Honorary degree recipients are recognized for their contributions to community building, their advocacy for social justice and their philanthropy. Recipients will offer words of encouragement, motivation and congratulations to graduands

Below are the honorary degree recipients in order of the Faculty ceremonies at which they will be honoured:

Jose Moura: June 12, 10:30 a.m. –

Moura is an engineering scholar specializing in signal processing and machine learning and a longtime professor at Carnegie Mellon University, where he has taught since 1986. A graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, he holds 19 patents, including two that underpin key technologies in hard disk drives and have been deployed in more than four billion devices worldwide.

In 2019, he served as president and CEO of IEEE, the world’s largest professional technical organization, representing more than 422,000 engineers and scientists across 160 countries.

Christopher R. Bratty: June 12, 3:30 p.m. – Faculty of Education

Bratty represents the third generation of leadership at The Remington Group, one of Ontario’s most respected privately held development companies, where he serves as president of land development and investments. He oversees a diverse portfolio spanning residential, commercial and mixed‑use projects across the Greater Toronto Area.

His leadership has helped shape the region’s evolving landscape, with a focus on building complete, inclusive communities and resilient urban design. Deeply committed to civic and cultural enrichment, Bratty is also a supporter of the arts, contributing public art installations that enhance the neighbourhoods in which his projects are developed.

Howard Sokolowski: June 15, 10:30 a.m. – Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies I

Sokolowski has been a leading figure in Canada’s development industry for more than four decades, directing the construction of over 50,000 homes and shaping residential communities nationwide. He is the founder and principal of Metropia, a company focused on large‑scale, master‑planned residential communities.

A prominent philanthropist, he has supported institutions including Sinai Health Foundation, the Art Gallery of Ontario and York. He was appointed to the Order of Ontario in 2011 and received the Building Industry and Land Development Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 2025.

Ray Gupta: June 16, 10:30 a.m. – Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies III

Gupta is Chairman and CEO of Sunray Group, one of the largest privately owned hotel operators in Canada. Through the Sunray Foundation and personal giving, he has donated more than $1 million in recent years to numerous causes including the Scarborough Health Network, Northumberland Hills Hospital and Positive and Progressive Educational Support Canada, which funds girls' education in rural India.

He was named named Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year in 2025 and received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Canadian Hotel Investment Conference.

Denise Pickett: June 17, 10:30 a.m. – I

Pickett is president of Enterprise Shared Services at American Express, a role she assumed in February 2025 following more than three decades with the company. She oversees global functions that support the organization’s operations, including real estate, procurement, global security and business continuity.

Beyond her executive leadership, Pickett has contributed to community and institutional governance as a member of the board of directors of TELUS and through a decade of service on the board of United Way of New York City. She holds an MBA from �첥��Ƶ’s Schulich School of Business and was named one of Payment Source’s Most Influential Women in Payments in 2018.

Walter and Maria Schroeder: June 18, 3:30 p.m. – Faculty of Health II

The Schroeders are among Canada’s most influential entrepreneurs and philanthropists, whose work has enabled lasting change in education, health care and social equity nationwide. Together, they co‑founded Dominion Bond Rating Service in 1975 and built it into the world’s fourth‑largest bond rating agency before its sale in 2014.

Through the Walter and Maria Schroeder Foundation, they have since committed nearly $500 million to initiatives that expand access to care, advance medical research and remove barriers to education. Their philanthropy has supported major health care institutions across Canada, with a focus on translating research into improved patient care and stronger community health systems.

Marian Jacko: June 19, 3:30 p.m. –

Jacko is a nationally respected leader in Indigenous justice, child advocacy and public service. A proud Anishinaabe woman from Wiikwemkoong Unceded Territory, she earned three university degrees – including a juris doctor from the University of Toronto and a master of laws from �첥��Ƶ – while raising her children as a single mother.

Called to the Ontario Bar in 1998, she spent nearly two decades with the Office of the Children’s Lawyer. In 2016, she became the first Indigenous woman appointed Children’s Lawyer for Ontario. She now serves as assistant deputy attorney general of Ontario’s Indigenous Justice Division.

