Category: Student Life

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Community Student Life

Gen Z, what’s happening to our desktops?!

James Fay/THE CONCORDIAN @jamesfaydraws

Recent study shows nearly half of Gen Z gave up on filing their digital documents

I was stunned when Philippe Gingras, creative writing and scriptwriting student at Université de Montréal, opened his laptop in front of me. With a B&W Charlie Chaplin movie wallpaper and images like old-school typewriters to replace those boring file icons, the 25-year-old’s desktop looks like a cool vintage poster.

“I see so many people in class whose desktops are really messy, and it kind of disturbs me,” he said, adding that his own desktop reflects his passions and motivates him.

However, messy desktops are pretty common among Gen Z — those currently aged between 11 and 26. According to file encryption company Nordlocker, almost half of Gen Z respondents leave all their documents on their desktop without a home.

Concordia journalism student Alexa Toguri-Laurin said her old laptop was very messy. She recently got a new laptop and worked hard to organize it better than the last one. “It doesn’t look too messy on my screen, so it doesn’t cause me too much anxiety every time I open my computer.”

The study shows 45 per cent of Gen Z respondents simply use their search bar, or the lovely CTRL+F (or CMD+F for Apple users) to find files rather than look for them. 

While Toguri-Laurin agrees the search option on her computer comes in handy, it’s useless without a consistent labeling system for your files. For her, naming files strategically is much simpler and less chaotic. “There’s so much sensory overload with how messy my desktop was,” she said. “It was so overwhelming for me to scan through my entire desktop and fish out one particular document.”

Tips and tricks from fellow university students

The human brain requires order to focus better. According to a Harvard Business Review article,  messy spaces are mentally exhausting and affect your ability to concentrate. Sarah-Maude Dussault, school and adaptation student from Université de Sherbrooke, uses an iPad but organizes her files thoroughly in Notability. “I have attention deficit disorder (ADD), so if I don’t save it, it never existed in my head,” she laughed. 

So, how do we organize our desktops?

Language and linguistics student at Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières and journalist Rosie St-André shared some handy tips. She explained that she learned how to organize her computer by watching YouTube and TikTok videos. She said that watching creators like Julia K. Crist, her favourite on YouTube, organize their digital space motivated her to do the same. “It also helps you identify what kind of style you like,” she said.

After watching a few videos, St-André decided to make her own wallpaper on Canva, where she could design and colour-code her background as she pleased. She split it into three sections: school, work, and finances. She also added a motivational quote and some pretty pictures for the aesthetics.

Organization as motivation

“I feel like people get discouraged when it comes to studying because it’s so complicated to get set up for it,” said Gingras. “It isn’t hard to study, it’s just hard to sit down and do it.”

For him, having an organized desktop means sitting down and avoiding a 15-minute search for his documents. We know it – motivation comes in temporary bursts. We need to seize it while it’s there. “I love knowing that I won’t have to search for my documents every time I sit down to get some work done,” said St-André.

Although Toguri-Laurin admits her desktop isn’t your typical aesthetically pleasing desktop from Pinterest, she’s happy with her progress. “It’s an example of how much better I am at organizing my life and making things better for myself,” she said. “I’m really proud of myself for accomplishing that, because I don’t have to stress myself out like I did five years ago.”

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Community Student Life

The Hive Cafe’s newest Community Fridge

The newly-launched Megan's Community Fridge offers free food for students facing food insecurity. CATHERINE REYNOLDS/The Concordian

A step to fight food insecurity for students.

 The Hive Cafe on Concordia’s Loyola Campus recently welcomed Megan’s Community Fridge. Students were buzzing with excitement. 

Megan’s Community Fridge is a big step in fighting food insecurity for students. Megan Clarke, a Concordia alumna, was the inspiration for this amazing project. Clarke was present at the Hive Cafe on Monday and helped set up the fridge alongside Enuf, an organization fighting the waste crisis.

