Religion

Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy

English

Hart House

Undergraduate Students

Vic One

Victoria College

Hugh Considine got a crash course in discussing polarizing topics almost immediately upon arriving at the University of Toronto.

The second-year student studies religion in the Faculty of Arts & Science – a subject, he says, that can be about as controversial as it gets.

“People have an unimaginable amount of investment in it,” says Considine, 19, a member of Innis College. “Depending on who you ask, it’s literally your soul at hand – the ultimate thing that could be risked.”

He credits his professors for creating an environment where students feel unafraid to speak their minds, encouraging them to comment, ask questions and generally “poke and prod” one another so we “would actually think about what’s being said.”

It’s a microcosm of what campus life is supposed to be all about: a diverse group of people coming together to expand their worldviews through study, debate and discovery – and it’s a message that was reinforced during a recent event for Victoria College students in the Vic One program.

The hour-long panel discussion, held at Hart House on Sept. 18, focused on the critical role of civil discourse on university campuses. It brought together two high-profile U of T academics and authors – Ian Williams of the department of English and Janice Stein of the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy – and New York Timescolumnist Pamela Paul.

The first in a series of planned events and initiatives on the topic, the talk was moderated by Professor Randy Boyagoda, the university’s provostial adviser on civil discourse and chair of its Working Group on Civil Discourse, and is part of a broader effort to strengthen the culture of civil discourse on campus. That includes cultivating dialogue across different points of view and the discussion of challenging subjects.

Hundreds attended the event at Hart House, including Hugh Considine at bottom right (photo by Johnny Guatto)

The discussion, which drew about 150 attendees, touched on everything from today’s increasingly polarized political and cultural environment to the risks faced by universities – and society at large – if open discussion and debate of difficult topics are frowned upon or crowded out.

Not surprisingly, the panel members each had a unique take on the nature of the threat and what should be done about it.

Paul, for example, said she was especially concerned about a culture of self-censorship, saying she opted to become an opinion writer after years editing the New York Times Book Review upon recognizing the bulk of discussion about politics and culture was taking place only at extreme ends of the spectrum.

“What you had was this growing vacuum in the middle where nuance and complexity lived and no one was speaking up,” she said.

Stein, however, said that not all forms of self-censorship are necessarily undesirable, noting that she refrains from vocalizing thoughts she deems unnecessarily rude.

“When we’re in a learning community together, we have to say things in a way that people can hear,” said Stein, the Munk School’s founding director and University Professor and Belzberg Professor of Conflict Management in the department of political science. She added that what matters is why we self-censor – do we do it out of fear or out of consideration for others?

Williams, a professor of English and author who has published acclaimed books of poetry, essays and works of fiction, warned against viewing debate as simply an opportunity to persuade someone else of your views.

“The more interesting way of having these conversations [is not to] focus on converting a person to a team, but saying, ‘Here’s how my ideas have changed over time.’”

There were several other takeaways for the largely student audience, which included several first-years.

Paraphrasing French philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre, Boyagoda, a writer, professor of English and vice-dean, undergraduate in the Faculty of Arts & Science, urged students to “think against yourself ” by creating their own counterarguments as an intellectual exercise. Similarly, Paul spoke about the value of engaging with those who don’t share your opinions.

Stein and Williams also emphasized the U of T community’s shared responsibility to create an environment where people can ask questions and test out ideas. And if you find yourself amongst people who refuse to grant that space? “Just take that conversation elsewhere, rather than burying it or self-censoring it,” Williams said.

Following the talk, students asked questions about the “paradox of tolerance,” or the idea that creating a tolerant society requires being intolerant of intolerance, and how to cope with the repercussions of being ostracized for expressing an unpopular view, among other things.

Considine, one of four undergraduate student members of the civil discourse working group, said he was pleased to see so many students engaging with the topic.

“That’s something that, as one of the student representatives – and as the youngest student representative – I'm very conscious about.”

Photo exhibit on display at U of T celebrates the important role of Black classicists

Christopher.Sorensen — Fri, 03 May 2024 19:58:02 +0000

Photo exhibit on display at U of T celebrates the important role of Black classicists

Christopher.Sorensen Fri, 05/03/2024 - 15:58

Cutline

The “Black Classicists in North America” installation is currently on display at the University of Toronto in the Lillian Massey Building on the St. George campus (photo by Diana Tyszko)

Topic

Humanities

Subheadline

“This exhibition has been displayed in many U.S. and U.K. institutions, but this is the first time it has been made available in Canada”

A new installation at the University of Toronto celebrates the important role of Black classicists who overcame enormous obstacles to advance Greek and Latin language studies.

Housed in the Lillian Massey Building on the St. George campus , the photo exhibit, “Black Classicists in North America” celebrates 18 prominent scholars of the 19th and 20th centuries.

“Black Classicists in North America” celebrates 18 prominent scholars of the 19th and 20th centuries (photo by Diana Tyszko)

“This exhibition has been displayed in many U.S. and U.K. institutions, but this is the first time it has been made available in Canada,” says Ben Akrigg, an associate professor with the department of classics in the Faculty of Arts & Science who helped facilitate this exhibit coming to U of T.

“Being confronted directly with their portraits reminds us that these were real individuals, and not just footnotes. They can still talk to us as colleagues through their written words. Many of their concerns and interests, especially as teachers, do speak directly to us in that way.”

John Wesley Edward Bowen

The exhibition was assembled and curated by Michele Valerie Ronnick, a distinguished professor at Wayne State University. Ronnick partnered with Akrigg as well as Ronald Charles, an associate professor in U of T’s department for the study of religion to bring the exhibit to the university.

