Friday, September 25, 2026

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• Introducing Teaching Support and Innovation (TSI): A name for Waterloo’s new integrated teaching support unit
• Celebrating Indigenous communities and cultures
• Knowledge mobilization in Canada and beyond: Where are we and where are we going?
• Four years of innovation: UWAFT’s EcoCAR journey and what’s next
• Reminder: National Day for Truth and Reconciliation events 

Introducing Teaching Support and Innovation (TSI): A name for Waterloo’s new integrated teaching support unit

A message on behalf of the Office of the Associate Vice-President, Academic.

Following the recent integration of the Centre for Teaching Excellence (CTE), the Centre for Extended Learning (CEL), and the Teaching Innovation Incubator (TII), the Provost has officially approved Teaching Support and Innovation (TSI) as the unit’s new name.

This name reflects the unit’s commitment to providing comprehensive, forward-looking services tailored to the evolving needs of Waterloo instructors. Under the leadership of Director Aldo Caputo and the senior management team – Donna Ellis, Associate Director - Curriculum and Pedagogy; Pia Zeni, Associate Director, Digital Learning and Design; Kyle Scholz, Senior Manager, Teaching Innovation and Leadership; Mary Power, Senior Manager Faculty Support Services – TSI brings together pedagogical expertise, digital learning design, and support for innovation and educational leadership into a single, cohesive hub.

What’s Next?

As the TSI steps into this new chapter, key priorities include reviewing unit activities in the context of an updated Mandate. While a redesign of the unit’s online presence is underway to ensure easy navigation and access for Waterloo instructors, the TSI’s temporary landing page will direct you to familiar teaching resources, and instructors may email teachingsupport@uwaterloo.cafor any teaching-related support needs.

If you have any questions about the new unit, please connect with the AVPA office at avpacademic@uwaterloo.ca.

 Celebrating Indigenous communities and cultures

This is an excerpt from an article that was originally published in Waterloo News. 

The Longhouse Labs — a destination for Indigenous artists at the University of Waterloo — is pleased to welcome Amber Sandy as the 2026-27 Longhouse Fellow.

Sandy has joined the Longhouse Labs for an eight-month term, which will provide her with dedicated time, space and financial support to expand her body of work. The fellowship is part of a broader two-year $530,000 contribution from TD Bank Group (TD) supporting programming at the Longhouse Labs, as well as the annual Gidinawendamin/Ska’nikú•lát Pow Wow (coming September 26) and the Indigenous Speakers Series (October 7).

A proud member of Neyaashiinigmiing, the Chippewas of Nawash First Nation, Sandy is a passionate advocate of land-based education and an inaugural winner of the 2023 David Suzuki Foundation’s Rewilding Art Prize. Her artistry, which focuses on bark, leather, beadwork, quillwork, tufting and fur, is deeply rooted in her culture.

As a hide tanner, she transforms moose, deer and fish skin into handcrafted leather. Her work reflects a profound connection between Indigenous knowledge systems and environmental science, exploring the reciprocal relationships between land, cultural identity and education. She is celebrated for her fervour in increasing access to traditional land-based knowledge, practices and art for Indigenous Peoples.

“We are thrilled to welcome Amber Sandy to the Longhouse Labs,” says Logan MacDonald, Director of the Labs and Professor of Fine Arts. “Amber’s practice brings birch bark into contemporary forms, pushing the limits of the material while honouring traditional practices. We hope her work will inspire emerging artists, including our students, to expand their own practices. I appreciate TD’s support in creating space for these meaningful experiences."

Read the full story on Waterloo News. 

Knowledge mobilization in Canada and beyond: Where are we and where are we going?

A message from the Office of Research.

Did you know that the University of Waterloo has an institutional membership in Research Impact Canada (RIC)? RIC is a pan-Canadian, bilingual, collaborative network dedicated to maximizing the impact of research for the public good. RIC is all about knowledge mobilization (KM), which is all the things we do to get knowledge into the hands of the right people to create solutions to society’s most challenging problems. Why is knowledge mobilization so important? Well, 17 years is the often-cited lag from research evidence to real-world practice. 17 years!!! Knowledge mobilization can help shorten that gap from research to impact, and RIC is a great place to learn more about how to do just that!

