BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//Senior College - ECPv6.15.20//NONSGML v1.0//EN CALSCALE:GREGORIAN METHOD:PUBLISH X-WR-CALNAME:Senior College X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca X-WR-CALDESC:Events for Senior College REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H X-Robots-Tag:noindex X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:America/Toronto BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20240310T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20241103T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20250309T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20251102T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20260308T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20261101T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20270314T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20271107T060000 END:STANDARD END:VTIMEZONE BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20260406T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20260406T160000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20250918T202015Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260304T173857Z UID:10001361-1775484000-1775491200@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Book Club: April 6\, 2026\, 2-4pm\, - Fellows and External Fellows - Zoom only event DESCRIPTION:April 6\, 2026\, 2-4 pm – Fellows and External Fellows \nEvery Valley: The Desperate Lives and Troubled Times that Made Handel’s “Messiah” by Charles King (2024)       \nDiscussion Leaders: Linda Hutcheon and Michael Hutcheon \nGeorge Frideric Handel’s (1741) Messiah is an oratorio that has been called “the greatest piece of participatory art ever created.” Choirs and orchestras perform it annually at Christmas and Easter\, with audiences singing along. As the subtitle of the book suggests\, Charles King delves into Handel’s creation of this monumental work within the social and cultural context of the “Troubled Times” of Enlightenment Britain\, with its philosophical and political conflicts\, royal intrigues\, and military and imperial ambitions. The author focuses this broader history on a series of ”Desperate Lives”: a depressive dissenter stirred to action by an ancient prophecy; an actress plagued by an abusive husband and public scorn; an Atlantic sea captain and penniless philanthropist; and an African Muslim man held captive in the American colonies and hatching a dangerous plan for getting back home. But at the centre of the story is Handel\, the German-born\, Italian-trained composer\, brought to England in 1712 by (the German) King George I. When he created Messiah\, Handel was in early middle-age\, not terribly healthy\, and deeply concerned about his continuing success in a difficult London theatre scene. How a “masterpiece of hope” was born out of this particular “Desperate” life at the particular “Troubled” time is the story Every Valley tells.  (Available in all formats; 351 pages). \nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/FkRmp4zKkA \nThe deadline to register is the Monday morning the day of the event at 8 am. The Zoom link will be sent to registrants only. \nIf you have any questions\, please contact the organizer\, Mary Jane Ashley at maryjane.ashley@utoronto.ca. URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/book-club-april-6-2025-2-4pm-fellows-and-external-fellows-zoom-only-event/ CATEGORIES:Book Club END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20260325T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20260325T160000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20251208T221856Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251208T221856Z UID:10001376-1774447200-1774454400@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Speaker: Nick Terpstra\, History\, U of T; Provost\, Trinity College.\, Wednesday Talk: March 25\, 2026\, 2pm-4pm\, Faculty Club and Zoom - hybrid DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Nick Terpstra\, History\, U of T; Provost\, Trinity College. \nTitle: “Moving Targets:  Young People in the Early Modern World” \nAbstract: Where do we find youths in the early modern world?  Where did they find themselves?  Often it was on the road or on the seas\, in motion from home to some other place or places\, and seldom entirely by choice.  As we become more curious about global history and to seeing how early modern Europeans (ie.\, roughly 16th to 18th centuries) encountered the world and were shaped by it\, we’re drawn to the intersections of this mobility with gender and with race.  Much of what was new in early modern experience came first to and through young people\, often as the involuntary agents of broader social and economic forces.  In this lecture\, I’ll focus first on a few individuals or groups of young people from different parts of the world who demonstrate some of these realities.  I’ll then pull back and ask some broader questions about why it’s hard to capture and understand the experience of young people at that time\, and also why looking more closely at these youths might reshape our understanding of the early modern period more generally. \nBio: I’m Professor of History and Provost of Trinity College in the University of Toronto.  I work on early modern social history\, exploring questions at the intersection of politics\, religion\, gender\, and charity\, above all those dealing with the experience of people at the margins\, like orphans\, abandoned children\, youths\, widows\, criminals\, refugees\, and the poor.  I’m currently exploring how a focus on global dynamics and the experiences of migrants and refugees can give us a different view of periods or movements like the Renaissance and Reformation\, how space and sense intersected in early modern (roughly 1500-1800) cities\, and how people in that period tried to live with neighbours that they really didn’t like. \nSome publications in these areas include Cultures of Charity: Women\, Politics\, and the Reform of Poor Relief in Renaissance Italy (Harvard: 2013) which won the Howard R Marraro Prize of the American Historical Association and the Phyllis Goodhart Gordan Prize of the Renaissance Society of America; Lost Girls: Sex and Death in Renaissance Florence (Johns Hopkins: 2010); Religious Refugees in the Early Modern World: An Alternative History of the Reformation (Cambridge: 2015); and Senses of Space in the Early Modern World (Cambridge: 2024). \nI’m also involved in digitally mapping the spatial and sensory dimensions of social life through the DECIMA project\, an on-line digital map that tracks occupation\, gender\, and wealth in Renaissance Florence. We’re working to produce a map that conveys what it was like to walk around the city\, hearing its sounds and moving through its spaces. See: N. Terpstra & C. Rose (ed)\, Mapping Space\, Sense\, and Movement in Florence:  Historical GIS and the Early Modern City (Routledge\, 2016). \nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/EcZvXHzXUP \nThe deadline to register is the Monday before the event at noon. The Zoom link will be sent to registrants only. \nIf you have any questions\, please contact the organizer\, Linda Hutcheon at l.hutcheon@utoronto.ca. \n  URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/speaker-nick-terpstra-history-u-of-t-provost-trinity-college-wednesday-talk-march-25-2026-2pm-4pm-faculty-club-and-zoom-hybrid/ LOCATION:Zoom AND The Faculty Club\, UofT\, 41 Willcocks Street Toronto\, ON M5S 1C7 CATEGORIES:SC Wednesday Talk ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Picture12.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20260318T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20260318T160000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20251208T221614Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251208T221614Z UID:10001375-1773842400-1773849600@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Speaker: Jennifer Bonnell\, History\, York U\, Wednesday Talk: March 18\, 2026\, 2pm-4pm\, Faculty Club and Zoom - hybrid DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Jennifer Bonnell\, History\, York U \nTitle: “Place and People at the Margins: A History of Toronto’s Don River Valley” \nAbstract: In this richly illustrated talk\, environmental historian Jennifer Bonnell will walk us through the history of the Don Valley as a “place at the edges” of the evolving city. Moving from the straightening of the lower river in the 1880s to the recent work to transform the river mouth\, she will highlight competing visions for the valley as a sink for wastes\, a corridor for transportation\, a respite for recreation and reflection\, and a refuge for marginalized human populations. \nBio: Jennifer Bonnell is a historian of public memory and environmental change in nineteenth and twentieth-century Canada. She is the author or co-editor of four books\, including Stewards of Splendour: A History of Wildlife and People in British Columbia\, published in 2023 by the Royal BC Museum\, and Reclaiming the Don: An Environmental History of Toronto’s Don River Valley\, published by the University of Toronto Press in 2014. Her current book project\, Foragers of a Modern Countryside: Honeybees\, Environmental Change\, and Beekeeper Advocacy in the Great Lakes Region\, will be published by the University of Washington Press’s Weyerhaeuser Environmental Books series. Jennifer is a Professor in the Department of History at York. \nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/BEG9KjC5GK \nThe deadline to register is the Monday before the event at noon. The Zoom link will be sent to registrants only. \nIf you have any questions\, please contact the organizer\, Linda Hutcheon at l.hutcheon@utoronto.ca. URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/speaker-jennifer-bonnell-history-york-u-wednesday-talk-march-18-2026-2pm-4pm-faculty-club-and-zoom-hybrid/ LOCATION:Zoom AND The Faculty Club\, UofT\, 41 Willcocks Street Toronto\, ON M5S 1C7 CATEGORIES:SC Wednesday Talk ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Picture11.