In memorium Jack Layton

Kate Hudson
Managing editor
Many Canadians will remember Jack Layton as the most inspiring Canadian political leader of a generation. To York professor David Bell, he was also a man with boundless energy, a clear vision, and piano skills.

“As a young man and throughout his life we were always in contact,” says Bell, who supervised Layton’s PhD dissertation at York in the early- to mid-80s.
Besides sharing a passion for the fundamental connection between social, economic, and environmental sustainability, Bell says Jack had a great sense of humour and community.
“In those days at the end of the year, I’d always to have a special party for my graduate students,” he says. “The musicians would bring whatever instruments they played, and we’d have a jam session. Jack always got involved in that. He loved to play guitar and piano, and he also liked to sing; he was the life of the party.”
Layton’s university life included taking on a leadership role in the Graduate Students’ Association (GSA), recreational sports, and quiet drinks at the bar. It took him a decade to complete his dissertation on the Foreign Investment Review Agency (FIRA).
“In Jack’s case it was a combination of things. He got a chance to do some teaching at Ryerson and he got into politics, and those two things were consuming him,” recalls Bell. “I didn’t think he’d ever be able to refocus and come up with the concentrated time and energy to write a dissertation, but he sure as hell did.”
“He didn’t like leaving things undone. He wanted to complete something he’d started and he was very passionate about FIRA. It was a combination of motivation and opportunity for him to come back and do it.”
In his final letter to the nation, Layton was clear about his vision for a better, more sustainable future for Canada, and his faith in young Canadians to make it happen.
“He had a very articulate, if brief, outline of his vision for Canada,” says Bell. “What struck me, as someone who’s known Jack for a long time, was the extent to which that vision is rooted in the fundamental ideas about sustainability. It’s about connecting concern for environment, concern for social equity and social justice, and a new kind of sustainable economy, but not at the expense of each of these fields.”
To honour Jack Layton’s commitment to optimism, the Learning for a Sustainable Future (LSF) has established the Jack Layton Award for Youth Action in Sustainability, which will recognize “an individual student or a group of students who have responded to the community challenges with creative energy, responsible citizenship and innovative action.” The first award will be presented November 15, 2011.
In light of his personal address of hope and optimism to Canadian youth, Excalibur has decided to republish his last letter.
Thanks, Jack. We won’t let you down.