TORONTO - Canadian baby boomers are feeling the squeeze of being "the Sandwich Generation," and for many, it's beginning to compromise their lives.

According to a recent survey of 2,195 Canadians between the ages of 45 and 60 conducted for BMO Financial Group by Ipsos Reid, of the one-third (34 per cent) of boomers who currently assist aging relatives:

- 66 per cent say it has had some negative impact on their lives
- 31 per cent say they have less time for themselves
- 20 per cent have had to take time off work
- 19 per cent say that they have been impacted financially.

Adding to the pressure, 44 per cent of these boomers also financially support their children. Yet, despite the challenges, more than half (59 per cent) of caregivers say assisting aging family members has strengthened their relationships.

"This research corroborates other studies we have conducted over the past two years that paint a picture of a generation juggling the needs of parents and children, along with their own priorities," said Kris Vikmanis, Head of Retirement Market, BMO Financial Group. "As Canadians live longer, this trend will continue to grow, so it's important for boomers who are currently providing care for aging relatives or expecting to do so in the future, to start planning for the impact this can have on their finances and lifestyle."

Yet fewer than one in 10 (7 per cent) have asked for financial advice about budgeting and planning for the assistance they provide to their family members. According to the survey, boomers who are not currently assisting aging family members, but who expect they will at some point, are not planning either.

"Boomers tell us that they recognize retirement planning is important, however our research has indicated, time and again, that many aren't taking the necessary steps to plan for their future. The notion of factoring in costs for a family member's care or their own care is not necessarily top of mind, but it should be," said Vikmanis.

Boomers not planning ahead for caring for relatives or themselves

- More than one-third (36 per cent) of boomers who are not currently caring for relatives, expect to in the future
- Yet only one in four (26 per cent) are planning financially to provide this care
- Despite these family pressures, only 26 per cent of boomers have a plan in the event they personally need assistance when they get older.

"Canadians are facing competing priorities and concerns. We want to assist them with identifying and addressing their key issues to help them appropriately plan for and manage them," added Vikmanis.

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Additional Survey Highlights

Differences between the sexes
- More women than men (31% vs. 23%) said they provide emotional support
to an aging relative
- More men than women (22% vs. 16%) said they have been financially
impacted as a result of caring for aging family members
- Almost twice as many women than men (18% vs. 10%) responded that
caring for older relatives has had a negative impact on their health
- Women were twice as likely (12% vs. 6%) to respond that assisting an
aging relative has impacted the job or career path they have chosen.


Regional differences

Respondents were asked: Which of the following statements apply when it
comes to assisting aging family members?


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Activity Average BC AB SK/MB ON QC ATL
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You provide emotional support 27% 29% 29% 36% 29% 19% 26%
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You provide transportation 18 16 15 22 21 13 19
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You do errands 18 16 19 22 19 15 17
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You manage their finances 10 11 9 12 11 8 13
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You prepare meals 6 6 5 8 6 5 5
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Family member is living with you 5 5 4 6 5 5 6
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How has helping your aging family member(s) impacted your life?
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Impact Average BC AB SK/MB ON QC ATL
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Strengthened relationship 59% 59% 60% 66% 59% 51% 71%
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Less time for yourself 31 34 34 31 32 28 29
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Taken time off work 20 22 31 21 22 11 18
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Financial impact 19 17 25 26 17 22 13
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Impacted your health 14 14 9 12 18 11 14
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Impacted your career 9 8 6 7 11 7 11
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

The three most populous provinces accounted for four-fifths of the industry's revenues: Ontario (38%), Quebec (30%) and British Columbia (15%).

However, revenue growth varied widely across Canada, from over 10% for institutions in Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Quebec, to moderate growth or declines elsewhere. Year-to-year fluctuations in public sector funding for not-for-profit institutions can influence overall revenue growth, as can tourism demand.

History and science museums, exhibition centres, planetariums, and observatories, combined, generated 44% of the total industry's operating revenues.

Non-commercial art museums and galleries generated 24%, as did botanical gardens, conservatories, aquariums and zoos. The remainder came from historic sites, buildings and communities.

