In Depth Editor Alanna Wallace explores the sensitivity of suicide on university campuses, highlighting Laurier’s history of tragedy and resilient community

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), one person worldwide dies by suicide every 40 seconds, and despite having a high incidence, particularly among those of a university age, the issue is treaded tentatively by the media and remains widely taboo.

“If we don’t...

The Cord interviews the past four Wilfrid Laurier University Students’ Union presidents, who give their insight into what the job really entails and what’s in store for this year’s successful candidate

The Wilfrid Laurier Students’ Union president and CEO may be a symbol of representation at the school, but he or she follows strict guidelines that govern whether the platforms they ran on to be elected can actually be accomplished.

“The president is the head...

In Depth Editor Alanna Wallace examines some of the world’s ongoing issues that have the potential to be the next big international news story

Education has the power to liberate, empower and mobilize. With our ever-changing world and the increase in globalization, issues pertaining to any region of the world are closer to our doorstep than ever before, which is why it is important to observe international events with...

The Cord speaks with two emotionally abused students who still carry the psychological baggage of their relationship trauma

Women everywhere show the marks of abuse, though not all their scars are visible.

Violence takes many forms and can be conducted in several ways. But when an individual suffers at the hands of a partner who is supposed to embody love and devotion, the...

Features Editor Shannon Busta examines fair trade coffee, the farmers it affects, its limitations and the future of a commodity that is arguably North America’s favourite beverage and a university staple

Coffee. We all know it, most of us drink it and many of us cannot function without it. But coffee is far more than a comforting stimulant. It touches the lives of millions, possibly billions, every day. It is one of the most exported goods...

Love is worth a lifetime of dedication. It is the rare light at the end of the dreary tunnel on the banal journey through life.

One would not have an epic love story without the necessary physical distance between two lovers challenging their devotion and tearing their hearts into pieces every second they are apart.

However, in a contemporary context, long-distance love stories are no longer defined by romantic letters but by the prevalence of communication technology.

University is the...

Photography Manager Nick Lachance explores the meaning of military history in hope of providing insight into the changing role of Remembrance Day

In Flanders Fields the poppies blow,

These are the opening words to John McCrae’s iconic poem that came to encapsulate the waste of young lives fighting on the western front generated during the war to end all wars.

McCrae’s experiences serving with the Canadian corps...

The Cord gives students a rare look into Laurier’s Animal Care Facility where testing on animals for psychology and biology classes is conducted. A contentious issue, Laurier’s experiments use rats, fish and pigeons and are governed by the guidelines of a strict ethics committee

If you Google PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) or ALF (Animal Liberation Front) you can have access to hours of testimony and video about the potential horrors of animal experimentation.

Dating back 30 or 40 years, the evidence is horrific.

For instance,...

While participating in an ecology project in South Africa’s Kruger National Park, International Journalism Grant recipient Chris Bynoe examines how the earth as an organism is failing as a result of the inaction of the global population

Shark fin delicacy danger

Sharks existed millions of years before any evidence of humans on earth. As a result of their position at the top of the predator list, any disruption to shark populations can drastically affect the marine ecosystem, claims Peter Knights, director of...

If the Laurier community demands a lavish ball, like Charity Ball executives claim, then last year they received their wish at the expense of the committee’s final charitable donation.

Despite working with a budget of upwards of $30,000, Charity Ball’s efforts to fundraise for the KidsAbility Foundation last year raised a meager amount: approximately $250.

Laurier business graduate and last year’s Charity Ball sponsorship executive Brieanna Harburn says that she was told that Charity Ball’s contribution this year will be...

International Editor Paula Millar explores how Romanian communism and its totalitarian leaders wreaked havoc on the country’s once prosperous agricultural industry

For centuries, Romania was home to a collection of self-sufficient and successful rural communities.

The country was a picturesque homestead akin to the likes of any agricultural powerhouse: adorned with rolling hills and great plains, home to vast tracks of fertile countryside and traversed by...

Investigating the busy lives of dons, who describe their jobs as a lifestyle, The Cord takes a look at the position that embeds them into a demanding role in residence life

A student’s abrupt transition into the chaos of residence has the ability to shock, frustrate and upset even the most adaptable individual.

But one upper-year Laurier student is supposed to have the comprehensive skill set to help all first-years adapt to new homes in residence...

KWAZULU-NATAL, SOUTH AFRICA – Two decades ago, the elephant was the poster child for conservationists worldwide when the ban on ivory was initiated in 1989. Today, the African elephant is again at the centre of another heated conservation battle that surrounds the culling of the world’s largest land mammal. The culling of elephants means the highly supervised killing of entire herds in an effort to control their booming population.

The contentious issue has split the conservation, scientific and political worlds...

While cuts are already in effect, everyone present agreed that the situation is not hopeless.

“Speaking casually about it with coworkers over a beer, the first thing people worry about is ‘Am I going to lose my job?’ The second thing is that people actually get excited about this shuffling of the cards. They wonder if we can maybe get our priorities in check and make better use of the resources,” said Brown.

There’s no lack of talent, he explained,...

Although the CBC is making strides on behalf of Canadian media as a whole, Pimlott explained that there is a large engrained problem that often prevents the CBC from meeting its mandate.

“You can’t have the CBC operate to a mandate that’s largely based around a mandate-model of private media where you have to meet ratings.”

Niles echoed his sentiments, explaining that the CBC staff experience this problem on a daily basis.

“Constantly we’re told that this is a business...