CFI CANADA CONFERENCE: FULL DETAILS

Starts
Thursday, March 4th 2010 at 2:00 pm
Ends
Thursday, March 4th 2010 at 9:00 pm
Location
Centre for Inquiry Ontario, 216 Beverley St., Toronto ON (just south of College St. at St. George St.)

CLICK  HERE TO SKIP TO REGISTRATION. 
NOTE:  ATHEIST COMEDY SHOW & MAGIC FOR SKEPTICS CAN NOW BE ATTENDED AS STAND ALONE EVENTS   More Details

The Centre for Inquiry Canada is excited to announce our first national conference. It will take place from the evening of Thursday, March 4 to Sunday, March 7 at the Centre for Inquiry in downtown Toronto. Click here for media release

The two-part conference will include on Saturday, March 6 an educational conference, featuring the theme "Art and Science: Freethought at the Intersection of Two Worlds." Leading thinkers will explore a wide range of topics: the origin and purpose of art, science and technology meets art and design, strands of science-based atheism in philosophy, science and ethics, and much else.  Art exhibits, special entertainment including a comedy performance and a magic show, as well as catered meals, will be included. On Sunday, March 7 we will hold the Annual General Meetings for the Canadian Secular Alliance and the Centre for Inquiry Canada, which are open to the public.

Click here to link to the full schedule and speaker details for the Saturday conference
Click here for details on the Canadian Secular Alliance and Centre for Inquiry Canada Annual General Meetings

Preceding this we will hold on Friday, March 5 , a Leadership & Organizational conference for representatives and leaders of all CFI affilited student groups, Communities for Inquiry and city organizations.  Registration and roundtable opening session on the evening of Thursday, March 4

Click here to link to the full schedule and speaker details for the Thursday/Friday conference

Special Announcement:  We will have an Atheist Comedy Show Friday evening and a Magic for Skeptics show Saturday evening!!  

To open both conferences, on Thursday and Friday evenings, introductory remarks will be made and a toast led by representatives of CFI Canada's Board of Directors and Advisory Fellow. Click here for more information.

****************************************************

EDUCATIONAL CONFERENCE:  ART & SCIENCE:  FREETHOUGHT AT THE INTERSECTION OF TWO WORLDS
Saturday, March 6:  Educational Conference   

  • 8:30 am Registration Begins
  • 9:30 am - 11:00   am - Panel 1: Art, Prehistory and Evolution
    Why was there a sudden explosion in late stone age art? How is art appreciated by the human mind?  What is the aesthetics of art? What evolutionary explanation, if any, is appropriate for the human propensity to make art?  How does our neuroscience allow for an appreciation of the beautiful? 
    * Hank Davis, "Caveman Logic"
    * James Harrod, "Deep Strata of the Psyche: The Two Million Year Evolution of Art, Religion and Language "
    * Panel Chair: Chris Di Carlo
  • 11:00 am - 12:30 pm - Panel 2:  Science and Art
    Can art be turned into a science?  Can science be turned into an art? How do science and art influence each other?  Plus, we'll explore the intersection of art and design with science and technology.
    * Paula Gardner, The Portage Project: Material meets Digital in Mobile Experience 
    * Roshelle Filart, Selling Science to the Public
    * CFI Conference Art Exhibitors, featuring Glendon Mellow, "Art in Awe of Science"  
  • 12:30 pm - 1:30pm - Lunch
  • Keynote Presentation - Chris Di Carlo, "From the EEA (Environment of Evolutionary Adaptedness) to the AGO (Art Gallery of Ontario): The Emergence of Stone Age Art and its Implications for Consciousness & Evolution"
  • 2:30 - 4:00 Panel 3: Atheism, Skepticism and Philosophy
    We will explore the philosophical schools of scientific naturalism and the impact of atheism and skepticism on 20th century philosophy.  What role does the scientific worldview play in shaping various areas of the philosophies and the humanities? 
    * Byron Williston, "How Secularism Rather Than Christianity Offers a Truly Objective Morality"
    * Chris Di Carlo, "From the Roots of Skepticism to the Tree of Scientific Knowledge" 
    * James Robert Brown, "Atheism, ethics, and living a good life"
  • 4:00 - 4:30 Break
  • 4:30 - 6:00 Panel 4: Science and Ethics
    Can science help us make wise ethical judgements or does ethics belong to a part of the humanities beyond the reach of science?  We will also explore ethical decision making in science research and the ethics of choosing among competing lifestyles
    * Paul Kurtz, "The Empathetic Imperative"  
    * Chandler Davis, "Is the Bomb-maker to Blame for the Bomb?" 
    * Ron Lindsay, "The Value of Science for Values" 
  • 6:00 - 8:00 Dinner (on your own)
  • 8:00pm: Skeptics Magic Show with Magician Jeff Hinchliffe
  • Speaker Details

