KAMLOOPS – Three faculty members at Thompson Rivers University have netted a $17,000 Grant in Aid of Workshops and Conferences from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) for the “Still the ‘Last Best West’ or Just Like the Rest? Interrogating Western Canadian Identities Conference, to be held at the university this fall.
Terry Kading (Political Science), Anne Gagnon (History) and Ginny Ratsoy (English), who are involved in the Centre for the Study of Canada (CSC), located at TRU, are co-organizers of the upcoming event, which will run from Thursday, September 13 to Sunday, September 16, and includes talks, entertainment, two art exhibits, panel discussions and tours.
Anne Gagnon, CSC director and conference coordinator, said, “We’re very grateful to receive the Workshop and Conference Grant from SSHRC, and are also pleased to be supported by a variety of community organizations and businesses, including the Kamloops Chapter of the Council of Canadians, The Smorgasbord Restaurant, Kamloops Film Society, TRU’s Comprehensive University Endowment Fund, Douglas & McIntyre Publishing, the TRU Bookstore, Earl’s Kamloops Restaurant and Clearly Flowers.”
The conference, created to enable an estimated 150 participants to discuss and examine some of the cultural, social, and political ways in which Canada’s four western provinces have informed the wider imagination, is not just for scholars, said Gagnon.
“People of all backgrounds will be interested in some of the presentations, and the conference will include two art exhibits which are open to the public, and two free pre-conference public lectures,” she explained, also noting that two presentations, “Selling the West” and “Arts and Quality of Life in Five Western Canadian Communities,” will be webcast.
Early bird registration for the conference ends this Thursday. Those wishing to register or find out more may do so online at www.tru.ca/lbwc or by emailing CSC@tru.ca.
For more information, please contact Anne Gagnon at 250-828-5057 or email: agagnon@tru.ca.