Heritage institutions overall saw a marginal 1.3% increase in operating profit margin in 2005, compared with a 0.5% loss the previous year.

While not-for profit institutions broke even, this was nonetheless an improvement from the 2.0% loss in 2004. Much of the increment was due to the strong performance of botanical gardens, conservatories, aquariums and zoos, which had a combined operating profit margin of 8.2%.

Total operating expenses edged down 0.8% from the previous year.

However, salaries, wages and benefits paid out by heritage institutions to their employees rose by 4.1%. In 2005, they represented 46.5% of industry operating expenses, up from 44.3% in 2004.

This figure does not take into account the services provided by volunteers, who are an integral component of the heritage institutions work force.

“The members of the orchestra have impressed me with their virtuosity, and touched me with their musical expression. I am honoured to lead this exceptional orchestra and to showcase their talents. I’ve taken a fresh approach to programming the 2007-2008 season. You’ll find this season maintains the high artistic standards of the KWS, and introduces an inviting atmosphere and presentation,” said Outwater. “We will offer the following series this season.

Signatures

The world’s greatest music, a fabulous orchestra, and an acoustically perfect hall - these are the ingredients of our Signature series. This is the orchestra’s flagship series, and this music is the reason for our existence.

Intersections

Hip new vibe, alternative venue, and 3 incredible soloists

This series will explore the points where classical music meets other kinds of music and art: rock, jazz, folk, ethnomusicology, literature, and theatre. Each concert is focused on a dynamic artist that bridges the gap between classical and another art form.

Generations

I will collaborate with host Tom Allen to present this Sunday afternoon exploration of music. We'll talk about the music we play, the composers we love, and how we work together to make it happen. Presented in the style of Leonard Bernstein's Young People's Concerts, these afternoon presentations are created for an audience of all ages.

Pops

Pops is pure fun. You’ll spend a spirited night at the Proms (one of the great British musical traditions), meet a disgruntled Mountie, and hear two men with horns!

Back to Baroque

You will be taken on a European tour this year from your seats in the beautifully intimate First United Church in Waterloo or Central Presbyterian Church in Cambridge.

Kinderconcerts

These interactive 30 minute ‘cushion concerts’ are an integral part of introducing children, aged 3 to 5, to the world of classical music.”

“We have a vibrant and fresh season of music to offer and an extremely talented new music director and orchestra,” said Bob Astley, Chair of the KWS Board of Directors. “With the continued support of this community, we are confident of a strong and viable orchestra that will continue to serve the needs of the entire community now and well into the future.”

In the past few months, the Symphony has held public input sessions, meetings with business leaders and consultation with local government. The resulting and overriding theme was accessibility in programming, in terms of cost, venue and in musical variety to appeal to all ages.

The Symphony will play in various venues throughout our region this season, including 13 concerts in the Guelph series. Concerts will be held at Centre in the Square, River Run in Guelph, Humanities Theatre at the University of Waterloo, First United Church in Waterloo, Central Presbyterian Church in Cambridge, and Harcourt Memorial United Church in Guelph.”

A season preview concert titled “Come to Your Senses” will be held on April 10, 2007. This multi-sensory, interactive concert event will showcase some of the new season’s best classical music, under the direction of new Music Director Edwin Outwater. Tickets are specially priced at $15 and are available at the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony box office. For more information, see www.kwsymphony.on.ca.

A group of 19 University of Guelph students are taking their projects out of the classroom and into the city in hopes of spurring social awareness.

It’s all part of English professor Ajay Heble’s “Literature and Social Change” course, which challenges students to connect what they learn from their textbooks to the social struggles happening in their community in an effort to create change.

The students have planned and organized four events, all of which are free and open to the public. The first is a play called Haiti Held Hostage, an adaptation of The Noam Chomsky Lectures, a play by Daniel Brooks and Guillermo Verdecchia. The Guelph production aims to show how the media perpetuate the idea of Canada’s role in Haiti as one of peacekeeping, when in reality the country is contributing to the current bloodshed. The play runs March 29 at 8 p.m. at War Memorial Hall.