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20260311T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20260311T160000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20251208T221233Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251208T221304Z UID:10001374-1773237600-1773244800@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Speaker: Carl Knappett\, Art History\, U of T\, Wednesday Talk: March 11\, 2026\, 2pm-4pm\, Faculty Club and Zoom - hybrid DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Carl Knappett\, Art History\, U of T \nTitle: “The Coastal World of Minoan Palaikastro” \nAbstract: Lying on the eastern tip of Crete\, Palaikastro was one of the largest towns on the island during the Bronze Age. Much of the archaeological exploration of the site has set out to find its presumed palatial centre. Yet\, after many seasons of fieldwork\, such a structure still eludes us. The most recent work at the site has focussed more on the settlement’s coastal location\, and its possible role as a trading port within the wider east Mediterranean. However\, the more that we investigate the coastline\, the more we have to reckon with the significant geomorphological changes that have occurred since the Bronze Age. I will present our latest findings from underwater survey\, coastal excavation\, and palaeoenvironmental study\, shedding light on the coastal world of Minoan Palaikastro. \nBio: Carl Knappett holds the Walter Graham/ Homer Thompson Chair in Aegean Prehistory in the Department of Art History (UofT). He has published widely on the archaeology of Crete and the east Mediterranean\, material culture theory\, and network analysis. Among over 15 authored and edited books are An Archaeology of Interaction: Network Perspectives on Material Culture and Society (2011\, OUP)\, and Maritime Networks in the Ancient Mediterranean World (2018\, CUP). He was Chair of the Department of Art History from 2017 to 2022\, and is the Director of the Mediterranean Archaeology Collaborative Specialization. For the past decade has run a fieldwork project at the site of Palaikastro on Crete. \n(Re-scheduled from last fall\, when illness prevented our hearing it.) \nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/PWt5nKmMsf \nThe deadline to register is the Monday before the event at noon. The Zoom link will be sent to registrants only. \nIf you have any questions\, please contact the organizer\, Linda Hutcheon at l.hutcheon@utoronto.ca. URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/speaker-carl-knappett-art-history-u-of-t-wednesday-talk-march-11-2026-2pm-4pm-faculty-club-and-zoom-hybrid/ LOCATION:Zoom AND The Faculty Club\, UofT\, 41 Willcocks Street Toronto\, ON M5S 1C7 CATEGORIES:SC Wednesday Talk ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Picture10.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20260304T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20260304T160000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20251208T220759Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260107T200133Z UID:10001373-1772632800-1772640000@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Stephen Brooke\, History\, York University \, U of T. Wednesday\, Talk: March 4\, 2026\, 2pm-4pm\, Faculty Club and Zoom - hybrid DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Stephen Brooke\, History\, York University \nTitle: “‘Gleaming Obelisks’ and ‘Dilapidated Streets’: London in the 1980s: \nAbstract: This talk will explore the history of London in the 1980s\, examining how the city was a political battleground between the rise of right-wing neoliberalism in the form of Margaret Thatcher and her Conservative Party and the appearance of a leftwing social democratic local government in the shape of the Labour Greater London Council.  Many of the fiercest political and social battles of the 1980s were fought in London – over the rights of racial and sexual minorities\, the gentrification and development of working-class areas\, and over global issues such as apartheid and nuclear weapons.  The complex identity of contemporary London emerged from these battles. \nBio: Stephen Brooke is Professor and Chair of the Department of History\, York University.  He is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and the author of books and articles dealing with the history of twentieth-century Britain. \nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/QPRuprmbzd \nThe deadline to register is the Monday before the event at noon. The Zoom link will be sent to registrants only. \nIf you have any questions\, please contact the organizer\, Linda Hutcheon at l.hutcheon@utoronto.ca. URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/speaker-ira-wells-president-pen-canada-victoria-college-u-of-t-wednesday-talk-march-4-2026-2pm-4pm-faculty-club-and-zoom-hybrid/ LOCATION:Zoom AND The Faculty Club\, UofT\, 41 Willcocks Street Toronto\, ON M5S 1C7 CATEGORIES:SC Wednesday Talk ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Picture8.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20260302T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20260302T160000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20250918T194142Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260225T164730Z UID:10001360-1772460000-1772467200@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Book Club: March 2\, 2026\, 2-4pm\, - Fellows and External Fellows - Zoom only event DESCRIPTION:March 2\, 2026\, 2-4 pm – Fellows and External Fellows \nLincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders (2017) \nDiscussion Leader: Lisa Steele \nThe “bardo” is a Tibetan Buddhist concept referring to an intermediate state between death and rebirth. Set in 1862\, the early years of the American Civil War\, the novel opens with President Abraham Lincoln and his wife Mary Todd Lincoln about to host a fancy state dinner while their 11-year-old son Willie is lying upstairs deathly ill with typhoid fever. It is Willie’s eventual death that propels Lincoln to enter the “bardo” when he visits the crypt containing his son’s body several times. Here\, he is surrounded by spirits\, not only of Willie but of a number of other souls who have not yet admitted that they are\, in fact\, dead. Themes of grief – Lincoln’s own almost debilitating experience over the loss of his son – and mortality – from his personal experience to a more universal consideration of an afterlife permeate the novel. Here\, the spirits speak\, debate\, declare\, weep and laugh until finally\, led by a courageous Willie\, each embraces his death and is released from the bardo and Lincoln himself is able to return to the very real job of shepherding America through its most difficult time in history. (Available in all formats; 368 pages.) \nAll are encouraged to try the audio version of this book on Audible\, the chorus of voices that speak throughout – including the always entertaining David Sedaris – create a wonderfully dense experience of the spirit world that Saunders offers. And as a special treat\, listen for a very evocative sound effect as a spirit exits the Bardo. \nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/8rkwMNVru2 \nThe deadline to register is the Monday morning the day of the event at 8 am. The Zoom link will be sent to registrants only. \nIf you have any questions\, please contact the organizer\, Mary Jane Ashley at maryjane.ashley@utoronto.ca. URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/book-club-march-2-2025-2-4pm-fellows-and-external-fellows-zoom-only-event/ CATEGORIES:Book Club END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20260225T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20260225T160000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20251208T220412Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260107T194434Z UID:10001372-1772028000-1772035200@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Speaker: Ira Wells\, President\, PEN Canada; Victoria College\, U of T\, Wednesday Talk: February 25\, 2026\, 2pm-4pm\, Faculty Club and Zoom - hybrid DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Ira Wells\, President\, PEN Canada; Victoria College\, U of T \nTitle: “On Book Banning: Saving Children from the Harm of Books” \nAbstract: From the destruction of libraries in ancient Rome to today’s state-sponsored efforts to suppress LGBTQ+ literature\, book bans arise from the impulse toward social control. Recently\, school libraries have emerged as an important battleground for literary censorship. In a lightning survey of important legal decisions\, literary controversies\, and philosophical arguments\, this talk will illustrate the historical opposition to the freedom to read and argues that today’s conservatives and progressives alike are warping our children’s relationship with literature and teaching them that the solution to opposing viewpoints is outright expurgation. \nBio: Ira Wells is a critic\, essayist\, and an associate professor at Victoria College in the University of Toronto\, where he teaches in the Northrop Frye stream in literature and the humanities in the Vic One program. He is also the President of PEN Canada. His writing has appeared in The Atlantic\, Globe and Mail\, Guardian\, The New Republic\, and many other venues. His recent books include Norman Jewison: A Director’s Life and On Book Banning. He lives in Toronto with his wife and children. \nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/LcQWPcmMRP \nThe deadline to register is the Monday before the event at noon. The Zoom link will be sent to registrants only. \nIf you have any questions\, please contact the organizer\, Linda Hutcheon at l.hutcheon@utoronto.ca. \n  URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/speaker-stephen-brooke-history-york-university-wednesday-talk-february-25-2026-2pm-4pm-faculty-club-and-zoom-hybrid/ LOCATION:Zoom AND The Faculty Club\, UofT\, 41 Willcocks Street Toronto\, ON M5S 1C7 CATEGORIES:SC Wednesday Talk ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Picture9.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20260219T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20260219T160000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20260119T234045Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260204T174625Z UID:10001377-1771509600-1771516800@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Colloquium\, February 19\, 2026\, 2-4pm – Fellows & External Fellows Only – in-person only DESCRIPTION:Colloquium\, February 19\, 2026\, 2-4pm – Fellows & External Fellows Only – in-person only\nTopic: “How to counter misinformation. Is it possible?”\nOrganizer: Daphne Maurer\n\nSuggested background readings: \n1.  A comprehensive review with links to videos: \nJ\, Roozenbeek\, E. Culloty\, and J. Suiter\, “Countering Misinformation: Evidence\, Knowledge Gaps\, and Implications of Current  Interventions\,” European Psychologist\, vol. 28\, no. 3\, pp. 189–205\, Jul. 2023\, doi: 10.1027/1016-9040/a000492. \nOpen access free download from: https://psycnet.apa.org/fulltext/2023-92406-004.html \n2.  