Data centres – large industrial facilities that power cloud computing and AI – have become critical infrastructure supporting the world’s growing digitization. Everything from streaming video and online banking to scientific research and generative AI depends on their ability to store, process and move enormous volumes of data.

As demand for digital services continues to rise, these centres sit at the root of that growth. And, as they become more pervasive, conversations about broader implications are growing.

“Data centres are increasingly part of public debate because of concerns about energy use, environmental impact, local economic effects and data sovereignty in Canada,” says Lyndsey Rolheiser, an assistant professor at the .

Despite the growing significance, there remains a notable gap in publicly available information about these facilities.

“There is very little systematic evidence to inform that discussion,” says Alexander Carlo, a postdoctoral researcher at Schulich. “At a basic level, we do not have a clear picture of where data centres are located in Canada or where new ones are being developed.”

Rolheiser and Carlo set out to address that gap by creating the first comprehensive map of Canada’s data centre landscape. Their work, now and to be included in the forthcoming Schulich School of Business Real Assets Research Paper Series, documents both existing facilities and the growing pipeline of projects that have been announced or are under construction.

The authors built their analysis around a proprietary dataset from Aterio, a data intelligence firm that aggregates information on large‑scale infrastructure projects. Using permitting records, utility filings and company disclosures, they tracked facilities from initial announcement through construction to full operation, then layered in census and provincial electricity data to assess location, scale and energy implications.

Once completed, they mapped out a much clearer picture of how Canada’s digital infrastructure is changing. The analysis shows that while Canada’s current data facilities footprint remains relatively modest, the pipeline of planned facilities is nearly 10 times larger – and those new centres are far bigger than older ones, reflecting a shift toward hyperscale infrastructure designed to support AI.

Future development is also highly concentrated: Alberta alone accounts for more than 90 per cent of planned capacity, despite relying on a comparatively high‑emissions electricity grid. At the same time, new facilities are increasingly being built far from major cities, often hundreds of kilometres from urban cores. Meanwhile, provinces with cleaner electricity systems, including Quebec, Ontario and B.C., have begun restricting or carefully managing grid access for large new data centres.

These patterns reflect a set of broader concerns the authors explore in the paper. Data centres consume enormous amounts of electricity – often equivalent to tens of thousands of households per facility – while creating relatively few long‑term jobs compared with the scale of public infrastructure they require. Their expansion can reshape provincial power systems, raise emissions concerns and crowd out other users. The authors also point to questions of data sovereignty, since most large facilities are owned by foreign firms and to the risk that some projects could become stranded assets if AI demand slows or climate policy tightens.

While Rolheiser and Carlo do point to these risks, the aim of the research is to ground future discussions in evidence. “This is a necessary first step for any informed policy or public debate,” Rolheiser says.

“At a minimum,” Carlo adds, “the paper should help clarify what the current landscape looks like and where development is taking place.”

Both researchers hope their work contributes to more informed discussions about data centres in Canada, and provides a solid evidence base that helps policymakers and the public better understand these sites and their impacts on grid access, emissions and economic benefits.

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Several times a month, a small drone rises above the trees at Swan Lake, following a precise path over the water. Parkgoers who enjoy walking, jogging or birdwatching might assume it’s there to capture scenic footage. Instead, the drone is part of a �첥��Ƶ-led effort to understand – and help restore – the health of an urban lake under pressure.

Swan Lake, a former gravel pit transformed into a stormwater pond and community green space, faces ongoing water quality challenges. As rainwater flows into the site from surrounding roads and neighbourhoods, it carries excess nutrients, road salt and other pollutants. Over time, this can fuel frequent algae growth, cloud the water and reduce oxygen levels, stressing fish and wildlife, limiting recreation and, in some cases, raising public health concerns.

Since April 2025, �첥��Ƶ researchers, led by CIFAL York, have been turning concern about the lake’s health into measurable data and practical action through the Swan Lake Citizen Science Lab (SLCS Lab). The initiative brings together York research centres, including ADERSIM and the One WATER Institute, with local partners such as Friends of Swan Lake Park, a community‑based volunteer organization dedicated to protecting and improving the area’s ecological health.

