Michael McKinnon

Hundreds of University of Toronto students lined up early to watch renowned author Margaret Atwood, an alumna of Victoria College, discuss the future of democracy with Randy Boyagoda, a writer and professor of English – and left with unexpected homework.

“My request to each of you is to spill out of this lecture hall tonight and engage with each other in collegial, respectful, meaningful conversation about your differences,” Melanie Woodin, dean of the Faculty of Arts & Science, told the students in her opening remarks. “And don't stop there. Engage with your professors and your fellow students inside and outside of the classroom.”

Held at Hart House with overflow viewing at Convocation Hall, the discussion titled, “The Story of Democracy: What’s Next?” was moderated by Sam Tanenhaus, a visiting fellow at the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy and former editor at the New York Times Book Review. The event attracted more than 500 students and was organized in response to the growing concern – at �鶹��Ƶ and beyond – that democracy is at a critical point, struggling to survive.

Tanenhaus invited Atwood, who appeared virtually, to be first on the panel to comment. The author of The Handmaid’s Tale and The Testaments, among many other novels, is often quoted in international media on issues of citizenship, free speech and the importance of fiction writers in a democracy. At Hart House, she referenced current turmoil in the U.S., where active movements are attempting to limit who can – and cannot – vote, for example, as well as the media’s ability to report the news.

“It has been said that eternal vigilance is the price of freedom,” Atwood said. “The (political) right has kidnapped the idea of free speech and I think people have to kidnap it back.”

Melanie Woodin, dean of the Faculty of Arts & Science encouraged attendees to “engage with each other in collegial, respectful, meaningful conversation about your differences” (photo by Lisa Lightbourn)

Upon being announced, the event immediately resonated with students, with all 300 Hart House tickets snatched up in just 19 minutes – and more registering for overflow viewing. Ultimately, it brought together students with different lived experiences and a range of political views, as Woodin pointed out in her introduction.

To Boyagoda, the key questions were: How do we all live together in one society? How do we debate – and disagree – in a productive, respectful way whether in the classroom, on campus or beyond?

For one, he suggested replacing the word “no” with “perhaps” in a debate.

“The global village is the place where incompatible realities sit side by side on the bus,” Boyagoda said, in part quoting from Salman Rushdie’s The Satanic Verses. “In a global or globalized village, we often have incompatible realities side by side – in a classroom, in the Great Hall today,” Boyagoda said. “We all need to cultivate our version of ‘perhaps,’ an openness to something that seems otherwise ridiculous, impossible, wrong. We need to cultivate our ‘perhaps’ and it can be terrifying.

“In leaving today, I encourage all of you to consider: What's your ‘perhaps?’ How do you find a way to keep that space open? Because if you don't keep it open, then everything else is closed off.”

The conversation moved from George Orwell’s 1984 to Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale, touching on current protests in Iran, social upheaval in Sri Lanka and, in Canada, the Freedom Convoy protests that saw a heavier police presence at Queen’s Park and parts of �鶹��Ƶ’s St. George campus.

The panelists also explored censorship – both the censorship of others and the self-censorship that stifles honest and mutually demanding discourse because people fear blowback from those who disagree.

Tanenhaus asked Atwood how often she self-censors. “Well, I was badly brought up and I don't have a job, and that does influence what you feel you can say,” she said. “If you don't have a job, nobody can fire you and this is why writers who don't have jobs are often called upon to speak in public.”

The event at Hart House resonated with students, with tickets snatched up in less than 20 minutes (photo by Lisa Lightbourn)

The event was aimed at: engaging students in robust discussions and advanced research; fostering timely debates that prize the importance of free speech; and educating and challenging future leaders as they journey through their university years and prepare to join democratic public life in Canada and around the world.

Some of the takeaways were deceptively simple for such a complex topic. For example: Continue to have conversations; disagree, but debate; and – as Atwood urged – remember that the Wizard of Oz was just a man behind a curtain.

“What we have to watch out for is the deliberate creation of chaos because once you have chaos, everybody looks for a Mister Fix-it to, you know, help make the trains run on time,” she said. “I think we're seeing that in various places in the world and I think we have to guard against it, even closer to home.”

Boyagoda pointed out that students attending the event have demonstrated their engagement in combatting erosion when it comes to democracy. Simply put, they showed up.

“In recent memory, I can't remember a time when the Faculty of Arts & Science had hundreds of students show up for an event,” he said. “I think the primary interest, of course, is having a chance to hear Margaret's observations about the future of democracy, but you're also here because you're here with each other. Those are the little ways that you counteract the erosion of democracy.”

The conclusion? Ultimately, democracy is worth fighting for.

“Many of you recognize that democracy can't be taken for granted – here at home, south of the border and all around the world,” Woodin said. “I believe the university and the Faculty of Arts & Science have a fundamental responsibility to support democratic engagement, which we're doing right here, right now.”

�鶹��Ƶ grads offer career tips ahead of Next Steps Conference

geoff.vendeville — Wed, 19 Jan 2022 17:46:25 +0000

�鶹��Ƶ grads offer career tips ahead of Next Steps Conference

geoff.vendeville Wed, 01/19/2022 - 12:46

Cutline

�鶹��Ƶ graduates Madeleine Clark, Hyacinth Khin, Peng Leong, Chizoba Imoka and Tapfuma Musewe will share career advice at the Next Steps Conference this month (photos courtesy of the panelists)

Michael McKinnon

Topic

Our Community

Work well with others. Allow your career plans to evolve – and know that even “bad” jobs can help you grow.