    Paul Kurtz, who will speak on the panel Science and Ethics
    Can science help us to make wise choices. Kurtz introduces the empathetic imperative as a real factor in moral choices. He says that to rely on  purely instrumental thinking is tuncated. We are still able to make choices, but unless empathy is included, choice may be difficult to justify.  Dr. Paul Kurtz is Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at the University at Buffalo (SUNY).He is founder and chairman of the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP), the Council for Secular Humanism, the Center for Inquiry and Prometheus Books.  He is editor in chief of Free Inquiry magazine, a publication of the Council for Secular Humanism. He was co-president of the International Humanist and Ethical Union. He is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and Humanist Laureate and president of the International Academy of Humanism. As a member of the American Humanist Association, he contributed to the writing of Humanist Manifesto II. The asteroid (6629) Kurtz was named in his honor.

    Christopher DiCarlo
    Ontario's Best Lecturer 2008 and Canada's Humanist of the Year 2008, Christopher diCarlo is a Philosopher of Science and Ethics whose interests in cognitive evolution have taken him into the natural and social sciences. His personal research focuses on how and why humans reason, think, and act the way they do. He is interested in how and why the human brain has evolved to its current state and what cross-cultural and cross-species behaviour can provide insight into universally common modes of reasoning. He is also interested in the application of neuroscience (specifically fMRI work), in an effort to better understand psychoneuroendocrine feedback looping in problem solving. Dr. diCarlo is currently an Assistant Professor at the University of Ontario Institute of Technology where he teaches Critical Thinking, Bioethics, and other courses. His most recent book (just released by McGraw-Hill Ryerson) is entitled: How to Become a Really Good Pain in the Ass: A Practical Guide to Thinking Critically. He is also a past Visiting Research Scholar at Harvard University in the Department of Anthropology and the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology where he conducted research for two books he is currently writing called: The Comparative Brain: The Evolution of Human Reasoning and The Evolution of Religion: Why Many Need to Believe in Deities, Demons, and the Unseen.

      Paula Gardner, The Portage Project:  Material Meets Digital in Mobile Experience" 
    This talk explores how science and art practice can combine to query questions of subjectivity and social interaction via interactive mobile art infrastructures. The “Portage” project brought together material and digital platforms to query the types of interactions participants might undertake in street environments, and how these fed their understandings of self as technology mediating and the role of hybrid technologies in social networking and community building.  The paper presents as case studies a digital newsbox, an interactive sleuthing game, and interactive hybrid musical instruments created via an interdisciplinary process melding critical theory, engineering, and art and design processes.  Paula is an Associate Professor, OCAD, with expertise in New Media, ethnography, documentary production and mobile experience design. She co-led (with Geoffrey Shea) the Canadian Heritage-funded project, Portage, The Canadian Mobile Experience. The project pioneered work in unified authoring-design approaches, interaction design, and mobile networks. (mobilelab.ca/portage) Paula has published numerous articles on mobile technologies, and in the area of psychiatric technologies and cultural practice. She is currently completing a full-length documentary on the American asylum process since 9/11/01.

