The fourth annual Student Speaker Challenge kicked off on Tuesday, Jan 24, 2012 with a total of eight students, Stephen Graham, Michael Orr, Leslie Mahoney, Kylie Kettles, Sea Marsland, Madison Webber, Danika Jorgensen McGuire and Martin Heavy Head competing in this year’s event. Through four preliminary rounds, two semi-finals and a final, they addressed the question: “Is there a systemic crisis in the world and if so, how can it be resolved?” from a wide variety of perspectives. The Student Speaker Challenge is a collaboration of SACPA, LPIRG and the U of L Students Union, with financial and promotional support from the U of L. Panels of judges determined the winner of the competition, which carried a prize of $500. Second place received $300 and $100 was awarded to the two students not advancing past semifinals. Book prizes have been given to all eight competitors. Speakers: Sea Marsland and Michael Orr finalists of the Student Speaker Challenge
Sea Marsland is in her final year of Social Work study and plans to attend law school next year. She is a Woodlands and Plains Cree woman from northern Saskatchewan fighting for Indigenous rights. In 2011, Marsland received the Assembly of First Nations Walter Dieter Award. Only one such award is given to a student in Canada each year.
Michael Orr is a fourth year political science student with an attitude. He doesn’t expect to win any popularity contests, but he strongly believes in his ideas and that truth is not a matter of consensus. As such he will be relying on the merits of his arguments rather than on the popularity of the ideas he espouses.