Spring 2016: Election for Member at Large Anglophone
CASCA will be holding an online election for our current membership to elect a member to the Member at Large - Anglophone position on the CASCA Executive, for a two-year term. There are two candidates who have volunteered to serve, Eric Henry from St. Mary's University, and Charles Menzies from UBC. Their Biographies and Candidate Statements are provided below.
The voting is confidential and will take place online using Survey Monkey. Please mark the dates March 18 to 24, 2016 as the period when voting for this election will be possible. Reminder notices will be circulated to CASCA members, and an email will be sent to you through which your vote can be cast electronically.
Thank you for your participation in this democratic process!
CASCA Secretary
Eric Henry
Biography:
I am an Assistant Professor in the Department of Anthropology at St. Mary's University in Halifax, Nova Scotia and a member of the Linguistics and Asian Studies programs as well. A linguistic and cultural anthropologist by training, my research describes the emerging role of global languages, most notably English, in China. In the northeastern city of Shenyang, English, Chinese and the local Dongbeihua vernacular operate as distinctive stylistic choices that allow speakers to shift among complex identities and interactional stances, especially in regards to discourses of modernization and development. My work has been published in Language and Society, Anthropologica, and Anthropological Quarterly.
Platform Statement:
I have been a member of CASCA since graduate school and appreciate its role as the leading scholarly organization for anthropologists in Canada. If elected, I will build links with scholars in cognate disciplines such as archaeology, linguistics and sociology who share our interest in culture. I will also work to include the public in discussions of our research, leading to a broader conversation about the role of anthropology in Canada. Another issue of critical importance to me is the role of contingent faculty within both CASCA and academia more generally. We need to make sure that CASCA represents the interests of all anthropologists, no matter their academic status, and advocating for secure employment, academic freedom, and a living wage for contingent and part-time faculty should be a major concern.
Charles Menzies
Biography:
Charles is a Professor in the Department of Anthropology at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, BC. [B.A. (Simon Fraser University), M.A. (York University), M.Phil., Ph.D. (Anthropology Program, the Graduate School and University Center of the City University of New York).] Charles' primary research interests are the production of anthropological films, natural resource management (primarily fisheries related), political economy, contemporary First Nations' issues, maritime anthropology and the archaeology of north coast BC. He has conducted field research in, and has produced films concerning, north coastal BC, Canada (including archaeological research); Brittany, France; and Donegal, Ireland. His current research project, Laxyuup Gitxaaɫa, combines archaeological and socio-cultural anthropology to document the traditional territory of the Gitxaaɫa Nation. Charles was born and raised in British Columbia and is a member of Gitxaaɫa Nation, located on BC's north coast.
Platform Statement:
Charles is a strong supporter of a Canadian vision of anthropology. This is a vision that recognizes the unique contributions of our ancestors, appreciates the particularities of our land, and is conditioned by building respectful relationships with community partners. Such a vision is hampered by the growing neo-liberal research agendas provincially and nationally. CASCA has a place in supporting a national vision within a forum of world anthropologies. I look forward to participating in and building upon a Canadian tradition of disciplinary advocacy.