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On National Philanthropy Day, a thank-you to Waterloo donors
A message from the Office of Advancement.
Today is National Philanthropy Day, a Canada-wide event that celebrates philanthropy and those who contribute to building a better world. It’s the perfect time to recognize the contributions of Waterloo donors, who make our campus community a place where bright minds can explore, create and thrive.
To read the stories of Jocelyn, Nat and Emilie — the students featured in this thank you video — and learn more about how Waterloo donors are shaping our University, please visit the 2021-2022 Report on Giving.
Contributions to Viral Hepatitis discussed at Thursday's Friesen Lecture
A message from the Office of Research.
Dr. Lorne Tyrrell will visit the University of Waterloo campus on Thursday, November 17 to deliver the Friesen Lecture “Contributions to Viral Hepatitis: Vaccine Task Force and COVID-19.”
Open to all Waterloo faculty, staff, and students, the lecture will be held in person in Needles Hall at 11:00 a.m. Please register to attend as seating is limited. (A virtual option is also available).
Dr. Tyrrell is the recipient of the 2021 Henry G. Friesen International Prize in Health Research, awarded by Friends of CIHR, which recognizes exceptional innovation by a visionary health leader of international stature.
A Distinguished Professor at the University of Alberta with major interests in the prevention and treatment of viral diseases, his multi-faceted career in academic medicine, virology, pharmaceutical enterprise, and dedicated advocacy for health research in Canada are being honoured with the Prize. Dr. Tyrrell is a gold medalist at the University of Alberta, where he obtained an MD in 1968, followed by a PhD at Queen’s University in 1972. He completed Internal Medicine and sub-specialty training in Infectious Diseases and post-doctoral training in Virology at the Karolinska Institute.
Dr. Tyrrell’s most celebrated life saving accomplishment in collaboration with Morris Robbins was the licensing of the first oral anti-viral drug for chronic HBV (Lamivudine) in 200 countries. This led to the establishment of the Li Ka Shing Institute of Virology in 2010 at the University of Alberta, where Dr. Tyrrell is its Founder and Director.
Two new award opportunities for students impacted by conflict or risk
A message from Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Affairs and Student Awards & Financial Aid.
Ontario-Ukraine Solidarity Scholarship
In response to the Russian military invasion of Ukraine, on April 6, 2022, the province announced the creation of a $1.9 million Ontario-Ukraine Solidarity Scholarship to support students attending Ontario’s publicly assisted colleges and universities. The purpose of these funds is to provide support to undergraduate and graduate students directly or indirectly impacted by the Ukrainian conflict or other conflicts.
Four scholarships will be awarded to students registered at Waterloo in the 2022/2023 academic year.
Full details and instructions on how to apply can be found in the application. Applications and required supporting documentation (as outlined on the form) must be submitted by January 16, 2023.
Students-at-Risk Bursary
Through generous donations, limited funding is available to support undergraduate and graduate students registered at the University of Waterloo, through the Students-at-Risk Bursary. This program is available to students who have had their program of study disrupted by conflict, war or changing political environments in their country of origin or where they were last registered prior to relocating to Waterloo to continue their program. Full details, including application instructions, can be found on the graduate and undergraduate databases. Applications and required supporting documentation (as outlined on the application form) must be submitted by January 16, 2023.
The Longhouse Labs launches inaugural events
A message from the Faculty of Arts.
The Waterloo community is invited to participate in two inaugural community outreach events of the Longhouse Labs, a research-creation lab and dedicated space for Indigenous creative practices, knowledge-sharing, and learning.
Led by Professor Logan MacDonald, Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Art, the Longhouse Labs foster innovative, interdisciplinary research opportunities that explicitly promote Indigenous leadership in studio arts practices as part of core learning experiences in the fine arts at Waterloo, in the region, and nationally.
In partnership with CAFKA (Contemporary Art Forum Kitchener and Area), KWAG (Kitchener Waterloo Art Gallery) and UWAG (University of Waterloo Arts Gallery), the Longhouse Labs is hosting two one-week artist residencies at the University of Waterloo. Everyone is invited to meet the artists and learn about and engage with their work. As well, MacDonald will share his vision for the program, and there will be an opportunity for a sneak peek at the Longhouse Labs dedicated space under construction.
- Thursday, November 17, 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. — Billy Gauthier, Indigenous artist and activist
- Thursday, December 1, 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. — Tract Collective, Hodinohso:ni artists/activists creating a large, beaded map of the Haldimand Tract
Waterloo study discovers a river running beneath the Antarctica ice sheet
The discovery of a 460 kilometre-long river under the Antarctica ice sheet could be the missing link to climate models.
A team of researchers led by Dr. Christine Dow, a professor in the department of Geography and Environmental Management and cross-appointed to the Department of Applied Mathematics, discovered the river from a series of airborne radar surveys and modelling. Their findings show the ice sheet's base has more active water flow than previously thought, which could make it more susceptible to changes in climate.
"From satellite measurements, we know which regions of Antarctica are losing ice and how much, but we don't necessarily know why," said Dow, a Waterloo Climate Institute member. "This discovery could be a missing link in our models. We could be hugely underestimating how quickly the system will melt by not accounting for the influence of these river systems."
The Antarctic Weddell Sea region, where this study is based, holds enough ice to raise the sea level globally by 4.3 meters, and the newly discovered river will play a key role in that sea level rise. Dow and her colleagues showed that the large volume of freshwater pumped from the river into the ocean causes enhanced melt at the sensitive region where ice flows into the ocean and begins to float. In the future, if warm air temperatures cause enough surface melt to reach the ice sheet's base, it could tip Antarctica to a Greenland-like state, with much higher volumes of freshwater flowing into the ocean. More freshwater in the river will likely lead to more ice shelf melt, shrinking of the ice sheet, and an increase in ice flow rate. Ultimately, these controls on the flow of the ice into the ocean will determine much of the future sea level rise.
"Only by knowing why ice is being lost can we make models and predictions of how the ice will react in the future under further global heating and how much this could raise global sea levels," Dow said.
Scientific discoveries like this one are crucial for understanding climate change impacts and helping us understand our warming planet.
Learn more about the Faculty of Environment's interdisciplinary undergraduate programs and read Dow's study Antarctic basal environment shaped by high-pressure flow through a subglacial river system published in the journal of Nature Geoscience.