    James Harrod on "Deep Strata of the Psyche: The Two Million Year Evolution of Art, Religion and Language" (Art, Prehistory & Evolution Panel)
    A major paradigm shift is emerging in our understanding of human cultural evolution. This paradigm suggests that art, religion and language have been evolving over the last two million years. The old model that these cultural forms arose some 50,000 years ago in some sort of Eurocentric ‘creative explosion’ is no longer tenable. The prehistory of art goes back at least two million years into the deepest strata of the human psyche. International research on rock art is providing an ever expanding database for art during the Middle Paleolithic, Early Paleolithic and Oldowan periods. In this presentation I will provide a brief overview of some of the new research and show images of art from each of the periods of human evolution, some accepted, some more hypothetical. Contextual and direct evidence suggest how the evolution of art occurs in tandem with the evolution of language, symbol, and other knowledge encoding systems.

    James Harrod, Ph.D. researches and writes on the origins of art, religion and language over the last three million years of human evolution. His work is available on OriginsNet.org. James did field school in palaeoanthropology at Koobi Fora, Kenya. He has participated in rock art expeditions to central India, the Negev desert in Israel, and the outback of Australia. He has visited Ice Age cave art sites in France and Spain, including Altamira, Lascaux and Pech Merle and Megalithic sites in Ireland. He has an article in press on chimpanzee spirituality and another interpreting the Upper Paleolithic female figurine from Hohle Fels, Germany reported in the journal Nature in May 2009. He also teaches shamanic trance postures and is a practitioner of Tibetan Buddhist meditation.

    James Robert Brown,  "Atheism, ethics, and living a good life" (Atheism, Skepticism and Philosophy Panel)
    Professor Brown will talk about the possibility of objective ethics without God, and what this means for living a morally good life.  Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and experienced debater in defense of scientific realism, Professor Brown appeared on TVO's The Agenda on their programs on Science and Religion, and Assault on Science. He is a Professor of philosophy at the University of Toronto.

    Byron Williston, "How Secularism Rather Than Christianity Offers a Truly Objective Morality" (Atheism, Skepticism & Philosophy Panel)  
    Abstract: Dostoevsky once said that if God is dead everything is permitted. The idea is that religion is a necessary foundation for morality because God alone provides morality with its objectivity. Judging from the assent most religious people still give it, this is a tough thought to dislodge. But it is entirely misguided. I will argue two claims. First, that it is possible to provide an objective, but fully secular basis for morality. Second, that the allegedly objective basis offered by Christianity is not in fact objective at all.

    Byron received a PhD in Philosophy from the University of Toronto in 1999. He is Chair of Philosophy at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo and has published articles on moral weakness, moral dilemmas, the ethics of climate change, problems of self-deception, the philosophy of emotions, religious enthusiasm in the 17th-century, Nietzsche, Descartes, Locke, and other themes. At the moment he's writing a book on environmental ethics.

    Chandler Davis, " Is the Bomb-maker to Blame for the Bomb?" (Science and Ethics Panel)  
    At one extreme are those who say that science only provides the understanding, that understanding is needed to live with technology; at the other extreme are those who say that noxious technologies draw on science, that scientists are therefore responsible for the damage they do.  This is a knotty problem, we may hope to get somewhere with it but not to wrap it up.  Chandler Davis, like all the professors at Toronto at the time, was obliged to turn emeritus when he turned 65. He relinquished the teaching role only over several years, and reluctantly. He still has full-time work, regaling mathematicians with The Mathematical Intelligencer (he has been on its editorial team since 1986), and trying to save the world despite itself through well-intentioned bodies like Science for Peace. He calls himself a Once and Future Science-Fiction Writer: still rapt in the promise and menace of the future, but for many years now responding otherwise than through fiction. "The future is my grandchildren's department." "My legacy is a considerable output of mathematics and a modest output of words and activism. All of which I relished."

