YFile’s Year in Review: Top headlines at York University, July to September 2016

As a new year emerges, YFile looks back on 2016 and offers a snapshot of the year’s highlights. “Year in Review” will run as a four-part series, and will feature a random selection of top news stories published in YFile. Here are the stories and highlights for July to September 2016, as chosen by YFile editors.

July

The Member of the Order of Canada medalThree York University faculty appointed to the Order of Canada
Faculty of Health Distinguished Research Professor Ellen Bialystok, Faculty of Education Professor Stephen Gaetz and Osgoode Hall Law School Professor David Vaver were among the 113 new appointments to the Order of Canada. In total, some 13 individuals with connections to York were named to the Order of Canada.

AGYU bioplan forest offers a living testament to the power of art and nature
A variety of saplings that were part of a Bioplan forest developed for the Art Gallery of York University’s exhibit “What We Lose in Metrics” were transplanted to a site near the Stong Pond on the Keele campus. The forest is now a permanent part of the University’s landscape and future ecology.

Professor Roberto Perin earns Glendon Principal’s Research Excellence Award
Glendon Professor Roberto Perin was the recipient of the 2016 Principal’s Research Excellence Award, an honour given annually by Glendon to recognize full-time faculty members who have made an outstanding contribution to research in the past three years.

DonaldIpperciel19
Donald Ipperciel

Dual degree will offer York University’s Glendon College students the best of Canada and France
A new partnership between Glendon College and the emlyon business school in France will offer students the opportunity to combine liberal arts with business education, earn two university degrees and benefit from internships in France, Canada or other countries where French is an official language.

York U, partners receive $15M in federal funds to build health technologies
York University, along with partners Southlake Regional Health Centre and the University Health Network, received $15 million in federal funds to develop new patient-centred health technologies. The announcement was made July 21 by Navdeep Bains, minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, and the minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario).

August

Lions to represent Canada at Rio 2016
Current and former Lions headed to Rio to compete in the 2016 Olympic Games. Named to Team Canada were Lions thrower Brittany Crew, Lions boxer Arthur Biyarslanov, former Lions sprinter Khamica Bingham, former Lions taekwondo competitor Melissa Pagnotta and honorary degree recipient and tennis player Daniel Nestor.

Former Glendon Principal Kenneth McRoberts named to France’s National Order of Merit
Professor Kenneth McRoberts, former Principal of York University’s Glendon College, was named to France’s National Order of Merit and appointed to the rank of Knight during a ceremony on April 25 at the French Consul General’s residence in Toronto.

 Modified schematic of the hypothesized functional connections mediating the trans-saccadic integration of visual information from Dunkley et al. (2016)
Modified schematic of the hypothesized functional connections mediating the trans-saccadic integration of visual information from Dunkley et al. (2016)

York research finds new brain mechanism for perception during eye movements
York University researchers have shown, for the first time, areas of the brain that are sensitive to whether an object looks the same, or different, after making an eye movement. The study was conducted out of Professor Doug Crawford’s Visuomotor Neuroscience Lab.

CIHR grants $2.16M to fund two York research projects
Two research projects led by York University received a combined $2.16 million in funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). Michaela Hynie and Jonathan Weiss, both from the Department of Psychology in the Faculty of Health, were selected to receive grants in the latest round of CIHR funding decisions.

York University ranked #1 in the world in quality of business ethics research
In a study published in the Journal of Business Ethics in July 2016 titled  “A Citation Analysis of Business Ethics Research: A Global Perspective,” York University ranked as the No. 1 academic institution in the world in terms of quality of business ethics journal publications.

September

The OSIRIS REx Laser Altimeter (OLA) undergoing testing
The OSIRIS REx Laser Altimeter (OLA) undergoing testing

York U celebrates successful launch of OSIRIS-REx
OSIRIS-REx – the first-ever sampling mission by NASA to the distant asteroid Bennu – was successfully launched into space on Sept. 8 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

World-leading vision research program receives Canada’s premier grant
York University’s world-class expertise in vision research received a $33.3 million Canada First Research Excellence Fund grant that will support the Vision: Science to Applications (VISTA) program.

York University researchers receive total boost of $7M in SSHRC awards
Minister of Science Kirsty Duncan paid a visit to York University’s Keele campus in September to announce $163 million in Social Sciences & Humanities Research Council of Canada funding. More than 25 research projects at York University received a total boost of $7 million of the federal funding.

Image shows Professors Puri and Sandilands who are Trudeau scholars
Poonam Puri (top) and Catriona Sandilands

Two York U professors among five Canadian scholars honoured as 2016 Trudeau Fellows
Professors Poonam Puri and Catriona Sandilands were named as two of only five scholars across Canada to be awarded prestigious research fellowships by the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation this year.