Courtesy photo provided by Désirée McGraw. (From left to right: Désirée McGraw, Keroles Riad, Megan Clarke, and Alanna Silver)

The Concordian sat with Keroles Riad, the CEO of Enuf and one of the minds behind the Community Fridge. Riad explained that it wasn’t exactly simple to get the project up and running at Concordia.

“Students have been trying to convince the administration to set up a community fridge for at least 10 years, and they have consistently been stalled and eventually turned down,” he said. “We looked for spaces where community groups have a level of autonomy. The Hive Cafe was just perfect, because they already do a lot of work fighting food insecurity on campus, and so they are already reaching the people that need the additional help and they autonomously operate their own spaces on both campuses.”

With the installation of this new fridge, keeping it well-stocked is one of the challenges it currently faces. Riad explained that the fridge will be stocked from the surplus of food that is left over from events happening over the year. 

Waste ambassadors from Enuf will gather all the food and bring it to Megan’s Community Fridge. 

Clarke sat down with The Concordian and explained what the motivation to start this community fridge was. 

“When I was a teenager I found myself in a really tough situation, I was couch surfing and I used to dumpster dive,” Clarke recalled. “My friends and I noticed at a certain point that the dumpsters were being locked to stop people like myself from getting food. At the time, I didn’t have a valid ID to participate in food banks.”

Clarke worked three jobs to get herself out of that situation. Her struggles with food always lingered at the back of her mind and when she began university, she realized that not everyone could get out of the same situation like her.

“I started Food Cycle while I was at Concordia and we would take leftover food and give it to homeless shelters, women’s shelters and so on,” Clarke said.

Megan Clarke in front of the new Megan’s Community Fridge at the Hive Cafe on Concordia’s Loyola Campus. DALIA NARDOLILLO/The Concordian

That’s what kickstarted the idea for the Community Fridge. However, when the pandemic first came along, people became fearful that the virus would be pushed onto food which put a standstill on the project.

Enuf, in partnership with the Hive Cafe, finally got the project going. Working at the Hive Cafe, Alanna Silver is also an integral part of this community fridge. Silver is FoodSafe certified and acts as Enuf’s Chief Operating Officer and the Hive’s administrative coordinator. Riad explained that Silver will ensure the safety of the community being served and have the final say of what goes in the Community Fridge.


“​​I feel so grateful to have the privilege of taking part in making this project a reality,” Riad said proudly. “It is truly heartbreaking to know that 40 per cent of students in Canada say that they have to choose between paying tuition and buying enough food, at a time when we, in Canada, throw away more than half the food we produce. There is surplus food, and there are hungry student tummies. It shouldn’t have been this complicated to try to connect the two.”

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Community Student Life

Hit the slopes with Concordia’s Ski and Snowboarding Club

Courtesy photo of the Concordia Ski and Snowboarding club.

See what the club has in store for winter 2023.

With the winter break all on our minds, it is a given that everyone is looking for things to do during the chilly season. The Concordia Ski and Snowboard Club is ready to welcome another event-filled winter.

The Concordian had the chance to sit down with four executives from the club: Michelle Fraser, Sebastian Adam, Ajay Weinstein, and Antoine Denis.

Adam, the VP internal on the team, recalled his earliest memories as a kid snowboarding for the first time.

“My dad put me on a board before I could walk so he’s always been a super big ‘boarder’. As soon as I could fit on a snowboard I was riding. I never started with skiing, I went with the better of the two,” Adam said. 

While every executive on the team has a different relationship with skiing and snowboarding, they all shared the same excitement for the upcoming season.

Fraser, the VP of social media for the club, explained the upcoming events for this winter.

“We just posted our trip schedule for the upcoming ski season. We have all the dates on our Instagram page. We are going to a variety of different locations around Quebec like Mont Orford and Mont Tremblant,” Fraser explained. 

“Our two most exciting events are our ‘weekender’ events. We’re having one in Quebec city and we are having one in Vermont at Jay Peak,” Fraser added. 

