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From Page 1 the ser
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has authored The President's at the
Devotional, a collection of suppo
his favorite 365 e-mails inter- and pi
spersed with lessons he learned founda
while at the White House. ues Pa
During a question-and- privat
answer session, DuBois the rel
explained how careful he was ing pr
not to politicize the meditations Reg
based on any national or inter- in soc
national circumstance. Instead, audien
he presented quotations he present
hoped would connect Obama to "Ju
personal prayer, allow him to see thing,'
CONSOLIDATION ing, da:
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____profess
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edly agreed with the group's ings it
questioning of the validity of ben- myths,
efit-based savings, which Masten ing" ga
said outside consultants some- good g
times over-project. tion fr
The meeting concluded with a "disa
a presentation on "The Teach- he said
ing Evaluation Project" by Mika LaV
LaVaque-Manty, representingthe evalua
Academic Affairs Advisory Com- to non
mittee to the Provost. He sought fessor
input and feedback after compil- eventt
can be
MARCH The
From Page 1 LSA j
sity p
well. I
* up with you' and the more you a chant
expand the more voices you have to gait
heard, and the more voices you the na
have heard, the more things that "(TI
ORDINANCE cantly
From Page 1 and 2t
passag
due to
as well as how they mark the counci
crosswalks themselves. that sa
The repeal is currently spon- the or
sored by Councilmembers Sally to.
Hart Petersen (D-Ward 2), Sumi "It
Kailasapathy (D-Ward 1), Jane pedest
Lumm (I-Ward 2), Mike Anglin they r
(D-Ward 5) and Stephen Kun- hasn'tN
selman (D-Ward 3). The original Tay
resolution to repeal the ordinance ment
was backed by Hieftje, but he later relate
rescinded his sponsorship. inhere
Lumm echoed the sentiments rent la
of many on city council, as well as Kaih
of many residents, noting the con- with t
fusion between the standardized the tra
traffic code for the state and Ann ignore
Arbor's. force -
"By having a local ordinance in counci
Ann Arbor that's unique in Michi- in the
gan," Lumm said. "We are asking "WI
for trouble and placing folks at an more I
* unnecessary risk - risk caused seemt
in part by the confusion caused are do
by having a unique ordinance need f
coupled with a pedestrians-rule lasapa
mindset that creates a false sense that t
of security for pedestrians and life is
cyclists." as ped
Petersen said the average num- ing su
ber of pedestrian crashes signifi- enforc

Tuesday, November 19, 2013 - 3

assion for enemies abroad
1 Washington, and lighten
-iousness of his post.
ently, DuBois left his post
White House with the
rt of the president to write
romote his book. He also
ed a consulting firm, Val-
artnerships, which assists
e and nonprofit partners in
igious community in solv-
oblems.
ardless of their standing
iety, DuBois encouraged
ce members to make their
ce known.
st be bold; that's the main
" DuBois said. "There's no
ta related to the change in
ay the University evaluates
sors.
ne of LaVaque-Manty's find-
ncluded disproving several
, such as professors "buy-
ood reviews by handing out
rades, and that the transi-
om paper to electronic was
ster" - only partially true.
aque-Manty said these
tions are more important
i-tenured and junior pro-
s, but the hope is that they
ally outweigh reviews on

minimum age requirement for
boldness."
Deva Madhava Das, a spiri-
tual leader of the Bhakti Yoga
Society, said after the event he
enjoyed DuBois' perspectives on
divine topics.
"I'm appreciative of it because
in my spiritual practice I'm
very immersed, so I don't get
out-and-about in terms of ideas
as often as I used to," Madhava
Das said. "So, it's refreshing to
hear the perspective of faith and
God's relationship in people's
lives who aren't immersed daily
in cultivating their relation-
ship."
websites such as "Rate My Pro-
fessor," which he called prob-
lematic because of their impact
on the University's reputation
despite the site's lack of accredi-
tation.
The University currently has
about 30,000 courses and 3,643
instructors reviewed on the web-
site. The general response from
the group was that evaluative
data requires further examina-
tion before it can be deemed con-
clusive.
The next Senate Assembly
meetingis scheduled for Dec. 9.

