In pictures: Spring Convocation celebrates Class of 2024
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Spring Convocation for York University’s Class of 2024 ran from June 7 to 21, and featured ceremonies at both the Keele and Glendon campuses.
This year’s Spring Convocation began on June 7 with a ceremony at York University’s Glendon Campus, and continued with a dozen more in the following weeks at the Keele Campus. More than 7,000 graduands received their degrees during ceremonies overseen by the 14th chancellor of York University, Kathleen Taylor.
View photos from the Class of 2024 ceremonies below:
York U student research reveals importance of native shrubs to wildlife
Armed with high-resolution satellite images and citizen science data sourced from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) – an international, open-access network and data infrastructure funded by the world’s governments – the researchers set out to uncover hidden patterns in these rugged landscapes.
The team’s findings showed that areas with higher shrub density had significantly more abundant, rich, and diverse reptile and amphibian communities, proving the shrubs are indispensable for the creatures’ survival by creating microhabitats that offer cooler temperatures and crucial hiding spots.
Mojave Desert sidewinder (venomous) with foundational shrub Larrea tridentata in the background.
“These shrubs are more than just plants; they are lifelines,” explains Owen. “In the central drylands of California, they provide essential shelter, food, and protection for a variety of reptile and amphibian species, helping them survive the extreme conditions.”
But the study didn’t stop at counting reptiles and amphibians. Owen’s team looked at different levels of aridity to see if the relationship held up. “It was fascinating to see that regardless of how dry the area was, the presence of these shrubs consistently boosted the diversity and abundance of the local wildlife,” he says. “It really underscores their importance in these arid ecosystems.”
Owen believes the implications of this research are profound, offering valuable insights for conservationists and land managers alike. “By maintaining and promoting native shrub species, we can support biodiversity, even in the face of climate change,” he says.
As the natural world continues to suffer the consequences of global warming, Owen hopes that research like his will serve as a reminder that even small interventions – like protecting existing shrubs or planting new ones – can have significant positive impacts on the health and diversity of the Earth’s ecosystems.
Three York U graduate students earn Governor General’s Gold Medals
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Three York University graduates received this year’s Governor General’s Gold Medals, which recognize the outstanding scholastic achievements of graduate students in Canada. The 2024 recipients are Jennifer Porat, Carly Goodman and Alison Humphrey.
The Governor General’s Academic Medals are considered the highest honour earned by exemplary Canadian scholars throughout every level of academia. This year’s awardees offered words of gratitude to their peers and mentors, and expressed what the medals mean to them, ahead of their Spring Convocation ceremonies.
Jennifer Porat
Jennifer Porat
Porat earned a PhD in biology following the completion of her bachelor of science degree at York University. Both degrees were pursued under the mentorship of Professor Mark Bayfield in the Department of Biology. Her research focused uncovering novel functions for RNA-modifying enzymes and understanding the mechanisms by which they promote RNA function and stability to carry out different cellular processes.
Porat credits Bayfield and his support for her decision to pursue graduate studies at York U and her positive experiences at the University. She also expresses gratitude to the Faculty of Graduate Studies – notably, its funding of conference travel that she urges other students to take advantage of.
“I’m incredibly grateful to be receiving this honour,” says Porat. “I’ve been fortunate enough to conduct research that I am passionate about, so it is very gratifying to learn that other people are excited about my work as well.”
Porat will continue that work as a postdoctoral researcher at Harvard University, still focused on RNA biology, in hopes of one day running her own lab.
Carly Goodman
Carly Goodman
Goodman earned her master’s degree in clinical developmental psychology within the neuropsychology stream. Her work has focused on conducting a systematic review and meta-analysis on the sex-specific impact of pre- and post-natal exposure to chemicals on children’s intelligence. Its aim is to provide new insights into prevention strategies and identifying high-risk groups.
Goodman chose to pursue graduate studies at York University because of its unique accreditation in clinical neuropsychology, as well as the opportunity to work under Professor Christine Till.