The portraits include classicists such as John Wesley Edward Bowen (1855–1933). Born into slavery in New Orleans, he graduated from New Orleans University in 1878 and later taught Greek and Latin at Central Tennessee College in Nashville.

In 1887 he became the first African American to earn a PhD at Boston University. His essay, “An Apology for the Higher Education of the Negro,” (Methodist Review, 1897) supported the study of classics. He was president of Gammon Theological Seminary in Atlanta from 1910 to 1914.

Orishatukeh Faduma (1855-1946) was born in the former British colony of Guyana where his parents lived after abduction by slavers. He was first educated by missionaries in Sierra Leone.

Orishatukeh Faduma

He earned a bachelor’s degree from Yale University’s School of Divinity in 1894 and taught Greek and Latin at Lincoln Academy in King’s Mount, N.C. and Virginia Theological Seminary in Lynchburg. He joined the American Negro Academy in 1899 and the American Philological Association the following year.

Helen Maria Chesnutt (1880–1969) was the daughter of novelist Charles Chesnutt – an American author, essayist and political activist, best known for his novels and short stories exploring complex issues of racial and social identity in the post-Civil War South.

She earned a bachelor’s degree from Smith College in 1902 and her master’s in Latin from Columbia University in 1925.

She taught Latin at Central High School in Cleveland. Her pupil, Langston Hughes, who became a celebrated poet and activist, found her inspiring. In 1932, Chesnutt co-authored The Road to Latin, a textbook that was printed several times. She also belonged to the American Philological Association from 1920 to 1934.

Helen Maria Chesnutt

“The institutional structures of classics as they developed in the nineteenth century were designed to facilitate and perpetuate the success of certain groups,” says Akrigg. “These men and women were from outside those groups and the successes they achieved came in spite of formidable obstacles.

“Most of them were teachers and they provided not only an example but often direct inspiration and encouragement to those who came in their footsteps. They played a vital role in widening access to the discipline. They also, however, remind us that that process of widening is still far from complete.”

'Academia became a reality': Students learn about residential schools from their survivors

Christopher.Sorensen — Thu, 26 Jan 2023 17:14:01 +0000

'Academia became a reality': Students learn about residential schools from their survivors

Christopher.Sorensen Thu, 01/26/2023 - 12:14

Cutline

Undergraduate students meet at the Shingwauk Kinoomaage Gamig teaching lodge in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. (photo by Reid Locklin)

Sean McNeely

Topic

Academics

Indigenous

New College

St. Michael's College

Truth and Reconciliation

Undergraduate Students

Lydia Dillenbeck stepped into a former residential school chapel and was fascinated with the structure – until she learned who built it.

“I felt comfortable in the space until our tour guide told us the building had been built by children ages 8 to 15,” says Dillenbeck, a first-year social sciences student at the University of Toronto and a member of St. Michael’s College.

“Suddenly, I wasn’t just reading about history; I was sitting on it. The pew I was sitting on was made by children. The comfort I felt was replaced by disgust.”

Reading a death registry in the church and visiting a graveyard where children are believed to be buried only added to Dillenbeck’s turmoil. “Within the span of 30 minutes, we were confronted with the realities of the residential school system in the forms of child labour and children’s deaths,” she says.

Dillenbeck and three other students toured the Shingwauk Residential Schools Centre at Algoma University in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. during the November reading week. The visit to the chapel was part of the International or Indigenous Course Module (ICM) portion of the St. Michael’s College seminar course: The Christianity, Truth and Reconciliation Seminar. The course explores the complex relations of Christianity and Indigenous peoples of Turtle Island. The Faculty of Arts & Science’s ICM program provides undergraduate students with the opportunity to travel outside Toronto, often internationally, for a hands-on learning experience.

Outdoor learning at the Shingwauk Kinoomaage Gamig teaching lodge (photo by Reid Locklin)

Topics covered by the course include: the life stories of prominent Indigenous leaders; the emergence of Canada as a settler state and the history of the residential school system; and themes of conflict and engagement including apologies and reparations, education, treaty relationships and land.

“The purpose of the trip was to spend a week thinking about the residential school system by being on a residential school site, and doing work connected to that site,” says trip organizer, Reid Locklin, an associate professor of Christianity and the intellectual tradition at U of T, a joint appointment with St Michael’s College and the department for the study of religion.

A sacred medicine garden at Shingwauk Kinoomaage Gamig (photo by Reid Locklin)

Dillenbeck and the other students received archival training from the Shingwauk staff, met with residential school survivors and engaged in a variety of activities that celebrated Indigenous culture and communities.

She says the experience was deeply moving and transformative, adding that she appreciated the small group as well as the instructors who provided guidance and support.

“Their support was especially valuable given the emotional challenge of the course material,” Dillenbeck says.

The faceless dolls workshop, hosted by the Native Women’s Association of Canada (photo by Reid Locklin)

Zoe Wong, also a first-year social science student, and a member of New College, shared Dillenbeck’s appreciation for the connections made within a small group.

“I enjoyed [being] in an intimate space alongside my professor and classmates,” says Wong. “This rare space allows us to truly connect with one another and unite our unique experiences in a powerful setting closely related to our course content.”

Locklin, Dillenbeck, Wong and the other students were also grateful for the insights provided by Lorrie Gallant – an artist, writer and educator from Six Nations of the Grand River Territory, Cayuga Nation from the Turtle Clan. She is an intergenerational survivor of the Mohawk Institute Indian Residential School and a former education program co-ordinator at the Woodland Cultural Centre in Brantford, Ont.

