Dr. Samantha Nutt
Dr. Samantha Nutt, a medical doctor, activist and founder of War Child Canada, visits Kelowna on Jan. 28 with a message urging the global community to do a better job of protecting civilians caught in the crossfire of war.
Nutt has helped children in some of the world’s most violent flashpoints and is a leader in the effort to bring humanitarian aid to children and families in war-affected countries. She has been invited by UBC Okanagan’s Distinguished Speaker Series to present a free public lecture examining the impact of war and the importance of public engagement in global issues.
“What will it take to reduce, if not eliminate, the threat of war as a propagator of death, disease and destruction and unfathomable hardship?” Nutt asks. “In short, it takes nothing less than a moral and philosophical transformation around the privileged position we occupy in the world — geographically, politically and economically — and the responsibility that comes along with this so that we aren’t beating innocent people with a stick on the one hand, and unapologetically handing out Band-Aids with the other.”
Known for inspiring others to make a difference in the lives of those affected by war, Nutt works with War Child Canada (which she founded, and currently serves as executive director), the United Nations and non-governmental organizations in Iraq, Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Iraq, Burundi, northern Uganda and the Thai-Burmese border.
Nutt was chosen by Maclean’s magazine for their annual Honour Roll as one of “12 Canadians making a difference,” was honoured for leadership by Global Television and the National Post on International Women’s Day 2002, and was among 30 “outstanding Canadian women” profiled by Flare magazine for their 25th anniversary edition in 2004.
Samantha Nutt’s presentation, Social Responsibility: Acting Upon Our Responsibilities as Citizens, is at 7 p.m., Monday, Jan. 28, at the Rotary Centre for the Arts, 421 Cawston Ave., Kelowna. Tickets are free but must be picked up or ordered in advance from the Rotary Centre for the Arts box office (call 717-5304).
The Distinguished Speaker Series is funded by the Irving K. Barber School of Arts and Sciences endowment at UBC Okanagan.
Tickets Available for Carl Wieman Science Education Talk Jan. 16
Some free tickets are still available for the Wednesday, Jan. 16, presentation at UBC Okanagan by Dr. Carl Wieman, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2001. Wieman will speak about science education in the 21st century. For more information about Wieman’s talk and to register for free tickets, visit www.ubc.ca/okanagan.
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