Thursday, November 3, 2016

Traveling to the ends of the earth for cultural understanding

by Chantal Vallis.

There is a great amount of truth in the adage, “travelling can give you a new perspective on life.” The twelve students who recently returned from Waterloo International’s Explore Southern Africa program certainly agree. The group represented faculties from across the University and had the option of gaining credit or use the program towards the Global Experience Certificate, but most joined the month long adventure with the ultimate goal of increasing their global awareness.

Before they left, the group participated in an extensive pre-departure course, which covered important logistical and cultural considerations. However, some experiences are impossible to prepare for and prove to be the highlights of trip. Like visiting Robben Island to learn about its multilayered history, which includes being used as a maximum Security Prison where many of South Africa’s freedom fighters, including Nelson Mandela, were incarcerated for years. Or learning how land claims and apartheid still have ripple effects in Namibia by touring Windhoek’s informal settlements in Katutura, where thousands of the city’s black population was forcibly resettled in the 1960s.   

These two experiences, along with many others, helped students to cultivate a broader worldview and in addition to the cultural excursions, the students also learned about South African and Namibian history and volunteered at early education facilities like the Bernard Nordkamp Centre. These experiences outside of the classroom helped the students gain first-hand work experience addressing social issues. Eunize, a participant through the Faculty of Environment concurs: “The trip provided me with an amazing experience, where I was able to grow and cultivate my interest in the development field. The program provided first-hand experience on the societal issues that plague Southern Africa and gave me a perspective that I would not have gotten in a classroom.”

In her reflections on the trip, co-trip facilitator and Global Learning Coordinator Ibi Brown, notes how impressive it is to witness students developing as global citizens. “It’s amazing to watch students become more culturally aware and not only learn about issues that exist outside of North America, but to hear about them from a non-Western perspective.”

Now the group of twelve are back in classes with a fresh new perspective that they can bring to their studies. As for Ibi and the rest of the Global Learning Coordinators, they are busy preparing for another set of students applying to international opportunities. For more information about international mobility programs and how you can get involved, please email studyabroad@uwaterloo.ca and visit Waterloo International’s website.

Research University of the Year, again

The University of Waterloo is Research University of the Year among Canadian comprehensive universities nine years running, according to rankings recently released by Research Infosource.

The designation under Canada’s Top 50 Research Universities is based on performance of a balanced set of input, output, and impact measures and recognizes superior achievement in both earning research income and publishing research in leading scientific journals. Waterloo ranked 12^th among Canada’s top 50 research universities on the 2016 list for sponsored research income with $180 million.

"The University of Waterloo continues to define research innovation in Canada with high-impact transformational research that changes lives and advances industries around the world," said Feridun Hamdullahpur. "We’re proud to receive this recognition for the ninth year in a row as it demonstrates the breadth of interdisciplinary research at Waterloo, and the impact it is having around the world."

As Research Infosource marks 15 years of ranking Canadian universities, Waterloo placed second for total research income with $1.9 billion and first for the highest number of research publications (over 26,000) during the last 15 years among comprehensive universities, as calculated by Research Infosource. Waterloo was also named third for publications growth and research income growth during the last 15 years.

These results represent another example of Waterloo’s excellent performance in global rankings. Waterloo moved up in the Times Higher Education (THE) world university ranking from 179 last year to 173 this year. Waterloo maintained its position in both the Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) ranking at 152^nd in the world, and in the Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU) in the 201-300 ranking band. Earlier this year, QS ranked Waterloo 26^th in the world for Computer Science, 29^th in Mathematics, and 45^th for Geography. THE ranked Waterloo 23^rd in the world for Computer Science, and ARWU ranked Waterloo 24^thin the world in Electrical Engineering and 32^nd in the world for Energy Science. US News and World Global Ranking of Universities ranked Waterloo 1st in Canada for Computer Science and Engineering.

Considered one of Canada's leading consulting firms for organizations with interests in science, technology, and innovation, Research Infosource ranks top research universities in three categories: Medical/Doctoral, Comprehensive, and Undergraduate. The group measures institutions based on research input and output/impact.

HeForShe Ideathon and other notes

"Globally, 1 in 3 women face a form of violence, and on campuses, students typically experience violence from other students," says a statement from the Special Advisor to the President – Women’s and Gender Issues. "The best solutions to on-campus violence come from students themselves!"

Students are invited to attend the HeForShe Ideathon on Tuesday, November 29 from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. in DC 1568 to collaborate with fellow students of the University of Waterloo to share and create innovative solutions to end gender-based violence on campus. Specifically, the facilitators and attendees will explore the question: how would you create a culture of transparency and transformation on university campuses to end gender-based violence?

The event is free to attend, and dinner will be served. Please register by Friday, November 11.

St. Jerome's University and the HeForShe campaign present author Erin Wunker of Acadia University this afternoon at an event called "Confessions of a Feminist Killjoy" that takes place at 2:30 p.m. in SJ1-3014. The event is free and open to all.

The Benjamin Eby Lecture will take place tonight at 7:30 p.m. in the Conrad Grebel University College chapel and will feature Professor Jeremy Bergen delivering remarks entitled “Christians Killing Christians: Martyrdom and the Disunity of the Church.” This lecture will examine whether and how narratives of Christian martyrs may advance Christian unity and further the work of reconciliation more broadly.

Women in Engineering is sponsoring a Quantum Exhibition Trip at THE MUSEUM featuring a talk by Martin Laforest from the Institute for Quantum Cimputing on “Every day Quantum: from Environment to Health Care.” The event takes place Wednesday, November 9, with the bus departing from outside the Davis Centre at 6:00 p.m. All engineering students are welcome.

"Human Resources would like to acknowledge that the following position should have been included in Wednesday’s Positions Available list," says a message from HR. "We apologize for the error."

• Job ID# 2016-1300 – Department Administrator – Pure Mathematics, USG 6/7