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Have you ever set a goal for yourself, like getting straight A’s every term of the school year, going to the gym every day, or being picked for a sports team? Like lots of people, maybe you started out doing great, but then lost some of that drive and had trouble getting motivated again. Think about this: world leaders, athletes, scientists, university students and overall well-rounded, successful people all have one commonality: motivation. According to dictionary.com, motivation is the act of providing a strong reason to act in a certain way or accomplish something. Without motivation, our goals would not be accomplished, and our dreams would remain simply dreams; the world would be a totally different place. The only way people can grow, learn, and thrive in the world today is through motivation. From setting goals, to working hard to achieve them, and finally accomplishing them, there are two main types of motivation that one can take inspiration and use in one’s own life: internal and external motivation. External motivation can look like students aiming to succeed in school because their grades reflect their performance. On the other hand, students who try to succeed in school because they’re genuinely interested in the content are intrinsically motivated. Intrinsic motivation, or internal motivation, comes from within. It is present when you do something because it aligns with your interests, passions or personal values. These motivators have internal rewards, for example, the feeling of knowing you’re following your life purpose. Some people are motivated by the love of learning a new skill, or have attitude motivation, and love spreading positivity. Others may have satisfaction for the feeling of accomplishment. Another example of intrinsic motivation may be motivation by biological needs like food and water. This exists due to years of evolution which shaped humans the way we are nowadays. The second main type of motivation is extrinsic motivation (external motivation) which refers to external factors that drives a person to do something. This has to do with the incentive theory of motivation, which suggests that people are motivated to do things because of external rewards. Furthermore, people may also be motivated by the fear of an undesirable outcome. Social motivation is a type of motivation that describes the desire to be accepted by one’s social group. People who lack self-motivation need help from others to keep themselves motivated and are usually temporary. For me, self-motivation is empowering. Finding something that I enjoy and love to do and setting the final goal of achieving it is such a remarkable journey. My main goal that I have set right now is to finish the school term knowing that I’ve tried my best. I am motivated not by the bad grades that I may get from failing an examination, but by the fascinating content that I learn. I tell myself to take assignments one at a time, simply complete the task at hand before moving on to the next. Through doing so, I am able to finish all the things that I need to do knowing that I have the faith to push myself and motivate myself along the way, even if that means taking necessary breaks. Our generation, Gen Z, is surrounded by screens 24/7 - phones, tablets, laptops, you name it. We’re all immersed in the world of social media, which is a double-edged sword. Through social media, we can become inspired. We see other people sharing their goals and their accomplishments, to which we can build our desires of ourselves off of. However, the other end of the sword prevents us from achieving our goals. People on social media tend to put their best side of their lives on screen, intentionally or unintentionally portraying themselves as perfect human beings. When we seek motivation through social media, we should remind ourselves of how realistic the content we are viewing really is and avoid becoming discouraged by misleading information. We’re lucky to be born in a generation where society is accepting of people from diverse cultures, who place their values and beliefs at the heart of their work. I believe anyone can achieve their goals as long as they have passion in what they are doing and motivation to continue with their pursuits. Author: Hannah Jiang Biography: Hannah Jiang is currently a Grade 8 student at Harrow Beijing, China. Some of Hannah’s hobbies include dancing, playing the piano, reading and simply taking a stroll in the park. She also has a liking for the performance arts, and participates in the school musical every year.

Have you ever harbored dreams of becoming a successful leader, a billionaire, or the most respected businessperson in the world? When I was a child, I aspired to become a well-known singer and a famous director. The last thing I wanted to do was be ordinary. I was featured on public television and in weather broadcasts. My picture made it into the local newspaper, and my friend cut it out to show our whole class. At the time, I believed I was extraordinary. However, when I started junior high school, I discovered that I wasn't quite as good as I thought. So many people were smarter and better than me. I had a very small presence in my school. For thirteen years, I had felt special - the realization that I was just like everyone else discouraged me. I stopped going out of my way to engage in things and grew more timid and insecure. I became jealous of students who got up on stage to perform when I did not. I tried to accept my normalcy, but I struggled. One night, I voice my troubles to my roommate. After listening to my thoughts, she responded, "Alice, you need to know that each of us is ordinary. You need to learn to accept yourself. The seemingly normal person you don't want to become may be a source of inspiration for others around you." These few words have changed me. Accepting the ordinary does not mean that our life or motivation ends there - it just means that we have learned to see everything from a different perspective. We are all ordinary in our own way. That's what makes us truly extraordinary. Author: Jingrui (Alice) Xue Biography: Alice Xue is a Grade 10 student currently attending Luther College High School in Regina, Saskatchewan. She loves singing and has been a part of the school choir since she was six. She is positive, optimistic, and enjoys her life very much.

