January 21, 2021 – Thunder Bay, Ont.

Shannon Salter will give a public presentation through Zoom on Tuesday, Jan. 26 at 7 pm, part of the Harold G. Fox Lecture Series hosted by Lakehead University.

Salter, Civil Resolution Tribunal Chair and adjunct professor at the University of British Columbia’s Allard School of Law, will discuss the way COVID-19 forced courts around the world to move online and what this could mean for the justice system.

She will describe the growing consensus that it’s time to digitally transform the justice system and if this will actually increase access to justice.

The Civil Resolution Tribunal is Canada’s first online tribunal resolving small claims, condominium disputes, and motor vehicle accident disputes.

“As a mainly online tribunal, the CRT stayed open and operating normally last year,” Salter said.

“Over its short history, the CRT’s jurisdiction has expanded to include condominium law, small claims, motor vehicle injury, and co-operative and societal disputes. From the beginning, the tribunal has been extensively co-designed with community legal advocates and their clients.

“This has led the CRT to focus on collaborative dispute resolution, with adjudication as a valued last resort. While the CRT offers mail, telephone, and (pre-pandemic) in-person services, over 99 percent of the approximately 20,000 disputes we’ve handled involved online tools.”

The CRT is paperless. Most of its nearly 100 staff and tribunal members have always worked from home. Dispute resolution services, from applications, negotiation and mediation processes, uploading evidence, and receiving decisions and orders, are all online.

“Aside from relocating some frontline staff to remote work, and supporting colleagues with sudden caregiving and other responsibilities, we didn’t have to adapt,” she said.

“Instead, we focused on the health, mobility, and economic impact of the pandemic on CRT users. We helped by waiving fees in cases of financial hardship, pressing pause on default orders, and extending deadlines through email requests.”

Before the pandemic, community legal advocates helped the CRT accommodate the needs of people with health, mobility, economic and other access barriers.

“Now, many more of us are also experiencing these challenges, and the CRT has scaled to meet this increased human need. It helped that we offered online tools.

“But we stayed open because of human-centred design and the outcomes it brought; free, plain language legal information and tools through the Solution Explorer, simple fee waivers, free interpretation services, staff well-trained in mental health issues, cultural competency and customer service. Most importantly, a culture of collaboration, inclusivity, and respect,” she said.

Salter doesn’t believe that technology can solve all problems related to accessing the justice system – it could even add more barriers to access. 

“It’s important to remember that technology is not a panacea, a cure-all for our access to justice woes, though it might have offered temporary pain relief for our COVID-related ones. Adding a technology interface to existing, inaccessible processes is not transformative, and can add further barriers.

“Building a flexible, resilient, and responsive justice system requires something that’s both much harder and much easier than legal technology. It requires fundamental system and culture change, co-designed and tested with those who need our public justice system the most,” she said.

Please click HERE to register.

Biography: Shannon Salter, BA, LLB, LLM

Shannon Salter is the Chair of the Civil Resolution Tribunal, Canada’s first online tribunal resolving small claims, condominium disputes, and motor vehicle accident disputes. She is also an adjunct professor at the UBC Allard School of Law, teaching administrative law and legal ethics and professional regulation. She earned her BA and LLB from UBC, and her LLM from the University of Toronto.

Salter was a BC Supreme Court judicial law clerk before practicing civil litigation at a large Vancouver firm. She has served as a vice chair of the Workers’ Compensation Appeal Tribunal, vice president of the BC Council of Administrative Tribunals, and on the College of Registered Nurses of BC.

She is currently a director of the BC Financial Services Authority, a Law Society of British Columbia disciplinary hearing panel member, board member of the Canadian Legal Information Institute (CanLII), and a director of Lexum.

Salter is a co-author of the BC Administrative Decision Maker’s Manual, as well as a number of legal journal articles. In 2017, she was named one of the 25 Top Most Influential Lawyers in Canada, and was previously recognized as one of Canada’s New Law Pioneers by the Canadian Bar Association and an Access to Justice All-Star by the National Self-Represented Litigants Project (NSLAP).