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The annual Canada’s Greenest Employers list recognizes organizations across Canada that demonstrate a strong culture of environmental awareness, embedding sustainability efforts throughout their institutional DNA.

For 14 consecutive years, adjudicators have selected York for its successful and proactive leadership in reducing environmental impact across teaching, research and campus operations.

“York is proud to be recognized once again as one of Canada’s Greenest Employers,” says Narin Kishinchandani, vice-president, finance and administration. “This continued designation reflects the work taking place across the University and our deep institutional focus on climate action initiatives.”

The reasons York was again named one of Canada’s Greenest Employers this year were: campus projects that have been supported by the Sustainability Innovation Fund to advance climate action; the Faculty of Science’s ongoing development of a Sustainable Labs certification program that will ensure eco-friendly practices amongst lab teams; and reduction of infrastructure footprints through solar air heating, green roofs, solar panels, rainwater collection and more.

Adjudicators also highlighted the Office of Sustainability and Human Resources’ sustainability orientation module for employees, the ’s sustainable campus walking tours and the University’s support of the Sustainability Champions Network, a peer mentoring program that fosters environmental action on campus.

These initiatives are part of a broader suite of institutional efforts. Among them is the ongoing commitment to the Sustainability Strategy 2030: Positive Change: Connecting People, Planet and Purpose which includes a focus on reducing direct and indirect emissions by 45 per cent by 2030. That work has supported York’s accelerated goal of achieving net-zero emissions by 2040 – a full decade ahead of its original target.

Across its campuses, York also continues to lead in environmental responsibility through efforts such as the upcoming annual  a�Ի� .

The University’s inclusion on Canada’s Greenest Employers adds to a growing list of accolades for York.

Last year, York was designated a Living Campus by the World Wildlife Fund Canada (WWF-Canada) for the second year in a row. The designation recognizes colleges and universities that demonstrate leadership in engaging their communities in conservation action and education.

The Times Higher Education Impact Rankings 2025 placed York second in Canada for its contributions to Sustainable Development Goal 12: Responsible consumption and production. York was also recognized in the  among the top academic institutions in the world for its impact with environmental leadership, education and research.

Nicole Arsenault, program director in the Office of Sustainability, says York’s continued recognition reflects a collective effort across the University.

“Students, faculty, instructors and staff all play a critical role in advancing York’s sustainability goals,” she says. “Through their engagement in teaching, research and campus operations, they help strengthen the University’s impact and support long-term progress on new and existing initiatives aimed at accelerating climate action.”

As York continues to advance its sustainability priorities through both new and ongoing programs, the University remains focused on building a more sustainable institution. That work spans infrastructure, academic leadership and community partnerships, with a shared goal of strengthening impact across its campuses, local communities and beyond.

“Building a more sustainable institution – across our buildings, research, teaching and community partnerships – strengthens York’s leadership and delivers lasting benefits locally, nationally and globally,” says Kishinchandani.

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�첥��Ƶ announces its 2026 Top 30 Alumni Under 30, an influential group of leaders who are driving meaningful change in their communities and around the world.

The recipients of the sixth annual recognition demonstrate a deep commitment to giving back and are tackling complex social issues across various industries – all before the age of 30.

This year’s honourees are making great strides in fields such as aviation, entrepreneurship, sustainability, health care, technology, AI and more. Together, they are working toward building an innovative and sustainable future, paving the way for future generations.

“Each year, the Top 30 Alumni Under 30 program highlights the remarkable achievements and impact of York’s global young alumni community,” says Julie Lafford, assistant vice-president, alumni engagement. “This year’s cohort features a diverse group of innovators who are shaping the future through their leadership, creativity and volunteerism.”

Since 2021, the Top 30 program has celebrated the success and diversity of the University’s alumni community, while inspiring the next generation of young alumni leaders. 

To view the full list of the 2026 Top 30 Alumni Under 30, and learn more about their accomplishments,  visit the Top 30 Alumni Under 30 webpage.

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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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These honours celebrate academic excellence as well as the leadership, service and initiative that contribute to the school.