Why is social media so important nowadays? Why is there such a great social dilemma regarding this issue? Social media forms a large part of our daily life; regardless of whether you use it or not, it impacts your life and is always present in one way or another due to the big technological advances that have taken place in recent years. That is why, day by day, social media has become more important all over the world, having more influence and control over us because we do not realize the negative effects it has. That's why we must start thinking, analyzing, and reflecting on what social media really is, how it originated, how it works, what information it provides, etc. Something impressive to me is social media’s rapid growth around the world during the last few years. This quick development has brought both benefits and downsides. For instance, social media platforms have given us the opportunity to achieve communication with any part of the world in just a matter of seconds. But, simultaneously, I think this is already getting out of control. The people behind these platforms are manipulating and seducing us - they are generating an addiction, creating a drug that makes us release dopamine. To achieve this, they use our psychology against us and employ algorithms that lead us to a never-ending array of videos, advertisements, and photos. We are all vulnerable to the attraction of social media, even the creators themselves. In addition, social media has changed the way we think, particularly affecting young populations. The creators control where we put our attention. They appropriate our sense of value and identity to make us start to feel insecure. With the evolution of the media we have begun to care what other people think of us, leading to skyrocketing levels of anxiety, depression, and suicides among teenagers. I am reminded of this phenomenon every day when I interact with people my age. Sometimes we don't think and we don't realize everything that is going on behind our screens. We do not understand the weight of a single click - just by liking a post, tagging someone in a photo, or simply watching a video, we are opening a window to a million possibilities. Author: Arantza García Morales Biography: Arantza is a Grade 12 student currently attending school in Mexico City, Mexico. Some hobbies she enjoys in her spare time include playing a variety of sports (soccer, basketball, tennis), listening to music, going for walks with her pets, going out with her family to the movies or restaurants, and hanging out with her friends.

Racial discrimination is terrible. Unfortunately, in 2022, racial discrimination still exists in many places around the world. Although racial discrimination in Canada is relatively rare, it is difficult to avoid entirely. In Saskatchewan, racial discrimination poses a great threat to black and First Nations children. The attitude and measures that the police take towards black children have put their personal safety and health at a risk. Police treat black teenagers as criminals, not as children: “Police arrested a 13-year-old Black boy in Baton Rouge, La. The officer restrained the teen by locking his arm around the child’s neck. He relaxed the hold only after a bystander called out, ‘You’re choking him!’” (Kowalski, 2021). Additionally, the attitude of the police towards First Nations women can also affect children: “Human Rights Watch documented Indigenous women’s accounts of police neglect when they reported domestic violence, as well as inappropriate and invasive body and strip searches, sexual harassment, and physical assault” (Human Rights Watch, 2017). Living in such a place full of discrimination has a great impact on children, significantly impacting their mental health. According to a study, black youth who were interviewed about this situation stated that they “felt hopeless, fearful or unable to just be kids” (Kowalski, 2021). Some even go so far as to consider suicide. Measures should be taken to mitigate this issue. Community members can organize demonstrations and activities against racial discrimination to prevent the spread of racism and educate more citizens on its impacts. In addition, all primary schools in Saskatchwen should teach racial discrimination through not only textbooks but personal accounts, so children become more aware of the issue at an early age. I sincerely hope that racial discrimination in Saskatchewan will decrease in the future so that children can have a safe, healthy environment to grow up in. Work Cited Kowalski, Kathiann. “Discriminatory Policing Takes a Toll on Teens and Tweens.” Science News for Students, 23 Nov. 2021, https://www.sciencenewsforstudents.org/article/discriminatory-policing-takes-a-toll-on-teens-and-tweens. “Canada: Police Fail Indigenous Women in Saskatchewan.” Human Rights Watch, 28 Oct. 2020, https://www.hrw.org/news/2017/06/19/canada-police-fail-indigenous-women-saskatchewan. Author: Xinyu (James) Xue Biography: James Xue is a Grade 10 student from Luther College High School in Regina, Saskatchewan. He loves to play baseball, watch soccer matches, and fish in his free time. Although James is a new member of Adopt Our Community, he is delighted to learn and participate in volunteer work.

