CommunicationSpringSummer... - Ontario Modern Language ...

KEY NOTE SPEAKER:DR. SAMANTHA NUTT,WAR CHILD CANADAIn our celebratory year, we had a moment to stop and think about the significance of educators inraising social awareness and bringing about social justice. In a passionate address, by Dr. SamanthaNutt, founder of War Child Canada, we learned of the vital role of learning a second language, asshe shared her experiences and made connections to the importance of action in language education.Her message to our members: ``If you cannot speak to them, you cannot help them.``The mission of War Child Canada is to work with children and their families to overcome thechallenges of living with and recovering from conflict. In collaboration with local people, WarChild aims to increase access to education, lift families out of poverty, and to create a protectiveenvironment for the rights of children. War Child is operational in Afghanistan, Sudan (Darfur),Uganda, Sierra Leone, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia and Haiti. www.warchild.caThe message of Dr. Nutt underscores the relevancy of our work in the field of education andthe possibilities of the impact that we can have on the future. From her example, we can learn tomake a difference.Dr. Samantha Nutt is the Founder and Executive Director of War Child Canada. Committed to peace, humanrights and social justice, her humanitarian work has benefitted hundreds of thousands of war-affected children globally.She was recently awarded the Order of Canada. Dr. Nutt's first book, Damned Nations will be released byMcLelland & Stewart Ltd. on October 25th, 2011. Damned Nations is available for pre-order. page 3