Presented to graduating students who have made an outstanding contribution during their time at Osgoode, the 10 juris doctor students selected from dozens of nominations for the 2026 Dean’s Gold Key Awards have enriched the academic journey and advanced student experience through community building, governance, advocacy and extracurricular leadership.

“One of Osgoode’s greatest strengths is our community. The Dean’s Gold Key Awards recognize students whose leadership, service and academic excellence have strengthened the Osgoode experience,” says Dean Trevor Farrow. “These graduates have set a standard for what it means to contribute meaningfully to a law school and to the profession. We are proud to celebrate their achievements and the leadership they will carry forward as Osgoode alumni.”

Ebun Akomolafe

Akomolafe has demonstrated exceptional leadership, integrity and a sustained impact on mooting, student governance and peer mentorship. An internationally accomplished mooter, she has earned top oralist honours and helped advance Osgoode teams at the highest levels while also strengthening the institution through structural reform, serving as the inaugural ethics officer of the Osgoode Mooting Society and later redesigning training programs to improve access, fairness and support for junior competitors.

She has been a steady leader in student governance and a deeply committed mentor, providing extensive one-on-one support during recruitment and transitions, often without recognition. She is noted for her principled judgment, even-handed leadership and quiet dedication.

Avery Cameron

Cameron is noted for exceptional leadership and a lasting impact on student mooting and mentorship. As president of the Osgoode Mooting Society, she expanded access to oral advocacy, guiding dozens of students and helped deliver some of the school’s most successful mooting years, including revitalizing Lerner’s Cup and sustaining Baby Gale and Cassels Cup when organizers or sponsors withdrew.

She devoted extensive time to coaching, brought senior judges to campus, and led the creation of a more ethical, student-centred mooting culture through new conduct and accountability frameworks. Nominators credit her with leaving Osgoode’s oral advocacy community stronger, more inclusive and better positioned for future generations.

Allessia Chiappetta

Nominated for sustained leadership and lasting contributions to student life, Chiappetta has served as president and co-president of the Intellectual Property Society of Osgoode and co-president of the Canadian Italian Association of Osgoode. She is noted for expanding leadership opportunities, launching cross-club collaborations and building programming that strengthens professional, academic and cultural engagement across the school.

Chiappetta has also distinguished herself academically and professionally through faculty research assistantships, advanced work in emerging areas of law, acquiring more than 140 hours of clinical service supporting under-resourced innovators, and success in mooting competitions. As an upper-year mentor and orientation leader, she has provided consistent, practical support to junior students.

Brandon Connor

Connor’s nomination is rooted in values-driven leadership and a broad impact on student life, equity and community care. As co-president of Osgoode OUTLaws, he led major fundraising and programming initiatives, expanded mentorship initiatives and panels supporting queer students navigating the legal profession.

His work as equity officer and Faculty Council Equality Committee member focused on embedding equity into institutional processes, including recruit-focused supports for equity-seeking students and advocacy for stronger student representation. Across clinical work, residence life, mentorship and governance, nominators emphasize that Connor consistently identified gaps in support and took concrete steps to address them.

Michael Conroy

Conroy was nominated for exceptional leadership, service and mentorship across clinical education, governance, scholarship and student life. He is noted for his extraordinary contributions to the CLASP–KPMG Tax Clinic, where he went beyond his role to secure significant relief for low-income clients and continued supporting cases after his formal commitments ended.

As a student leader, Conroy strengthened Osgoode’s mooting culture and tax law programming, helped sustain major competitions and improved fairness and continuity through institutional reforms. He also made lasting contributions through high-level academic research and publication, while consistently mentoring peers, junior students and incoming cohorts with generosity and care.

Elad Dekel

Dekel was nominated for behind-the-scenes leadership that materially improved student life, systems and access. As co-chair of Orientation Week and treasurer of the Legal and Literary Society, he modernized outdated processes, automated workflows, stabilized finances and introduced cost-saving initiatives, including a new financial management platform and at-cost student printing that saved thousands of dollars.

He also strengthened student programming through leadership roles in the Entertainment and Sports Law Association and extensive clinical and volunteer work, while consistently pursuing essential tasks that kept student life running smoothly.