“Looks are everything” is a cliche most people have probably heard of before. While this belief is often criticized as incorrect and toxic, it is a significant part of society that many people subconsciously agree with. Beauty standards are having a dominating effect in society today, particularly among young adults. With the support of social media and technology, beauty standards are impacting people in both positive and negative ways. “Beauty” is given a definition based on the stereotypical appearances that are the most valued and praised. This results in “beauty standards”, the rubric used to assess people’s appearances. Long legs, flawless skin, big eyes, an hourglass figure, all come to mind when we think of the perfect female body. Although beauty standards are most commonly used for females, there are also certain physical preferences for the male body such as lean, muscular, broad shoulders, etc. Korea is particularly well-known for its beauty standards, as shown on the right. The k-pop (Korean pop) industry shapes idols’ appearances based on these guidelines. Negatives Beauty standards have numerous unhealthy and toxic effects. These negative impacts can be categorized into two main sections: public judgement and self-judgement. Public judgement includes body shaming and hurtful comments from others, but self-judgement is the biggest issue that most people face. The constant comparison to the perfect image on social media is extremely damaging to a person’s morale and mental and physical health. Unconfidence in one’s body image often leads to unhealthy dieting and harmful methods such as plastic surgery or skin bleaching in an attempt to achieve a prettier appearance. In more extreme cases, people attempt self-harm or even suicide due to their unsatisfactory with their body images. Beauty standards also promote an excessive focus on materialism rather than inner beauty. Young adults often find it difficult to feel content with their bodies. Approximately 80% of U.S. women are unhappy with their appearances, and 34% of men are unhappy with their bodies. Positives Although people often criticize beauty standards (and rightfully so), they also have various positive effects that should be recognized. One of the biggest benefits of beauty standards is the motivation for people to strive to improve. Rather than artificial methods such as plastic surgery, many have chosen to adopt healthier lifestyles like healthy dieting and working out to achieve a better body. Images on social media can also act as motivation. The efforts towards achieving a better body image have helped many people practice perseverance. The results that come with continuous effort are highly rewarding as well. In addition, people are often ignorant over the fact that self-judgement correlates with self-reflection. Moderate self-criticism has no harm and is even highly beneficial for personal growth. It is only when self-criticism is done continuously at an extreme level where a lack of self-love occurs. These are all beneficial effects of beauty standards, not to mention the positive impacts on the economy. Beauty products and procedures are a substantial business, as can be seen with the Korean beauty market. Most people have had some experience of being discontent with their body image, including me. With the transition from elementary school to high school, child to teenager, and the growing use of social media, exposure to beauty standards was inevitable. Like others, I have often felt self-conscious of my image. Social media can fill a person with envy of those with seemingly “perfect” appearances. However, not just social media has this effect, but also people in my life. In fact, more so with people around me since the contrast is brighter and much more realistic, constantly lingering around. Beauty standards can act as motivation but have an unimaginable impact on one’s mental health, self-love, and morale. With the “perfect” body images as a constant comparison, it is hard to be content with our appearances. No matter what, it is necessary to accept reality. It is human nature to like what is aesthetically pleasing to the eye and despises what is not. These standards will be inevitable and we should learn to live with them in a healthy and beneficial way. Thankfully, society is beginning to recognize the toxicity that comes with beauty standards. But at the end of the day, there is no true definition of beauty. Sources: https://thevou.com/beauty/korean-beauty-standards/ https://www.globalvillagespace.com/gen-z-and-its-superficial-beauty-standards/ https://www.pinterest.ca/pin/111675265751081027/ https://www.pinterest.ca/pin/169518373464121341/ https://www.macmh.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/18_Gallivan_Teens-social-media-body-image-presentation-H-Gallivan-Spring-2014.pdf Author: Jessica Liu Biography: Jessica Liu is currently a grade 10 student at Magee Secondary School in Vancouver, BC. She enjoys listening to music, singing, and dancing. Contact Email: jessliu5011@gmail.com Ins: jess_lkq