Bee expert recognized for outstanding contributions to entomology in Canada
At the International Congress of Entomology on Sept. 25, York University Professor Amro Zayed in the Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, received the 2016 C. Gordon Hewitt Award from the Entomological Society of Canada.

Check back in the next edition of YFile for Year in Review: Top headlines at York University, October to December 2016.

YFile’s Year in Review: Top headlines at York University, April to June 2016

Bergeron Centre

As a new year emerges, YFile looks back on 2016 to share with readers a snapshot of the year’s highlights. “Year in Review” will run as a four-part series and will feature a random selection of top news stories published in YFile. Here are the stories and highlights for April to June 2016, as chosen by YFile editors.

April

Bergeron Centre
Bergeron Centre

York U celebrates the official opening of the Bergeron Centre for Engineering Excellence
The traditional image of an engineering school filled with bespectacled students toting calculators in pocket protectors was officially vanquished on Friday, April 8, with the opening of the Bergeron Centre for Engineering Excellence at York University.

Glendon team competes in Translation Games and brings home first place
The Glendon team began preparing for the games in the fall of 2015 with the help of several faculty members, and this training paid off. Glendon took first prize for their team translation of a song into French. Individual team members also placed third and fourth in the annual competition.

NSERC awards $1.65M to York-led research partnership
An academic-industry partnership led by York University has received a total of $1,650,000 through the Natural Sciences & Engineering Research Council of Canada’s Collaborative Research & Training Experience Grants Program.

Lillian Meighen Wright Centre

York U celebrates opening of Lillian Meighen Wright Centre in Costa Rica
A shining example of York University’s leadership in partnering with international communities to build a better world and advance its global impact was celebrated April 25 with the official opening of the Lillian Meighen Wright Centre, the landmark building of York’s EcoCampus in Costa Rica.

Schulich launches one-year Master of Management degree program
Schulich School of Business announced a new 12-month Master of Management degree program, the first of its kind in Canada. It will officially launch this fall with the start of classes.

York scientists partner with industry on $1.7M grant for drug development
Faculty of Science researchers, Professors Derek Wilson, Sergey Krylov and Chun Peng, have received a Collaborative Research & Development Grant from the Natural Sciences & Engineering Research Council of Canada to advance the R&D of biopharmaceuticals. The funding is valued at more than $1.7M, including industrial and in-kind contributions.

May

Project led by York prof receives Minister’s Award for Environmental Excellence
A provincial project spearheaded by Faculty of Environmental Studies Professor Lewis Molot was recognized with a prestigious award. The Ontario EcoSchools project is a recipient of the 2015 Minister’s Award for Environmental Excellence.

Two York faculty earn Pioneer of Change Award
A prestigious distinction that honours immigrants as nation builders will highlight the work of two York faculty members during the 2016 Pioneers for Change Award Gala: Ananya Mukherjee-Reed, dean of the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies, and Marat Ressin, founder of the York Entrepreneurship Development Institute.

Mobile Water Kit
Mobile Water Kit

York U invention a breakthrough in rapid detection of E. coli
An invention by York U researchers was a breakthrough in rapid detection of the deadly E. coli bacteria in water. The hydrogel-based rapid detection system reduces the time it takes to detect E. coli from a few days to just a couple of hours.

Cinespace family donation gives York U students unparalleled studio experience
The AMPD Motion Media Studio @ Cinespace will give students the opportunity to explore cinematography, 3D gaming, motion-performance capture, virtual reality, interactive image mapping and digital post-production.

Six emerging and established researchers newly appointed York Research Chairs
Professors Nantel Bergeron, Ellen Bialystok, Chun Peng and Stepan Wood were appointed Tier 1 York Research Chairs. Professors Jimmy Huang and Amro Zayed were appointed Tier 2 York Research Chairs. The York Research Chairs program serves as an internal twin for the Canada Research Chairs program.

June

Professor Emeritus Allan Carswell

York University receives $1M gift from Carswell Family Foundation for graduate student scholarships
On Tuesday, May 31, York University announced and celebrated a $1-million gift from Professor Emeritus Allan Carswell and the Carswell Family Foundation. The gift will establish Carswell Scholarships for graduate students in the Faculty of Science and the Lassonde School of Engineering.

York-led research team developing ‘Active Data’ technology for new ways to use greener electricity
The team led by School of Information Technology Professor Stephen Chen will develop Active Data-based technologies, which will give utility companies the opportunity to balance the grid with flexible user demand. The technology is based on a simple premise of using green energy to do things that need to be done at a time when green energy is abundant.

