This March, �첥��Ƶ's Organized Research Units (ORUs) host the first Climate Change Research Month with more than a dozen events aimed at generating awareness of climate change research and mobilizing the community to take action.

News

Hosted by various Organized Research Units (ORUs), York celebrates its first annual Climate Change Research Month this March with events taking place just every few days. Organized by Professor , director of the Centre for Feminist Research (CFR), ORUs have come together to contribute varied and broad-ranging discussions and screenings focused on various aspects of climate change.

The commitment to creating an annual Climate Change Month is another crucial step towards widespread education and another example of how York is committed to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.

“The climate crisis stands to impact every aspect of our lives, including areas such as employment, equity, health, and the wellbeing of our communities,” says York’s Vice President Research and Innovation, Dr. Amir Asif.

Events

Gender Equality in Low-Carbon Economies: Continuities, Contradictions, Disruptions
March 3, 2022
12:00-1:30 p.m.
The Centre for Feminist Research presents a talk by Canada Research Chair in Global Womens Issues and a Professor at Western University, This presentation identifies opportunities and constraints for women’s employment in renewable and clean energy in industrialized, emerging and developing economies, and makes recommendations for optimizing their participation.  

March 4, 2022
12:00-1:00 p.m.
The �첥��Ƶ Centre for Aging Research and Education presents a talk by , a political economist and health services researcher. This talk explores how climate change actions engage with inter-generational tropes. It highlights fault lines, raises questions about inter-generational blame and points to how we might consider inter-generational solidarity for climate action moving forward.

Pikopayin — It is Broken (Film)
March 7, 2022
3:00-4:30 p.m.
The Centre for Indigenous Knowledges and Languages presents a documentary video project. Taking place in the oil sands regions of Alberta, Pîkopayin (It is Broken), the film foregrounds Bigstone Cree Nation members’ perspectives and insights on energy projects and industrial activity within Treaty 8 Territory. The video project documents Bigstone Cree Nation members’ experiences of resource-extraction projects and activity within the First Nation’s traditional territory.
Learn more and register.

Climate Change, Sea Level Rise, and Community Planetary Health in Bangladesh
March 9, 2022
10:00 - 11:00 a.m.
Increasing salinity induced by sea level rise is causing planetary health impacts in the world's coastal communities. The coastal area of Bangladesh is no exception; the health and well-being of communities in coastal areas in Bangladesh have been strongly affected by increased water and soil salinity. These planetary health impacts can be categorized as (1) primary (communicable and non-communicable diseases; scarcity of potable water), (2) secondary (food and nutrition security; migration and related health impacts), and (3) tertiary (adaptation-related emerging diseases; disaster-related health vulnerability). Dr. Byomkesh Talukder will explore these multidimensional health impacts and associated salinity factors and present a collective intelligence-based framework to address the challenges currently being faced by coastal communities in Bangladesh.
Learn more and register.

March 10, 2022
1:00-2:00 p.m.
The Robarts Centre for Canadian Studies presents an event that addresses how can renewable energy be transformative for communities and what new research areas and opportunities this provides for current scholars wishing to pursue a just renewable energy transition in research and in practice. The event features , an associate professor at the University of Victoria's department of geography.

March 14, 2022
12:00 p.m.
Hosted by the Israel and Golda Koschitzky Centre for Jewish Studies, (University of Toronto) will deliver a talk about examining faith-based environmentalism and the ways that specific Jewish values are emphasized. His talk highlights how faith leaders and activists are increasingly vocal about environment and climate issues.

March 15, 2022
9:00-10:00 a.m.
Towards the formal launch of the Consortium of Excellence for the 17 Goals, please be invited to the organization's 2nd gathering, a.k.a. Café 17, at 9-00 am EST on March 15, 2022. The topic of the conversation this time is quantifying the contribution of inclusive insurance to helping the "missing middle" avoid poverty and climb the socio-economic ladder in the era of limited data.

Host: Professor , University of Lausanne;
Special Guests:  and , International Labour Organization;
Panelists: Professors , University of Liverpool;  and , �첥��Ƶ.

March 17, 2022
1:00-2:30 p.m.
Cities cause climate change. What are we doing about it? Dr. will provide an informative and timely discussion of the issues and challenges of cities and climate change, drawing upon her experience in the Toronto area. Cities are undergoing a paradigm shift to deal with climate change through a variety of actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from energy use and to prepare to be more resilient to climate impacts, while promising environmental justice and social equity.