These are just some of the tips that University of Toronto Faculty of Arts & Science students and recent graduates can expect to hear at this year’s Next Steps Conference, Jan. 25 to 27. The online event features a range of speakers, career exploration panels, personal and professional development seminars and networking opportunities all aimed at helping students launch their careers.

Five panelists, in fields ranging from pharmaceuticals to government, shared some advice for job seekers ahead of the conference.

Try new things and work well with others

“For your first job, join an organization where you have as many opportunities to learn and be exposed to as many aspects of the business as possible,” says Peng Leong, who will be participating in the Next Steps Success Isn’t a Straight Line panel.

Leong earned his bachelor of science degree at �鶹��Ƶ as a member of Trinity College followed by a PhD in biochemistry. He then earned a master of business administration from the University of California, Berkeley. He has worked in the pharmaceutical industry for more than 20 years, specializing in research, business development, strategy and finance, helping develop innovative drugs to treat severe human diseases.

His career started with his first post-university job. A �鶹��Ƶ degree is a great starting point, he says, because it opens doors to an exciting career path.

“Don’t be afraid to try things. Even if it turns out to be the wrong decision, you will learn something and it will lead to something better,” he says.

The real key to success? Work well with others.

“Most careers require interaction with people and teamwork. Important qualities are collaboration, accountability, trustworthiness and empathy,” he says.

Hyacinth Khin agrees. The �鶹��Ƶ political science and English graduate, who is now a senior strategic adviser at the Ontario Treasury Board Secretariat, will be speaking on another panel at the conference focusing on careers in public policy.

“I realized early on how important developing and maintaining relationships are when progressing down one's career path,” she says.

Re-strategize as your goals change

“I am also coming to the realization that career goalposts, as well as one's perception of their desirability and attainability, shift as one gains more experience,” says Khin, who also earned a post-baccalaureate certificate in public administration and leadership from Ryerson University and a master’s degree in public policy, administration and law from York University.

She offers a range of advice to recent grads depending on their goals. Those looking for a full-time, entry-level job in their field should consistently apply for jobs and aim to grow their network, she says. She also encourages early career job-seekers to prepare an elevator pitch and thoroughly research a company or industry they are interested in.

On the other hand, those who want to move up the ranks at their company should explore the educational professional requirements for their target roles, she says. Even more importantly, she adds, they should arrange information interviews with senior staff and executives in their organization.

Success takes many forms

Madeleine Clark, a �鶹��Ƶ almuna and naturopathic doctor who co-owns a women-focused health clinicin Toronto's west end, says each person has a different vision of success.

Some pursue careers they're passionate about, while other seek the flexibility to allow them to pursue passions outside work. Some are comfortable with riskier entrepreneurship opportunities, while others want financial stability. Clark, who co-owns Crafted Balance Naturopathic Clinic on Dundas Street West, will be speaking on a Next Steps panel focusing on health-care careers.

“My advice to students and recent alumni starting out in their careers is to not be married to the idea of how your career might exactly look,” says Clark, who majored in biology and global health at �鶹��Ƶ. She then earned her doctor of naturopathy from the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine. “Try new things, expect the unexpected and be open to opportunities and projects that at first glance might not be something you want to end up in.”

Chizoba Imoka, an education reform strategist and independent education consultant, also notes that success is subjective.

“Define what success means for you beyond your career. Keep your eyes on that vision of success but stay open to the multiple pathways toward reaching your success destination,” she says.

Imoka, who earned a PhD in education policy and leadership at �鶹��Ƶ, is featured on the Next Steps Young �鶹��Ƶ panel.

“While having a sense of what you want to do beyond graduation is extremely helpful, stay open because life happens! Don't worry about having all the answers or having your ideal career path figured out from the onset,” she says.

Adapt to the unexpected

Even “bad” jobs will help you grow, said Clark, the naturopathic doctor.

“Even a job you don’t love is an opportunity to learn,” she says. “I opened a business the day before the COVID-19 pandemic closed the province – having to pivot virtually and throw the entire marketing plan out the window was definitely not what we expected. I also didn’t expect how much I would love owning a business and thrive in the self-directed nature of it.”

Tapfuma Musewe says his career, too, went in an unexpected but positive direction. The managing director at private equity firm Raygan Mills, which invests in companies that provide essential goods and services to Africa's growing consumer segment, will be sitting on a panel about entrepreneurship.

Musewe obtained a bachelor of science degree in biology as a member of Innis College, a global executive master of business administration from �鶹��Ƶ and a master's degree in theology from the Akrofi-Christaller Institute. He mentors students through Innis College’s Black �鶹��Ƶ Mentorship Program.

“Where I am today is not where I thought I would be early in my career,” Musewe says, “but at the same time, where I am makes perfect sense and brings me a sense of fulfilment that I probably would have missed if I took a more predictable path.”

Preparing for the long journey ahead by anticipating these unexpected turns will help students and recent grads succeed, he says. He suggests setting professional and personal goals, while remaining aware that these may change.

“Your success will be largely dependent on your ability to navigate uncertainty. Get comfortable with it and seek to future-proof yourself with skills that will provide you with some stability,” he says. “Maybe most importantly, be involved in your community and build strong relationships. These relationships will prove to be invaluable resources in your life.”