“Communities often know when something is not right with a local ecosystem, but it’s hard to act without clear, comprehensive and consistent information, as well as meaningful community engagement” says Ali Asgary, director of CIFAL York and professor in the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies. “The goal of the lab is to support those concerns with reliable data that can guide real decisions.”

"To assess a lake is to assess ourselves," adds Satinder Kaur Brar, director of the One WATER Institute and professor at the . "Its health card is a mirror of our environmental stewardship."

One way the lab is assessing the lake is through advanced technology, such as the use of multispectral and thermal drones operated by York research teams.

Equipped with special cameras that capture different types of light – including some invisible to the human eye – the drones can detect potential algae growth and subtle changes in water clarity as they scan the lake from above. Flying low and on demand, they provide detailed, up-to-date views of trends across the entire water body, offering a clearer picture than satellite images and a broader perspective than scattered and spot‑by‑spot water sampling.

The drones have already yielded valuable insights, recently shared in a York‑led, under-review study that monitored patterns from spring through fall 2025. By flying the drones roughly once a month and analyzing the findings over time, researchers were able to pinpoint where algae forms, how blooms shift across the seasons and how changes in water cloudiness are driven by biological growth rather than stirred‑up sediment.

The findings confirm what many residents and park managers have long suspected: the lake is rich in nutrients and prone to recurring algae growth. The drone data, however, also reveal something new.

Conditions vary significantly from one area to another, suggesting that targeted, location‑specific interventions may be more effective than broad, one‑size‑fits‑all treatments applied across the entire lake. Knowing where problems emerge helps guide chemical treatments, shoreline naturalization projects and future restoration efforts – and provides a better way to measure whether those interventions are working. "Interconnecting drone data with on-ground water quality can turn ecological signals into informed action that is vital for communities," says Brar.

“What the data made clear is that this isn’t a uniform problem,” adds Asgary. “When conditions vary so much from one part of the lake to another, it changes how you think about solutions. This kind of information allows us to be more precise, more proactive and more strategic in environmental management.”

In addition to monitoring Swan Lake, York‑led teams are working to make the data easier to interpret and use in planning. Researchers are developing AI tools to identify patterns in the drone imagery, anticipate conditions such as algae outbreaks and translate complex trends into clearer insights.

Other teams are using virtual reality and simulation to help users visualize the lake over time and explore how different interventions might affect conditions. Meanwhile, geographic information system (GIS) specialists are turning the results into interactive maps and dashboards that help the public and those involved in lake management understand what is happening across the site.

A core goal of the Swan Lake Citizen Science Lab is to encourage meaningful community engagement and shared stewardship.

“From the start, this was never about researchers working in isolation,” says Asgary. “The goal of the Swan Lake Citizen Science Lab is to create a shared process, where community knowledge and scientific tools come together.”

Local partners are not just observers; they are active partners in the research. Residents take part in field checks, help interpret findings, attend workshops and contribute to outreach efforts that share findings. Alongside them, �첥��Ƶ students gain hands‑on experience applying classroom learning to a real environmental challenge, working with researchers and resident members in a local setting.

For CIFAL York, which is affiliated with the United Nations Institute for Training and Research, the work at Swan Lake is a pilot that could inform other communities facing similar pressures on small urban lakes and wetlands.

“The impact here is very tangible,” says Asgary. “Through drones, data and collaboration, we’re building a deeper understanding of how this ecosystem functions and how it can be protected over time. That kind of shared knowledge is what allows stewardship to last.”

Find out more about the SLCS Lab, and see it in action, in the video below.

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Faculty of Science Professor Cora Young and Associate Professor Trevor VandenBoer were recognized through the NASA Group Achievement Award for their contributions to the Atmospheric Emissions and Reactions Observed from Megacities to Marine Areas (AEROMMA) campaign, a joint effort between NASA and the The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to study air quality and climate interactions across North America.

The award is reserved for those who have made exceptional contributions to NASA's mission and scientific endeavours.

AEROMMA combined aircraft, ground-based measurements and satellite observations to study how contemporary emissions from cities and oceans affect air quality and climate. NASA and NOAA approached York to lead the Toronto supersite, one of several measurement hubs established in major North American cities to contribute to the campaign's airborne data.

