Report Number 59 Of The Utsc Campus Council
JUNE 21, 2023
To the Governing Council,
University of Toronto Scarborough,
Your Council reports that it met on June 21, 2023, at 4:10 p.m., remotely via ZOOM, with the following members present:
Present: Grace Westcott (Chair), Sotirios Damouras (Vice-Chair), Wisdom Tettey (Vice-President & Principal), William A. Gough (Vice-Principal Academic & Dean), Andrew Arifuzzaman (Chief, Administrative Officer), Tarun Dewan, Jason Glover, Edward Henley, Irmi Huftless, Elaine Khoo, Sameer Lal, Sonja Nikkila, John Ramdeen, Silma Roddau, Paulina Rousseau, Dorinda So, Hoorik Yeghiazarian
Regrets: Rana Bezhadi, George Cree, Fatima Formuli, Qusai Hassan, Imran Khan, Gillian Mason, Michelle Lone, Rachel Sturge
In Attendance: Irena Creed (Vice-Principal, Research & Innovation)
Secretariat: Lydia Gill (Secretary), Cindy Ferencz Hammond, Samantha Frost
OPEN SESSION
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Chair's Remarks
The Chair welcomed members and guests to the final meeting of the Campus Council for the academic year.
- Establishment of an Extra-Departmental Unit C (EDU:C) - Institutes for Resilient and Inclusive Societies and Ecosystems (iRISE)
The Chair reminded members that the Council received information for this item within the Annual Report, Office of the Vice-Principal, Research & Innovation at the Cycle 6A meeting. She noted that the item was now coming forward for approval by the Campus Council, subject to confirmation by the Executive Committee.
The Chair invited Professor Irena Creed (Vice-Principal, Research & Innovation) to deliver the presentation for this item. Highlights from Professor Creed’s presentation were as follows:
- The Institutes for Resilient and Inclusive Societies and Ecosystems (iRISE) would be an organizing framework and an administrative home for its three constituent and interrelated institutes and was the product of extensive community consultations and evidence-based review of the campus’ scholarly record during the development of UTSC’s Strategic Plan, Inspiring Inclusive Excellence.
- The vision for iRISE would be to establish the University of Toronto as a leading global centre of scholarship on convergence research in pursuit of goals of sustainable, resilient, inclusive, just, and equitable futures.
- The mission for iRISE would support the pursuit of convergence research and catalyze change by facilitating research discoveries and enabling innovators to move discoveries into action, inspiring communities and building their capacity to act, and training future leaders.
- iRISE would strive toward the following goals:
- Produce knowledge throughout the disciplinary spectrum.
- Create spaces enabling convergence dialogues and encouraging the envisioning of alternative futures.
- Embrace diverse epistemologies and methodologies of different disciplines to generate transformative solutions to problems.
- Build sustainable collaborations and partnerships that engage diverse stakeholders to co-create knowledge infused with social concerns and values.
- Train scholars and leaders dedicated to creating inclusive, sustainable, and just and equitable societies.
- Mobilize and translate knowledge into public policy and practice.
- The three inaugural institutes of iRISE were:
- Institute for Environment, Conservation & Sustainability
- Institute for Inclusive Health & Well-Being
- Institute for Inclusive Economies & Sustainable Livelihoods
- Over 2000 members of the UTSC and broader U of T community were engaged in the strategic planning process for iRISE.
On motion duly made, seconded and carried,
YOUR COUNCIL APPROVED
THAT subject to confirmation by the Executive Committee,
THAT, the Establishment of an Extra-Departmental Unit C (EDU:C) - Institutes for Resilient and Inclusive Societies and Ecosystems (iRISE) as described in the proposal, dated June 4, 2023, be approved effective June 28, 2023.
Members had no questions.
CONSENT AGENDA**
On motion duly made, seconded and carried,
YOUR COUNCIL APPROVED
THAT the consent agenda be adopted and that Item 3, the Report of the Previous Meeting, be approved.
- Report of the Previous Meeting: Report Number 58 - May 24, 2023 (For Approval) *
- Business Arising from the Report of the Previous Meeting
- Reports for Information *
- Date of the Next Meeting – October 10, 2023 at 4:10 p.m.
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Question Period
No questions were raised for the administration.
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Other Business
The Chair thanked all members for their participation and engagement in governance over the last year.
The meeting adjourned at 4:27 p.m.
June 22, 2023