“Guelph Is Skin Deep” is the title of a student-run exhibit showcasing photographs of residents who have written on their skin what it means to them to live in Guelph. The goal of the exhibit is to encourage the public to get inspired about living in the city and being part of a community. This project will launch March 30 at 7 p.m. at the Guelph Youth Music Centre.

Students have also planned a night of art, music and poetry called “Power of the Word,” where artists will share insights on the power of language and encourage the public to get involved in social change. This event is scheduled for April 4 at 7 p.m. at the Woolwich Arms.

Finally, an audio and video art installation called “The Learning Project” will run from April 13 to 15 in the Old Quebec Street Mall. This project, which promotes the idea of learning from the world around us and not just in an educational setting, includes interviews with Guelph residents answering the question: What’s the most important thing you’ve ever learned?

“The students are doing these projects in part because of the course, but they are committed to them in a way that extends beyond the classroom,” said Heble. “I am convinced these works have the potential to have a big impact and will live on in some way.”

WATERLOO – Sir Thomas Allen, world-renowned English baritone, will conduct a master class with six senior students from Laurier’s voice program on Monday, April 2 from 1 to 3 p.m. in the Maureen Forrester Recital Hall.

Allen is also scheduled to sing a recital at the Perimeter Institute For Theoretical Physics in Waterloo on Sunday April 1, at 7:30 p.m.

Knighted in 1999, Allen has performed on the world’s great opera and concert stages. His film work includes the 2006 release, Mrs. Henderson Presents. In 2006, he celebrated the 35th anniversary of his debut with the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, where he has sung over 40 roles. Also in 2006, he celebrated the 25th anniversary of his debut with the Metropolitan Opera, New York.

“Allen’s vast experience as a performer in opera, concert and recital offers our students a richness and breadth which exceeds anything else they have encountered in their education thus far,” says Kimberly Barber, a voice professor at Laurier. “He has great intelligence but his performances never seem calculated. Rather, his work is always immediate and organic.”

Allen’s reputation as a teacher is legendary, adds Barber. “A friend of mine in England saw him working with young people and said it was stunning. Despite all his achievements, Sir Thomas Allen is self-effacing and humble. He treats students as colleagues, his passion is infectious and enabling. He possesses all the talents of a great educator.”

The event is free and open to the public.

TORONTO - It's spring, the perfect time to begin getting in top-notch shape for those warm-weather activities to come.

To get in the best shape, you need to make the right choices in both fitness and nutrition, says the 'Six-Pack', six of the top personal trainers in Toronto.

Handpicked to work at Revolution Fitness, a new downtown health and fitness club, the members of the 'Six-Pack' are pleased to provide their top six fitness and nutrition tips for spring:

<< 1) Commit at least 30 minutes a day to some kind of physical activity - walking is a great start.

2) Instead of your usual lunchtime sandwich, ask for a wrap. You'll cut down on calories and carbohydrates.

3) Participate in a properly designed strength-training program. It's the only way to ensure that all of your muscles are getting the work they need.

4) When cooking a healthy dinner, double the recipe and brown bag the leftovers for lunch. That will help you stay away from unhealthy fast food.

5) Stretch! It's essential for avoiding lower-back pain and the old-age stoop.

6) Start your day with a true 'power breakfast' - steel cut oatmeal with egg whites on the side. >>

Guelph - As controversies around same-sex marriage and cultural/religious conflicts continue to dominate headlines, a University of Guelph professor examines the debates between traditionalists and progressivists over religion, family and culture in a new book.

“Consideration of this persistent and often fierce debate reveals much about the state of religion in Western democracies, religious uses of politics and images of religion in the media,” said philosophy professor Jay Newman. “It also gives us insight into the relations of religion and the family, varieties of religious commitment and strategies of religious and cultural competition.”

In his book, Pious Pro-Family Rhetoric, Newman argues that many religious conservatives are losing their ‘family values’ battle, particularly with regards to the same-sex marriage controversy. “Religious traditionalists rarely accept politicians’ views that this is simply a matter of human rights,” he said. “In the Western world, most religious conservatives look to the Bible for answers to contemporary social problems, but there is substantial disagreement, even within particular denominations, as to how it is to be interpreted.”