“Lorrie was an enormous help to us,” says Dillenbeck. “She recounted stories and led us through reflection exercises every day.”

“She brought an even wider wisdom and knowledge from her own biography and experience,” says Locklin. “All of that gave the students a real living experience of residential schools.”

Alexander Gomez Sanchez works with Jenna Lemay, a Shingwauk Residential School Centre digital archives technician (photo by Reid Locklin)

Dillenbeck and Wong found listening to the stories of residential school survivors powerful, bringing an added dimension to their studies.

“Academia became a reality,” says Dillenbeck. “It felt pretentious to analyze and discuss their stories the same way we would in class – sitting and listening was better. And I valued meeting with survivors because they embodied hope and reconciliation.”

Wong describes engaging with the survivors as, “an encounter I cannot forget.”

“When they spoke about their experiences as children at the site we were sitting in, it was like witnessing a richly depicted journal speak. Their expression of terror and desperation interspersed with tints of gratitude and joy translates more effectively than ever through their spoken words. Our ability to respond and ask about their experiences amplifies this impact, strengthening our insights and perceptions regarding Christianity, Truth and Reconciliation.”

Locklin also found the survivor stories moving and experienced a shift from teacher to student.

“Accompanying the students on the trip for the first time, I wasn’t in a very different situation than they were in terms of my lived encounters with the residential school system in Canada,” says Locklin.

“I teach at the university, so I'm used to being the expert. One of the values of experiential learning is that oftentimes you're not the expert. It’s the people on the ground doing the work, or the people who have a depth of experience and knowledge from their own life.”

He decided the best teaching technique was “to listen and to let others be witness to the truth and try to stay out of the way of that.”

Audrey Foy, Lydia Dillenbeck, Alexander Gomez Sanchez, Reid Locklin and Zoe Wong in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. (photo by Zoe Wong)

For both Dillenbeck and Wong, visiting Shingwauk was difficult at times but, ultimately, intensely meaningful.

“As an international student from Hong Kong, I am very grateful for this opportunity to primarily engage with the origins of Canadian land – a country I am currently residing in,” says Wong.

“This was a rare and deeply impactful experience as I unexpectedly and consistently find cross-cultural connections between the Indigenous community and my East-Asian roots. This trip was no doubt one of the most reflective and insightful learning experiences I have ever had.”

“When we learn in the classroom, we have an emotional buffer,” says Dillenbeck. “We discuss and analyze serious topics without fully realizing their impacts. At Shingwauk, that emotional buffer was stripped away.

“That residential school may have been a cold, dark and traumatic place, but the people we met have transformed it into a place of healing, growth and hope. I’m grateful that I was able to witness it and be a part of it. I will always remember that history is not just text, but real lived experiences.”

Relations on the Land project to strengthen ties with Indigenous partners

Christopher.Sorensen — Tue, 17 Jan 2023 17:44:54 +0000

Relations on the Land project to strengthen ties with Indigenous partners

Christopher.Sorensen Tue, 01/17/2023 - 12:44

Cutline

From left to right: Pamela Klassen, Cara Krmpotich, Mikinaak Migwans, Alan Ojiig Corbiere, Bradley Clements and James Migwans at Manitou Rapids, Rainy River First Nations (photo courtesy of GRASAC)

David Goldberg

Topic

Centre for Indigenous Studies

Faculty of Information

Indigenous

Research & Innovation

Woodsworth College

A leading American philanthropic organization, the Henry Luce Foundation, is collaborating with the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Arts & Science to build a stronger network of support and knowledge with Indigenous partners.

The foundation has lent its support to Relations on the Land, which brings together outstanding researchers and community knowledge holders from four established U of T projects.

The hub will foster stronger relationships with Indigenous communities and gather knowledge on how the university can be a better partner to these communities.

Pamela Klassen

“We are so excited the Luce Foundation is supporting this work,” says project leader Pamela Klassen, professor in the department for the study of religion, says of the foundation’s $75,000 grant.

"This is a unique opportunity to bring together university researchers and Indigenous partners as we think through what our relationships and responsibilities to the land and waters should be in the 21st century.”

With community-engaged research about spirituality, land and material culture, Relations on the Land is supported jointly by the Luce Foundation’s programs in Indigenous Knowledge and religion and theology.

“We are pleased to support this innovative, exploratory project, the latest in a series of initiatives funded at the intersection of the Luce Foundation’s growing work with Indigenous communities and its efforts to cultivate deeper public understanding of religion and spirituality,” says Jonathan VanAntwerpen, the Luce Foundation’s program director for religion and theology.

“Home to the largest religious studies department in Canada, the University of Toronto is well-situated to play an important role in recalibrating the way that university-based scholars of religion collaborate with and support Indigenous partners, and we will follow the results of this project with great interest.”

Henry R. Luce, renowned entrepreneur and co-founder of Time magazine, established the foundation in 1936. Since its inception, the foundation has contributed more than $1 billion in grants toward initiatives that promote innovative scholarship and foster international understanding.

“This grant gives us the space and time to have the necessary conversations to think about how our work could influence each other in mutually productive ways,” says Jon Johnson, assistant professor, teaching stream, at Woodsworth College and a member of the First Story Toronto project, which is participating in Relations on the Land.

“It offers resources to Indigenous partners to do this research and to contribute knowledge on their own terms. It also transcends academia, helping us think about the needs of Indigenous communities and nations across the Great Lakes,” he says.