    Ron Lindsay, The Value of Science for Values (Science and Ethics Panel)  
    In his talk, Dr. Lindsay will argue that science has an important, but limited, function in informing moral judgments. It is most helpful in the area where moral judgments intersect with public policy. It is of substantially less utility in matters relating to personal conduct.
    Dr. Ronald A. Lindsay is the president/chief executive officer and senior research fellow of the Center for Inquiry Transnational. Dr. Lindsay received his Ph.D. in philosophy from Georgetown University, with a concentration in bioethics.  He has had several articles published in peer-reviewed journals such as The Journal of Law, Medicine and Ethics, the Kennedy Institute of Ethics Journal, and The American Journal of Bioethics.  His recently published book Future Bioethics: Overcoming Taboos, Myths, and Dogmas (Prometheus Books 2008) was favorably reviewed in the prestigious science journal Nature, which observed that the book is “readable, reasoned and accessible” and successfully “challenges the taboos of bioethics.”

    Glendon Mellow: Art in Awe of Science
    Visual metaphors not only help describe difficult concepts, but they can also allow you to play with them. One of my favourite ways to do that is by anthropomorphizing them, giving objects personality and purpose, either through their relationship to one another, or by injecting them with human qualities they don't actually possess.  However, artwork often contains allegory and symbols, by their nature inaccurate; science often strives for accuracy and precision. Is it possible to make wholly accurate art?  Do visual metaphors help art already? Is art parasitic on science? Does art ever inspire science or lead science to new areas of inquiry?  These are some of the questions I'd like to consider.
        With artwork that has illustrated books, magazines, and blogs and illuminates the link between science and art, Glendon Mellow's images demonstrate how the discoveries in science have the potential to increase our visual & metaphorical vocabulary, providing us with new understanding and new stories to tell. Most recently, his work can be seen in the book Geology in Art and at Casa de las Ciencias museum in Spain. Glendon mainly works in oil painting, digital, and pencil and remains available for freelance and contract work. Glendon also maintains a blog, The Flying Trilobite, which is updated weekly, featuring in-process artwork and commentary on science and atheism.  Glendon was born under a cabbage leaf in the summer of 1974, covered in stork feathers and placenta.  He's particularly fond of Naples Yellow - delicious looking colour, and not healthy at all.  He lives in Toronto, Ontario, Canada with his wife and their hermit crab Shiny.

      Roshelle Filart,  "Selling Science to the Public"
    Who’s selling? Who’s buying? What’s for sale? Why bother? These are some of the questions Roshelle Filart will consider when examining the evolving role and relevance of interactive science centres in popularizing science.  With a background in anthropology and education, Roshelle engages visitors of all ages, backgrounds and abilities in explorations of science content and processes as a Host at the Ontario Science Centre. She has also worked as an exhibit developer and events programmer for several Ontario Science Centre exhibitions, including A Question of Truth, Timescape, and Musicmakers. Her international experience includes two years as an Education Officer for the Botswana National Museum and work with rural community schools in Guinea-Bissau in West Africa.

    ************************************************************* 

    ENTERTAINMENT

    COMEDY NIGHT: FRIDAY, 9PM

    Atheist Comedy Night   Join us at CFI for an hour long atheist comedy show featuring Hunter Collins, Nick Beaton and Cal Post.  Hunter Collins is a Much Music Personality featured on the show "Video on Trial" and the host of a sketch comedy show in Toronto.

    Nick Beaton is a stand-up comedian from Nova Scotia who will be featured in an upcoming CTV comedy special and is signed to the same agency as Chris Rock and Dave Chappelle.  Cal Post lists George Carlin and Bill Hicks as some of his influences.  Note:  This event is free to conference registrants.  You may attend this event on its own for $10, $5 for CFI Members.  Plus: $3 Beer. 19+ event. Doors open at 8:45 pm. 