Agents for Change: Facing the Anthropocene
March 21, 2022
11:00-12:30 p.m.
Sensorium: Centre for Digital Arts and Technology presents a curated and artist talk featuring Liz Miller, Jane Tingley and Nina Czeglady.
The presenters are  (Feminist Media Lab, Concordia),  (Leonardo Network) and  (SLO Lab, AMPD).  A listening booth will also be set up to show Liz Miller’s work The Shore Line (2017) that week, an interactive Documentary that features over 40 collaborative videos made with individuals who are confronting the threats of unsustainable development and extreme weather with persistence and ingenuity. 

March 22, 2022
11:30-1:00 p.m.
The �첥��Ƶ Centre for Asian Research presents a talk featuring speakers: Teti Argo and . In the wake of the failure of talks at COP 26, scholars and activists have taken grassroots actions to build for communities an alternative infrastructure they need for climate change adaptation. This talk presents a discussion about what we can learn from the local residential knowledges of residing alongside rivers in Jakarta; how the residents develop their own sense of risk and coping mechanism in and through social media; how they work at the local level with scholars, designers and activists to provide a shared structure of knowledge and practice below the formal system of adaptation and mitigation plan.

UN World Water Day - Human Environmental Health, Engagement with Indigenous Communities, and Engineering Scientific Solutions 
March 22, 2022
9:00-12:00 p.m.
Co-hosted by CIFAL York and the Office of the Provost, in partnership with the Dahdaleh Institute for Global Health Research, �첥��Ƶ and part of CIFAL York’s In-Focus Knowledge Exchange Series for Nature, Climate, and People.

The impacts of climate change and ecosystem degradation are experienced by local communities regionally and around the world. These experiences are exacerbated by underlying social inequities. World Water Day is an opportunity to contextualize research that sheds light on these experiences against the backdrop of global efforts to boost ambition on adaptation action, and strengthening inter-regional and cross-boundary adaptation to the impacts of planetary stressors  — e.g., food systems, water, agriculture and fisheries, and energy — with special focus on human and environmental health. This one-day event will have presentations from convenors Drs.  and   and a keynote address from Dr. James Orbinski. As well, Dahdaleh Institute’s Global Health and Humanitarianism Fellow Dr. Syed Imran Ali (and many others) will engage in discussions on the science and governance of freshwater, including Human and Environmental Health; Local Actors and Communities; and Engineering Scientific Solutions. 
Learn more and register.

March 23, 2022
9:00-12:30 p.m.
As part of the commitment to the United Nation's Sustainable Development Goals, Risk and Insurance Studies Centre at �첥��Ƶ is delighted to invite everyone to a one-day workshop that brings together renowned international scholars from distinct disciplines and influential leaders from the private sector, aimed at generating awareness of climate change risks and mobilising the community to take action.
Presenters , Mathematics, University of Liverpool, UK; , Biology, �첥��Ƶ, Canada; , Finance, University of Lausanne, Switzerland; , Engineering, �첥��Ƶ, Canada.
Panel lead: , Canadian Business Coalition for Climate Policy.

Children’s Brain Development in a Changing Climate
March 24, 2022
11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
LaMarsh Centre for Child & Youth Research will be hosting a climate change seminar on "Children’s Brain Development in a Changing Climate". Brain development in the early years lays the foundation for lifelong cognitive function, productivity, and mental health. How does the changing climate threaten children's brain development globally? This presentation will provide an overview of impacts on child health and development of both the sudden climate change effects, including extreme weather events, extreme heat, and effects on natural systems; and consequences of the changing climate, such as displacement, migration, and social instability. Some key challenges towards to studying and modelling these impacts will be shared. Finally, action and commitments to protect children from climate change will be highlighted. The session concludes with reflections in small groups.
Learn more and register.

March 28, 2022
2:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.
The Harriet Tubman Institute for Research on Africa and its Diasporas features a special event with , , . Marcondes Coelho is a forest engineer and holds a Master's degree in Environmental and Forest Sciences. Dr. Chrislain Eric Kenfack's research is at the heart of the critical issues of our times. His questions concern the grounds for solidarity among social movements. Balikisu Osman is finishing her PhD in Environmental Studies at �첥��Ƶ. Her doctoral research focuses on climate risks, household responses and sustainable food security in northern Ghana. 

