We are pleased to announce the call for applications for the 2012 Alan Thomas Fellowship to Promote Civil Society and Voluntary Action. First awarded in 2008, there are now six Fellowship recipients.

The 2012 Fellowship will again be awarded to a leader in the NGO/not-for-profit sector, who would not normally have access to a sabbatical leave.

Valued at a maximum of $60,000 for a period of up to one year, the award is open to Canadian citizens and permanent residents. It will free the recipient from other responsibilities, to make a contribution to the sector through research and reflection.

In recognition of a shared desire to strengthen and support leadership capacity in the voluntary sector, as an essential element in advancing social change, both locally and internationally, the Carold Institute and Cuso International are now working together to promote our respective fellowship opportunities – the  Alan Thomas Fellowship and Cuso International’s first annual Bob Ward Memorial Fellowship.

The deadline for applications is Friday March 30, 2012.

The Carold Institute announced today the recipient of the 2011 Alan Thomas Fellowship, a $60,000 grant established to provide a sabbatical year to an award applicant wanting to reflect on, and research issues that advance citizenship, participation, and social change.

 The 2011 award winner is John B. Cox of Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, for his application Getting Included: How Labeled Individuals Have Impacted Inclusion. John is a community development worker with a long history of advocacy on behalf of persons with disabilities. For the past 23 years he has worked with the Nova Scotia chapter of People First, a well- recognized self-advocacy organization for people who have been labeled intellectually disabled.

 The Alan Thomas Fellowship will provide John with a sabbatical to examine the advocacy work of people labeled as having intellectual disabilities, and their influence and impact on Canadian policies of inclusion. Through documentation, research and reflection on the historical work of People First of Canada, including his own life-long advocacy, John will chronicle how this national not-for-profit has mobilized civil society to push for key policy changes.

 This project will advance the objectives of the Fellowship, which is designed to:

• strengthen networks among civil society leaders and social movements
• add to the understanding of related issues of policy and practice
• capture practitioners’ knowledge
• generate activities that will have a multiplier effect

 The first Alan Thomas  Fellowship was awarded in 2008. John Cox is the sixth recipient of the award. Past Fellowship recipients continue to be connected to the Carold Institute, disseminating the results of their work and mentoring others in their various fields.

 For more information on this award and on the work of the Carold Institute, contact :

Arpi Hamalian (telephone 514 848 2424 ext. 2014 or 514 486 6170 arpi.hamalian@sympatico.ca)

It is vital that the events of those difficult few days last June be fully and publicly examined, and that the federal government— which had responsibility for the security arrangements—be held accountable for what was at least complicity with rights violations.

It was one of the least noticed and yet most important of the loose ends left dangling when the election was called. On the very day the Harper minority government fell, the Commons Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security tabled a report calling for a public inquiry into rights violations during last June’s G20 Summit in Toronto.

Sadly, the issue got no serious debate during the election. But it’s crucial that this report and its central recommendation not be swept under the rug when the new Parliament sits. Canada’s very reputation as a country that takes human rights seriously is at stake.

In addition to which, of course, the planned and arbitrary detention of hundreds of citizens, many of whom were unfortunate bystanders, should sound warning bells for all Canadians who value their fundamental rights.

Let’s start by noting that the report can’t be dismissed as an isolated outcome of an opposition-dominated Parliament, because the committee is not alone in its conclusions.

As early as last August, the Canadian Civil Liberties Association (CCLA)—which had independent observers on the ground throughout the G20—reported on human rights violations in the form of arbitrary arrests, degrading detention conditions, use of plastic bullets and tear gas on innocent people, and abusive police behaviour.

The pattern of rights violations identified by the CCLA is corroborated by statements gathered from dozens of detained citizens by the Ligue des droits et libertés du Québec.

And a subsequent report from the Ontario Ombudsman concluded that the state “infringe[d] on freedom of expression in ways that do not seem justifiable in a free and democratic society”.

Nor was the G20 an isolated event, and nor is the resulting scrutiny confined within Canada’s borders. What’s emerging is a recurrent pattern of deeply troubling state behaviour, and Canadians should be aware that it’s attracting international attention.

At the “Three Amigos Summit” in Montebello in 2007, for example, Sûreté du Quebec members were unmasked with rocks in hand while inciting a small number of demonstrators to violence. These agents provocateurs then disappeared behind security force lines before rubber bullets and tear gas were used to“calm” a peaceful crowd.

Canada is now overdue to file a report and undergo a mandatory periodic review of its compliance with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Both the Montebello incident and the events of the G20 will be part of a disturbing trend that civil society groups will highlight during this review process.

And if that results in a formal expression of concern, as is likely, it won’t be the first time. Abusive use of the power of arrest to stifle political expression was also raised during Canada’s last review under the covenant.

The context then was the treatment of protesters during the 2001 Quebec Summit of the Americas, and during an International Day Against Police Brutality in Montreal. Canada was admonished by the UN committee conducting the review to “ensure that the right of persons to peacefully participate in social protests is respected, and ensure that only those committing criminal offences during demonstrations are arrested.”