The “weekender” events have been done in the past, but they had to be put on hold for the past couple of years due to COVID restrictions. During these events, participants of the ski and snowboard club go away for one weekend, stay at a hotel, ski, and party. 

For beginners who want to try out the club but feel apprehensive due to their skill level, the club’s executives assure you that the club is for everyone. 

Weinstein, the president of the club, explained that the team is there to help answer any questions that you may have while going down the slopes.

“One of the things that we try to do with the club is that we try to get new people to come out. Obviously, in terms of liability, we can’t teach beginners how to ride but we try to make it as accessible as possible,” he said. “We make sure that it’s accessible because we know how difficult it is as a beginner because every element of skiing is super expensive.”

With accessibility on the forefront, the club hopes to recruit as many participants as they can for their most anticipated events for winter 2023. 

So get out there! You can find out more about this club on their website. 

COURTESY PHOTOS OF THE CONCORDIA SKI AND SNOWBOARDING CLUB.

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Community Student Life

Movember 2022 with JMo’SB

Graphic by Carleen Loney

Been ‘staching away my Movember motivation

Now that we are in November, many may associate this month with the events linked to Movember.

In case you have been living under a rock, let me break down what Movember is exactly.

Movember is the mustache-growing charity event that occurs all throughout the course of November. The people who choose to participate in Movember donate to charities that support Men’s mental health initiatives. As well as bring awareness to men’s physical health issues like prostate cancer. 

Now you might be asking yourself, Movember sounds great but how can I support these events as a student here at Concordia?

This is where the JMo’SB team at Concordia comes into play. In case you have never heard of JMo’SB, they are a non-profit sub-committee within the Commerce and Administration Student Association (CASA) cares. Their entire purpose is to raise money for men’s mental health initiatives throughout the month of November.

The team first started back in 2011 when a group of JMSB students came together to raise funds for Movember. 

Fast-forward to last year, the JMo’SB team raised over $42,000 for men’s mental health initiatives. This year the team is aiming to raise over $50,000. If you would like to donate, please visit this page.

The president and co-president of JMo’SB, Liam Pinsonneault-Emond and Andrea Valcarcel gave The Concordian the inside scoop on what’s happening for Movember.

“We don’t actually have an event on November 19th for International Men’s Day but we have a lot of other events happening throughout the month,” Valcarcel said.  “For example on November 18th we have a mental health day and it’s going to be at HIVE cafe, and it’s in collaboration with John Molson Women and Leadership. There’s going to be a lot of relaxing activities at that event, like decorating cookies, painting tote bags and there are also going to be panelists.”

The Nov. 18 event will be especially special because speakers from the Movember foundation itself will be among the panelists.

“We are also doing a comedy night which is going to be on November 20th at Montreal comedy club. We are actually in contact with the people from the comedy club and we asked them if the comedians could do a Movember theme. They said that they would try and find comedians that could do that,” Valcarcel explained. 

Over the course of Nov. 7-11, the team also hosted two bake sales to further advance their fundraising efforts. 

The month of November is an exciting time for the JMo’SB to further incite students at Concordia to participate in their events. Emond made a point to emphasize not to forget about one important thing during this month.

“For the people that this could sort of resonate with, if you have men in your life that are close to you, check in with them from time to time,” Emond explained. “Talk to them and make sure that they are okay, it doesn’t sound like much but just asking a guy how his day is going or how he’s doing, it would mean a lot to them.”

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Community Student Life

Mushroom Workshop At le Frigo vert

Workshop facilitator and herbalist Hunter Cubitt-Cooke has been a collective member of Le Frigo Vert for eight years. CATHERINE REYNOLDS/The Concordian

On Nov 2. 2022, Le Frigo Vert hosted a mushroom workshop where participants can learn about how to use mushrooms in a variety of ways.