A shorter review if you are short of time: \nPrike T\, Ecker UKH. Effective correction of misinformation. Curr Opin Psychol. 2023 Dec;54:101712. doi: 10.1016/j.copsyc.2023.101712. Epub 2023 Oct 19. PMID: 37944323. \nOpen access  free download from: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352250X23001574?via=ihub \n3. Our government’s policy \nOpen access free download from:\nhttps://www.canada.ca/en/democratic-institutions/services/protecting-democratic-institutions/countering-disinformation-guidebook-public-servants.html \n\n\n\nLunch before the colloquium: The lunch is 12:30pm at Valens Restaurant\, 19 Baldwin St\, Toronto ON M5T 1L1. Please note\, the location is approximately a 10 min walk (350.0 m) from the Senior College Centre.\n\nThe colloquium is at 2pm at the Senior College Centre\, 256 McCaul Street in suite 412.  The entrance to the floor is locked so Giuliana will unlock it and prop it open. Only those registered will be at the Centre.\n\nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/saSPt5U4Tr URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/colloquium-february-19-2026-2-4pm-fellows-external-fellows-only-in-person-only/ LOCATION:Senior College Centre\,256 McCaul Street\, Suite 412 CATEGORIES:Colloquia END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20260218T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20260218T160000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20251208T220120Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251208T220120Z UID:10001371-1771423200-1771430400@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Speaker: Laura Hug\, Environmental Microbiology\, Biology\, U of Waterloo\, Wednesday Talk: February 18\, 2026\, 2pm-4pm\, Faculty Club and Zoom - hybrid DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Laura Hug\, Environmental Microbiology\, Biology\, U of Waterloo \nTitle: “Man’s Trash Is a Microbe’s Treasure: The Microbiology of Landfills” \nAbstract: Landfills house our discarded waste\, but also support a diverse community of microorganisms. These microbes degrade wastes\, transform contaminants\, and generate greenhouse gasses like carbon dioxide and methane. My research studies these microbes\, to see how they are impacting landfill wastes\, and to identify organisms capable of degrading contaminants or reducing the impact of landfill methane emissions. \nBio: Dr. Laura Hug is an Associate Professor and Canada Research Chair in Environmental Microbiology in the Department of Biology at the University of Waterloo. She’s a proud U of T alumna\, having done her PhD here in the Department of Cell and Systems Biology with Dr. Elizabeth Edwards. Dr. Hug’s research examines the diversity and function of microbial communities in contaminated sites. Current research in her group is characterizing the microbial communities colonizing municipal landfills\, with foci on methane cycling\, bioplastics degradation\, and community interactions. Dr. Hug’s work has been featured in major news outlets including the New York Times\, the Atlantic\, Discover Magazine\, and on Public Radio International’s “The World”. She was a featured scientist on a TFO children’s show and the BBC Radio 4 program\, “Bacteria\, the tiny giants” in 2023. \nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/6J8AMbmYWa \nThe deadline to register is the Monday before the event at noon. The Zoom link will be sent to registrants only. \nIf you have any questions\, please contact the organizer\, Linda Hutcheon at l.hutcheon@utoronto.ca. \n  URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/speaker-laura-hug-environmental-microbiology-biology-u-of-waterloo-wednesday-talk-february-18-2026-2pm-4pm-faculty-club-and-zoom-hybrid/ LOCATION:Zoom AND The Faculty Club\, UofT\, 41 Willcocks Street Toronto\, ON M5S 1C7 CATEGORIES:SC Wednesday Talk ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Picture7.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20260211T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20260211T160000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20251208T215731Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251208T215731Z UID:10001370-1770818400-1770825600@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Speaker: Beatrix Dart\, Rotman School of Management\, U of T\, Wednesday Talk: February 11\, 2026\, 2pm-4pm\, Faculty Club and Zoom - hybrid DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Beatrix Dart\, Rotman School of Management\, U of T \nTitle: “Retired\, Not Expired: The Longevity Economy Unveiled” \nAbstract: As Canada’s population ages\, a powerful economic and social shift is underway—one that places older adults at the heart of innovation\, purpose\, and prosperity. The Longevity Economy represents not just a demographic trend\, but a profound opportunity to reimagine retirement as a vibrant Third Act filled with contribution\, creativity\, and community. Retired university professors\, with their deep reservoirs of wisdom and experience\, are uniquely positioned to lead this transformation. Yet\, our social systems—from healthcare to employment to education—remain rooted in outdated assumptions about aging. This talk explores how we can redesign these systems to support purposeful aging\, unlock the economic potential of older Canadians\, and build a society where longevity is not a challenge\, but a strategic advantage. \nBio: Beatrix Dart is Professor of Strategy at the Rotman School of Management and was previously the Associate Dean\, Executive Degree Programs. She joined the Rotman in 2000 following a successful career with McKinsey & Co. Since 2020\, she has been the Academic Director for Global and Experiential Learning for MBA programs. Social Impact is close to her heart\, and the Longevity Economy her latest focus area. Until recently\, she served as the Executive Director for Rotman’s Initiative for Women in Business\, and has led many award-winning national and international campaigns for gender advancement. She also served as a corporate director at EllisDon\, one of Canada’s largest construction companies\, and on a number of non-profit boards. \nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/HGBnRK44vh \nThe deadline to register is the Monday before the event at noon. The Zoom link will be sent to registrants only. \nIf you have any questions\, please contact the organizer\, Linda Hutcheon at l.hutcheon@utoronto.ca. URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/speaker-beatrix-dart-rotman-school-of-management-u-of-t-wednesday-talk-february-11-2026-2pm-4pm-faculty-club-and-zoom-hybrid/ LOCATION:Zoom AND The Faculty Club\, UofT\, 41 Willcocks Street Toronto\, ON M5S 1C7 CATEGORIES:SC Wednesday Talk ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Picture6.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20260204T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20260204T160000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20251208T214750Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251208T214750Z UID:10001369-1770213600-1770220800@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Speaker: Jennifer DeSilva\, Woodsworth College\, U of T\, Wednesday Talk: February 4\, 2026\, 2pm-4pm\, Faculty Club and Zoom - hybrid DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Jennifer DeSilva\, Woodsworth College\, U of T \nTitle: “Women’s Labour in Renaissance Florence’s Streets and Taverns” \nAbstract: Early modern men writing in Florence depicted their taverns as wonderful and raucous places that were central to masculine sociability and a threat to female chastity. In contrast to the male-centric tavern\, this presentation explores sixteenth-century Florentine taverns and the streets around them as places of work employing many women in a variety of roles\, and especially women related to male tavernkeepers. Using guild\, census\, and judicial records we will explore the spaces that some female tavernkeepers\, procuresses\, and sex workers shared to reveal women’s work in a supposedly dangerous professional space. \nBio: Jennifer Mara DeSilva is an Associate Professor Teaching Stream at the University of Toronto\, where she is also Vice Principal of Woodsworth College. She has published on the College of Cardinals\, papal commemoration\, nepotism\, sex workers\, and history on film. She is the author of The Office of Ceremonies and Advancement in Curial Rome\, 1466–1528 (Brill\, 2022). She also co-edits the Sixteenth Century Journal and the Essays and Studies book series at the Centre for Renaissance and Reformation Studies at the University of Toronto. \nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/FeRXruSgDL \nThe deadline to register is the Monday before the event at noon. The Zoom link will be sent to registrants only. \nIf you have any questions\, please contact the organizer\, Linda Hutcheon at l.hutcheon@utoronto.ca. URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/speaker-jennifer-desilva-woodsworth-college-u-of-t-wednesday-talk-february-4-2026-2pm-4pm-faculty-club-and-zoom-hybrid/ LOCATION:Zoom AND The Faculty Club\, UofT\, 41 Willcocks Street Toronto\, ON M5S 1C7 CATEGORIES:SC Wednesday Talk ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Picture4.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20260202T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20260202T160000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20250918T191142Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260107T144232Z UID:10001359-1770040800-1770048000@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Book Club: February 2\, 2025\, 2-4pm\, – Fellows and External Fellows DESCRIPTION:February 2\, 2026\, 2-4 pm – Fellows and External Fellows \nThe Hundred Years’ War on Palestine: A History of Settler Colonialism and Resistance\, 1917-2017 by Rashid Khalidi (2020) \nDiscussion Leaders: David Milne and Jon Allen\, former Canadian ambassador to Israel (guest speaker) \nWhile the Palestine question is invariably front-page news\, we have an urgent need for a good historical account of the origins and history of this protracted Middle Eastern conflict.  In this compelling work of scholarship and personal history\, Rashid Khalidi provides a narrative framework for understanding the roots and contours of this evolving geopolitical malady.  