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Blog Post #1 -- Meg Lastoria

*DISCLAIMER: THIS BLOG WAS CREATED FOR OUTD 2511, LAKEHEAD UNIVERSITY. THE OPTIONS EXPRESSED HERE ARE MY OWN IDEAS AND NOT THOSE OF LAKEHEAD UNIVERSITY. LAKEHEAD UNIVERSITY IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ACCURACY OF ANY INFORMATION SUPPLIED BY THIS BLOG.*

Prompt: “Firstly, what has drawn you to this academic program? Secondly, as a consumer of knowledge, who do you rely upon for information? Consider perhaps three or more “sources”. How do you ensure this information is reliable? How does this relate to this program?” Prompt Provided by Dr. Amanda Hooykaas.

Answer:

When I was younger, the idea of anything to do with Outdoor Recreation, Parks & Tourism had never crossed my mind, but I knew that I loved being outside. I believe that throughout my life, the journey I’ve been on -- whether it’s through summer camp or maybe even just hiking with my Aunt and her dogs -- has led me to this program. Honestly, before this I thought I wanted to be a novelist, but the second I read what Outdoor Rec, specifically this program, was about, my first thought was “that’s me!”. So everything I did from then on was to get into this program and any other school I got into didn’t matter anymore, Lakehead was the number one prospect. I think I’ve always craved being a part of this world, especially in the deeper sense that this program has to offer. Therefore, to me the only answer that I can provide as to “why?” is that I’m in love with recreation and everything the outdoors has to offer, except for cross-country skiing, I hate it! 

As a consumer of knowledge in today’s society, I rely on social media, media (ie. the news), and the internet for my information. How I make sure this information is reliable is that I go to the most recent news possible, as well as the most recent experiments conducted by doctors (MD or PhD) to ensure that I can trust it because it’s from a person who has done extensive research into the topic. If it’s from social media, I generally only believe it if it's a person of colour, another woman, a member of the LGBTQ2+ community talking about their experiences as a minority, or an expert in their field. The news will only provide you so little because, especially in the US, the news is typically run by white cis-gender people so it’s not the most diverse perspective given. As humans I feel it is our duty to diversify our knowledge and it directly relates back to this program because Outdoor Recreation doesn’t have the best track record when it comes to inclusivity. Now we have the JEDI principles, which are Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion. These principles were put into place to rectify the amount of injustice there is in Outdoor Recreation. I say “is” because as much as these principles are put into place, I as a woman will still face discrimination from a man who is believed to be “better” than me. I’m speaking from experience because there was a point where I was on a trip and this other group member who was male wouldn’t take my advice on his canoeing skills even though I’ve been canoeing my whole life and this was his first time. So to relate this back to what I’m saying about sources of information is that you should listen to those who have more experience with something than you do, regardless of gender, race, or sexuality, that’s how you know it’s reliable because it’s someone with years of experience and knowledge. Someone who has taken it upon themselves to change their perspectives and grow from those perspectives. So I, as a consumer of knowledge, am constantly looking for ways that I can be a better guide in the Outdoor Recreation world, especially since I am a white woman.

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Agafia Lykov: Surviving in the Siberian Wilderness

*DISCLAIMER: THIS BLOG WAS CREATED FOR OUTD 2511, LAKEHEAD UNIVERSITY. THE OPTIONS EXPRESSED HERE ARE MY OWN IDEAS AND NOT THOSE OF LAKEHEAD UNIVERSITY. LAKEHEAD UNIVERSITY IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ACCURACY OF ANY INFORMATION SUPPLIED BY THIS BLOG.*

Prompt: “Outline the case study (who, what, where, when, why, how). Identify the research techniques being employed - to the best of your ability at this point in the term. Determine the invisible backpack of the documentary filmmaker - as best you can. Comment on whether this is directly identified or somehow noted in the film. Describe some key ethics considerations that were made in the production of this film and how they might have been addressed.

‘If you were given the same opportunity (to both research the family and communicate your findings to a larger audience of peers), how would you approach this research assignment? Outline your own identity and “who” you are as a student researcher approaching this topic. What are some key ethical considerations you might have and how might you address them?” (Prompt provided by Dr. Amanda Hooykaas).

Answer: *Trigger Warning: Mention of Assault*

In this study, Surviving in the Siberian Wilderness for 70 Years, a producer from VICE America, John Martin and an editor from VICE Russia, Gleb Lisichkin ventured out into the Mountains of Sayan in Taiga, Siberia. John Martin, not only took a 10 hour flight but another plane and a helicopter trip into the Mountains -- hiking is not an option for these parts in winter. Why? For a woman named Agafia Lykov, who had lived in these Mountains at the time of the study for seventy years. This study took place in 2013. Her family, before the second world war, escaped those who were after the old believers. The old believers were a group of people who were an ultra-orthodox sect of christianity, just before the war Stalin was after them. Many of these old believers still exist today but only in small communities. Agafia was born in these Mountains in 1944 and from the time her family arrived in the Mountains it had been forty years until they had a visitor. When they did, shortly afterwards the three eldest children died from complications from pneumonia. Life for the Lykovs, was difficult with barely having any food to get by Agafia’s mother died in 1961 due to starvation because there wasn’t enough food for both her and her children. 

