Author: Jenny Pitt-Clark

York University funds $4.05M to support interdisciplinary research for the UN SDGs

Featured image for stories related to sustainability

The research projects advance knowledge in areas ranging from water remediation, management of infectious disease through technological innovation, the effects of climate change on ecosystems and human populations, visual neuroscience, and understanding the pathway from colonial genocide to building just relationships.

York University will fund ground-breaking research through the Catalyzing Interdisciplinary Research Clusters (CIRC) program, which aims to foster interdisciplinary collaboration, global research excellence and world-class training opportunities.  Now in its second year, the program supports critical research that can advance York’s contribution to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs).

“As the world continues to address urgent global challenges such as climate change, global health crises and political polarization, and their impact on people and the planet, it is critical now more than ever for York to support novel interdisciplinary research collaborations that drive innovative solutions to these grand challenges,” says York President and Vice-Chancellor Rhonda Lenton. “York University is home to some of the brightest researchers in the world, and I am inspired by the talent, drive, and commitment of our researchers to making the world a better place. I offer you my congratulations in these exemplary research endeavours.”

“York is pleased to invest in interdisciplinary research clusters that will continue to amplify York’s world class research excellence,” says Vice-President Research & Innovation (VPRI) Amir Asif. “The CIRC program brings together talented researchers from across disciplines and faculties, supporting research that will help address complex global issues identified in the UN SDGs, and driving positive change in our local and global communities.”

Seven projects will receive $150,000 per year over three years:

Catalyzing Interdisciplinary Research Cluster for Detection and Remediation of Water Contaminants (CIRC-DRWC), led by Satinder Brar, Lassonde School of Engineering, with co-Principal Investigators (PIs) Pouya Rezai, Lassonde School of Engineering, James Orbinski, Faculty of Health, Sylvie Morin, Faculty of Science, and Ali Asgary, Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies (LA&PS)
UN SDG 6: Clean Water & Sanitation

Catalyzing Collective Action at the Intersection of Global Health and the Arts, led by Caitlin Fisher, School of the Arts, Media, Performance and Design (AMPD) with co-PI Steven Hoffman Faculty of Health, and Sharon Hayashi (AMPD)
UN SDG 3: Good Health & Well-Being

From Colonial Genocide to Just Relationships, led by Luann Good Gingrich (LA&PS) with co-PI Heidi Matthews, Osgoode Hall Law School
UN SDG 16: Peace, Justice & Strong Institutions

Technologies for Identification and Control of Infectious Diseases (TICID), led by Sergey Krylov, Faculty of Science
UN SDG 3: Good Health & Well-Being

Geomatics for Analyzing Climate Change Effects on Ecosystems and Human Populations, led by Tarmo Remmel, Faculty of Environmental and Urban Change (EUC)
UN SDG 13: Climate Action

Translating Brain Signals Across Scales, Species, Sex and Lifespan, led by Jeff Schall, Faculty of Science with co-PI Shayna Rosenbaum, Faculty of Health
UN SDG 3: Good Health & Well-Being

Designing Sound Futures: Inclusive Design and Transdisciplinary STEAM Learning, led by Kurt Thumlert, Faculty of Education with Co-PI Andreas Kitzmann (LA&PS)
UN SDG 10: Reduced Inequality

In addition, six other proposals that were highly ranked by external reviewers will each be awarded two-year funding of $100,000 per year for two years for a total of $200,000 each. These proposals include:

Biomedical Engineering Cluster (BEC), led by Alex Czekanski, Lassonde School of Engineering with co-PI Peter Backx, Faculty of Science
UN SDG 3: Good Health & Well-Being

Towards Inclusive and Accessible Data Visualizations and Analytics, led by Enamul Prince (LA&PS)
UN SDG 10: Reduced Inequality

Overcoming Epidemics: Transnational Black Communities’ Response, Recovery and Resilience, led by Mohamed Sesay (LA&PS) with co-PIs Sylvia Bawa (LA&PS) and Oghenowede Eyawo, Faculty of Health
UN SDG 3: Good Health & Well-Being

Research Cluster on Data Economy, aligned with UN SDG: Industry, Innovation & Infrastructure, led by Xiaohui Yu (LA&PS) with co-PIs Giuseppina D’Agostino, Osgoode Hall Law School, and Jennifer Pybus (LA&PS)
UN SDG 9: Industry, Innovation & Infrastructure