Told from a learned Palestinian perspective and from and important family autobiographical lens\, this is already a classic in the literature. Khalidi is the Edward Said Professor of Modern Arab Studies at Columbia University (Available in all formats; 319 pages) \nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/80LCzsL7R7 \nThe deadline to register is the Monday morning the day of the event at 8 am. The Zoom link will be sent to registrants only. \nIf you have any questions\, please contact the organizer\, Mary Jane Ashley at maryjane.ashley@utoronto.ca. URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/23943/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Book Club END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20260128T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20260128T160000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20251208T214141Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251208T214845Z UID:10001368-1769608800-1769616000@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Speaker: Daphne Maurer\, Psychology\, McMaster U.\, Wednesday Talk: January 28\, 2026\, 2pm-4pm\, Faculty Club and Zoom - hybrid DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Daphne Maurer\, Psychology\, McMaster U \nTitle: “An Invisible Pandemic” \nAbstract: In this century\, most schoolchildren are becoming nearsighted–80% to 90% of them in Asia–and nearsightedness in school often causes blindness later in life: retinal detachment or macular degeneration. I recently sat on an expert panel of the (U.S.) National Academies of Sciences\, Medicine\, and Engineering that investigated the situation and published a 350-page report. We found a world-wide epidemic of nearsightedness\, an epidemic that clearly has societal origins (but has nothing to do with cell phones). Moreover\, my own research has uncovered unexpected obstacles to providing glasses to schoolchildren\, obstacles ranging from parental prejudice to medical politics. \nBio: Daphne Maurer\, OC\, FRSC is a (retired) Distinguished University Professor from McMaster University and co-Chair of the Senior College Program Committee. She has published over 200 academic articles on perceptual development and\, with her husband\, written  books for the general public: The World of the Newborn (1988)\, which won the Book Prize of the American Psychological Association; Pretty Ugly: Why We Like Some Songs\, Faces\, Foods\, Plays\, Pictures\, Poems\, Etc.\, and Dislike Others (2019); and The World Inside Your Head: How Perceptions Build Society (in press\, Columbia University Press). \nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/TpQBm35Rbc \nThe deadline to register is the Monday before the event at noon. The Zoom link will be sent to registrants only. \nIf you have any questions\, please contact the organizer\, Linda Hutcheon at l.hutcheon@utoronto.ca. URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/speaker-daphne-maurer-psychology-mcmaster-u-wednesday-talk-january-28-2pm-4pm-faculty-club-and-zoom-hybrid/ LOCATION:Zoom AND The Faculty Club\, UofT\, 41 Willcocks Street Toronto\, ON M5S 1C7 CATEGORIES:SC Wednesday Talk ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Picture3.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20260122T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20260122T160000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20251201T205724Z LAST-MODIFIED:20260112T211115Z UID:10001365-1769090400-1769097600@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Colloquium\, January 22\, 2026\, 2-4pm – Fellows & External Fellows Only – in-person only DESCRIPTION:Colloquium\, January 22\, 2026\, 2-4pm – Fellows & External Fellows Only – in-person only\nTopic: “What is the purpose of education?”\nOrganized by: Mary Finlay\n\nReadings:\n\nhttps://mje.mcgill.ca/article/download/8744/6687/26043\nhttps://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/king-papers/documents/purpose-education\nhttps://www.edutopia.org/article/what-education/\nJohn Dewey’s Experience and Education\, a brief summary of his ideas\, can be read on-line here https://dn720204.ca.archive.org/0/items/experienceeducat00dewe_0/experienceeducat00dewe_0.pdf\n\n\n\nLunch before the colloquium: The lunch is 12:30pm at Valens Restaurant\, 19 Baldwin St\, Toronto ON M5T 1L1. Please note\, the location is approximately a 10 min walk (350.0 m) from the Senior College Centre.\n\nThe colloquium is at 2pm at the Senior College Centre\, 256 McCaul Street in suite 412.  The entrance to the floor is locked so Giuliana will unlock it and prop it open. Only those registered will be at the Centre.\n\nThe link to register is Registration for the Colloquium Thursday\, January 22\, 2026 – Fill out form URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/colloquium-january-22-2026-2-4pm-fellows-external-fellows-only-in-person-only/ LOCATION:Senior College Centre\,256 McCaul Street\, Suite 412 CATEGORIES:Colloquia END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20260121T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20260121T160000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20251208T213759Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251208T214924Z UID:10001367-1769004000-1769011200@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Speaker: David Townsend\, English and Medieval Studies\, U of T.\, Wednesday Talk: January 21\, 2026\, 2pm-4pm\, Faculty Club and Zoom - hybrid DESCRIPTION:Speaker: David Townsend\, English and Medieval Studies\, U of T. \nTitle: “Imagination\, Historical Knowledge\, and Public Discourse” \nAbstract: Guilty pleasure or serious cultural work? Academics have vexed relationships with historical fiction. If we cross over to writing it ourselves (as some of us do)\, how do we understand the enterprise? What is the relationship of evidence to imagination\, and of research to pedagogy and to the work of popularization? And is there an ethics of the way we bring popular attention to the past? \nDavid Townsend will talk about these issues as they play out in several medieval historical novels\, by way of introducing and reading from his own recently published book: The Ram in the Thicket imagines the world of the Julian of Norwich\, late in her life in 1413. \nBio: David retired in 2018 as Professor of Medieval Studies and English\, after thirty-three years of teaching medieval literature and languages. His academic publications have included the close textual work of editions and translations\, as well as interpretive studies often centering on questions of gender and sexuality. His most recent academic monograph is Queering Medieval Latin Rhetoric: Silence\, Subversion\, and Sexual Heterodoxy (Cambridge University Press\, 2023). He also taught graduate seminars on Middle English and medieval Latin devotional literatures. \nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/3TwBqrUTQi \nThe deadline to register is the Monday before the event at noon. The Zoom link will be sent to registrants only. \nIf you have any questions\, please contact the organizer\, Linda Hutcheon at l.hutcheon@utoronto.ca. URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/speaker-david-townsend-english-and-medieval-studies-u-of-t-wednesday-talk-january-21-2pm-4pm-faculty-club-and-zoom-hybrid/ LOCATION:Zoom AND The Faculty Club\, UofT\, 41 Willcocks Street Toronto\, ON M5S 1C7 CATEGORIES:SC Wednesday Talk ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Picture2.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20260114T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20260114T160000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20251208T190822Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251208T215004Z UID:10001366-1768399200-1768406400@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Speaker: Neil Besner\, English\, U of Winnipeg Wednesday Talk: January 14\,2026\, 2pm-4pm\, Faculty Club and Zoom - hybrid DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Neil Besner\, English\, U of Winnipeg \nTitle:  Montreal Standard Time\, 1944-1950: Mavis Gallant’s Short Stories and Her Early Journalism   \nAbstract: Gallant’s early journalism for The Montreal Standard has not been available in print since 1950 and has rarely been discussed in relation to her well-known career as a writer of some of our finest short stories\, over 100 of them first published in The New Yorker.  But beginning in the late 1980’s\, Gallant herself wrote about how important her journalism was to her developing powers as a writer and to her fiction. \nBio: Neil Besner was born in Montreal and grew up in Rio de Janeiro\, Brazil. He taught Canadian literature and other subjects at the University of Winnipeg from 1987 until his retirement in 2017. He served in several senior administrative roles at UWinnipeg; his last post was as Provost and Vice-President\, Academic (2012-17). He writes mainly on Canadian authors and on the poet Elizabeth Bishop\, with books on Mavis Gallant (1988)\, Alice Munro (1990)\, an edited collection on Carol Shields (1995)\, and numerous articles\, book chapters\, and reviews\, as well as co-edited books on the short story in English (1991) and on poetry in English (1997). He is fluent in Portuguese; his prize-winning translation from Portuguese into English of a novelized Brazilian biography of Elizabeth Bishop (2002) was the major source for the 2013 Brazilian feature film\, Reaching for the Moon. His most recent books are the memoir Fishing With Tardelli: A Memoir of Family in Time Lost (2022) and the co-edited Montreal Standard Time: The Early Journalism of Mavis Gallant (2024\, with Marta Dvorák and Bill Richardson). His translation from Portuguese into English of a critical study of Elizabeth Bishop’s work in Brazil is forthcoming (Louisiana State University Press\, 2026). \nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/CQKT5AUSMH \nThe deadline to register is the Monday before the event at noon. The Zoom link will be sent to registrants only. \nIf you have any questions\, please contact the organizer\, Linda Hutcheon at l.hutcheon@utoronto.ca. URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/speaker-neil-besner-english-u-of-winnipeg-wednesday-talk-january-14-2pm-4pm-faculty-club-and-zoom-hybrid/ LOCATION:Zoom AND The Faculty Club\, UofT\, 41 Willcocks Street Toronto\, ON M5S 1C7 CATEGORIES:SC Wednesday Talk ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Picture1.