With his PhD complete, �鶹��Ƶ grad to pursue career in drug discovery

Christopher.Sorensen — Mon, 15 Nov 2021 17:18:30 +0000

With his PhD complete, �鶹��Ƶ grad to pursue career in drug discovery

Christopher.Sorensen Mon, 11/15/2021 - 12:18

Cutline

Aaron Cabral worked in Professor Patrick Gunning's lab, where he developed new diagnostic methods for drug discovery, tuned drugs to improve their stability and selectivity, and rescued a failed clinical drug candidate (photo courtesy of Aaron Cabral)

Topic

Faculty of Arts & Science

Graduate Students

�鶹��Ƶ Mississauga

Aaron Cabral will earn his PhD in chemistry from the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Arts & Science this week after focusing his research on developing new diagnostic methods for drug discovery research in oncology and neurodegenerative diseases.

Under the supervision of Patrick Gunning, a professor in �鶹��Ƶ Mississauga’s department of chemical and physical sciences, Cabral also worked on a platform for chemically “tuning” drugs to improve their stability and selectivity.

The research helped Cabral rescue a previously failed clinical drug candidate for treatment-resistant cancers and patent technology that led to the creation of Dunad Therapeutics.

Cabral recently delivered a speedy overview of his work in �鶹��Ƶ’s annual Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition, in which graduate students present their research to non-specialist judges in just three minutes. He took third place.

He says the contest’s online format, necessary due to COVID-19, was interactive and allowed more people to watch the event. “I even had family members watch and cheer me on from their homes during the finals,” he says.

Writer Michael McKinnon recently caught up with Cabral to talk about his research and post-convocation plans.

Why did you decide to pursue your PhD at �鶹��Ƶ?

After completing my undergraduate degree at �鶹��Ƶ and exploring research through an honours thesis project, I knew I wanted to stay for my PhD. A lot of fascinating research was happening at the department of chemistry, and I especially wanted to stay at the lab I was in: the Gunning group. The lab and department had all the resources and infrastructure in place for me to be able to get real, meaningful results by the end of my PhD tenure. I also recognized how well-respected �鶹��Ƶ is globally and I knew the degree would hold high value.

How do you explain your work to people outside your field?

I developed new tools that enable researchers to better study and discover drugs for diseases such as cancer. Within drug discovery, the molecules we synthesize in the lab are tested against a biological target – most often a protein – that is associated with a disease. The tools I created assess whether the target protein is healthy or diseased, which we can use to see if our drugs are working as intended.

How will your work improve the lives of the average person?

My PhD research has provided new tools for the discovery of new drugs to treat cancer and other diseases. These tools should accelerate the drug discovery process and allow more drugs to get to clinical trials, potentially leading to more treatment options for debilitating diseases that affect many families. Our research in tools and techniques for making better drugs will help give every patient a better chance when faced with these life-threatening diseases.

Did your �鶹��Ƶ education help prepare you for your new role as business development manager at Dalriada Drug Discovery?

My �鶹��Ƶ education has provided me with extensive interdisciplinary knowledge of the drug discovery process, which has been extremely helpful in my new role. During my PhD, I was part of the entire drug discovery process, from the conception of a new drug and chemical synthesis in the lab to biological testing and pre-clinical animal studies. Contributing to these processes has solidified my understanding of the field and has enabled me to discuss the needs, challenges and overall big picture of drug discovery programs with our clients. Also, being part of the patenting process during my PhD has been very valuable for me in understanding the legal aspects of scientific discovery in my new career.

Can you talk about the patented technology you invented?

One of the elements I most appreciated about our lab and �鶹��Ƶ was the incentive to patent our discoveries so they could be further developed into meaningful medicines. We patented the useful technologies developed in the lab, which from my work included new diagnostic tools for diseases and a platform to create improved drugs. Some of these inventions are being further developed by newly emerging companies and may lead to real products that will help society in the fight against diseases.

What advice do you have for people considering a PhD in your field or elsewhere?

I am incredibly proud of having completed my PhD. I would recommend to everyone thinking about pursuing a PhD to get involved in research before committing to the large time investment. I would self-reflect and evaluate if your field is exciting to you, which I believe is where the motivation will come from. When you really enjoy your subject, the creativity and solutions to your research questions will come more naturally. However, research can still be tough – and failure does happen – so you need to come in with a good attitude and persistent mindset.

'Letters to Amelia': Alumna's debut novel features letter-writing, an aviation pioneer – and �鶹��Ƶ

Christopher.Sorensen — Mon, 27 Sep 2021 16:42:07 +0000

'Letters to Amelia': Alumna's debut novel features letter-writing, an aviation pioneer – and �鶹��Ƶ

Christopher.Sorensen Mon, 09/27/2021 - 12:42

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�鶹��Ƶ alumna and author Lindsay Zier-Vogel poses with Amelia Earhart’s Lockheed Vega 5B at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. (photo courtesy of Lindsay Zier-Vogel)

Topic

Faculty of Arts & Science

Humanities

Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library

�鶹��Ƶ Libraries

University College

Victoria College

University of Toronto alumna Lindsay Zier-Vogel began writing letters to Amelia Earhart long before her novel took flight.

After reading a biography of the missing pilot in 2001, Zier-Vogel found herself enamoured with Earhart’s flying, feminism and humanitarian work. Alone and lonely in Spain in the summer of 2005, she comforted herself by writing letters to Earhart, who had disappeared 68 years earlier.

“I missed Amelia. I felt connected to her, like I knew her,” says Zier-Vogel, who earned an honours bachelor of arts degree in English from �鶹��Ƶ’s Faculty of Arts & Science in 2005 as a member of Victoria College and a master’s degree in creative writing – also from �鶹��Ƶ – in 2007.

