The Government of Canada recently announced a new investment of more than $151 million to support 188 new and renewed Canada Research Chairs, including the renewal of Lakehead University’s Dr. Charles Levkoe, Tier II Canada Research Chair in Equitable and Sustainable Food Systems.

Dr. Levkoe is an associate professor in Health Sciences. His research investigates ways that academics and community-based practitioners – including food producers, public health workers, non-profit organizations, and Indigenous communities – can build more equitable and sustainable food systems to address social, economic, and environmental challenges.

“This renewal enables the continuity of essential food systems research in partnership with communities across Northwestern Ontario, Canada, and globally,” Dr. Levkoe said.

“I am particularly excited to build relationships with new and existing initiatives that are working towards social and environmental justice and addressing pressing concerns such as the climate crisis,” he added.

“Congratulations to Dr. Levkoe and thank you to the CRC program for continued funding for this important research,” said Dr. Andrew P. Dean, Lakehead’s Vice-President, Research and Innovation.

“Dr. Levkoe’s research program is exciting and aligns with a number of Lakehead University’s research priorities, but especially to research in social justice and environmental sustainability initiatives,” Dr. Dean added.

“The Canada Research Chairs announced this week comprise the full diversity of Canada, both in terms of their backgrounds and training, as well as the broad range of disciplines they represent,” said Ted Hewitt, Chair, Canada Research Chairs Program Steering Committee and President, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council.

“This, in turn, helps to drive the research excellence we have come to expect from these outstanding scholars, as well as their contributions to the well-being and prosperity of Canadians.”

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Media: For more information or interviews, please contact Brandon Walker, Media, Communications and Marketing Associate, at (807) 343-8110 ext. 8372 or mediarelations@lakeheadu.ca.

Lakehead University is a fully comprehensive university with approximately 9,700 full-time equivalent students and over 2,000 faculty and staff at two campuses in Orillia and Thunder Bay, Ontario. Lakehead has 10 faculties, including Business Administration, Education, Engineering, Graduate Studies, Health & Behavioural Sciences, Law, Natural Resources Management, the Northern Ontario School of Medicine, Science & Environmental Studies, and Social Sciences & Humanities. Lakehead University’s achievements have been recognized nationally and internationally, including being ranked, once again, among Canada’s Top 10 primarily undergraduate universities in Maclean’s 2021 University Rankings; as well as included in the top half of Times Higher Education's 2022 World Universities Rankings for the third consecutive year, and in the top 100 of 1,115 universities from around the world in THE's 2021 Impact Rankings (which assesses institutions against the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals). Visit www.lakeheadu.ca.

What happens when freedom of conscience and freedom of religion meet medical assistance in dying (MAiD)?

Jocelyn Downie, University Research Professor in the faculties of Law and Medicine at Dalhousie University, will discuss that topic in her Harold G. Fox Distinguished Speaker Series virtual talk hosted by Lakehead University on Tuesday, Jan. 25 at 7 pm.

“Medical assistance in dying is legal in Canada,” Downie said. “There will be individuals who want to access MAiD but whose health-care providers have a religious or conscientious objection to being involved with it.

“There will be individuals who want to access MAiD but the health-care institution they are in refuses on grounds of freedom of religion or conscience to allow assessments or provision of MAiD within their walls.

“There will be health-care providers who want to provide MAiD but whose colleagues, employers, or facilities prohibit them from doing so. What does the law say about such situations? What should it say?”

From this discussion, attendees will learn that the issue of individual and institutional conscientious objection matters greatly. It matters to those who experience moral distress if compelled to act against their religion or conscience, Downie said.

“And it matters to those who face barriers or delays in access to MAiD (a legal health-care service) in Canada – with the potential for extreme suffering and, sometimes, absolute loss of access.”

Downie said individual conscientious objection is controversial but clear in law – clinicians have an obligation to provide an effective referral or transfer of care to a non-objecting clinician or MAiD program. Institutional conscientious objection is controversial and not yet clear in law.

“I believe we should defend the current position regarding individual objections and that we should argue that publicly funded institutions should not be permitted to create barriers to access to assessments and provision of MAiD even when they claim an objection based on religion or conscience.”

Downie’s work on end-of-life law and policy includes Special Advisor to the Canadian Senate Committee on Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide; author of Dying Justice: A Case for the Decriminalizing Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide in Canada; and member of the Royal Society of Canada Expert Panel on End-of-Life Decision-Making, the plaintiffs’ legal team in Carter v. Canada (Attorney General), the Provincial-Territorial Expert Advisory Group on Physician-Assisted Dying, and the Canadian Council of Academies Expert Panel on Medical Assistance in Dying.

She was named a member of the Order of Canada in part in recognition of her work advocating for high-quality, end-of-life care. She is also a Fellow of both the Royal Society of Canada and the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences.

Register now for this enlightening discussion: https://lakeheadu.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Nw6wHNKBSW2d3MrTVhXlDg

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Media: For more information or interviews, please contact Brandon Walker, Media, Communications and Marketing Associate, at (807) 343-8110 ext. 8372 or mediarelations@lakeheadu.ca.

