Celebrating a Remarkable Career: Dr. Kumaraswamy Ponnambalam’s Retirement Celebration

The Systems Design Engineering (SYDE) community gathered December 12 in E7 to honour Professor Kumaraswamy Ponnambalam, fondly known as Ponnu, for a heartfelt retirement celebration. The event, filled with laughter, memories, and a touch of Ponnu’s signature wisdom, marked a new phase for his role at Waterloo after over 35 years.   

Ponnu baffled attendees by trying to lecture (with graphs) on how models for “decision-making under uncertainty” could be applied to his retirement income.  His reflections with characteristic hard-hitting reflection on his time at the university included a graph of how global wealth distribution had skewed the wealthy in his time at UWaterloo. Acknowledging the support he has received throughout his career, he praised his students stating, "My PhD students give me so much of their effort, love, time, and discussions. I am thankful for them."  He concluded with an inspiring reminder: "Don’t stop learning." 

Numerous retired colleagues, former students and current collaborators commemorated the occasion with many candid moments including Ponnu’s daughter, Canmanie (one of Ponnu’s 4 children), presenting a book of letters from around the world of people thanking and congratulating Ponnu. Many in attendance joined Ponnu and his wife Tuiley to take a Spanish dance lesson – a request from Ponnu as he wanted to celebrate his time with dance! 

Thank you, Ponnu —you will be deeply missed!