Young served as scientific lead, coordinating a team of 25 to 30 researchers; VandenBoer served as logistical lead, overseeing the physical transformation of York's rooftop laboratory – on the Petrie Science and Engineering Building – to host the research.

Also involved were York colleagues Mark Gordon, associate professor at the , and Rob McLaren, professor emeritus in the Department of Chemistry.

Collaborators came from across Canada and internationally, including Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) and the University of York in the U.K.

York graduate and undergraduate students had the opportunity to work on the project with those visiting researchers.

"Our ability to bring together this strong team of researchers allowed us to ensure it was worthwhile for AEROMMA to include Toronto," says Young. "Otherwise, we would have missed out on this unprecedented opportunity to learn about modern air quality here."

The 2023 summer AEROMMA project unfolded during a period of intense wildfire smoke across the region, an unplanned development that offered a rare opportunity for study.

"Wildfires will exacerbate air quality issues," says VandenBoer. "Understanding the chemistry of wildfire plumes arriving in the city is going to be critical to informing the public on when and how to protect their respiratory health."

The existing Air Quality Health Index is not well-suited to wildfire conditions because the smoke differs from the other drivers of urban air pollution.

One of the first papers to emerge from the project, now in its final round of peer review, found that wildfire smoke changed chemically as it travelled, changing how health and climate impacts are understood and communicated.

York researchers have also been in dialogue with the team behind ECCC’s 2024 �첥��Ƶ of Winter Air Pollution in Toronto (SWAPIT). Together, the summer and winter datasets create a year-round picture of urban air quality in Canada’s largest city that could inform policy on everything from wood-burning smoke to the atmospheric impacts of road salt.

The work also validated NASA’s TEMPO satellite, a space-based instrument tracking air pollution across North America. Measurements from York’s site, alongside NASA research aircraft and ECCC sites, were essential in confirming the satellite’s early readings, helping move the tool into practical use for ongoing air-quality monitoring and research.

For York graduate students, the initiative created opportunities to build international networks. VandenBoer says students helped host collaborators by familiarizing them with York’s facilities and procedures, and in some cases were involved with operating, maintaining and responding to issues with visiting researchers’ instruments.

Those connections continued beyond the project. Graduate student Yashar Ebrahimi-Iranpour later spent two weeks collaborating at NOAA’s Chemical Sciences Laboratory, while graduate student Na-Yung Seoh went on to join an international University of York-led campaign in Cape Verde.

AEROMMA involved a range of York collaborators, including facilities staff, operations teams and University leadership.

"It's a York community undertaking," says VandenBoer. "A lot of people wanted to support us, and for no other reason than that's just the type of community that we have."

Young points to why the work is imperative today.

"There are a lot of chemicals being emitted into the environment we can't see or smell or taste," she says. "Just because we can't detect them with our own senses doesn't mean they're not a problem. We need to keep on top of it."

With files from Mzwandile Poncana

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Announced March 27 at York’s Markham Campus, Natural Resources Canada will invest $28.9 million in 12 projects across the country to build and deploy clean energy technologies through its Energy Innovation Program.

These investments support efforts to reduce emissions and modernize Canada’s energy systems as clean technologies advance.

York's project, led by Associate Professor Marina Freire‑Gormaly at Lassonde, is one of four initiatives funded in the Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage stream which supports early research on capturing, moving, story and reusing carbon dioxide.

Freire-Gormaly will focus on developing a carbon capture technology that replaces heat‑intensive systems with electrochemical and light‑driven processes. By using advanced materials, the technology aims to cut energy use, reduce operating costs and improve performance.

“This funding allows us to move promising carbon capture ideas from the lab and scale them up, closer to real‑world use,” says Freire‑Gormaly. “It supports York’s role in developing practical, low‑energy solutions that can help reduce emissions.”

The project, titled “Development and scale-up of novel solid C02 capture photoelectrochemical active sorbents,” began in 2023 and will continue until March 2027 with a focus on creating and testing new solid materials that absorb carbon dioxide when exposed to light and electricity, instead of through thermal processes.

Freire‑Gormaly and her team of researchers – including co-applicant Assistant Professor Solomon Boakye-Yiadom and other collaborators at York's Faculty of Science – have developed new electrode materials using copper, aerogels and specialized coatings to improve performance.