She received the Adam Albright award for outstanding teaching by an adjunct professor in 2016. Salter is also a fellow of the National Centre for Technology and Dispute Resolution at the University of Massachusetts and a visiting professor at the Sir Zelman Cowan Centre in Victoria University in Melbourne. She is a frequent speaker at international conferences on online dispute resolution, administrative law, legal education, and the future of law and technology.

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Media: For more information or interviews, please contact Brandon Walker, Media, Communications and Marketing Associate, at (807) 343-8177 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 2020 World Universities Rankings for the second consecutive year, and 98th among 766 universities from around the world in THE's 2020 Impact Rankings (which assesses institutions against the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals). Visit www.lakeheadu.ca. 

The theme this year will be "Our Changing World".  We've all heard the catch-phrases: In these unprecedented times, we are all in this together, to try to flatten the curve, while adjusting to a new normal.

Our world is changing, but living through a global pandemic has radically changed so much of our daily lives. We look to scientists, political leaders, artists, and intellectual thinkers for direction, as they work tirelessly to improve health and well-being, drive us toward social equity, and aid us in discerning fact from fiction. These are uncertain times, but as we pivot in these uncharted waters, we look to research and innovation to help us understand and appreciate this new world. 

January 18, 2021 – Thunder Bay and Orillia, Ont.

Lakehead University International is excited to announce the launch of the Lakehead Global Certificate (LGC) program.

A specialized, non-academic co-curricular program, the Lakehead Global Certificate provides a unique opportunity to recognize and celebrate Lakehead students who, through their work on campus and involvement in the community, are building their cultural intelligence, global awareness and intercultural communication skills.

“Lakehead International strives to develop competent and socially engaged leaders,” said James Aldridge, Vice-Provost, International. “It is our hope that the Lakehead Global Certificate program inspires students to seek out skills and experiences that will help them thrive in culturally diverse environments.”

Unlike a traditional certificate program, the LGC is earned at no cost to the student and is completed during their undergraduate or graduate studies. The program is designed so that students can demonstrate cultural intelligence and intercultural skills to potential employers or on applications to future academic programs.

“Not only will this program enable students to set themselves apart from their peers by giving a global edge to their Lakehead University degree, it provides students with an opportunity for personal development and growth,” said Aldridge.

Students can achieve one of three levels that will indicate their commitment to global learning: Global Inquirer, Global Explorer, Global Citizen. Points are awarded for each level under six pillars: Peer to Peer Engagement, Community Involvement, and Intercultural Education and Awareness, International and Global Experience, Diverse Work Experience, and Language Learning.

Lakehead International will be hosting an information session on Thursday, Jan. 21 at 2 pm for individuals, organizations and businesses interested in learning more about how these experiences are helping our students and how to get involved. Register at https://bit.ly/3r4QJbC.

More information can be found on our website at lakeheadu.ca/lgc.

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Media: For further information or to arrange an interview, contact Jaclyn Bucik, Media, Communications & Marketing Associate, at 705-330-4010 ext. 2014 or  jbucik@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 University Rankings 2021; as well as included in the top half of the Times Higher Education 2020 World University Rankings for the second consecutive year, and 98th among 766 universities from around the world in THE's 2020 Impact Rankings (which assesses institutions against the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals). Visit www.lakeheadu.ca. 

January 11, 2021 – Thunder Bay and Orillia, Ont.

Dr. Mohammad Nasir Uddin has been elevated to the status of Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) for his outstanding contributions to control techniques for alternating current (AC) motor drives. He is the first IEEE Fellow at Lakehead University.

Uddin joined Lakehead University in 2001. He is currently a Professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering. He also serves as Coordinator of the Electrical Engineering program with the Lakehead-Georgian Partnership, and is the Director of the Renewable Energy, Power Systems and Drive Research Lab located in Barrie, Ont.

IEEE Fellow is the highest grade of membership and is recognized by the technical community as a prestigious honor and an important career achievement.