Climate Change in the Caribbean: The Role of Capital in the Climate Crisis and the Movement for Climate Justice
March 31, 2022
6-7:30 p.m.
The Centre for Research on Latin America and the Caribbean (CERLAC) is pleased to present and to discuss Climate Change in the Caribbean. Join us for an important and timely presentation that will discuss the role that capital plays in the Climate Crisis and the movement towards Climate Justice in the Caribbean. Malene Alleyne is a Jamaican human rights lawyer and founder of Freedom Imaginaries with a Master of Laws degree from Harvard Law School and a Master of Advanced Studies degree from the Graduate Institute of International Studies, Geneva. Dr. Esther Figueroa is a Jamaican independent film maker, writer, educator and linguist with over thirty-five years of media productions.

The post Climate Change Research Month appeared first on Research & Innovation.

“Creating Space: Precarious Status Women Leading Local Pandemic Responses” is a collaborative, two-year project that brings together five organized research units (ORUs) and six researchers representing five York Faculties, as well as 10 partners, working on issues of equity, diversity and inclusion to advance a feminist response to the impacts of COVID-19 through systemic change.

The project was awarded $667,609 and aims to centre precarious status women’s experiences to support self-determination and accelerate systemic change to reduce gender-based violence, promote workplace health and safety and increase economic security.

Associate Vice-President Research Jennifer Hyndman says the successful application was made possible through a groundbreaking collaborative effort. “Such collaboration across Faculties, schools, and disciplinary boundaries is unprecedented among the ORUs at York,” she said.

The community-based project will be led by Professor Luann Good Gingrich (director, Global Labour Research Centre; Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies) and Professor Heidi Matthews (Osgoode Hall Law School), the project's co-principal investigators, along with four research directors: Professor Elaine Coburn (director, Centre for Feminist Research; International Studies at Glendon Campus); Professor Deborah McGregor (Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Environmental Justice; Faculty of Environmental & Urban Change/Osgoode Hall Law School); Professor Gertrude Mianda (director, Harriet Tubman Institute; Gender & Women's Studies at Glendon Campus); and Professor Yu-Zhi Joel Ong (director, Sensorium: Centre for Digital Art & Technology; School of Arts, Media, Performance & Design).

“Our project will take advantage of this unprecedented moment of significant appetite for new ways of thinking and living together that are more just and sustainable,” said Matthews. “As devastating as the pandemic has been for women and gender-diverse individuals, particularly those from Indigenous nations and racialized communities, it has also pried open space to dismantle the otherwise rigid status quo structures that work to marginalize these groups.”

“Creating Space” involves five York ORUs – the Centre for Feminist Research, the , the , the , and  – and nine community partners representing female temporary foreign workers, asylum seekers, Indigenous women and undocumented frontline workers: ; .; ; Black Creek Community Health Centre; ; ; ; ; and . The project will also be supported by its international human rights law collaborator, the .

The multidisciplinary team brings together expertise in labour, digital arts, international law and human rights, Indigenous legal traditions and knowledges, feminist and Indigenous methodologies, and migration and Black diaspora studies.

“We are committed to a collaborative approach that emphasizes relationships and mutual learning, and opening space for creativity and innovation to reimagine the legal and economic systems that create status insecurity for many women in Canada,” said Good Gingrich.

Funding for this project highlights York's efforts in working to support gender equality during the COVID-19 recovery. Sara Slinn, associate dean research and institutional relations at Osgoode Hall Law School, said "Osgoode is very proud to be involved in this timely and important project."

LA&PS associate dean research and graduate studies, Ravi de Costa, said the grant is a testament to the strength of social science and humanities research at York – not only in LA&PS, but across the University. He commended Good Gingrich and Matthews for putting together a "superb" group of researchers from five faculties.

"The research they will do in this project will provide a critical and largely missing understanding of the effects of the pandemic on some of the most marginalized members of society.”

The project will:

• design collective, autonomy-focused, and locally rooted strategies to address economic insecurity, frontline workplace safety and systemic gender-based violence
• launch a new human rights initiative to devise innovative legal arguments that disrupt dominant legal paradigms by supporting Indigenous-led self-determination
• create a participatory, experimental multimedia digital framework to shift the public conversation and accelerate systemic change around gender and status precarity.

