away zones -- Enrolment figures very encouraging -- Faculty asks to meet presidential hopefuls -- Restore cutbacks, board asks -- One more step for student housing -- Off-campus credit course policy approved -- BCGEU negotiations start -- Appoints approved -- Women's centre fall workshops -- Anne Cameron reading -- Stress workshop -- Discovery room reopens -- Toll free lines misused -- Fact - opinion and the press -- Housing & travel subsidies -- Golf classic coming up -- Chaplin movie on Sunday, 27th -- Toll billing numbers -- Cowichan Valley post-secondary planning -- Amateur radio talk -- LRC acquisitions list available -- Teaching techniques workshop -- Barbeque a success -- For your diary https://viuspace.viu.ca/bitstream/handle/10613/684/MainlyMalSep22-81.pdf?sequence=3

Guess the weight of independence -- President's report items -- Gymnasium open and running -- 18 wheels, you can't go wrong -- College's role topic of lectures -- SAC meets November 24 -- Geography film series continues -- Brass tacks choir sings November 18 -- Milky way featured on Sunday, November 20 -- Order business cards now -- Curling bonspiel great success -- Staff changes in bursar's area -- Lunchtime theatre Thursday -- Ski film festival -- Telephone error -- Study skills centre announces seminar series -- Events this week https://viuspace.viu.ca/bitstream/handle/10613/614/MainlyMalNov14-77.pdf?sequence=4