What do the Olympic Games Contribute to Society?
Pierre de Coubertin established the modern Olympic Games as a “demonstration project” for his strategy of social change. Sport and culture were to be means to the end of a more ambitious, interculturally aware cadre that would work together for social betterment. But in the intervening years, “sport for its own sake” has outdistanced the de Coubertin project, so much so that critics say it should be abandoned. Bruce Kidd argues for the continuing relevance of de Coubertin’s ambition and explores how recent Games, including Vancouver 2010, have contributed to making the world a better place.
Dr. Bruce Kidd is a professor and dean with the Faculty of Physical Education at the University of Toronto. He has participated in the Olympic Games as an athlete (track and field, 1964), journalist (1976), contributor to the arts and culture programs (1976 and 1988) and social scientist (1988 and 2000). Kidd chaired the Olympic Academy of Canada between 1983 and 1993 and served on Toronto's bid committees for the Olympic Games of 1996 and 2008. Throughout his lengthy involvement, he has constantly sought to educate athletes, decision makers and members of the public about the broad humanitarian ideals of the Olympic Movement, and the aspirations for education through sports.
On Thin Ice: Prophetic Ramblings of an Arctic Climate Scientist
Canada is an Arctic nation and this presentation is an introduction to the Arctic, its sea ice and the climate that is changing so rapidly. What are the basic processes of sea ice formation and why are these important to the Arctic marine ecosystem? How are the changes we are seeing in the Arctic of critical importance, not only to the area itself but to people who live in more temperate and tropical parts of our planet? We are currently seeing in the Arctic concerning trends and variability. He concludes with a description of how global scale climate variability and change is connected to the Canada’s Arctic and why this is so important for sustainable development of the region’s resources, sovereignty and security and for its indigenous peoples.
Dr. David Barber obtained his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Manitoba, and his PhD (1992) from the University of Waterloo. He joined the faculty at the University of Manitoba in 1993 and received a Canada Research Chair in Arctic System Science (chairs.gc.ca) in 2002. He is currently director of the Centre for Earth Observation Science (umanitoba.ca/ceos) and associate dean (research), Clayton H. Ridell Faculty of Environment, Earth and Resources. Barber has extensive experience in the examination of the Arctic marine environment as a system, and the effect climate change has on this system. He currently leads the largest International Polar Year (IPY) project in the world, known as the Circumpolar Flaw Lead (CFL) system study (ipy-cfl.ca).
In Perilous Pursuit of Perfection: The Ethics of Neuroscience in Sport
Turning to science to enhance individual performance can raise powerful ethical questions. If we could predict from a brain scan who among our youth is likely to be an Olympic champion, how should we use this information? If we learned that antidepressant medication increases the brain’s ability to coordinate movement, should it be banned as performance enhancing? These questions and more will be tackled as we explore what makes us uniquely human in our perilous pursuit of perfection.
Dr. Judy Illes is professor of Neurology and Canada research chair in neuroethics at the University of British Columbia. She is director of the National Core for Neuroethics at UBC, and also holds an appointment as adjunct professor in the School of Population and Public Health at UBC and as a faculty affiliate of the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at the University of Washington, in Seattle, Washington. Illes is a co-founder and executive committee member of the Neuroethics Society, and Chair of Women in World Neuroscience for International Brain Research Organization. Illes conducts high-impact, high-visibility research on the ethical, legal, social and policy challenges at the intersection of neuroscience and biomedical ethics. Her work advances the discovery, translation and commercialization of new technologies for the brain into society, with the objectives to promote human well-being across cultures and nations, optimize brain health, mitigate the consequences of diseases of the brain such as addiction and dementia, and expand the engagement of key stakeholders in neuroscience on a global scale.