Researchers are using a small, custom-built lab to accurately measure how much carbon dioxide is captured. Findings will help evaluate costs, environmental impacts and carbon emissions, and help determine how sustainable and practical the innovative solvent-based pathway would be at an industrial scale.

“These innovations are crucial towards a net-zero energy transition for all Canadians,” says Friere-Gormaly.

Tim Hodgson, minister of energy and natural resources, says the project reflects Canada’s goal to scale up clean energy and responsibly grow the nation’s conventional energy industry.

“We are investing to provide reliable, affordable and clean power across the country that will propel our economic growth, protect affordability for Canadian families and make Canada a low-risk, low-cost, low-carbon energy superpower.”

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Ciuying Jian (associate professor, ), Trevor VandenBoer (associate professor, Faculty of Science) and Daanish Mulla (postdoctoral fellow, ) are three of 34 delegates selected to engage in dialogue with policymakers during the 2026 Science Meets Parliament – Ontario Program (SMP-ON).

The event creates opportunities for in-depth knowledge sharing, in which delegates from the academic scientific community gain insights into the legislative process and learn how to effectively communicate research to policymakers.

This is the second year for the Ontario cohort, which is an expansion of the SMP federal program launched by the Canadian Science Policy Centre (CSPC) in 2018. It serves as a non-partisan initiative to benefit scientists, members of provincial parliament (MPPs) and Ontarians.

The three York representatives will bring research expertise in water and energy, air quality and chemical instrumentation, and human movement to the Spring 2026 delegation.

“This initiative is important because it creates a structured space for direct exchange between researchers and policymakers,” says Jian, a professor of mechanical engineering. “This type of engagement helps ensure that decisions are informed by evidence and allows researchers to better understand how policy is shaped in practice.”

Jian’s research explores innovative ways to use carbon and water more effectively. Specifically, her research examines how to sustainably produce carbon-based functional materials and use them to clean wastewater and improve environmental monitoring and green energy systems. Her lab also uses computer modelling to understand the behaviour of materials and interfacial systems at a microscopic level.

She plans to highlight to policymakers the importance of supporting both applied and fundamental research and hopes to help build mutual understanding between scientists and MPPs about how each approaches complex decision-making. Jian says she will share insights learned with Lassonde and the wider York community, as well as external partners such as the Canadian Society for Mechanical Engineering. She will incorporate these new perspectives into her research practice moving forward, she says.

For VandenBoer, the delegation is an opportunity to help ensure that “science is a non-partisan entity in politics,” and looks forward to scientists and MPPs working together to serve Ontarians

Atmospheric and analytical chemistry is the focus of VandenBoer’s research at York, which develops new tools to track nitrogen from use as fertilizer to grow crops to the air, as well as in the air quality of urban environments including indoor spaces. The research team working with VandenBoer studies how these chemicals travel and change from microscopic interactions at atmospheric interfaces to impacts at a global scale.

VandenBoer notes that by giving MPPs access to experts, and CSPC teaching scientists how to translate research for policy relevance, the program ensures that provincial decisions can be grounded in the best available evidence.

“The collaboration aims to benefit all Ontarians by bringing a wide range of diverse, expert voices into government to solve real-world problems,” says VandenBoer, adding he plans to maintain relationships developed during the delegation.

Mulla, a postdoctoral researcher with Connected Minds at York, sees the delegation as an opportunity to ensure his research generates evidence that is scientifically rigorous, but also directly actionable for public health policy.

His research investigates how the brain and nervous system control movements. By using advanced computer models, he explores how individuals learn new skills or break old habits, with the goal of finding ways to help people learn physical tasks faster and safely.

"Visible collaboration between researchers and policymakers signals that evidence and governance are working together, not in silos,” Mulla says, adding that he’ll apply what he learns to his teaching and research, and will incorporate findings into lessons about science communication.

By participating in the initiative, York researchers will help strengthen connections between science and policy at the provincial level.

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The CFI invests in state-of-the-art research facilities and equipment at institutions across the country, enabling projects that address international challenges and deliver meaningful societal impact.

�첥��Ƶ researchers will play key roles in two newly funded initiatives – one focused on mapping life on Earth, and another on probing the fundamental structure of the universe.

