Culture The Basics on the Women’s Centre: Don’t be shy to come into the Women’s Centte....a lot of people are nervous to walk through our doors because they are not sure what kind of women hang out at the Centre. The truth is that we have women of every description who use the Centre. We offer alot of services and we havea great place to kick your feet up and relax for a few minutes (or more). The Women’s Centre is accessible to all women in Prince George, on and off campus. UNBC staff, fac- ulty and students are welcome to use the Centre. Our mandate also includes women in the communi- ty; however, because the coordi- nator only works ten hours a week (Tuesdays and Wednesdays 9 -2) the Centre’s focus has been on UNBC. The Centre is open 24 hours a day...if someone needs shelter in the middle of the night for what- ever reason, they simply get the blue key from security (if the Centre is locked) and sign in, no questions asked. We are a safe space for women who are experi- encing numerous troubles in their lives such as harassment, stalk- ing, abuse, etc. The Centre houses an excellent refererice library pertaining to issues like health, work, and the law. Men are welcome to use this library by booking an appoint- ment with the Coordinator. Information on local organiza- tions are also featured on a table outside of the women’s centre and is available for all students (including men of course). Pamphlets on health, STDs, sexu- al assault, community. organiza}: tions, are there for you. An excellent volunteer pro- gram is offered to provide women with valuable and meaningful work experience. Come fill out an application form, and chat with the coordinator, to volunteer in areas ranging from responding to women’s needs, artwork, organiz- ing events, writing /journalism, to office administration work, Some volunteer training in crisis inter- vention will be happening this semester...so come sign up! Educational opportunities and awareness raising events are also put on through the school year, for example, workshops, lectures, retreats and special events. We are hoping to have a workshop on body image this fall. Other e.gs include;. December 6th, International women’s day, film nights and other fundraisers and events...Please come join us! Other services / programs include: The Mentorship program - we have received funding for another year of Mentorship - hurray! Women of diverse backgrounds will be the focal point this year. A coordinator (to be hired) will ‘make 10 - 15 matches between professional women and students - so come let us know who you are {both mentoss or -mentees) “The Closet” - women’s cloth- ing program at the Centre. Women of lesser means can bor- row clothes for job interviews, work, and class presentations, etc. Come take a look! : We also have an informal par- ents group and crafts night in the works. In addition, the Centre welcomes men to be involved as volunteers, program participants, awareness raising events. We are looking at other ways to involve "men - so men, if you have any ideas please come knock on the Centre’s door and we can talk! There are so many avenues for involvement at the Women’s Centre - come check us out... or simply come to hang out! Sarah, the Coordinator can be reached at empower@unbc.ca or 960-5632. PGPIRG UPDATE Welcome back to UNBC. Wee here at PGPIRG hope that every- one has had a great summer. For those of you new to UNBC, you may be wondering what PGPIRG is all about. PGPIRG is a social jus- tice and environmental non-profit organisation based at UNBC. You the students fund the organisation, and you the student run the organ- isation. We work on a variety of issues ranging from poverty to organic food. If you have a issue that concerns you or that your are passionate about, PGPIRG can provide you with the tools neces- sary to do something about it. PGPRIG is not only about recog- nising the injustices of our society but trying to find feasible and gen- uine solutions. We will be hosing a variety of fundraising events this Page 15 Going Under Hi all, | hope you have all had a great summer, and are ready for yet another year of fun learning. I am new here, and in my wanders around the building, I stumbled across a copy of last year final edi- . tion of Over the Edge. I flipped — through it and noted, with mixed emotions (dismay that an article similar to this was not included, and elation because that meant there was room for me) that there was no sex advice column. Fortunately for you all, the dark- ness has passed, and I am here to answer your queries, how ever prickly or embarrassing. For those of you concerned with credentials and the like, let me introduce myself and tell you a little about my history with sex. I decid- ed when I was about 12 that I want- ed to devote myself to public edu- cation about sexual health. (Not really. I actually waffled between that and forensic entomology. In the - end, though, sex won out...go fig- ure.) I started out by reading every- thing I could get my hands on, and then word seemed to get out that I was both a pervert, and good source of information. So, while all of my friends were going through that awkward dating/changing part of semester to help bring awareness to our causes. We hope to see you out there. In the PGPIRG office you will find our alternative resource library, which contains resources on many issues: climate change, gay & lesbian issues, globalisation and human rights, just to name a few. We not only have books and hanging files but we also subscribe to a variety of left-of-centre maga- zines that often provide a different point of view of current events than the mainstream media. As _students you have access to all of these resources. We have an open door policy: “whenever the door is open you are welcome in” (the office hours are usually 10-2). The PGPRIG office can be found between the NUGSS office and the - UNBC’s Questions answered | adolescence, I was the go-to person whenever anything came up. After that, I volunteered with Planned Parenthood, as a contra- ceptive counselor and a person to answer questions ahd be a presence in the community. From there, I began work with the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority as a sexu- al health educator facilitator, taking presentations to elementary schools and high schools through- out Vancouver and Richmond. Part of that program was answering questions that were sent to us through the website, and that’s when I realized that there were a huge number of questions out - there. And so...here we are. So, this is an open call for any questions you have relating to sex. Dating, sex, STDs, etiquette, what ever. You ask, and I'll answer. If I can’t answer, I'll find someone who can. Feel free to remain anonymous or make up a name. However you feel comfortable. Please send your questions to - goingunder_unbc@hotmail.com. See you next week! Tiffany xx UNBC Bookstore. We hope that you have a won- derful semester. If you have any questions, feel free to stop by our officeor call us at 960-7474, PGPIRG Board of Directors “Saving the world in our spare — time.”