Nadun Thilina Elvitigala came to Canada from Quatar in November 2020. Needless to say, the challenges of moving to a new country were exacerbated by a global pandemic, and almost immediately Nadun decided that the best way to find solid ground was to grow his skills. “I started my career in chemical engineering. However, I quickly realized that I wanted to focus on my people and project management skills instead, so I pursued an MBA while living in the UK.  After graduating in 2016, I moved to Qatar and began working as a Regional Strategic Manager, managing forty people, and multiple large-scale projects across many countries and regions,” says Nadun. “Coming to Canada in 2020 posed many challenges, but it also felt like the perfect time to explore something that had been of interest to me for a while, but I hadn’t had time to formally study: Lean Six Sigma project management.”

Lean Six Sigma is a proven strategic tool that delivers value for customers, generates returns for shareholders, and improves the workplace environment. Nadun was eager to up his game, and grow his abilities during such an uncertain time, so in December 2020, he enrolled in the Lean Six Sigma Certificate at the School of Continuing Studies. “My instructor, Michael Mladjenovic, was an amazing lecturer. He did a fantastic job of making theory practical; it wasn’t just book learning. His classes expanded my knowledge, and gave me the opportunity to connect and collaborate with classmates who are still in my professional network today,” recalls Nadun. “After I earned the certificate in 2021, I went on to earn my American Society of Quality Certification. The program at SCS helped me pass the very rigorous exam on my first try.”

Today, Nadun is a Continuous Improvement Manager, using knowledge he gained at SCS to improve efficiencies and work with large data sets. “In my current role, I’ve reduced quality errors by 95%, improved customer wait times from three to five days to one day, and enhanced product quality. I want to keep my progress going! In fact, I’m now enrolled in the Data Science Certificate at SCS, which is a partnership with the University of Waterloo, to further develop my analytic and machine learning abilities,” shares Nadun. “I believe that it’s critical for us to adapt as the world changes; there’s so much digital transformation, and I want to be a part of that movement. You’re never too old or settled to make a change, learn new skills, and achieve your goals.”

When Dima Ilchuk came to Canada from Kyiv, Ukraine, he knew he wanted to work as a public servant and further his education. With a background in international banking, and a master’s degree in Economic Cybernetics, he was eager to embrace new learning opportunities in Canada. “I had very little when I came here, but I never gave up on the hope that this country would offer me something greater than I could have ever expected,” reflects Dima. “To gain experience working in Canada, I started out by volunteering my financial skills, hosting free tax clinics for eligible members of the Toronto community. Later, I won a professional competition for a basic trainee role for one of the biggest municipalities in Ontario. This led me towards my goal of working as a public servant and supporting my new city.”

Knowing that gaining some Canadian credentials would help him grow his skills and support his career goals, Dima began pursing his Master's in Public Administration at the Royal Military Canadian College in 2021. “Over the past five years, I’ve held roles at the municipal and federal levels– including time volunteering for the Ministry of Defense as a Civilian Military Logistic Coordinator, supporting humanitarian aids projects. I’m currently working in the Ontario Justice System. With my team, I’m responsible for coordinating services between this division and Toronto enforcement agencies. However, in 2020 when the pandemic hit, I started serving as a front-line worker under Covid-19 Redeployment Assignment in Scarborough, supporting a Self-Isolation Center,” shares Dima. “Today, I’m back in my regular role, however this experience really expanded my perspective, and strengthened my desire to serve my community. I was ready to expand my skills even further through continuing education, which is why I came to the School of Continuing Studies.”

In 2019, Dima began pursuing a International Project Management Certificate at SCS. “I wanted to improve my project management competencies, develop a deeper professional network, and explore new ways to use my skills,” recalls Dima. “I really connected with my teachers, especially Peter Monkhouse. I found his views and advice very applicable to my daily work. The SCS administration team was there for me any time I had a question or needed support. I also grew a social network, and stay connected to my classmates. I’m using the skills I learned every day at work, but I also learned about new aspects of project management that I may want to explore in the future.” 

Dima completed his certificate in 2021, and is scheduled to complete his second masters in 2023. He remains committed to serving his community, especially veterans. “I’m a volunteer and mentor for a veteran community educational project in Toronto and New York. In this role, I use my project management skills to coordinate English classes and assistance activities to help wounded newcomer veterans with PTSD. The goal of our project is to provide them with their first job in an IT company, with a focus on re-adaptation and socialization,” says Dima. “Continuing education has allowed me to thrive in both my career, and in my personal pursuits. I’m a big advocate that there’s a strong link between education and health. After serving as a frontline worker during 2020, I experienced a lot of difficulty. Coming to SCS and focusing on my education helped me re-establish healthy behaviors and actually reduced my stress. Learning definitely improved my well being, and that’s something I want to help others experience through my career and volunteer work.”