First Story Toronto researches and shares Toronto’s Indigenous presence through digital and experiential initiatives, including virtual and in-person storytelling walks. Among First Story’s guides are Johnson, Assistant Professor Jill Carter who is Anishinaabe-Ashkenaziand, and Indigenous storytellers such as Teagan de Laronde, who is Métis and a citizen of Red Sky Métis Independent Nation.

Relations on the Land Project Manager Teagan De Laronde and U of T Professor Jon Johnson lead a First Story Toronto tour (photo by Ayeshwini Lama)

De Laronde, who serves as project manager for the Relations on the Land initiative, is optimistic about the support this will offer Indigenous youth to develop a range of powerful activations and experiences that present Indigenous stories and geographies of Toronto’s past, present and future.

“We don’t often think of cities like Toronto as a very Indigenous space, but the fact that it is such a large city is because of Indigenous design,” says de Laronde. “There are many interesting perspectives and biases to explore, and it’s a great way to educate people.”

The grant will also facilitate storytelling circles as a means of repatriating Haudenosaunee creation narratives and other archived collections of community stories recorded by settler ethnographers and academics in the 19th and 20th centuries.

Assistant Professor Kevin White, cross-appointed to the department for the study of religion and the Centre for Indigenous Studies, is an Indigenous scholar and Mohawk from Akwesasne with family from Tonawanda Band of Seneca. He is working with Elders, Knowledge Keepers and community scholars from Six Nations of the Grand River to generate a new dialogue about Indigenous cultures.

“I'm trying to identify what I consider more Western ideals, language and standards, and remove them to get at the core scholarly knowledge and value system that I think is the essence of Haudenosaunee thought and philosophy,” says White.

“We're using selected stories to retell and have each person redo the story in their language, so we'll have a story that's told in the six different languages of the Haudenosaunee.”

Another part of Relations on the Land is the Mounds Research Collective, which partners with Kay-Nah-Chi-Wah-Nung Historical Centre to connect Indigenous and settler researchers, students and museum curators to convey the ongoing significance of ancient mounds and earthworks, including through digital storytelling.

For Assistant Professor Krista Barclay, support from the Luce Foundation will help cultivate greater awareness and respect for these ancient sites and sacred spaces, which, in some cases, have been desecrated by golf courses and other settler developments.

“Disputes and conflict about these sites really tell us a lot about the history of Indigenous-settler relations, and how we think about land and borders and jurisdictions,” says Barclay.

“So, the question we’re trying to answer is: How do we protect these sites? This project brings together scholars who are looking at this from all kinds of angles.”

The Luce Foundation grant will also help the Great Lakes Research Alliance for the Study of Aboriginal Arts & Cultures, which is building a knowledge sharing database and distributing mobile community research kits.

Cara Krmpotich, associate professor at the Faculty of Information and director of the Museum Studies Program, says these kits contain rugged laptops for field research, 360-degree cameras like the ones used to capture content for Google Street View and even VR headsets – all to aid the creation of Indigenous content.

“These tools and the possibility for creativity shouldn't just be in downtown Toronto. These are research partners and that means making sure that they have the same access to equipment and possibilities that we in the university do.”

Krmpotich praised the partnership with the Luce Foundation, saying we’re finally in a situation for far more responsible research that takes questions seriously about sustainability and environmental care.

"Whether we are settler scholars or Indigenous scholars in the territory, it’s our responsibility to think about the ways our research directly impacts the land and so this is something I'm very hopeful about.”

U of T grad Mukti Patel on studying religion and its role ‘in the everyday’

rahul.kalvapalle — Wed, 22 Jun 2022 18:38:02 +0000

U of T grad Mukti Patel on studying religion and its role ‘in the everyday’

rahul.kalvapalle Wed, 06/22/2022 - 14:38

Cutline

U of T grad Mukti Patel says a degree in the study of religion opens many doors, training students to be critical thinkers and developing the understanding and cultural awareness necessary to work with others (photo by Shayla Anderson)

Rahul Kalvapalle

Topic

Convocation 2022

Innis College

Mukti Patel visited India for the first time during her gap year after high school. Born in Canada and raised in Richmond, Va., Patel was eager to see the country where her parents grew up.

The trip included a visit to her parents’ home state of Gujarat, the neighbouring state of Rajasthan and the country’s capital, New Delhi.

“I thought everything was fascinating, new, brilliant,” Patel says, adding she was mesmerized by the ubiquity and diversity of religious symbolism everywhere she went.

“It’s when I first started to notice the visual impact of religion. I was drawn to the carvings in temples, the religious storefront signs and collections of murtis [sacred images] in stores – and I wanted to know more about the stories and histories of these pieces.

“It got me thinking about the role of religion in the everyday, because it was very different to what I’d seen back home.”

Naulakha Palace in Gondal, Gujarat (photo courtesy of Mukti Patel)

Fast forward to today and Patel is set to graduate from Innis College with an honours bachelor of arts with a specialist in the study of religion – a field that she says opens doors to many opportunities, contrary to popular misconception.

“The academic study of religion isn’t as limiting in terms of career prospects as some people might think,” Patel says. “I have friends with religion degrees who have gone on to law school, business, academia – since the program is interdisciplinary and can involve a range of topics, there are possibilities for many different professional pursuits.

“Studying religion trains students in critical thinking, reading and writing. My classmates and I feel that we have developed an understanding and cultural awareness that is necessary to work with other people.”

U of T’s department for the study of religion, in the Faculty of Arts & Science, drew increased attention during the pandemic as people felt lonely, isolated and more introspective than usual. That includes everything from popular joint courses on the history of plagues to courses about happiness – even student-focused websites designed to promote well-being.