“Her commitment to fostering innovative research and interdisciplinary collaborations has provided me with invaluable learning experiences and opportunities,” Goodman says.
The graduand is grateful for the training in clinical practice, advanced statistics, and the social and biological determinants of health she has received at York U, which contributed to her work now being recognized.
“I am deeply honoured to receive the Governor General’s Gold Medal for the work I completed during my master’s degree,” Goodman says.
The next step of her journey will see her remain at York University as a PhD student, once more under Till’s supervision, with doctoral research that will further investigate the impact of chemicals on children’s neurodevelopment and focus on moderating variables that influence risk and resilience.
Alison Humphrey
Alison Humphrey
Humphrey earned her PhD in cinema and media studies, and pursued work with a focus on misinformation and how it draws from storytelling to engineer fear and amplify anger.
She developed a new form of participatory storytelling called “citizen science fiction,” notably through Shadowpox, a mixed-reality storyworld imagining immunization through a superhero metaphor. The project aimed to intervene in the challenge of vaccine hesitancy by helping people explore what makes scientific evidence convincing, what makes a story compelling and how trust can be built or busted to affect people’s actions.
“Receiving the Governor General’s Gold Medal confirms for me that artistic production can contribute as meaningfully to the development of knowledge as the extraordinary doctoral work being done by my peers,” says Humphrey.
Moving forward, Humphrey is pursuing a postdoctoral fellowship at the Global Strategy Lab, where she and her doctoral supervisor Professor Caitlin Fisher will invent mixed-reality interventions against antimicrobial resistance for the initiative “Catalyzing Collective Action at the Intersection of Global Health and the Arts.”
She is also looking to build on work like Shadowpox with an upcoming project called The Undergrid, which will extend the citizen science fiction methodology into climate action.
About the awards
Pierre Trudeau, Tommy Douglas, Kim Campbell, Robert Bourassa, Robert Stanfield and Gabrielle Roy are just some of the more than 50,000 people who have received a Governor General’s Academic Medal as the start of a life of accomplishment.
Today, the Governor General’s Academic Medals are awarded at four distinct levels: Bronze at the secondary school level; Collegiate Bronze at the post-secondary, diploma level; Silver at the undergraduate level; and Gold at the graduate level. Medals are presented on behalf of the Governor General by participating educational institutions, along with personalized certificates signed by the Governor General. There is no monetary award associated with the medal.
Four PhD students awarded Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships
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Four PhD students from York University are recipients of this year’s prestigious Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships. The award, presented by the Government of Canada, supports first-rate doctoral students who undertake graduate studies in the fields of social sciences and humanities, natural sciences and/or engineering, and health. The aim of the program is to attract and retain world-class doctoral students by supporting those who demonstrate both leadership skills and a high standard of scholarly achievement in graduate studies.
Candidates are evaluated based on three equally weighted selection criteria: academic excellence, research potential and leadership. All four York University recipients will be awarded $50,000 annually for up to three years to support their research projects.
Through their research projects, this year’s recipients have proposed innovative solutions to challenging problems, which can lead to positive change locally, globally and beyond.
Grace Bischof, physics and astronomy
Grace Bischof
Bischof’s research project, titled “Characterizing Inter-Crater Dust Dynamics in Gale Crater, Mars in Preparation of Human Exploration,” looks at the importance of understanding the dust cycle on Mars as crucial for the future of human-led missions, where dust storms pose a distinct threat to humans on the Martian surface. The opacity of dust in the Martian atmosphere has been studied for several years using images taken in Gale crater by the Curiosity rover; however, these images are severely limited in time and space. Bischof’s work uses a newly designed Curiosity rover observation that captures a larger area of the crater and can be employed throughout a Martian day.
“Capturing these data throughout dust storms will give additional insight into the dust lifting and deposition occurring, shining light onto these elusive storms,” says Bischof. “This work will help us to understand how dust transports in the atmosphere both spatially and temporally, allowing us to better predict atmospheric phenomena and ensure human-led missions are accomplished safely.”