    MAGIC: SATURDAY, 8PM

    Skeptics Magic Show with Magician Jeff Hinchliffe.  Part magic show, part demonstration, this will be a night you won't forget! See how and why magic works! You’ll see impossible things. You’ll learn impossible things, which, oddly enough, isn’t possible.  But that’s what this show is about.  The performance of magic, by definition, is a conflict. It’s a conflict between what is perceived and what is possible. This show is about exposing that conflict, and looking at all the wonder that lies within.  You’ll learn to question assumptions, you’ll learn to think outside the box. You’ll see minds apparently read, events predicted, and objects vanish. You’ll learn to do some of these things. Most importantly, you’ll learn that, in the right context, the impossible can be so much fun.  Note:  This event is free to conference registrants.  You may attend this event on its own for $10, $5 for CFI Members.  Plus: $3 Beer. Doors open at 7:45 pm. 
     *******************************************

    ANNUAL GENERAL MEETINGS - Sunday, March 7

  • 9:30am - 11:30am: Canadian Secular Alliance Annual General Meeting
    This meeting is publically accessible but you must register to attend.  Please contact Jeff Sharom, Policy Advisor and Secretary, mailto:research@secularalliance.ca
  • 11:30 - 1:00pm Lunch
  • 1:00 - 4:00pm Centre for Inquiry Canada Annual General Meeting
    This meeting is open to the public. 
  • ***********************************************

    LEADERSHIP & ORGANIZATIONAL CONFERENCE  - Thursday March 4 (evening) - Friday, March 5

    Designed for representatives of CFI affiliated campus, Community and city groups across Canada, and other special guests, this conference will run from the evening of Thursday, March 4 to the end of Friday, March 5.  We will host sessions on a variety of topics, to be presented by CFI leaders from cities like Vancouver, Saskatoon, Montreal, Toronto, Ottawa, Halifax, Calgary and elsewhere!  The conference will feature an exciting panel on Canadian political issues to be run by various representatives from the new

    Designed for representatives of CFI affiliated campus, Community and city groups across Canada, and other special guests, this conference will run from the evening of Thursday, March 4 to the end of Friday, March 5.  We will host sessions on a variety of topics, to be presented by CFI leaders from cities like Vancouver, Saskatoon, Montreal, Toronto, Ottawa, Halifax, Calgary and elsewhere!  The conference will feature an exciting panel on Canadian political issues to be run by various representatives from the new Canadian Secular Alliance . After hearing reports on well researched and analyzed policy positions, delegates will be invited to contribute to a discussion on building a coordinated national lobbying effort to approach critical issues. Plus, student leaders will address issues affecting science, secularism and skepticism on campus.

    Thursday, March 4:

  • 2:00 pm - 6:00 pm: Registration and check in
  • 6:00 pm - 9:00 pm: Opening Round Table and Reception.  Welcome and toast by members of the Board of Directors and the Advisory Committee
  • 2:00 - 9:00 pm: Art Exhibit.  Featuring art from local artists showcasing the intersection of art and science.
  • Friday, March 5: 

    8:00 am: Registration Begins

    9:00 am - 1:30 pm - Panel 1:  CFI Leaders Group Discussion:  One leader will introduce and lead discussion on each of the following.  There will be a 30 minute break in the middle:

  • The road to a CFI branch in your city, with Mark Robinson
  • Launching your own Multimedia projects, with Katie Kish
  • Major outreach projects and The Great Canadian Atheist Bus Campaign, with Katie Kish
  • Press & Activism:  Tips from Toronto, CFI's most media spotlighted branch, with Justin Trottier
  • Public Relations & Outreach, with  Ethan Clow
  • How to give a kick-ass interview, with Derek Rodgers
  • How to raise money, with Mitchell Gerskup
  • How to promote your groups and its activities, with Ian Bushfield  
  • General group organizing "From Scratch to Success" with Dan Riley
  • How to attract members, with  Diana L. Glennie  
  • Forging campus/community partnerships, with Nick Sagos
  • Doing more skepticism, with Will Mount
  • Event planning, with John Xu
  • 1:30 pm - 2:30 pm:  Lunch

