Conference 2005 Keynote Addresses and Speakers

Wes Gietz

Wes also practises and teaches EFT, a technique for healing emotional disturbances, phobias, addictions and a variety of physical problems.

In his professional life, he has master’s degrees in biochemistry and public administration, and 15 years of consulting experience in training, strategic planning, and human resource management. He has taught Leadership, Communication Skills, Business Mathematics, and Human Resource Management at the University of Victoria and North Island College.

Elizabeth May

In 1980 Elizabeth entered the Dalhousie University Law School from which she graduated in 1983, thus fulfilling a desire she had harboured from the age of thirteen to become an environmental lawyer. She was admitted to the Bar of Nova Scotia (no longer a member) and Ontario. She became very active in major environmental concerns in Nova Scotia. As a result of a 1983 court case involving chemical spraying that was settled in favour of pulp companies, her family sold a sizable 80 acre portion of their property in order to pay plaintiffs' costs. This bitter experience caused her to become even more dedicated to environmental contentions.

May held the position of Associate General Council at the Public Interest Advocacy Centre in 1985, providing legal advice to consumer, poverty and environmental groups. In 1986, she was appointed Senior Policy Advisor to then Federal Environment Minister, Tom McMillan. While she held this post, several national parks were created; as well, new legislation and pollution control measures were drafted.

Since 1989 May has held the title of Executive Director of the Sierra Club of Canada, an organization dedicated to the development of a diverse, well-trained grassroots network that is devoted to protecting the integrity of global ecosystems.

In 1998, Dalhousie University created a permanent chair in her name, Elizabeth May Chair in Women's Health and Environment at Dalhousie University, and she was indeed the first chair. During the announcement of the creation of the Chair on October 13, 1998, May was hailed as the Rachel Carson of Canada, a reference to the environmentalist whose 1962 bestseller entitled Silent Spring is still regarded as the cornerstone of the new environmentalism.

During the month of May, 2001, May staged a 17-day hunger strike on Parliament Hill which resulted in the government’s promising to relocate at-risk families adjacent to the Sydney Tar Ponds.

Several honours and awards have been bestowed upon May, including the Outstanding Achievement Award from the Sierra Club in 1989, the International Conservation Award from the Friends of Nature, and the United Nations Global 500 Award in 1990. In 1996, she was presented with the award for Outstanding Leadership in Environmental Education by the Ontario Society for Environmental Education. She holds two honorary doctorates.

In addition to her numerous accomplishments, Elizabeth May is the author of four books, is a co-author of others, and has contributed chapters to two monographs. Additionally, she has appeared on CTV and CBC television, and has been heard on CBC radio on numerous occasions.

Toh Swee-Hin (S.H. Toh)

Prior to his appointment at Griffith University, Swee-Hin has been a high school science and maths teacher in Malaysia, and a Professor in International/Intercultural Education at the University of Alberta, Canada (1992-2003) and the University of New England in Australia. Born and raised in Malaysia of Chinese ancestry, Swee-Hin’s work in teaching, research and social action has focused especially on education for peace, non-violence, conflict resolution, local/global justice, human rights, multiculturalism, sustainability and spiritual growth.

While in Alberta, Swee-Hin was closely involved in the Alberta Global Education Project, serving on the Advisory Committee and contributing as a speaker and resource person in numerous teacher’s workshops and conferences. He has also been active in peace education programs for youth and community members organized by the Mahatma Gandhi Canadian Foundation for World Peace based in Edmonton. As a professor in the Faculty of Education, University of Alberta, he developed and taught new courses and programs in international/intercultural education and global education for both student teachers and graduate students including many teachers from Canadian schools and abroad. In his role as Director of the Centre for International Education and Development, Swee-Hin coordinated several CIDA partnership projects for universities and teacher educators from Africa, Asia and the Caribbean. He has also participated in many Alberta and Canadian civil society movements and NGOs for local/global peace, justice, human rights and multiculturalism.

Swee-Hin has been very active in various networks and agencies in promoting international education and peace education, including UNESCO’s Culture of Peace Program, the International Peace Research Association, the International Institute on Peace Education, the World Congress on Comparative & International Education, and the World Council for Curriculum and Instruction.

Since 1998, he has served as an UNESCO consultant and resource person in helping to establish the UNESCO-affiliated Asia-Pacific Centre of Education for International Understanding in Seoul, Republic of Korea, including co-designing and facilitating peace education workshops for Asian and Pacific teachers, educational administrators, and NGO leaders. He has collaborated in the writing of textbooks, curriculum modules and resource manuals for teachers in both South and North contexts. His participation in educational development projects and institutes, and more recently in inter-faith dialogue toward a culture of peace have also taken him to various North and South countries including Jamaica, Uganda, South Africa, Japan, South Korea, El Salvador, USA, South Korea, India, Egypt, the Vatican, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines.

In July, 2004, he was a delegate to the 4th Parliament of the World’s religions where over 8000 representatives of diverse faiths and spirituality traditions gathered in Barcelona to share ideas, experiences and their hopes and challenges of fostering dialogue and establishing a common ground for personal and social transformation for peace, justice, human rights, intercultural and inter-civilizational understanding and sustainability.