Toronto Mayor causes scene
at hearing to limit his powers

Despite his
controversial past,
Ford says ouster is
politically-motivated
TORONTO (AP) - Amid cries
of "Shame! Shame!" scandal-
plagued Toronto Mayor Rob
Ford was stripped of the last of
his meaningful powers Mon-
day after a heated City Council
debate in which he argued with
members of the public, charged
hecklers and knocked a council-
woman down.
Ford called the move a "coup
d'etat" and vowed an "outright
war" in next year's mayoral
election.
"What's happening here
today is not a democratic pro-
cess, it's a dictatorship process,"
the 44-year-old mayor declared.
The council lacks the
power to remove Ford from
office unless he is convicted
of a crime. Instead, members
sought the strongest recourse
available after recent revela-
tions that Ford smoked crack
cocaine and was drunk at pub-
lic events.

Ford later said in a TV inter-
view Monday night on the Cana-
dian Broadcasting Corp. that he
was "finished" with alcohol,
acknowledging that his drink-
ing had resulted in "excessive,
stupid, immature behavior."
Earlier Monday, the council
voted overwhelmingly in favor
of slashing Ford's office bud-
get by 60 percent and allowing
his staff to move to the deputy
mayor, who now takes on many
of the mayor's former powers.
Ford now effectively has no
legislative power and no longer
chairs the executive committee,
although he retains his title and
ability to represent Toronto at
official functions.
The debate became raucous
after Ford paced around the
council chamber and traded
barbs with members of the pub-
lic. The speaker asked security
to clear the gallery and a recess
was called, but not before Ford
barreled toward his detractors,
mowing into Councilor Pam
McConnell.
Another councilor asked
Ford to apologize. Ford said he
was rushing to the defense of
his brother, Councilor Doug
Ford, and accidentally knocked

McConnell down.
"I picked her up," he said. "I
ran around because I thought
my brother was getting into an
altercation."
Visibly shaken after Ford ran
her over, McConnell, a petite
woman in her 60s, said she
never expected the chaos that
broke out.
"This is the seat of democ-
racy. It is not a football field. I
just wasn't ready. Fortunately,
the mayor's staff was in front.
They stopped me from hitting
my head against the wall. I just
need to sit down," McConnell
said.
The motion to strip Ford of
his powers was revised from
a tougher version to ward off
potential legal challenges by
letting Ford keep his title and
represent the city at official
functions. The city's lawyer said
Ford was not reduced to being
"mayor in name only."
"Obviously I cannot do the
job with eight people in the
office with a quarter of the for-
mer mayor's budget," Ford said.
Council members said it was
necessary to restrict the mayor's
powers given his erratic behav-
ior.


changed," Hehir said.
event was orchestrated by
unior Simon Rivers, diver-
eer educator for Stock-
Rivers said the event was
ce for students of all races
n a better understanding of
lion's racial history.
'he event was) important
increased between 2009
012 the current ordinance's
e. While that may not be
the ordinance, she said city
il should be able to agree
fety did not increase under
dinance as it was supposed
is too dangerous to arm
rians with the notion that
ule," Petersen said. "It just
worked."
lor responded to the argu-
that the two might be
d, stating that nothing is
ntly unsafe about the cur-
nguage of the ordinance.
lasapathy said the problem
the proposed solutions to
affic issues is that they often
the need for a larger police
- something she hopes the
il will consider that option
future.
henever the issue of hiring
police comes up, we always
o hear that level one crimes
own, and there's really no
or more police hires," Kai-
thy said. "This just shows
here are other quality of
sues involved here such
Aestrian safety and mak-
re that speeding limits are
ed."