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20260107T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20260107T160000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20251126T193406Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251208T215040Z UID:10001364-1767794400-1767801600@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Isaac Bogoch\, Infectious Diseases\, Medicine\, U of T\, Wednesday Talk: January 7\, 2026\, 2pm-4pm\, Faculty Club and Zoom - hybrid DESCRIPTION:Speaker: Isaac Bogoch\, Infectious Diseases\, Medicine\, U of T \nTitle: “Emerging Infections and How to Fight Them”  \nAbstract: We will discuss how infectious diseases emerge and ultimately spread around the world\, and then delve into mechanisms to best prevent\, detect and respond to outbreaks\, including discussing how misinformation and disinformation play a role. \nBio: Isaac Bogoch is an Infectious Diseases specialist at the Toronto General Hospital\, and a Professor in the Department of Medicine at the University Health Network. Dr. Bogoch works at the intersection of clinical medicine\, global health\, policy and security. He divides his clinical and research efforts between Toronto and several countries in Africa and Asia. His work focuses on reducing the impact of emerging infectious diseases like COVID-19\, mpox\, and HIV\, while also developing strategies to enhance the quality of medical care in low-resource settings. \nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/sSedzWZmHc \nThe deadline to register is the Monday before the event at noon.  The Zoom link will be sent to registrants only. URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/wednesday-talk-january-7-2pm-4pm-hybrid/ LOCATION:Zoom AND The Faculty Club\, UofT\, 41 Willcocks Street Toronto\, ON M5S 1C7 CATEGORIES:SC Wednesday Talk ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/Picture1.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20260105T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20260105T160000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20250918T185106Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250918T190837Z UID:10001358-1767621600-1767628800@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Book Club: January 5\, 2025\, 2-4pm\, – Fellows and External Fellows DESCRIPTION:January 5\, 2026\, 2-4 pm – Fellows and External Fellows                                 \nChatGPT and the Future of AI by Terrence J. Sejnowski (2024) \nDiscussion leader: Daphne Maurer \nAn accessible and timely introduction to how ChatGPT works on the surface and under the hood by someone at the forefront of AI and neuroscience. The author illustrates his points by having ChatGPT generate the chapter summaries. Along the way\, he considers whether such chatbots can think or are conscious\, whether they work like the human brain\, and their strengths and weaknesses. (Available in all formats; 215 pages plus glossary and notes). \nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/A6qfrQaXLZ \nThe deadline to register is the Monday morning the day of the event at 8 am. The Zoom link will be sent to registrants only. \nIf you have any questions\, please contact the organizer\, Mary Jane Ashley at maryjane.ashley@utoronto.ca. URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/book-club-january-5-2025-2-4pm-fellows-and-external-fellows/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Book Club END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20251201T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20251201T160000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20250708T055256Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251023T042711Z UID:10001344-1764597600-1764604800@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Book Club: December 1\, 2025\, 2-4pm\, - Fellows and External Fellows - Zoom only event DESCRIPTION:December 1\, 2025\, 2-4 pm – Fellows and External Fellows – Zoom only event \nOrbital by Samantha Harvey (2023) \nDiscussion Leader: Malcolm Woodland \nWinner of the 2024 Booker and Hawthornden Prizes\, Orbital is called\, by its creator\, a “space pastoral.” In her rhapsodic imagining of 24 hours as the International Space Station orbits earth (with each of the 16 chapters covers a single 90-minute orbiting)\, Harvey (who has never been to space) lets us experience the colour-drenched vision of earth outside the windows: “the Ganges silt estuary ….The umber plains and ochre rivers\, burgundy valley of a thousand-mile ridge … the faint smudge of rust that is the extraordinary autumn bloom of the Jiuzhaigou Valley and then the Gobi Desert … a painter who sees in … brown bolts of duck-egg mauve lemon and crimson.” On board are four men and two women–six astronauts and cosmonauts from Japan\, the USA\, the UK\, Italy and Russia. We witness both the realistic details of the scientific duties and medical tasks of the crew and their reflections on the meaning of life from their unique physical (and\, thus\, philosophical) perspective in the vastness of space. We read their meditations on what they see and experience–that spectacular beauty of earth but also the everyday of life in space–from their radical position in a spacecraft that affords them both great distance from their own lives and enforced intimacy with the others on board. One of the Booker judges said that the novel transported her from the many crises on Earth (including existential threats like climate and war) and re-framed those crises\, and humanity\, in a new relief. (Available in all formats; 224 pages) \nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/SAKzjVzepx \nThe deadline to register is the Monday morning the day of the event at 8 am. The Zoom link will be sent to registrants only. \nIf you have any questions\, please contact the organizer\, Mary Jane Ashley at maryjane.ashley@utoronto.ca. URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/book-club-december-1-2025-2-4pm-fellows-and-external-fellows/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Book Club END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20251126T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20251126T160000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20251113T203338Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251113T203338Z UID:10001363-1764165600-1764172800@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Special End-of-Term Event: The Autumn of Brahms DESCRIPTION:Special Events\n\n\n\n\nSpecial End-of-Term Event: The Autumn of Brahms\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nOn Wednesday\, November 26\, following our final morning lecture\, join us in the Lounge for a captivating clarinet and piano recital featuring two world-class musicians:\n\n\n\n\n\nJames Campbell – internationally acclaimed clarinetist and guest speaker from earlier this year\nLeo Erice – distinguished pianist known for his expressive interpretations\n\n\n\n\n\nTogether\, they will present “The Autumn of Brahms”\, a lecture-recital exploring the poignant and powerful works Johannes Brahms composed after emerging from retirement. The program will include selections from his two clarinet sonatas\, offering insight into Brahms’s late creative period and the intimate dialogue between clarinet and piano.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n📍 Location: The Faculty Club\, The Main Lounge\, 41 Willcocks St\, Toronto\, ON M5S 3G3\n🕒 Time: 2:00pm\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nCome celebrate the close of term with music\, reflection\, and inspiration \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nThe link to register is Special end-of-term event:“The Autumn of Brahms”\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nThe deadline to register is the Monday before the event at noon. URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/special-end-of-term-event-the-autumn-of-brahms/ LOCATION:Zoom AND The Faculty Club\, UofT\, 41 Willcocks Street Toronto\, ON M5S 1C7 CATEGORIES:SC Wednesday Talk END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20251126T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20251126T120000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20250710T161644Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250731T205131Z UID:10001356-1764151200-1764158400@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Wednesday Talk: November 26\, 10am-12pm - hybrid DESCRIPTION:Quinya Liu\, Earth Sciences\, Physics\, U of T \nTitle: “Rumbles Beneath Your Feet: Earthquakes\, Resource Exploration and Earth’s Tectonic History” \nIntroducer: Bibhu Mohanty \noccurring on our planet. Widespread devastation can result from violent ground motion caused by seismic waves and other related phenomena such as tsunamis\, landslide and volcanic eruptions. The deadly magnitude-7.7 earthquakes that hit Myanmar on March 28 further attests to the importance of seismic hazard assessment and risk mitigation. In this talk\, we will first discuss some of the most devastating earthquakes in the past and their possible intersections with human history. We also explain how earthquakes fit into the broader theme of plate tectonics which revolutionized our understanding of the Earth’s evolution. We also examine how seismic waves have been used as a tool to explore the Earth’s interior\, with fascinating applications from tectonics\, resource exploration to subsurface monitoring. \nBio: Qinya Liu is the J. Tuzo Wilson Professor of Geophysics at both Department of Physics and Department of Earth Sciences at University of Toronto. Her research focuses on applying seismic methods to characterize subsurface structures and seismic sources across multiple scales (i.e.\, global\, regional\, exploration and laboratory scales). Her group is involved in the development of spectral-element methods (SEM) for seismic wave simulations and has applied full-waveform inversions to continental-scale structures based on both earthquake data and novel datasets such as ambinent noise and telseismic scattered waves. Her group also works on developing moment-tensor inversion methods for earthquakes and nuclear explosions based on heterogeneous background models\, and has recently ventured into source characterization of induced earthquakes\, microseismic events and laboratory acoustic emission. \nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/mU6TyRkMeK \nThe deadline to register is the Monday before the event at noon.  The Zoom link will be sent to registrants only. URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/wednesday-talk-november-26-10am-12pm-hybrid/ LOCATION:Zoom AND The Faculty Club\, UofT\, 41 Willcocks Street Toronto\, ON M5S 1C7 CATEGORIES:SC Wednesday Talk ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Quinya-Liu-J.