Global Ideas Institute  

Archive 2011-12

About | Symposium | Participants | Organizing Comittee | Sponsors | Photos

Participants

High Schools

In its second year, twelve Toronto-area high schools participated in the Global Ideas Institute. All that's needed is a principal or teacher who is willing to get involved and organize a group of students from their school to take part. Both public and private schools are represented. The students are in grades eleven and twelve. In 2011-12, the participating high schools were:

Bloor Collegiate Institute
Branksome Hall
David and Mary Thomson Collegiate Institute
Havergal College
Monarch Park Collegiate Institute
Northview Heights Secondary School
Pickering College
Richmond Hill Secondary School
St. Clement’s School
University of Toronto Schools
Upper Canada College
Ursula Franklin Academy

Mentors

One of the benefits of the GII is that it empowers university students to take a leadership role in mentoring high school students through their examination of a complex research problem. Undergraduate and graduate students from a variety of disciplines, including Asia-Pacific Studies, Political Science, Economics, International Relations, Public Policy, Engineering, and Fine Arts take part. They work with the high school students and teach them how to think critically at a university level. In 2011-12, the following students served as mentors:

Mark Anderson - Ontario Institute of Studies in Education
Bev Bradley - Centre for Global Engineering (PhD)
Nick Buffo - Ontario Institute of Studies in Education
Hormuz Dadabhoy - Asia-Pacific Studies/ Environmental Biology/Anthropology
Kristen Dahl - Ontario Institute of Studies in Education
Andrew Do - Peace and Conflict Studies
Supriya Joshi - International Relations/Political Science
Nessa Kenny - Peace and Conflict Studies
Sara Lee - Peace and Conflict Studies
Mimi Liu - International Relations/ Peace and Conflict Studies
Erik MacKinnon - Ontario Institute of Studies in Education
Robert Meynell - Ontario Institute of Studies in Education
Danielle Pacey - Ontario Institute of Studies in Education
Casey Panning - Ontario Institute of Studies in Education
Richard Park - Ontario Institute of Studies in Education
Rufina Park - International Relations/Asia-Pacific Studies
Emman Rahman - International Relations/Employment Relations
Jashpreet Saini - Ontario Institute of Studies in Education
Lindsey Spencer - Ontario Institute of Studies in Education
Kerry Sun - History/Political Science
Sean Verigin - Peace and Conflict Studies

Expert Speakers

In the lead-up to the symposium, students attend lectures by prominent thinkers with experience working on a relevant global problem. These talks give students the opportunity to learn from and ask questions to leading experts. Students are able to gain valuable insight into real-life approaches to global problem-solving that directly influences how they approach their own project.

2011-12 Expert Speaker Series

October 25, 2011
Global Public Health Challenges
Dr. Anita M. McGahan
Associate Dean of Research, Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto

November 15, 2011
Appropriate Technologies and Reinventing the Toilet
Dr. Yu-Ling Cheng
Director, Centre for Global Engineering; Professor, Department of Chemical Engineering and Applied Chemistry, University of Toronto
>view seminar webcast

December 6, 2011
Solving Tough Problems Through Integrative Thinking
Ms. Ellie Avishai
Director, I-Think Initiative, Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto

January 19, 2012
The Psychology of the Last Mile Problem: Why End Users Don’t Adopt Innovative Solutions and What We Can Do About It
Dr. Dilip Soman
Director, India Innovation Institute; Professor, Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto
>view seminar webcast

January 31, 2012
Involvement of the Public, NGO, and Private Sectors in Knowledge Translation, Implementation, and Scaling
Dr. Stanley Zlotkin
Professor, Paediatrics, Public Health Sciences, and Nutritional Sciences, University of Toronto; Vice President, Medical and Academic Affairs, The Hospital for Sick Children
>view seminar webcast

February 14, 2012
New Models for Financing Innovative Technologies and Entrepreneurship in the Global South
Dr. Murray Metcalfe
Professor, Globalization, Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering, University of Toronto

Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Blind Spots in the Welfare State: Lessons from the Global South
Dr. Joseph Wong
Canada Research Chair, Political Science; Director, Asian Institute, University of Toronto
>view seminar webcast