*Social and Business Implications of Introducing Micro-mobility Vehicles (at York) Implications for Disruptive Technologies and Experiential Education, led by Andrew Maxwell, Lassonde School of Engineering with co-PIs Marina Freire-Gormaly, Lassonde School of Engineering, Pilar F Carbonell (LA&PS), Manos Papangelis, Lassonde School of Engineering and Jose Etcheverry, (EUC)
UN SDG 10: Reduced Inequality

*Towards Sustainable Extraction in the North, aligned with UN SDG: Responsible Consumption and Production, led by Laura McKinnon, Glendon College with co-PIs Kamelia Atefi-Monfared, Lassonde School of Engineering, Gabrielle Slowey (LA&PS), Zachary Spicer, (LA&PS)
UN SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production

*Conditionally approved, subject to additional review.

“We would like to acknowledge the members of the internal Adjudication Committee: Professors Rosemary Coombe, David Hood, Jane Heffernan and Dan Zhang, who have helped the Office of the VPRI support research excellence in ways that are equitable, diverse and inclusive,” adds Asif.

More about the Catalyzing Interdisciplinary Research Clusters Program

The Catalyzing Interdisciplinary Research Clusters (CIRC) program funds research excellence for interdisciplinary projects, crossing the mandates of at least two of the three federal granting councils, with the core team of at least five researchers for each project including members from at least two faculties and at least one early career researcher.

Modelled to replicate the success of interdisciplinary research clusters, the initiative empowers clusters to achieve research excellence and secure large-scale funding through highly competitive national programs, such as the Canada Excellence Research Chair, the Canada First Research Excellence Fund and the New Frontiers in Research Fund – Transformation stream. The CIRC program will scale the development of research teams and clusters to position the University as a key node in national and international networks in strategic areas of interest, while enabling impactful contributions towards the University’s Strategic Research Plan, the University Academic Plan and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

All proposals received were subjected to expert external peer review, with final decisions informed by an internal adjudication committee comprised of senior York researchers with additional representatives from the Office of the VPRI.

Canadian Writers in Person series organizers offer best reads for 2022

Typewriter typing "something worth reading"

York University Humanities Professors Leslie Saunders and Gail Vanstone, together with Dana Patrascu-Kingsley, a contract faculty member in the Department of English, offer their list for the best books to read over the holiday break and beyond.

When YFile contacted the three organizers behind York University’s acclaimed Canadian Writers in Person (CWIP) series about their picks for the best books of 2022, the intrepid trio rose to the challenge.

CWIP is a course offered in the Culture & Expression program in the Department of Humanities in York University’s Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies. Click here for more information on the series, or email Vanstone at gailv@yorku.ca or Saunders at leslie@yorku.ca. The series resumes on Jan. 18, 2023 with author Iain Reid’s critically acclaimed book We Spread (Gallery/Scout Press, 2022).

“Our picks for this year include a host of new voices in Canadian literature along with stories and poetry from seasoned voices beckoning us to read them again,” says Vanstone.

Without further ado, here is their list:

Thompson Highway, Kiss of the Fur Queen
Billy-Ray Belcourt, A Minor Chorus
Souvankham Thammavongsa, How to Pronounce Knife
Megan Gail Coles, Small Game Hunting at the Local Coward Gun Club
Ava Homa, Daughters of Smoke and Fire 
Zalika Reid-Benta, Frying Plantain
Phoebe Wang, Admission Requirements 
Laurie D. Graham, Settler Education
Heather O’Neill, When We Lost Our Heads
Suzette Mayr, The Sleeping Car Porter
Cheluchi Onyemelukwe-Onuobia, The Son of the House
Richard Van Camp, Moccasin Square Gardens
Jesse Thistle, Scars & Stars
Katherena Vermette, North End Love Songs and The Strangers
Thomas King, Truth and Bright Water
Madeleine Thien, Do Not Say We Have Nothing
Chantal Gibson, How She Read
Miriam Toews, Women Talking

Plus, the trio recommends three new writers on Chinese diaspora. These authors are: Jack Wang, We Two Alone; Pik-Shuen Fung Ghost Forest; and Sheung King, You Are Eating an Orange, You Are Naked.