Patel says the department’s tight-knit nature was on full display during COVID-19.

“The pandemic was very stressful, but a lot of support systems were in place for me as a student in my department,” Patel says.

She recounts how during Christmas, the department sent her a gift package that included a bottle of maple syrup and a card with pictures of department staff on Zoom screens with little Santa hat filters. “It was one of those small gestures that meant so much to me – to know that there’s this community of people who will support me through the pandemic, and to know that they’re helping many other students in different ways, too.”

Patel has attempted to return the favour to the university. She was keenly involved in student life at Innis College, where she served as vice-president, social affairs in residence during the pandemic. She also poured herself into research on everything from depictions of pleasure in 18^th-century Gujarati literature to the relationship between yogic powers and religious authority in Hindu tradition.

But her most indelible contribution was founding the Religion Undergraduate Student Association (RUSA) in her second year at the suggestion of Associate Professor Jennifer Harris. The association is credited with strengthening connections within the department for the study of religion.

Of course, building a new student group from scratch was no easy task. Patel recalls the group’s early meetings, which only drew a handful of people. “For our first event, we ordered two dozen donuts and only one person showed up, and he sat there for a little while out of pity,” Patel says.

Yet, RUSA gradually picked up momentum and went on to become “the heart and soul of my undergraduate experience,” says Patel. It has since held competitive elections and attracted 70 registrants to a virtual conference. The group’s outdoor bubble tea socials have been a particularly huge hit.

Pamela Klassen, chair of the department for the study of religion, describes the social as “an amazing gathering that brought together undergrad students, professors and staff in a way that I had never previously encountered in my almost 25 years as a professor in the department.”

RUSA’s impact on the department also extended beyond the social realm. The group was invited to the Faculty Club for an undergraduate curriculum retreat, where students were invited to present their feedback and ideas on course offerings and curriculum.

BAPS Swaminarayan Mandir, Sarangpur, Gujarat (photo courtesy of Mukti Patel)

Patel says the enthusiasm and willingness of faculty to cater to students’ interests is a hallmark of the department. For example, in her second year, Patel emailed two faculty members she had never met – Associate Professor Ajay Rao and Assistant Professor Luther Obrock – to enquire about opportunities to study Sanskrit, as there were no courses on the ancient language in the timetable. Rao promptly set up a summer Sanskrit class; he and Obrock also gave Patel access to other Sanskrit education opportunities, including an intensive virtual Sanskrit immersion program. “They opened the doors to many opportunities that I’m grateful for,” says Patel, who went on to become a Sanskrit tutor.

Patel also cites Elisa Freschi, an assistant professor in the department of philosophy and a scholar of Sanskrit philosophy, as a big influence. “She was kind, compassionate and always willing to engage in academic discourse – not just to share her perspective, but with a genuine willingness to learn from everyone,” says Patel, “which is something I really want to take from her as I move forward.”

For Patel, the study of religion offers useful lessons to students in any discipline. She cites one verse from the Bhagavadgītā that resonated especially strongly with her:

tad viddhi praṇipātena paripraśnena sevayā

upadekṣyanti te jñānaṃ jñāninastattvadarśinaḥ

(Learn the knowledge about the Ultimate by adopting humility, engaging in inquiry and dialogue, and service to the guru

The wise one who sees the nature of reality can impart knowledge to you)

Patel explains that the verse can interpreted as laying out the characteristics of a good student.

“She reveres her teacher, classmates and the material; she asks questions, is curious and engaged; and she renders service to her teacher – which, for me, entails humility and also extends to serving the community by sharing what she’s learned,” Patel says.

Patel’s desire to share knowledge has already extended well beyond campus. She recently taught a class about ancient Indian civilizations to Grade 4 students and has illustrated a children’s book that translates Gujarati folk tales into English.

Going forward, she hopes to develop her acumen as a scholar and public communicator at the University of Chicago, where she will pursue graduate studies in the Divinity School on a full merit scholarship.

“Nothing is more exciting to me than being in a university setting around so many brilliant minds who can inspire me to see something that I find interesting in different ways,” she says.

The dawn chorus: To connect with nature, students combine morning birdsong with music

Christopher.Sorensen — Tue, 17 May 2022 16:52:14 +0000

The dawn chorus: To connect with nature, students combine morning birdsong with music

Christopher.Sorensen Tue, 05/17/2022 - 12:52

Cutline

Undergraduate students recorded the sounds of the dawn chorus all around the GTA (photo courtesy of Alexander Hampton)

Josslyn Johnstone

Topic

City & Culture

Conservation

Jackman Humanities Institute

Faculty of Music

Each spring as early as 4 a.m., a choir of tweeting and chirping birds known as the “dawn chorus” produces a musical wake-up call – in more ways than one.

“Awareness of nature is the first step to conservation,” says Alexander Hampton, an assistant professor in the department for the study of religion in the University of Toronto's Faculty of Arts & Science. “But it is often limited by all sorts of things – like the boxes we live in and the noise we make, especially in cities.”

The isolation of COVID-19-associated lockdowns caused some people, including Hampton, to pay greater attention to the sounds of nature in their surroundings, including birdsong. “During such a difficult time, there was this opportunity to tune into the conversation nature has been having with us all along,” he says. “But as we continue to move forward, can we hold onto our appreciation of being part of an ecological system – a place where nature continues to live, and even thrive?”