An artist's view of a newborn giant planet. Image by Mark A. Garlick
An artist’s view of a newborn giant planet. Image by Mark A. Garlick

Newborn giant planet found orbiting an infant sun
The discovery of a giant planet known as a hot Jupiter orbiting an infant sun represents a major step forward in understanding how planetary systems form and evolve, says an international team of astronomers including some from York University.

York University researchers awarded more than $5.6M by NSERC
The Natural Sciences & Engineering Research Council of Canada announced Thursday, June 23, that 32 researchers at York University have been awarded more than $4.9 million in NSERC grants, while 10 graduate students and postdoctoral fellows have received a total of $700,000 in funding for scholarships and fellowships.

Check back in the next edition of YFile for Year in Review: Top headlines at York University, July to September 2016.

YFile’s Year in Review: Top headlines at York University, January to March 2016

As a new year emerges, YFile takes a look back on 2016 to share with readers a snapshot of the year’s highlights. “Year in Review” will run as a four-part series, and will feature a random selection of top news stories published in YFile. Here are the stories and highlights for January to March 2016, as chosen by YFile editors.

January

Ice sheet
Above: An image of the coast of Greenland showing the ice sheet. Image: Wikimedia Commons

Climate change altering Greenland ice sheet and accelerating sea level rise, says York U prof
The Greenland ice sheet has traditionally been pictured as a bit of a sponge for glacier meltwater, but new research has found it is rapidly losing the ability to buffer its contribution to rising sea levels, says  York University researcher William Colgan.

Ten individuals with connections to York University appointed to the Order of Canada
York University honorary governor Helen Vari (LLD [Hons.] ’03), honorary degree recipients Lloyd Axworthy (LLD [Hons.] ’15), Jack Cockwell (LLD [Hons.] ’01), Wade Davis (LLD [Hons.] ’14) and Rohinton Mistry (DLitt [Hons.] ’03), and York alumni Joseph Boyden (BA ’91), Rudy Buttignol (BFA ’82), Barbara Hall (LLB ’78), Fiona Amaryllis Sampson (DJur ’05) and Faye Thomson (BFA ’77) are among the 69 Canadians to be honoured with Canada’s highest civilian honour – the Order of Canada.

Bilateral articulation agreement promotes accessibility to postsecondary study programs in French
York University’s Glendon College and College Boreal have signed a bilateral articulation agreement with a view to promoting excellence in learning and expanding training opportunities. The agreement also seeks to enhance accessibility to postsecondary study programs in French and mobility between their two institutions.

Myles Lamont, "Canada's New Noah" for 2013, with an echo parakeet chick. The echo parakeet is an endemic Mauritian species, which Wildlife Preservation Canada helped save from extinction in the 1980s and 1990s.
Myles Lamont, “Canada’s New Noah” for 2013, with an echo parakeet chick

FES partners with Wildlife Preservation Canada to provide experiential learning in species recovery
A new partnership between the Faculty of Environmental Studies and Wildlife Preservation Canada provides experiential learning opportunities in species recovery programs for at-risk animals. York U students gain hands-on experience working with at-risk birds, reptiles, amphibians and pollinators.

YU Experience Hub created as a nexus for experiential education at York University
The new YU Experience Hub will support experiential education initiatives by identifying opportunities for collaboration and offering services to address common needs, including engaging with stakeholders, offering shared services and workshops as needed, and developing new community partnerships.

York U biology professor awarded prestigious research medal
York University biology Professor Carol Bucking has been awarded the the Society for Experimental Biology President’s Medal for her research and developments in animal biology and physiology. The prestigious medal is awarded annually to young scientists for outstanding research. 

February

York U researchers help create first map of Greenland ice sheet movement
York U researchers are among a team of scientists that has created the first map showing how the Greenland ice sheet has flowed over time. The map shows that ice in the interior is  moving more slowly toward the edges now than it has, on average, over the past 9,000 years.

From camps to campuses: Students changing students’ lives through WUSC
Students at York University are making positive contributions to the global refugee crisis through the on-campus chapter of the World University Service of Canada (WUSC). WUSC supports and sponsors student refugees, and this fall will assist five new students with their resettlement in Canada and at York U.

Curiosity is a car-sized robotic rover exploring Gale Crater on Mars as part of NASA's Mars Science Laboratory mission (MSL).[3] As of February 16, 2016, Curiosity has been on Mars for 1255 sols (1289 total days) since landing on August 6, 2012. Image: NASA
Curiosity is a car-sized robotic rover exploring Gale Crater on Mars as part of NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory mission
Lassonde research team selected by NASA to provide support to the Curiosity mission
Lassonde professor John Moores and his research team have been selected by NASA to provide Scientific and Operations support to the Mars Science Laboratory Mission (Curiosity). The Lassonde team will be part of the mission through 2020 as they help plan out what the $2.5 billion Mars Rover will do each day.