In the 21st Century, religion seems to many to be a reactionary force that promotes ideas that are no longer acceptable, including inferiority of women, subordination of children, and discrimination against minority groups, said Newman.

By looking at when the recent debates about religion and family values began, as well as examining the different types of conservative pro-family rhetoric, Newman helps put the debates into perspective. He also looks at whether a “culture war” over the family and other cultural institutions actually exists and explores the aims and motives of the people who enter into these disputes.

“Many of these issues pose weighty dilemmas, and I’m mindful of the indiscretion of taking too firm and simplistic a stand on them,” he said.

Newman’s book is not meant to give solutions to resolve debates surrounding family values, but instead aims to provide ideas and insights for people involved in influencing social policy. “I want to give people insights which will help them make more informed choices, rather than just argue on the basis of a lot of heat.”

A practical application of Newman’s philosophical understanding is that if traditionalist defenders of family values should not rush to view people with progressive ideas as enemies they’re at war with, he said. “Once the opposing groups think of their disagreement as a cultural competition instead of a culture war, then their discussions will be much more capable of allowing for constructive dialogue and compromises.”

Newman has been a Guelph professor for more than 30 years and is the author of 11 books. He is also a fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, and former president of the Canadian Theological Society.

Michael Craig-Martin, one of the pivotal figures in the Cool Britannia art movement in the United Kingdom in the late ’80s and early ’90s, is giving his first Canadian talk March 13 at 5 p.m. in War Memorial Hall. The event is free and open to the public.

Craig-Martin is the inaugural speaker for the University of Guelph’s Shenkman Lecture, an annual talk on contemporary art created through a generous endowment provided by Dasha Shenkman, a Canadian art collector who has lived in the United Kingdom for 40 years.

“We are absolutely thrilled with this generous gift,” said U of G president Alastair Summerlee. “Not only will our students benefit from getting to spend time with highly successful artists, but this also helps put the University of Guelph on the map as a leading institution of contemporary art.”

John Kissick, director of the School of Fine Art and Music said one of the things that attracted the lecture committee to Craig-Martin was that, in many ways, “he represents the complete package as a contemporary artist. His practice is rigorous and internationally renowned, but he’s also been intimately involved in the development of young artists and new ideas in the United Kingdom.”

Craig-Martin’s talk, "Putting Things in Context: A Survivor's Guide," will focus on issues around contemporary art, culture and education concerning artists. As he describes it, the talk will "mix reminiscence, personal philosophy, anecdote, self justification, and advice to provide background and put into context the ideas, experiences, and personalities that have shaped my work and life as an artist, and influenced my approach to art education."

He’ll describe how he came to be an artist, his education at Yale and, what brought him to Goldsmiths College at the University of London, where he taught from 1974 to 1988 and was a Millard Professor of Fine Art from 1994 to 2000. Craig-Martin’s lecture will be published in BorderCrossings, a Canadian art magazine.

Before coming to Guelph, Craig-Martin was in Japan creating a new installation at Tokyo’s National Art Centre as part of the “Living in the Material World: ‘Things’ in Art of the 20th Century and Beyond” exhibit, which opened in January and runs until mid-March.

His first one-person show was at the Rowan Gallery in London in 1969. Since then, he has exhibited in solo and group shows around the world, including the definitive exhibition of British conceptual art, “The New Art,” at the Hayward Gallery in 1972.

A major retrospective of his work was held in London at the Whitechapel Art Gallery in 1989. In 1994, he made site-specific installations at the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris and at the Museum Sztuki in Lodz, Poland. He also created large-scale site-specific installations at Düsseldorf Kunstverein (1997), Hannover Kunstverein (1998) and Stuttgart Kunstverein (1999). Craig-Martin represented Great Britain at the 1998 São Paulo Bienal, a cultural event that has been hosted in Brazil every two years since 1951. He also created a major wall painting installation at the Museum of Modern Art in New York in 1999.