This question was one of the inspirations for a new interdisciplinary project conceived by Hampton and Nicole Percifield, a doctoral student in the Faculty of Music. Titled “The Pleasure of the Dawn Chorus: Preserving the Pandemic Soundscape,” the project is a collaboration between students in the department for the study of religion and the Faculty of Music, with support by the Jackman Humanities Institute, and it explores humanity's emotional and spiritual connection to nature through the arts.

To preserve the urban birdsong that emerged during the pandemic, undergraduate students from Hampton’s courses “Religion and Nature,” “Enchantment, Disenchantment and Re-Enchantment” and “Global Perspectives on Ecology and Religion” recorded the sounds of the dawn chorus all around the Greater Toronto Area – from the university campus to their own neighbourhoods, from public parks to Queen’s Park, some with their phones and others with more elaborate equipment. The students identified the birds using the Cornell Lab of Ornithology Merlin app and produced written reflections and photo essays about their experiences and the meaning of nature awareness.

Audrey Miatello (photo by Lucas Fournier)

The field assignment prompted second-year undergraduate student Audrey Miatello to look for nature in her own backyard. At first, she says, she wasn’t sure how far she’d have to go to find it. “I spent a long time attentively walking around my neighborhood, listening for chirping sounds. Finally, I came across a tree that was filled with the singing of many birds. Alongside their singing, I could hear the noise of cars and the hum of nearby traffic – an interplay between the natural and artificial parts of our city.”

As a next step, doctoral students in the Faculty of Music – mezzo-soprano Percifield, composer Gavin Fraser and pianist Geoffrey Conquer – used the recordings and written reflections as inspiration for musical compositions honouring the dawn chorus.

Translating birdsong into vocal and instrumental melodies first required spectral analysis, a visual interpretation of pitch that applies colour to a particular frequency – in other words, a way to see sound. The pitch analysis allowed the birdsong to be transcribed into musical notation.

“In music, we associate frequencies with pitches which are very fixed, meaning we can pick out particular notes,” Fraser explains. “Birdsong, however, is so complex and not as clear-cut as a vocal melody. The dawn chorus is a beautiful cacophony of all these birds, so instead of picking out specific pitches, we created melodies based on the structural arc of what these pitches look like over time.”

Gavin Fraser (photo by Rich Blenkinsopp)

As the composer, Fraser sought to tell the story of the dawn chorus, not necessarily replicate it. “It was more about creating a journey of coming into this world that humans can understand as the dawn chorus,” he said. “I wanted to capture this idea on two different levels – a literal waking with the choir of morning birdsong, and ‘waking up’ to the natural world by interacting with it in a respectful way.”

He used several compositional techniques to accomplish this, including call-and-response between the piano and the voice, and layering different songs of red-winged blackbirds, American robins, chickadees and geese, to name a few. Singing like a bird, in this sense, became more about interpreting the sound.

“We also evoked an environment that feels like it's the early morning, where birdsong would exist – Nicole makes wind sounds, Geoffrey taps on the piano and I sprinkle in bird-like, melodic elements that then build into harmonies.”
Percifield and Conquer performed the final piece at a recent virtual lecture recital hosted by the Jackman Humanities Institute, bringing nature and humanity, literally, in harmony.

Humanity has difficulty relating to nature on an emotional level, as can be seen from people's slowness to act on the climate crisis, Hampton says, but the arts can help deepen people's connection to nature and propel action.
“Our feelings of connection to nature are often left unexpressed,” he says. “The arts enable us to respond to feelings of wonder, enchantment and awe, and give them expression in a way that connects us more deeply to the nature in our own backyards – and in turn, to something bigger than ourselves.”

Hampton also notes that the spiritual aspect of connecting to the natural world – a concept called “ecospirituality” – resonates with people on a broad scale, enabling people from diverse backgrounds to identify with urban conservation meaningfully.

A red-tailed hawk (photo by Alexander Hampton)

“Some of my students contextualize this sense of wonder within their personal religious traditions – the connection to creation, for example,” says Hampton. “Others connect it to the ecosphere they live in – to nature itself as an object of wonder, which is something they understand in a more secular way.”

Cultivating a relationship with the environment can help remedy what can often feel like an insurmountable level of doom and gloom about the state of the planet, he adds.

“We have these feelings of anxiety and depression because we feel like we can't do anything about it, but the joy and pleasure of nature is all around us,” Hampton says. “If we create more awareness of that and then express our connection through sharing music or making art or taking photographs, then that is the first step of conservation.”

“This project helped me realize that nature exists all around us,” says Miatello, a member of Woodsworth College who is hoping to complete a double major in religion and book and media studies. “With patience and attention, we will see that our neighborhoods are actually home to many natural wonders just waiting to be discovered.

“Now, months later, I still try to carefully observe nature when I am outdoors, making sure not to miss the small details that can easily be overlooked.”

Building on the success of the dawn chorus pilot project, Hampton would next like to engage the public by partnering with community organizations and public institutions such as conservation groups, schools and museums. He is also curious about branching out into preserving and interpreting other types of soundscapes.

“For instance, Toronto is home to a vast ravine system – what do these rivers sound like? There are a lot of different layers to tune into, and all sorts of things in bioacoustics that one can measure that we don't necessarily register in our own ears, like the sound that trees make,” Hampton explains.

“There is a conversation to be had with nature on its own terms. The dawn chorus project brings humans back into that conversation by listening and responding to non-humans as part of the environment that we all share.”

Amid global uncertainty, U of T course asks undergraduates to ponder: What is happiness?

Christopher.Sorensen — Wed, 06 Apr 2022 16:30:13 +0000

Amid global uncertainty, U of T course asks undergraduates to ponder: What is happiness?