Workshop attendees learned to make their own mushroom tinctures from red belted conk, birch polypore, chaga, and reishi mushrooms. CATHERINE REYNOLDS/The Concordian

Different mushroom tinctures. CATHERINE REYNOLDS/The Concordian

Different herbs, spices, and mushrooms that participants can choose from. CATHERINE REYNOLDS/The Concordian

The participant is seen putting mushroom tincture into their container. CATHERINE REYNOLDS/The Concordian

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Community Student Life

University of Münster Case Challenge 2022

Courtesy of Michael Lecchino

John Molson School of Business brings home the first big win at an international case competition since 2019.

This year, the University of Münster Case Challenge (UMCC) took place for the sixth year in a row. Twelve schools from around the globe participated in the event, including the John Molson School of Business representing Concordia University.  

The Concordian had the pleasure of speaking with Michael Lecchino, one of the members on the JMSB team.

“The way JMSB sends delegates to international competitions is you usually have to be a part of JMCC. The JMCC is the John Molson Competition Committee. Once you are a part of this club, you take a case competition course and it teaches you how to do case cracks and get better at these case competitions,” Lecchino explained.

When a student at JMSB gets involved with the JMCC, they often get sent to regional competitions, like the Jeux du Commerce, for example. 

“I was able to participate in and go [to the UMCC] with three other academic delegates. My colleagues were Émile Martel, Dylan Ross, and Taylor Graham. We ended up going to the case competition in Münster, Germany, two weeks ago. There are some case competitions that happen in Australia, Alberta and many more, however they fall into the winter semester,” Lecchino said. 

Lecchino also broke down the competition for The Concordian.

“From when we arrived in Münster, our first case came in on Thursday. This was the shorter case, it was a four-hour case. We crack it and create a presentation and we pitch it to a panel of judges on that very same day,” Lecchino recalled. 

This case was regarding a business called lemon.markets. The business wanted to establish a go-to market strategy and acquire business-to-business customers. The JMSB team successfully pitched it to the panel of judges.

“The next day on Friday, we have a ten-hour case. So we spend ten hours going through the case, creating a presentation and we don’t present. We presented on Saturday morning,” Lecchino said.

The ten-hour-long case was a sustainable urban development strategy for the city of Cologne.

On Saturday morning, the winners of each division were announced. These winners faced off in the finals with their respective presentations for the second case. 

“It was the first time we won and we podiumed at an International case competition since 2019,” Lecchino said. 

The UMCC was a great experience for Lecchino, and he recognized it as a huge honour to be able to represent JMSB alongside his colleagues. 

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Community Student Life

Let the good times roll

Graphic by Carleen Loney

How one student’s initiative is bringing the Concordia community together

Among the many clubs to choose from at Concordia, there is one that takes communal building up a notch.

The Concordian spoke with Asma Kattan, a human relations major and founder of the roller skating club, about how she got the idea to form it.

“I am the founder of the roller skating club, I’ve curated it and put all my heart into it. [I wanted] the community to have a place where people can get together to share one hobby and interest and gather to rollerskate,” Kattan explained.

When Kattan was looking for a club to join at Concordia, there was nothing that was remotely close to what she was looking for. 

She made a call to the CSU and got all the information she needed to start her own club at Concordia. Kattan was told that she had to write up a cover letter, a constitution, and petitions.

“We needed around 50 petitions and we exceeded that amount. It was so fulfilling. There is so much big interest for our club now and it is getting bigger and bigger,” Kattan said.

For Kattan, the main goal of the club has always been to unite people and allow them to truly learn from each other.

Roller skating is a great way to improve your overall fitness level because it is essentially a full body workout.

The CSU roller skating club is extremely active on their social media. Their Instagram handle is @rollerskatingclubmtl. On their feed, they have posted many photos and videos from their events that were held in August before school started.

The Concordian was curious to know what the club’s future plans are, going into winter. 

“We usually in the summer head to open tennis courts. In the winter, which is about eight months in Canada, we have it in private indoor safe-gated venues,” Kattan explained.

Kattan has planned four big roller skating events for the winter months. 

