Thursday, October 17, 2019

New Balsillie School director will deliver inaugural lecture

The Balsillie School of International Affairs' new director Ann Fitz-Gerald will be delivering her inaugural lecture on October 29.

In her lecture, entitled "Policy Without Strategy? Challenges Facing the Global SDG Agenda," Fitz-Gerald will speak about the current suite of post-2015 sustainable development goals, which acknowledges the mutually reinforcing and dependent relationship between security and development. But challenging this comprehensive and far-reaching global policy agenda are emerging issues and insecurities in both the developing south and the developed north which question whether the current system of international governance – and existing national, regional and multilateral ‘tools’ for intervention – are capable of addressing these complex and interdisciplinary issues. Drawing on a number of current drivers of global insecurity, Professor Fitz-Gerald will evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of the current international governance architecture to address these issues and propose recommendations for both policy development and institutional capacity.

The event will also feature a panel discussion by the editors of Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals: Global Governance Challenges, a book written and edited by BSIA faculty, fellows, postdocs and students. This collaborative effort draws on the expertise of the community to both locate the Sustainable Development Goals as a contribution to the development of global government and to examine the political-institutional and financial challenges posed by these goals.

Register for the event via Eventbrite.

The event takes place from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. in the CIGI auditorium.

From Nunavut to India to Ontario, a Loran Scholar finds her way to Waterloo

A message from the Loran Scholars Foundation.

From over 5,000 applicants, and among 88 finalists, Chidi Umenwofor-Nweze from Iqaluit, Nunavut, was selected as one of the 35 recipients from across Canada to become a 2019 Loran Scholar, receiving Canada’s largest and most comprehensive undergraduate merit-based award. She has chosen to pursue her undergraduate studies at the University of Waterloo this autumn. 

The Loran Scholars Foundation invests in Canada’s greatest resource – our youth. To find these young people, the foundation administers the most thorough scholarship selection process in the country. As such, selection supersedes grades and is based on evidence of integrity, courage, compassion, grit, a high level of personal autonomy, and a dedication to creating positive change.

“Being a Loran Scholar means striving to be a leader who improves myself, those around me, and the world through a lifelong cultivation of character and integrity as well as a dedication to selfless service,” Chidi says. 

A McCall MacBain Loran Scholar, Chidi studied at The Mahindra United World College of India in Paud, India, where she was co-captain of her robotics team and assisted in a computer literacy program in a village near her school. She was a chorister and portrayed Alexander Hamilton in a student-led production of "Hamilton". Chidi has undertaken infrastructural projects, such as a bus shelter and pediatric unit, within the Government of Nunavut. She embodies Loran’s values of character, commitment to serving her communities, and long-term leadership potential, as demonstrated by her contributions and initiatives. 

On her decision to attend the University of Waterloo out of Loran’s 25 partner universities, Chidi credits Waterloo’s “holistic and hands-on approach to addressing problems.” In pursuit of her Bachelor of Science with a concentration in Systems Design Engineering, she says “I am excited to study in an environment that will not only challenge me academically but challenge me to apply what I learn as an engineer with awareness and compassion towards the social and environmental systems that are affected or manipulated by my actions.”

Of the 661 past and present Loran Scholars, 39 have attended the University of Waterloo over the past three decades, including Mark Schaan (Loran Scholar ’97) who became a Rhodes Scholar.

Applications for the 2020 class of Loran Scholars are now open. 

Thursday's notes

The Centre for Bioengineering and Biotechnology (CBB)'s Seed Funding Round 3 Applications now being accepted. The mission of CBB's seed funding program is to:

• Help develop sustainable research programs by facilitating applications to external agencies
• Support multi-disciplinary research across UW faculties
• Mentor the next generation of researchers under CBB
• Communicate CBB research impact on a local and global scale

Applications will close on November 15, 2019.

Waste not, want not: There's still time to secure tickets for the Plant Operations and Waste Connections' Waste Management on Campus Lunch and Learn event on Monday, October 21 in support of Zero Waste Week on campus. Plant Operations and Waste Connections will be sharing information on waste reduction and diversion, changes to the waste receptacles on campus, proper sorting of waste materials, organics collection, and how Waterloo is taking the steps to become a zero-waste campus. Visit https://bit.ly/2MpHSOp for tickets.