Monday, October 7, 2019

Explore challenges and strategies of vaccination uptake at Research Talks

Vaccine hesitancy has been identified by the World Health Organization as one of the top 10 threats to global health in 2019.

Find out how Waterloo researchers and experts in public health and industry are exploring the reasons behind vaccination hesitancy and strategies to increase vaccine uptake at the next Research Talks on Thursday, October 17 from 11:45 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Please register to attend as seating is limited. The following speakers will be in attendance:

• Heather MacDougall (Arts): Exploring the historical, social, and cultural forces behind vaccine hesitancy
• Nancy Waite (School of Pharmacy): Mobilizing pharmacists as a new approach to vaccine uptake
• Edward Thommes (Sanofi Pasteur North America): Characterizing vaccination drivers and barriers using data science
• Natasha Crowcroft (Centre for Vaccine Preventable Diseases): Engaging public health strategies that build immunization confidence

Research Talks is a regular series hosted by the Office of Research and supported by the Research Support Fund to provide Waterloo staff, faculty, and students with an opportunity to learn about world-class research at Waterloo. Refreshments will be provided.

Employee accessibility training to be updated

A message from Human Resources.

The University’s employee accessibility training is currently being revised to include updates to both our own accessibility initiatives and the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA). By law, all University employees are required to take accessibility training and it must be up-to-date.

The new course will be published on December 3, 2019 to coincide with the International Day of Persons with Disabilities. At this time, all University employees will need to update their training, regardless of when they last completed accessibility training. When we’re all familiar with current accessibility requirements and practices, we are better positioned to fulfil our responsibility of being an inclusive and equitable campus.

Employees and managers will receive additional communications and information on how to access the course once it becomes available. For more information, visit the Accessibility at Waterloo web page or contact Joyce Barlow, Workplace Accessibility Specialist.

President's Pop-Up Cafe returns

The President’s Pop-up Café is returning Wednesday, October 23 from 2:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.

The President's Pop-up Café offers undergraduate and graduate students the opportunity to sit down with President Feridun Hamdullahpur and other University leaders to have an informal discussion on anything and everything that has to do with your time at Waterloo and beyond.

The Pop-up Café is open exclusively to students at the University of Waterloo and is limited to only 20 guests. All guests are selected under a lottery system. To have a chance to be part of the event, fill out the form on the President's pop-up cafe page.

Space is limited, so be sure to submit today. The deadline for submission is October 18 at 12:00 p.m. Those who are randomly selected will be notified by October 21.

Zero waste week set to start October 21

A message from the Sustainability Office.

Zero Waste Week is coming back to campus from October 21 to 25. The Sustainability Office and Plant Operations have organized several activities to raise the visibility of waste management and encourage proper sorting of waste and recycling on campus. Check them out: 

1. Take the Zero Waste Challenge: Can you fit all your garbage for the next week into a single 500mL mason jar? Stop by the Sustainability Office (EV1-301), or visit one of our booths across campus to pick up your jar and take the challenge! Jars are first-come, first-served.
    
2. Visit the Sort-A-Thon: Stop by one of our booths across campus from October 7 to 11 to see how many common items you can sort correctly in 30 seconds or less. You can also pick up your mason jar!
   • Monday, October 7 (11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.): SLC Marketplace
   • Tuesday, October 8 (11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.): AHS foyer
   • Wednesday, October 9 (11:30 a.m.  to 1:30 p.m.): STC foyer
   • Thursday, October 10 (11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.): EV3 foyer
3. Take the online quiz: Think you have waste sorting smarts? Only 20 percent of respondents can get an 80 percent grade or higher on this quiz of common sorting mistakes on campus and at home. 
    
4. Attend the open lecture: On October 21, join Plant Operations for a lunch and learn on recent waste changes to campus.

All of the above have prizes available for participating. For more information, visit the Zero Waste Week webpage and help us promote on social media using the hashtags #WasteWeekUW and #ShiftZeroUW if you can

Monday's notifications

October has begun and so has Cyber Security Awareness Month. Information Systems & Technology (IST) will be hosting their first-ever Cyber security pop-up booth on October 9^th from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in the SLC Marketplace. 

The goal is to engage the UW campus about cyber security best practices and to have fun doing it – the booth will feature:

• free swag giveaways;
• free snacks;
• a goose cut-out to take selfies with; and
• a phishing email game.

The booth is open to all students, staff, and faculty - save the date and follow the IST Facebook page for updates.

The Face Processing & Social Cognition Lab at the University of Waterloo is recruiting men aged 26 to 41 and women aged 32 to 37 for a study on face recognition and social functioning. Participants will complete a variety of activities (e.g., computer tasks, paper tasks, face-to-face interview, questionnaires) using behavioural and neuroimaging techniques (EEG, eye-tracking). The study involves two sessions (Session 1: 2 hours, Session 2: 3 hours) completed approximately 1 week apart, and participants will receive up to $70 cash in appreciation of their time. This study has been reviewed by, and received ethics clearance through, a University of Waterloo Research Ethics Committee.

If you would like more information or are interested in participating, we would love to hear from you! Please contact the researcher, Karisa Parkington, by email at kparkington@uwaterloo.ca or by telephone at (519) 888-4567 ext 38872 to determine your eligibility. 

The University Club's annual Thanksgiving Luncheon Buffet is taking place this week on Thursday, October 10 and Friday, October 11 from 11:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Call ahead to reserve your seat by calling ext. 84088 and get ready to gobble 'till you wobble.