Good Gingrich and Matthews say they anticipate cross-Canada impact. Researchers and graduate students contributing to the project will work with partner organizations to build capacity and support mutual knowledge exchange. This work will shape transformative policy, innovative and critical strategies for legal intervention, and change the conversation on a national level.

The post Funding supports York project to advance gender equality in pandemic recovery appeared first on Research & Innovation.

To support the efforts of cities and national governments in fighting the challenges of homelessness, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe () has established the Toronto Centre of Excellence on Youth Homelessness Prevention, the first Geneva UN Charter Centre of Excellence in North America. The centre will be hosted by �첥��Ƶ and co-directed by Faculty of Education Professor , president of the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness (), and Melanie Redman of .

“The establishment of the UNECE Toronto Centre of Excellence at York is a testament to the global leadership of our researchers in creating innovative, nuanced and effective solutions to youth homelessness,” said President and Vice-Chancellor Rhonda L. Lenton. “Under the guidance of our Canadian Observatory on Homelessness, the new centre will bring together experts, policy-makers, and local and international community partners to make a positive global impact on this urgent social issue.”

The Toronto Centre of Excellence will build on the work of the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness, which is based at �첥��Ƶ. The observatory has conducted and mobilized homelessness research from across Canada and beyond for many years. It will assess the state of youth homelessness and prevention in the 56 member states of UNECE to help get youth homelessness and prevention onto public policy agendas.

“In the context of the pandemic, we can see the folly of ignoring the role of prevention in addressing major social and health crises,” said Gaetz. “The Centre of Excellence will help us mobilize our efforts to transform our response to homelessness to focus on prevention. Working with a range of international partners, the centre will provide a mechanism to collaborate internationally to understand how to effectively end homelessness, and youth homelessness in particular. This is a big opportunity.”

The new centre is part of a  co-ordinated by UNECE with a mandate to engage in the exchange of research-based knowledge, experience and best practices to support implementation of the . The charter also places importance in gathering data on homelessness using common international standards to ensure comparability between member states; making these data and national statistics publicly available to support policy-making, research and economic development; and making use of global and regional data repositories to support the policy-making process.

“Through this partnership, we aim to raise the visibility of homelessness on the political agenda throughout our region,” said UNECE executive secretary Olga Algayerova. “The COVID-19 pandemic has bluntly showed that we cannot live up to our commitment to leave no one behind in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development if the human right to housing is not fully guaranteed for all.”

Designation as a Centre of Excellence will enable COH and A Way Home Canada to contribute to a broader effort to prevent homelessness among young people around the world through their  project and related lessons learned. The research agenda of the observatory has been developed on the premise that realistic and practical solutions to homelessness exists and are possible, and that communities across Canada can achieve that end with the help of credible evidence, supportive policy and adequate funding frameworks.

“Another benefit of the Toronto Centre of Excellence is that it connects our work in Canada to realize housing as a human right to a broad network of international partners and researchers who are also grappling with this question,” said Redman, president of A Way Home Canada and co-director of the centre. “Our goal with the Toronto Centre of Excellence on Youth Homelessness Prevention is to support UNECE member states to have the knowledge they need to act boldly in the face of the injustice that is homelessness.”

UNECE will facilitate the work of the Centre of Excellence and the exchange of information, knowledge, and experience within the network as well as with relevant international and national organizations in the UNECE region, co-ordinating co-operation and exchange of experiences between the Centres of Excellence.

The post UNECE establishes Toronto Centre of Excellence on Youth Homelessness Prevention at �첥��Ƶ appeared first on Research & Innovation.

Martin Bunch

�첥��Ƶ is committed to sustainability and to addressing the intertwined social, economic, and environmental challenges we face locally and globally. One project perfectly illustrates this deep commitment: Professor Martin Bunch, in York’s Faculty of Environmental Studies (FES), spearheaded the research component of York’s involvement in a major collaborative initiative with the Global Footprint Network. The ecological footprint is the only metric that compares overall human demand on nature with biocapacity – what our planet can renew.

The Ecological Footprint project has collected data from across the globe, from 1961 to present day, that provides some straightforward truths about the human predicament. In 2019, York will join forces with the Global Footprint Network to determine if countries are on track to meeting the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals and to improve the Ecological Footprint project’s measures of demand on nature and biocapacity.

