2 THE VOICE, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 7, 2013 EDITOR DEANNA CHENG Cws Radio host Simi Sara wins big Langara graduate receives Jack Webster award By ANDREA ANTHONY broadcaster and Langara journal- ism alumna, knew she wanted to be a journalist ever since writing for the school newspaper in elementary school. “Even when I was a kid I wanted to be in journalism,” said Sara. On Oct. 30, Sara won the 2013 City Mike Commentator of the Year Award at the Jack Webster Awards, which honour the best journalists in B.C. ev- ery year. The City Mike Award cele- brates the top commentator in print or broadcast media. Thinking she was going to end up working for a newspaper, Sara never thought she would be the host of her own radio show, let alone win awards for it. “It was not something ... I thought I would get into let alone enjoy as much as I do,” said Sara. Ian Koenigsfest, brand director of CKNW, said what he loves most about Sara is that she is always open to new ideas. “[Sara] approaches every story with the same passion. “Talk radio relies on connections with people,” said Koenigsfest, adding that Sara is especially good at that. Winning the Jack Webster award so- lidified Sara’s conviction that she had made a wise career choice. “This is something that I can do and I’m good at it,” said Sara. Max Wyman, presenter of Sara’s Jack Webster award, said, “Audacious, outspoken radio in the Webster tradi- tion seems to come to her as naturally as breathing.” Although she has spent more years in television than in radio, Sara said she prefers radio. “There’s a lot less attention paid to how you look and more to what you’re saying, which I appreciate,” said Sara. “You could do a great interview in tele- vision and you find that people weren’t paying attention because they didn’t like your sweater.” Being on the radio means having to process a lot of information, said Sara. People expect you to be able to ques- tion and challenge the person you’re interviewing on every little detail, which means having to know every- thing about them, said Sara. “It’s just a vast amount of informa- tion to digest and absorb every day.” Ss: Sara, award-winning CKNW Bookmarks Window _Help See your doctor online See using y coverag secure vi By GLEN TRUAX ere is a new Internet source for students who need medical assis- tance but don’t have the time or ability to see a doctor. Medeo and Studentcare are introducing a new pro- gram that allows patients to see a doc- tor entirely via the web. Health advice, referrals and pre- scriptions sent to the drugstore of the student’s choice are available online through Medeo, with a service that’s accessible 60 hours a week. The new program is available to all post-secondary students in British Co- lumbia, but it is an independent re- source — Medeo does not work in con- junction with individual student health offices on campus. Instead, Medeo offers a download- able application through which stu- dents can log in, sign up and communi- cate with medical professionals. “You can see a physician any time you want,” said Medeo president Ryan a licenced BC doctor online with Medeo our existing medical services : e. You can connect from anywhere via deo on computer, iPhone or iPad. Wilson. “We can also direct students to specialists and psychiatrists with this program.” Medeo is essentially a third party provider, with their profits exclusively coming from doctors who pay a “rent- al” fee for the service. Regular interaction with a physician is getting scarce, especially with stu- dents. According to a 2012 Statistics Canada report, over 4 million Canadi- ans do not have a regular doctor. This number is particularly high with young adults, as 35 per cent of people between the ages of 20 and 35 are without a general practitioner. That percentage drops with in- creased age — after age 35, the number without regular doctors diminish be- fore reaching an ultimate point of only seven per cent by the age of sixty-five. Brad Van Dam, an international stu- dent coordinator at Langara, said that there might be issues for international students using Medeo. “There might be a language barrier KAYLA ISOMURA photo illustration Medeo is the first program of its kind in Canada and will reach 125,000 students in Studentcare’s network across British Columbia. Health advice available online Private company connects students to doctors via Internet for free problem —- many of our students have poor English skills, so we usually direct them to a doctor in their community.” However, Van Dam indicated that there have been generally few prob- lems for international students access- ing healthcare in Canada. The new program is free for all stu- dents who are paying the provincial health fees. International students cov- ered by third-party private insurance will have to pay a fee, but Ryan Wilson states that this process is “just the same as going to any clinic in Vancou- ver.” Payments are made via credit card and insurance companies will reim- burse the student. The company is based entirely in Vancouver. Medeo began an initial test run in January earlier this year as they investigated the possibility of online medical access between one physician and a given test subject. They now have eight licensed physi- cians on their board of advisors. RYAN WILSON President of Medeo 66 You can see a phy- sician any time you want. Sugar production not so sweet for all globe's citizens: Oxfam club JESSE LAM photo Leilani Reum wants people to see how they’re connected to the food system. Backroom deals rob farm- ers, herders of land: author By JESSE LAM “Behind the Brands” campaign fighting sugar companies taking land away from developing-world citi- zens in favour of more sugar cane farms. The Oxfam club has set up petition sheets for their first big campaign. The “Stop the Sugar Rush” petition tells Coke, PepsiCo and other corporate gi- ants to make sure their sugar doesn’t lead to land grabs. “The reason why we want to have this campaign is to show how big of a monster this industry is,” said Leilani T: Langara Oxfam club is having a Reum, the Oxfam club liaison. Oxfam Canada said sugar is pro- duced on about 31 million hectares of land globally, an area the size of Italy. Oxfam club member Justine Clarke said, “Global consumption has more than doubled since 1961. The way that this sugar is being overproduced, through land grabs, is unethical and needs to be addressed.” Lester Brown, founder of Earth Poli- cy Institute, said in his book Full Plan- et, Empty Plates that massive land grabs are usually confidential deals between a few high-ranking officials, displacing many local farmers and herders. The book also said, “Their land may be confiscated or it may be bought from them at a price over which they have little say.” OXFAM petition 1 Companies must know how the sugar they produce or source impacts communities’ access to land and respects land rights. 2 Companies must show where the ingredients they use come from and who grows them. 3 Companies must act by committing to zero tolerance for land grabs, working with governments and others to do the same. Source: Behind The Brands