For newcomers who want to join the club, Kattan reassured The Concordian that there are full safety measures put in place.

“Precautions are important. We have first of all a tutor that makes sure what level each person is at. So if you’re a beginner, we definitely recommend wearing the protections for roller skating. Most of the people that are members have their own equipment. They’ve been around,” Kattan said.

The club makes all participants sign a waiver of the terms and conditions that outline that the participants are solely responsible for their own safety and security.

If you’re looking for free food, music and lots of good times, look no further. Sign up for the club using this link!

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Community Student Life

Concordia’s Greenhouse

Greenhouse pond room. Thomas Vaillancourt/THE CONCORDIAN

The 13th floor: a little hidden gem of paradise.

Did you know that Concordia University has its very own greenhouse? It was opened in 1966 when the Hall Building was built.

This hidden gem located at the downtown campus is a little hard to find at first. But once you start seeing the painted plants on the walls of the stairwell leading you up to the 13th floor, you’ll know you are going in the right direction

.

Dominique Smith, the outreach and communications coordinator of the Greenhouse, gave The Concordian all the ins and outs of this space.

“I became the outreach coordinator a couple of months ago. The Greenhouse is a collection of different working groups that make up the community. Essentially, we are the people who create the agriculture community through workshops, volunteer hours and the staff that upkeeps the space,” Smith said.

He explained that his job at the Greenhouse is to work with all the different working groups that occupy the space, those groups being HydroFlora, Co-Op CultivAction, City Farm School and more.

Smith is also working on creating a vlog to explain the projects of those working groups, almost like a farmer’s almanac. 

Smith emphasized that The Greenhouse as a whole is a collective space. 

The staff at the Greenhouse, in partnership with HydroFlora, have brought back the Greenhouse to its pre-pandemic state. 

“We came together to revamp the atrium spaces. So you have the front atrium which has always been available for students to rent or study in. Now we have a pond room that students are able to rent or study in as well,” Smith explained. 

Smith explained how the layout of the Greenhouse is organized.

If one walks to the back of the Greenhouse, they can see all the sections where the different working groups such as CultivAction grow food for the HIVE cafes at Concordia University. 

HydroFlora is the working group that helps maintain the house plants in the Greenhouse. They also give classes and provide students with job opportunities.

Not only is the Greenhouse a collective space for the working groups, it’s also a space to give workshops and classes.

“All these different working groups try to give students here at Concordia an entrance into the agricultural world. Sometimes it’s hard being high up and technically kind of far away from the ground floor,” Smith said. 

Although the Greenhouse is a great initiative at Concordia, Smith stressed that the space is very finite and can’t accommodate a lot of people at once. 

So if you are at the downtown campus, feel free to give the Greenhouse a visit but make sure not to take too many friends with you or else you won’t be able to get a seat.

Photographs by Thomas Vaillancourt/THE CONCORDIAN

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Community Student Life

Things to do in Montreal this month

CHRISTINE BEAUDOIN/The COncordian

October is not only for frights but many adventurous nights.

  1. Ramen Ramen Fest 

Where: In participating restaurants around Montreal 

When: Oct. 11-16 

What: A celebration of the iconic dish. You can try different ramen dishes around Montreal and then vote for the best online.

  1. Fright Fest

Where: La Ronde, Île Sainte-Hélène

When: every Saturday and Sunday from Oct. 8-30 

What: The amusement park has several haunted houses open to try, as well as zombies and vampires parading the park. 

  1.  Arab World Festival of Montreal

Where: Place des Arts 

When: Oct. 29 through Nov. 13

What: A multidisciplinary event that looks at the intercultural exchanges of the Arab and Western world. You can see a variety of performance pieces, art exhibits, and films from all over the world. 

  1. Montreal Connect

Where: online and in Montreal 

When: Oct. 15 – 23 

What: A festival that looks at digital development and its connection with many topics. Expect guest speakers, events and conferences. 