“I wrote to Amelia about the orange I’d eaten or about the guy who sold me coffee in the morning who looked like George Clooney – just these little snippets of my day. There was something about writing to somebody else that gave me this bigger creative space to play with than if I had just been keeping a journal.”

It was a pastime Zier-Vogel returned to sporadically over the years. Letters were published in the Filling Station, Taddle Creek and other literary publications that helped her get accepted into �鶹��Ƶ’s master’s program.

“Every few years, I would end up in this weird space and write another letter to Amelia,” she says. “The letters weren't entirely autobiographical, but they weren't entirely fictional either. They weren't poems; they lived in a space I didn't really understand for a long time.”

The letters eventually evolved into Letters to Amelia, published in September by Book*hug Press. The novel follows protagonist Grace as she writes her own letters to Earhart while struggling through challenging times. The novel takes Grace to Trepassey, N.L., where Earhart once stayed for three weeks in June 1928, and to Washington, D.C.’s Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, where Earhart’s Lockheed Vega 5B airplane is still displayed.

But most of the story takes place in and around �鶹��Ƶ’s St. George campus. In fact, Grace is a library technician at �鶹��Ƶ’s Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library.

“I just love the Fisher building. There is something about sitting at those desks with a tower of books above you that is as close to a religious experience as I've ever had,” she says.

“Amelia spent a lot of time here,” Zier-Vogel says, excitedly describing how Earhart had a stint as a nurse in a military hospital that is now the John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design building; how the field at University College was once peppered with airplanes; and how the library Earhart frequented is now the Koffler Student Services Centre.

“I felt like she was literally still there,” Zier-Vogel says of her own time at �鶹��Ƶ. “I’d walk through the field where they'd had airplanes and where the pilots had been, and she was very much still there, so this story had to be there, too.”

Zier-Vogel was a poet – not a pilot – when she arrived at �鶹��Ƶ for her undergrad. Having already studied at the School of Toronto Dance Theatre, she immersed herself in Canadian fiction and poetry courses. Thanks to several scholarships and bursaries, including the David St. John Bare Award in 2003, the Woodsworth College Scholarship Fund in 2003, the Victoria College In-Course Scholarship in 2004 and a Victoria College bursary in 2005, she was able to focus entirely on her education.

“Having those scholarships and bursaries was huge because I had no other financial support,” she recalls. “I had initially been working full time and going to school full time, and it was really hard to do both.”

An airplane on Front Campus in 1918 (photo by G. R. Anderson/University of Toronto Archives)

Zier-Vogel’s writing developed through a creative writing workshop led by Lynn Crosbie, an adjunct professor with the department of English, who expanded Zier-Vogel’s ability to find inspiration, taught her to play with meter and ultimately encouraged her to apply to the master’s program in creative writing. There, she took her first fiction courses and worked with Anne Michaels, an adjunct professor of English and author of Fugitive Pieces.

Michaels remembers Zier-Vogel as an attentive and engaged student.

“She was warm, gracious and beginning to envision the kind of literature she wanted to make,” says Michaels, whose praise for Letters to Amelia is included on the back cover.

“She was keenly receptive to all she was learning and began to clarify what was important to her as a writer. She began to define a purpose – to encourage compassion and hope in a reader. There is a gentleness to Lindsay’s work that is not naive. In these times, such a gentle voice is rare in fiction. She understands – and wants her readers to understand – that tenderness is strength.”

While Zier-Vogel is now finishing the draft on her second novel – featuring a protagonist who was a �鶹��Ƶ student – she’s still marveling on the magic of finishing her first.

“It's really exciting – sometimes I can't believe it,” Zier-Vogel says of seeing Letters to Amelia published. “Working with an editor was so exciting. I have a writing group and we work together all the time, but there's something about working with an editor and talking about my totally imagined world that is surreal. It feels like I’m talking about real things, except it's all in my head. It is really exciting to multiply that by many more people reading it.”

In just four hours, �鶹��Ƶ alumnus Zain Manji co-created an app to help Canadians find vaccine clinics

Christopher.Sorensen — Mon, 31 May 2021 19:01:40 +0000

In just four hours, �鶹��Ƶ alumnus Zain Manji co-created an app to help Canadians find vaccine clinics

Christopher.Sorensen Mon, 05/31/2021 - 15:01

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Working with co-developer Ashish Yelekar, �鶹��Ƶ alumnus Zain Manji developed an app that allows Canadians to text their postal codes to receive information about the three nearest vaccine clinics (photo by Yiu Yu Hoi/Getty Images)

Topic

Faculty of Arts & Science

Innis College

Equipped with a computer science and economics degree and driven by an urge to help, University of Toronto alumnus Zain Manji recently set out to see how quickly he could solve some of the confusion around COVID-19 vaccine availability.

Just four hours later, Find My Vaccine was born.

“The response has been really, really great,” says Manji, who earned his honours bachelor of science in 2016 as a member of Innis College and developed Find My Vaccine with Ashish Yelekar.

“We get a ton of messages daily thanking us for making this tool, saying it’s made it so much easier to book a COVID vaccine. All these messages really make us feel great and it's super, super fulfilling.”

Zain Manji

Find My Vaccine is simple: Users input or text their postal code to 1-833-356-1683 and immediately receive the addresses of the three nearest vaccine clinics. The site launched May 7 in Ontario and British Columbia and expanded to the rest of Canada on May 12, racking up more than 130,000 users in the first five days alone. Word spread in part through media coverage in the Toronto Star and CTV News.