-Tuzo.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20251119T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20251119T120000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20250710T161344Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250731T204732Z UID:10001355-1763546400-1763553600@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Wednesday Talk: November 19\, 10am-12pm - hybrid DESCRIPTION:David Rayside\, History \nTitle: “The Biography of an Early Upper Canadian House” \nIntroducer: Jim Gurd \nAbstract: One of Ontario’s oldest houses faces the St. Lawrence River in the small village of South Lancaster at the eastern end of Ontario.  It was built 230 years ago by two young Scottish merchants soon after white Loyalists began taking up Glengarry County farm plots.  In the words of a major specialist in Canadian heritage architecture\, this is an important building\, in part because the original structure remains at its core. \nThis house has been in my family for half of its life\, and for some time was important in my own story.  For that personal reason and in light of its importance\, I have tried assembling the story of how the building was constructed and changed over the decades\, and as well as chronicling what I can of the three families who have used it since the early 1790s.  This talk will include laying out some of the challenges encountered in creating this history\, and spotlight a few of the personalities linked to the house. \nBio: David Rayside is a Professor Emeritus of Political Science\, and was founding director of the Bonham Centre for Sexual Diversity Studies at the University of Toronto.  His writing has included books on sexual diversity\, the role of religion in Canadian politics\, and partisan conservatism\, though his first was an ethnographic exploration of the small town of Alexandria in Glengarry County.  On formally retiring and then completing academic projects he took up more informal writing that led to the creation of illustrated essays destined for web-site posting.  Most are within the broad realm of social history\, including elements of memoir.  Most are focused on an eastern Ontario village on the St. Lawrence waterfront.  He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada in 2014\, and added to the National Portrait Collection of The ArQuives (Canada’s LGBTQ2+ Archives) in 2019. \nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/WLERcfHBG0 \nThe deadline to register is the Monday before the event at noon.  The Zoom link will be sent to registrants only. URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/wednesday-talk-november-19-10am-12pm-hybrid/ LOCATION:Zoom AND The Faculty Club\, UofT\, 41 Willcocks Street Toronto\, ON M5S 1C7 CATEGORIES:SC Wednesday Talk ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/David-Rayside.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20251113T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20251113T160000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20250707T213659Z LAST-MODIFIED:20251105T210048Z UID:10001341-1763042400-1763049600@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Colloquium\, November 13\, 2025\, 2-4pm – Fellows & External Fellows Only – in-person only DESCRIPTION:Colloquium\, November 13\, 2025\, 2-4pm – Fellows & External Fellows Only – in-person only\nTopic: “Science and Scientism”\nOrganized by: Phil Sullivan\n\n\nREADINGS: \n1) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientism \n2) https://philosophynow.org/issues/36/What_Can_You_Do_With_Philosophy_Anyway \n3) https://scientificandmedical.net/scientism-when-science-becomes-a-religion-by-steve-taylor/ \n4) https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1550830725000357 \n5) SCientific Knowlwdge – Copy \n\n\nLunch before the colloquium: The lunch is 12:30pm at Valens Restaurants\, 19 Baldwin St\, Toronto\, ON M5T 1L1.  Please note\, the location is approximately a 10 min walk (350.0 m) from the Senior College Centre.\nThe colloquium is at 2pm at the Senior College Centre\, 256 McCaul Street in suite 412.  The entrance to the floor is locked so Giuliana will unlock it and prop it open. Only those registered will be at the Centre.\n\nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/DsJUymvqr9 URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/colloquium-november-13-2025-2-4pm-fellows-external-fellows-only-in-person-only/ LOCATION:Senior College Centre\,256 McCaul Street\, Suite 412 CATEGORIES:Colloquia END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20251112T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20251112T120000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20250710T161101Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250827T192900Z UID:10001354-1762941600-1762948800@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Wednesday Talk: November 12\, 10am-12pm - hybrid. Please note: This event will be held upstairs at the Faculty Club and not the ground floor. DESCRIPTION:Ian Radforth\, History\, U of T \nTitle: “Deadly Swindle: An 1890 Murder in Backwoods Ontario That Gripped the World” \nIntroducer: Linda Hutcheon \nAbstract: This lecture will offer a journey into life and law in late nineteenth-century Canada\, beginning with the murder of Frederick Cornwallis Benwell\, whose body was discovered in the woods a dozen miles west of Woodstock\, Ontario\, in February 1890. From there it will move back to the history of how Benwell\, John Reginald Birchall\, and Douglas Raymond Pelly\, well-connected young Englishmen from wealthy families\, emigrated to Canada in search of fortune. Benwell and Pelly were lured overseas by Birchall\, who dangled the prospect of investing in a horse farm. The horse farm did not exist\, Birchall was a swindler\, and the resulting disputes ended with him killing Benwell. Birchall was convicted and executed\, with Pelly the chief witness for the prosecution. The theme of the operation of the criminal justice system in this period is paralleled by a theme of how one localised story was taken up by the press and made into a provincial\, then national\, then international story. In part the widespread interest in the case was the result of Birchall’s fascinating personality – attractive\, charming\, charismatic and self-confident. He had many admirers despite the fact that he was also a cold-blooded murderer. The lecture will offer an illustration of ‘legal archeology\,’ using a close study of a particular case to show not just the operation of the criminal justice system but also how the intricacies of many other aspects of law\, society and politics affected how the law operated. \nBio: Ian Radforth is professor emeritus in the Department of History\, University of Toronto. Originally trained as a Canadian labour historian\, Radforth’s early work was firmly in the field of ‘the new social history’ with its agenda of doing history from the bottom up and deploying the analytical categories of class\, race/ethnicity\, and gender. His research focused on the everyday lives and work experiences of the men who lived in bush camps and who worked in northern Ontario ’s forest industry.  It dealt with issues relating to transiency\, male bonding\, technological change\, ethnic radicalism\, and class conflict. His Bushworkers and Bosses: Logging in Northern Ontario (1987) covers 20th-century developments\, and ‘The Shantymen’\, in the collection Labouring Lives (1995) deals with the 19th century. Radforth taught labour and immigration history and co-edited Canadian Working-Class History (2006). A second interest (evident in his co-edited collection Colonial Leviathan [1992]) has been state formation: evolving forms of governmentality and citizenship\, particularly in Victorian Canada. More recently Radforth has taken up ‘the new cultural history’ with its emphasis on representation\, ritual\, and performance. Royal Spectacle (2004) examines the ceremonies and popular demonstrations got up for the first royal visit to Canada and the United States in 1860. Popular royalism – an aspect of the Victorian ‘British World’ – is examined in its various guises: as an Aboriginal strategy\, as an outlet for Orange/Green conflict\, as a gendered script\, etc. He is  also the author of three books published since his retirement: Jeannie’s Demise: Abortion on Trial in Victorian Toronto\, Expressive Acts: Celebrations and Demonstrations in the Streets of Victorian Toronto\, and Deadly Swindle: An 1890 Murder in Backwoods Ontario That Gripped the World. He is currently writing a book on murders for life insurance in 1890s Ontario. \nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/LVdV75HtrE \nThe deadline to register is the Monday before the event at noon.  The Zoom link will be sent to registrants only. URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/wednesday-talk-november-12-10am-12pm-hybrid/ LOCATION:Zoom AND The Faculty Club\, UofT\, 41 Willcocks Street Toronto\, ON M5S 1C7 CATEGORIES:SC Wednesday Talk ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Ian-Radforth.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20251105T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20251105T120000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20250710T160832Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250731T203607Z UID:10001353-1762336800-1762344000@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Wednesday Talk: November 5\, 10am-12pm - hybrid DESCRIPTION:Carl Knappett\, Art History\, U of T \nTitle: “The Coastal World of Minoan Palaikastro” \nIntroducer: Susan Pfeiffer \nAbstract: Lying on the eastern tip of Crete\, Palaikastro was one of the largest towns on the island during the Bronze Age. Much of the archaeological exploration of the site has set out to find its presumed palatial centre. Yet\, after many seasons of fieldwork\, such a structure still eludes us. The most recent work at the site has focussed more on the settlement’s coastal location\, and its possible role as a trading port within the wider east Mediterranean. However\, the more that we investigate the coastline\, the more we have to reckon with the significant geomorphological changes that have occurred since the Bronze Age. I will present our latest findings from underwater survey\, coastal excavation\, and palaeoenvironmental study\, shedding light on the coastal world of Minoan Palaikastro. \nBio: Carl Knappett holds the Walter Graham/ Homer Thompson Chair in Aegean Prehistory in the Department of Art History (UofT). He has published widely on the archaeology of Crete and the east Mediterranean\, material culture theory\, and network analysis. Among over 15 authored and edited books are An Archaeology of Interaction: Network Perspectives on Material Culture and Society (2011\, OUP)\, and Maritime Networks in the Ancient Mediterranean World (2018\, CUP). He was Chair of the Department of Art History from 2017 to 2022\, and is the Director of the Mediterranean Archaeology Collaborative Specialization. For the past decade has run a fieldwork project at the site of Palaikastro on Crete. \nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/5eW99KUmP9 \nThe deadline to register is the Monday before the event at noon.  