And finally, Saunders has a special recommendation to add to the list, a personal favourite, for “anything by Louise Penny, particularly Three Pines.“

A reminder to unplug! Turn off computers and appliances before leaving for the holiday break

Hand of man unplug electric outlet plug on wall white background safety concept

York community members are reminded to switch off and unplug before leaving for the holiday break. It is also a good time to remind others in your area about the importance of shutting down computers, lights, small office or kitchen appliances and other personal electronics and close any windows before leaving the office.

York recently announced ambitious plans for sustainability, which include achieving net-zero and significantly reducing the University’s direct and indirect emissions by 45 per cent by 2030. The simple gesture of turning off and/or unplugging devices before leaving the office can yield tremendous results, given that staff and faculty operate more than 8,000 computers, and together the Keele and Glendon campuses have more than 140,000 internal lights.

The ability to shut down certain electrical devices will vary depending on departmental requirements.

York is committed to driving positive change for local and global communities, and sustainability is a core value that is at the heart of everything the University strives for. Together, the community is taking the action needed for future generations, the planet and for ourselves.

Visit the Office of Sustainability website to learn more about York’s Sustainability Action Commitment. For tips on how to have a sustainable holiday season, check out the Nature Conservancy of Canada’s website: Giving green: Sustainable, upcycled (and sometimes handmade) gifts.

Happy holidays from York’s president

Holiday Social Featured image cropped to YFile banner specifications

La version française suit la version anglaise. 

Dear York community,

In looking back on 2022, I am deeply grateful and humbled by our community’s incredible achievements, resilience and dedication to building a better future for each other, our students and the broader communities we serve. Together, we have accomplished a great deal.

2022-23 will always be remembered as the year we returned to in-person learning and saw our campuses fully active once again. Faculty, staff and students alike pivoted to yet another set of pandemic realities requiring a blend of learning and work formats to accommodate diverse needs, while we simultaneously seized new opportunities and advanced our University Academic Plan 2020-2025, driving 21st century learning, advancing knowledge mobilization and supporting student success. 

We also continued to take up the challenge of building a better and more sustainable future for all as reflected in York’s consistent performance in the Times Higher Education World Rankings of a university’s impact on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). York now ranks 33rd. And in October 2022, we doubled down on our commitment to sustainability by announcing an expanded new Office of Sustainability to be led by a Chief Sustainability Officer and $1 million to fund sustainability initiatives. We are excited by what our community will do to help York reach our goal of achieving carbon neutrality before 2049.

The momentum that has been created continues to advance York’s vision as a modern, progressive University committed to inclusive excellence and leading the way in higher education. I wish you all a warm and bright holiday season. I hope you will take some time during this break to rest and enjoy time with family and friends.

I look forward to seeing you back on campus in January 2023!

Rhonda Lenton
President and Vice-Chancellor

La présidente Lenton vous souhaite de joyeuses fêtes

Chère communauté de York,

En cette fin d’année 2022, je suis profondément reconnaissante et honorée des incroyables réalisations de notre communauté, de sa résilience et de sa détermination à bâtir un meilleur avenir pour chacun et chacune d’entre nous, pour notre population étudiante et pour les autres communautés que nous servons. Ensemble, nous avons accompli bien des choses.

L’année 2022-2023 restera dans les annales de l’Université comme étant celle durant laquelle nous avons repris l’apprentissage en personne et véritablement réintégré nos campus. Les membres du corps professoral, du personnel et de la population étudiante ont dû s’adapter à de nouvelles réalités liées à la pandémie. Il a fallu mettre en place une combinaison de formats d’apprentissage et de travail pour répondre à des besoins diversifiés. Parallèlement, nous avons saisi de nouvelles occasions et fait progresser notre Plan académique universitaire 2020-2025 en favorisant l’apprentissage pour le 21e siècle, en faisant progresser la mobilisation des connaissances et en appuyant la réussite étudiante. 

Nous avons également continué à relever le défi de bâtir un avenir meilleur et plus durable comme en témoignent les progrès constants de l’Université York au classement mondial Times Higher Education Impact relativement aux objectifs de développement durable (ODD) des Nations Unies. York occupe maintenant le 33e rang de ce palmarès. En octobre 2022, nous avons réitéré notre engagement en faveur de la durabilité en annonçant la création d’un nouveau bureau de la durabilité dirigé par un chef du développement durable ainsi que l’octroi d’un million de dollars pour financer des initiatives de durabilité. Nous avons hâte de voir tout ce que notre communauté entreprendra pour aider York à atteindre son objectif de neutralité carbone d’ici 2049.