It’s his first pandemic-related app, but, since 2019, Manji has been putting his computer science and economics background to good use with Lazer Technologies, the company he founded. With a team of product engineers with backgrounds from Facebook, Google, Instagram, Apple and more, Lazer has built digital products for such companies as the Weather Network, RBC and Air Miles.

Before that, he co-founded – and since sold – Fiix, a company that brought licensed mechanics to people’s homes for car repairs.

“Over the years, people absolutely loved the service,” Manji wrote of Fiix in September 2019. “We serviced over 8,000 customers, received over 500 5-star reviews, landed clients like Uber and Car2Go, helped mechanics earn twice the industry average, and overall, made the process of getting your car fixed significantly better than the standard.”

In 2017, he was one of four �鶹��Ƶ developers named to the Developer 30 Under 30 list. The list, which celebrates Canada's next generation of software stars, was put together by Plastic Mobile and developers were profiled in Canadian Business magazine.

�鶹��Ƶ wasn’t all work and no play, though. Manji was also the 2016 University of Toronto Male Athlete of the Year and the 2013-2016 Ontario University Tennis Singles Champion.

Today, he credits the combination of his two majors at �鶹��Ƶ for much of his success.

“Computer science and economics are a great pair. When you're building an actual business, those two come in handy quite a bit – how to build a product but also how to grow a product,” he says.

“On the computer science side, you can really relate well because you know how to build a product and to build it in the right way – you learn how to build a product so that users love it. And on the economic side, you have everything that supplements the growth of your product. And both of those things really, really match well.”

Despite the success of Find My Vaccine, Manji says he hopes it’s the only COVID-19 app he makes.

“I'm hoping this whole COVID thing ends soon, so I don't want to plan another app, to be honest.”

With a focus on Indigenous issues, Riley Yesno makes an impact at �鶹��Ƶ and beyond

lanthierj — Wed, 17 Mar 2021 19:45:54 +0000

With a focus on Indigenous issues, Riley Yesno makes an impact at �鶹��Ƶ and beyond

lanthierj Wed, 03/17/2021 - 15:45

Cutline

Riley Yesno, who is set to become the first Indigenous member of her family to graduate from university, has compiled a long list of achievements beyond the classroom (photo courtesy of Riley Yesno)

Michael McKinnon

Topic

Our Community

Faculty of Arts & Science

University of Toronto undergraduate student Riley Yesno has participated in more than 100 panels, workshops and conferences, delivered a keynote address at the World Forum on Gender Equality and a TEDx talk on Canadian identity.

And she's just getting started.

Growing up Anishinaabe as a member of the Eabametoong First Nation living in Thunder Bay, Ont., Yesno belongs to the first generation in Canada to avoid residential school, where so many Indigenous children were sent by the Canadian government to be stripped of their culture until 1996.

In June, she’ll be the first Indigenous member of her family to graduate from a university.

“My grandparents did not go to university, but they were residential school survivors. School for them has been a very complicated place and system. I look at intergenerational cycles and see how education was a very violent tool for them,” says Yesno, a Faculty of Arts & Science student who will graduate with an honours bachelor of arts in political science and Indigenous studies in June as a member of Victoria College.

“Education is now something that – despite what struggles I might face in university – really does empower me and is something I love.”

Yesno recently received the President’s Award for Outstanding Indigenous Student of the Year, an award that recognizes her impressive academic record and an almost impossible list of achievements beyond the classroom. The many panels, workshops and conferences she's particpated in also include a young women’s panel at the UN Conference on Climate Change’s 24th Conference of the Parties in Katowice, Poland, and the Institute on Governance’s Nation-to-Nation Dialogue Series.

“I really embraced very early on the fact that my life as a 20-year-old maybe isn't the stereotypical image of a 20-year-old in other people's minds,” she says. “I was always travelling, and I definitely did not sleep as much as I probably should have – but it was all so rewarding.”

William Robins, president of Victoria University, met Yesno soon after she arrived at �鶹��Ƶ and discussed how the Indigenous practice of smudging could be accommodated on campus.

“Riley Yesno is one of the most impressive young people I have encountered in my 25 years as a teacher and administrator at the University of Toronto,” Robins says.

“A generous, highly engaged young Anishinaabe woman, able to connect deeply with a wide range of audiences, Riley is emerging as one of Canada’s most articulate observers of Indigenous affairs and one of our most compelling new voices calling for understanding and justice.”

Yesno almost didn’t come to �鶹��Ƶ. At 17, she was still considering art school. Her eyes were opened to a different future after being appointed to the Prime Minister’s Youth Council in 2017.

“For the first time in my life, I was thrust into the political world and policy-making, and it really lit a fire in me. I realized I could be happy being an artist, but that this is probably where more of my passion lies,” she recalls.

Riley Yesno was appointed to the Prime Minister’s Youth Council in 2017 (photo courtesy of Riley Yesno)

Toronto is very different from Thunder Bay and Yesno’s transition wasn’t seamless. Finding herself and staying connected with her community in a city in which she was no longer surrounded by Indigenous culture was a challenge.

“Coming to Toronto was interesting. I knew I wanted to be here; it was time for me to spread my wings a bit and get out of Thunder Bay, but it was really jarring to leave Thunder Bay where the population is almost 30 per cent Indigenous and very hyper-visible, and then come to Toronto where there's so much diversity that a small population like the Indigenous population can very easily become invisible.”