For Shrey Vazir, experiencing back pain at a young age led him on a long and winding journey through our healthcare system, which inspired him to dedicate his life to health, pain-management, and mindfulness. “I started to experience pain at age 12, so I began physiotherapy. I knew immediately I wanted to get into healthcare,” reflects Shrey, who now holds a Master of Physiotherapy from the University of Toronto. “In university, my pain started to worsen, which sent me on a very frustrating journey. I saw physios, chiropractors, acupuncturists, a rheumatologist, and a neurologist. After a trip to the ER due to extreme pain, I was eventually referred to a pain physician who diagnosed me with fibromyalgia, a chronic pain condition.”

Throughout his physiotherapy studies, Shrey began exploring mindfulness as a tool to manage physical pain. “I was really shocked to learn what a powerful tool mindfulness could be in helping patients deal with pain. It’s clear to me that behaviours and thinking can affect pain levels in the body. I wanted to enhance my knowledge of mindfulness practices, so I started studying at SCS,” explains Shrey, who earned our Applied Mindfulness-Based Chronic Pain Management (MBCPM™) Facilitation Certificate in 2018. “I chose SCS because the program is very evidence-based. It taught me how to treat people holistically through hands-on learning with real patients. My biggest take away was the fact that mental health and mental wellbeing are so crucial to our physical wellbeing. We can truly change the way we live through a practice like mindfulness meditation, and I’ve experienced the benefits first-hand. Mindfulness, and using the mind-body connection, is a big part of my personal healing path.”

Today, Shrey is a physiotherapist and a mindfulness facilitator in the Comprehensive Integrated Pain Program at Toronto Western Hospital and Altum Health. “Mindfulness is an integral part of my practice, which is rather unique in the physiotherapy world. It informs how I approach each patient, and a huge part of mindfulness is about accepting what is happening in life, whether things are good or bad, easy or hard. Personally, mindfulness helped me accept my chronic pain condition, and taught me skills like meditation and movement that I can use to manage my pain,” he says. In fact, Shrey recently founded Mind Body Horizons, a company that teaches mindfulness and meditation skills to patients and rehabilitation professionals. “Mindfulness has shifted my attitude towards living with pain,” says Shrey. “I want others in the rehabilitation space to be able to share these tools with their patients. I want mindfulness to become a mainstream tool for supporting pain management.”

According to Shrey, continuing education has the power to change lives. “The mindfulness meditation program at SCS has undoubtedly changed my personal life, and my career. It taught me how to combine my knowledge in physical therapy and mindfulness, which has not only allowed me to take charge over my own pain condition, but it has also allowed me to provide a holistic and mind-body approach of care to many patients and professionals,” he reflects. “SCS has truly given me a newfound meaning and purpose:  to educate and inspire the next generation of health care providers to use mind-body approaches in their personal and professional lives.”
 

After years of working in the fast-paced banking industry, Peggy Loa was feeling overwhelmed in a new way. “My mindfulness journey began with feelings of burnout. Six years ago, I was in a very demanding financial role in the project delivery space. I was handling a lot of complex projects, and was struggling to manage my stress. I needed a way to release negative energy and find my centre, which led me to explore mindfulness and meditation,” reflects Peggy. “Seeing how mindfulness helped me re-balance, get stronger and embrace positivity, both at work and in my personal life, it became clear that this was the right path for me.”

In fact, while continuing to work in the financial industry, Peggy followed her mindfulness passion and became a certified mindfulness meditation coach. When the pandemic hit, her company embraced a stronger focus on employee wellness, and Peggy was given the opportunity to share her new skills with her colleagues. “I began hosting weekly virtual mindfulness meditation sessions for teams at my company. I really loved the opportunity, and the chance to share with my colleagues how mindfulness can support our collective efforts while making work a more positive experience,” says Peggy. “I came to realize that my true purpose at work is to infuse positivity, joy, inner peace, and strength into all my daily interactions, incorporating the values of mindfulness into my work and sharing this knowledge with those around me. When you feel peaceful on the inside, you approach meetings, challenging situations, and differences of opinion with empathy, curiosity, and positivity. It’s also a way of building greater inclusion, and through my mindfulness practice I have a consistent impact on my community at work.”

Peggy was determined to further grow her mindfulness meditation skills, and began pursuing her Foundations of Applied Mindfulness Meditation certificate at the School of Continuing Studies in February 2022. Scheduled to earn her certificate this Spring, Peggy has enjoyed learning about different types of practices and mindfulness theories. “The courses were online on weekend mornings, which worked perfect for me due to my busy weekday schedule. It was great to start my weekend with meditation theory and practice. One of my instructors, Moustafa Abdelrahman, created such an open, safe, and comfortable environment. Participation was active, and I learned a lot about how to further make mindfulness applicable in our daily lives,” Peggy recalls. “I used to think that I had to quit my corporate job to pursue mindfulness, but I’ve come to realize through my continuing education that they can co-exist and become one. I’m passionate about sharing how mindfulness can reduce stress and make teams significantly more collaborative and effective.”