Lakehead University is a fully comprehensive university with approximately 9,700 full-time equivalent students and over 2,000 faculty and staff at two campuses in Orillia and Thunder Bay, Ontario. Lakehead has 10 faculties, including Business Administration, Education, Engineering, Graduate Studies, Health & Behavioural Sciences, Law, Natural Resources Management, the Northern Ontario School of Medicine, Science & Environmental Studies, and Social Sciences & Humanities. Lakehead University’s achievements have been recognized nationally and internationally, including being ranked, once again, among Canada’s Top 10 primarily undergraduate universities in Maclean’s 2021 University Rankings; as well as included in the top half of Times Higher Education's 2022 World Universities Rankings for the third consecutive year, and in the top 100 of 1,115 universities from around the world in THE's 2021 Impact Rankings (which assesses institutions against the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals). Visit www.lakeheadu.ca.

Fourth-year Education student Emily Turner, right, posed for this photo with Student Health and Wellness counsellor Holly Maki.

January 12, 2022 – Thunder Bay and Orillia, Ont.

Today Bell Let’s Talk announced $1 million in grants to 16 Canadian post-secondary schools, including $100,000 to Lakehead University.

This funding will assist with Lakehead's initiative to support students’ mental health by building individual capacity to sustain well-being and increase the availability and scope of resources accessible to students.

“We are thrilled to have our submission chosen by Bell,” said Cheryl D’Angelo, Lakehead University’s Director of Student Health and Wellness.

“This grant will help Lakehead implement initiatives that align with the National Standard of Canada for Mental Health and Well-Being for Post-Secondary Students.”

The initiative includes a mental health screening program, increased training for members of Lakehead’s campus communities to recognize signs of distress, the development of a mental health dashboard and a campus-wide anti-stigma campaign.

“Thank you to Bell Let’s Talk for helping Lakehead do even more to assist our students,” said Dr. Moira McPherson, Lakehead’s President and Vice-Chancellor.

“We recognize that the pandemic has caused unique challenges for students and we know that this funding will allow Lakehead to increase our ability to help students in need.”

According to the 2021 survey by the Canadian Alliance of Student Associations, the pandemic has not only worsened pre-existing mental health challenges in 78 per cent of students, but it has created new challenges for 64 per cent, and while some students remain optimistic, the percentage has dropped by five per cent in the past year to 41 per cent.

“Bell’s commitment to student mental health is an ongoing priority especially as students continue to be impacted by the effects of the pandemic,” said Mary Deacon, Chair of Bell Let’s Talk.

“We are proud to continue our support of post-secondary institutions’ efforts to expand, enhance or establish programs that support student mental health and well-being, and ultimately student success.”

In 2021, Lakehead University received a $25,000 grant from Bell Let’s Talk allowing researchers to study how COVID-19 impacted physical activity behaviour and mental health in university students.

Two researchers from Lakehead University’s School of Kinesiology, Dr. Ian Newhouse, Director/Professor, and Dr. Erin Pearson, Associate Professor, led the research project thanks to the Bell Let’s Talk Post-Secondary Fund.

To date, Bell Let’s Talk has awarded more than $4 million in grants to Canadian post-secondary institutions, starting with more than $3 million in initial grants to over 120 schools in early 2021.

Bell Let’s Talk 2022 Campus Campaign

Now reaching students at more than 225 colleges, universities and cégeps in every province and territory, this year’s Bell Let’s Talk Campus Campaign continues to focus on Bell’s digital toolkit to ensure post-secondary institutions can safely engage students in virtual ways across the country.

The toolkit is designed to keep the student mental health conversation going during the challenges of COVID-19 and contains the following resources:

• virtual photo booth for students, faculty and staff to post selfies and share personalized mental health messages
• wellness activities that encourage awareness and self-care
  a digital Bell Let’s Talk flag to be shared on social media channels and websites
• short films about mental illness, hope and recovery

Bell Let’s Talk Day is January 26 – Join the conversation!
On Bell Let’s Talk Day, Bell donates 5 cents to Canadian mental health programs for every applicable text, local or long distance call, tweet or TikTok video using #BellLetsTalk, every Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Snapchat, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube view of the Bell Let’s Talk Day video, and every use of the Bell Let’s Talk Facebook frame or Snapchat lens. All at no cost to participants beyond what they would normally pay their service provider for online or phone access.

About Bell Let’s Talk

The largest-ever corporate commitment to mental health in Canada, Bell Let’s Talk is focused on four key action pillars – Anti-stigma, Care and Access, Research and Workplace Leadership – and is part of Bell for Better. Since its launch in 2010, Bell Let’s Talk has partnered with more than 1,300 organizations providing mental health services throughout Canada, including hospitals, universities, local community service providers and other care and research organizations.

To learn more, please visit Bell.ca/LetsTalk.

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Media: For more information or interviews, please contact Brandon Walker, Media, Communications and Marketing Associate, at (807) 343-8110 ext. 8372 or mediarelations@lakeheadu.ca.