For many, the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) poses the pressing question, “Will robots replace humans?” In recent years, this overtaking seems more probable than ever as robots refine a rudimentary human trait: creativity and innovation. AI can be described as “the simulation of human intelligence processes by machines, especially computer systems” (Burns). Computer learning has been around for a long time, dating back to the first AI in 1951. But what sets the AI of this age apart from its early predecessors? Accessibility. The boom in AI today can be attributed to its everyday, widespread use. This increase in popularity led to developers producing simple programs for people with little understanding of AI to wield its potential. One branch of AI that has sent groups raging is AI-generated artwork. AI-generated art is created by entering a prompt–a string of descriptive words and styles–to guide the AI in creating a piece through analyzing millions of already existing artworks. Only a couple of months ago, a state artwork competition raised controversy as the winning art piece was revealed to have been created through AI. This event raised concerns among artists around the globe, including myself. Would AI take over the art world, as it generated masterful compositions with only a few words? Additionally, is the database of already existing artwork AI uses to learn outright stealing? As an artist, I admit that AI artwork has stirred deep worries in me. Frankly, these worries were amplified when I decided to experience this surrealism for myself. Popular AI programs include DALL-E, Midjourney, and Nightcafe; out of simplicity, I opted to work with Nightcafe. After a short learning curve, I was effortlessly creating seemingly professional artwork in less than a minute. In fact, I created this journal's image using AI, taking only 10 seconds to curate when traditionally it would have required hours. This artificial overtaking of creativity is a common theme in the AI community. In recent years, AI has permeated the music industry, assuming occupations anywhere from mastering music to generating new songs. Facing the same concerns as artists, musicians are also feeling targeted. I have come across some positive implications of this newfound robotic influence, such as tools which allow you to separate parts of a song. However, as with all AI, there is also its incredible ability to mass-produce human-like work. This is the case for Dada Bot, a unique AI program that creates metal songs and streams them on YouTube. The catch is that this bot has been producing music 24/7 for months, a feat musicians like me can only dream of achieving. AI is affecting a multitude of artistic fields, leaving a trail of concerned creators, myself included. As someone passionate about computer science as well as arts like music and fine art, AI induces mixed feelings. I look forward to future improvements in AI as the digital age progresses, but I am concerned with what these advancements will bring. AI has swarmed the world as a whole, finding jobs in not only blue-collar work but in the medical field and military (Turner). However, trailblazers in AI, such as Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg, state that they are hopeful for the future of AI and how it will improve humanity's life (Stevenson & Morris). Anne Ploin, a researcher from the Oxford Internet Institute, argues that as AI becomes more and more mainstream, a balance will be found. Humans will adapt as they always do and learn to use this new tool for good. As a youth, I am eager to grow up alongside these future innovations and aspire to share this passion with those around me. Amongst many others, I hope to see the conflict between artificial and biological intelligence subside and balance be achieved as AI improves the human experience. Works Cited Burns, Ed. “What is Artificial Intelligence (AI)? Definition, Benefits and Use Cases.” TechTarget, February 2022, https://www.techtarget.com/searchenterpriseai/definition/AI-Artificial-Intelligence. Clifford, Catherine. “Mark Zuckerberg: Elon Musk's doomsday AI predictions are irresponsible.” CNBC, 24 July 2017, https://www.cnbc.com/2017/07/24/mark-zuckerberg-elon-musks-doomsday-ai-prediction s-are-irresponsible.html. Dozier, Rob. “This YouTube Channel Streams AI-Generated Death Metal 24/7.” VICE, 19 April 2019, https://www.vice.com/en/article/xwnzm7/this-youtube-channel-streams-ai-generated-blac k-metal-247. Ploin, Anne. “AI and the Arts.” 2019, https://www.oii.ox.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/040222-AI-and-the-Arts_FINAL.p df. Stevenson, Seth. “A Rare Joint Interview with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and Bill Gates.” Wall Street Journal, 25 September 2017, https://www.wsj.com/articles/a-rare-joint-interview-with-microsoft-ceo-satya-nadella-and -bill-gates-1506358852. Author: Malia Hendricks Biography: Malia Hendricks is a Grade 12 student at Dover Bay Secondary School in Nanaimo, BC. She enjoys math, programming, and robotics and takes part in Math Club and Robotics Club at school. Outside of school, she is an avid martial arts instructor, and has a love for Taekwondo and Kumdo. With a passion for STEM, she hopes to become a computer engineer to aid in advancing technology to create a positive impact. Contact Info: Email: mhendricks1185@gmail.com

Parental pressure is a problem that I am facing right now. It has been one of the biggest problems during my school year, since my parents do not understand what I am learning, but still want to pass their suggestions onto me. Such pressure comes from parents who are the most considerate overall, but also careless in some ways. In my family, my mom is the one who stays at home for the whole day and takes care of all the things happening in our house. She loves me and wants to help me, but usually uses her kindness the wrong way. A few years before I came to Canada, I couldn't understand her logic since she was always angry and unsatisfied. We always fought over everything at anytime. Back then, I thought our relationship had no chance of becoming better. However, that changed after I came to Canada, and our relationship began healing because we both improved. So what I want to say is try to find a positive balance between you and your parents. Afterall, everyone makes mistakes and we should always look within ourselves for something to work on. I understand this is a difficult process, but always remember to not be too hard on yourself. For me, a change in myself depends on a change in my environment because it leads me to suddenly understand lots of stuff that I previously neglected. Therefore, sometimes a change in someone needs a chance or an opportunity to let it happen; maybe it is a change in environment, or maybe it is an important event that happened in your family, etc. Even if you do not have this opportunity right now, it will happen in the future. Although many people suggest the need to obey your parents because “They are your parents!” or “They gave birth to you, they gave you your life”, the best way around parental pressure is true understanding, not simple obeisance. Both parents and children have their own perspectives. We should try to encourage a middle ground that takes into account both sides, rather than just forcibly choosing one. I strongly believe that the opinions of children and their parents are equal, and that we should listen to both when making a decision. I also highly recommend giving yourself a bit of time and space to think about the relationship between you and your parents in order to determine how you can reduce parental pressure. Author: Sally Wang Biography: Sally Wang is a Grade 12 student from Luther College High School in Regina, Saskatchewan. She loves all things connected to art, sports and music and has been a part of her school’s Senior Choir for two years. Sally hopes that through her efforts, she will be able to make her community a better place.

Unhealthy eating is becoming a more critical problem than ever. Having meals with ingredients from the great outdoors is a free and fun solution. In this article, I will discuss the health benefits of consuming many easy-to-find plants including dandelions, sorrel, and tree bacon. Dandelions are surprisingly dense in nutritional content. To the chagrin of desperate go-green advertisements about kale and spinach, dandelions give them a run for their money. These pleasant yellow flowers, which are a memoir of our childhoods, have very edible and robust leaves. If some coffee drinkers are tired of the taste (which is undoubtedly rare), roasted dandelion roots provide a drink similar to coffee. To combat the intrinsic bitterness dandelion leaves have, soaking them in salted cold water for 10 to 15 minutes and then lightly cooking them in some healthy olive oil will turn them from a bitter episode to an appealing, exotic treat. The leaves reduce inflammation and ageing, manage blood pressure, and control blood sugar when consumed. In the same area that you may be foraging for dandelions, you may also find sorrel. Sorrel is a small green plant from the same family as rhubarb and buckwheat. Sorrel is almost always in season but is the least bitter in the spring. Small sorrel leaves are recommended to be eaten raw and not cooked as they aren’t as strong as the larger leaves. The small leaves can be used as garnishes for other dishes. The well-rounded taste of sorrel is a nice contrast to greasy and heavy dishes like steak or roast meat. Sorrel mainly focuses on the immune system by helping lower blood pressure and increasing blood circulation. In contrast to these soft, gentle foods that are not grilled, fried or salted, tree bacon comes to the rescue. Tree bacon is also known as Viking tree bacon for its outwardly barbaric and intrusive nature especially when the thought of consumption comes to mind. Whatever it is called, it refers to the layer between the bark and the inner wood of a tree. The area, called the cambium, is similar to the goldilocks zone of a tree in terms of edibleness. They can be eaten raw or fried exactly as one would fry bacon. Obviously, tree bacon is rich in fibre and digestible starches considering it is from a tree. Furthermore, it contains some sugar, vitamins, and minerals. Subjecting yourself to pure, organic foods in the wild is a nice healthy shock to your body; contrasting against any processed foods you may have been consuming. Differing from domesticated and cultivated foods that we usually eat, wild foods contain more prominent flavour and nutrition than say conventional tomatoes and potatoes. In conclusion, a trip outside to find some additions to your dinner is an excellent choice to both be more healthy and try something new. Author: Jason Jiang Biography: Jason Jiang is a Grade 11 student at St. Michaels University School in Victoria, BC. Some of his interests include using CAD software, playing with an Arduino, and coding Python. Jason hopes to one day become a mechatronics engineer designing mechanical and electronic contraptions that help streamline everyday life. He may even consider working with propulsion systems. He will likely live on Mars and will have a family of two children.