Professor Elizabeth Clare, from the Faculty of Science, is a longtime contributor to the Centre for Biodiversity Genomics (CBG), a global research hub led by the University of Guelph that has received $9,208,765 in funding. Clare has been involved with the centre for more than two decades, since its early development.

The CBG uses advanced genetic tools to identify species through DNA barcoding – an approach that uses short, standardized gene sequences to distinguish species from trace amounts of genetic material. In doing so, CBG can identify where species occur, estimate their numbers and explore how they interact and will use the data to inform conservation planning and ecosystem protection.

CFI funds will support modernization of the centre’s infrastructure. “The funds will allow the renovation and expansion of the CBG building, meeting the critical need for additional laboratory space,” says Clare. “It will also allow acquisition of advanced sequencing and computational hardware required to provide support to the Canadian and international biodiversity science community.”

Increased capacity will help position the centre for its next major initiative: Planetary Biodiversity, an ambitious effort aiming to document every multicellular species on Earth by 2045.

York will contribute to a second CFI-funded initiative focused on particle physics. Wendy Taylor, a Faculty of Science professor, is a collaborator on the ATLAS Tier-1 Centre and Distributed Computing project, which has received $5,376,964 in funding and is led by Simon Fraser University.

The project supports Canada’s role in the ATLAS experiment at CERN’s Large Hadron Collider (LHC) – one of the world's largest scientific collaborations. The experiment studies high-energy proton collisions that recreate conditions just moments after the Big Bang, offering insights into the fundamental laws of the universe.

At the core of this work is a powerful information infrastructure. ATLAS generates vast amounts of data, which are processed and analyzed through a network of high-performance computing centres. Canada’s Tier-1 Data Centre, located at Simon Fraser University, is a key part of this network and is operated by a national consortium that includes �첥��Ƶ.

“This data storage and analysis centre is a crucial Canadian contribution to the global ATLAS experiment,” says Taylor.

With the new funding, the facilities at Simon Fraser will undergo a major expansion to upgrade Canada’s ability to store, process and analyze LHC data. “This funding means that 160 researchers across Canada can continue to contribute to the world-class particle physics research program,” says Taylor.

Taylor is a contributor to the ATLAS initiative and the Tier-1 Data Centre, helping advance the experimental and computational research. She has been involved in developing the Inner Tracker detector, a critical component that records the paths of particles produced in collisions. Her team uses the Tier-1 Data Centre to run simulations and analyze the enormous datasets generated by the experiment.

Taylor's work helps guide computing infrastructure needs while enabling team members to search for rare and elusive particles, including magnetic monopoles – hypothetical particles that could fundamentally reshape our understanding of the universe.

“At �첥��Ƶ, we believe discovery happens when collaboration meets bold vision,” says Amir Asif, vice-president, research and innovation. “These projects reflect the power of our researchers, students and partners coming together to push the boundaries of knowledge  – from revealing the full diversity of life on our planet to unlocking the deepest mysteries of the universe. By investing in people, ideas and world-class infrastructure, we are not only advancing Canadian research but helping shape a more sustainable, informed and innovative future for the world.” 

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�첥��Ƶ has launched a new public resource designed to help people better understand electric vehicle (EV) charging and make practical decisions about where and how to charge.

The initiative, led by Hany Farag, a professor in the , is supported by a $139,294 federal grant from Natural Resources Canada through its Zero Emission Vehicle Awareness Initiative, which funds education projects that support cleaner transportation.

"The hub is meant to serve a wide range of audiences, from everyday drivers and prospective buyers to building managers and municipalities planning for more charging infrastructure," says Farag.

The is an online platform that combines plain-language explainers with interactive tools. It helps users explore common questions, such as how long charging might take in different situations or what it can cost to install a faster charger at home. It is designed as a practical starting point for anyone trying to make sense of EV charging without a technical background.

The site is organized into two main parts. The first features short explainations and briefs answering common questions about charger types, home charging and why charging speeds sometimes vary. Users can also download information as PDFs. The second section is a growing set of interactive tools that help users explore real scenarios, such as a charging simulator that estimates how a vehicle's battery level changes over time during a session.

"A key aim of the project is to also address common misconceptions that can make EV charging seem more complicated or intimidating than it needs to be," says Farag.