Christopher.Sorensen Wed, 04/06/2022 - 12:30

Cutline

A class offered by U of T’s Kevin Lewis O’Neill examines the idea of happiness, spanning its roots in major religions to celebrity proponents like Oprah Winfrey (photo by Andrew Chin/Getty Images)

Sean McNeely

Topic

Centre for Diaspora and Transnational Studies

Academics

Humanities

What is happiness? Are you happy? Do you even want to be happy?

These are the fundamental questions that the University of Toronto’s Kevin Lewis O’Neill poses in his popular undergraduate class named – appropriately enough – “Happiness.”

“We’re bombarded with this expectation to be happy, and happiness acts as a metric for one's life,” says O’Neill, a professor in the department for the study of religion and the director of the Centre for Diaspora & Transnational Studies. “So the intention of this course is to provide a conceptual literacy when it comes to happiness.”

Kevin Lewis O'Neill

The course examines the study of happiness from its earliest roots thousands of years ago through religions like Islam, Judaism, Christianity, Hinduism and Buddhism.

The class then explores theories of happiness connected to religion through philosophers such as Émile Durkheim, a French sociologist regarded as one of the principal architects of modern social science. He believed happiness came from the joy of belonging to a group, regardless of faith, ideology or activity.

Karl Marx believed that religion was a primary source of happiness. But he was also anxious about the impacts of religious belief, comparing it to an addictive drug: “the opium of the people.”

The class also studies Sigmund Freud, who suggested that happiness is found in the pursuit of something. Losing oneself in artistic creativity or intellectual work is the path to higher contentment, as opposed to things like sex, revelry or even religion.

The class explores other models of happiness as well, including happiness through solitude, through the control of one’s desires or the cultivation of virtues, as promoted by Mohamed al-Ghazali – one of the Islamic tradition’s most influential theologians.

O’Neill's course covers more contemporary approaches to happiness, too, including the rise of cognitive and behavioural sciences, new age spirituality and famous happiness gurus, such as Oprah Winfrey and Tony Robbins, who have created billion-dollar empires by inspiring people to lead happier lives.

Regardless of the thinker, scholar, scientist or entrepreneur, most happiness theories can be traced back to religious roots. “You may think this interest in having a minimalist aesthetic or being mindful or following your breath are recent recommendations of psychologists. But no, it goes back much farther,” O’Neill says.

Is O'Neill's course a sure way for students to find happiness? Perhaps not, but he believes it will give them an opportunity – and the ability – to reflect on what brings them fulfillment.

“There are a lot of courses here at the university that teach skills, whether it's engineering or the hard sciences or mathematics – and that's great,” he says.

“But I’ve framed this course as an intellectual event for students to take pause and think about what they want from their lives. And in the classic tradition of the humanities, this is a moment of real reflection – not in the hopes that they'll become more marketable – but ideally better citizens of the world, and have a deeper appreciation for life and their place in it.”

O'Neill says the course is particularly timely given anxieties surrounding the war in Ukraine and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

“Everyone is taking a moment to reflect on what they're doing in the world, how they're existing now, how they were living prior to the pandemic and what the future holds,” O’Neill says.

“And those kind of moments of reflection that take place when one's an undergraduate are even more important in this moment – it's not just ‘Do I want to go to law school?’ but ‘Where do I want to live? How do I want to live?’ So, the course comes at a good moment for students.”

Julia Shokeir, a second-year student double majoring in anthropology and religion as a member of Trinity College, says the class “was one of the best courses I have ever taken in my university career.”

“This course has provided me with the philosophical, religious and psychological tools to be happy. Yet, as an individual, I have to make the decision to use them,” she said.

Shokeir’s classmate and fellow Trinity College member, Katie Jones, also enjoyed the course.

“I didn’t go into the class thinking that Professor O’Neill was going to teach me how to be happier,” says Jones, a second-year student majoring in religion and double minoring in philosophy and diaspora and transnational studies.

“But I plan to continue my study on happiness and pursue the open-ended questions that Professor O’Neill provided us: What is happiness? Are you happy? Do you even want to be happy? These three questions are of paramount importance to us as undergraduates as we figure out what kind of life, career and future we want to create for ourselves,” she said.

World Happiness Report: Experts tell Toronto Star that Canadians' life satisfaction has slumped

mattimar — Wed, 30 Mar 2022 15:23:44 +0000

World Happiness Report: Experts tell Toronto Star that Canadians' life satisfaction has slumped

mattimar Wed, 03/30/2022 - 11:23

Cutline

(Photo by Lutique/Getty Images)

Topic

Psychology

Undergraduate Students

Ranking 15^th out of 146 countries on the annual World Happiness Report during a global pandemic might seem like good news. But University of Toronto researchers who study population well-being say Canada is actually heading in the wrong direction, reports The Toronto Star.

Sofia Panasiuk, a psychology student and researcher at U of T’s Population Well-Being Lab, led the Canadian Happiness Report, which found that Canadian well-being has been on a downturn since the late 2000s. “A lot of people are happy with being in the top 20 and we’re used to being there,” Panasiuk told the Star. “But if you’re looking at trends rather than absolute ranking, our ‘life satisfaction’ has been decreasing over the past 10 years compared to other countries that are going in the right direction.”

While one might assume COVID-19 is to blame, Felix Cheung, an assistant professor at U of T’s department of psychology in the Faculty of Arts & Science and Canada Research Chair in Population Well-Being, told the Star that, “this is a negative trend that began before COVID, so while we appreciate that the pandemic has placed mental health and well-being in the centre stage, it looks like recovering from the pandemic will not solve this problem alone.”

