Monday, May 14, 2018


Introducing the Waterloo Digital Library

Professor Don Cowan (seated) demonstrates a computer to an audience of high school students in this scanned photograph from 1965 available from the Waterloo Digital Library collection.

Professor Don Cowan (seated) demonstrates a computer to an audience of high school students in this scanned photograph from 1965 available from the Waterloo Digital Library collection.

The Waterloo Digital Library (WDL) is a new and easy-to-use repository for exploring select items from the Library’s Special Collections & Archives (SCA). Curious about the University of Waterloo’s history? Want to know how Kitchener-Waterloo has changed over time? The WDL can help!

Managed through a partnership with SCA and the Library’s Digital Initiatives (DI) department, the WDL includes items from the University of Waterloo Bibliography, digitized images from the Kitchener-Waterloo Record Photographic Negative Collection and archival collections documenting the region’s history – as featured in the Waterloo Region Record. There are currently over 2,000 images and documents discoverable by students, researchers, or those just wanting a "cool pic" …something Digital Archivist Danielle Robichaud recognizes is a popular point of interest.

Although the site will continue to grow over time, not everything will be added to the WDL - items that are fragile, highly-used or support teaching and learning at Waterloo will be prioritized. The Head of SCA, Nick Richbell, explains that department staff still want to help people “experience the wonder of touching this material.” From an instructional standpoint, associate professor Ian Milligan sees the potential for this resource to inspire a new generation of students, “many have a real interest in the University's history - how Waterloo was different in the 1960s, for example, or how our unique student culture evolved.”

A scanned cover of an 1968 issue of the University of Waterloo Quarterly, showing off then then-new Campus Centre Great Hall.While DI staff work on enhancing the site’s functionality, moving toward hosting new types of digital content, Robichaud is managing the digitization and ingestion of archival materials. Recent additions include early student publications Math Medium and the Arts Lion. Work on the WDL will continue over the years, providing global access to the archives in a more efficient and accessible way, increasing their discoverability, use and impact. You can help the Library continuously improve the WDL by providing your feedback.

Learn more about the Waterloo Digital Library on Library News, or by visiting Special Collections & Archives.

New Sustainability Certificate offered to all University employees

Sustainability Certificate image showing campus green space with icons superimposed.

The Sustainability Office is excited to announce the offering of a Sustainability Certificate to all University employees. This series of in-class courses is intended to help Waterloo embed sustainability into campus culture, one of the major goals of the University’s Environmental Sustainability Strategy.

“Talking with employees around campus, there is clearly an interest in sustainability,” says Mat Thijssen, Waterloo’s Sustainability Manager. “Only about one-in-three staff respondents in our 2016 campus-wide survey felt well-informed about sustainability issues, but over 70% wanted to learn more. This is certainly an opportunity area.”

First piloted during the winter term, this series includes seven modules that cover key local and global sustainability issues, what Waterloo is doing and where it’s headed, and tools and resources for employees to integrate sustainability into their own departments and beyond.

For more information and to register for the spring term, visit the Sustainability Certificate webpage.

Professors named to labour council expert panel

The Labour Market Information Council (LMIC) has named Waterloo professors Ellen MacEachen and Ana Ferrer to a newly formed 14-person Labour Market Information Experts Panel.

The members are drawn from across the country and include academics from universities such as the University of Ottawa, New Brunswick and the Université de Montréal, as well as other industry experts. The LMIC created the panel to help guide the development, evolution and priorities of the Council.

MacEachen, professor and associate director in the School of Public Health and Health Systems, researches the design and performance of work and health systems in relation to fast-changing economic, social and technological environments of the global economy. Ferrer, an Economics professor and incoming Associate Dean of Arts, Research, examines the economic implications of immigration, education and family economics.

The LMIC identifies cross-Canadian priorities for the collection, analysis and distribution of labour market information, and helps get better value from existing labour market information investments across Canada. It also fosters the exploration of new opportunities for collaboration between governments and stakeholders.

Monday's notes

The annual UW Blooms takes place in the Student Life Centre's Multipurpose Room today from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Bring your garden items to exchange at this annual event. Popular items include plants, seeds, magazines, cook books, and other garden-related items. No registration is required.

The Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute (SICI) invites Waterloo students and scholars involved in India-related research to an information session entitled "India, Canada and Shastri India-Canadian Institute - A Canada-India Bridge for Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow: New Funding Opportunities for Collaborative Educational and Research Activities with India" on Friday, May 25 in DC 1302 from 12:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Presenting will be Professor Girish M. Shah (President of SICI) and Professor Margaret Walton-Roberts (Executive Council). They will provide information about the Institute’s recent funding activities and research possibilities. 

Shastri is a binational organization that promotes understanding between India and Canada through academic activities and exchanges. Shastri’s initiatives support the creation of binational links between academia, government, the business community and civil society organizations by funding research and hosting seminars. More information can be found at the Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute website. Please RSVP to waterloo.international@uwaterloo.ca.

Candidate Debate image with a close-up of a microphone.Local candidates will gather at Wilfrid Laurier University on Wednesday, May 16 to debate post-secondary issues in the lead-up to the June 7 provincial election. The debate will feature candidates for each major provincial political party and will be moderated by the CBC One radio host Craig Norris. The event begins at 10:00 a.m. at WLU's Lazaridis Hall and is free and open to the public. Among the hosts of the event are FAUW, UWSA, Feds, and the GSA, to name a few.

Bo-ooooring! As part of a plan to redesign the Q Lot on East Campus to maximize parking space and ensure safe walkways, Parking Services has advised permit holders that an engineering company will be drilling boreholes in various areas of the lot on Friday, May 18. "There will be 16 holes in total," says the note from Parking Services. "Each hole takes approximately half an hour to drill, analyze, document and back fill. Each hole will be filled and cold patched immediately."

There will be no hazard to pedestrians or vehicles, and the contractor will be doing their best to ensure parking spaces aren't unduly affected, however there may be minimal delays in laneway movement. Flag staff will be on site to assist with navigation. 

"All drilling will be completed on the 18th regardless of weather conditions," says Parking Services. "Your patience is appreciated."

Link of the day

It's not the years, it's the mileage: the history of the odometer

When and where 

MFA Thesis Two, Thursday, May 3 to Saturday, May 19, East Campus Hall. 

Course add period ends, Monday, May 14.

UW Blooms, Monday, May 14, 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., Student Life Centre.

Coping Skills Seminar - Strengthening Motivation, Monday, May 14, 4:00 p.m.

Politics at The Pub: Student Meet & Greet with NDP Candidate, Monday, May 14, 4:00 p.m., The Bombshelter Pub.

More Feet on the Ground - Mental Health Training, Tuesday, May 15, 1:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m., Needles Hall North 2447.

How to Start Your Own Business, Tuesday, May 15, 2:30 p.m., TC 2218.

Résumé Writing Tutorial (for 1st work term math students only), Tuesday, May 15, 4:30 p.m., MC 2054

Résumés, Careers and Personal Branding – Part 1, Tuesday, May 15, 5:00 p.m., TC 2218

Candidates Debate: Post-Secondary Education as a Provincial Priority, Wednesday, May 16, 10:00 a.m., Lazaridis Hall (LH1001), 75 University Avenue West.

UWRC Book Club featuring  "It’s All Relative: Adventures Up and Down the World’s Family Tree," by A.J. Jacobs, Wednesday, May 16, 12:00 p.m., LIB 407.

Résumé Tips (for employees only), Wednesday, May 16, 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m., TC1208.

Copyright for Teaching, Wednesday, May 16, 12:00 p.m., DC 1568.

Developing Your Compassionate Mind, Wednesday, May 16, 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Coping Skills Seminar - Cultivating Resiliency, Wednesday, May 16, 4:00 p.m.

Résumés, Careers and Personal Branding – Part 2, Wednesday, May 16, 5:00 p.m. TC 2218

Velocity Start: The Startup Rollercoaster, Wednesday, May 16, 7:30 p.m., Velocity Start, SCH 2nd Floor.

Say it in your own words: Paraphrase & summary for graduate students, Thursday, May 17, 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. 