The Zoom link will be sent to registrants only. URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/wednesday-talk-november-5-10am-12pm-hybrid/ LOCATION:Zoom AND The Faculty Club\, UofT\, 41 Willcocks Street Toronto\, ON M5S 1C7 CATEGORIES:SC Wednesday Talk ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Carl-Knappett.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20251103T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20251103T160000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20250708T052537Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250908T173101Z UID:10001343-1762178400-1762185600@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Book Club: November 3\, 2025\, 2-4pm\, - Fellows and External Fellows DESCRIPTION:November 3\, 2025\, 2-4 pm – Fellows and External Fellows \nAutocracy Inc: The Dictators Who Want to Run the World by Anne Applebaum (2024) \nDiscussion Leader: David Milne \nPulitzer prize-winning author Anne Applebaum unpacks the modern world of autocracy in a short and straightforward way. Stripping away ideological pretensions\, she shows that autocratic regimes are surprisingly similar extractive systems that are even mutually reinforcing in today’s global economy. All are kleptocracies eager to profit from rich democratic countries and to undermine their foundations.  She argues for a vigorous Western response to rising autocracies\, but with President Donald Trump once more in power in 2025\, this strategy may now face serious obstacles. (Available in all formats; 272 pages) \nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/ARyYYRhqQd \nThe deadline to register is the Monday morning the day of the event at 8 am. The Zoom link will be sent to registrants only. \nIf you have any questions\, please contact the organizer\, Mary Jane Ashley at maryjane.ashley@utoronto.ca. URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/book-club-november-3-2025-2-4pm-fellows-and-external-fellows/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Book Club END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20251029T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20251029T120000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20250710T160737Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250731T203418Z UID:10001352-1761732000-1761739200@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Wednesday Talk: October 29\, 10am-12pm - hybrid DESCRIPTION:Zhang\, Di\, Music\, York U \nTitle: “Exploring Regional Yangqin Music in China” Introducer: Daphne Maurer \nAbstract: This presentation offers an in-depth exploration of regional yangqin music\, focusing on the traditional Chinese hammered dulcimer\, within the context of China’s diverse cultural and geographical landscape. Combining performance and lecture\, it traces the evolution of the yangqin and its musical repertoire across various regions\, each with distinct stylistic traditions. The discussion will highlight the instrument’s historical origins\, its transformation over time\, and its ongoing development in modern China. The session will include live demonstrations of regional pieces\, showcasing the yangqin’s role in preserving local traditions and conveying cultural narratives. This interdisciplinary approach seeks to enhance understanding of the yangqin both as a musical instrument and a cultural artifact. \nBio: Di Zhang (Ph.D. York U) is an ethnomusicologist\, improviser\, performer\, and researcher\, actively contributing to Canada’s vibrant music scene and academic community. Her work explores the intersection of tradition and innovation\, with a particular focus on the yangqin (Chinese hammered dulcimer). As the director of the Bayin Ensemble\, Dr. Zhang has been at the forefront of contemporary music improvisation\, blending world music traditions with cutting-edge approaches. Her original compositions and improvisations are featured on the album The Path to Contemporary\, a ground-breaking yangqin recording that fuses traditional Chinese music\, jazz\, and contemporary music elements. \nDr. Zhang’s academic research delves into ethnomusicology\, improvisation pedagogy\, and the cultural history of Chinese music. She has explored topics such as the evolution of the yangqin\, the pedagogical challenges of teaching improvisation\, and the influence of the Silk Road and Chinese governance on musical development. Her dedication to innovation extends to her teaching\, where she pioneers new approaches to integrating improvisation into music education. Passionate about creating and promoting new music\, Dr. Zhang bridges global musical traditions and contemporary composition methodologies. Her performances and research exemplify her commitment to expanding the horizons of modern music while celebrating its cultural roots. \nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/yD5fdP29Kz \nThe deadline to register is the Monday before the event at noon.  The Zoom link will be sent to registrants only. URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/wednesday-talk-october-29-10am-12pm-hybrid/ LOCATION:Zoom AND The Faculty Club\, UofT\, 41 Willcocks Street Toronto\, ON M5S 1C7 CATEGORIES:SC Wednesday Talk ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Di-Zhang-e1755716427431.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20251022T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20251022T120000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20250710T153010Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250731T184723Z UID:10001351-1761127200-1761134400@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Wednesday Talk: October 22\, 10am-12pm - hybrid DESCRIPTION:Eric Jennings\, History\, U of T \nTitle: “A World History of Vanilla” Introducer: Charles Maurer \nAbstract: Open your fridge or pantry\, and you’ll likely find vanilla: perhaps a bottle of vanilla essence. Maybe artificial. You probably have vanilla ice cream in the freezer. That everyday substance has a remarkable history\, encompassing slavery and the rise of industrial synthetics that produce vanillin from wood pulp derivatives to cow dung! \nBio: Eric Jennings (BA-MA Toronto\, 1992\, 1993; PhD UC Berkeley 1998) is a French colonial historian and Chair of our Department of History\, as well as a fellow at Victoria College and of the Royal Society of Canada.  He has held a John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship and seven SSHRC Standard/ Insight Grants.  He is the author of eight books all but one of which he has translated into French himself.  His latest is titled: Vanilla: The History of an Extraordinary Bean (Yale University Press\, 2025). \nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/Ws6T1iTWzC \nThe deadline to register is the Monday before the event at noon.  The Zoom link will be sent to registrants only. URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/wednesday-talk-october-22-10am-12pm-hybrid/ LOCATION:Zoom AND The Faculty Club\, UofT\, 41 Willcocks Street Toronto\, ON M5S 1C7 CATEGORIES:SC Wednesday Talk ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Eric-Jennings-e1755716354187.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20251016T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20251016T160000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20250707T212742Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250925T192652Z UID:10001340-1760623200-1760630400@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Colloquium\, October 16\, 2025\, 2-4pm – Fellows & External Fellows Only – in-person only DESCRIPTION:Colloquium\, October 16\, 2025\, 2-4pm – Fellows & External Fellows Only – in-person only\nTopic: “Diversity and Identity in Canada”\nOrganized by: Trevor Lloyd\n\n\nLunch before the colloquium: The lunch is 12:30pm at Valens Restaurants\, 19 Baldwin St\, Toronto\, ON M5T 1L1.  Please note\, the location is approximately a 10 min walk (350.0 m) from the Senior College Centre.\nThe colloquium is at 2pm at the Senior College Centre\, 256 McCaul Street in suite 412.  The entrance to the floor is locked so Giuliana will unlock it and prop it open. Only those registered will be at the Centre.\n\n\nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/WvfTxgjCBN\n\n\nAnthology of comments and quotations on Canadian Identity and Diversity \n“Society is indeed a contract . . But the state ought not to be considered as nothing better than a partnership agreement in a trade in pepper and coffee . . . It is a partnership in all science\, in all art\, a partnership in every virtue and in all perfection. As the ends of such a partnership cannot be obtained in many generations it becomes a partnership not only between those who are living but between those who are living\, those who are dead and those who are to be born.” Edmund Burke\, Reflections on the Revolution in France (1790) \n“In the government you called civilised the happiness of the people is constantly sacrificed to the splendour of empire.” Chief Joseph Brant. (On his deathbed\, 24 November 1807\, he said to his chosen successor “Pity the poor Indian. If you can get any influence with the great\, endeavour to do them all the good you can.”) \n“I expected to find a contest between a government and a people. I found two nations warring in the bosom of a single state. I found a struggle\, not of principles but of race and i perceived that it would be idle to attempt an amelioration of laws or institutions until we could first succeed in termination the deadly animosity that now separates the inhabitants of Lower Canada into the hostile divisions of French and English.” Lord Durham\, Report on the Affairs of British North America\, 1839 \n[In the event his reliance on “entrusting the management of public affairs . . . to the persons who have the confidence of the representative body” (we would say “responsible government”) brought about considerable amelioration.] \n“54.40 or fight.” Slogan of President-to-be Polk in his 1844 election campaign (Polk was a man of his word; when he found he could not have “54.40\,” he fought\, but that was in Texas. \n“Be assured we will never forget our allegiance till the last cannon that is shot on this continent in defence of Great Britain is fired by the hand of a French Canadian.” \nEtienne Paschal Tache\, 24 April 1846 \n“I for one am deeply convinced of the impolicy of all such attempts to denationlise the French. Generally speaking they produce the opposite effect than intended\, causing the flame of national prejudice and animosity to burn more brightly. . . . Let them feel on the other hand that their religion\, their habits\, their prepossessions\, their prejudices if you will\, are more respected here than in other parts of this vast continent  . . . and who will venture to say that the last hand that waves the British flag on American ground may not be that of a French Canadian?”                         