Thursday, September 21, 2017

HeForShe parity report tracks progress on equity goals

President and Vice-Chancellor Feridun Hamdullahpur speaks as part of a University IMPACT Champions panel at yesterday's HeForShe IMPACT 10x10x10 event in New York.

President Feridun Hamdullahpur joined delegates from around the world at the HeForShe IMPACT Event to recognize advancements in gender equality yesterday.

The event was hosted by UN Women in New York City, and was attended by heads of state, global CEOs and university presidents who committed their organizations to tangible gender equality goals in 2015 as part of the HeForShe IMPACT10x10x10 initiative.

“Real, sustainable change does not result from the actions of a single person or vision,” said Hamdullahpur. “We will both lead by example and learn from the experience of others so that we can swiftly fulfill our HeForShe commitments.”

As part of the 10x10x10 initiative, Waterloo committed to achieving a number of gender equality goals by 2020. 

Goals include increasing the number of women and girls in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) outreach experiences to 33 per cent, enhancing female faculty representation to 30 per cent, and having 29 per cent of senior academic and administrative positions at the University filled by women.

To date, Waterloo has increased the number of women in STEM outreach to 35 per cent, female faculty membership to 29 per cent, and now see 27.5 per cent of leadership positions occupied by women.

In addition to the progress on their HeForShe goals, Waterloo also sees women occupy 30 per cent of the first-year engineering seats for the first time ever.

"We are breaking down barriers so that those who identify as women can follow their dreams in a local way," President Hamdullahpur said during his remarks. "Do not stop yourself from pursuing your dreams." 

As part of the IMPACT Event, the UN Women released their Parity Report, which highlights gender equality solutions put forward by IMPACT champions, including 10 heads of state, 10 global CEOs and 10 university presidents. Included in the report is Waterloo’s HeForShe scholarships, which are designed to encourage more women to participate in STEM.

“The results announced in today’s IMPACT 10x10x10 Parity Report are inspirational. In 2015, I challenged the Champions to ‘think big’ and commit to creative approaches that tackled the greatest barriers. We know that incremental steps do not bring us the benefits that we so urgently need,” said Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, executive director of UN Women. “As leaders in their fields the Champions hold the key to breaking norms and making game-changing progress for both women and men. The report shares strategies, roadblocks and successes so others can follow suit.”

Mlambo-Ngcuka noted the role that university leaders play in the initiative, saying "In their hands is the remaking of the next generation.”

Full video of the event is available on YouTube.

Laflamme named Von Neumann Chair in Quantum Information

The University of Waterloo, in collaboration with Mike and Ophelia Lazaridis, has launched a new $8-million research chair to further solidify Waterloo’s leadership in quantum information research.

Raymond Laflamme becomes the Mike and Ophelia Lazaridis “John von Neumann” Chair in Quantum Information at the University of Waterloo.

An $8 million investment from the University of Waterloo and Mike and Ophelia Lazaridis will support Laflamme’s research on error correction in quantum systems that is critical to the development of the quantum computer and other robust new quantum technologies. Harnessing the power of technologies at the atomic scale requires mechanisms to control these fragile, yet powerful behaviours.

“This pioneering research in quantum technologies at Waterloo’s Institute for Quantum Computing (IQC) will help further establish our impact as a global leader in quantum research,” said Feridun Hamdullahpur. “The combination of Raymond Laflamme’s expertise and the Lazaridis family’s generosity ensures that the world can continue to look to Waterloo for the latest advancements in quantum knowledge and technology.”

During his keynote address at the Waterloo Innovation Summit, Mike Lazaridis praised Laflamme’s continued commitment to quantum research and his extensive achievements in positioning Canada as a quantum research powerhouse.

“Raymond Laflamme is broadly recognized as a globally leading researcher in quantum error correction,” Lazaridis said. “His research contributions have led the development of quantum control, which is a building block to realizing quantum computing. His leadership and his many contributions to the University of Waterloo as the founding director have helped establish IQC as one of a handful of centres in the world for top researchers in quantum information science. Over the past 15 years, he and his colleagues at IQC have established Waterloo—and Canada—as a global leader in the second quantum revolution. I am thrilled that Raymond has chosen to continue to demonstrate leadership in the context of this new and critically important Chair.  Ophelia and I are very pleased to have played a role with the University of Waterloo to make this happen.”

Laflamme joined the University of Waterloo in 2001 as a professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy. He was the founding director of the IQC until his term ended earlier this year. Under Laflamme’s leadership, IQC has grown from a concept to more than 200 researchers, and is widely recognized as one of the world’s largest centres for quantum information research.

Prior to joining Waterloo, Laflamme was an Oppenheimer Fellow at Los Alamos National Laboratory. He earned his undergraduate degree in physics at Université Laval. He then moved to Cambridge University, where he earned his PhD in the Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics (DAMTP) under the direction of Stephen Hawking. Laflamme and Don Page are responsible for having changed Hawking's mind on the direction of time in a contracting Universe (as described in Hawking’s best-seller A Brief History of Time). After his PhD, Laflamme became a Killam postdoctoral fellow at the University of British Columbia.

“Thanks to the visionary support of Mike and Ophelia Lazaridis and the University of Waterloo’s commitment to research excellence, Canada is now among the top countries in the world for quantum research,” said Laflamme. “Having a front-row seat on this journey has been remarkable. I look forward to continuing to contribute through my research and my students.”

Laflamme holds a Canada Research Chair in Quantum Information and was awarded the CAP-CRM Prize in Theoretical and Mathematical Physics earlier this year. He received the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Medal in 2013, and an honorary degree from the Université de Sherbrooke in 2012. He is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Physical Society, and the Royal Society of Canada, and is a founding faculty member at the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics.

Waterloo awarded accessibility grant for co-op

The University of Waterloo has received a grant that aims to further enhance the work term experience for all Waterloo co-op students, including those with disabilities.

The one-year, Enabling Change Project funding enables the Waterloo Co-op AccessAbility Team (WatCAT) to develop a support model to ensure students with disabilities can engage in the University’s robust co-operative education program.

“The project team, which includes staff from AccessAbility Services (AAS), Co-operative Education, the Centre for Career Action and students, is thrilled to embark on this innovative and essential project designed to enhance the accessibility and inclusivity of co-op,” says Jennifer Gillies, manager of AccessAbility Services and project team member. “The project will have a significant impact on our students and demonstrates the University’s commitment to supporting equity and inclusion within our campus.”

One of the main objectives of the project is to encourage more students with disabilities to access services that enable them to be more successful in co-op. The project will also support employers in providing an inclusive co-op experience for students with disabilities.

WatCAT will create a screening tool to address gaps within students’ essential skills and direct students with disabilities to targeted support services (e.g., AccessAbility Services). The project will also develop processes that support individual student needs and accommodations when participating in co-op.   

“Co-op provides university graduates with the experience and enhanced skills employers are looking for,” explains Richard Wikkerink, Manager, Centre for Career Action. “Providing opportunities for all students to meaningfully participate in this hallmark Waterloo program will enhance the student experience for all.” 

For more information on the project, please visit the co-operative education website or email the project team.