Trash can be found anywhere, from the bottom of the ocean to the streets in our neighborhood. Trash can also be really dangerous both to the animals and the environment. I joined a volunteer group at school where we pick up trash in the neighborhood. From those cleanups, I realize that there is a lot of different types of trash. Some can be recycled and some cannot. Usually, the trash that cannot be recycled will go to a dumpster or landfill. But the thing is, rich first-world countries would dump their landfill trash in the poorer countries in exchange for trade and money. Sometimes these countries don't have enough space (or they don't know what to do with them) so they dump it into the ocean or burn it. This pollutes both the ocean and the land. Some trash would get washed far out to sea but some would also get washed up back to land. Although trash doesn't affect humans if it's far out at sea, it affects the animals and plants that live there. There's even an island in the Pacific made entirely out of trash that turns the water around it into a mushy trash soup. According to a report written in 2021, Canada is estimated to be the country that produced the most waste - 1,325,480,289 metric tons. Although there is a lot of land in Canada, the land is not used to store trash. Instead, Canada often sends its trash to other countries like Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, and the Philippines. Not too long ago, countries like China and Malaysia started to send back the trash if it was not sorted properly. Some recycling companies would even send away their trash in exchange for money rather than properly recycling the trash. Others turn their trash into cubes and put them up for auction, which usually result in the trash ending up in a landfill anyways, except in a compressed form. I am from Indonesia and moved to Vancouver last year during Christmas. If you didn't know, Indonesia has been receiving tons of trash from all around the world. Trash burning and dumping are a regular occurrence there. Some local businesses have even switched from using coal to plastic when cooking to keep the trash under control. However, some plastics are toxic, which creates a problem. Landfills have also been overflowing, so Indonesian citizens have begun to send their trash into the ocean. This ruins our beaches (one of our main tourist attractions and an important economic source) and damages the environment. Although there have been many people who have tried to help through ways such as making strong, biodegradable plastic with cassava or sorting trash to see which ones can be used for fuel, events, and competitions, such efforts are not enough. Furthermore, it’s not just Indonesia that is struggling with this problem. If Asian countries will no longer accept trash, this will also be a problem for European and North American countries. There are many types of trash. Different trash means that there should be different ways to deal with them. Some trash is easier to deal with, like food waste. But some trash types are harder to deal with, such as plastics. Although people have found ways to substitute these kinds of trash, we still need to do something about the current trash in the landfill. Despite there being a lot of other problems in this world (e.g. war, human rights, politics, etc.), I feel like taking care of the world is equally important because the Earth is the only inhabitable planet we have right now. I do not want people who are born in the future to have to deal with the actions we committed (the same goes with the other problems). I feel like this issue is something we can all agree on and work together towards solving by uniting scientists, volunteers, small business owners, and regular citizens from around the world. Everyone can do their part to participate in this effort and help maintain a cleaner planet. Author: Ivena Lois Susantadiredja Biography: Ivena is currently a Grade 9 student at Lord Byng Secondary School in Vancouver, BC. In her free time, she likes to read, play badminton, and sleep. Although she is still adjusting to living in Vancouver after a move, she is optimistic about her future! References CBC News. “Tracking Your Plastic: Exposing Recycling Myths (Marketplace).” CBC News, 27 Sept. 2019, www.youtube.com/watch?v=c8aVYb-a7Uw&t=2s. Evers, Jeannie. “Great Pacific Garbage Patch | National Geographic Society.” Education.nationalgeographic.org, 2 June 2022, education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/great-pacific-garbage-patch. Sebastian, Andrew. “5 Countries That Produce the Most Waste.” Investopedia, 2019, www.investopedia.com/articles/markets-economy/090716/5-countries-produce-most-waste.asp. “Where Canada Sends Its Garbage.” 10000changes.ca, 10000changes.ca/en/news/where-canada-sends-its-garbage/#:~:text=Canada%20and%20other%20countries%20are%20now%20shipping%20waste. Accessed 19 July 2022.

