Sociology students present at CARFMS national conference
2013-04-12 09:22:52
Three Mount Allison sociology students recently presented their research at the annual Canadian Association for Refugee and Forced Migration Studies (CARFMS) Conference. This was the first time that CARFMS has invited undergraduate students to present at the conference, which was held at Saint Mary’s University in Halifax and co-organized by Mount Allison sociology professor and president of CARFMS, Dr. Morgan Poteet. Briana Miller, Vanessa Million, and Courtney Young presented their papers and Patience McCann, another sociology student, also attended and helped with the organization of the conference.
The conference theme was “Spaces of Refuge: Exploring Practices, Perceptions and Policies in Forced Migration and (Re)Settlement.” The students were able to hear talks from such notable speakers as Iain Logan, director of the Global Emergency Group, Furio De Angelis, from the UN Refugee Agency, Lee Cohen, immigration and human rights lawyer, Brian Goodman, chair of the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, and Ted Itani from the Canadian Red Cross.
“It was a wonderful opportunity for our sociology students to showcase their talents on an international stage,” said Dr. Erin Steuter, head of the Mount Allison’s sociology department.
The students presented their final research papers from a refugee studies course taught by Poteet. Young, who hails from Kanata, ON, is president of Mount Allison’s branch of the World University Service of Canada (WUSC) and is involved with their Student Refugee Program (SRP). “My experience with SRP actually inspired my refugee studies paper, which I was then able to present at the conference,” she said. “On a personal level, it was really cool to connect some of the speakers’ work to concepts and issues I have learned about in classes and also to the extracurricular activities I am involved in at Mount Allison, such as the SRP program.”
Miller, who presented a critical analysis of Bill C-31 using a human rights perspective, was inspired by work she had done with a group of refugees from Nepal. The Lakeview, NS resident says, “It was an amazing learning experience. First to hear from those impacted in Nepal, study the issue in class, and then be at a conference with those pushing forward changes and those critiquing them. The conference was also a great opportunity to network.”
Million, who is from London, ON, presented a paper on climate refugees. “I was extremely happy for the chance to present my paper but also to hear other students and speakers talk about the work that they were doing.”
McCann, who is from Falmouth, ME, came away with experience in the logistics of conference administration. “The experience was great, to meet the experts who currently hold the positions we hope to hold in the future was motivating and inspirational,” she said.
CARFMS is made up of faculty, students, and practitioners who work with refugees and forced migrants. Poteet was elected president in 2012. His mandate is to increase interdisciplinary participation in the association, achieve better regional representation in the membership, and expand student and refugee participation in the annual conference. He says these goals were largely met this year.
“This is the first year that the conference was held outside central Canada. We had the Halifax Refugee Clinic host a reception for the conference, and their members were in attendance and volunteered at the conference. The Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21 also hosted a reception,” said Poteet.
The students’ participation in the conference was supported by the Campbell-Verduyn fund.
Photo caption: From left to right are, Briana Miller, (presenting), Morgan Poteet, Vanessa Million, and Courtney Young preparing for the CARFMS conference held this spring in Halifax. This year marked the first time undergraduate students were invited to present at the national organization’s conference. Missing from the photo is student Patience McCann who also attended and helped organize the conference.