La dynamique ainsi créée continue de promouvoir la vision de York en tant qu’université moderne et progressiste engagée dans l’excellence inclusive et chef de file de l’enseignement supérieur. Je vous souhaite une saison des fêtes chaleureuse et lumineuse. J’espère que vous profiterez de ces vacances pour vous reposer et pour passer du temps avec votre famille et vos amis.

J’ai hâte de vous revoir sur les campus en janvier.

Rhonda L. Lenton
Présidente et vice-chancelière

New book explores how COVID-19 has changed business supply chain

A new book edited by York University Professor Hassan Qudrat-Ullah provides research results and shares experiences in the area of supply chain management in a post-pandemic world.

Hassan Qudrat-Ullah
Hassan Qudrat-Ullah

Qudrat-Ullah, who teaches in the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies’ School of Administrative Studies, researches dynamic decision making, system dynamics modelling, computer-simulated interactive learning environments, and energy planning models.

The book, Understanding the Dynamics of New Normal for Supply Chains – Post COVID Opportunities and Challenges, published by Springer, explores the “new normal” of the business supply chain. The didactic approach informs global enterprises on how to deal with the most significant issues in the current supply chain management.

Through a series of informative essays, the book provides an in-depth analysis of post-COVID opportunities and challenges. The book acts as an initiative for readers to understand the risks, opportunities and concerns resulting from the pandemic situation and is a key driver for business management among industry professionals and enterprises.

Understanding the Dynamics of New Normal for Supply Chains - Post COVID Opportunities and Challenges
Cover of Understanding the Dynamics of New Normal for Supply Chains

Readers will learn new insights and procedures to better manage multitier supply chains, predictability, and estimation of binding capacity. Understanding the Dynamics of New Normal for Supply Chains – Post COVID Opportunities and Challenges details modelling and technology-based customer demand and response management solutions. New techniques, methods and perspectives dealing with the estimation, acceleration or deceleration, and flexibility of logistics capacity are particularly emphasized throughout the manuscript. Real-world cases dealing with various aspects of the new normal for supply chains are analyzed.

The book is useful for industry professionals and enterprise firms in business management to effectively understand risks, opportunities and the pandemic situation.

Qudrat-Ullah is a professor of decision sciences at York University. Understanding the Dynamics of New Normal for Supply Chains – Post COVID Opportunities and Challenges is part of the Springer Complexity Series.

York University celebrates international education with month of activities

Earth at night was holding in human hands. Earth day. Energy saving concept, Elements of this image furnished by NASA

While most post-secondary institutions across Canada mark International Education Week (IEW) during the third week of November, York University celebrated over the entire month of November.

Vinitha Gengatharan
Vinitha Gengatharan

“International Education Week is an opportunity to celebrate the benefits of international education and cultural and academic exchange worldwide,” said Vinitha Gengatharan, assistant vice-president, global engagement and partnerships, York International.

“More than ever, we need to learn from, share with and understand and dialogue across cultures and differences and address global challenges,” she said. “The month-long events and activities at York serve to remind our community of the importance of, and to share with, the York community, particularly our students, the many opportunities to broaden their perspectives and how the University continues to support a key pillar of the University Academic Plan: advancing global engagement.” 

The celebrations began with York International’s annual Global Learning Fair on Nov. 2. York International exchange students, global partners Brunel University London, U.K., and the Obama Institute at Johannes Gutenberg-Universität in Mainz, Germany, as well representatives from the Faculties of Science and Liberal Arts & Professional Studies (LA&PS), joined forces to spread the word about the various study and work abroad opportunities available to students. The in-person fair was followed by two virtual sessions featuring representatives from York’s global partners in more than 20 countries worldwide. The Global Learning team is now accepting applications for the 2023-24 academic year abroad.

The Glendon and Keele campuses were buzzing on Nov. 5 (Glendon) and Nov. 19 (Keele) with prospective students and their parents who were interested in learning more about York University and all it has to offer. York International took part, sharing information about study and work abroad opportunities, virtual projects such as the SDGs in Action and the York International funding available to support global learning and global engagement programs. Since York International’s work is supported by the student community, the team also discussed the variety of volunteer and work-study roles available to York students to assist in supporting new and current international students who study here.