Roberta da Silva Medina, socio-legal studies
Roberta da Silva Medina
Da Silva Medina’s research project, titled “Vertical Surveillance: Urban Police Use of Drone Technology in Brazil and Canada,” delves into police surveillance practices in urban settings, focusing on Greater São Paulo in Brazil and the Greater Toronto Area in Canada. Despite the differences in police cultures and institutional landscapes, both regions have integrated military-originated drone technology for urban surveillance. In Brazil, where police forces are militarized, and in Canada, where they are not, this technology has found its place in law enforcement practices.
“I aim to explore the rationale and processes behind this adoption, drawing upon surveillance studies, Brazilian critical theory and critical race theory,” says da Silva Medina. “My research methods involve collecting data, participatory observation police-surveillance industry events, and engaging with police departments and civil liberties advocates in both regions through interviews.”
Joshua Lamers, law
Joshua Lamers
Lamers (he/they) is a Black, queer, gender non-conforming, disabled, mad, child welfare survivor and family policing abolitionist. Lamers is a poet, dancer, writer, and educator in the areas of law and social work, centring the intersections of Blackness, disability and madness, child welfare survivorship, queerness and transness.
Their doctoral autoethnographic research, titled “The Golden Ticket? Black Child Welfare Survivors, Racial Displacement Through Adoption & the End of Family Policing Systems,” focuses on the question of whether the experiences and outcomes of the legal adoption of Black children into white families reflect the paramount purpose of the Child, Youth and Family Services Act, 2017, with respect to promoting child’s the best interests, protection and well-being.
“It is my hope that with this research we can collectively trouble the notion that the legal adoption of Black children into white families is necessarily a form of exit from the violences of state child protection systems and a ‘golden-ticket’ toward protection and the nurturance of well-being,” says Lamers.
Romeo Joe Quintero, geography
Romeo Joe Quintero
Quintero’s doctoral project, titled “Building Liveable Futures in Camps: Everyday Placemaking Practices of Internally Displaced Women in the Southern Philippines,” will examine the experiences of those living in resettlement and transitory sites for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the areas of the southern Philippines affected by armed conflicts. He will travel to the southern Philippines in the summer of this year to conduct 12 months of ethnographic research to understand how IDPs construct their livelihoods, homes and sense of belonging through collective action.
“My work will draw critical connections with broader ideas of carceral and abolition geographies to offer capacious understanding of resettlement sites as more than just spaces of confinement and control but also places of rebuilding and reimagining,” says Quintero.
Three York University scholars named Banting Postdoctoral Fellows
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York University scholars Saba Asaad, Stephen Melly and Lynn Yu Ling Ng have been named among this year’s recipients of the prestigious Banting Postdoctoral Fellowship awarded by the Government of Canada.
The fellowship program aims to attract and retain top-tier postdoctoral talent, develop their leadership potential and position them for success as research leaders of tomorrow. Valued at $70,000 per year for two years, it allows ambitious scholars to conduct their research and devote substantial time to work without the financial pressures that might typically arise.
The successful applicants were reviewed against three equally weighted selection criteria: research excellence and leadership in the research domain; quality of the proposed research program; and institutional commitment and demonstrated synergy between the applicant and institutional strategic priorities.
Below are York University’s three Banting Postdoctoral Fellows for 2023-24 and their associated projects.
Saba Asaad, Department of Electrical Engineering & Computer Science, Lassonde School of Engineering
Saba Asaad
Asaad’s research project, titled “Over-the-Air Federated Learning via Benchmark Wireless Network,” develops algorithmic and analytic frameworks to address essential issues arising in the implementation of federated learning (FL) – a sub-field of machine learning that relies on decentralized data – in practical wireless networks. Asaad’s project proposes an alternative method called over-the-air FL which can address those challenges.