“By establishing the National Footprint Accounts at York – a vibrant, independent, well-governed and respected academic leader in sustainability – the accounts will become even more trusted and effective.” – Mathis Wackernagel, co-founder and CEO of the Global Footprint Network

“We hope that the Ecological Footprint will support evidence-based decision making, inspire positive change and action, and shape future public policy,” Bunch said. “The goal is to enhance the impact of this work on policy-makers in government, industry and civil society,” he added.

Timing is critical

In an era when evidence-informed decision making is often under threat, the timing of this project is key.

Bunch believes that humanity is faced with many challenges relating to the ever-expanding global population (now at 7.6 billion people). These challenges include the conservation of biodiversity and the need for a dramatic reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. “Understanding and communicating the use of the Earth’s resources compared to its supply of ecosystem services is crucial if we are to live within our means,” he said.

Bunch’s areas of expertise mean that he’s perfectly suited for this kind of work. With an educational background in geography, his research and interests are highly interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary.

“The problems I address require an approach that transcends traditional disciplinary bounds,” he explained. “This type of work is fertile ground for geographers who are practitioners of a science that is both analytic and synthetic, makes use of qualitative as well as quantitative methods, and has a history of exploring the relationship among human beings and their physical environments,” he added.

York becomes global data centre for tracking biocapacity for over 200 countries

Beginning in 2019, York will become the global data centre for the National Ecological Footprint Accounts. These accounts are the foundation of the Global Footprint Network’s ecological footprint metric, which is updated annually with UN data so that the footprint can help determine if countries are on track to meeting the UN Sustainable Development Goals. This means that the accounts track the ecological footprint metric and biocapacity of more than 200 countries and regions.

More than a dozen national governments (such as Switzerland and the United Arab Emirates) and many cities (including Calgary and Vancouver) already turn to this vital information to guide their sustainability policy.

The goal of the partnership is to make the National Footprint Accounts even more scientifically robust and widely used. An international hub at �첥��Ƶ will not only update the accounts, but also co-ordinate, among international research institutions, methodological improvements to the Footprint Accounts.

What does this mean for �첥��Ƶ?

This new partnership means that York will provide the leadership and core activities for an international research collaboration to further develop, strengthen and elaborate the accounts.

“By establishing the National Footprint Accounts at York – a vibrant, independent, well-governed and respected academic leader in sustainability – the accounts will become even more trusted and effective,” said Mathis Wackernagel, co-founder and CEO of the Global Footprint Network. “This new placement at York will turn these accounts into an even more incontrovertible reference for public and private decision-making in support of sustainability.”

Looking for master’s-level researchers in sustainability in 2019

In addition to hosting the Ecological Footprint database, �첥��Ƶ will mobilize graduate programs to support the production of the National Footprint Accounts.

Bunch encourages researchers at the graduate level with backgrounds in sustainability assessment, sustainability indicators, quantitative methods, spatial analysis and geomatics (a field involving the collection, analysis and interpretation of data relating to the Earth’s surface) to think about using the Ecological Footprint in their graduate work.

Candidates would need to apply to do this. If accepted, these researchers could be offered funding of $11,000 per year for two years in addition to a research assistantship.

To learn more about the Ecological Footprint project, visit the To read a related YFile article, visit the . To read the press release, visit the . For more information about the Global Footprint Network, visit the To learn more about Bunch, visit his .

To learn more about Research and Innovation at York, follow us at , watch the and see the .

By Megan Mueller, manager, research communications, Office of the Vice-President Research and Innovation, �첥��Ƶ, muellerm@yorku.ca

The post Ecological partnership further establishes �첥��Ƶ as global leader appeared first on Research & Innovation.

In the summer of 2016, Innovation York’s industry engagement manager, Cheryl Giblon, introduced Laura Nicholson, director of York’s Nursing Simulation Centre (NSC), to Olivia Lin and Edward Shim, founders of Studio 1 Labs to work together to determine proof of concept for the health device.

Members of the intelligent bedsheets project team in the Nursing Simulation Centre located in the Health, Nursing and Environmental Studies Building on �첥��Ƶ’s Keele Campus

The intelligent bed sheet is developed by Studio 1 Labs and aims to monitor the health of patients at home, in hospital or in long-term care. It uses unique fabric sensors which are embedded into the bed sheet and detect respiratory patterns that are wirelessly transmitted to a computer terminal.

