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David Morrison bionote- human rights and human dignity

David Morrison, PhD, FRSA. A bionote on matters pertaining to human rights and related issues only. For psychosocial oncology bio-notes for the past few years, see www.strathmor.com/activities.html

Academically trained at Dalhousie University, University of King’s College, McGill University and the University of Ottawa. Dr. Morrison has additional specialist training in counselling and several units in clinical pastoral education.

He is currently a practitioner in a cancer treatment centre and international speaker in cancer care and cancer control. Before that, he was an effective and popular University Professor at UPEI for thirty years, with special interest and expertise in human rights, health, ethics and religion. He has been recognized by several universities through their appointments, including - Visiting Scholar to Harvard University; Visiting Research Fellow to the Harvard Law School (International Law, human rights); Visiting Fellow, University of London; Visiting Research Scholar, University of Kent at Canterbury; Visiting Fellow (human rights), University of Essex; Visiting Lecturer (human rights) Dalhousie Law School; Visiting Professor, World Council of Churches Ecumenical Institute & University of Geneva, Switzerland, Faculty of Graduate Studies.

Boards: Current - North-South Institute http://www.nsi-ins.ca/ ; Previous - National Board (V-P ), United Nations Association in Canada; YMCA Board of Directors; Canadian Human Rights Foundation, National Council; Amnesty International Canada, National Director; Board & Chair, P.E.I. Assoc. of Rights and Freedoms; Provincial Race Relations Committee Chair; YMCA Canada Peace Medal, awarded 1990; Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada, International Board; Rotary International, Paul Harris Fellow.

Human Rights: Realizing Human Rights, 1996. ISBN 0-9698430-3-8; Human Rights and Religious Freedom, Monograph. UPEI, 1999; International Symposium on Torture: 1977. Originally restricted to Governments and Heads of International Bodies, Geneva, combining two sets of proceedings, from 1976 and 1977. Although very dated now, the efforts and results of this activity resulted in one of the most significant and internationally driven responsibilities undertaken by Morrison. During this time frame and following, Dr Morrison sat on various drafting groups for UN Declarations and Conventions. Later he was Senior Advisor, with John Humphrey, to the Canadian Government External Affairs Department, Human Rights Division.

Articles (selected): "Cultural Values, Human Rights and Religion in the Curriculum," in Values and the Curriculum London: Woburn Press, 2001; "Social Justice in a Socialist Market Economy," in Modernization: Development Models in Latin America and East Asia, Beijing: Social Sciences Documentation Publishing House, 2000; "Human Rights, Religion and Multiculturalism," in Multiculturalism and the State, edited by Jagdish Gundara and Michael Twaddle, London: Institute of Commonwealth Studies, 1995; "State Violence," in Human Rights in the Twenty-First Century: A Global Challenge, edited by Kathleen Mahoney and Paul Mahoney. The Hague, Netherlands: Martinus Nijhoff; "Minorities and Migration". Proceedings. Plenary speech to the XI International Congress on International affairs, sponsored by the Canadian, American and French Government Institutes on International Affairs.

International -- Major speeches and scientific papers: "Ethics and Cultural Values in a Global Economy", Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), Beijing; 2000; "Globalization and Sustainability: Values, Cultures and Ethics", CASS (Chinese Academy of Social Sciences), Beijing, 1999; "Future Generations and Religions' Human Rights Responsibilities," International conference on Human Rights and Our Responsibilities Towards Future Generations, UNESCO and the Mediterranean Academy of Diplomatic Studies. Malta; "Promoting Economic Growth and Improving Social Justice", International Symposium on the Comparative Studies of Development Models in Latin America and East Asia, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Beijing, China; "Gender Discrimination", Waseda University, Tokyo, Japan; "Globalization and Human Rights", 3rd Congress of the Americas, Puebla, Mexico; "Cultural Values, Social Diversity and Human Rights," 2nd Congress of the Americas, Puebla, Mexico; "Religions and Multiculturalism: Human Rights Education and Democracy," Jerusalem, Israel, June, 1993 (during the Oslo Peace Accord negotiations); "Human Rights and International Relations," University of Kent in Canterbury, International Relations Seminar Series; "Human Rights: Awareness, Action, Advocacy," Moscow Law School at MGIMO, Moscow, Russia; "Development and the 1981 United Nations Declaration,” World Congress Seminar and Paper, New Delhi, India; "Human Rights and Human Centred Development," University lecture, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand; "State Violence," International Conference on Human Rights in the 21st Century, U. of Calgary Law Faculty, Banff Springs; "Human Rights as a Window for Religious Tolerance," Warsaw Conference on Building Understanding and Respect Between People of Diverse Religions or Beliefs, sponsored by the Polish Academy of the Sciences, the Norwegian Institute of Human Rights, the University of Minnesota, the World Federation of U.N. Associations, Warsaw, Poland, May, 1989 - marking the first inkling of human rights and religious freedom in Poland; "Human Needs and Human Development." Conference on Action for Human Liberation, Ecumenical Institute, Bossey, Switzerland.