    2:30 pm - 4:30 pm - Panel 2:  Student Leaders and Campus Outreach
    Chair:  Ian Bushfield

  • Violations of church-state separation at university (eg. Campus graduation prayers)
  • Student unions and censorship
  • Student newspaper and the treatment (or lack thereof) of science
  • Alternative medicine endorsing campus programs 
  • Working with faith groups on campus - multifaith dialogues, multifaith centres, chaplaincies
  • 4:30 pm - 6:30 pm - Panel 3: Playing Politics

  • Tax exemptions for religious charities, with Greg Oliver
  • Secularism and Science Education, with Mike Evans
  • Public Financing of Religious Schools, with Mike Evans
  • Religious Accommodation, with Jeff Sharom
  • Free Expression, with Justin Trottier
  • Heritage Issues (God in the national anthem, God in the Charter), with Leslie Rosenblood
  • 7:00 pm - 9:00pm:  Reception and Awards Banquet (Welcome and toast by members of BOD and advisory board)

    9:00pm:  Comedy Night featuring Hunter Collins, Nick Beaton and other Toronto comics

    SPEAKER DETAILS 

    Katie Kish is the president of the Freethought Association of Canada, most noted for the widely successful "Atheist Bus Campaign". She has a long history with the secularist movement across Canada and specifically with multi-media projects. She has hosted a nationally syndicated secular radio show, worked with the Canadian Broadcasting Company on matters of faith and been on the executive of 3 different secular campus groups.

    Ethan Clow , born and raised in the Vancouver area, is best known in the skeptical community as Ethan “the Freethinking Historian” co-host of Radio Freethinker, a skeptical podcast and radio show on CiTR in Vancouver. He is also a regular blogger for Skeptic North.  He graduated with a B.A. in History from UBC in the fall of 2009 and has an active role with skeptical movements in Vancouver and British Columbia. He was an executive member of the UBC Freethinkers, a campus club that promotes skepticism and critical thinking. He still maintains a close relationship with the UBC Freethinkers and helps plan events and organizes skeptical activism as best he can. He is currently the Executive Director of CFI Vancouver.

    William Mount on Doing More Skepticism.  William Mount is a student at the University of Guelph, studying history and biology.  He has had a long interest in promoting science and combating bad science in the public sphere.   For several years he was an executive at the Guelph secular club, and is currently the Vice-Chair of the Committee for the Advancement of Science and Secularism at CFI.  In addition to that, he also sometimes volunteers at the CFI Ontario branch.

    John Xu on Event Planning
    John is the co-founder and first President of the York University (Toronto-based) Freethinkers, Skeptics and Atheists at York.  He was a Centre for Inquiry Ontario intern in the summer of 2008 and the summer of 2009 and is currently on the Board of Directors of the Freethought Association of Canada.  He continues to support campus outreach across the country. 

    Dan Riley has been a field organizer for CFI On Campus since May 2008.  He works with freethought student groups throughout the world to promote reason, science, secularism, humanist values, and free inquiry.  Prior to joining CFI, Dan had worked for the Alliance for Justice, in the legal profession, and as an organizer in the 2008 Presidential election.  He holds a B.A. in Political Science and a minor in Religion from Duke University. 

    Mitchell Gerskup is an undergraduate student at the University of Toronto studying Economics & Philosophy. An avid atheist and skeptic, he currently serves as President of the University of Toronto Secular Alliance, helping to promote science, reason and critical thinking on campus and abroad.