“I am honoured to be considered amongst the worlds’ leading authorities within the field of electrical engineering,” said Uddin. “Out of all the awards and honours that have been bestowed upon me, this one is the most rewarding and gratifying, especially since it was supported by my peers.”

Uddin has made outstanding contributions on the modeling, simulation and real-time application of intelligent algorithms such as fuzzy logic, neural network, neuro-fuzzy, nonlinear and loss minimization controls of AC motor drives, to achieve fast and accurate speed response with high efficiency under system nonlinearities/uncertainties.

As a pioneer, he developed and applied fuzzy logic controllers for both induction motor (IM) and interior permanent magnet synchronous motor (IPMSM) drives in real-time that improved the dynamic performance of the drives compared to traditional controllers. His 2002 paper published in IEEE Transaction on Industry Applications is considered one of the ground-breaking articles in this area. These works have influenced many researchers worldwide and prompted a high volume of subsequent research in intelligent algorithms-based AC motor drives.

He also developed a novel online machine loss minimization algorithm that improved the efficiency of IM drive by nearly 10 percent. It was an original contribution in machine loss minimization that led to the real-life adoption of this technology by industry (e.g., Rockwell Automation, Canada) to save energy and associated cost.

Uddin has shared his findings in 235 papers that have published or accepted in refereed journals and conferences including 54 papers in several IEEE Transactions journals that are considered the top-ranking journal in his area of research. In 2010 he won Lakehead University’s Distinguished Researcher Award.

“This is a well-deserved honour for Dr. Uddin and recognizes the incredible contributions that he has made to sustainable energy and motor drives technology,” said Dr. Janusz Kozinski, Dean, Faculty of Engineering. “Our students are fortunate to have the opportunity to learn from the foremost experts in their fields.”

The IEEE is the world’s leading professional association for advancing technology for humanity. Through its 400,000 plus members in 160 countries, the association is a leading authority on a wide variety of areas ranging from aerospace systems, computers and telecommunications to biomedical engineering, electric power and consumer electronics.

To learn more about IEEE or the IEEE Fellow Program, please visit www.ieee.org.  

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Media: For further information or to arrange an interview, contact Jaclyn Bucik, Media, Communications & Marketing Associate, at 705-330-4010 ext. 2014 or  jbucik@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 University Rankings 2021; as well as included in the top half of the Times Higher Education 2020 World University Rankings for the second consecutive year, and 98th among 766 universities from around the world in THE's 2020 Impact Rankings (which assesses institutions against the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals). Visit www.lakeheadu.ca.

Message from the Food Services team

Hello and happy new year to the students, faculty and staff, who have been supporting us through the unique and ever-changing challenges of COVID-19. We at Food Services have been working to balance nutritious meal options with a fiscally responsible service for our meal plan community. With that understanding, we have heard your concerns and have arranged for pick up, special dietary requests, or just a one-on-one conversation to explain the changes and new service structure. We hope that you continue to reach out, so we can make the most of these service changes and you feel you are receiving the very best service we can provide during this unprecedented time. We hear you and see you, we are all in this together!

Read our newsletter by clicking here. 

Christine, Lynn, Caitlin, Heleena, Thomas, Brandon, and the Imperial Coffee Services Team

Jessica Allingham, a PhD student in Chemistry at Lakehead University, won second place in the Provincial 3MT (Three Minute Thesis) Competition held virtually by the University of Windsor, for her thesis presentation, “Brightening up brain injuries,” under the supervision of Dr. Michael Campbell and Dr. Wely Floriano.

The 3MT is a communication exercise that provides an opportunity for graduate students to communicate their scholarly research and creativity in just three minutes. It challenges graduate students to present their research in an engaging format that can be understood by an audience with no background in the research area.

Earlier last year, Jessica won the Lakehead University 3MT competition during Research & Innovation Week 2020, in a stiff competition of graduate student presentations, and she was chosen to represent Lakehead University in the province-wide competition. 