At this point in the term, I believe that the research conducted in this study is qualitative research. John Martin and Gleb Lisichkin both took the time and effort into making sure that Agafia’s life story was heard. That the struggles she and her family had endured were told in dignity, these researchers took their time to respect Agafia and her way of life, they even brought her a goat and chicken as gifts. I believe that even if it wasn’t stated in the film that it was the intent to perform a qualitative study on Agafia. I think that the ethics behind this research were done in respect to Agafia, especially when it came to speaking on the relationship between her and Yerofei.

What I noticed from the film is that Agafia still held sadness and fear from the past experience with Yerofei, her neighbour. I think that if the researchers had more information on the situation, I think they left it out on purpose, not for Yerofei but for Agafia. Even though they are extremely excluded from technology and the modern world, Agafia seemed as though she still harboured a lot of fear towards Yerofei, despite his physical disabilities. When a person has gone through, what seemed to be an implied assault, the assaulters abilities don’t protect the victims from their own minds. Additionally, Agafia is too kind to let the man rot, her generous heart is what keeps Yerofei alive in the conditions they live in. When it came to the ethics of revealing to the world what may have happened all those years ago, I think they respected Agafias’ right to make her own decisions on reporting the matter. Although she grew up not having access to law enforcement to help her with the situation because they are about 160 miles from the nearest town, access would have been limited due to the harsh environment. Not to mention, that the assault may not have been taken seriously by law enforcement, especially in the time period it occurred.

I think as a student researcher, I may have approached or at least tried to approach it the same way John Martin and Gleb Lisichkin did. However, I would also take into consideration that when most outsiders come, illness is quick to follow because of how isolated she is from the germs in larger communities, her immune system may not be as developed as mine. As a researcher, I try to remain respectful to those who are participating. Respect for others is a large part of my own personal ethics and try to bring that to everything I do, therefore, I bring this to my research. I would apply this by not digging deeper than it seems the participant can handle regardless of my own desire towards the answer. Doing something that would make the participant uncomfortable would be disrespectful towards their life experience and their autonomy. 

Reference:

VICE. (2013, April 9). Surviving in the siberian wilderness for 70 years (full length). YouTube. Retrieved January 20, 2022, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tt2AYafET68

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Surveys for Fun

*DISCLAIMER: THIS BLOG WAS CREATED FOR OUTD 2511, LAKEHEAD UNIVERSITY. THE OPTIONS EXPRESSED HERE ARE MY OWN IDEAS AND NOT THOSE OF LAKEHEAD UNIVERSITY. LAKEHEAD UNIVERSITY IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ACCURACY OF ANY INFORMATION SUPPLIED BY THIS BLOG.*

Prompt: “Find an online survey/questionnaire/quiz that you can participate in (it does not need to be a formal) and complete it – the quality and honesty of your responses is up to you... what we want to hear about is the actual quality of the survey. Do not select a formal, credible questionnaire that will actually lead to a diagnosis as those are often very scrupulous in their wording and have already been vetted extensively. Please critically evaluate the survey/questionnaire/quiz (please provide us with the link to the page where you found it). What is the context? How well are the questions written? Might there be variety/ambiguity in the responses that lead to poor results? What are some strengths and weaknesses? How might it be improved (accessibility, wording, length, promotion, etc.). Please reference the course notes, the textbook, and the article itself. Remember, I expect you to be demonstrating a robust understanding of the course material at this point in time!” (Provided by: Amanda Hooykaas)

Answer:

I took a survey that the quality of it wasn’t great, the survey was a This or That (Names). The context of the quiz was to see which name you preferred when it came to similar “male” or “female” names like “Bess, Tess, or Jess” or “Roy or Troy”. The questions were simple and not complicated, they got to the point of the survey. The survey could result in poor information because the names asked in the survey don't reach a very diverse community. Its strength is that the questions are simple as well as the answers. Its weaknesses are that the names aren’t diverse and don’t have any cultural significance, they are generally used for white people. I think it could be improved if the survey added some names that weren’t “Olive or Olivia”. I think it could also add some names that are gender fluid like Alex or Andy, which aren't all that diverse but they are gender fluid names. I think if the author of the survey put in some effort to research names of other cultures it could make the survey better and reach a more diverse audience. The survey does however try to get quantitative information on which name people would prefer, but it doesn’t try to get qualitative information. This is due to the lack of diversity in the names but the amount of names in the survey. I think that if you’re going to do a survey just for fun, you should expect to see names that you recognize from your lifestyle. It’s hard to gain good enough information from a survey if you can’t reach many or all perspectives. 