Generally speaking, there must be some unpleasant experiences in one's life. Often unhappy social relationships lead directly to these problems. If these unpleasant experiences occur in one’s childhood, they can cast a shadow on that person for life. Campus bullying is the most common one that usually happens. There are many types of bullying on campus. In addition to physical assault, which is a common form of bullying, bullying in words and behaviour can also be harmful. Sometimes bullying and purposefully isolating a person doesn't have to be for any particular reason. I am a living example. I remember when I was in the third grade, I had an illness that caused me to stop going to school for almost a year. At that time, I naively thought that even though I was separated from my classmates for a long time, there would not be a big split between us. Gradually, I found that BECAUSE I had been away from everyone for so long, I couldn't talk about what my classmates were talking about. When I tried to understand and tried to join the conversation, I always heard "You don't understand," "We didn't talk about anything," and "It's nothing." It made me feel like I didn’t belong there. Such verbal isolation stayed with me until sixth grade, my darkest year. That year, I had a new deskmate, who was very friendly to me. I thought that he was different from the others. Unfortunately, he wasn’t. When we got to know each other relatively well, he started asking me to help him with his homework. I mean do his homework for him. After being isolated by most of my classmates in the previous years, I had taken on an ingratiating personality. That is to say, I would try my best to meet the requirements of others, even if they require me to spend a lot of time, energy and even money. I gave in to his request. After that, he intensified his efforts, not only verbally insulting me, but also excluding me from classmates. Fortunately, I met my best friend at that time. She was like a lifeline to me. She would defend me and help me refuse the so-called requests that I had no reason to answer. I was afraid to tell my family and teachers because I was too timid and full of misgivings. People often say that this is only a part of childhood playfulness, but using insulting nicknames, spreading rumours about others, and rallying classmates to exclude someone are indications of bullying! For the victims, every step of the way to school is like a journey to the grave. School bullying is not totally out of the question. Please communicate with your parents more. Make them aware of the pain and struggle bullying has caused you, and if possible, move to a different environment, such as another school. Please learn to protect yourself. Too much tolerance only makes bullying worse. If someone bullies you for an absurd reason, please fight back with your most solid fist, even if you can't win. If you are one of those people who are being bullied, don't be afraid to fight back and always believe in the good in the world. Take good care of your body, but also protect your spiritual world. Live for yourself! Love yourself and protect yourself. Author: Ella Peng Biography: Ella is a second-year student at Luther College High School in Regina, Saskatchewan. She takes part in the International Cafe, Math Club, and Cheese Club at her school, and some of her hobbies include reading, dancing, hip-hop, and listening to music. Ella aspires to be an orthodontic dentist in the future and is ready to work towards that goal!