Lakehead University is a fully comprehensive university with approximately 9,700 full-time equivalent students and over 2,000 faculty and staff at two campuses in Orillia and Thunder Bay, Ontario. Lakehead has 10 faculties, including Business Administration, Education, Engineering, Graduate Studies, Health & Behavioural Sciences, Law, Natural Resources Management, the Northern Ontario School of Medicine, Science & Environmental Studies, and Social Sciences & Humanities. Lakehead University’s achievements have been recognized nationally and internationally, including being ranked, once again, among Canada’s Top 10 primarily undergraduate universities in Maclean’s 2021 University Rankings; as well as included in the top half of Times Higher Education's 2022 World Universities Rankings for the third consecutive year, and in the top 100 of 1,115 universities from around the world in THE's 2021 Impact Rankings (which assesses institutions against the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals). Visit www.lakeheadu.ca.

Lakehead University’s Faculty of Science and Environmental Studies is pleased to announce that Dr. Vijay Mago, Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Science, has been named as the inaugural SES Faculty-Based Research Chair for his planned program of research in “Computational Ethics in Natural Language Processing.”

This is a three-year appointment that started on January 1.

A committee of Lakehead University Research Chairs unanimously and enthusiastically recommended Dr. Mago for this position, commending him on his hard work to grow the graduate program in Computer Science during his time as the graduate coordinator and most recently as department chair.

They also noted Dr. Mago has a very good record and a history of collaboration with researchers in other Canadian and international institutions (including India, the United States, Greece, and the United Kingdom). His research partnerships and collaborations also include industry, government, and not-for-profit organizations.

Dr. Mago joined Lakehead University in August 2015. Since then, he has attracted over $2.1 million in external funding from a wide number of sources, including tri-council granting agencies (both NSERC and SSHRC), government, the public sector, and non-profit organizations.

He also has published research findings in a variety of high-quality international journals and conferences, and he has an extensive supervisory record. To date, 14 graduate students have completed their degree under his mentorship, and he is currently supervising seven MSc students, two PhD students, and one Postdoctoral Fellow.

The appointment committee members noted that Dr. Mago “has received an NSERC PromoScience grant for Niijii Indigenous Mentorship, which indicates his motivation and commitment for mentoring students with underrepresented backgrounds,” and that as Research Chair, he “will be able to fulfill his full potential as a supervisor and mentor.”

Dr. Todd Randall, Dean of the Faculty of Science and Environmental Studies, congratulated Dr. Mago on this significant achievement.

“Dr. Mago has demonstrated an excellent capacity for high-quality and impactful research in our Faculty and has made considerable contributions to post-graduate training to improve both the reputation of the Department of Computer Science as well as the University more broadly.”

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Media: For more information or interviews, please contact Brandon Walker, Media, Communications and Marketing Associate, at (807) 343-8110 ext. 8372 or mediarelations@lakeheadu.ca.

Lakehead University is a fully comprehensive university with approximately 9,700 full-time equivalent students and over 2,000 faculty and staff at two campuses in Orillia and Thunder Bay, Ontario. Lakehead has 10 faculties, including Business Administration, Education, Engineering, Graduate Studies, Health & Behavioural Sciences, Law, Natural Resources Management, the Northern Ontario School of Medicine, Science & Environmental Studies, and Social Sciences & Humanities. Lakehead University’s achievements have been recognized nationally and internationally, including being ranked, once again, among Canada’s Top 10 primarily undergraduate universities in Maclean’s 2021 University Rankings; as well as included in the top half of Times Higher Education's 2022 World Universities Rankings for the third consecutive year, and in the top 100 of 1,115 universities from around the world in THE's 2021 Impact Rankings (which assesses institutions against the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals). Visit www.lakeheadu.ca.

With the Lakehead University Wellness Strategy implementation plan underway, the Wellness Newsletter will provide the University community with updates on our progress towards Our Trail to Wellness.

In addition, the newsletter will focus on information, tips and tricks to help all of our students, faculty and staff explore their own health and wellbeing. Each newsletter will highlight one or more of the nine dimensions of wellness outlined in the wellness strategy.

Our January newsletter will focus on physical wellness! Please keep reading and stay tuned for future newsletters.

Read the full newsletter here. 

Check out the latest Lake Superior Living Labs Network (LSLLN) newsletter for updates on our recent activity. The LSLLN serves as a platform to connect academics and community groups to develop new partnerships and collaborative initiatives across the Lake Superior watershed. For more information see www.livinglabsnetwork.org.

The Faculty of Education's January 2022 Education Exchange newsletter is now published.

This issue features an article on the Ojibwe Spirit Names gifted to the Department of Aboriginal Education, an introduction to new faculty member Dr. Sharla Mskokii Peltier, faculty news and awards, alumni profiles, and more.

To access the Education Exchange newsletter, click here.

Congratulations to Dr. Sabah Mohammed, Professor in Computer Science, for being one of the editors of a new book, Business Intelligence and Information Technology.

Published by Springer, the book features the proceedings of the International Conference on Business Intelligence and Information Technology held in Harbin, China in December 2021. It also presents recent research on business intelligence and information technology.

Information about the conference is available here.

Information about the book is here.