The hub reflects the University’s deep research strengths in clean energy systems – grounding EV charging within the broader electricity infrastructure that powers homes, buildings and communities. It supports diverse settings, including condos and apartment buildings, where planning becomes more complex when multiple residents charge simultaneously within a building's power capacity limits.

Some tools tailored to multi-unit and municipal planning are still in development, but progress is steady and intentional, says Farag. His team is actively engaging collaborators – including representatives from municipalities, dealerships and the EV charging sector – to ensure the hub is shaped by real-world needs.

Core development is on track for completion by June, with an official launch planned for March 2027.

The project is a York community effort, with Abdullah Al-Obaidi, postdoctoral fellow, and Ahmed Abdelaziz, PhD candidate, leading the algorithms and software development that powers its interactive tools. Paulina Karwowska-Desaulniers – executive director of York's SmartTO initiative – supports community engagement, events and outreach.

The hub is being developed in collaboration with Moataz Mohamed – director of the Mobilizing Innovation for Transportation Lab at McMaster University – and the City of Mississauga, alongside industry partners EVA Canada and RideAlike.

Three years ago, York's Keele Campus was announced as a sustainability-focused 'living lab' where faculty, students and campus staff tested next-generation electric commuter vehicle prototypes. The hub builds on that momentum – supporting smarter, more practical planning for campus charging infrastructure, helping students and visitors navigate on-campus EV charging with confidence and keeping York at the leading edge of sustainable campus innovation as EV demand grows.

Looking ahead, Farag says the team plans to build national awareness by sharing the hub’s mission and resources through workshops, partner networks and by collaborations across Canada, ensuring the impact extends beyond York's campuses.

“Whenever there is a chance to advertise or publicize the project for any national effort, we will definitely take that opportunity,” he says.

With files from Mzwandile Poncana

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Caleb Morgan is the second York student accepted into the competitive international research internship at the National Institute of Informatics (NII) in Japan. The program offers graduate students the opportunity to conduct research at global partner institutions, enhancing international collaboration and research inquiry.

A final-year master’s of applied science candidate, Morgan will spend up to six months at NII working on AI systems that could accelerate the way scientists discover and design new tools, as well as inform real-world progress in AI applications for greener manufacturing, aerospace innovation and faster drug development.

Morgan will begin his internship in late March.

At NII, he will work under Associate Professor Mahito Sugiyama on knowledge graphs – a way of organizing information so AI models can understand individual data points and the relationships between them, much like the the relationship between list of names and a family tree.

Morgan shares an example of how this is applied in practice: in disease prediction, a knowledge graph allows a model to connect a patient's medical history to their location and a specific time period. This produces more accurate results than a model working from isolated data, says Morgan.

"If you throw data into a model without any knowledge graph, the model might learn about people and situations but not be able to relate them to each other," he says. "When we construct a knowledge graph, the model understands that this person was related to this event or this place, and that gives us a more generalized, more insightful output."

He will also work with transformer models – the same foundational architecture behind well-known AI tools like ChatGPT – to decode the language of chemical structures and materials. The goal refining AI systems to make reliable predictions even when data is scarce – a significant bottleneck in scientific research and engineering, notes Morgan.

NII's environment, he says, is what makes it the right place for this research. The institute draws researchers who develop novel AI architectures grounded in advanced mathematics – exactly the kind of computer science apporach he wants to bring back to engineering.

Morgan’s foundation for this field was cultivated at York. In the Lassonde-based Processing Structure Property Performance (PSSP) Lab, supervised by Associate Professor Solomon Boakye-Yiadom, he has been developing AI models to predict defects in metal 3D printing for high-entropy alloys – a newer class of metal blends engineered for extreme environments like aerospace and high-corrosion applications.

Representing atomic compositions as knowledge graphs has already improved prediction accuracy, he notes, and he has presented these findings at several conferences. This combined effort in research and knowledge sharing shaped his successful NII application.

Getting there took persistence, however. Morgan applied to the NII program once before and while he was not selected, he applied again with a sharper, more focused application – one that advocated for why an engineer should cross into computer science.

"I had to steer my application to say ‘Yes, I'm an engineer, but I want to delve into computer science to develop architectures for my domain,’" he says. "I was much more intentional about the second application."

