Wednesday, September 18, 2019

Playing the field at the Field House grand opening

With warm weather and clear blue skies, yesterday was the perfect day for the Columbia Icefield Field House grand opening and President’s Welcome BBQ. The Field House is a 65,000 square-foot recreational space designed for a variety of varsity athletics and student activities. With large windows that let in the natural light and a soft green turf, it measures 100 by 50 yards and can be divided into three programmable areas.

The day started off with activities for a group of 150 elementary-school students who came to participate in sports and play led by varsity student-athletes. The opening remarks, delivered by Roly Webster, director of Athletics and Recreation, began at 11:00 a.m. The crowd was made up of people from both the University community, and the greater Waterloo community, including Dave Jaworsky, mayor of Waterloo and Berry Vrbanovic, mayor of Kitchener.

Webster emphasized the importance of a shared recreational space to advance both physical and mental health for students and the wider Waterloo community. President Feridun Hamdullahpur stressed that the space is more than just a physical structure, it has the potential to bring people together through physical activity and recreation, no matter what the weather is like outside. Associate Provost, Students Chris Read spoke about the importance of offering great programs and exceptional facilities to enhance the student experience. Michael Beauchemin, president of Waterloo Undergraduate Student Association and Naima Samuel, president of the Graduate Student Association also delivered remarks and thanked those involved in the conceptualization and building of the Field House.

When guests arrived at the grand opening, they were offered a yellow Waterloo Warriors frisbee. Instead of a traditional ribbon cutting, everyone came together to toss their frisbees across the field. Guests were then invited to the President’s Welcome BBQ where the sense of community highlighted in the remarks came to life as people gathered to eat and socialize in the beautiful weather.

Gender equality isn't just a goal for tomorrow

This is an excerpt from an article originally published in Waterloo Stories.

The first version of Siri didn’t recognize a woman’s voice.

This fact appalled many in the room, but it likely surprised few of the leaders, students, faculty, staff and community partners gathered on Waterloo’s campus as part of HeforShe’s latest Get Free university tour. Nearly everyone seemed in agreement, we’ve come a long way towards equity for all genders, but there is a long way to go.

“We want that change, not just for this generation or the next, but forever,” University of Waterloo President Feridun Hamdullahpur told a room of more than 200 students, faculty, staff and guests who had gathered to not only celebrate Waterloo’s role as the first stop on the five-campus Canada-wide tour, but to outline the important work that still remains. “This is most important for our students, who will build this world.”

Three students in particular were identified as being the kind of builders the future needs. Emma Moorehouse, Darby Grech and Grace Woodliffe were all provided scholarships by HeForShe Champion DeBeers.

University campuses like Waterloo are uniquely positioned to help change attitudes of students who may have found themselves free from their parents for the first time, but not free from the gendered violence, bias and discrimination that still haunts our society.

Read the full article.

Gearing up for the 2019 United Way Campaign

University Relations staff went red for the 2018 campaign.

A message from the University of Waterloo United Way campaign.

As we prepare for the 2019 University of Waterloo United Way campaign launch, we’re excited to have campaign supporters from senior campus leaders to volunteers and Friend+ level donors at one event on Tuesday, September 24. Once again, we will come together to generate excitement for the 2019 campaign, learn about the many ways the University supports the United Way, and to share ideas to make this year’s campaign a success.

We want to thank everyone who will be attending the kickoff lunch and supporting this year’s campaign.

Don’t forget to mark Tuesday, October 1 in your calendar for campaign launch. Help us turn the campus red by dressing up and decorating your office! Don’t forget to share any pops of red you see on campus with #UWUnitedWay.

Do you want to get involved with the campaign? Volunteer to be an ambassador.

Author Jesse Thistle speaks on campus

The Indigenous Speakers Series welcomes bestselling author, scholar, and UWaterloo alumnus (MA’16 History) Jesse Thistle to campus today. Jesse Thistle, a Métis-Cree-Scot from Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, whose bestselling memoir, From the Ashes (Simon and Schuster Canada), chronicles his life on the streets and how he overcame trauma and addiction to discover the truth about who he is. His scholarship is focused on intergenerational and historic trauma of the Métis people, and he also reflects on his own past struggles with homelessness. He holds an MA in History from Waterloo and is an Assistant Professor of Métis Studies at York University. 

From the Ashes has already received wide praise. Tracey Lindberg, the award-winning author of Birdie and professor of Indigenous law, says that Thistle’s book “provides moments of profundity and eloquence that also serve as a reminder of the depth and kindness that live in every person. Importantly, he reveals a Canada known to too many peoples yet ignored by the dominant culture, and clearly illustrates what happens when traumatizing systems are the colonial answer to the very problems the colonizers created. Readers will come to better understand violence on Turtle Island – both colonial and otherwise – because of the candour with which Thistle presents it in this book.” This event promises to be a powerful and provocative discussion on the impacts of intergenerational trauma and Canada’s colonial history.

The event takes place this afternoon from 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. in the Theatre of the Arts. A book signing will follow from 5:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.

The Indigenous Speaker Series highlights the voices of Indigenous artists, writers, activists, and leaders from across Turtle Island, offering Waterloo students, faculty and staff opportunities to learn from and engage with Indigenous issues. This talk is sponsored by the Waterloo Indigenous Student Centre, the Faculty of Arts, the Departments of History, and the Department of Communication Arts.

National postdoc appreciation week continues; other notes

As National Postdoc Appreciation Week continues, we have the pleasure of introducing two postdocs, Anna Dorfman from the Faculty of Arts and Scott J. Davidson from the Faculty of Environment. 

Anna Dorfman is a postdoc in the Department of Psychology in the Faculty of Arts. She currently works with Igor Grossmann as part of the Wisdom and Culture Lab and is entering her second year as a postdoc here at Waterloo. From Israel, Anna came to Waterloo after earning her PhD in social psychology and working as a postdoc in management and organizational behavior. Anna chose Waterloo because she was told, “it’s a great school, with great resources.” She said yes and came to Waterloo without visiting first – just packed up her family and moved. After settling in, Anna says the experience has been very positive and her family is loving the change.

Scott J. Davidson is a postdoc in the Department of Geography and Environmental Management in the Faculty of Environment. He works with Maria Strack as part of the Wetland Soils & Greenhouse Gas Exchange Lab. Scott has been a postdoc at Waterloo since March of last year. Originally from Perthshire, Scotland, Scott moved to England to complete his master’s degree before completing his PhD, split between University of Sheffield, San Diego State University and Utrecht University in the Netherlands. While there, he focused on methane emissions in northern Alaska, looking at the effects of climate change on vegetation.

Postdoc fact of the day: Postdocs aren’t students

People use many different titles to refer to postdoctoral fellows: postdocs, postdoctoral researchers, research trainees, and the like. One common mistake is referring to postdocs as students. Postdocs are not students – they’re employees. Postdocs already hold doctoral degrees (the highest academic credential one can earn) and so, while at Waterloo, they do not receive a degree and do not pay student fees.

Employers on campus next week hosting employer information sessions include Suncor Energy, HSBC Bank Canada, STEMCELL Technologies, EF Education First, Fairfax Financial Holdings, The Co-operators General Insurance Company, Appficiency, Manulife, Ecobee, Desjardins, Wattpad, CIBC, Cerebri.ai, PwC Bermuda, Cisco Meraki, Bank of Canada, Rogers, Mercari, IXL, Yext, Eckler Ltd, BDO Canada, and Clearpath. Visit the employer information session Calendar for more details.