“Federated learning was first designed for ideal communication networks,” explains Asaad. “However, in realistic edge-learning scenarios, the edge devices [which provide a connection between different networks], connected to the parameter server via wireless links, face several challenges due to uncertain wireless conditions and limited resources.”
Asaad’s approach can be leveraged in the development of a large variety of services that deal with the concept of distributed learning.
Stephen Melly, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Lassonde School of Engineering
Stephen Melly
Melly’s proposed research, titled “Development of the Computational Constitutive Model for Super-soft 4D Bioprinted Materials,” aims to formulate computational models that capture the complex mechanical characteristics of super-soft materials. This research has the potential to enhance the understanding of super-soft materials in 4D bioprinting – which has emerged as a useful tool for biomedical applications such as tissue regeneration – facilitating advancements in the field and the development of reliable and customized artificial tissues that match the specific needs of individual patients.
“Successful design and fabrication of engineered tissues necessitate a comprehensive grasp of the mechanical characteristics of super-soft materials,” says Melly. “This guarantees the efficacy of biomedical applications, as differences in mechanical properties between the engineered tissues and the surrounding biological tissues may result in complications like rejection.”
This cutting-edge project helps to meet the growing demand for accurate computational models that describe the complex mechanical behaviours of super-soft tissues.
Lynn Yu Ling Ng, Department of Politics, Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies
Lynn Yu Ling Ng
Ng’s project, titled “Care for All is Care that Pulls Us Through,” employs an advanced critical intersectional approach to analyze care work and the presence of distinct forms of structural inequality (e.g. age, race, gender, class, nationality) that influence migrant care workers (MCWs) and their capacity to care for elderly persons. The project’s guiding questions are: how do MCWs make sense of caring for the elderly and for themselves; how do they strive to protect these visions of care; and how can these imaginaries of care be accounted for and integrated into care and labour migration policy?
“Eldercare is rarely framed from the perspective of MCWs beyond the common identity debates of race, gender and class,” says Ng. “Neither has much attention been given to their rich migratory experiences and expert knowledge of care work.”
The results of this project are expected to provide a valuable source of information for policy development in the field of eldercare.
Grad student research recognized with thesis, dissertation prizes
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York University’s Faculty of Graduate Studies (FGS) has awarded six graduands with 2024 Thesis and Dissertation Prizes for their outstanding contributions to the local and global community. The prizes, valued at $2,000 for doctoral dissertations and $1,000 for master’s theses, are given out every spring to honour theses defended in the previous calendar year. The award-winning work among the early-career scholars ranged from high-risk data collection to an award-winning film.
Doctoral Dissertation Prizes
Alison Humphrey (PhD, cinema and media studies) for “The Shadowpox Storyworld as Citizen Science Fiction: Building Co-Immunity through Participatory Mixed-Reality Storytelling”
Alison Humphrey
Humphrey’s dissertation involves a mixed-reality storyworld – a fully immersive, interactive storytelling experience – co-created with young people on three continents, imagining immunization through a superhero metaphor.
The research-creation dissertation recounts the design and testing of three experiments in a single science fiction storyworld, titled “Shadowpox.” Humphrey’s first experiment was a full-body video game exhibited at the UNAIDS 70th World Health Assembly in Geneva, Switzerland, and at Galleri KiT in Trondheim, Norway. The second was a networked narrative – a story created by a network of interconnected authors – which was workshopped and presented at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London and with the Debajehmujig Storytellers, a multidisciplinary arts organization in Wiikwemkoong Unceded Reserve in northern Ontario. The third component, an online video game necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns, was available worldwide, and was included in the United Nations COVID-19 Response Creative Content Hub in 2020.
The examining committee praised the project and described it as “careful theory-building through sound methodological praxis” and “a new standard for research-creation dissertations in Canada.”