The uncomfortable irony of being a member of Victoria College didn’t go unnoticed by Yesno, either. Named after Queen Victoria, it offered a constant reminder of colonization and the roots of the residential school system.

“Big pictures of the queen, colonial castles and pillars – colonization is not just this abstract thing in the back of your mind when you're living in that environment,” she says. “It's very present.”

It wasn’t until her third year that Yesno felt she’d fully re-established her connection to her community and culture, thanks to �鶹��Ƶ’s First Nations House, which supports academic success, personal growth and leadership development through culturally relevant services to Indigenous students.

“I love First Nations House,” she says. “I recommend it to every Indigenous student going into the university. For some reason, I was a little bit stubborn in my first few years and I didn't go. For those first few years, I was struggling to find community, and then finally I went and I never stopped going. Any day of the week, you could easily find me at First Nations House.”

Riley Yesno at �鶹��Ƶ’s First Nations House (photo by Lisa Macintosh)

Yesno will soon celebrate another education first in her family – pursuing grad school. She starts her PhD in the department of political science in September, with a concentration in Canadian politics. During that time, she’ll continue her speaking engagements and work on her book about the reconciliation era in Canada and the role of youth specifically, but her long-term career goals are still unwritten.

“The support I received online was not at all expected: Hundreds of messages; people really cheering me on,” Yesno says. “It reminded me how many people I don't even think about are in my corner.

“It reminds me that things like achieving a PhD or just being able to graduate are just as much a collective win as it is an individual one.”

Islam in the City: �鶹��Ƶ literary magazine shares students' stories

Christopher.Sorensen — Wed, 09 Sep 2020 15:36:44 +0000

Islam in the City: �鶹��Ƶ literary magazine shares students' stories

Christopher.Sorensen Wed, 09/09/2020 - 11:36

Cutline

Published by �鶹��Ƶ's Institute of Islamic Studies, Islam in the City gives students a forum to explore the complexities and nuances of all things Islamic (photo via the Institute of Islamic Studies)

Michael McKinnon

Topic

City & Culture

Institute of Islamic Studies

Cities

Faculty of Arts & Science

A new University of Toronto literary magazine is empowering students to share their stories of what it means to be Muslim in Toronto – everything from takes on casual streetwear and evening shifts at local coffee houses to Islam among the city’s bubble tea shops and sports bars.

Published by the Institute of Islamic Studies in the Faculty of Arts & Science, Islam in the City  gives students a forum to explore the complexities and nuances of everything that falls under the broad term “Islamic.”

“We want to showcase that Muslims don’t just experience life as Muslims in the mosque, [but] that we’re just as likely to find Muslims and Islamic moments at the CN Tower, a cafe or the movie theatre,” explains Andrew Mackin, Islam in the City’s editor-in-chief. “We want to challenge the dominant narrative of what Islam is.”

Mackin earned an honours bachelor’s degree in history and religion in 2018 as a member of Trinity College, and is now a master’s student in contemporary Middle Eastern, Arabic and Islamic studies. He helped create the e-magazine to provide an outlet for all students, regardless of whether they are affiliated with the Institute of Islamic Studies.

“I saw how the institute excels at the research and academic aspect of Islamic studies – and that’s great – but I started wondering if there was a way for Muslim students who aren’t in Islamic studies to still see themselves represented,” Mackin says. “This magazine is a place through which Muslim students – first at �鶹��Ƶ but now expanding to other schools across the GTA – can share their stories, have their voices heard and see themselves represented in the work the institute does.

“We wanted to create a space where the students themselves are their own authority to tell the kind of stories they want to tell.”

Andrew Mackin (left) and Anver Emon (right) created Islam in the City in hopes of helping Muslim students across Toronto feel connected (photo courtesy of Andrew Mackin)

The first issue, “A Love Letter,” features five stories. some feature traditional images of Muslim students in the GTA, while others share less common experiences. “Stillness in the City” sees prayer and meditation wedged in between subway rides, criminology classes and evening coffee shop shifts, while “Salaam” describes grabbing chicken from the butcher shop and using a mobile app reminder for prayer.

“We were really happy with the writers who submitted their work; it’s a great sample of the student body,” Mackin says.

Alina Butt earned her honours bachelor of arts degree in criminology and sociolegal studies and English from �鶹��Ƶ in 2018 as a member of Woodsworth College. Her story, “A New Love,” playfully explores her own troubled “romance” with Islam, beginning with the juxtaposition of the Toronto Islamic Centre for many years sitting next to Seduction, one of Toronto’s largest adult stores.

“My piece was an exercise in reflecting upon what I thought of myself, which was a good reminder of the ways I have grown and still can,” says Butt. “At the same time, picking the right words to convey exactly what I wanted to was painstaking, largely in relation to what I was comfortable with sharing – in particular with my family.

“We are not the most intimate or personal with each other, so I wanted to respect our relationship while also accurately portraying my difficulties, especially since it is really important to me to see depictions of being Muslim that are different from what is expected within our communities. That includes doubt, difficulty and even change over time.”

As a newcomer to Toronto, she says the city ultimately helped her better connect with Islam.

“When I moved here, the city played a big part in helping me refigure my relationship to my roots; it still does,” she says. “I think the many different Muslim communities can benefit from hearing stories about each of our experiences to learn, relate and reflect. By doing so, we can see what has shaped us and how we can continue to shape our relationships to ourselves and each other.”