Lord Elgin (Governor) to Lord Grey (Secretary of State)\, 4 May 1848 \n“Confederation through at six o’clock this evening . . . complete reform of all the abuses and injustices we have complained of . . . French Canadianism entirely extinguished.” George Brown\, 26 October 1864 \n“From the day on which the Government (Either the Hudson Bay company or the British Government) we had always respected abandoned us by transferring us to a foreign power [the Government of Canada] the sacred authority [? confided] to it\, the people of Rupertsland and the North West became free and exempt from all allegiance to the said Government.” \nThe National Committee [Red River] John Bruce\, President\, Louis Riel\, Secretary\, 8 December 1869\, N \n“The time will come when this national spirit that has been spoken of will be truly felt among us\, when we shall realise that we are four million Britons who are not free\, when we shall be ready to take up that freedom\, and to ask [for] what the late prime minister of England assured us we should not be denied  — our share of national rights.” \nEdward Blake\, at Aurora\, 3 October 1873 \n“Until that [rail]road is built to British Columbia and the Pacific\, this Dominion is a mere geographical expression. Until bound by this iron link\, as we have bound Nova Scotia and New Brunswick by the Intercolonial Railway\, we are not a Dominion in fact.” John A. Macdonald\, 29 November 1875. \n“No man has a right to fix the boundary of the march of a nation. No man has a right to say to his country — thus far shalt thou go and no further.” \nCharles Stewart Parnell\, 1885 \n“Strangle Riel with the French flag. That is the only use that rag can have in this country.” The Toronto News\,18 May 1885. (Riel was hanged 16 November 1885) \n“We may not assimilate\, we may not blend\, but we are still the component parts of the same country.” Wilfrid Laurier\, 10 December 1886 \n“Let us be English or let us be French\, but above all let us be Canadians.” John A. Macdonald. Colombo’s Canadian Quotations\, p.381\, does not give a reference and I have not found one. \n“The sum of the impressions produced on me by my sight-seeing in London during the first month of my stay was a feeling of pride and exultation that I belonged to a country of so much glory and greatness\, that I had a part and share in this proud heritage which nothing could take away.” (Visit to London in 1893). Public Servant: The Memoirs of Sir Joseph Pope\, ed Maurice Pope (Toronto\, OUP\, 1960) p.86 \n“To be born an Englishman is to have won first prize in the lottery of life.” Cecil Rhodes \n“There is Ontario patriotism\, Quebec patriotism or Western patriotism\, each based on the hope that it may swallow up the others\, but there is no Canadian patriotism and we can have no Canadian nation when we have no Canadian patriotism.” Henri Bourassa\, addressing the Canadian Club of Toronto\, 22 January 1907 \n“Our master\, the past.” Abbe Groulx\, July 1917; “This French state is due [owed to] us and we shall have it\,” Abbe Groulx\, 1937\, \n“America was thus clearly Top Nation and History came to a .” at the end of the Great War. Sellar and Yeatman\, 1066 and All That (1932). Earlier in their book the authors had said England had become Top Nation by winning the Battle of Waterloo in 1815 \n“What we all believe in is the Empire but my father . . . believed in Canada and my great-uncle John was what they call a Father of Confederation. My mother’s family was against Confederation and wanted Nova Scotia to be on its own as part of the Empire. I find it hard to think of Canada. It is so enormous\, all those prairies and mountains and cities and open spaces. Nova Scotia is small enough to understand and even when I want to get away from it I know it is my country.”  Diary entry for 2 April 1925\, Charles Ritchie\, An Appetite for Life\, p.33-4 \n“They stood at Vimy Ridge that 9th day of April\, men from Quebec stood shoulder-to-shoulder with men from Ontario\, men from the Maritimes with men from British Columbia and there was forged a nation tempered by the fire of sacrifice and hammered on the anvil of high adventure.” Lord Byng\, summer 1922 \n” Not necessarily conscription but conscription if necessary” Mackenzie King in Parliament\, 10 June 1942\, repeated 7 July 1942 \n“In the House of Commons today in my party we have Members of Italian\, Dutch\, German\, Scadinavian\, Chinese and Ukrainian origins — and they are all Canadians.” J. G. Diefenbaker\, 29 March 1958 \n“Maitres chez nous.” Quebec Liberal election slogan\, 1962 \n“You can be a French Canadian\, you can be an English Canadian but not a ‘Canadian.’ We know how to live without an identity and this is one of our marvelous resources.” \nMarshall McLuhan\, 29 May 1967 \n  \n“Canada will be a strong country when Canadians of all provinces feel at home in all parts of the country . . . . Masters in our own house\, but our house is the whole of Canada.” \nPierre Trudeau\, 5 April 1968 \n  \n“Jean Lesage could never make up his mind whether he wanted to be the next Prime Minister of Canada or the first President of Quebec.” \nPeter Newman\, The Distemper of our Times (1968)\, p.305 \n  \n“This appears to be the most discriminatory action taken by a federal government against a particular province in the entire history of Confederation.” \nPeter Lougheed\, Premier of Alberta\, 14 September 1973\, in response to Pierre Trudeau’s National Energy Policy \n  \n“Money and the ethnic vote\,” Jacques Parizeau\, immediately after the very narrow defeat of the 1995 independence referendum in Quebec \n“In order to redress the legacy of the residential schools and advance the process of reconciliation the Truth and reconciliation Commission makes the following [94] calls to action.” \nTh Truth and Reconciliation Commission\, 2015 \nThe World Needs More Canada\, ed Heather Reisman (Toronto\, Indigo Press\, 2017). 106 contributors\, among whom Margaret Atwood ended her contribution ” ‘Be as Canadian as possible\, under the circumstances’ used to be a joke. Now it’s a hope. Yes\, Canada\, be as Canadian as you can.” And Chris Hadfield ended his contribution “Even though I was off the planet\, as far from home as any of us has ever been\, I have never felt more completely\, proudly Canadian.” \n“There is no core identity\, no mainstream in Canada. There are shared values; openness\, respect\, compassion\, willingness to lend a hand\, to be there for each other\, to search for equality and justice.” Vancouver Sun\, 13 March 2016\, quoting Justin Trudeau\, with a journalist’s comment “When the Prime Minister says Canada is a “post-national state\,” I believe he is saying this is a place where respect for minority groups trumps any one group’s way of doing things.” \n“The Three Pillars continue their Odyssey” Title of the last section of Peter Russell\, Canada’s Odyssey\, 2017 \n“The core values that have been emphasised throughout his book: solidarity\, fairness\, responsibility\, resilience\, sustainability\, dynamism and humility.” \nMark Carney\, Value(s)\, p.474-5 (2021) \n“I’ve never seen such a high level of separatist sentiment\,” Danielle Smith\, June 2025 \nQuebec Bill 21\, Act respecting the laicity of the State\, \n  URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/colloquium-october-16-2025-2-4pm-fellows-external-fellows-only-in-person-only/ LOCATION:Senior College Centre\,256 McCaul Street\, Suite 412 CATEGORIES:Colloquia END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/Toronto:20251015T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/Toronto:20251015T120000 DTSTAMP:20260422T213011 CREATED:20250710T152527Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250731T184346Z UID:10001350-1760522400-1760529600@www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca SUMMARY:Wednesday Talk: October 15\, 10am-12pm - hybrid DESCRIPTION:Robert Sharpe\, Law\, U of T \nTitle: “The Persons Case: Equality of Women and the Constitution as a Living Tree” \nIntroducer: Jim Hunter \nAbstract: The Persons case\, the landmark 1928 decision that established the “living tree” principle of constitutional interpretation\, challenged the exclusion of women from Canada’s Senate. Robert Sharpe considers the case in its political and social context and explores the key players: the women who fought for equality\, the politicians who opposed them\, the lawyers who argued the case\, and the judges who decided it. \nBio:  Robert Sharpe O.C.\, F.R.S.C.\, is Distinguished Jurist in Residence at the Faculty of Law and a retired judge of the Court of Appeal for Ontario. He formerly served as Professor and Dean of the Faculty of Law and is the author of several books on Canadian Legal History including The Persons Case (with Patricia McMahon) \nThe link to register is https://forms.office.com/r/8wsLbKveW4 \nThe deadline to register is the Monday before the event at noon.  The Zoom link will be sent to registrants only. URL:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/event/wednesday-talk-october-15-10am-12pm-hybrid/ LOCATION:Zoom AND The Faculty Club\, UofT\, 41 Willcocks Street Toronto\, ON M5S 1C7 CATEGORIES:SC Wednesday Talk ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.seniorcollege.utoronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Robert-Sharpe-e1755716301679.jpg END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR