Totem: The University of Western Ontario Journal of Anthropology

From the Editor

This volume of TOTEM comes at 'a significant moment in the history of the anthropology department at the University of Western Ontario: in September 2003 the department will welcome its first doctoral candidates. To celebrate this exciting time, volume 11 is the largest and one of the most thematically eclectic TOTEMs compiled to date. Needless to say, a lot of work went into the following pages.

I wish to extend a heartfelt thanks to everyone who assisted in the planning, editing, and production of this volume. The editing team this year has been tremendous. In total, this TOTEM has benefited from the hard work and careful eyes of thirteen dedicated journal staff and from the support of the anthropology society, faculty, department staff, and others. While everyone on the team was outstanding, I would like to highlight the contribution of two editors specifically. Without help from Christine Schreyer and Jennifer Nash this volume would not have come together. Their encouragement, professionalism and editing skill helped make this possible. Thank you Jennifer and Christine, and everyone else involved - we can all be proud of our work here.

I also wish to thank all those who submitted papers for consideration. The editing team had the pleasure (and challenge) of selecting from articles written by undergraduate, masters, and doctorate level students from all over Canada and abroad - all the papers we received were truly exceptional. Congratulations to those whose work was chosen!

TOTEM is an important part of anthropology at Western. This journal provides individuals at all levels of study with the opportunity to participate in the publication process as contributors and/or editors. Personally, I found working on TOTEM both challenging and inspiring. The people on my team and the pages that passed through my hands have made this an invaluable expelience and one of the highlights of my time at Western.

Othon Alexandrakis
The University of Western Ontario
London, Ontario
May 2003