Career Interest Assessment, Thursday, May 17, 10:30 a.m., TC 1112.

Architecture 50th Anniversary Lecture Series- Conversation 6, Thursday, May 17, 6:30 p.m., Laurence A. Cummings Lecture Theatre- School of Architecture.

Balinese Gamelan Ensemble, Friday, May 18 at 2:30 p.m., Waterloo Town Square. Free admission.

Victoria Day holiday, Monday, May 21, most university buildings and services closed.

The Quantum Valley Investments® Problem Pitch Competition applications close, Monday, May 21, 2018, at 11:59 p.m.

University Senate meeting, Tuesday, May 22, 3:30 p.m., NH 3407.

Coping Skills Seminar - Strengthening Motivation, Tuesday, May 22, 4:00 p.m.

Politics at The Pub: Student Meet & Greet with PC Candidate, Tuesday, May 22, 4:00 p.m., The Bombshelter Pub.

Mindfulness Meditation: A Stress Reduction Program, Tuesday, May 22, 5:00 p.m., Needles Hall North, NH 2447.

NEW - Games Institute Spring 2018 Game Jam LEARN event, Tuesday, May 22 and Thursday, May 24, 5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., Games Institute, EC1.

Technical Interview Workshop Presented by Scotiabank, "Cracking the Technical Interview", Tuesday, May 22, 5:30 p.m., E5 6004.

Velocity Start: What’s Your Problem?, Wednesday, May 23, 2018, 7:30 p.m., Velocity Start, SCH 2nd Floor.

Clarity in scientific writing, Thursday, May 24, 10:00 a.m., online webinar.

WaterTalk featuring Ryan Walter, Assistant Professor, Department of Physics, California Polytechnic State University, "What lies beneath: Internal waves in the nearshore coastal environment," Thursday, May 24, 2:30 p.m., DC 1302.

NEW - "India, Canada and Shastri India-Canadian Institute - A Canada-India Bridge for Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow: New Funding Opportunities for Collaborative Educational and Research Activities with India," Friday, May 25, 12:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. DC 1302.

NEW - Games Institute Spring 2018 Game Jam MAKE event, Friday, May 25 to Sunday, May 27, QNC 1502, QNC 2502.

You @ Waterloo Day, Saturday, May 26.

Velocity Fund $25K and $5K applications open, Monday, May 28.

Undergraduate School on Experimental Quantum Information Processing (USEQIP), Monday, May 28 to Friday, June 8, Institute for Quantum Computing.

Politics at The Pub: Student Meet & Greet with Green Party Candidate, Monday, May 28, 3:00 p.m., The Bombshelter Pub.

Interviews: Preparing for Questions (for employees only), Tuesday, May 29, 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m., TC2218.

Retirement celebration for Ralph Smith, Tuesday, May 29, 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m., University Club. RSVP to Margaret Berton - mberton@uwaterloo.ca.

Beyond stigma: Increasing our understanding of mental health in the workplace, Wednesday, May 30, 12:00 p.m., EC5 1111.

Preventing Depression Relapse: A Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy Group, Wednesday, May 30, 5:00 p.m., Counselling Services, NH 2447.

Velocity Start: Building a Kick A** Team, Wednesday, May 30, 7:30 p.m., Velocity Start, SCH 2nd Floor.

Keystone Picnic, Friday, June 1, 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the DC Quad. Or for those on campus in the evening, 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. in the SLC.

Discovery: A Comic Lament, Friday, June 1, 7:30 p.m., Conrad Grebel University College.

Transforming Space: Immerse, interact and imagine in Philip Beesley, School of Architecture, Saturday, June 2 to Monday, October 8, 10:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Royal Ontario Museum.

QPR Training, Monday, June 4, 1:30 p.m.

Gustav Bakos Observatory public tours, Wednesday, June 6, 9:00 p.m., Physics.

Velocity Start: Ain’t No Model Like a Business Model, “Learn how to create a lean business model canvas”, Wednesday, June 6, 2018, 7:30 p.m., Velocity Start, SCH 2nd Floor.