Waterloo faculty members, staff members and students are welcome to explore the valuable webinars, learning modules, guides and other KM resources on the RIC website, as well as participate in “Dr. RIC”, a community of practice that includes 30+ university institutions and several national non-academic organizations, enrol in MobilizeU, an 8 week online knowledge mobilization course for beginner mobilizers, and explore the other RIC offerings that will help knowledge mobilizers turn research into action. Graduate students can also apply for the RIC Engaged Scholarship Award, and staff members are eligible for the Peter Levesque Award for Knowledge Mobilization Leadership.

You are invited to join us for our next Waterloo Knowledge Community of Practice session, “Knowledge Mobilization in Canada and Beyond: Where Are We and Where Are We Going?” on Thursday, October 1 from 1:30 to 3:00 p.m., at the Enterprise Theatre (EC5 1111) with Network Director for Research Impact Canada, Dr. David Phipps, who will give us a round the world tour of knowledge mobilization and impact ending up with a focus on new elements in Canada. Launching off from where we are, the presentation will present some emerging issues and get input from the audience. It will end with a vision session inviting participants to put their future glasses on and predict where knowledge mobilization and research impact will be in five years. All University of Waterloo community members are welcome.

Dr. Phipps is the administrative lead for all research and innovation programs and their impacts on local and global communities at York University (Toronto, Canada). He has received honours and awards from York University, the Canadian Association of Research Administrators, Society for Research Administration International, Institute for Knowledge Mobilization, International Network of Research Management Societies and the EU based Knowledge Economy Network. He received the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal for his work in knowledge mobilization and research impact and was named the most influential knowledge mobilizer in Canada. And he was just awarded the 2026 Distinguished Alumni Award from Queen's University Alumni Association for his lifetime achievements in knowledge mobilization. He sits on knowledge mobilization committees around the world and is Network Director for Research Impact Canada.

Four years of innovation: UWAFT’s EcoCAR journey and what’s next

Over the past four years, the University of Waterloo Alternative Fuels Team (UWAFT) has continued to push the boundaries of innovation, collaboration, and student-led engineering through the EcoCAR EV Challenge. At this year’s competition UWAFT finished strong having top 4 finishes in five of the six major events as follows: (i) 1st in Project, Controls, and Modelling (PCM) Presentation; (ii) 2nd in Project Management (PM) Presentation and 2nd Overall; (iii) 3rd in Communications (COMM) Overall; (iv) 3rd in Community Track (CT) Presentation; and (v) 4th in Systems, Design, and Integration (SDI) Presentation.  Auxiliary accomplishments were 2nd in Acceleration, 3rd in Trapezoid Energy Consumption, and 3rd for Impact Video.

Throughout the 4 year competition, students transformed a Cadillac LYRIQ from a front-wheel-drive vehicle into a fully integrated all-wheel-drive hybrid electric vehicle. Designed and developed entirely by students, the vehicle featured Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC), one-pedal drive, regenerative braking, and a fully functional Human Machine Interface (HMI). This achievement reflects thousands of hours of interdisciplinary collaboration between engineering, business, and communications students working together to solve real-world mobility challenges.

Beyond competition results, UWAFT remained deeply committed to outreach and experiential learning. The team connected with over 300 elementary students through STEM outreach initiatives promoting engineering, sustainability, and electric vehicles. UWAFT also hosted multiple campus events, including a university-level hackathon in February 2026 in partnership with Quanser and MathWorks, bringing together students and over 20 industry professionals.

As UWAFT enters the new chapter of the EcoCAR Innovation Challenge (2026-2030), we are looking for students from across the University of Waterloo to join us. Whether you are interested in engineering, software, business, communications, project management, or simply want to gain meaningful hands-on experience, there is a place for you on our team. Stop by the UWAFT Office within the SDC in E5 1011 to meet the team, check out our vehicles, and learn about opportunities to design, build, innovate, compete and lead alongside students from across disciplines.

At its core, UWAFT’s mission is to train and develop future leaders in engineering and business through implementing what was learned in the classroom and apply it to real-world challenges while working alongside industry partners and fellow students. Come build, compete and innovate with UWAFT. As the team proudly say: “It’s not just about building cars, it’s about building community.”

Reminder: National Day for Truth and Reconciliation events 

A reminder that Wednesday, September 30 is National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. This day is dedicated to honouring residential school Survivors, remembering the Indigenous children who never returned home, and acknowledging the intergenerational trauma and ongoing legacy of harm caused by the residential school system that continue to affect Indigenous families, communities, and Nations today. The University will mark the day with a series of community events. Registration is recommended. The day will also feature speeches, a walk around Ring Road, drumming, and a round dance on the BMH Green.