Canada fell far short of that standard again during the G20, and this will figure into future findings and actions on the part of international bodies tasked with safeguarding human rights. Beyond the review noted above, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights is considering actions that may include appointing a rapporteur-special to examine G20 events, based on submissions it has received from civil society groups.

The use of mass arrests to prevent citizens from expressing themselves places Canada squarely on the proverbial slippery slope, and threatens our international standing.

It is eroding a proud Canadian legacy—one extending from John Humphrey’s drafting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights to Louise Arbour’s groundbreaking efforts as UN high commissioner for human rights and in prosecuting international war crimes.

It is vital that the events of those difficult few days last June be fully and publicly examined, and that the federal government— which had responsibility for the security arrangements—be held accountable for what was at least complicity with rights violations. A full inquiry is the best way of achieving the simple imperative defined by the Commons committee: “to ensure that similar events never happen again in Canada.”

The new Parliament needs to heed this call from the old one, and it needs to do so quickly.

Vincent Greason is a public legal education expert and currently holds a Law Foundation of Ontario Community Leadership in Justice Fellowship at the University of Ottawa’s Human Rights Research and Education Centre. The opinions expressed are his own.

Paula Carr has worked in the community services sector for over 30 years in Ontario, Saskatchewan and British Columbia. She is currently the Executive Director of the Collingwood Neighbourhood House, a non-profit centre delivering a wide variety of community-based services ranging from childcare and recreation to settlement services in a highly multicultural Vancouver neighbourhood. For 25 years, CNH has been a leader in integrated service delivery and organizational development. In 2007, CNH was recognized internationally with the European BMW Award for Intercultural Learning.

Paula has been awarded a $60,000 Alan Thomas Fellowship to  study the methodologies of creating socially inclusive environments and developing intercultural leadership that have distinguished the Collingwood Neighbourhood House, in order to develop resources for work in similar contexts.

Michel Venne is the Executive Director and founder of the Institut du Nouveau Monde (INM), a non-partisan organization whose mission is to promote citizen participation and to stimulate innovative public discourse in Quebec.  INM was established in 2004 and was awarded  the Prix Claire-Bonenfant in 2005 by the Quebec government for promoting democratic values and citizenship education. Each summer, the INM organizes a citizenship school for young people and also hosts dialogues between ordinary citizens and recognized leaders. Each year, it also publishes L’État de Québec (a report on the state of Québec) and offers a number of programs designed to provide information, stimulate debate and mobilize citizens.

Michel has been awarded a $60,000 Alan Thomas Fellowship to  examine the role of citizen participation in the creation and implementation of social innovation, with a particular focus on the work of the Institut du Nouveau Monde (INM), its citizenship schools and its citizen forums.

These projects will advance the objectives of the Fellowship, which is designed to:

• Strengthen networks among civil society leaders and social movements
• Add to the understanding of related issues of policy and practice
• Capture practitioners’ knowledge
• Generate activities that will have a multiplier effect

The Alan Thomas Fellowship is awarded annually to senior leaders in the NGO sector, to provide for a period of reflection and an opportunity to share the fruits of their experience and knowledge more widely. The Fellowship is one year’s duration and past Fellows continue to be connected to the Carold Institute, disseminating the results of their projects and mentoring others in their various fields. Normally the Carold Institute awards one Fellowship each year. However, given the few other opportunities for NGO leaders to take sabbaticals, and the exceptional quality of this year’s large applicant pool, the Board decided for the second year in a row, to give two awards.

His sudden death touched us deeply. Raymond was a highly respected leader, someone who had a passion for his community, for his language and his minority francophone culture. In addition to his ardent pursuit of their rights, he wanted to strengthen his community in tangible and concrete ways and ensure they had access to ongoing resources. In recent years, he gave witness to this commitment through his tireless efforts on behalf of CALDECH (the Huronia francophone Centre for advancement and leadership in community economic development).  His legal battle at the level of the Supreme Court to have the linguistic rights of francophone minorities respected demonstrated his determination and perseverance. As Graham Fraser, the Commissioner of Official Languages, underlined:

The name of Raymond DesRochers will remain engraved in the history of linguistic rights. Convinced of the justice of his cause, he defended his community with tenacity and with great intelligence. At the end of the day, all minority language communities will benefit from his effort. In the case of DesRochers vs. Canada (Industry), heard from 2004 to 2009, the Supreme Court ruled that federal institutions must offer services that respond to the particular needs of each official language community rather than supplying identical services to both communities.

His death leaves a void in the Franco-Ontarian community as well as among his many friends and colleagues in Canada and internationally. As Carold President Arpi Hamalian noted:  “He bequeaths to us the duty of maintaining our commitment inspired by his good humour and his spirit of optimism.”

Given the special relation between Raymond and Carold, the Board announces its decision to contribute $1,000 a year for the next five years to support a student  bursary established by La Corporation La Sève de Penetanguishene  in his honour.  In this way, the Carold Institute pays tribute to his memory and ensures that his life stands as a model for the young people in his community.