Behind the scenes, York International has been closely involved in his preparation, helping with documentation and accommodation planning in Tokyo – support Morgan says has made the process seamless.

Day-to-day at NII, his work will largely be behind a desk: writing code, reading papers and running experiments with datasets and models to test how well they can extract meaning from structured knowledge.

He will return to York later this year with new collaborations, novel methods and a sharper way of thinking.

"I'm going to have the mindset of a computer scientist and keep my domain knowledge as an engineer and be able to merge them to do new things,” he says.

For York students eyeing similar opportunities, Morgan's path offers its own message.

"Be intentional, tailor your application," he says, "and don't be discouraged by rejection."

With files from Mzwandile Poncana

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Funded by the Sustainability Innovation Fund at �첥��Ƶ, the program – called Shifting – includes two initiatives: a series of public programs focused on ecology and resilience; and, the creation of a living document that will guide the gallery’s planning, materials, transportation and waste methods.

Clara Halpern, the gallery's assistant curator, says Shifting was inspired by a desire to address climate change anxiety – including her own – by leaning into sources of hope.

Building on the gallery’s relationships with working artists, curators and writers, the first part of the initiative will feature events exploring practical pathways to climate action in the cultural sector. Alongside the launch of this new program, the exhibitions Worlds Away by Anne Duk Hee Jordan and Winter Wheat by D’Andrea Bowie, are currently on view at the gallery and offer perspectives on ecology.

Another key component will be a series of public dialogues organized by the gallery. The first event, on will feature a discussion moderated by Halpern with Kirsty Robertson, Canada Research Chair (Tier 1) in Museums, Art and Sustainability and director of the Centre for Sustainable Curating at Western University, and conservator Kim Kraczon, whose work focuses on reducing the environmental impact of materials and methods used in conservation, art production and exhibition-making.

Insights from these events will inform the second part of Shifting: the development of a living document focused on guiding the gallery’s operations with sustainable best practices.

In recent years, Halpern notes, resources supporting responsible approaches in the arts sector have emerged from Canadian organizations such as the Centre for Sustainable Practice in the Arts and the Centre for Sustainable Curating, as well as international groups like the Gallery Climate Coalition.

While the Goldfarb Gallery already works to mitigate the environmental impact of its activities – for example, by minimizing waste and reusing or recirculating exhibition-installation materials when possible – it has not yet developed dedicated sustainability resources.

“I wanted to create the gallery’s guidance resource document because in the field of contemporary art it can be challenging, midway through a project and under time constraints, to research different options for more sustainable choices,” says Halpern. “The idea of the document is to have resources and information close at hand at each stage of developing a project.”

Working with Rute Collaborative, a Vancouver-based consultancy that supports museums and cultural organizations working on ecological sustainability, the gallery has been advancing work on the document, structuring it around the various stages of exhibition development and project planning. The project has also benefited from dialogue with specialists on sustainability at York, in particular Associate Professor Ian Garrett who teaches ecological design for performance and is the director of the Centre for Sustainable Practice in the Arts.

Discussions coming out of the speaker series will also inform guiding principles in the document, alongside insights from partners, artists, students and faculty at �첥��Ƶ.

Once finalized later this year, Halpern will begin using and sharing the document while continuing to refine the information within as new research, practices and materials emerge. She hopes in doing so, it will evolve into a resource that inspires others, beyond the Joan and Martin Goldfarb Gallery.

“In reckoning with the scale of the climate change crisis, it can be difficult to envision our potential to make meaningful change,” says Halpern. “The hope for this project is to not get stuck in feeling powerless, and instead make shifts and create pathways to climate action and integrating more sustainable choices in the work we do.”

Featured image: Installation view at The Goldfarb Gallery of ��’A�Ի���������Ƿɾ���'����Re-member. Photo Credit: Hao Nguyen.

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How can retailers maintain the flow of goods during climate change-driven disruptions such as flooding, wildfires and severe storms?

Three MBA students earned top place at this year’s Sustainable Supply Chain Case Challenge for their practical, tech‑driven strategy to address this challenge.

The question was at the core of the competition, which brings together graduate students from business schools across Canada to tackle a real-world sustainability case involving retail logistics.