In addition to his talk, Craig-Martin will spend time on March 12 and 13 with visual arts graduate students, both as a group and individually, doing studio visits and critiques.

“The idea behind this endowment is to invite speakers who can address the University community as a whole about contemporary art in its many faceted and complicated dimensions, and also for people to gain knowledge and wisdom from the artist that they can apply to their own work,” said Kissick.

Though International Women's Day was adopted by the UN only in 1977, the idea for it began at the beginning of the twentieth century when women's struggles focussed on universal suffrage. The efforts and courage of women seeking social, economic, and political equality demanded, and finally achieved, symbolic recognition.

The Struggle for Equality -

From Universal Suffrage to CEDAW, Resolution 1325, and Responsibility to Protect
"We the Peoples of the United Nations determined...to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women...."
-Preamble to the Charter of the United Nations

Gender equality as a fundamental human right was directly incorporated into the Charter of the United Nations in 1945, and was further codifed in the International Bill of Rights, consisting of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) and two International Covenants adopted in 1976.

International humanitarian laws for the rights and protections of women and girls were also contained in the four Geneva Conventions adopted in 1949 and their additional protocols (1977). Article 27 of the Fourth Geneva Convention provides that "women shall be especially protected against any attack on their honour, in particular against rape, enforced prostitution, or any form of indecent assault."

Many Conventions of the United Nations impact significantly on women's issues, but the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, adopted in 1979 by the UN General Assembly, is often described as an international bill of rights for women. Its Optional Protocols allow individual women or groups to submit claims of violations of rights to a Treaty Committee, or for the Committee itself to initiate inquiries.

Unfortunately, despite these declarations and legal standards, the resources, institutional mechanisms and political will for enforcement have been lacking. Women and girls continue to suffer disproportionately. Approximately 80% of people displaced by conflict or human rights violations are women and children. Deprived of the security of their community, they are especially vulnerable to sexual exploitation, trafficking, mutilation, and disease.

Attention on women's issues at the United Nations was maintained by a series of Women's Conferences which took place in Mexico (1970), Copenhagen (1980), Nairobi (1985), and Beijing (1995). The 1995 Beijing Platform for Action, for example, set time-specific targets, committing nations to carry out concrete actions in such areas as health, education, decision-making and legal reforms with the ultimate goal of eliminating all forms of discrimination against women both public and private.

In l993, the UN Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women for the first time defined violence against women as "any act of gender-based violence that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual or mental harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life."

In October 2000, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) unanimously adopted Resolution 1325 on women, peace and security. Resolution 1325 marks the first time the Security Council explicitly addressed the disproportionate and unique impact of armed conflict on women, recognized their under-valued contributions to conflict prevention and resolution, and stressed the importance of their equal and full participation as active agents in peacekeeping and peace-building.

Core crimes of sexual and gender violence - rape, sexual slavery, enforced prostitution, forced pregnancy, enforced sterilization, and other forms of sexual violence - were codified as being among the most serious of breaches under the terms of the International Criminal Court which entered into force July 1, 2002. The ICC has now been ratified by over 100 countries.

At the Summit marking the United Nations 60th Anniversary in 2005, world leaders made an unprecedented commitment to the prevention of armed conflict and the protection of civilians by endorsing both a national and international "Responsibility to Protect (R2P)". Governments can no longer claim impunity within their own borders nor abdicate responsibilities for atrocities abroad. The endorsement of a shared "responsibility to protect" means that those populations, including women and children, who live under threat of gross human rights violations now have a new set of tools to confront the often deadly indifference and paralysis of the international community. R2P calls on the international community to practice proactive intervention robustly, use military force only as a last resort, and assume responsibility to rebuild in the wake of violent conflict.

Even though many young people are repeatedly told to eat their vegetables and to be more physically active, a new study out of the University of Guelph confirms what has been long suspected: adolescents are filling up on junk food instead and watching TV of giving their bodies the nutrition and activity levels necessary for long-term health.

Less than half of Grade 9 students eat breakfast every day, less than a quarter eat enough fruits and vegetables, and more than 35 per cent are above normal weight, Prof. Susan Evers has found in one of the first long-term studies of young people’s diets and activity levels.