  1. Fika

What: An immersive festival of Scandinavian and Nordic culture and art.

Where: Participating locations around Montreal 

When: Oct. 17-23

  1.  SOS Labyrinthe Halloween Special

What: A halloween themed maze.

When: Every weekend until Halloween 

Where: Old Port of Montreal 

  1. Imagining a Queer Eruv: A Walking Conversation

Where: Starting in St-Viateur Park Outremont, 

When: Oct. 19

What: A walk and discussion with artist and researcher Iso E. Setel. 

  1. Walk the Promenade Fleuve-Montagne

Where: From Mont Royal near Pine and Peel

When: Any day

What: A 3.8 km walk that connects Mount Royal and the St. Lawrence river. 

  1. Le sentier du cœur de l’île

Where: downtown Montreal

When: Any day 

What: An interactive path that you can walk or cycle that goes across some of Montreal’s cultural landscapes as well as art installations.

  1. Quinn’s Farm 

Where: 2495 Boul Perrot, Notre-Dame-de-l’Île-Perrot

What: Farm visit including apple picking and pumpkin picking. 

When: October

  1. Yayoi Kusama: DANCING LIGHTS THAT FLEW UP TO THE UNIVERSE

Where: PHI Centre 

What: Yayoi Kusama is one of the most popular living contemporary artists today. She worked alongside the PHI Centre to bring her first exhibit to Montreal in celebration of the location’s 15th anniversary. 

When: Wednesday to Sunday until Jan. 15

  1. Festival du Nouveau Cinéma

Where: Participating venues around Montreal

When: Oct. 5 -16 

What: A festival showing hundreds of new and interesting films from a wide variety of genres. 

  1. Montreal’s Off Jazz Festival 

Where: Varying locations around Montreal

When: Oct. 6-15

What: A series of jazz concerts and shows, organised by Montreal jazz artists.

  1. Light The Night

Where: Virtual event

When: Saturday, Oct. 22

What: A fundraiser for those affected by blood cancer. 

  1. Carnaval des Couleurs

Where: Quartier de Spectacles

When: Oct. 7-9 

What: A celebration of LGBTQ+ communities, with shows and themed workshops regarding issues on homophobia and racism.

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Community Student Life

Comic Book Club execs at Concordia give us the rundown

Photograph by Emily MacDonald. Graphic by Lily Cowper/The Concordian

Superhero fans rejoice! The Concordia Comic book club is back in action.

 My friend showed me his huge comic book collection, it was quite a marvel.

Concordia Comic Book Club executives Emily MacDonald, Liam Quraeshi, and Wade Maddin explain all there is to know about comics.

“I think it started when I found my dad’s collection of comics. He had them in the basement and one time I was down there I found them all. It was quite a sight to see,” Quraeshi recalled. “Before then I never really bought any comics, so seeing all these varieties of ‘Spiderman’ and ‘X-Men,’ I became very interested in that whole world.”

Maddin explained that his early years of collecting were very much influenced by the cartoons that he watched at the time.

“A lot of the cartoons I watched growing up were all stuff like Batman. I was also a big fan of the Avengers TV show back when that was a thing,” Maddin recalled.

Just as each member became interested in comic books in various ways, their safekeeping methods differ as well.

MacDonald, who has been interested in comics since the age of 14, keeps her comics stored in four big boxes. 

“I have a few hundred, like individual issues. In the comic industry the stuff that you keep the comics in is called a bag and board.

Quraeshi, on the other hand, uses the knowledge that he has acquired as a history major and applies it to the safekeeping of his collection.

“The best way to preserve any sort of paper, writing and comics included, is to keep them in a nice dry and dark area. Too much light can damage the comic by draining the colour.  If the area is too moist, the paper kind of smudges a bit and they can get stuck together,” Quraeshi explained.

Quraeshi also advises any new comic collectors to have paper dividers in between each and every issue. This is for purposes of organization as well as to protect the condition of the actual issue. 