York University gains six new and two renewed Canada Research Chairs
York Professors Peter Backx, Rosemary Coombe, Christopher Kyriakides, Deborah McGregor, Doug Van Nort, Sean Tulin, Graham Wakefield and Jianhong Wu are among the 305 new and renewed Canada Research Chairs at 53 Canadian degree-granting postsecondary institutions announced by Minister of Science Kristy Duncan on Feb. 9.

York University research leaders recognized at annual celebration
York University research leaders were recognized on Feb. 24 for their outstanding achievements during the fourth annual York U Research Leaders celebration. The evening was dedicated in memory of Lassonde Professor Nick Cercone, who was posthumously recognized for his research achievements.

March

From left: Minister
Minister Responsible for Francophone Affairs Madeleine Meilleur, York President and Vice-Chancellor Mamdouh Shoukri, York Vice-President Academic and Provost Rhonda Lenton and Glendon Principal Donald Ipperciel

Glendon celebrates its 50th anniversary with a special designation under the French Language Services Act
The Province of Ontario has designated the Glendon campus as a French-language service provider through a partial designation of York University under the French Language Services Act. The move reaffirms Glendon’s role as a distinct faculty dedicated to Francophone and bilingual programming.

York U political science students recognized for top achievement at Model Arctic Council
Samantha Craig-Curnow, Veronica Guido, Val Muzik and Darren Zanussi are all fourth-year students in the Department of Political Science in the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies at York University. They recently came away with accolades for their standout performances at the recent Model Arctic Council at the University of Alaska Fairbanks.

Professor Sandra Whitworth receives the ISA-Canada 2016 Distinguished Scholar Award
The International Studies Association (ISA) – Canada Distinguished Scholar Award committee has nominated York University political science Professor Sandra Whitworth as the ISA-Canada 2016 Distinguished Scholar.

Faculty of Graduate Studies Dean Barbara Crow’s place in Canadian history
For Barbara Crow, dean of the Faculty of Graduate Studies at York University, the opportunity to make history arrived with her appointment as an expert panel member to facilitate public consultation for nominations for a new banknote featuring an iconic Canadian woman that will be issued in 2018.

philliphoffmanberlin
Philip Hoffman shooting at the Berlin Wall, 1987

York Professor Philip Hoffman named a Governor General’s Award laureate
Professor Philip Hoffman is among eight winners of the 2016 Governor General’s Awards in Visual and Media Arts. The award recognizes outstanding career achievement in categories including artistic achievement in visual and media arts, fine craft, and outstanding contribution.

York U team receives close to $1M in funding for mental-health care virtual community for students
A York University research team will receive funding and in-kind contributions from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and industry partners to research and develop support for the mental health needs of students through a Mindfulness Virtual Community.

Check back in the next edition of YFile for Year in Review: Top headlines at York University, April to June 2016.

VP Academic announces Canada150@York projects

Vice-President Academic and Provost Rhonda Lenton announces the results of a call for applications for funding of Canada 150 @ York projects:  

Dear colleagues:

Earlier this year, President Shoukri and I issued a call for applications for funding for projects to contribute to the celebration here at York of Canada’s 150th anniversary in 2017. The call invited faculty, staff and students to submit proposals for innovative projects – conferences, workshops, symposia, installations, cultural events, and so on – that would explore Canada’s past and look to its future, while highlighting York University and Canada 150 themes relating to the environment, diversity and inclusivity, Indigenous people, and youth.

I am delighted to report that a large number of outstanding applications for funding were received, and funding totaling over $400,000 has now been awarded to the following individuals (faculty, staff and students) in support of their projects:

  • Patrick Alcedo: Choreographing Filipino-Canadian Identities
  • Stacy Allison-Cassin: Music and Belonging in Canada at 150: A Wikipedia Campaign
  • Solange Belluz: French Language Olympic Games
  • Stacey Bliss and Josefina Rueter: Visions and Collaborations: First Annual York University Graduate Student Research Conference in the Social Sciences and Humanities
  • Ines Buchli: Citizen 150
  • Colin Coates: The Confederation Debates
  • Andrea Davis: The Evolving Meanings of Blackness in Canada
  • Leesa Fawcett and Anna Zalik: Ocean Frontiers: An Interdisciplinary Workshop and Public Event
  • Ian Garrett: Climate Change Theatre Action
  • Alana Gerecke and Laura Levin: “Moving Crip and Mad” Workshop
  • Jodie Glean and Lorne Foster: Race Inclusion and Supportive Environments @ 150
  • Eve Haque and Amar Wahab: Teaching Against Islamaphobia
  • Sarah Howe and Nilay Goyal: Innovate TO150
  • Donald Ipperciel and Francis Garon: Canada’s Constitutional Challenges After 150 Years: The Next Phase
  • Adrienne Johnson and Anna Zalik: Conference: The Past, Present and Future of Canada and the Global Extractives Complex
  • Eva Karpinski: Lives Outside the Lines: Gender and Genre in the Americas – A Symposium in Honour of Marlene Kadar
  • Magdalena Kazubowski-Houston: Imagining Canada’s Futures with Romani Refugees
  • Sean Kheraj: What Did Confederation Accomplish? Historical Perspectives on 150 Years of Canada
  • David Koffman: No Better Home for the Jews…than Canada
  • Jacqueline Krikorian: Translation of Two-Volume Edited Collection of Scholarship on Confederation for 150th Anniversary
  • Christopher Lortie: Open Science Canada Podcast Series
  • Christopher Lortie and Sapna Sharma: Environmental Data Synthesis Week
  • Anne MacLennan: Connecting Canada
  • Marcel Martel: OHFA “Ontario 150” Provincial Fair
  • Philip Monk and Emelie Chhangur: Migrating the Margins: Uploading the Toronto of Tomorrow
  • Shani Ocquaye and Tristan Davis: Know Your Worth: A Youth Empowerment Conference; and The 5th Annual Lincoln Alexander Award Ceremony
  • Debra Pepler: Mobilizing Youth to Create a Caring and Respectful Canada: Hear Our Voices
  • Rebecca Pillai Riddell and Jock Phippen: Celebrating Canada’s 150: Science on Ice – Transdisciplinary Scientific Perspectives on the North
  • Maggie Quirt and Tania Das Gupta: And Social Justice for All: Indigenous Youth, Indigenous Voices – Spring 2016 Symposium
  • Julie Rahmer and Marc Wilchesky: Career Success Symposium for Students with Disabilities
  • Leslie Sanders and Philip Kelly: Unity in Diversity: Fusion of Communities in Canada
  • Tom Scott and Kalina Grewal: Communicating at an Interdisciplinary Level
  • Marlis Schweitzer: Interdisciplinary Workshop: “Over There: how we went to war in Europe”
  • Lorne Sossin and Jamil Jivani: Creating Opportunities Summit
  • Noel Sturgeon: Ahead by a Century and a Half: Envisioning Just Transformations in a Changing Climate
  • Danielle Thibodeau: Law in Action Within Schools (LAWS)
  • Brandon Vickerd: Going Public: New Ways of Thinking about Public Art Symposium
  • Sue Winton: Life in the University: Past, Present and Future – Faculty of Education Event Series in Recognition of Canada 150
  • Jenny Wustenberg, Daphne Winland, Michael Nijhawan, and Duygu Gul Kaya: Workshop: Unsettling Canada at 150: Memory Discourses in Transnational Contexts
  • Xueqing Xu and Jessica Tsui-Yan Li: Retrospect and Prospect: Symposium on Chinese Canadian Literature and Media

Colleagues are invited to contact the project leads for more information about their initiatives, and a fuller description of projects will be posted on the Provost’s website.

We look forward to the celebration of Canada’s Sesquicentennial next year and encourage all members of the York community to participate in these funded events and the many others that will be mounted to mark this significant milestone in Canada’s history.

Rhonda Lenton
Vice-President Academic & Provost

Two Glendon faculty recognized with 2016 Principal’s Teaching Excellence Awards

Glendon faculty members Audrey Pyée and Jennifer Sipos-Smith are the recipients of this year’s Principal’s Teaching Excellence Awards. Pyée was selected in the full-time faculty category, while Sipos-Smith received the award in the contract faculty category.

The Principal’s Teaching Excellence Awards honour those who, through innovation and commitment, enhance the quality of teaching and learning at Glendon.

“My warmest congratulations to Audrey and Jennifer,” said Donald Ipperciel, principal of Glendon. “As recipients of the Principal’s Teaching Excellence Award, they exemplify the kind of innovative faculty we have at Glendon, dedicated to engaging and inspiring students through an enriching learning experience.”

Audrey Pyee
Audrey Pyée

Pyée is a professor in the Department of History at Glendon, and also teaches courses for the Canadian Studies program. She has been praised by her colleagues and students for the variety of her teaching approaches that include online lectures, student-driven group work and experiential education.

Pyée has engaged workshops and pedagogical seminars, led workshops on effective teaching for teaching assistants, and is currently collaborating with historians from the Keele campus to elaborate a certificate program in public history. She recently created the course “Histoire vivante: Créer l’histoire du grand Toronto,” in which students developed a documentary focusing on the founding and first decade of the Glendon campus. This past November, she hosted a citizenship ceremony to provide an experiential learning opportunity for her students in her course on Canadian citizenship.