York International’s student and scholar services team supports international student retention and success by offering non-academic programs and services on campus. The team’s November calendar offered a variety of workshops to support students with their study permit questions and pathways to permanent residency. The team also hosted a Q-and-A with Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada representatives and provided virtual and in-person support to Iranian students experiencing ongoing hardship. The team launched its International Student Experience newsletter to pan-University partners to better streamline communication about programs, supports and services for the University’s international students, and to further educate partners on the international student experience.

International Education Week coincided with the Canadian Bureau of International Education (CBIE) annual conference in Toronto this year. Representatives from the Faculties of Science, LA&PS and York International attended the conference to learn about best practices and share knowledge and expertise. The delegation also accepted, on behalf of York University, the CBIE Panorama Award for Globally Networked Learning, demonstrating its outstanding achievement in championing innovative and inclusive international education programming that engages Faculties, students and global partners.  

The York International team accepting the Canadian Bureau of International Education award
The York International team accepting the Canadian Bureau of International Education award

York University hosted the second Sustainable and Inclusive Internationalization Virtual Conference on Nov. 17. This year’s discussions were guided by three themes: Connecting the Local and Global Classrooms; Sustainable and Inclusive Global Learning; and Local and Global Community Engagement, with Gender, Education for Sustainable Development and Inclusivity. There were more than 450 speakers and participants from 59 countries.

Throughout the month, York International welcomed global partners to campus to discuss future collaborations and exchanges. From Nov. 6 to 12, colleagues from the Universidad del Magdalena, Colombia met with professors and students. (The Universidad del Magdalena is a CALAREO partner, and through this consortium, there is funding available for students participating in Faculty-led programs and research internships at the institution.)

On Nov. 21 and 22, York’s Ontario Universities International (OUI) representative, Agnes Poleszczuk, and York International hosted the coordinator of the Rhône-Alpes, France (ORA) program based in Lyon, France. They engaged with faculty, staff and students in discussions about the funding that is available for exchanges, summer research and language programs in France. On Nov. 21, a gift agreement supporting Philippine Studies at York University was signed led by the Philippine Studies Group at York Centre for Asian Research and with the support three York Faculties.

To find ways to continue exploring the complex issues that have been the subject matter of the diverse courses offered by the Las Nubes EcoCampus in Costa Rica, Ana Maria Martinez, the EcoCampus associate director, with colleagues from the Faculties of Environmental and Urban Change and Health, created the Grounded Project.  On Nov. 23, the Grounded Project hosted the premiere of their third documentary, We Walk the Earth. The documentary explores Indigenous persistence in their homelands after more than 500 years of colonialism. It recounts struggles in Costa Rica for Indigenous rights to land, to self-governance and autonomy. Following the screening, the audience enjoyed a panel discussion featuring Gilbert González Maroto, Indigenous Elder and executive director of the Centre for Indigenous Development (CEDIN, a Costa Rican NGO), Assistant Professor José Miguel Gonzalez Pérez (LA&PS), Faculty of Environmental & Urban Change (EUC) Assistant Professor Martha Stiegman, Felipe Montoya, EUC professor and Chair of Neotropical Conservation and the director of the Las Nubes Project.

Visit the York International website to learn more about international education opportunities.

Holiday closure information for the community

York University in the Winter. Keele campus scene shows a building and pine boughs.

La version française suit la version anglaise. 

Dear York community,

As the holiday season approaches, I want to remind you of the extended University holiday closure period. York’s campuses will be closed as of Friday, Dec. 23, 2022, through to Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2023, and will re-open on Wednesday Jan. 4, 2023.  Please note that there are a few exceptions to the re-opening date for some Faculties and units, which can be found here.

We would also like to take this opportunity to extend our sincerest gratitude to all of our colleagues who are required to work or provide instruction over the holiday period.

Staff who require building access during the closure period should notify their respective managers, deans, ADRs, AVPs, SEOs, EOs or designates. For those who require holiday access and who currently do not have electronic or key access to their building please make individual building access arrangements through your managers, deans, ADRs, AVPs, SEOs, EOs or designates.