In December 2016, phase one of a three-phase project began in the Nursing Simulation Centre, supported by �첥��Ƶ Professors Eva Peisachovich and Celina Da Silva, and School of Nursing Simulation Manager Raya Gal.

Data collection was completed in January 2018 as the second phase of the project, with participants sleeping overnight in the NSC. The NSC is used to train York’s nursing students, and provided a unique opportunity for the start-up to collect data in a simulated hospital setting.

Studio 1 Labs’ goal is to commercialize the intelligent bed sheet, which has the capability to transform any bed into a patient vital signs monitoring system.

The collaboration and support provided by Innovation York and the School of Nursing has been an integral part of helping Studio 1 Labs achieve this goal, said Nicholson, the principal investigator on the project.

The project is funding by an Ontario Centres of Excellence (OCE) grant of $25,000.

Courtesy of YFile.

The post Studio 1 Labs tests intelligent bed sheets in York’s Nursing Simulation Centre appeared first on Research & Innovation.

The Advanced Manufacturing Supercluster, in which �첥��Ƶ is proud to be a participant, is an exciting initiative that will help to substantially propel our region into a globally leading centre for advanced manufacturing, which is critical to the success of the Canadian economy. It will help manufacturers across Canada become world leaders in the application of advanced technologies and will help technology firms build the next generation of tools for advanced manufacturing. It will create a critical mass of innovation activity with a gravity powerful enough to attract talent, technology, investment and customers from around the world.

By advancing collaborative, industry-led projects and driving collaboration between technology and manufacturing sectors in areas including microelectronics technology, this Supercluster will contribute to leading-edge applied research and technology development for the benefit of all Canadians.

York to participate in the Advanced Manufacturing Supercluster

�첥��Ƶ will play a role in the Advanced Manufacturing Supercluster, joining with more than 100 leading Canadian companies and other post-secondary partners to position Canadian manufacturers as global leaders in the application of next generation tools for advanced manufacturing.

Specifically, �첥��Ƶ is the academic lead for the microelectronic component of the Advanced Manufacturing Supercluster, one chapter of the overall project.

This considerable initiative will see �첥��Ƶ’s researchers become prominent contributors towards securing Canada’s leadership in the knowledge economy.

�첥��Ƶ views this business-led initiative as an exciting opportunity to help grow our region’s economy by establishing Canada as a globally recognized hub for manufacturing and technology leadership.

York’s strengths in science, engineering, microelectronics and nanotechnology

• �첥��Ƶ is home to a rapidly growing research profile in science and engineering. �첥��Ƶ’s engineering specialization in microelectronics and nanotechnology as well as its micro-fabrication and micro-fluidics laboratories for research and education dovetail, naturally, with the ambitions of the Advanced Manufacturing Supercluster initiative.
• �첥��Ƶ’s long-established commitment to impactful research in fundamental and applied science and engineering will allow us to reciprocate industry investment with innovative knowledge creation, fostering connectivity and collaboration.
• By leveraging �첥��Ƶ’s expertise in technology and information systems, along with operations management leadership through the Schulich School of Business, �첥��Ƶ will help to empower and bolster Canadian leadership in the advanced manufacturing sector.

The post �첥��Ƶ will participate in the new Innovation Superclusters initiative appeared first on Research & Innovation.

Ontario EcoSchools now reaches more than 900,000 Kindergarten to Grade 12 students every year, empowering them to effect change within the school community. It also trains and supports teachers, school staff and school board officials to provide guidance to these young leaders. In doing so, it certifies more than 38 per cent of public schools in Ontario, representing 56 of the 72 school boards in the province. It also promotes environmental learning and action, helping schools become more environmentally responsible.

Lewis Molot

�첥��Ƶ FES Professor Lewis Molot, current Chair of the Ontario EcoSchools Program Advisory Committee, led the initial incubation of the , which emerged from his work as associate dean of FES. The Faculty formed a consortium with several Ontario school boards in 1998 to better integrate environmental education into the school system. The consortium then adopted the EcoSchools program, created by the Toronto District School Board, and launched with a federal grant for climate change education.