Gabrielle Gonsalves

Gonsalves is recognized for her transformative contributions to equity and access within the law school community. As treasurer of the Black Law Students’ Association, she vastly expanded financial supports, growing the LSAT bursary program from three to 13 awards and establishing an emergency fund for Black-identifying students facing crisis.

She is widely recognized for her intensive, hands-on mentorship, providing academic, recruit and personal support to law and pre-law students, particularly those from underrepresented backgrounds. Across clinical work, student leadership and peer support, nominators emphasize that Gonsalves not only advocates for inclusion, but actively dismantles barriers and equips others to succeed.

Arianna Howse

Quiet leadership and a significant commitment to Indigenous student advocacy has earned Howse this award. From her first year onward, she has played a central role in the Osgoode Indigenous Students’ Association (OISA), serving as 1L representative, director of communications, and later co-chair, where she consistently acted as a bridge between cohorts, advanced student concerns and strengthened academic and community supports.

Her leadership contributed to record attendance at OISA events and record fundraising for Orange Shirt Day, while her mentorship of Indigenous students was sustained through co-leading training and transition sessions for incoming students. Her impact has been cumulative and enduring, marked by selfless service, careful mentorship and a measurable improvement in the Indigenous student experience at Osgoode.

Shivaansh Khanna

Khanna is recognized for leadership that enhanced student life, financial stability and community belonging. Through senior roles in student government and Orientation Week, he combined strategic planning with deep care for students, leading major initiatives that improved accessibility, inclusivity and long-term sustainability.

As a Legal and Literary Society representative, and later treasurer, he played a central role in restoring the society’s finances, eliminating a longstanding deficit through transparent decision-making and difficult but necessary reforms. Across governance, orientation and student programming, nominators describe Khanna as a calm, generous leader who mentors others and someone who takes on complex work without seeking recognition.

Jasmit Mander

Mander has demonstrated exceptional mentorship, principled leadership and a sustained commitment to equity and inclusion. As co-president of the Osgoode Sikh Students Association, he helped build a nationally connected student organization through mentorship programs, career panels, recruitment support and community outreach, while also amplifying student voices through council and strategic planning initiatives.

Through student governance, pro bono work and community leadership, Mander is described as someone who quietly expands access, builds confidence and walks alongside others without seeking recognition, leaving a lasting impact on the Osgoode community.

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The Canadian Society for Molecular Biosciences (CSMB) has elected Pearlman as one of three 2026 CSMB Fellows. The designation honours senior faculty who have advanced molecular bioscience through research and service to the science community.

Over a distinguished academic career, Pearlman pioneered expressed sequence tag (EST) analysis in the single‑celled organism Tetrahymena thermophila. This led Pearlman to be among the first researchers involved in one of the earliest genome sequencing initiatives, the Tetrahymena Genome Project. 

His research examined how cells turn genes on and off and how cells are organized and regulated. Findings from this advanced understanding of genome function has significant relevance to applications in health and biotechnology. 

“I am very delighted and extremely honoured to have been chosen as one of the three 2026 CSMB Fellows,” says Pearlman. “This is a very prestigious honour and award that I am humbled to receive. I know and have interacted with the other two elected CSMB Fellows and I am delighted to be honoured together with these exceptional and deserving scientists.” 

Pearlman has published more than 100 papers in peer-reviewed journals and has shared his work internationally and has made significant contributions to science communication and science literacy. 

In addition to research success, he contributed to science leadership and public education when he served on the Council of the Royal Canadian Institute for Science as president, past-president and advisor. 

He was also an associate of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research Evolutionary Biology Program. He served with the Gairdner Foundation as associate scientific director, and on its Medical Review Panel, Medical Advisory Board, and as coordinator for its high school outreach programs.

Pearlman retired from �첥��Ƶ in 2008 after a lengthy career in the Faculty of Science but continues to be active in research working with colleagues and students on chromatin biology, as well as RNA biology, studying RNA processing and the origin of life on earth with a focus on the RNA World Hypothesis.

During his time at York, he also held roles as associate dean (1999-2004) and dean (2005-07) of the Faculty of Graduate Studies.

