Abigail Dombrovsky
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Fun in the sun and the importance of sunscreen
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With the rise of over 30-degree days on our radars, the Canadian Skincare Foundation estimates that more than 80,000 cases of skin cancer will be diagnosed this year. Additionally, the Canadian Cancer Society estimates that approximately 11,300 Canadians will be diagnosed with melanoma skin cancer, of which 1,300 Canadians might die. Melanoma is the most…
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The suburban impact of nature in modern cities
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I don’t claim to be an urban planner and my knowledge on this topic does not extend beyond my own research coupled with my binge-watching of Parks and Recreation., but as a life-long citizen of suburbia, I feel that my personal experience resonates with others. At which point did we go from parks that supported…
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Should Earth Day only be celebrated in April?
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Earth day is celebrated annually on April 22 in support of environmental protection. Since 1970, it marks the commencement of events coordinated around the world by Earthday.org which reach approximately 1 billion people in over 193 countries. This year’s theme personally addresses my environmental gripe: “Planet vs. Plastics”. As the reality of microplastics dawn upon…
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Mitigating the impact of burnout culture
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Burnout is the soft white underbelly beneath today’s fast-paced and demanding world, affecting individuals across various professions and lifestyles, but what is it really? Recently, there has been a growing recognition of the challenges that individuals face both in the workplace and in their personal lives. Women often fall victim to unique circumstances. I interviewed…
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Performative tragedy and the misuse of queer representation in the media
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“Dead lesbian Syndrome” is a 1970s literary & TV phenomenon, representing misogyny & homophobia faced by female characters on screen. Hay’s law, established in the 1930s, was a list of “moral guidelines” that governed cinematic subject matter, restricting and prohibiting anything from profanity to childbirth scenes to homosexual depictions and interracial relationships. The law lingers…
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The problem with self-diagnosing yourself
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During my psychology course, my professor began the lesson with a cautionary tale of the phenomenon “medical school disease”, when students use the textbook to self-diagnose. Self-diagnosis is partially inevitable; we naturally resonate with that which reflects our personal experiences – but to what extent? We fall for confirmation bias, receiving search results based on…
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Profit increases and education cuts hurt us all
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Wilfrid Laurier University anticipates an $11 million shortfall in the year 2023/2024. The deficit is expected to be partially addressed through public austerity measures. In a Laurier news release on Aug. 17, 2023, it was stated that there was a 10% reduction in tuition in 2019 and a tuition freeze ever since, which will be…
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An international state of affairs: examining the food bank crisis
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“58,000 individuals visited the foodbank more than 450,000 times last year” said Kim Wilhelm, Interim CEO of The Waterloo Food Bank. “That’s just in the region [of waterloo].” Subconsciously, most of us are aware that there is, to some degree, a food crisis. As the holidays approach, so do donation bins at schools, cardboard containers…
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Giving is better than getting this season
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Although there’s nothing quite like the feeling of receiving a thoughtful holiday gift from someone special during the holidays, there’s also nothing like curating a personal gift that you know will be greatly appreciated by another person. In my opinion, the process of creating a gift tailored to another individual’s personal preferences with a thoughtful…
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Weather and our mood: learning to cope
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Canada’s wicked weather can have more than just an impact on our mood – it can change the trajectory of a student’s success in many negative ways. From smoldering summers to what feels like almost unbearable winters, we live in a weather-extreme country. The good thing about predictable patterns is that these environmental indicators can…
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The Tie That Binds WLU Since 1926
Serving the Waterloo campus, The Cord seeks to provide students with relevant, up to date stories. We’re always interested in having more volunteer writers, photographers and graphic designers.