Reference:

Tigerlily7129. (n.d.). This or That? Names. quotev.com. Retrieved March 20, 2022, from https://www.quotev.com/quiz/14716243/This-or-That-Names/result

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Ontario to Lift the Vaccine Passport Mandate

*DISCLAIMER: THIS BLOG WAS CREATED FOR OUTD 2511, LAKEHEAD UNIVERSITY. THE OPTIONS EXPRESSED HERE ARE MY OWN IDEAS AND NOT THOSE OF LAKEHEAD UNIVERSITY. LAKEHEAD UNIVERSITY IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ACCURACY OF ANY INFORMATION SUPPLIED BY THIS BLOG.*

Prompt: “Find a written article (newspaper, magazine, etc.) from this past week and critically evaluate it (please provide us with the link – topic is yours to choose). What was the key message? What might their sources have been? (Suggest sources if there aren't any provided.) How might they have been evaluated? How were they validated/verified (which techniques were used/could have been used)? What expectations/responsibilities might the consumer have in reviewing this article? Please reference the course notes, the textbook, and the article itself. Remember, we expect you to be demonstrating a robust understanding of the course material at this point in time!” (Provided by: Dr. Amanda Hooykaas)

Answer: 

When searching for an article to read this week, I stumbled upon an article about Doug Ford lifting the mandate in Ontario stating you no longer need to provide proof of vaccination as of March 1st 2022 (Ontario to Lift Vaccine Passport in March). Granted this decision came from the Chief of Medicine Dr. Kieran Moore, I still don’t trust that it has served its purpose just yet, especially since the mandate for the QR Codes has only been in place a little over a month. Yes, 92% of the population has been double vaccinated in Ontario but right now with the current state of the world I don’t believe it is the best decision. The article goes on to state that the booster shot will be officially available to those 12-17 on Friday, which is a reason to keep the Vaccine Passport mandate open because the whole population of Vaccinated Ontarians haven’t been boosted yet. The booster shot is important because just like every vaccine that you receive you’ll need multiple doses to keep yourself and others protected from those ailments. For example, you need to get a different flu shot every year because there are different variants of the flu every year, just like how covid has different variants. Proving that you are vaccinated, provides a certain level of safety for customers especially since over a million people have died from this illness. The Vaccine Passport allows customers solace in a very scary time, but not just for them, for the people that work in those facilities as well. The article goes on to state that this will only happen provided that the numbers of covid cases improve. It also states that it is not in response to the “freedom” convoy, but with it’s timing of when this announcement came out, how can it not be? People are entitled to any opinion that they want about the convoy, but at the end of the day it’s just about an excuse for people to wave their white nationalist flag. 

The key message here is to provide Ontario Citizens with updates of the covid phases we are going through and what may be in our Provinces future. The source that CTV is using is Doug Ford's conference and Dr. Kieran Moore, as well as other articles listed in this article. Including one where Trudeau was in talks with provinces about instating emergency powers, which as we know now has happened. The additional articles I believe were provided to allow easy access to more of what is going on in our country. These sources were evaluated using quotes from the Premier and Moore, additionally they made sure that the information was condensed down so that it is easy to read and understand. They made sure they had qualitative research over quantitative so that it is not overwhelming to any reader. Readers of this article can expect that the Passport mandate might be lifted if the numbers are improving, it is also the readers responsibility to stay informed on what changes apply to their province. The writer of this article, Katherine DeClerq, verified this information through the Premiers conference on Monday, February 14th, 2022. We know this because the conference is live and accessible to the whole country. 

Reference:

DeClerq, K. (2022, February 14). Ontario to Lift Vaccine Passports in March, Next Phase of COVID-19 Reopening. CTV News. Retrieved February 14, 2022, from https://toronto.ctvnews.ca/ontario-to-lift-vaccine-passport-in-march-next-phase-of-covid-19-reopening-to-begin-early-1.5780257 

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*DISCLAIMER: THIS BLOG WAS CREATED FOR OUTD 2511, LAKEHEAD UNIVERSITY. THE OPTIONS EXPRESSED HERE ARE MY OWN IDEAS AND NOT THOSE OF LAKEHEAD UNIVERSITY. LAKEHEAD UNIVERSITY IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ACCURACY OF ANY INFORMATION SUPPLIED BY THIS BLOG.*

Prompt: “No prompt this week -- free write what you are thinking about” (Provided by: Dr. Amanda Hooykaas)

Answer: 

Honestly at the moment, all I can think about is school. There’s not much room left in my brain for other things, which is very overwhelming. No matter how much I complete, whether it’s an assignment, studying for a test, or playing catch up it seems like the work never ends. I want a week where I don’t have to think, where I can just sleep, cuddle with my cat, and watch tv. I don’t think it’s zoom class burnout, I’m just coming to the point where I need a brain break. Even though reading week is coming up, the whole time I’ll be hunched over my laptop and textbook for the most part. The other parts, I’ll be at work busting my butt for a paycheck. So there’s no smidgen of a break until some time in April. I know I’m just complaining but there’s a point to my madness I promise and I’m getting to it. 