Pyée has been lauded for her dynamic and creative teaching practice, as well as her dedication to her students and generosity with her time.

“I would especially like to thank my students for this teaching award,” said Pyée. “They have been significant contributors to the success of my courses, in large part due to their enthusiasm and their willingness to be fully involved in the projects that were proposed to them.”

Jennifer Sipos-Smith
Jennifer Sipos-Smith

Since joining Glendon in 2008, Sipos-Smith has become recognized as a leadership and communications strategist, who researches millennials and intergenerational communication. She has served as course director in the Department of Multidisciplinary Studies at Glendon, as well as head of the Glendon Career & Skills Development Centre (formerly the Glendon Writing Centre).

Sipos-Smith developed Glendon’s first communication and leadership courses and was instrumental in establishing the momentum for the new Communications program. Her teaching and research emphasize preparing students for the workplace of the future, and her courses feature theoretical, blended and experiential learning. She created several successful partnerships with the business community to establish Glendon’s first bilingual internship placements. Recently, Jennifer received AIF funding for blended learning. She presents regularly on her instructional strategies and students’ experiences, including in her recent TED Talk, “Why workplaces need 20-something leadership.”

Sipos-Smith uses a variety of teaching strategies and curricular resources to engage her students, to facilitate a collaborative community, and to help her students develop and apply critical thinking skills in multiple and multidisciplinary contexts. She is dynamic and innovative, and a strong mentor for her students.

“To receive the honour of the Principal’s Teaching Excellence Award is a true joy,” said Sipos-Smith. “My students and I challenge each other to be open to learning that’s not necessarily part of the plan, and have discovered that in these unscripted moments of collaboration, real innovation and impact can begin. I thank them, and I share this award with them. Their hard work and leadership mean so much.”

Glendon launches “Truth and Reconciliation Declaration on Indigenous Language Policy” Nov. 18

Glendon conference poster shows a stylized g with the conference date Nov. 18 to 20

A document responding to three of the 94 Calls to Action issued last December by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada on Residential Schools is going to get special attention with a public launch on Nov. 18. The launch of the historic document will take place at York University’s Glendon College, during the Centre for Research in Language and Culture Contact (CRLCC) International Conference Nov. 18 to 20.

The Glendon Truth and Reconciliation Declaration on Canada’s Indigenous Language Policy argues that urgent action is needed to respond to the commission’s call for Indigenous Language Rights, an Indigenous Languages Act, and an Office of an Indigenous Languages Commissioner.

Indigenous languages survived the residential school linguicide, but barely. All indigenous languages are considered vulnerable to declining use or endangered in varying degrees, including many being close to extinction. Indigenous language demographer Mary Jane Norris states that of the 90 different Indigenous languages currently spoken in Canada, only 26 per cent are relatively viable being spoken by most children.

“It’s time for our justified pride in French-English rapprochement through language policy and other means to be generously and wisely re-imagined and extended to encompass a reconciliatory rapprochement with Indigenous Nations, in which forward-looking policies of Indigenous language revitalization are an integral part, and the Glendon Declaration charts a course for this to happen,” says Glendon Professor Ian Martin, a member of the group who drafted the declaration.

“Glendon’s mission has always been about bringing linguistic and cultural groups closer together,” says Glendon Principal Donald Ipperciel. “Traditionally, the focus has been on English-French rapprochement. Given this background, a growing interest in Indigenous issues seems only natural.”

The Director of the CRLCC, Professor Maria Constanza Guzman, notes that the centre recognizes the responsibility of the academic community toward the Indigenous languages of Canada in this historical moment and enthusiastically supports the declaration and the collective actions that will follow from it.

A short version of Glendon’s Truth and Reconciliation Declaration on Canada’s Indigenous Language Policy is available in English, French, Mohawk, Anishinaabemowin, Inuinnaqtun and Inuktitut and can be found on the CRLCC website. Endorsements from individuals and organizations are welcome, and many have already done so. Endorsement pages in English and French are also available on the CRLCC website.

The Public Launch of the Declaration will take place at 5:45pm on Friday, Nov. 18, in the context of the CRLCC Conference, held at Glendon College, 2275 Bayview Avenue. All are welcome.

More about the CRLCC

The Centre for Research on Language and Culture Contact (CRLCC) brings together the research activities of the faculty members and students of York University who investigate various aspects of language contact at both societal and individual levels. The CRLCC members conduct their research in a variety of settings, located in Toronto, Ontario, other Canadian provinces and countries throughout the world.

