[IPSM] QPIRG-McGill looking for new Working Groups!!

[antoine libert]

CALL FOR NEW QPIRG-McGill WORKING GROUPS---DEADLINE  September 5th.

The Quebec Public Interest Research Group at McGill (QPIRG-McGill) is 
looking for new working groups for 2005-2006!!

QPIRG-McGill is a volunteer-driven, non-profit organization based at McGill 
University, with working groups at its core. Our working groups organise 
autonomously around various issues of social justice and environmental 
action. Some examples of current and former working groups include: 
Student-Worker Solidarity, Anti-Racist Action, CorpWatch, Fire (Women and 
Trans of Colour Collective), Enviro-Act, BloodSisters, Food Not Lawns, 
Mexico-Montreal Collective, RebelDesis, Indigenous Peoples Solidarity 
Movement, Greening McGill and the Living Monument Project.  All working 
groups are allocated an appropriate budget (for projects/events they wish to 
pursue throughout the year) in September and will have access to the 
following:

-QPIRG's many resources (phone, photocopier, fax machine)
-a radical resource library
-computers with internet access and web space
-meeting space at the QPIRG office at 3647 University, 3rd floor (we regret 
that this space is not wheelchair accessible)

...and will have the help of QPIRG staff and board members when needed for 
such things as project support, visioning, outreach, etc.

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   What role do working groups play at QPIRG?
Working groups are the core of QPIRG. They are a group of volunteers 
(anywhere from 5-50 people) who work throughout the year on a specific 
social justice or environmental issue. Working groups receive funding from 
QPIRG and use the QPIRG office for many of their activities. Each working 
group gets a write-up in the QPIRG pamphlet and on the QPIRG website. All 
QPIRG working groups are initiated by volunteers, and must be approved by 
the Board of Directors.

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   Trying to move beyond McGill
As a campus-based, student-run organization, QPIRG-McGill has often placed 
an unbalanced emphasis on issues that pertain to our student membership. 
This year, we are striving to reach beyond the gates of McGill to support 
and take part in broader social justice struggles, both locally and 
globally. We are therefore encouraging applications for working groups which 
have a scope which is broader than student activism. As well, there are many 
ways in which QPIRG-McGill has fallen short of providing a safe and 
accessible space for people coming from various marginalized groups of 
society. This includes but is not limited to Indigenous people, 
transgendered/transsexual people, women, dis-abled people, people of colour, 
members of the working class, and immigrants and refugees. Although our 
organization has a lot of work to do towards becoming more inclusive and 
proactively supportive of the struggles of all oppressed people, we believe 
that encouraging new working groups to research, educate, and take action on 
these issues is a step in the right direction.

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   Application process
To be considered during our selection of working groups for the 2005-06 
session, please ensure that you submit your application no later than 
September 5th at 5 pm.  All applications can either be submitted via e-mail 
or by dropping them off at our office with a staff member.  IF SUBMITTING BY 
E-MAIL PLEASE SEND  AS AN ATTACHMENT IN RICH-TEXT FORMAT (RTF) OR PASTED 
INTO THE BODY OF THE EMAIL (NO MICROSOFT WORD FILES PLEASE!).  The 
application questions are pasted below - please answer the questions 
completely (especially the budget) and concisely.

***A NOTE TO EXISTING WORKING GROUPS: If you wish to be a working group 
again this year YOU MUST RE-APPLY! *** Also if you do not claim your stuff 
that is stored at QPIRG, it will be tossed after the Working Group selection 
process has finished.

If your group is selected to become a working group a representative MUST 
COMMIT to attending at least 1 meeting in September/October at which your 
budget will be finalized and general QPIRG organizational information will 
be distributed, as well as attending QPIRG's Annual General Meeting which 
will be held in April 2006. Furthermore, since we are promoting the work 
that we carry out in light of a potential upcoming referendum that could 
challenge our existence as an organization, we encourage working groups to 
include the QPIRG logo on their promotional materials.

If you have any questions about applying to become a working group and what 
the benefits of becoming a working group are, give us a call (398-7432), 
send an email (qpirg at ssmu.mcgill.ca), or stop by our office (3647 University 
Street, 3rd floor). Our hours are Monday-Thursday, 11 am - 5 pm.

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QPIRG-McGill is opposed to all forms of discrimination on the basis of sex 
or gender, race, class, sexual orientation, dis/ability, ethnicity, and 
spiritual belief.


