What does ‘masculinity’ mean today? On Being a Man brings together four men to consider the condition of Scottish men, reflect on their own backgrounds and experiences, and confront some of the most difficult issues men face. These include the changing roles of men in Scottish society, the role of work and employment. What it means to be a man is very different from forty years ago: in terms of expectations, relationships, how men relate to partners, bring up children and what constitutes a modern family. However, there is a dark side of Scottish masculinity – seen in the drinking, violent, abusive behaviour of some Scots men, and this book addresses this directly, getting into issues many of us often shy away from confronting. Draws on the wide-ranging voices of: journalist, writer and broadcaster, David Torrance; founder of a youth employment and mentoring charity, Sandy Campbell; public health researcher, Pete Seaman; and former policeman and head of the violence reduction unit, John Carnochan.

There are many currents moving through the polar regions. Physical currents are changing the landscape. Cultural and linguistic currents are always changing, ebbing, flowing, adapting. PLC 2008 (Currents of Change: the Future of Polar Information) and the 2008 University of the Arctic Council Meeting (Currents of Change: Advancing Polar Information and Knowledge Transfer) ran simultaneously. For this meeting, the currents of the Colloquy and the UArctic meeting flowed together and sometimes took different channels. Some keynotes, social and cultural events were held together. The intent was that through this exchange, administrators of the Arctic post secondary institutions and polar librarians would come to know each other and that the flow of information within and among the two organizations would be strengthened. The PLC program was packed with the latest from the polar information community. There was a half-day dedicated to the International Polar Year and another panel on information needs within the University of the Arctic.