The study also found that students eat, on average, more than three daily servings of foods from the ‘other’ food group – such as soft drinks, french fries and snack foods – and dedicate almost four hours a day to watching television and playing video games.

The results were recently presented at the “Integrating Nutrition Into Pediatric Practice” conference at McMaster University.

“It’s disturbing to see this happening in a younger population because obesity is a risk factor for diseases that we think of as affecting the middle-aged population,” said Evers, of U of G’s Department of Family Relations and Applied Nutrition. “These students’ lifestyles are predisposing them to risk factors for heart disease and diabetes.”

Evers, along with former graduate student Amy Pender and current doctoral student Melissa Rossiter, analyzed surveys completed by the same group of 681 students in Grade 6 and then in Grade 9 about their eating behaviours and activity patterns. The students’ height and weight were measured, and demographic information was collected from their parents. The study participants are from low-income neighbourhoods throughout southern Ontario taking part in the provincially funded Better Beginnings, Better Futures initiative.

The researchers found that if students started developing bad eating and physical activity habits in Grade 6, they were worse by Grade 9. Two-thirds of the boys and girls in Grade 6 were eating breakfast every day, and that dropped to 48 per cent for the boys and 45 per cent for the girls by Grade 9.

“Adolescents who skip breakfast don’t usually make up the nutrients they miss later in the day so they have a higher risk of nutrient inadequacies,” said Evers. “Missing breakfast also makes it difficult for students to concentrate in school because of a lack of energy.”

As 10- and 11-year-olds, about nine per cent of the students were meeting all the food-group recommendations in 1992 Canada’s Food Guide, but that figure dropped to only three per cent by the time they reached Grade 9.

Habits around physical activity levels also got worse as students got older. In Grade 6, 64 per cent of boys and 45 per cent of girls played a sport without a coach four or more times a week. By Grade 9, 15-per-cent fewer boys and 20-per-cent fewer girls were playing sports.

“We have to encourage daily physical activity and the adoption of healthy eating behaviours, especially among female adolescents. By increasing the availability of breakfast programs and making provincial guidelines around school nutrition programs and foods sold in vending machines a priority, we would see a big difference in the health of these young people.”

In 2004, one-quarter of all violent victimization incidents resulted in an injury to the victim, according to a new study that examines various impacts and consequences of criminal victimization.

The report, based on data from the General Social Survey (GSS) on victimization, looks not only at the physical consequences of violent victimization, but also the financial loss of household or property-related incidents and the psychological and emotional after-effects of incidents, both violent and non-violent.

According to the study, among the incidents that resulted in an injury to the victim, one-quarter were serious enough to require medical attention and 20% resulted in the victim requiring bed rest.

In 2004, in more than 8 out of 10 household and property-related incidents, a financial loss was incurred by the victim. About 60% of these incidents resulted in losses of under $500 while in 15% of incidents, losses of more than $1,000 were reported.

Findings also show that victims of both violent and property crimes suffered emotional and psychological consequences as a result of their victimization.

The GSS asked respondents to report on the emotional impact of their victimization. Victims reported that in almost 8 out of 10 incidents, they were emotionally affected. Anger was a common emotion, reported by victims in just under one-third of violent incidents and in 41% of household or property-related incidents.

In some cases, emotional and psychological consequences were more pronounced for female victims. Specifically, 23% of violent incidents involving women resulted in them being fearful compared to 14% of incidents involving male victims.

The degree of familiarity between the victim and offender was found to be associated with the level of emotional impact. For violent incidents, those victimized by a family member were more likely to report feeling upset and confused (42%) compared to victims who had been assaulted by a stranger (19%), or friend (23%).

But when informed that counterfeiting finances organized crime, 86% of Canadians would likely stop buying

TORONTO - A significant number of Canadians - two-fifths of the population - acknowledge purchasing counterfeit goods, a new POLLARA survey finds. Twenty-eight percent of respondents to the national poll admitted knowingly purchasing counterfeit products, while 12 percent said they found out later.

The combined figure is slightly more than triple the proportion found in the United States by Gallup. Th