Listening to music, drifting off into your own mindless thoughts…How about combining drama and music at the same time? The Broadway musical’s greatest songwriting titan, Stephen Sondheim, set up a novel artistic standard in musical plays. On November 26, 2021, he passed away at age 91, resting in his home in Connecticut, a discovery that struck society with grief. During the most climatic stage of his lifetime - 1970-80s - Sondheim produced an abundance of musical works, including ‘Company’ (1970), ‘Follies’ (1971), ‘A Little Night Music’ (1973), and ‘Into the Woods’(1987), etc. ‘Send in the Clowns’ of Little Night Music held popularity in the top musical charts, conveying a smooth tone with this classical line: ‘Isn’t it rich, send in the clown’. Sondheim’s devotedness and passion towards musical composition and in theatrical plays meant solitary late working hours and large time investments. His interest was mainly in constructing music, rather than musical lyrics; Arthur Laurent’s proposal for Sondheim to write lyrics instead of song compositions for Romeo and Juliet received a frown in response. However, Laurent’s other proposal, ‘Would you like to play for Lenny?’, made Sondheim hesitant about his choice, and he eventually agreed to the arrangement after calling his adviser, Oscar. Using a witty style, he attempted to construct the lyrics of the play with simplicity, since he thought that there were dangers of pretension with Lenny’s demand of poetic construction. Indeed, Sondheim valued poetic language not for its sophistication, but for its use of imagery and rhyme, as exemplified by his lyrics: ‘It’s alarming and charming l feel’ (girl from the street, play) and ‘When you’re a Jet you’re a Jet, all the way from your first cigarette’ (Jet song). During the ’70s, Sondheim collaborated with Prince, leading to the breakthroughs of Follies’, ‘A Little Night Music’ and ‘A Little Night Overture’—a burst of artistic production in such a short time span, all constructed from his original plays. Interestingly, Sondheim perceived plays that contained lots of blood as beautiful or melodramatic. Sondheim’s shows were so admired by the public that they ran for 604 performances. He is still considered one of the greatest musical artists today and shall be remembered. Author: Elaine Li Biography: Elaine is a 10th grade student attending York House School. She aspires to specialize in mathematics and is interested in watching musicals and plays as well as listening to a variety of different music. She is a kind and sociable person, someone who is willing to help others and contribute to society. Contact: Ins.@elainel24681 Email: elee4239@gmail.com / elainel24@yorkhouse.ca Reference: nytimes.com. 26 Nov. 2021, www.nytimes.com/2021/11/26/theater/stephen-sondheim-dead.html.

Nick Cave is an American contemporary fabric sculptor, dancer, and performance artist. Cave's family was large in size and always supportive of his artistic interests. He claims his upbringing gave him an artistic attentiveness to found objects and assemblages.Cave's low socio-economic status growing up forced him to repair hand-me-downs from older siblings, which is where he began developing skills in manipulating fabrics. He created his first Soundsuit through the utilization of these skills. The series "Soundsuits'' represent metaphorical suites of armor. They are meant as an alien second skin that covers race, gender, and class, allowing the viewers to look without bias towards the wearer's identity. In using everyday objects, Cave can create an atmosphere of familiarity while rearranging the objects into interpretive representations of both social and material culture. Cave also works with choreographers, dancers, and amateur performers to create community celebrations in non traditional venues for art. Soundsuits are also displayed in exhibitions and museums as sculptures. Influences of African art traditions, armor, ceremonial dress, couture fashion, and designed textiles, as well as stereotypically feminine objects, are present in his work to express a multitude of concepts. Nick Cave's first Soundsuit was created in 1992, as a reaction to the beating of Rodney King. Rodney King was an American author and activist who was a victim of police brutality. On March 3, 1991, King was beaten by LAPD officers after a high-speed chase during his arrest for drunk driving. For his first Soundsuit, Cave collected a large number of sticks and twigs from the ground and fashioned them into a suit that, to his surprise, made sounds when worn. His works reflect and address issues of racial inequality in the United States. Although his works and his experiences are specified towards the US, the issues he addresses are relevant all over the world. The idea that we should not look at others with bias is a subject that we need to incorporate into our communities more often. The intersection of art and life creates a new space where the reality of social constructs and how it influences individuals and communities can be expressed through a way that is easily understood and accepted by the majority. Although in Cave’s works, his intersections are between his individual identity and the social constructs he faces, our intersections could vary, such as our individual identities intersecting or clashing with the collective identity. Our intersections could also be between our self perspective and the perspective others have of us. These intersections are expressed in many different ways, and for Cave, it is through his artworks. Author: Lindsay Liu Biography: Lindsay Liu (she/her) is currently a high school student and aspiring artist in Grade 11 going to Southridge School in Surrey, BC. As an Art Student, she aspires to fully include the Arts and Design into her life. Lindsay loves how art is such an irreplaceable part of life and to the world we live in. Contact: Ins: lindsay_liu_____ Photo Sources: New York Times The Guardian Public Delivery Bomb Magazine #arts #WixBlog #studentjournal