The pursuit of happiness is nothing new, but it remains difficult to measure. “Happiness isn’t an element like water that can be weighed or assessed in terms of density or volume. It’s pretty ephemeral,” said Kevin O’Neill, professor in the department for the study of religion in the Faculty of Arts & Science and director of U of T’s Centre for Diaspora and Transnational Studies. Yet, he believes more conversations and research are happening around the subject: “The rise of social sciences and psychological sciences over the last 150 years has seen us move toward the quantification and the measurement of things that are fundamentally difficult to measure, like happiness.”

Read the story in the Toronto Star

'People need to take care of themselves': With new website, U of T prof seeks to create a path to well-being

Christopher.Sorensen — Thu, 24 Mar 2022 15:58:10 +0000

'People need to take care of themselves': With new website, U of T prof seeks to create a path to well-being

Christopher.Sorensen Thu, 03/24/2022 - 11:58

Cutline

Frances Garrett, an associate professor of Buddhist and Tibetan studies, gave students assignments that promoted well-being throughout the pandemic and later turned the approach into a larger project called Windvane (photo courtesy of Frances Garrett)

Chris Sasaki

Topic

Human Biology

Institute of Biomedical Engineering

Trinity College

“As we are blown by waves of grief or fires of rage, a global pandemic, climate disaster and social injustice, can we channel our energies into strengths?” The University of Toronto’s Frances Garrett hopes the answer will be “yes.”

Garrett, an associate professor of Buddhist and Tibetan studies in the University of Toronto’s department for the study of religion in the Faculty of Arts & Science, posed the question on her recently launched website Windvane, which gathers resources designed to help students understand and attend to their well-being.

“During the pandemic, all of my online classes included assignments aimed at promoting student well-being because, I thought, people need to take care of themselves during this stressful time more than ever,” says Garrett, who is also director of the Buddhism, psychology and mental health program at New College.

“Many of the students were appreciative of these assignments and said, ‘I never thought I should or could take care of myself.’ They found it very beneficial, and I decided I should make this self-care work into a bigger project.”

Windvane is a collection of reflections, insights, exercises and practical resources to help students and other members of the U of T community “put student flourishing at the centre of post-secondary course design.”

It builds on knowledge Garrett has accumulated over the course of a career that has included studying the relationships between Buddhism and medicine, Buddhist travelogues and nature writing in Himalayan mountain cultures. She also practises experiential learning and outdoor education, and has a special interest in supporting students’ well-being.

Among the resources are video interviews featuring faculty, students, alumni and staff from the U of T community reflecting on and giving guidance about a myriad of topics.

For example, Alistair Dias is an associate professor, teaching stream, in the human biology program. In a series of videos, he talks about how a strong mind-body connection is beneficial for healing both physical and mental conditions – and that by strengthening the mind-body connection through mindfulness, we can strengthen the brain’s ability to adapt and change.

Marsha Hewitt is a professor in the department for the study of religion and the Faculty of Divinity at Trinity College. Among a variety of topics, she talks about how the COVID-19 pandemic has traumatized us on a global scale, and how “now more than ever, it is important for educators to show deep care for their students.”

The site describes the practice of using movement and physical activity – not simply to become fit or make our bodies look a certain way – but as “one avenue towards learning how to be deeply present.”

In the section describing the practice of meditation, students learn about the mindfulness exercise of focused attention and how learning to focus is important in “quieting our minds, calming our anxieties, and strengthening our ability to choose presence.”

There is also guidance on “putting Windvane into practice” by developing a personal plan for well-being.

Windvane reflects Garrett’s view that the popular “wellness movement” neglects the understanding that an individual’s well-being often depends on their social, political and cultural circumstances. What it means to “be well” depends on factors that are particular to individuals.

In other words, well-being is different for everyone.

Windvane also provides practical help for achieving well-being with guidance in practices such as creativity, breathing, eating well and listening to music.

“If we are experiencing racism, or living in poverty, or experiencing sexism or homophobia, or something else that has an impact on our well-being,” she says, “we can't just go and meditate on a cushion or take a yoga class and make those things go away.

“We have to think about what well-being means for each of us as individuals. It might be different for you and me, and for people in different cultures. We have to consider what’s within our own power, and what requires a more collective action with support from other people and institutions.”

The project is supported by eCampus Ontario's Virtual Learning Strategies program, which provides funding for improved access and innovation to digital resources for Ontario students.

“Windvane is for students,” says Garrett. “But it's also for instructors, because I’d like this project to be used by all instructors in all disciplines in the classroom. Many of them think: ‘I'm not a psychologist; I'm not qualified to teach about well-being.’ Windvane is an attempt to give instructors the tools and the confidence to include something like this in their courses, no matter what subject they teach.

“As university professors, it’s our responsibility to address well-being in our classes. It just doesn't make sense anymore to have a class where you're not addressing the current reality of students’ lives.”

Four U of T scholars awarded Guggenheim Fellowships

Christopher.Sorensen — Mon, 12 Apr 2021 19:26:03 +0000

Four U of T scholars awarded Guggenheim Fellowships

Christopher.Sorensen Mon, 04/12/2021 - 15:26

Cutline

From left to right: Kamari Clarke, Eugenia Kumacheva, Kevin Lewis O'Neill and Amira Mittermaier.

Cynthia Macdonald

Topic

Global Lens

Centre for Diaspora and Transnational Studies

Anthropology

Awards

Centre for Criminology & Sociolegal Studies

Chemistry