The 2016 series of CIC Victoria’s pub nights (Politics in the Pub) opens on 25 January 2016, with a discussion of issues arising for Canada in current and recent refugee crises. Our expert resource speakers will be Oliver Schmidtke, Ron Crelinsten and David Lau. (See biographical notes below.)

On 25 January, each will speak about the risks and benefits of refugee resettlement in Canada, following which they will engage in conversation with those attending. This will be an important opportunity to gain understanding of the socioeconomic, political and moral benefits for Canada arising from the acceptance of refugees, as well as the security and other risks that might accompany them.

Speakers’ Biographies
Oliver Schmidtke is Director of UVic’s Centre for Global Studies, and UVic European Studies Scholar in the Departments of History and Political Science. He holds the Jean Monnet Chair in European History and Politics and was formerly the Director of the European Studies Program at UVic. He received his PhD from the European University institute in Florence, worked at the Humboldt University in Berlin in the late 1990s and spent a year as a research fellow at the Center for European Studies at Harvard University before coming to UVic in 1999. His research interests are in the fields of comparative European politics and contemporary history, European integration, the political sociology of immigration and ethnic conflict, and the role of identities and collective memory in modern societies.

Ronald Crelinsten is Associate Fellow at UVic’s Centre for Global Studies and Adjunct Professor in the Doctor of Social Sciences Program at Royal Roads University. His research and publications deal with terrorism and radicalization and how to counter them effectively without endangering democratic principles; global security; gross human rights violations; the role of old and new media in terrorism and political violence; and challenges of democratization and global governance. His publications include Counterterrorism (Polity Press, 2009; Arabic version: UAE, 2011), Intelligence and Counter-Terrorism in a Multi-Centric World (Swedish National Defence College, 2006), The Politics of Pain: Torturers and Their Masters (Westview Press, 1995), Western Responses to Terrorism (Frank Cass, 1993), Hostage-Taking (Lexington Books, 1979), and Terrorism and Criminal Justice (Lexington Books, 1978). He was Professor of Criminology at the University of Ottawa for over 20 years and Visiting Professor at the Middle East Technical University in Ankara, Turkey, 1999-2002.

David Lau has been Executive Director of the Victoria Immigrant and Refugee Centre Society (VIRCS) since 2010. He studied political science at UBC, with focus on ethnic conflict and counter-terrorism/anti-insurgency (before it became popular), and also public administration at UVic. His work in the NGO sector has been primarily with immigrant serving agencies (employment and language services) but he has also worked for an NGO specializing in international development research. He has worked for several US corporations, such as Disney Consumer Products and Kinko’s/Fedex; with Canadian federal corporations; and with a level two DND organization focused on workforce planning and HR development under four Admirals.

Date and Time
Monday January 25, 2016
5:00pm to 8:00pm

Venue
Wild Saffron Room, Swan’s Hotel
506 Pandora Avenue
Victoria, BC

Registration
Doors will open at 5pm on Monday, 25 January, and conversation will begin at about 5:30pm. An admission charge of $15.00 will include your first drink and access to a round of appetizers. Thereafter, food and drinks will be available to order throughout the evening.

All are invited. You don’t need to be a current member to attend this event. If you plan to attend, please RSVP to Roger Love at cicpip2015@gmail.com or at (250)721-0362 before close of business on Tuesday January 19.