EDITOR PERRIN GRAUER | THURSDAY, MARCH 22, 2018 | THE VOICE 3 Campusnews Kelly Sveinson, chemist and co-ordinator of research for the Langara Cannabis Research Group, works in his office. The group is set to publish the first of five studies on the social, environmental, economic and health effects of cannabis use. p&siRfe GARCIA PHOTO Federal pot laws force Langarajteam to use outgourced data = By DESIREE GARCIA espite being prohibited from using marijuana for their experiments, the Langara Cannabis Research Group is on the verge of publishing its first of five studies on the social, environmental and eco- nomic effects of the drug. Over the last two years, the group has been studying crowd-sourced data gathered by another organi- zation, meant to create material to educate the public and policymak- ers on pot, which is set to be legal- ized in the summer of 2018. Restrictive federal regulations requiring laboratories to be under heavy security when conducting research directly on the cannabis plant prevented Langara’s team of researchers from obtaining mari- juana for their studies. Instead, the group turned to a commercial laboratory, whose name could not be disclosed for legal rea- sons, to obtain data gathered from cannabis products sold by local dispensaries. Kelly Sveinson, chemist and co-ordinator of research for the Lan- gara Can- nabis Research Group said the group hoped to fill a knowledge gap around the ef- fects of cannabis on humans and so- ciety, so regulations like the ones restricting his research group could be based on evidence, rather than poli- tics. “We're hoping that poli- cymakers will look at the results and [they will] help inform good, strong, social policy based on sci- ence,” Sveinson said. John Russell, chair of the Langara research _ ethics board, applauded the re- search group for com- pleting their studies despite the regu- latory obstacles they faced. “Canna- bis is ille- * TS ‘ gal, the possession of it is illegal... so I think our researchers here should be commended for the efforts they're taking to try to shed some more light on the use of this substance,” Rus- sell said. Dr. M-J Milloy, a research scientist at the British Columbia Centre on Substance Use, said he supports regulations governing the use of can- nabis for re- search, but hopes legaliza- tion will bring an easing of restrictions on possession for research pur- oses. “[Cannabis] certainly has harms and risks, but we don't think it should be regulated in such a manner that makes it onerous to be able to con- duct scientific research,” Milloy said. When novelty ends, shock sets in International students often enter crisis as stresses pile up = By WILLIAM CROSBY or many international stu- | ee mid-March is when the shine starts to dim on their new adventure abroad, ac- cording to Tim Rahilly, vice-pro- vost and associate vice-president, students and international at SFU. It's at this time that real culture shock sets in, replacing excitement and engagement with anxiety and anguish. Rahilly said heavy academic de- mands can further amplify the ex- traordinary challenge of commu- nicating in a second language and having to adjust to a whole new set of social norms. “I think what happens is that there’s a huge excitement around coming to Canada, and I think that excitement buoys them or carries them along for a certain period of time,” Rahilly said. “So I think it's quite natural that things come crashing down on people... It means that we need to help prepare them for that and offer them support.” At Langara, international stu- dents make up almost a third of the student population. Erin Smith, Langara’s interna- tional student co-ordinator, recent- ly ran a workshop called “Culture Shock” to help international stu- dents deal with their mid-term dif- ficulties, which she called “the end of the honeymoon.” “T lived abroad for about 12 years in eight different countries and so I’ve experienced culture shock many times,” said Smith, who has studied all over the world, and wanted to INT'L STUDENT STATS » 6,210 International students currently enrolled at Langara. » 89 Different countries represented by the Langara student population. » 549 Int'l students enrolled in computer science program; Langara's most popular program for int'l students SOURCE: LANGARA.CA share the lessons she'd learned. Langara student Richu John said it was the small things that made his transition from India most dif- ficult. “Even just buying a coffee at Tim Hortons was difficult for me the first time,” John said, Rahilly said it’s normal for stu- dents studying in foreign countries to feel overwhelmed from time to time, but the most important skill for anyone in an unfamiliar situa- tion to learn was how to reach out for assistance. “They could be doing super well academically, but there are some significant cultural differences, and...one of the differences is when do you ask for help,” Rahilly said. “A lot of people have really high expectations of themselves. ] think in addition to asking for help..-we have to help people set realistic ex- pectations.” Speech rights for students vital: prof Student engagement on limits and powers of free speech creates stronger campuses = By AGAZY MENGESHA rotecting students’ right to P free speech on campus means they will sometimes encoun- ter ideas they feel are deeply dis- agreeable, said Langara philosophy instructor Kent Schmor. Schmor said while post-second- ary institutions should protect stu- dents from bodily or psychological harm, exposing students to differ- ent views can be part of a student’s growth and learning. “You might face some views that seem crazy to you...Rather than trying to shut it down, why not just see this as an opportunity to learn?” Schmor said. In light of recent free speech controversies on campuses across North America, Schmor will be delivering a lecture next month on the subject of free speech as part of the philosophy department’s ‘Phi- losophers’ Jam’ lecture series. He hopes to encourage students to dis- cuss how their right to free speech might be applied in real life. Cases of students being chal- lenged on their charter rights — or challenging the rights of others — have loomed large in media cover- age recently. UC Berkeley, famous for its long history of student protest, made headlines last year when a student riot erupted in response to a sched- uled appearance by right-wing commentator Milo Yiannopoulos. At Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo, Ontario, a teaching as- sistant named Lindsay Shepherd was reprimanded for showing her students a video of a right-wing professor's re- fusal to address transgender } students by their preferred pronoun. The repri- mand waseven- Kent Schmor 1 ; PHILOSOPHY tually dismissed, INSTRUCTOR but the incident sparked nation- wide debates on the limits of free speech. Katharine Browne, also a philos- ophy instructor at Langara, believes universities should not censor free speech. “Students have the right to free speech as do their instructors, and ... the right to an education that's not limited by any kinds of restric- tions on freedom of expression,” Browne said. Paul Quirk, the Phil Lind chair of U.S. politics and representation at UBC, said it’s important to en- courage students to think through where they stand on free speech and its limits before they find that right challenged. “Students who have a good expo- sure to the legal and philosophical background of free speech would be much more reliable supporters of free speech once a controversy arose,” Quirk said.