Inbar Peled (PhD, law) for “Professionalizing Discrimination: Legal Actors and the Struggle Against Racialized Policing in Multicultural Societies”
Inbar Peled
Through her project, Peled examines the role of lawyers in perpetuating racialized police violence in multicultural societies. While much of the work on racialized police killing and police violence focuses on the police themselves, the role of lawyers in enabling these incidents is often ignored. To unpack the ways lawyers and judges support, resist and confront racism in their practices, Peled interviewed prosecutors, defense lawyers and judges in Israel. Her groundbreaking work argues that the solution to the problem of racialized policing will have to include transformation within the legal profession.
Her defense committee unanimously commended the work, saying, “the real genius of Peled’s project is that it merges theories of identity (self and others) with professionalized role competence. This combination demonstrates not just that lawyers are – like all people – influenced by race and racism in their decision making but also that legal norms and rules also play a role in the failure to address racialized police violence.”
Jennifer Porat (PhD, biology) for “RNA methyltransferases Influence Noncoding RNA Biogenesis and Function Through Catalytic-Independent Activities”
Jennifer Porat
Porat’s innovative study encompasses various aspects of ribonucleic acid (RNA) biology – a molecule essential for most biological functions – while focusing on the lesser-studied functions of a set of eukaryotic RNA modification enzymes. The dissertation provides evidence supporting the multifaceted nature of these enzymes and underscores their importance in many fundamental biological processes. The pinnacle recognition of Porat’s scholarly excellence is exemplified by her recent Scaringe Award that acknowledges outstanding achievement of young scientists engaged in RNA research presented by the RNA Society, an international scientific society with more than 1,800 members dedicated to fostering research and education in the field of RNA science.
The examination committee Chair, Professor Emanuel Rosonina, stated that Porat’s work “fundamentally changes how we think about RNA-modifying enzymes.” He continued, “It is not common that a student forges new ground and concepts like this. Hers is among the most impressive PhD theses and defenses that I have seen at York and beyond.”
Master’s Thesis Prizes
Pooya Badkoobeh (master’s, film) for “Based on a True Story”
Pooya Badkoobeh
Badkoobeh’s thesis film, Inn, is a 20-minute minimalist short film set in Tehran, Iran, inspired by the real-life story of an old couple who planned to commit suicide together. The film’s central theme revolves around the core meaning of life in the face of planned and seemingly certain death. Employing minimalist storytelling and a hybrid of fiction and documentary style, the film uses long takes and distant camera placements for a distinctive effect. The script features very little dialogue and long silences, illustrating the characters’ inner lives and allowing the viewer to fill in their background. The same year of his defense, Badkoobeh’s thesis film was named North America’s Best Film by CILECT, the International Association of Film & Television Schools.
“His film embraces the core value of what it means to be human in the cinematic form,” shared Manfred Becker, Pooya’s supervisor. “It is an exceptionally sensitive and disciplined work of art, executed in a minimalist style, which matches the complexity of its subject matter.”
Nina Garrett (master’s, biology) for “Measuring neotropical bat diversity using airborne eDNA”
Nina Garrett
Garrett’s thesis develops the novel technique of capturing airborne environmental DNA (eDNA) for the detection of tropical bat species. Garrett successfully demonstrates that airborne eDNA can accurately characterize a mixed-species community with varying abundances and that the type of sampler does not impact DNA concentration or read count. This study was extremely high-risk science because no one had ever attempted this type of work under field conditions with wild animals. At the time she started, there were only three published scientific works in existence demonstrating that airborne eDNA collection was even possible and all had been conducted under extremely controlled and artificial conditions (i.e. in a zoo).
Garrett’s two data chapters were published in PeerJ and Environmental DNA journals. Additionally, she has been acknowledged for her advanced academic and research leadership, having received prestigious awards for her master’s studies, including the Natural Sciences & Engineering Research Council of Canada’s master’s graduate scholarship and recognitions for her research presentations at provincial and national conferences.
