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TOPICS

Conflicted? The World of War

This presentation takes a compelling look at the impact of war around the world - the truth, the lies, and the reality on the ground (what you won't read in the headlines) - and what can be done about it. Dr. Nutt will take you on a journey to war zones around the world, telling personal stories of both triumph and hardship, and what one person can do to really make a difference.

Culture and Identity

War is the ultimate clash of identities, the antithesis of tolerance and understanding between people of different cultures. We need only to look at the horrors of the Second World War, Rwanda, the former Yugoslavia, and Darfur (to name but a few) to make a convincing argument that war is fuelled by humanity’s failure to empathize; from our appalling capacity as human beings to disassociate from – and commit egregious acts against – those who look different, speak a different language, or practice a different religion, than the prevailing culture…

Wars take root when cultural dialogues fail, and crimes of war germinate in the language of hatred. These are the despicable, deplorable acts of genocide that are commonplace in the corridors of conflict.

Education

…As a university and as educators and administrators (even as parents), they have an important role to play in ensuring that young people are engaged in the issues that will shape their lives and determine their futures.

Leadership

Are you a leader? Leadership is such an elusive quality – it means different things to different people. But when we think of great leaders, and great leadership, some common trends emerge. Leaders have strength, they have courage; they have conviction. When we talk about leaders we know that there is just “something about them”, but were they born with this indefinable quality, that perfect balance of knowledge and charisma, or have they simply learned to communicate their experience and their ideas more effectively than the rest of us? Leaders encourage us to inspire, to think, and to demand more of ourselves and of our society. They connect us to something larger than ourselves. But is leadership just ingrained in certain people, in certain personalities, or can you acquire it? Can we all be leaders?

Samantha believes the answer is yes! Over the course of this 45-minute presentation she maps out for audiences the ways in which they can be a more effective leader – in the world and in the workplace. Because the capacity to lead exits in each and every one of us. The challenge lies in acquiring the skills, the awareness, and the competency to move beyond the status quo – and often the trick is in recognizing, and identifying, those opportunities for leadership (for growth) that exist all around you every single day…

We can all be effective agents for change if we have the courage to lead. And we can all lead if we have the determination to search for meaning in our work, and in our lives, and inspire others through our perseverance.

Medical

There must be dignity and respect for all peoples, and every child deserves the same level of concern – the same protection – as our own. People living in war zones all around the world understand this, and believe this, because they are reminded every single day of the many threads that bind their experience to the global reality.

As North Americans, we are people whose passion is health. We are people trained to respond to those who need our help. We take risks to fight disease epidemics, such as AIDS, SARS and influenza; we answer the call to work in some of the most heart-wrenching places on earth; we’re on the front lines of emergency rooms across this country, and we pioneer important research that changes lives every single year. In this presentation, Samantha shows audiences that it is time for us to lead, it is time for us to be heard, it is time for us to be politically aware and, even more importantly, politically engaged.

Social Responsibility

So what does it take to realize a vision of the world in which we act on our responsibilities as citizens, in which we advocate from the vantage point of our post Sept 11th sensibilities in favour of a world in which we are all more secure – in which we, as a global community, do a better job (not necessarily even a perfect job) of protecting civilians caught in the crossfire of war? To reduce, if not eliminate, the threat of war as a propagator of death, and disease and destruction and unfathomable hardship? What will this take?

In this presentation, Samantha explains that it takes nothing less than a dramatic shift in the global paradigm around war. In short, it takes nothing less than a moral and philosophical transformation around the privileged position we occupy in the world – geographically, politically and economically – and the responsibility that comes along with this so that we aren’t beating innocent people with a stick on the one hand, and unapologetically handing out band aids with the other.

This is not to deny the destructive role that bad governance, corruption, religious fanaticism and fascism have had in many conflict-ridden countries worldwide. Samantha’s point is, simply, that we need to start controlling the things that we have control over.

Student Activism/Public Engagement

War has everything to do with each and every one of us, no matter where we live in the world; we don’t have the right to say that it’s not our problem, because it’s everyone’s problem. It is not a question of charity; it is a question of our common humanity, and the kind of world we want to live in.

Women’s Issues

You never know what impact you can have on a person’s life – even on someone you’ve never met – and that, to Samantha is what International Women’s Day is all about: the recognition that the feminist movement was a beginning, not an end; that we are still a long way from achieving true gender equality; and that progress is borne out of our collective capacity to inspire, protect and affirm the rights of all women (not just here in Canada but around the world).