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Led by Parmeet Singh Channe, a student, Enactus York is empowering students to tackle social and environmental challenges through award-winning entrepreneurship and ventures.

When Channe, a third-year computer science student, was growing up, he was exposed early to stark inequalities. He recalls seeing children his age working in extreme conditions instead of attending school. Those experiences instilled in him a drive to make a difference that evolved into a desire to pursue socially minded entrepreneurship and build projects to create the change he wanted to see in the world.

That motivation led him to �첥��Ƶ and, in April 2024, to a LinkedIn post by Enactus Canada, a registered charity. Channe learned the organization empowers post-secondary students to use innovation and entrepreneurship to advance social impact. Through a network of teams at more than 78 campuses across Canada – and a global network spanning 35 countries – participants develop projects aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and compete by pitching their ventures and demonstrating outcomes on a national and international stage.

“Discovering Enactus felt like finding a platform that perfectly aligned with what I had already been trying to build: using entrepreneurship as a tool for real-world impact,” says Channe.

After learning that a previous Enactus York chapter had dissolved during the COVID-19 pandemic, Channe became determined to resurrect it. Within a few months, he relaunched the chapter, which was officially ratified in September 2024. The group started small, with only two members. In those early days, Channe took on several roles: pursuing partnerships and funding, overseeing project development and working to recruit new members to grow the team into a thriving entrepreneurial community.

Today, Enactus York has grown to more than 90 members, supporting innovative initiatives – each driven by a purpose that reflects what first inspired Channe. “Our goal is to create ventures that benefit lives at scale while improving people’s standard of living,” he says.

In its first year, the group demonstrated its mission through award-winning projects, such as: AR Home Builder, an augmented reality app that helps rural communities to construct sustainable, resilient housing; Modular Homeless Shelters, which redesigns existing shelters with factory-built units to provide housing solutions; and Energent, an intelligent energy management platform that helps property managers reduce consumption and costs while promoting sustainability.

Three more ventures are underway this year. LiftAID connects students with non-profits, helping communities access volunteer support while providing opportunities to develop applicable skills. Easysim helps professors teach economics through realistic simulations, making education more engaging and accessible. Dragoncure is exploring ways to support triple-negative breast cancer treatment – especially in low-income countries – by developing solutions that are affordable, low-risk and aimed at reducing relapse.

Earlier this year, Enactus York took these projects to competition with team members Prabhkrit Singh (co-president of Enactus York), Mohammad Areeb (vice-president) and Samashi Munaweera (project manager of Dragoncure).

In its first appearance at the Enactus Canada Regional Exposition, the chapter earned three podium finishes: Easysim placed second in the TD Entrepreneurship Challenge, Dragoncure placed second in the Innovation & Impact Challenge and LiftAID placed third in the Desjardins Community Empowerment Challenge.

In addition to its Enactus achievements, Dragoncure also earned first place at the Hult Prize Qualifiers at �첥��Ƶ – part of a global competition that challenges student teams to pitch business ideas addressing major global problems. The qualifiers feed into national and international rounds, offering the team a chance to move on to the competition’s final stages and compete for seed funding.

While venture creation and competitions are the chapter's focus, it also serves as a hub. It organizes workshops, networking events and collaborative initiatives that provide opportunities to gain skills in market research, pitching and storytelling, project development and building partnerships. “These experiences not only support venture creation but also prepare students for careers in entrepreneurship and innovation,” says Channe.

Looking ahead, Channe says Enactus York will participate in the Hult Prize Nationals in Montreal in April, followed by the Enactus Canada National Exposition in May, where teams compete for a chance to advance to Enactus Global.

Channe envisions the chapter growing into one of Canada’s leading student venture ecosystems. It boasts more than 10 active projects creating measurable change for thousands of individuals internationally, with Enactus York alumni leading startups and driving innovation across industries.

“We aim to contribute meaningfully to the SDGs while building a generation of students who see themselves not just as learners, but as problem-solvers and changemakers,” he says.

By inspiring others to take action, Enactus York aims to create a ripple effect one person at a time. “Just one tree can provide shade to hundreds of people in its lifetime,” Channe says.

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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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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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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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