    Derek Rodgers.   From early 2007, Derek Rodgers led one of the only High School Freethought groups in Canada. Currently a Computer Science major at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, he serves on the executive committee for the Dalhousie Atheist Community.  Derek was the Halifax spokesperson for the Freethought Association of Canada’s Atheist Bus Campaign which, following the rejection of the ads in his city, involved making numerous appearances in local and national media. This also led to organizing rallies and debates, and opening dialogue on controversial issues of religious accommodation and free speech in various public forums. In the summer of 2009, he was kicked out of the Answers in Genesis “Creation Museum” for wearing a T-shirt sporting the campaign’s slogan, “There’s probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life.  He has been featured in the Halifax Chronicle-Herald, The Halifax Metro, CTV Newsnet, Global News, CBC Television, CBC Radio One, News 95.7, Xtra.ca, and ABCnews.com

    Mark Robinson is the Founder of the Durham Region Freethinkers. Mark has appeared on such shows as City Online, The Michael Coren Show and the CBC's The National promoting freethought. Mark is currently working towards building the Durham Region Freethinkers into a branch of CFI Canada. Mark continues to make promoting science and reason within the community a priority.

    Nick Sagos holds a PhD from the University of Montreal. A native Montrealer, he has studied at New School for Social Research in New York city and at Concordia University. Mr. Sagos specializes in political philosophy and ethics. He written about Atheism and also about John Dewey's version of Pragmatism. He currently serves as the Chair of CFI Montreal and is the Director of the CSA for Quebec.

    Ian Bushfield Ian Bushfield is a masters student studying physics at Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, BC. He earned a BSc in Engineering Physics in 2009 at the University of Alberta, and was in the first graduating class of that school to receive a secular convocation charge that Ian lobbied for with the UofA Atheists and Agnostics. Ian hopes to bring his experience founding the UAAA and working with the SFU Skeptics to his new role as CFI Canada's Campus Outreach Director.

    Diana L. Glennie on Attracting New Members.  Diana is the leader of the McMaster Association of Secular Humanists in Hamilton, Ontario

    Greg Oliver on Tax exemptions for religious charities
    Greg Oliver is the Vice President of the Canadian Secular Alliance, a voluntary organization of Canadians who believe in church-state separation and the neutrality of government in matters of religion.  He graduated with a with a business degree from the University of Western Ontario and has a career trading the futures markets.  Greg Oliver is the Vice President of the Canadian Secular Alliance, a voluntary organization of Canadians who believe in church-state separation and the neutrality of government in matters of religion.  He graduated with a with a business degree from the University of Western Ontario and has a career trading the futures markets. 

      Mike Evans on Secularism and Science Education and Public Financing of Religious Schools
    Mike Evans is an M.A. student in philosophy at York University and an aspiring teacher. He joined the CSA in June 2009 and is currently a spokesperson and Policy Advisor with the organization. In his work at York, he puts a particular emphasis on science and its importance in society. As a teacher, he is commited to promoting a widespread culture of science and reason. Outside of his studies and his work with the CSA, Mike is a piano teacher, science educator, and musician.

    Jeff Sharom on Religous Accommodations
    Jeff is a PhD candidate in the Department of Molecular Genetics at the University of Toronto. In addition to serving as Policy Advisor and Secretary for the Canadian Secular Alliance, he is also active in the fields of science policy and scientific publishing. For more information, see Jeff's profile at http://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffsharom

      Justin Trottier on Free Expression
    Justin Trottier is the Executive Director of the Centre for Inquiry Canada, host of Think Again TV! as well as a contributor to the National Post and the Michael Coren Show on CTS TV.  As an outspoken advocate of freedom of expression and inquiry, science education, church-state separation, and equality rights for non-believers, he's appeared on TVO, CBC, CTV, Global, CityTV, OMNI and the Space Channel.  He was the chief spokesperson for the Canadian Atheist Bus Campaign.