Haider Shoaib (master’s, electrical engineering and computer science) for “Performance Modeling and Optimization of Connected and Autonomous Vehicles With Reliable Wireless Connectivity”
Haider Shoaib
Shoaib’s cutting-edge project tackles vehicular network connectivity challenges, which are expected to be of increasing concern with the rise of electric vehicles. The project explores the fundamental question of how to maximize vehicle traffic flow while maintaining a minimum network connectivity requirement. Specifically, Shoaib’s thesis develops innovative network performance models for 5G- and 6G-enabled vehicle communications that consider critical parameters such as traffic flow, wireless channel impediments and network density.
This type of optimization has not been considered to date in either the telecommunications or transportation domains, and it includes several important constraints to ensure quality of service and to avoid collisions.
Additionalprize
In addition to the above Thesis and Dissertation Prizes, FGS nominated Humphrey and Porat for a dissertation prize presented by the Canadian Association for Graduate Studies (CAGS). The CAGS-ProQuest Distinguished Dissertation Award recognizes Canadian doctoral dissertations that make significant and original contributions to their academic field. Winners receive a $1,500 cash prize, a certificate of recognition and an invitation to attend the Annual CAGS Conference.
Benjamin Berger wins Faculty of Graduate Studies’ Teaching Award
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The 2023-24 Faculty of Graduate Studies’ (FGS) Teaching Award recipient is Osgoode Hall Law School Professor Benjamin Berger, who teaches in the graduate programs in law and socio-legal studies and has been recognized for his unwavering support for students and commitment to his local graduate community.
Benjamin Berger
The Faculty Teaching Award is bestowed annually to a member of the Faculty of Graduate Studies who has displayed sustained excellence, commitment and enthusiasm to the multifaceted work of teaching at the graduate level at York University. The award recognizes teaching and supervisory excellence and considers scholarly, professional and teaching development, along with initiative involving graduate program and curriculum development. The nominator may be any member of the Faculty of Graduate Studies, including regular or adjunct faculty, graduate students or staff.
“Dr. Berger’s record of supervision is notable not simply due to the large number of students successfully supported through to degree completion under his guidance but for the quality and care to which those relationships were cultivated,” said Alice MacLachlan, vice-provost and dean of graduate studies, when she presented the award to Berger at the Faculty Council meeting on April 4. “Former graduate students spoke admirably on the generosity of time Dr. Berger provided to them, and the capacity by which feedback and direction was delivered in an understanding but supportive manner.”
Also in attendance was Lisa Philipps, provost and vice-president academic, who equally praised Berger: “It is so great to see you here today, Benjamin, and I would like to express my sincere gratitude for all that you have done to support the personal and intellectual growth of your graduate students here at York.”
A researcher in the areas of law and religion, criminal and constitutional law and theory as well as the law of evidence, Berger shares his expertise through lectures, class readings and one-on-one support developing students’ thesis and dissertation projects. His graduate students underscored his ability to carefully design his courses, balancing attentive learning, active discussion and expert guest speakers.
The nomination letters spoke widely of Berger’s commitment to his students. One such example was shared by an international student who began their studies in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic: “Prof. Berger took active steps to ease my adjustment into my new life, including putting me in touch with other graduate students that could offer support and advice, checking in regularly to gauge my emotional experience of the transition, and offering resources to support the practical cost of settling into the graduate program.”
Berger’s commitment to his local graduate community was also a key factor. He dedicates his time to support both the research and professional development focuses of Osgoode Hall Law School through academic leadership for master of laws specializations, colloquium organization, and contributions to workshops for students applying to major scholarships and awards.
Throughout his career, Berger has received other teaching accolades, including the Terry J. Wuester Teaching Award twice and the First Year Class Teaching Award, all while at the University of Victoria Law School. Additionally, he received the Osgoode Hall Law School Teaching Award in 2013.
“Graduate supervision and teaching are among the great joys of my career,” said Berger in his award acceptance speech. “This award reflects that joy and the inspiration that I have drawn from two sets of relationships: with my own supervisors, who patiently, caringly shaped my approach to scholarly inquiry; and with my brilliant, sincere and committed students, in whose growth and insights I continually delight.”