Hosted by the George Weston Ltd. Centre for Sustainable Supply Chains at Schulich, the event requires teams to submit a written proposal and deliver a final live presentation to industry judges for cash prizes and recognition.

When Schulich student Abdel Rahman Elakrat heard about the challenge, he was eager to participate and learn more about the impact of climate and weather in real-life scenarios. He formed a group with friends and fellow MBA students Rabie Tarakji and Harinder Kumar, and they got to work on the case study, which asked participants to propose solutions for a hypothetical $30-billion grocery retailer seeking to strengthen its resilience during severe weather events.

The team – called Chain Reaction – began by examining how climate disruptions affect Canadian supply chains. They were surprised by what they discovered.

“The amount of money lost in the Canadian market every year due to extreme weather conditions was eye-opening,” says Elakrat, noting that 2024 was the most expensive year in Canadian history for weather-related damages, at more than $8 billion. “I had no idea it was that bad.”

That insight helped the three students understand that climate volatility is no longer occasional – it is constant.

“It’s not just a temporary or once-in-a-while operating condition,” says Tarakji. “We realized that companies need to be predictive so they can accommodate unexpected turns.”

Drawing on technologies already being piloted or used by companies such as Costco and Walmart, Chain Reaction developed a three-pronged resilience strategy that uses advanced digital tools to anticipate disruptions before they happen.

The first element was inspired by the way wildfires increasingly shut down highways and rail lines, leaving trucks stranded and store shelves empty. To address such scenarios, the team proposed a logistics “control tower” system driven by AI that connects truck GPS data with live weather monitoring. The system would allow dispatchers to reroute shipments up to 48 hours before storms or fires block major transportation routes.

Their second strategy involved installing wireless IoT (Internet of Things) temperature sensors inside refrigerated trucks and cold-storage facilities. These sensors would constantly monitor conditions and immediately alert managers if temperatures rise, helping prevent food waste while reducing energy costs. The approach addresses the growing risk of extreme heat, which can cause refrigeration systems on delivery trucks to fail thereby spoiling meat and dairy before they reach stores.

Finally, recognizing that many disruptions originate deeper in the supply chain – such as droughts affecting farms supplying key ingredients – the students proposed a supplier-risk mapping software. The tool would track where products originate and flag climate risks early, allowing companies to secure alternative suppliers to get ahead of potential supply shortatges.

A key philosophy behind the team's proposal was practicality. Although the hypothetical case study company was a multibillion-dollar enterprise, the team wanted their approach to remain realistic, cost-effective and scalable.

“Instead of pitching really expensive physical infrastructure that would require billions of dollars and years to build, we went with something easy to implement and cost-effective,” says Elakrat. “Our solution was estimated at about $1.5 million – which is minuscule for a $30-billion business.”

Chain Reaction submitted their proposal for the competition's first round and was selected to advance to the final round, where they presented their strategy to a panel of industry judges.

On the day of the finals, the team watching the other presentations while waiting for their turn. They were impressed by the quality of the competition but, aside from a few nerves, remained confident in their pitch. “We have nothing to lose, so let’s just enjoy it,” Elakrat recalls thinking.

Over the course of the project, the three students had independently tackled different parts of the project – market research, solutions and implementation – each of them becoming experts in their assigned area. They made time every day to meet for at least 30 minutes, forming a collaborative chemistry.

By the time they reached the finals, their presentation was polished and they were feeling confident.

Tarakji says that during the presentation, they "realized quickly that we were doing well and that we had a good flow.”

Despite feeling positive after taking the stage, the students weren't expecting to take the top-place finish. When the second- and third-place teams were announced – and Chain Reaction’s name had not yet been called – they began to refelct on what a valuable experience the competition had been.

Then, Chain Reaction was announced as overall winner.

Afterwards, members of the judging panel offered feedback, and said their work stood out for being both innovative and practical – and as a solution that could be applied immediately to help companies navigate climate risks.

Beyond the recognition, the three students walked away with a valuable experience. The process of designing a strategy rooted in SDG‑focused practices showcased what is possible today, and how they can contribute to sustainability efforts in the workplace moving forward.

“The problems we were solving in these cases are the same challenges companies face today, and in the future, when we’re working in those companies, the solutions we developed now can help shift the dynamic there too,” says Tarakji. “That’s exciting.”

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