Within the 12 years as an incubation project, Ontario EcoSchools has doubled in staff size and operational budget and is now setting its sights on scaling the program across the province and beyond. After being administered by �첥��Ƶ, the organization is launching as an independent charity.

As the first environmental-focused Faculty in Canada, it’s no surprise that FES was the incubator of Ontario EcoSchools. The University is recognized internationally for excellence in research, transdisciplinary studies and sustainability, as well as for progressiveness, commitment to social justice, accessibility and inclusivity.

The Ontario EcoSchools program follows a strong history of the University as a leader in addressing global climate change through pedagogical initiatives.

“Our partnership with York has been essential to becoming a leading environmental education organization in Ontario,” said Elanor Waslander, executive director of Ontario EcoSchools. “By providing stability, administrative support and community, York has helped our growth and impact. We are excited to foster a renewed partnership in the years ahead.”

By supporting a fledgling program nearly 15 years ago, �첥��Ƶ has made an exceptional impact on integrating environmental literacy in schools across Ontario.

Courtesy of YFile.

The post Ontario EcoSchools: Successful �첥��Ƶ project matures appeared first on Research & Innovation.

The $2.6-million NSERC/Sanofi Industrial Research Chair in Vaccine Mathematics, Modelling and Manufacturing, awarded to �첥��Ƶ Distinguished Research Professor , was announced at York on Tuesday, Jan. 23.  A professor in the Department of Mathematics & Statistics in the Faculty of Science, Wu will lead a large team of York professors, postdoctoral fellows and graduate students. The other team members who are part of this initiative are Mathematics and Statistics Professors Jane Heffernan, Neal Madras, Xin Gao, Michael Chen, Huaxiong Huang and Helene Massam.

, which has previously collaborated with York on a number of major projects related to infectious disease modelling, will invest $1.5 million over five years. The Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada () will provide $1 million through its Industrial Research Chair program, established to help universities build on existing strengths in areas of interest to industry. The remainder will be contributed by �첥��Ƶ through various supports.

“Establishing the NSERC/Sanofi Industrial Research Chair at �첥��Ƶ will not only accelerate frontline research and support Canadian industry, but also help improve the wellbeing of people around the globe,” says Ray Jayawardhana, dean of the Faculty of Science. “It is yet another example of the exciting research initiatives in York’s Faculty of Science that engage our faculty members and students with partners in the public and private sectors to enhance value and maximize impact.”

Manufacturers of vaccines in Canada are facing a number of significant challenges: the increasing cost of developing vaccines, the need to move rapidly from development and production of vaccines to mass use in target populations; and the complexity of understanding how infectious disease is transmitted, in an increasingly interconnected world.

“The dedicated resources this collaboration brings will enable us to focus on infectious diseases that are critically important to the health of Canadians,” says Wu. “With access to clinical trial data and vaccine efficacy data from both public agencies and the private sector, we will use mathematical modelling to inform the most efficient and cost-effective ways to immunize the public against these diseases.”

Canadian vaccine manufacturers and regulatory authorities need to be able to make evidence-based predictions and develop new technologies to analyze how diseases are transmitted. Wu and his team will develop fundamental mathematical theories, methodologies, techniques and tools to analyze infection risk in populations, map the spread of disease through mathematical modelling and conduct cost-benefit analyses of immunization programs based on vaccine efficiency and industrial production capacity.

The IRC program will include projects that will study: the use of vaccines to address hospital acquired infections such as Clostridium difficile (C.diff) and the need to combat colonization of hospital wards; transmission of influenza in three-generation households to determine if there are segments of the population where the high-dose flu vaccine should be targeted; and the impact of childhood immunization on transmission of disease, along with optimal programs of booster follow-ups.

Sanofi Pasteur will benefit from the mathematical methodologies and technologies developed as well as the datasets collected and analyzed. York students will benefit from Sanofi Pasteur’s research and development expertise, and gain valuable experiential education opportunities, as they train to become Canada’s next generation of experts in mathematical modelling, data analytics, economic evaluation and infectious disease dynamics.

Wu, who is also a , founded York’s Centre for Disease Modelling, which has developed many international partnerships: with China on communicable disease modelling and management; with India on vector-borne disease informatics; with Brazil on health informatics; and with many European and North American groups on a wide variety of major diseases. The Industrial Research Chair project will use his  and York’s ���ڲ����������پ����.

Courtesy of YFile.