York to host, lead graduate supervision conference
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One of the foundational relationships of the graduate student experience is the one between student and supervisor. As part of its 60th anniversary celebrations, York University’s Faculty of Graduate Studies (FGS) is hosting an online graduate supervision conference geared specifically toward supervisors.
Held in partnership with Memorial University of Newfoundland, the conference – called Collaborative, Constructive, Considerate: Fostering Dialogue on Best Practices in Graduate Supervision in Canada – will be held virtually on Friday, May 31 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The conference will bring together graduate supervisors from universities across Canada, with the aim to lead and foster dialogue about best practices in supervisory pedagogy.
Cheryl van Daalen-Smith
“We need to continue talking about principles and best practices,” says Cheryl van Daalen-Smith, conference Chair and associate dean, academic of FGS
The conference is intended to fill a need for schools of graduate studies, which understand that more conversations have to happen about supervision.
“There’s an assumption that one learns to be a supervisor by being supervised themselves,” she says, “when there’s so much more to it.”
A cornerstone of the academic environment, graduate education and the graduate supervisory experience play a pivotal role in shaping students’ academic and professional journeys. This relationship has a profound effect on the quality of research produced, development of academic skills and overall academic experience.
The conference will include a keynote address delivered by Bruce Shore, author of The Graduate Advisor Handbook: A Student-Centred Approach, titled “Connections to Quagmires: Setting Up for Successful Supervision.” A second keynote speech, by Supervising Conflict author Heather McGhee Peggs, will offer practical advice to help faculty manage the most common grad school concerns.
Experts in the pragmatics of supervision, mediating conflict and the requisite principles guiding Ontario universities will participate in a panel discussion to follow, examining the Principles for Graduate Supervision at Ontario Universities, which were developed last year by the Ontario Council on Graduate Studies.
A closing discussion moderated by van Daalen-Smith will end the day, with a focus on the Canadian Association for Graduate Studies Working Group Initiative and its mission to establish a set of national graduate supervision principles.
“We need to celebrate great supervision and foster discussions that identify exactly what it is that makes this pivotal educative role in graduate studies so influential,” says van Daalen-Smith.
The conference is free to attend, and registration is now open via the online form. For more information, visit the event web page.
Research explores use of artificial shrubs for animal protection
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Mario Zuliani, a York University researcher and teaching assistant in the Faculty of Science, is making inroads in the field of ecology with his novel study on the association between imitation plants and animal species.
Zuliani’s environmental research took root during his master’s program in biology at York, where from 2018 to 2020 he focused on ecological conservation and restoration, particularly through studying the relationship between shrubs and animal species. Building on this earlier work, Zuliani’s latest study digs deeper into the facilitative interactions between shrub and animal species, exploring how structures that mimic shrubs might be utilized by animal species in the wild.
Explaining the motivation behind his research, Zuliani highlights the importance of shrub species in arid ecosystems such as those found in Southern California. These shrubs play a crucial role in providing shelter, food and protection for a diverse range of animal species, mitigating the harsh conditions of the desert environment.
Fake shrubs serve much of the same purpose, Zuliani and his team have found, providing compelling evidence that artificial shrub structures can replicate the benefits of natural shrubs, attracting similar animal communities and providing essential resources for survival.
“From our study, we found that artificial shrubs can produce the same benefits that natural shrubs produce. They reduce the temperature under their canopy and even have the same animal species associating around them,” Zuliani says. “We also found that animals prefer being closer to either artificial shrubs or natural shrubs, rather than in areas where there are no shrubs. This is important because it shows that these artificial structures will be used as a resource by animals.”
The implications of Zuliani’s research are far-reaching, offering valuable insights for conservation and restoration efforts in disturbed ecosystems.