+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
APPLICATION FORM FOR QPIRG WORKING GROUPS

This application serves two purposes. It is an opportunity for your group to 
formulate your goals and plan of action for the coming year, and for the 
Board to get to know you, your group and your issue. To apply to be a 
working group, please answer each of the following questions. This will give 
the Board a good idea of what the project is, and how it will be carried 
out. Most of these questions can be answered in one or two sentences. You 
can write the answers in numerical order.

If you have questions, please don’t hesitate to call Indu at (514) 398-7432.

Description of Working Group:

1) Proposed name of working group
2) Is this a new project or a continuation of previous year's project?
3) Describe the issue on which your working group will focus.
4) How does this issue connect to QPIRG's social and environmental justice 
mandate?
5) Do you foresee that this issue will be your primary focus for the year, 
or will there be other sub-issues or related issues that will also be dealt 
with? If this is the case, what will be the criteria for taking on 
particular issues?
6) What were your main goals last year and were they accomplished? (if 
applicable)
7) What are your goals for the coming year, short and long term?
8) What kinds of activities do you plan to help achieve these goals?
9) Will the projects take place during the academic year only, or will it 
continue in the summer?
10) An important part of QPIRG's mandate is linking students with the 
community. How will this project address this? Do you know of any other 
community groups working on this issue?
11) Write a short 50-100 word blurb that will be used in QPIRG promo 
materials if your group is selected.

Volunteer Involvement
11) How many people do you foresee taking part in this working group? How 
much interest do you think there will be on the part of McGill students?
12) Can anyone interested in the group join, or are there some membership 
criteria? If so, what are they?
13) Do new volunteers have to have some knowledge of your group's issues 
before they join? How will you incorporate new members into the group?
14) What do you see as being some specific tasks for volunteer members of 
the group?

Project Coordinator(s)
15) Name, address, and e-mail address of coordinator/contact person.
16) What's your personal experience with your working group's issue?


QPIRG Support
17) What kinds of support, other than financial, will you need from QPIRG? 
(e.g., using QPIRG space for meetings; using the computers etc.)
18) The QPIRG staff (especially External Coordinator) are hired in large 
part to assist, train and support working group volunteers. What specific 
help will you and your volunteers need?

Budget
Please also include a budget. The best way to organize this is to breakdown 
the 'expenses' (how much you will spend), and 'revenues' (how much you will 
fundraise) that you estimate your group will have.  Don't worry about 
estimating your budget to the penny but try to be as specific as possible 
about what types of expenses you will have. Below you will find the main 
categories that your budget might include. If you are planning a big event 
(conference, lecture series, etc.), please make a sub-category for these to 
show how much it will cost.

Expenses
* Photocopies (posters, pamphlets, etc. Estimate 5¢ per copy.)
* Printing (if you're planning to publish a booklet or other more permanent 
material, such as high-quality posters or stickers)
* Room bookings (you can usually get free rooms at Shatner and Thomson 
house, but you may need to rent a McGill room once in a while - these cost 
$47)
* Speakers (speaker honoraria usually range from $50-250 depending on the 
speaker, travel costs for speakers etc.)
* Audio-visual equipment (you may need to rent a TV/VCR or an overhead 
projector, these are quite cheap, usually $11 for a TV/VCR and $3.50 for 
overhead)
* Advertising (you may want to put ads in the Daily or the Tribune for your 
events, but these are very expensive, a quarter page ad in the Daily is 
$200, and in Tribune it's $125)
* Supplies (working groups can use the supplies in the QPIRG office, such as 
paint, markers, paper, tape, etc. but you may need supplies that QPIRG does 
not usually carry, such as canvas for banners)
* Books (usually books are covered by our library budget, so only put it in 
your budget if the books you buy will not be kept in the QPIRG library)
* Please note that salaries and stipends for working group members are not 
allowable expenses

Revenue
Please estimate any income your group may receive during the year. Usually 
this would come from selling something, charging admission, or donations 
from other groups.

Total requested from QPIRG = Expenses - Revenue


Completed applications can either be submitted via e-mail or by dropping 
them off at our office with a staff member no later than 5 pm on the 5th of 
September.  IF SUBMITTING BY E-MAIL PLEASE SEND  AS AN ATTACHMENT IN 
RICH-TEXT FORMAT (RTF) OR PASTED INTO THE BODY OF THE EMAIL (NO MICROSOFT 
WORD FILES PLEASE!).



QPIRG-McGill
3647 University Ave., 3rd floor
Montreal, Quebec
Tel: 514.398.7432
Fax:514.398.8976
Email: qpirg at ssmu.mcgill.ca

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