Unfortunately due to the pandemic, the in-person provincial 3MT competition was cancelled. But the University of Windsor, organizers of the provincial competition, pulled together and developed a virtual competition.

Jessica created a video presentation and submitted it to the virtual provincial competition. On Thursday, Jan. 28, the winners of the provincial competition were announced, and Jessica’s presentation was awarded the second-place prize.

 “I could not believe that from all the amazing presentations put forward, mine was selected as one of the best,” Jessica said. “I am honoured to have represented Lakehead University on the provincial stage.”

To watch Jessica's presentation visit this page.

Grace Dawson, a first-year Nursing student at Lakehead University, has received a $5,000 scholarship from Medavie.

Medavie, through its Foundation, has awarded a total of $50,000 in scholarships that will be distributed to 10 exceptional students across four provinces, to support recipients in their post-secondary studies and future careers in health care.

“At a time when the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the lives and educational experiences of youth across the country, we were pleased this year to increase the number of scholarship recipients from two to 10,” said Joanne Kviring, Executive Director, Medavie Health Foundation.

“These young Canadians were selected based on their academic achievements and efforts to give back to their communities – all while overcoming challenges in their own lives.

“As part of Medavie’s core mission to improve the well-being of Canadians, we hope these scholarships will support each recipient in their studies and path to being part of the next generation of health professionals in Canada.”

Since 2017, the charitable foundation has awarded these annual scholarships to Canadians, aged 17-29, who are enrolled in full or part-time studies at a Canadian post-secondary school, are pursuing a health-related program of study, and have overcome adversity related to mental health, either through lived experience or a family member.

The Medavie Scholarship honours Pierre-Yves Julien, former CEO of Medavie, who believed in helping communities where employees and clients live and work, and supporting Canada’s next generation of health care leaders. The program aligns with the Foundation’s core causes including adolescent mental health, post-traumatic stress and healthy living.

Message From Our Service Team

Hello and Happy New Year to our Staff, Students and Faculty, who have been supporting us through the unique and ever-changing challenges of COVID-19. We at Food Services have been working to balance nutritious meal options and a fiscally responsible service for our meal plan community.

With that understanding, we have heard your concerns and have arranged for early/late pick ups, special dietary requests, or just a one-on-one conversation to explain the changes and new service structure.

We hope that you continue to reach out, so we can make the most of these service changes and you still feel you are receiving the very best service we can provide during this unprecedented time. We hear you and see you, and we are all in this together!

Christine, James, Kelly, Graham, Marco, Heleena and Caitlin
Conference Services Aramark

Keep up to date with Lakehead Dining news and updates here!

Thrive Week, Jan. 25 to 30, aims to increase mental health literacy, build healthy habits and self-care skills, and help foster a community of wellness at Lakehead University. We are excited to move this program virtually in 2021 and learn how to thrive from home. All events are free and open to all Lakehead students, faculty and staff unless otherwise noted.

This year’s Thrive Week will kick off with the launch of Lakehead’s Wellness Strategy and some highlights include a Jack Talk, a cooking demonstration with Chef Jen Sauve and Student Life Coordinator Jenny Veal, and an art and yoga workshop with Thunder Bay artist, Vik Wilen. We will be putting a spotlight on Lakehead’s wellness supports on our social media accounts throughout the week and running daily challenges on the @Lakeheadlife and @Lakeheadosa Instagram accounts. Students, staff and faculty will also have the opportunity to complete a Supporting Students in Distress workshop to learn how to notice, engage, and refer students who might be struggling with mental health. Campus Rec and LUSU will also be offering events in conjunction with Thrive.

Thursday, Jan. 28, is Bell Let’s Talk Day, all Thunderwolves are invited to join the conversation about mental health by taking and sharing a selfie with a mental health message in our virtual photo booth. We also encourage you to bring Thrive Week into the classroom and meetings with our Mindful Moment slides.

To get details and information about all of this year’s Thrive Week activities, visit www.lakeheadu.ca/thrive.