“One of the biggest actions I am hoping to come about from these findings is the use of artificial shrubs as a short-term solution to promote animal communities in areas where natural shrubs have been disturbed, or in areas where there are endangered animal species,” he says. “Finding that these dry-land animal species utilize these artificial shrubs suggests that they can be used, at least for a short time, while natural shrubs are able to grow in size and provide the same benefits.”
By demonstrating the effectiveness of artificial shrubs as a temporary solution to promote animal communities, Zuliani also hopes to pave the way for sustainable initiatives that support endangered species and mitigate the impacts of habitat loss and climate change.
“Utilizing artificial shrubs – and by extension artificial structures – could have positive impacts on sustainability initiatives, as they can all be used temporarily while disrupted ecosystems recover,” Zuliani says. “As well, using these types of structures, even for just a short period of time, would relieve stress that animals experience when they have lost habitats or when their environment has become increasingly harsh from global climate extremes.”
York graduate students explore motherhood
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In the midst of ongoing debates surrounding reproductive rights, five York University graduate students had work published in the Journal of the Motherhood Initiative that looks to re-evaluate conventional notions of motherhood beyond essentialist and biological frameworks.
The students’ essays have been published in the Winter/Spring 2024 issue of the journal, which was founded and edited by Andrea O’Reilly, a professor in the School of Gender, Sexuality & Women’s Studies at York. The biannual, peer-reviewed scholarly journal is dedicated to advancing the discourse on motherhood from a global and interdisciplinary standpoint, offering a diverse array of scholarly insights into the multifaceted concept of motherhood.
Andrea O’Reilly
“The defining mission of the Journal of the Motherhood Initiative,” O’Reilly writes in her introductory notes, “is to promote and disseminate the best current scholarship on motherhood, and to ensure that this scholarship considers motherhood both in an international context and from a multitude of perspectives, including differences of class, race, sexuality, age, ethnicity, ability, and nationality, and from across a diversity of disciplines.”
With ongoing support from the Social Sciences & Humanities Research Council of Canada, the journal continues to serve as an important platform for advancing an understanding of motherhood.
The five essays – among a total of 11 in this issue – written by York graduate students build on that tradition.
Thea Jones, a PhD student in the Graduate Program in Gender, Feminist & Women’s Studies, critically examines the impact of breastfeeding mandates on breastless parents who have undergone mastectomies in her essay. Jones challenges normative motherhood discourses and highlights the exclusion of non-conforming parenting bodies from mainstream narratives.
In her essay, Ame Khin May-Kyawt, a PhD candidate in the Graduate Program in Social & Political Thought, explores the experiences of socially displaced refugee women/mothers from Southeast Asia to Canada. Through an intersectional lens, May-Kyawt sheds light on how these women navigate their gender norms and identities while fulfilling multiple roles.
Katrina Millan, another PhD student, presents a compelling analysis of post-apocalyptic narratives in her article “Only Mom Can Save the World.” Millan advocates for a queer futurism that challenges heteronormative mandates and offers alternative visions of human futurity.
Winter/Spring 2024 Issue of the Journal of the Motherhood Initiative
Tina Powell, a PhD student in Gender, Feminist & Women’s Studies, addresses the marginalization of mothers in feminist scholarship and economics. Powell calls for an intersectional approach to understanding motherhood, one that acknowledges and addresses the unique challenges faced by mothers in contemporary society.
Sofia Ahmed, a PhD student specializing in feminist and gender studies, delves into the complexities of Muslim motherhood. Ahmed invites readers to explore the myths, challenges and spiritual insights of motherhood through the lens of Islam, celebrating the empowerment and resilience of Muslim mothers in navigating societal constructs.
The students’ contributions not only aim to enrich the scholarly discourse on motherhood, but also underscore the journal’s commitment to fostering inclusivity and representation within motherhood studies, a comparatively new field of academic study that O’Reilly, who has authored and edited more than 20 books devoted to motherhood, has spearheaded.
“I think that good scholarship of motherhood matters,” O’Reilly once told an interviewer. “But for me it matters more when we can use that scholarship in a way to effect societal cultural change.”