How to obtain keys and access cards

  • As most of the buildings at the University have been converted to YU card access, please make every effort to obtain a current YU card prior to the holidays. Please provide the information on the YU card (name, York ID # and card number) to your managers, deans, ADRs, AVPs, SEOs, EOs or designates.
  • Keys or access cards can be signed out through the Security Control Centre located at the northeast corner of the William Small Building on Keele Campus or from the Security Office located in the Greenhouse Building on Glendon Campus.
  • It is important to note that key or access cards provided by the Security Control Centre during this time are used for building access only; you must also have your office key or office access card with you to gain full access to your area.
  • All persons signing out keys or access cards will be required to submit an access request by Friday, Dec. 16, to your deans, ADRs, AVPs, SEOs, EOs or designates, who will then send requests to doorcard@yorku.ca.
  • You must show photo identification when collecting keys or access cards.

If you are coming on campus over the holiday closure period, please adhere to all current health and safety protocols that can be found at Better Together (yorku.ca). These measures are important to our ongoing commitment to the heath and safety of our community.

If you are working alone during the holiday closure, please be aware of the Why Work Alone Program provided by the Community Safety Department. You can request that Security Services check in on you periodically while you are on campus.

Thank you for your continued support and we wish you all a safe and happy holiday.

Sincerely,

Carol McAulay
Vice-President, Finance and Administration

Information au sujet de la fermeture pour les fêtes

Chers membres de la communauté de York,

À l’approche de la saison des fêtes, je tiens à vous rappeler la fermeture prolongée de l’Université. Les campus de York seront fermés du vendredi 23 décembre 2022 au mardi 3 janvier 2023 inclus; ils rouvriront le mercredi 4 janvier 2023.  Veuillez noter qu’il y a quelques exceptions à la date de réouverture de certaines facultés et unités, que vous pouvez consulter ici.

Nous profitons également de cette occasion pour exprimer notre plus sincère gratitude à tous nos collègues qui doivent travailler ou donner des cours pendant la période des fêtes.

Les membres du personnel qui ont besoin d’accéder aux bâtiments pendant la période de fermeture doivent en informer leurs gestionnaires, doyens/doyennes, doyens associés/doyennes associées de la recherche (ADR), VPA, agents/agentes de la haute direction (SEO), directrices générales/directeurs généraux (EO) ou personnes désignées. Les personnes qui ont besoin d’un accès pendant les vacances et qui ne disposent pas actuellement d’un accès électronique ou d’un accès par clé à leur bâtiment doivent prendre des dispositions pour un accès individuel au bâtiment par l’intermédiaire de leurs gestionnaires, doyens/doyennes, ADR, VPA, SEO, EO ou personnes désignées.

Comment obtenir les clés et les cartes d’accès

  • Comme la plupart des bâtiments de l’Université ont été convertis à l’accès par carte YU, veuillez faire tout votre possible pour obtenir une carte YU valide avant les fêtes. Veuillez fournir les informations figurant sur la carte YU (nom, numéro d’identification York et numéro de carte) à vos gestionnaires, doyens et doyennes, ADR, AVP, SEO, EO ou personnes désignées.
  • Vous pouvez récupérer les clés ou les cartes d’accès au Centre de contrôle de la sécurité situé à l’angle nord-est du bâtiment William Small sur le campus Keele ou au Bureau des Services de sécurité situé dans la Serre sur le campus Glendon.
  • Il est important de noter que les clés ou les cartes d’accès fournies par le Centre de contrôle de la sécurité pendant cette période doivent être utilisées pour l’accès au bâtiment uniquement; vous devez aussi avoir la clé ou la carte d’accès de votre bureau pour accéder à votre zone.
  • Toutes les personnes récupérant des clés ou des cartes d’accès devront soumettre une demande d’accès d’ici le vendredi 16 décembre à leurs gestionnaires, doyens/doyennes, ADR, AVP, SEO, EO ou personnes désignées qui enverront ensuite les demandes à doorcard@yorku.ca.
  • Vous devrez présenter une pièce d’identité avec photo lorsque vous prendrez possession des clés ou des cartes d’accès.

Si vous venez sur le campus pendant la période de fermeture des fêtes, veuillez respecter tous les protocoles de santé et de sécurité en vigueur affichés sur le site Mieux ensemble (yorku.ca). Ces mesures font partie intégrante de notre engagement envers la santé et la sécurité des membres de notre communauté.

Si vous travaillez solo pendant la fermeture des fêtes, veuillez prendre connaissance du programme Pourquoi travailler seul? offert par le Département de la sécurité communautaire. Vous pouvez demander aux Services de sécurité de prendre périodiquement de vos nouvelles pendant que vous êtes sur les campus.