Within all this stress, I still feel very lucky and happy to be able to get this education. Right now I find myself in the position where this coming summer I'll be the Program Director at the camp I grew up going to. It’s so weird that I finally get to use the knowledge that I’ve gained over the last two years. It put back into perspective why I’m doing this, before this semester started I really questioned if I was in the right place. So all the thoughts of “I’m not good enough” really changed to “I can do this!”. Even being overwhelmed isn’t so overwhelming anymore, I’m sure that doesn’t make sense but it does to me. 

Before this program, my love for outdoor recreation came from camp. I met some of my best friends there, especially when I went through the CIT program. Some of which I still keep in contact with, others have drifted, but that’s life. There’s no rule saying you have to stay friends with anyone, especially friends you make when you’re really young. CIT was an amazing program and it’s an education that I am extremely grateful I took part in. So with that being said, I’ve also been thinking about where I want to take this education. I’ve always said that I wanted to open my own camp but I’ve come to realize that the position that it would put me in could potentially keep me from doing what I love, which is programming. It would keep me from it because I would mainly focus on admin, staffing, billings, etc. I’d want a position that involves admin and staffing but also programming, I don’t want to stress if the camp is going to go under.

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The Effect of Summer Camps on The Communities They Reside In

*DISCLAIMER: THIS BLOG WAS CREATED FOR OUTD 2511, LAKEHEAD UNIVERSITY. THE OPTIONS EXPRESSED HERE ARE MY OWN IDEAS AND NOT THOSE OF LAKEHEAD UNIVERSITY. LAKEHEAD UNIVERSITY IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ACCURACY OF ANY INFORMATION SUPPLIED BY THIS BLOG.*

Prompt: “If you were to conduct research as a graduate student with limitless resources (but you still require ethics approval!), describe your ultimate research project. What would be the focus (it could be anything!)? How might you propose it? Who might it benefit? Shine a “light” on you as a researcher a decade from now.” (Provided by: Dr. Amanda Hooykaas)

Answer: 

I think my ultimate research project would have to be the effects of summer camps on the communities that they are a part of. Meaning the towns that they reside in. I would want to research this because I grew up going to a small camp, just North of Parry Sound in McDougal. I saw how important this camp is to the community especially when the most campers it has had has been 75. Which in comparison to other larger camps is small, especially at camps where you don’t know all of the staff either. Most of the people I went to camp with came from Parry Sound, or people whose parents did extensive research on camps to send their kids to. I have a huge curiosity in how these camps affect the community, especially in small communities like McDougal. From what I’m aware of with my camp, it affects it greatly, my now boss always sees and talks to the campers who return each summer and it seems as though it’s like a second school to these campers. 

The focus of the research would be mostly the campers who go to the camps, especially over the course that they attend the camp. I would take into consideration the age range the camp allows the campers to go to, from there I would research the effect, good or bad, it has had. I think the community would benefit from it, especially parents who are wondering where to send their kids in the summer. I would propose it to an REB to help them understand the need and the ethics behind the research. I would take into consideration that campers are usually under age of consent and would definitely figure out the best ways possible where it wouldn’t impose on the campers autonomy. As for right now, I’m not entirely sure how, but I would definitely consult an advisor who knows more about ethical research than I do. 

The course of my research, depending on the age range of the camp, I know my camp goes from 4-16. The research would last about 10-12 years, looking into how it adds to their developmental process and the community they reside in. Whether that’s crime rates or just the development of the community itself. Whether that development has improved the community or not. 

I would propose it by stating that the purpose of the research would be to look into the benefits that small camps have toward the communities they reside in and those outside them, especially for the campers who do overnight camping. Who I want to be as a researcher, who always takes into account human dignity, consent, and whether I feel comfortable with the information that I’ve been given. I think that it's an important aspect to consider if you want to continue with the research, if you think that it’s information that people of the community need to know. I think if there’s a certain aspect of safety towards the participant then there is an obligation to report it. 

I think any research that involves children should been done where you tread lightly, especially since they are minors and are therefore considered vulnerable.