Lecture

Join the Tri-U's own Emily Kaliel, PhD candidate in history at the University of Guelph, who will give a talk entitled, "Public Health in Rural Alberta and Settler Colonialism as a Structure, 1919-1971."

Kaliel explores which rural populations the Alberta government considered to be a "public" worthy of interwar public health programs.

The event will be held on Zoom. Register for the link on Eventbrite.

If you have any questions, contact Rebecca Beausaert or Ben Bradley.

Join Professor Karly Kehoe, St. Mary's University, for this Scotland-Canada Academic Partnership annual lecture.

Dr. Kehoe's talk explores the legacy of colonial privilege by looking at patterns of Scottish Highland settlement in Nova Scotia. Catholic Highlanders made use of the spectrum of advantages inherent in the White European settler experience despite facing significant persecution at home. Examining their connections with the process of empire building builds a deeper understanding of the complexities of colonization and helps us to think about Scottish History’s connection with Canada’s reconciliation process. 

This talk will be presented virtually, so register on Eventbrite.

Dr. Mark Humphries, Laurier History Department presents, The Strange Tale of Alexander Henry, a Con Artist, and the Struggle for the Northwest.

Friday, February 6. 3:00 pm

Laurier Centre for the Study of Canada, 232 King St N, Waterloo.

Alexander Henry is famous as the first English trader to venture into the Northwest after the fall of New France in 1760 where he survived an attack at Michilimackinac, helped found the North West Company, and mapped the foothills of the Rockies. His story was published as a popular memoir in 1809 and helped shape historians' views about the early history of the Northwest and relations between Britain, the United States, and the Indigenous Peoples who lived there down to the present. But...new discoveries show that Henry didn't write the book: it was fabricated by an English children's author and con artist named Edward Augustus Kendall who stole Henry's journals and made-up most of the text. In sorting truth from fiction, we see Kendall consciously constructing a version of history that he hoped would resonate with audiences on the eve of the War of 1812 as tensions grew between Britain and the United States over the future of Western North America.

Light refreshments will be offered.

Organized by the Wilfrid Laurier History Department Events Committee.

Sashar Zarif's talk explores story as a lived condition rather than a narrative form, and artistic practice as a way of remaining aligned with life itself. Drawing inspiration from ancestral and traditional ways of knowing—where listening, attention, and continuity are central—it reflects on how stories are encountered, embodied, and lived, particularly in contexts shaped by movement, transition, and migration. The talk considers listening as a foundational condition for understanding experience, meaning, and action in an age of constant noise.

University of Guelph MA graduate, Austin Foster, presents the history of the University of Guelph’s War Memorial Hall, based on archival research for the War Memorial Hall: Its Early History, Heritage, and Legacy – A Centennial Retrospective (1924–2024) report. 

The lecture will premiere in-person at the Guelph Civic Museum. The recorded conversation will be available on YouTube, and the Museum Everywhere Portal.

The Military Lecture series is a partnership between the Laurier Centre for the Study of Canada and Guelph Museums.

Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and the presentation starts at 7 p.m., followed by a question period.

Join Jane Thomas, to discuss her recently published book, Wilful Neglect. Drawing on the Department of Indian Affairs annual reports, memoranda, and budgets over more than seventy years, Thomas' work reveals how federal health policies, shaped without Indigenous input and rooted in colonial ideologies, allowed tuberculosis to devastate First Nations in Canada. This conversation will explore the lasting impact of these policies today and the urgent need to reckon with the legacy of systemic racism in Canada’s health systems.

• In person at Laurier Centre for the Study of Canada, 232 King St. N., Waterloo
• On Zoom -  Register for the Zoom livestream

Join Carelle Sarkis, PhD candidate at McMaster University for her talk, "Tacit Terrains: A Look at Tacit Knowledge Development in Ontario Dairy Farmers."

Sarkis examines how new milking technologies and systems changed human-animal interaction in Canadian dairy farms in the post-1970 period.

The event will be held in person and on Zoom. 

In person: MacKinnon Rm 132, University of Guelph

Online: Register for the link

If you have any questions, feel free to contact Rebecca Beausaert or Ben Bradley.

Two presentations:

Bram Fookes, Billy Bishop Museum: "Ordnance in the Orchard: WW2 and the Militarization of Rural Ontario," and Lydia Kinasewich, History, University of Guelph: "Raw Milk Debates: Rural Producers and Consumer Health Concerns, 1956-91"

The presentation will take place in person at the University of Guelph in Room 132 of the MacKinnon building, and also remotely over Zoom. All are welcome to attend the in-person talk. For the Zoom presentation, please register through Eventbrite.

Join The Art of Solidarity editors Rob Kristofferson, history professor at Wilfrid Laurier University, and Stephanie Ross, McMaster University to learn about their book that delves into the rich tapestry of labour arts and heritage in Canada.

• In person at Laurier Centre for the Study of Canada, 232 King St. N., Waterloo
• On Zoom -  Register for the Zoom livestream

Drawing upon his 20+ years of experience as a War of 1812 reenactor, Tom Fournier will talk about his motivation for being a reenactor.  He will share his memories on the field, travelling the globe, meeting royalty, and even experiencing the paranormal.