Je vous remercie pour votre soutien continu et je vous souhaite de bonnes fêtes en toute sécurité.

Sincères salutations,

Carol McAulay
Vice-présidente des finances et de l’administration

Welcome to the December issue of ‘ASPIRE’

Header banner for ASPIRE

“ASPIRE” is a special edition of YFile publishing on select Fridays during the academic year. It showcases research and innovation at York University. “ASPIRE” offers compelling and accessible stories about the world-leading and policy-relevant work of changemakers in all Faculties and professional schools across York and encompasses both discovery and applied research. “ASPIRE” replaces the previous special issue “Brainstorm.”

In this issue

The engine behind human gut microbiome analysis and data science
As his career unfolds, biostatistician Kevin McGregor is becoming very familiar with the human gut microbiome. His work is particularly relevant given the human biome is a community of microorganisms that inhabit our bodies and appears to be linked to numerous health concerns, both physical and mental.

Black scholars form new interdisciplinary research cluster
A group of professors affiliated in various ways with York University’s African Studies Program join forces to create a unique, interdisciplinary research cluster focusing on adaptive knowledge, response, recovery and resilience in transnational Black communities.

Career change bears fruit for artist/curator
If School of the Arts, Media, Performance & Design Assistant Professor Marissa Largo needs confirmation that becoming an academic was a wise career move, she can simply look at the two awards she won in November at the 2022 Galeries Ontario/Ontario Galleries Awards gala.

Cinema studies professor practises what he preaches
School of the Arts, Media, Performance & Design Assistant Professor Moussa Djigo believes that if he is going to teach production, he should understand the DNA of filmmaking.

Career change bears fruit for artist/curator

Pile of sharp coloured drawing pencils on table. Rainbow colors - red, yellow, blue, green, purple.

By Elaine Smith

If Marissa Largo needs confirmation that becoming an academic was a wise career move, she can simply look at the two awards she won in November at the 2022 Galeries Ontario/Ontario Galleries Awards gala, celebrating the outstanding achievement, artistic merit and excellence of arts institutions and professionals in the public gallery sector.

After only one year at York, where she is an assistant professor of creative technologies in the School of Arts, Media, Performance & Design, Largo won the Exhibition Design and Installation (Budget over $20,000) award for her curatorial project at the Varley Art Gallery of Markham, Elusive Desires: Ness Lee + Florence Yee. Largo also took home the award for Curatorial Writing, Text Between 2,000 and 5,000 Words, for her essay about the show, “Elusive Desires: Queer Feminist Asian Diaspora and Suburban Possibilities.” She was also a finalist for Best Exhibition, Budget over $20,000 (Thematic).

director-curator Marissa Largo
Marissa Largo

“It is truly an honour to be recognized by my peers in public art galleries,” Largo remarks. “It is equally wonderful to do this critical curatorial work and to have it widely appreciated.

“Curatorial work is a form of research and York University has a capacious understanding of what knowledge production can be.”

Largo, an alumna of York’s undergraduate Visual Arts and Education programs, began her career as a secondary school art teacher over a decade ago. As one of the few teachers of Filipino descent in a school board with a large Filipino population, Largo had many questions about lack of representation in certain fields such as education and art. This prompted Largo to learn more about social justice, the topic she pursued for her PhD at the University of Toronto. She was considering whether to remain in the secondary school system when the pandemic hit.

“I thought it might be time to pivot in order to mentor other racialized leaders to become professors, artists, educators and curators so they may assert their presence in Canada,” she says. “Being at York University allows me to effect change on a grander scale.”

Prior to joining York University, Largo was an assistant professor at NSCAD University and a sessional instructor at OCAD University.

Largo’s research, her curatorial work and her art criticism focus largely on the Asian diaspora in Canada and its intersections with race, gender and settler colonialism. Her PhD thesis forms the basis for a forthcoming book Unsettling Imaginaries: Filipinx Contemporary Artists in Canada (University of Washington Press) examines the art and oral histories of four Filipinx artists who are asserting their presence in Canada and pushing back against colonialism with their work.

“The Filipinx artists of my study offer radically different alternatives to national belonging,” Largo says.

She appreciated the juxtaposition of curating a show of Asian diasporic artists in a gallery named for Frederick Varley, a member of the Group of Seven.