Bilingual citizenship ceremony at Glendon unique lesson for students

Students taking a course on Canadian citizenship at York University’s Glendon College were given a unique experiential education opportunity on Nov. 3, when they met with about 65 new Canadians an hour before they officially received their Canadian citizenship.

glendon-citizenship

 

The bilingual citizenship ceremony, organized by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, and the Institute for Canadian Citizenship, was hosted by Glendon’s Canadian Studies program, which offers the course “Canadian Citizenship” twice a year – once in English and once in French.

Audrey Pyée, assistant lecturer in Glendon’s Canadian Studies program, said students in her course learn about notions of civic, political, social and cultural and global citizenship in Canada. Students moderated roundtable discussions with the new Canadians just before the ceremony.

glendon-citizenship3glendon-citizenship2Pyée said the event gives students “a wonderful chance to speak to the new Canadians and their families about the meaning of Canadian citizenship to them.”

She said, “They will hear, first-hand, about the experiences of immigrants coming to Canada, so they can better understand the difficulties many face and the opportunities that they seek in becoming citizens.”

“The event was interesting because it put in context the themes that we have been studying in class,” said Meghan Williams, a student in the course. “It helped bridge the gap between the class content and the real world. It was rewarding to be able to experience the energy  and to witness the hope that people come with.”

Dyane Adam, former principal of Glendon College and Canadian Commissioner of Official Languages and current Chair of the planning board on a French-Language University, presided over the ceremony and Christina Clark-Kazak, associate principal, Research and Graduate Studies at Glendon, was the guest of honour.

Clark-Kazak explained, “Our bilingual Glendon campus was such a fitting venue for this citizenship ceremony celebrating Canada’s diversity. I would like to congratulate Audrey Pyée on proposing this partnership and thank Michael Ah-Choon, students in Professor Pyée’s class and members of Master’s in Conference Interpreting Program for making the event such a success.”

John Holmes Memorial Lecture features political strategist, author Hugh Segal

On Nov. 2, Canadian political strategist, author, commentator, academic and former senator Hugh Segal will deliver the a address “A Rational Foreign Policy for an Almost Middle Power” for Glendon’s annual John Holmes Memorial Lecture.

hugh-segal
The Honourable Hugh Segal

The annual lecture honours the late John W. Holmes, O.C., Canadian diplomat, writer, administrator, and professor of International Relations at Glendon from 1971 to 1981. Holmes was a tireless promoter of Canada at home and abroad, in political, diplomatic and educational circles. He also participated in the founding of the United Nations and attended its first General Assembly in 1945.

Segal is the current master of Massey College, and brings over 35 years of business, academic and public policy experience to his role as a senior strategic advisor at Aird and Berlis LLP. With expertise in public policy, international and defence issues, regulatory affairs and federal-provincial relations, Segal advises on regulatory and broad public policy frameworks and organization, as well as important international variables and contingencies.

Segal’s government service includes major roles in both trade and constitutional negotiation. A former associate cabinet secretary for Federal-Provincial Relations, Segal was part of the Ontario Delegation to the constitutional negotiations that repatriated the British North America Act and created the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. He was also a former Chief of Staff to former prime minister Brian Mulroney, and participated in NAFTA discussions.

Appointed by former prime minister Paul Martin to the senate in 2005, Segal chaired the Foreign Affairs and International Trade Committee and the Special Committee on Anti-Terrorism. He is a former special envoy to the Commonwealth and member of its Eminent Persons Group on reform, modernization and human rights.

Segal was elected the fifth master of Massey College in December of 2013 and is also a senior fellow at the Munk School of Global Affairs. He is a member of the Order of Canada, holds two honorary doctorates, was the 2014 Churchill Society Laureate for excellence in the advancement of Democracy and the 2015 Vimy Award Laureate for “Singular Contributions to National Defence” of the Conference of Defence Associations in Ottawa. He is an Honorary Captain of the Royal Canadian Navy and Chair of the NATO Association of Canada.

Segal is a Fellow of the Institute for Research on Public Policy. He is a graduate in history from the University of Ottawa and was a senior fellow at the School of Public Policy and the Smith School of Business at Queen’s University.

His private sector experience includes leadership of a major Canadian advertising and marketing firm and executive positions in the brewing, food processing and investment management industries. He has served on a broad range of private and public boards in the financial, engineering and design, automobile, dairy manufacturing, energy marketing and construction sectors.

John Holmes

John Holmes

John Holmes

Shortly after his death in 1988, a memorial fund was set up at Glendon under the leadership of Professor Albert Tucker, principal of Glendon from 1970 to 1975 and chair of the Department of History at the time, to create a series of annual lectures sponsored by Glendon’s International Studies program in Holmes’s honour.