      Leslie Rosenblood on Heritage Issues (God in the national anthem, God in the Charter)
    Leslie Rosenblood has a Bachelor of Mathematics degree in Computer Science with a minor in Drama and Speech Communication from the University of Waterloo, and a Masters of Business Administration for Science and Technology from Queen's University. He has held diverse roles in his career, including programmer, technology researcher, market analyst, journalist, and national sales manager. Born and raised in Canada, Leslie has lived in several countries, including Japan, England, the United States, Albania, and Kazakhstan. He is currently an IT project manager at a major Canadian retailer. Leslie lives in Toronto with his wife and two sons.

    *****************************************sg 

    BOARD MEMBERS & ADVISORS IN ATTENDANCE

    Dr. Carol M. Parlow is a clinical psychiatrist, a fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, a psychiatric consultant on occupational health and disability to businesses and President of the Board of Directors the Centre for Inquiry Canada.  She has served as President of the board since the founding of CFI in Canada, while advising on issues pertaining to complementary and alternative health. 

    Ronald Lindsay is a bioethicist, lawyer, and President and chief executive officer of the Center for Inquiry. For many years he practiced law in Washington, DC, and was an adjunct professor at Georgetown University and American University, where he taught jurisprudence and philosophy courses. His new book is Future Bioethics: Overcoming Taboos, Myths, and Dogmas.  He has been featured on the Point of Inquiry podcast. 

    Jeffrey Rosenthal, CFI Adviser, is a professor in the Department of Statistics at the University of Toronto.For his research, he was awarded the 2006 CRM-SSC Prize, and also the 2007 COPSS Presidents' Award, the most prestigious honour bestowed by the Committee of Presidents of Statistical Societies. For his lecturing, he received a Harvard University Teaching Award in 1991, and an Arts and Science Outstanding Teaching Award at the University of Toronto in 1998. Rosenthal's book for the general public, Struck by Lightning: The Curious World of Probabilities, was a bestseller in Canada, and is being published in a total of fifteen countries. He has also worked as a computer game programmer, musician, and improvisational comedy performer. He maintains the web site probability.ca. Despite being born on Friday the thirteenth, Rosenthal has been a very fortunate person.

    Tom Flynn

    Derek Rodgers

    Kevin Smith

    For a full list of Board Members and Advisory Fellows of CFI Canada, click here

    ************************************************* 

    ACCOMMODATIONS

    CFI has arranged a discounted price for Conference Participants at the downtown hostel Global Village Backpackers.  Rates will be as follows:

    • $23 for a bed in a 6-10 bed dorm per night (Regular Rate: $25.50)
    • $25 for a bed in a 4 bed dorm per night (Regular Rate: $27.50)
    • $66 for a double bed in a private room per night (Regular Rate: $69)
    • These rates include all taxes, linens and breakfast daily.

    Please contact the hostel on your own and clearly specify that you are a CFI Conference Participant so that you get the discounted price. You will also need valid credit card details to guarantee your booking.

    You can make your booking in the following ways:

    Here are some more details about the hostel:

    • Global Village BackPackers is located in downtown Toronto at the intersection of King and Spadina. The exact address is: 460 King Street West , Toronto, ON M5V 1L7
    • They have large common areas with a pool table, television room with cable, in house bar, self serve kitchen, laundry facilities, and free wifi throughout the common areas.

    If you do not want to stay at the hostel, then you are responsible for your own accommodations in Toronto.  The following are a list of options of varying price range:

    TRANSPORTATION

    The conference will be held at the Centre for Inquiry Ontario.  CFI is located at 216 Beverley Street, just south of College Street and St. George Street.

    Visit http://myttc.ca to find directions for public transit.

    REGISTRATION/ADMISSION

    There are CFI membership discounts.  You can join here: www.cficanada.ca/support

    ** EARLY BIRD **  CFI CANADA LEADERSHIP (DAY 1) AND EDUCATIONAL (DAY 2) CONFERENCES

    Admission Options

    ** EARLY BIRD **  CFI CANADA EDUCATIONAL (DAY 2) CONFERENCE ONLY 

    Admission Options

    Related