Walk to improve your social wellness!
Have you held a door open for anyone lately? Something as simple as that can have a positive effect on your social well-being, which is an important part of overall health and happiness. That’s the theme of this year’s hour-long President’s Fitwalk, which starts in front of the University Centre at noon on June 24. "It’s the little things in life that make a difference," says wellness and lifestyle programmer Kathi Cameron (athletics & recreation). "Social wellness has the same effect on quality of life as the spiritual, intellectual, physical and emotional components." If you can’t make it on June 24 but still want to support your department team, register your name with the athletics and recreation office in McKinnon and walk the Ring Road anytime until June 23. For more information, call 472-4038 or e-mail kcameron@uvic.ca.

All alumni invited to upcoming AGM
The UVic Alumni Association holds its annual general meeting beginning at 7 p.m. on June 22 in the University Club. All alumni are welcome to attend. The meeting marks the conclusion of President Doug Johnson’s term. He’s expected to be succeeded by 1964 faculty of education alumnus Larry Cross, currently association vice-president. The association will also name Dr. Gerry Poulton (chemistry) an honorary alumnus in recognition of his extensive involvement as the board’s faculty representative. And the Volunteer Appreciation Award will be given to Shirley Tucker, a long-serving member of the alumni board and a founding member of the Victoria College at Craigdarroch Castle Alumni Association. Register online at www.alumni.uvic.ca/events.

UVic launches pilot thesis project
Are you a graduate student who will be defending your thesis between July 1 and Dec. 31? If yes, then a UVic pilot project needs your help. UVic libraries, the faculty of graduate studies, graduate admissions and records, and computing user services have teamed up to test digital submission of graduate theses. The benefit to grad students is that their research will be available online within weeks of completion. The advantage for UVic is that the research will be made public almost immediately and the library will save shelf space. The project complements the mandate of Thesis Canada to acquire, preserve and provide access to a comprehensive collection of Canadian theses at Library and Archives Canada. Interested grad students or supervisors can contact the electronic thesis and dissertations (ETD) project at uvthesis@uvic.ca or visit its website at web.uvic.ca/~uvthesis.

Children’s art shows positive change
Visit the A. Wilfrid Johns Gallery in the MacLaurin Building this month and see Afghanistan through children’s eyes. A new collection of drawings by Afghan children is on display following a 2003 exhibit of art by children in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Canada. The new exhibit shows a marked difference from the previous one, which was largely characterized by depictions of violence and war. "It’s an amazing transformation from kids who were in desperate states, who were basically living through war," says Dr. Timothy Hopper, an assistant professor of physical education and co-ordinator of the Global Arts project. The goal of the artwork is to connect students and teachers around the world. "You don’t need to be speaking Swahili or Kurdish or Farsi to understand what children are saying," says Hopper. From July 4–8 the Global Arts project is running a Summer Institute at UVic. For more information visit www.educ.uvic.ca/site/lawwwart/lawwwart.htm.