“Unionville, where the Varley is situated, celebrates its settler heritage through its preserved Victorian style architecture,” Largo says. “Differences of race, class, and gender are obscured to promote a quaint, picture-perfect milieu. The artists of Elusive Desires not only point to the omissions in the Canadian cultural archive, but they create a space for belonging in this context.”

From left: Pictured at the 2022 GOG Awards are Marissa Largo, Anik Glaude (curator of the Varley); artists Lan Yee and Ness Lee; Director of the Varley Niamh O'Laoghaire and artist Annie Wong
From left: Pictured at the 2022 GOG Awards are Marissa Largo, Anik Glaude (curator of the Varley); artists Lan Yee and Ness Lee; Director of the Varley Niamh O’Laoghaire and artist Annie Wong

Meanwhile, Largo is successfully carving out her own space for belonging at York. This past summer, she curated an exhibition titled X Marks the Spot: Filipinx Futurities at the Gales Gallery on the Keele Campus. She paired three established Filipinx artists with three emerging Filipinx artists, including two York students.

“Their work connected and diverged in compelling ways, which guided my curation,” Largo says. “These partnerships also acted as a method of mentorship. I am thrilled to mentor the next generation of Asian diasporic scholars and artists, so our knowledges, cultures, and histories may be recognized for their importance and vitality.”

Cinema studies professor practises what he preaches

Professor Djigo featured image for YFile story

By Elaine Smith

Assistant Professor Moussa Djigo believes that if he is going to teach production, he should understand the DNA of filmmaking.

Although Djigo has a scholarly book in the works, this assistant professor of film production in the School of Arts, Media, Performance & Design is focusing most of his creative energies on making his own films.

“My research is doing what I teach,” he says.

Djigo has written, directed and produced two feature-length fiction films to date: Obamas (2015) and Rosalie (2018). They have won 20 awards on the film festival circuit between them, screened at venues worldwide and aired on TFO (a Canadian French language educational television channel).

Moussa Djigo

“I usually take about three years to complete a feature film from the time we begin shooting,” he notes.

Obamas, written shortly after Djigo moved to Montreal from France, is his response to a debate taking place about Quebec cinema at the time about whether films actually reflected life in Montreal. He addressed the primacy of race in judging people by creating two main characters who are each played by three actors of different backgrounds and ethnic groups.

“It’s a philosophical take on identity,” says Djigo. “It shows how people stick to rigid ideas that aren’t so true; we tend to just repeat what we have been told about ourselves without questioning the validity of it.

“People [in the film] may be judged based on how they appear on the outside, even though their character is the same. It could be anyone meeting anyone. Faces don’t tell anything about territory any more. We are a country made predominantly of immigrants and the idea about where you are from becomes more and more complicated.”

Rosalie takes a poke at the romantic comedy genre by doing an autopsy of a failed relationship instead of promising a successful one.

“Usually, in a romantic comedy, the woman gets a man, has kids and lives happily ever after,” Djigo says. “You create something that doesn’t exist in real life to make people dream. In Rosalie, the dream is a thing of the past while the present is a nightmare.

“In an era where personal freedom is conquered, many seem not to be happy in their love life; freedom doesn’t seem to solve things for us. Maybe love has a lifespan if you disregard the old rules. How depressing.”

Djigo has a third film in the works, one that he hopes to have ready in the spring for the upcoming festival season. It’s his most personal film yet, a meditation on fatherhood that is a tribute to his own father who passed away last year. Djigo and friend and colleague York AMPD Assistant Professor of film, Manfred Becker, who acted as his cinematographer, made a trip this summer to the village in Senegal where he grew up and shot the film on site.

“It’s about every father who wants to be there for his children,” Djigo says. “I wanted to take my art back to the village where I grew up, and it was very nice to involve people there.”

The film features a couple of actors with theatre experience, but most of the participants are non-professional locals (farmers, fishermen or shepherds), including his mother.

“I think I’ll do that again,” Djigo says. “Untrained actors don’t overthink their performances; they have nothing at stake. They are just there to have fun.

“The sky is the limit if you create trust with your cast and, as director, establish a family-like relationship. It’s the vibe I try to create. I tell them: ‘Go ahead and look extremely silly if you want’; it takes away the pressure. If they’re not thinking about you judging them and they know they’re allowed to fail, then they succeed.

“It will probably be my best film yet. But that’s what I say after every shoot.”