6 THE VOICE, THURSDAY, FEB. 18, 2016 EDITOR TESSA VIKANDER lewpoints TD Bank employs eco spin ID Bank works hard to present it- Te as an environmentally con- scious company, but its attempts don’t make up for the fact that they in- vest in huge, environmentally destruc- tive industrial projects. They’ve branded their new branch at Marine Gateway complex as environ- mentally sustainable because they’ve used recycled construction materials and installed ener- gy efficient equip- ment. How do I know this? They sent out a press re- lease boasting Ny | about if. / aa /4 It’s great that ® | TDhas taken steps to make its facade OPINION more environmen- tally friendly. But TESSA VIKANDER that’s all it is: a fa- cade, through which it’s green- r4 r4 washing its image. ° Literature on gre- The nitty enwashing from gritty on the university of ° ichigan defines i TD is that as any communica- they’re an tion that misleads ° ° ° the public to form institution overly positive be- that liefs about an orga- ° nization’s environ- m vests . mental practices, heavily tim ~~ which is exactly oil what TD is doing. . The nitty gritty compantes on TD is that they’re an institu- tion that invests heavily in oil companies. In fact, TD As- set Management is the largest share- holder of Suncor Energy, which was the first company to operate in the tar sands. They also have significant invest- ments in TransCanada and Enbridge- the company responsible for the pro- posed Trans Mountain Pipeline MEANWHILE AT HEALTH CANADA... SEAN LEE comic Confused about vaping am a sporadic smoker and I’ve al- ways felt smoking electronic ciga- rettes was pointless. I didn’t under- stand why someone would smoke nicotine electronically when they could enjoy the real plea- sure of tobacco expansion which would carry dilbt, a crude oil, from Alberta to the west coast. TD also invests in “clean” technolo- gy and claims that “Green is more than just a colour to TD Bank Group” and it represents their commitment to “mak- ing a positive environmental differ- ence.” However, no amount of wind energy or ecosystem restoration can make up for funding the largest industrial proj- ect in the world—the Alberta tar sands. We want to hear from you Got a different point of view? Write to us. Problems with something we've said? Let us know. Think we got a fact wrong? Tellus. Journalisin instructor Erica Bulman oversees The Voice. Email her at ebulman@langara.be.ca <> with the same ; health risks? 4g So, why does so- ciety disapprove of OPI N ION e-cigarette users? ROBERTO TEIXEIRA E-cigarettes are a relatively new phe- nomenon, and there is contradictory information about the subject that can confuse the public. According to a new study published by Public Health England, e-cigarettes are 95 per cent less harmful than reg- ular tobacco cigarettes and have the potential to help smokers quit. Studies like the one published by PHE show the positive sides of “vap- ing”, but other studies refute that con- clusion. Health Canada has taken a weak stance against e-cigarettes. Their 2009 statement advised Canadians to not use e-cigarettes because they “may” pose health risks and haven’t been fully evaluated for safety. As a result of their soft stance and the different results from around the world, the general population doesn’t know how to interpret the results. There aren’t enough studies on the long-term effects of e-cigarettes or evi- dence that shows whether second- hand vapour causes harm. As a result, many non-smokers don’t want to be in a closed space with people who are vaping. Because the exhaled vapour looks the same as second-hand smoke, they fear it has dangerous side effects. On the other hand, many e-cigarette users believe they should be allowed to smoke indoors because they don’t think the vapour is harmful. According to the Public Health Agency of Canada, 40,000 Canadians die from smoking-related diseases ev- ery year. So, if studies show that vaping can help people quit smoking, why don’t we know more about it? Health Canada should set rules and accompany them with a robust public messaging campaign to educate peo- ple. Depression apps pointless help relieve depression instead of relying on a smart phone app. Happify has become a popular de- pression-conquering app. The makers claim it helps us- ers become more optimistic and self aware through the app’s research backed activities. Happify directs customers Fis: and family are needed to through a test like . feature that never ends. It starts by OPINION prompting users ANNA TILLEY to complete a questionnaire so that they can dis- cover their mental health strengths. It then puts the user in a happiness category, one of the choices is “just getting by”— which doesn’t boost morale. Smart phones apps don’t make us happy. Studies from the Michigan State Univeristy’s College of Com- munication Arts and Sciences have found that replac- ing human inter- action with electronic commu- nication causes little, if any, last- ing satisfaction. While — smart- phones are like a 66 ... Replac- ing human interaction with elec- tronic com- munica- tion causes little, if any, last- ing satis- faction dear friend to many, for some the digi- tally mediated communication causes face-to-face interaction to feel daunt- ing. Certain parts of life should always be nurtured outside of our phones, and good mental health is one of them. Yes, it is hard for some people to ad- dress their mental health issues, so if needed an app could be a starting point. But it’s important to eventually have human interaction, no matter how daunting. Apps will never be able to tackle negative feelings more successfully than a hike, a day at the beach, or a coffee date with a friend. Apps like Happify are positive ideas, but in the long run putting the phone down and living in the moment with direct connections will be the true path to happiness. pNbice The Voice is published by Langara College's journalism department. Editorial opinions are those of the staff and are independent of views of the student government and administration. We welcome letters to the editor. They may be edited for brevity. Your letter must include your name and phone number. HOW TO REACH US PHONE 604-323-5396 E-MAIL thevoice@langara.bc.ca DROP-IN Room A226 Langara College There is a mailbox at the entrance to the journalism rooms. SNAIL MAIL The Voice 100 West 49th Ave. Vancouver, B.C. V5Y 226 WEBSITE wwwiangaravoice.ca EDITORIAL STAFF MANAGING EDITOR Kevin Underhill PAGE EDITORS PAGE 1 Mark Stuart PAGE 2 Jake Costello PAGE 3 Scott Drake PAGE 4 Sean Lee PAGE 5 Vincent Matak PAGE 6 Tessa Vikander PAGE 7 Rosemary Newton PAGE 8 Bridgette Watson MANAGING WEB EDITOR Murray B. Hunt WEB EDITORS Ben Bengtson Rumana Dsouza Serena Pattar Nancy Plechaty Seyedmostafa Raziei Kate Richardson COPY/WEB EDITOR Kathryn Wu REPORTERS Daniel Dadi-Cantarino Chantelle Deacon Reuben Dongalen Jr Natalie Dunsmuir Scott Forbes Simran Gill Nico Hemandez Brian Kurokawa Alyd Llewellyn Jordan Macdonald Veronnica Mackillop Chahira Merarsi Luis Mina Linda Nguyen Alison Pudsey Ashley Singh Roberto Teixeira Anna Tilley Jenna Tytgat Chandler Walter Jake Wray Contact us: Online at langaravoice.ca Twitter: @LangaraVoice