Alina Butt, a �鶹��Ƶ alumna, wrote a piece for for Islam in the City about how Toronto helped her reconnect with her faith (photo courtesy of Alina Butt)

The call for submissions has closed for Islam in the City’s next two issues, the first of which will be published this fall. The next issue will be COVID-19-themed, addressing how isolation and social distancing have impacted Muslim student life, faith and communities. The third issue will showcase the voices of Black Muslim students in response to recent violence and protests, especially in the United States. Both issues accepted submissions from Muslim students at universities across the GTA.

Anver Emon, director of the Institute of Islamic Studies and a professor in the Faculty of Law, says he is grateful Mackin recognized a gap in its programming that led to the creation of Islam in the City.

“Andrew’s effort has created a remarkable venue that adapts to our quickly changing world,” Emon says. “His educational trajectory gives him an appreciation of the nuanced development that undergrads go through as they grow and mature through their program – something that we older academics forget or don’t always appreciate. Islam in the City is perfectly calibrated to give voice to and nurture the expression of undergrads who have something to teach us all.”

In memoriam: Donald 'Digger' Gorman, beloved �鶹��Ƶ Earth sciences professor

Christopher.Sorensen — Tue, 01 Sep 2020 15:17:10 +0000

In memoriam: Donald 'Digger' Gorman, beloved �鶹��Ƶ Earth sciences professor

Christopher.Sorensen Tue, 09/01/2020 - 11:17

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Donald Gorman poses with images of his time in the Royal Canadian Navy during the Second World War (photo courtesy of Kevin Van Paassen/Sunnybrook)

Topic

Faculty of Arts & Science

One of those special bright stars. Extremely knowledgeable – the original Google before Google was invented. A remarkable colleague and friend. The perfect gentleman.

Those are just some of the ways friends and colleagues described Donald “Digger” Gorman, who died earlier this year at the age of 98. Before he retired, Gorman had taught in the the University of Toronto’s department of Earth sciences (then Geology) in the Faculty of Arts & Science for more than 40 years.

“Professor Gorman was a truly remarkable colleague and friend,” remembers Jeff Fawcett, emeritus professor in the department of Earth sciences.

“His impact on students as a teacher, mentor and friend set a standard that many would try to emulate but none could match. He was interested in students as people, especially if they showed any interest in minerals, mineral exploration and geology. He opened doors for them in terms of summer and permanent employment.

“He was friendly, relaxed, approachable and would always make time to hear their views.”

Born in Fredericton, N.B in 1922, Gorman earned a bachelor of science degree at the University of New Brunswick in 1947 before studying economic geology as a Beaverbrook Scholar at the Royal School of Mines in London, England from 1948 to 1949 – a degree that was interrupted briefly by his service in the Royal Canadian Navy during the Second World War. He’d become enthralled by minerals at UNB and arrived in Toronto with a $500 scholarship cheque and two letters of recommendation from the school’s professors.

“When I got up here, I had my eyes wide open as to just how advanced �鶹��Ƶ was,” Gorman recalled a few years ago. On the advice of �鶹��Ƶ’s world-renowned mineralogy professor, Martin Peacock and others, Gorman took six undergraduate courses to ensure he was up to speed.

“I guess I did, shall I say, so well in the undergraduate courses that Professor Peacock said it wouldn’t be necessary for me to take a master’s degree,” Gorman recalled. “He wouldn’t hold me up and put me directly into the PhD program. That started me out in 1948 as a full-fledged graduate student under the world-renowned Professor Peacock.”

He earned his PhD in 1957 from �鶹��Ƶ, where he would teach mineralogy for 41 years.

He will be remembered for setting students up for their geoscience careers with the skills to recognize the important common minerals – as well as the less common ones, says John Gittins, �鶹��Ƶ emeritus professor who enjoyed a 60-year friendship with Gorman.

“His approach was that it was all very well to send back a mineral you could not identify in the field for identification with a million dollars’ worth of instrumentation, but if it was chalcopyrite that you had confused with pyrite, the error might have cost your company a mine and you could expect to be drawing unemployment insurance soon,” Gittins says. “He stressed the practical needs of a mining exploration geologist. Decades of our graduates have taken with them that skill.”

It wasn’t just these practical lessons that set him apart, but also his listening skills and desire to help students excel.

“Digger was a great listener and it is one of the many traits students remember and loved him for. His door was never closed when he was in the department,” Gittins recalls. “His time was yours for as long as was needed. A comforting arm around the shoulder sent many a student back to facing whatever had brought them to see him.”

Earth sciences Professor Ed Spooner (left( with Donald Gorman (right).

Beyond �鶹��Ƶ, Gorman was a popular lecturer at the Royal Ontario Museum and the Walker Mineralogical Club, the oldest mineral club in Canada, which named him its honourary president in 1981. In 2009, he was inducted into the Canadian Mining Hall of Fame after being nominated by his long-time friend and colleague Fawcett.

In 1981, the International Mineralogical Association approved the name “Gormanite” for a newly discovered mineral. In 2004, he was included on �鶹��Ƶ’s list of Great Teachers from the Past, a select group of 96 former faculty members that includes only one other Earth scientist.

Gorman’s impact on students and the mining field will continue through the D.H. Gorman Explorers Fund Graduate Scholarship. Created in 2009 by alumnus Keith Barron to honour his beloved former professor, the scholarship provides undergraduate and graduate Earth sciences students with much-needed funding so they can focus on their studies and continue their research.