for everyone because it's a part
of history, it's a part of United
States history, and black history
is celebrated during February,
but it should be celebrated at all
times," River said. "It's every
day. I just want people to recog-
nize that as far as we've come,
we have even farther to go."
Kailasapathy further noted
that the repeal of the ordinance
is simply step one, and that other
steps will need be taken to ensure
safety through means of infra-
structure and enforcement.
Safety on Seventh, a group
founded by Ann Arbor resident
Chris Hewett, is composed of
residents that attempt to inform
other residents of the traffic
problems and pedestrian safety
issues in Ann Arbor. Hewett and
his group argue that most of the
safety issues stem from a lack of
enforcement of traffic laws, main-
ly speeding.
Hewett told the council Mon-
day night before the vote that the
lack of respect for pedestrians has
become alarming and will con-
tinue to be a problem -regardless
of the council's decision on the
ordinance.
"The fact is the city of Ann
Arbor still has major traffic and
pedestrian issues that must be
addressed," Hewett said. "Per-
sonally, I find it disgusting that
Ann Arbor continues to allow
pedestrians to be hit and cars to
drive at speeds upwards of 70
miles per hour on our neighbor-
hood streets.

Hong Kong struggles with effects
of black market ivory trade

Government unsure
of how to eliminate
large deposits of
illegal ivory
HONG KONG (AP) - When
Hong Kong intercepted yet
another huge shipment of illegal
African ivory in early October,
it added to a growing headache
for authorities: What exactly do
you do with one of the world's
biggest stockpiles of elephant
tusks?
Government warehouses in
the former British colony are
holding more than 30 metric
tons of ivory seized since 2008,
as customs agents intercept a
surging amount of endangered
animal products being smug-
gled to mainland China to meet
demand from the country's
newly wealthy.
The latest shipment, 189
tusks worth $1.5 million hidden
in soybean sacks in a shipping
container, was one of four major
busts this year.
Ivory is known as "white
gold" because of the rich prices
it commands on the black mar-
ket. Hong Kong has put values
of between $1,000 and $2,000 a
kilogram on ivory it seized this
year. A 2011 report by the Inter-
national Fund for Animal Wel-
fare said buyers in China were
paying up to $2,400 a kilogram.
Conservation groups, wor-
ried the ivory pile presents
a target for theft and fails to
send a signal that Hong Kong
is serious about cracking down
on the trade, urge the govern-

ment to destroy it. Authorities
are resisting, instead prefer-
ring to dole out small amounts
to schools to raise conservation
awareness.
"As long as that ivory is kept
anywhere, it will always be a
temptation for people to get
their hands on it," said Grace
Ge Gabriel, the fund's regional
director.
IFAW and 15 other ani-
mal welfare and conservation
groups wrote to Hong Kong's
leader and customs commis-
sioner after the October seizure,
urging them to follow the exam-
ple of countries that destroy
confiscated ivory.
Because the ivory trade is
illegal, its size worldwide is
hard to pin down. Samuel K.
Wasser, director of the Center
for Conservation Biology at
the University of Washington,
calculated it was worth $264
million from 2000-2010. He
said the amount now is likely
to be far higher based on the
soaring amount confiscated
globally.
IFAW estimates 35,000
elephants a year are killed
by poachers for ivory, risking
extinction of the animal in the
wild.
Demand is fuelled by China's
booming economy, which has
created a vast middle class with
the ability to buy ivory carvings
prized as status symbols.
"The Chinese market remains
the paramount destination for
illicit ivory," according to a
report this year by the U.N., the
Convention on International
Trade in Endangered Species
and wildlife trade monitoring

