At the start of each session the participants suggest topics from the recent newsworthy of further discussion. The discussion of each topic starts with a brief introduction by the person suggesting the topic followed by a general discussion. Facilitators Joan Bartel has lived in four countries, ending up happily in Canada. She enjoyed a long…
New this year!This workshop explores what makes companies tick. How should success be defined? Are there behaviours, conditions or opportunities that tend to generate winners? Focus will be placed on specific corporations and leaders. Corporations: Corporations today control budgets larger than the GDP of many countries. Some relative newcomers have succeeded masterfully, like Microsoft and…
Memoir, unlike autobiography, is the art of reminiscing about particular events, people and/or time periods in our lives and is becoming increasingly popular. As in previous years, participants will present extracts from their own writing. Ideas/prompts are offered to stimulate writing in class and provide a source for longer pieces. Time will be given to…
Can democracy be saved? Join us for a wide-ranging discussion about democracies; how they flourish and how they fail. How do democracies become dictatorships and how do dictatorships become democracies? What is populism and when did it start? Can a single, strong leader have a significant impact on the course of a country? Each participant…
A short story is a love affair; a novel is a marriage. Short stories are one of the oldest types of literature and are a growing and important aspect of contemporary literature. We will learn about significant and influential contemporary short story writers as well as focus on Irish short story writers. We will discuss…
New this year!Henry James is considered among the greatest of English novelists and was nominated for the Nobel literature prize three times. He was born into a wealthy American family. As a child he travelled with them frequently to England, where he finally settled as an adult. He briefly attended Harvard Law School but preferred…
China’s rise coupled with “America First” are fundamentally changing the dynamics of the world order. Canadian alliances and trade have been tied to the U.S. for decades. Recent events suggest that even with a “reprieve” from tariffs, the status quo with the U.S. may not be tenable or advantageous for Canada on the not-too-distant future.…
Documentary films are a powerful medium that can be used to inform, educate, observe, persuade, expose, improve, and challenge ideas. In this workshop, participants will watch documentary films available on various streaming services including Netflix, Kanopy (free with a library card), CBC Gem and YouTube and then we will discuss the films at each meeting.…
The Gardening Club is for anyone who loves growing things, whether in a garden, on a balcony or indoors. We meet very informally, year round, with no set agenda or presentations. We share updates on the health of our plants, and how best to maintain them, soil cultivation, watering schedules, pruning, pest control, etc., etc.…
Podcasts are a relatively new use of technology to share information, expand our understanding of the world as well as to entertain us while we go about our active lives. There is a topic for every interest. This workshop aims to explore the world of podcasts by examining those that tackle a variety of topics…
New!In 1904, Canada’s Prime Minister, Wilfred Laurier, predicted that “the 20th century will be the century of Canada.” Looking back at the end of the first quarter of the 21st century, what do we think of Sir Wilfrid’s prediction? What does Canada’s twentieth century look like from this vantage point in the 21st century? The…
Please join us for lively discussions of contemporary films. At each meeting we choose two films released since 2019 and available on Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Kanopy, to view before the next class. Decisions about cinema films will be made on a case-by-case basis. Films may be from any genre — indies, art films, documentaries,…