The first John Holmes Memorial Lecture was delivered by Sir Brian Urquhart, former undersecretary general of the United Nations. Other distinguished speakers have included former prime minister of Canada Kim Campbell; former deputy secretary general of the United Nations Louise Fréchette; Canadian ambassadors Geoffrey Pearson and Anne Leahy; author John Ralston Saul; retired Supreme Court Justice Peter deCarteret Cory; and former deputy secretary general of Amnesty International and Glendon alumnus Vincent del Buono (BA Hons. ’72), among others.

The lecture will be delivered in English. It runs 7:30 to 10 pm at BMO Conference Centre, 2275 Bayview Ave., and is free to attend.

Following the lecture, Glendon will host the closing event for its 50th anniversary celebration with a wine and cheese reception.

To RSVP, go here.

Honorary degree recipient Paul Beeston urges grads to embrace mistakes

Granduands from Glendon College and the Faculty of Health were reminded of the adage “Nothing ventured, nothing gained” during convocation ceremonies on Oct. 19, when sports visionary and philanthropist Paul Beeston delivered the convocation address.

Chancellor Greg Sorbara, Paul Beeston and President and Vice-Chancellor Mamdouh Shoukri
Chancellor Greg Sorbara, Paul Beeston and President and Vice-Chancellor Mamdouh Shoukri

Beeston, one of Canada’s most celebrated sports leaders, was awarded an honorary doctor of laws degree by York University during the first of five convocation ceremonies this fall.

Over the past four decades, Beeston has played a principal role in shaping baseball in Canada. In 1976, he was hired as the Toronto Blue Jays’ first employee. He fulfilled progressively senior roles at the organization, culminating in president and chief executive officer, titles which he held until his 2015 retirement. During his tenure with the Jays, he was instrumental in guiding the team to two World Series wins.

From 1997 to 2002, he took a hiatus from the Jays to serve as president and chief operating officer of Major League Baseball. He currently serves on the board of the National Baseball Hall of Fame. He was made a member of the Order of Canada in 1998, and he has been inducted into both the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame (2002) and Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame (2005). In 2008, his name was added to the Blue Jays’ Level of Excellence at the Rogers Centre. In recognition of his peerless contributions to the Blue Jays franchise, he was appointed president emeritus in 2016. Toronto Mayor John Tory presented Beeston a key to the city of Toronto on Sept. 28 of this year.

He is also a distinguished philanthropist and volunteer.

“Today I stand in front of you with so much humility because it has been a lifelong dream of mine to be part of this city, this country,” he said of the honourary degree. “I was not expecting it, but I was thrilled, honoured and very humbled by it.”

Beeston told graduating students that he attended the School of Accounting of York University in the late 1960s, and at that time the enrollment was roughly 5,000, and highlighted how much different things are today.

“You are graduating from a university with international recognition, with 54,000 students, that has two campuses and soon to have a third, that is prepared you for what your future is going to be,” he said. “That, and working for tomorrow, is what education is all about.”

Convocation is a celebration of the past, he said, and he urged students that when looking to the future to consider two things: be prepared to take a chance, and learn from your failures.

beeston-wide-shotHe shared his own personal experiences in doing so – taking a chance by moving his young family to Toronto in the mid-1970s to pursue his career as the Blue Jays’ first employee, and later leaving that job after 22 years to try something else.

“I had fun, I enjoyed it, I did the things that were necessary, but more importantly than that, every one of the things I did moved me from the comfort zone that I lived in,” he said. “I took a chance … I would encourage all of you not to shy away from making those decisions … and taking on new challenges.”

There’s a corollary to making a chance, he said, and that corollary is “don’t be afraid to make a mistake.”

He also encouraged graduates to protect and grow their “personal brand”, and to remember that it is something they can control.

“Every one of you has a personal brand … and that is something you should zealously guard,” he said. “It is your reputation; it is what you stand for … you will be measured by that reputation.”

In closing, Beeston suggested that those who enjoy success often enjoy life. He reminded graduates to consider that when making decisions, and taking risks, in the future.

“I know of nobody that is successful that doesn’t really enjoy themselves,” he said. “You want to get up, and you want to enjoy.”

Cancelled: Glendon’s Oct. 20 APPRC open forum on IIRP working group reports

Glendon campus entry

Our appreciation to those who expressed interest in the forum on Oct. 20 on IIRP working group reports. Unfortunately, due to the low number of registrants, the forum has been cancelled.
There are other opportunities to contribute to the discussion of IIRP recommendations with forums on Oct. 25 and 26 on the Keele campus and we would be happy to see you there if it is convenient for you to attend.