National and Provincial speeches and academic papers (selected): "Improving Social Justice: Globalization Pressures," International Conference on Globalization: Its Dynamics, the Challenge, Strategic Responses; Atlantic Association of Sociologists and Anthropologists; "Globalization and Human Rights", Faculty of Law, U.B.C., Vancouver; "New Directions in Human Rights," Univ of British Columbia Public Lecture; "Globalization, Culture and Rights," University College of the Rockies Public Lectures and University Lecture; "Models in Human Rights Inclusiveness", to the National Conference, Human Rights and Inclusiveness; "Human Rights: Reflections on Governance, Gender and Religion," Speaker to the AGM, United Nations Association in Canada; "Students and Human Rights," Keynote talk to the Canadian Student Newspaper Conference; "Human Rights Abuses," Sponsored by Amnesty International; "Human Rights and the Commonwealth," Royal Commonwealth Society; "Human Rights, International Programmes and International Students," Canadian Bureau of International Education, Annual Conference "Canada to the World - the World to Canada", Toronto, Canada; "Rights of the Child: The New Convention," Atlantic Human Rights Centre Symposium and Opening, Saint Thomas University, Fredericton; "Food Issues: Life or Lifestyle," Keynote address to the Canadian Home Economics Association; "Power Sharing," Plenary address to the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, on the Canadian Constitution and Human Rights; "International Covenants: Means of Implementation". Talk to the Canadian Human Rights Foundation, Halifax; "International Law and Human Needs". Talk to Members of the External Affairs Committee, House of Commons, Ottawa; “International Human Rights and Prince Edward Island," address to the Annual Public Meeting of the P.E.I. Civil Liberties Association.

A few Consultations & Meetings: Leadership for a week-long seminar on Human Rights and Human Dignity, Ecumenical Institute, Geneva, June, 2008 Presenter of Conference on the Canadian Constitution and Human Rights, Chetumal, Mexico; Human Rights in the 21st Century - A Global Challenge; Chair of the Panel on State Security, University of Calgary, Banff Springs, Alberta; Human Rights and Development Symposium, Columbia University Center for the Study of Human Rights; UNESCO Congress on Teaching of International Human Rights, Vienna, Austria, Canadian delegate/expert; Organizer/Convener International Symposium on Torture, for heads of major international bodies, the U.N. and Senior Government Representatives. Institut Henry-Dunant, Geneva, Suisse; United Nations Human Rights Commission, representative of the World Council of Churches; Symposium on World Law and the New International Economic Order, Geneva, Switzerland, Rapporteur; Leader/Organizer, with Dr Rihito Kimura, week-long International Consultation for Medical Specialists, Lawyers and Theologians on "Human Rights: Their Practice in the Life Sciences"; United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders, delegate of the IMCJ and the Pax Romana; Learning for Action: Developing New Concepts and Strategies for Human Rights in Canada, Ottawa; External Affairs Canada Round-Table on Human Rights and Canadian Foreign Policy, Montebello, Quebec; Canadian Association of Statutory Human Rights Agencies Conference, Toronto, Canada, Government Advisor.... and so on.