The post Investment in vaccine mathematics a powerful tool to combat infectious diseases appeared first on Research & Innovation.

Eric Kandel

This November, two major events are planned involving �첥��Ƶ and the Gairdner Foundation. On Nov. 19, there will be a public lecture by Gairdner and Nobel Laureate Eric Kandel, an Austrian-American neuroscientist and a University Professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics at the College of Physicians and Surgeons at Columbia University. Kandel’s lecture will take place at the Toronto Reference Library. In his remarks, Kandel will discuss two perspectives on the current understanding of the neural systems and molecular mechanisms that contribute to learning and long-term memory:

• How different memory systems were identified in the human brain and how they were shown to be involved in two major forms of neural memory storage: 1) simple memory for perceptual and motor skills and 2) complex memory for facts and events.
• The studies that demonstrated that long-term memory is reflected in the growth of new synaptic connections.

This will lead into a discussion on how insights into memory storage are allowing us to understand the two major forms of age related memory loss.

For full details about the public lecture, visit the .

On Nov. 20, there will be an all-day, high-profile international symposium on neuroplasticity at �첥��Ƶ. Participants can join leading researchers in neuroplasticity as they discuss:

• Developmental and synaptic plasticity,
• Adaptive modulation of neural circuits,
• Neural ensemble organization and plasticity,
• Neural oscillations in plastic circuits.

For full details about the symposium, visit the .

The post Two key Gairdner Foundation events to take place at �첥��Ƶ, Nov. 19 & 20 appeared first on Research & Innovation.

�첥��Ƶ President and Vice-Chancellor Rhonda L. Lenton was joined by Markham Mayor Frank Scarpitti and International Trade Minister Michael Chan (MPP Markham-Unionville) to mark the occasion. A number of �첥��Ƶ’s key entrepreneurs showcased their technologies and products in the YSpace “maker space” and “co-working space.”

�첥��Ƶ’s new co-working and maker space offers students and community entrepreneurs and innovators a place to build and scale their ventures and connect with industry and not-for-profit partners, and provides them with access to programs designed to build their entrepreneurial skills.

With York’s  campus scheduled to open in 2021, the University is actively taking steps to cultivate new connections that foster a strong and growing culture of teaching, learning, research and innovation.

“This exciting new phase of York’s investment in Markham will help to shape our relationship for years to come,” said Lenton. “YSpace will serve as a vital hub in Markham where students, educators, business leaders and inventors can come together to collaborate. YSpace will also importantly support our commitment to ensuring that every student has an experiential education opportunity, while showcasing York’s commitment to increasing access to a high-quality, research-intensive university education, enhancing our connectedness to our communities, and contributing to the social and economic impact of the region through innovation and entrepreneurship. We look forward to many years of building �첥��Ƶ and Markham together.”

“YSpace is the perfect fit for our city,” said Scarpitti. “We are thrilled to be partnering with �첥��Ƶ.  This new innovative hub is where great thinkers, innovators and entrepreneurs will join forces to excel in a knowledge-based world economy while building on Markham’s stellar reputation for having a highly educated, skilled and diverse workforce. I’m also excited high school students will have access to YSpace, which will set them on the path to success.”

YSpace builds on the success of , the University’s innovation office. Innovation York’s goal is to facilitate and maximize the commercial, economic, and social impacts of research and innovation, and to create a culture of engaged scholarship and experiential learning.

“Innovation York, York’s innovation office, offers entrepreneurs and innovators an opportunity to become a part of community at YSpace Markham,” said Vice-President Research and Innovation Robert Haché. “A community that is supportive, that offers training programs to develop skill sets, co-working space, and facilities to build prototypes and even products, is essential if we are going to support entrepreneurs and give them the best opportunity for success.”

A dozen startups that have benefited from ’s programs and services were at the official opening of YSpace to demonstrate how they have transformed their bright ideas into products and services, including: a cloud-based health-care analytics platform that helps hospitals improve their efficiency and reduce costs; a new freeze drying technology that addresses the problems of affordability and efficiency of current freeze dryers; technology that provides media and entertainment options to users in rideshare cars and tracks behaviour; and, finally, a one-stop shop for senior care.

Courtesy of YFile.

The post From tea to 3D, �첥��Ƶ opens YSpace, a new innovation hub in Markham appeared first on Research & Innovation.