network TRAFFIC.
It said China's involvement
has been growing since 1996
despite "increasing levels of law
enforcement."
In their letter, the groups
pointed to "high profile ivory
destruction measures" over the
years. Kenya held the world's
first large ivory bonfire in 1989,
torching 12 tons in an event
that drew international atten-
tion and helped lead to a global
ban the following year on ivory
sales between countries. Zam-
bia set fire to 9.5 tons in 1992
and Gabon burned nearly 5 tons
in 2012.
In June, the Philippines
became the first Asian country
to destroy its stocks when it
burned and crushed more than
5 tons of ivory worth an esti-
mated $10 million confiscated
since 2009. The United States
last week destroyed more than
6 tons of ivory tusks, carvings
and jewelry seized over 25 years
and urged other nations to fol-
low suit.
Hong Kong's stockpile is sev-
eral times bigger. Destroying it
would be a mammoth task. The
government won't disclose the
exact amount, though says the
bulk of it is made up of 32.6 tons
seized since 2003, with amounts
rising sharply in recent years.
Some 7.2 tons have been confis-
cated so far in 2013, double the
amount in 2011.
Other busts this year include
$5.3 million in ivory, rhino
horns and leopard skins from
Nigeria in August; $2.2 million
of ivory from Togo in July; and
a $1.4 million shipment from
Kenya in January.

UN climate chief calls on coal industry
to invest in renewable energy sources

Diplomat says
companies need to
help reduce emissions
WARSAW, Poland (AP) - The
top U.N. climate diplomat on
Monday told the coal industry it
should leave most of the world's
remaining coal reserves in the
ground and start investing in
renewable energy sources.
Speaking at a coal summit on
the sidelines of a U.N. climate
conference in Warsaw, Christia-
na Figueres said the coal indus-
try needs to change radically to
help reduce the carbon emissions
that scientists say are warming
the planet.
"The world is rising to meet
the climate challenge as risks of
inaction mount, and it is in your
best interest to make coal part of
the solution," Figueres said.
The coal event was seen as a
provocation by climate activ-
ists, who used a crane to reach
the ministry's roof, where they
unfurled banners criticizing
Poland's - and the world's -
reliance on coal and other fossil
fuels. Police used another crane
to take them down, as panelists
at the coal summit said that the
people in the room, not the peo-
ple on the roof, have the possibil-
ity to change the coal industry.
Coal industry officials at the
event didn't directly address
her remarks but said the world

cannot do without coal because
in many countries it's the only
available energy source.
"A major aim of the summit
has been to encourage open and
constructive dialogue on the cli-
mate challenge - we're not going
to meet our climate objectives if
we are not all part of the solu-
tion," the World Coal Associa-
tion, which organized the event,
said in a statement.
Polish Economy Minister
Janusz Piechocinski, whose
country generates about 90 per-
cent of its electricity from coal,
said: "You cannot have a low-
emissions energy transformation
without talking about coal."
Coal accounts for less than
30 percent of the world's energy
supply but more than 40 percent
of energy emissions, according to
the International Energy Agency.
Figueres, who was criticized
by some climate activists for
attending the conference, noted
coal's role in economic develop-
ment since the industrial revo-
lution but said it's come at "an
unacceptably high cost to human
and environmental health."
She said aging, high-polluting
coal plants must be closed and
new plants should implement
technologies that allow for emis-
sions to be trapped before they
are released into the atmosphere.
Such technologies are expensive
and currently not widely used.
To bring down CO2 emissions
to levels that would avoid dan-

gerous levels of warming, most
of the existingcoal reserves must
be left in the ground, Figueres
said.
"Some major oil, gas and ener-
gy technology companies are
already investing in renewables,
and I urge those of you who have
not yet started to join them,"
Figueres said.
Back at the U.N. conference
later Monday, she told reporters
she didn't expect any major shift
in the industry's deployment of
capital anytime soon.
"They really need to do a
major, major rethink," Figueres
said. "So I don't expect them to
stand up immediately and go,
'We are ready for the challenge
right now,' but I do expect them
to take the message very seri-
ously."
That message was echoed by
U.S. climate envoy Todd Stern.
"The world runs significantly
on fossil fuels right now and
that's not going to change over-
night," he said. "But at the same
time if we're going to get a grip
on climate change ... the balance
of energy in countries all over
the world is going to have to tilt
much more toward non-fossil
sources."
Coal emissions have declined
in the U.S. as some power plants
have switched to lower-priced
natural gas. But they are grow-
ing fast in China and India to
meet the energy needs of their
fast-growingeconomies.


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