Not every U of T campus group has met with world leaders and has their reports quoted by international newspapers. But for the G8 Research Group, that’s just par for the course.

Today at the Munk Centre, the G8 Research Group is hosting a conference entitled “Checking in on the G8’s Progress: From Gleneagles to St. Petersburg.”

“With Russia holding the presidency of the G8 this year, we wanted the conference to have a strong Russian presence to highlight their issues, and our reports will also be addressing that,” said Vanessa Corlazzoli, Chair of the G8 Research Group.

The Research Group studies and scrutinizes G8 nations’ policies and international obligations from G8 summits and other international conferences. A 22-year-old peace and conflict studies and international relations student, Corlazzoli heads an all-volunteer army of 125 students from all three U of T campuses.

The group’s all-day event will feature six different sessions that include such speakers as Neil Chrimes, counsellor of trade and economics of the British High Commission, Nikolai Smirnov, the Russian consul general, and Sergey Paltov from the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The conference will even be broadcast via webcam on the group’s site, www.g8.utoronto.ca.

The organization’s dedication to studying the G8 in particular makes it the only organization of its kind in the world. Major international news organizations have used the G8 Research Group’s bi-annual reports, and each year the club sends about 20 undergraduate members to the G8 Summit, where they are given the same access as the international media.

Students have taken a souvenir photo with French President Jacques Chirac, had a brief chat with former Canadian prime minister Paul Martin about Canadian policy, and even met Mexican President Vincente Fox.

“The students always get an unforgettable experience. We’re really grateful that we can have that kind of presence at the G8 Summits even though we have to fundraise ourselves,” said Corlazzoli. “This group of people really deserves it. They work long and hard to churn out the reports and news bulletins, but when they’re finished, we all feel a real sense of accomplishment.”

This year the G8 Research Group is expecting to release four quarterly reports, the first of which is the interim-compliance report to be released today, just ahead of the conference’s start. The second will be released three weeks before the upcoming G8 Summit in St. Petersburg.

“Last year’s two reports focused on Africa as well as G8 reform and expansion,” said Corlazzoli. “With India, China, Brazil, Mexico, and South Africa declaring themselves the ‘G5’ as they take on a more vital role in the world economy, we felt that our report should speak to that as part of the reform process of the G8.”

“Plus, our Africa report was even handed to Bono after he finished a press conference at Gleneagles. That was cool!”

“Checking in on the G8’s Progress: From Gleneagles to St. Petersburg” will be held all day at the Munk Centre on Feb. 9.