“I am so very pleased and delighted that students have benefitted from the scholarship, and have been able to support their studies and remain in Earth sciences,” says Barron, who received his bachelor of science in Earth sciences in 1985 and established the Gorman scholarship in 2009. “Digger's legacy is alive and well.” 

Predeceased by his wife Reta, Gorman a proud father of five children and is fondly remembered by his 10 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren.

In addition to her studies, �鶹��Ƶ grad finds time to support women in the workplace

Christopher.Sorensen — Wed, 27 May 2020 20:09:06 +0000

In addition to her studies, �鶹��Ƶ grad finds time to support women in the workplace

Christopher.Sorensen Wed, 05/27/2020 - 16:09

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(photo courtesy of Sara Imran)

Michael McKinnon

Topic

Our Community

Convocation 2020

Diversity and Inclusion

Faculty of Arts & Science

Sara Imran kept busy during her time at the University of Toronto.

While earning her honours bachelor of arts degree – with a double major in political science and English literature – as a member of Trinity College, she co-founded WomINclusive to promote the inclusion of women in leadership roles; received Trinity College’s Neil Reid McLeod Scholarship to study for a semester at the University of Edinburgh; and was awarded a �鶹��Ƶ Excellence Award for research in the social sciences and humanities to support her work as a research assistant this summer. Amid all that, she graduated with high distinction.

Imran recently caught up with Arts & Science writer Michael McKinnon to reflect on her accomplishments and plans following convocation.

You were the first woman in your family to graduate from a university outside Pakistan. Why �鶹��Ƶ?

Part of my goal is to go back to Pakistan someday, so I chose a university that would be recognized globally. I had some idea of what I wanted to study, but I wanted a university good in all subjects – not just one – in case I changed my mind, and �鶹��Ƶ checked that box. �鶹��Ƶ has a great international reputation and excellent professors.

How did you find the Canadian winters?

Compared to what everyone hyped it up to be, it was not as bad as I expected. Where I grew up in Karachi, Pakistan, it’s humid and hot. Our winters are like a Canadian fall, so it was nice to experience a different kind of winter.

You also spent a semester studying at the University of Edinburgh – how was that?

The universities are similar – large, world-renowned and with great professors. I’m grateful to have had the opportunity to travel around Europe and meet and befriend people from all over the world while studying at Edinburgh.

Tell me about WomINclusive, the �鶹��Ƶ club you co-founded to increase female representation in the workforce.

There are so few women in leadership positions, especially women of colour, so my friend and I started WomINnclusive to hold panel discussions, networking events and a speaker series to help students connect with women in leadership positions, get advice and succeed in careers in corporate, nonprofit and government sectors.

Did you arrive at �鶹��Ƶ with that passion or did it develop here?

It was with me from the start, but it developed further while I was studying at �鶹��Ƶ. Where I’m from, the country and culture don’t provide a lot of opportunities for women beyond the traditional role of mother or caregiver. While these roles are extremely important, I think it is also necessary to provide more professional opportunities for women.

How are you celebrating your graduation?

My friend and I are going to watch the virtual convocation ceremony together, put up a few balloons and decorations and talk to family back home.

What’s next?

I’m working for the summer as a research assistant at �鶹��Ƶ’s Ontario Institute for Studies in Education on a project on emotions and narratives of racial and national belonging within politics until August. I’ve received an offer from an information services consulting firm in Montreal for the fall. I’m excited to start; there’s a lot of research work involved in the role. Ultimately, I may think about graduate school.

Firm founded by �鶹��Ƶ alumnus to supply Ontario with nearly one million portable COVID-19 test kits

Christopher.Sorensen — Fri, 03 Apr 2020 16:26:30 +0000

Firm founded by �鶹��Ƶ alumnus to supply Ontario with nearly one million portable COVID-19 test kits

Christopher.Sorensen Fri, 04/03/2020 - 12:26

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(photo courtesy of Spartan Bioscience)

Topic

Faculty of Arts & Science

Startups

University College

Update May 4, 2020: Health Canada has said it wants to run additional testing on Spartan Bioscience's test kit

The Government of Ontario is purchasing nearly one million portable COVID-19 test kits from Spartan Bioscience, a biotech firm led by a University of Toronto alumnus.

The portable Spartan Cubes, which drew the attention of the federal government last month, can provide results in as little as 30 minutes.

“We think portable, rapid COVID-19 testing will be important to help control the pandemic,” says Paul Lem, CEO of Spartan Bioscience. “It is gratifying to see a made-in-Canada solution helping Canadians.”

Spartan’s announcement of its plan to provide more than 900,000 kits to Ontario follows news of a $9.5-million contract between Spartan and Alberta Health Services for 250 handheld devices and 100,000 test kits. Both purchases are pending Health Canada approval, with the first shipments expected to arrive next month.

“We think it’s a game changer,” says Lem, who earned his bachelor of science in human biology from �鶹��Ƶ’s Faculty of Arts & Science in 1998 as a member of University College. He received his medical degree from the University of Ottawa in 2002 before returning to �鶹��Ƶ’s medical microbiology residency program.

By adapting the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s COVID-19 DNA test to its own Spartan Cube, Spartan Bioscience is bringing portable testing to remote locations across the country – and ultimately around the world.

The Cube is a small box-like device that collects and analyzes DNA without the need to send samples to a traditional lab, making it ideal for in-field diagnostic testing.

“This is our whole reason for existing,” says Lem. “Our mission has always been to bring DNA testing out of the lab and into these portable personal DNA analyzers.”