In terms of the value of comic book issues, The Concordian was able to learn more about what makes comics valuable.

“Supply and demand is a big factor. Whenever there is a relatively small amount of a certain item, value increases. In some cases it can differ, a good example is the ‘Action Comics 1,’ it’s not only one of the first detective comics but it also debuts one of the most popular superheroes, Superman,” Quraeshi said.

Quraeshi, along with his two other colleagues, is eager to spread his passion for comic books with new members. 
Potential new members can join the Concordia Comic Book Club Discord server and their other socials through this link.

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Music Student Life Videos

ChatCordia: What Are Students Listening to?

The Concordian’s Music editor Guillaume Laberge and Video editor Jordan Tsering, asked students about their go-to songs that get them through the year.

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Community Student Life

Fridays For Future at Concordia University

Concordia students are making a difference in the fight against climate change.

September 23 marked the latest protest for climate justice organized by Fridays For Future in Montreal. This month, Concordia University marched for climate justice, along with many other schools. 

Fridays For Future is a movement that was started by climate activist Greta Thunberg. Thunberg was 15 at the time when she helped initiate the movement back in August 2018. She, along with other activists, sat in front of the Swedish parliament for three straight weeks to protest the lact of action for our climate crisis.

Students at Concordia University actively took part in a strike on Friday, Sept. 23 to protest against climate change.

The Concordian was present at the climate march to document the protest and speak with students about their involvement with climate justice.

THOMAS VAILLANCOURT/The Concordian

On the morning of the march, students assembled on the Reggies bar terrace behind the Hall Building at Concordia. 

Speeches were given by  students who work at the Hive about the purpose of the day’s march, demanding two things: 

  • Ban fossil fuels by 2030, in terms of production, processing, exports and imports. 
  • Impose a massive tax on the wealthy while  reinvesting into public services and social programs to ensure decent living conditions for all.

As the speeches concluded on the Reggies terrace, The Concordian met up with Concordia student Octavie Doherty-Haigh. Haigh gave her thoughts about why she was participating in the march.

“I came here to the climate march today, because I know that change needs to happen. I know that during the pandemic, there’s been so much of a shutdown and that’s why it’s important to be here in person,” Haigh explained.“I know that consuming meat is one of the biggest contributing factors to CO2 levels rising, so I’ve taken meat out of my diet. I also plant trees during the summertime.”

THOMAS VAILLANCOURT/The Concordian

Students from Dawson College soon joined Concordia students to begin the climate march.

Concordia, Dawson, and McGill students marched together to the George-Étienne Cartier Monument situated on Mont-Royal. 

At the monument, all the participating schools and organizations assembled. 

The Concordian spoke to three other students about their involvement in combating climate change.

Anna Abbott explained how individual change can make a difference in the community. 

“I do believe in individual change, I take the public transport when I can. I’ve been vegan for six years now. Bigger movements like this are so important to engage the community,” Abbott explained. 

Many of the students at the climate march are actively switching to a plant-based or completely vegan diet in order to combat climate change. Others at the climate march simply just turned up, like Concordia student Gabriel Casola.

“I am not doing much to combat climate change in my own life. I am here at this event and I am more than happy to be involved,” Casola said.

At the monument, a speech was given by the President of the National Committee for the Rights of First Nations Normand Pilot. 

Pilot spoke about how as a community, we have to take care of Mother Earth and how future generations won’t have a chance if we don’t.

Everyone at the protest wanted to have their voices heard. Over 130,000 students were in attendance.

THOMAS VAILLANCOURT/The Concordian

Fellow Concordia student and theatre major Julia Pye summarized protesters’ thoughts on the event succinctly:

“I think the most important fight in climate change is the vote. I think that the government holds all the power and if we don’t get young people out there to vote, it’s going to be a horrible thing. Even talking to people around here so many people don’t know about the Quebec elections. I think educating the youth on that is the most important and knowing who you are voting for can literally save the planet.”

See More Photos From The March:

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