As a project management professional who is currently pursuing her certification, Peggy draws compelling parallels between project management-specifically Agile practices- and mindfulness. “Now that I’m at a new company, and pursuing my Agile PMI certificate, I’m seeing so many similarities between Agile and mindfulness theory and practice. Agile is a new way of working; there’s the knowledge that you need to acquire, but what makes it successful is adopting the agile mindset. It’s about our attitude to mindfully bring value to your team, and collaborate in an open and safe space so you can operate at your best. Mindfulness meditation is so similar! It’s the practice of being present, positively impacting and helping others,” says Peggy. “I’m still coaching people from my previous company, and am working on bringing mindfulness to our Agile team in my new role. I want to demystify how mindfulness can support employee well-being and company goals. This is my purpose, and I’m excited to share my passion with others.”

One of the main reasons there is so much global interest in adopting renewable energy is because it helps us reduce greenhouse gas emissions. But renewable energy is about more than climate change. Here are six facts you may not know about this critical technology.

1. Renewable energy can help address energy poverty

Around the world, hundreds of millions of people lack access to electricity, representing about 13% of the global population. The number of people lacking access to clean cooking fuels is much higher. Renewable energy technologies offer us the opportunity to alleviate energy poverty in an environmentally sustainable and socially responsible fashion. Increasing access to energy is essential for social and economic development in many parts of the world, such as in sub-Saharan Africa.

2. Renewable energy discussions must be interdisciplinary

We cannot study renewable energy solely from an engineering or technology perspective. Our energy choices have significant implications to the biophysical environment and the social and economic well-being of people around the world. This is not just about what energy resources we rely on, be they fossil fuels, nuclear, or renewable energy. It is also about how we use energy resources. We have to ask questions about what biomass we used to create bioenergy, how we decide where to place wind turbines to reduce the potential negative impacts, and understand the role of politics in how quickly or slowly we adopt renewable energy. 

3. Global usage of renewable energy is increasing rapidly

According to statistics from the International Renewable Energy Agency, the installed capacity for wind energy (on and offshore) more than quadrupled between 2010 and 2020. The installed capacity for solar energy (thermal and photovoltaic) has increased even more rapidly, showing a 17-fold growth between 2010 and 2020. Other renewable energy technologies are continuing to develop, although presently their use is not as large, apart from hydroelectricity. Solar and wind energy are economically viable, and their cost is continuing to decrease.

4. Multiple energy products are possible using renewable energy

Depending on the technology and processes used, we can create solid, gaseous, liquid, heat, and electrical energy. In this way, we can fulfil all of our energy needs to keep our society operating the way it does. In Ontario, we already use liquid renewable energy—bioethanol—for some of our transportation, and countries around the world are looking to increase the amount of biofuel blended with petroleum-based transportation fuels to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector. Biomethane can be substituted for natural gas, heat can be used in industrial as well as domestic and institutional settings, and, as we know, electricity is vital in our homes, businesses, and commercial settings.

5. Many renewable energy technologies are scalable 

Renewable energy can be flexible and extremely useful for supplying energy needs in remote areas, including those where extending grid systems would be costly and challenging, such as mountainous zones or remote communities in the North. Solar energy, bioenergy, geothermal, and wind energy can be designed to provide power for individual houses, farms, and other enterprises. Or, they can be built on much larger scales, with the resulting energy contributing to electrical grids that supply urban areas or, in the case of other forms of energy products—such as liquids—transported to where they are needed.

6. New technologies are emerging all the time 

There have been rapid advancements in renewable energy over the last couple of decades, and work continues all the time. In solar energy, innovations related to solar fabric and solar paint are just two of the exciting ideas to follow. In terms of bioenergy, we continue to search for the strongest feedstocks, thinking in terms of environmental, economic, and social feasibility. New methods of exploiting tidal and wave energy are being tested. And we continue to make progress with hydrogen gas, which could make a very significant difference in the transportation sector, not only for automobiles, but notably for large freight trucks, shipping, and aviation. 

Whatever your background, there’s a lot to learn about renewable energy, whether your focus is on the technology, energy planning, environmental management, social development, or something else entirely. Because energy is fundamental to modern life, questions about how we will produce it are something everyone should be interested in, to make informed decisions personally and to contribute to public discussions.

Dr. Lucy Sportza has been in the Department of Geography, Environment and Geomatics, University of Guelph since 2006, and at the University of Toronto, School of the Environment since 2009. She has a B.A. from the University of Toronto (Geography – Environment and Resource Studies), and an M.A. and Ph.D. from the School of Planning, University of Waterloo. Her doctoral research focused on planning for urban parks and protected areas, with a focus on Toronto. Lucy’s current interests include the use of parks and protected areas in urban areas to make them healthier and more livable in the face of environmental change. A strong secondary interest is in renewable energy systems. A theme of her work is integrating the evolving scientific knowledge with what we should be doing to protect our biophysical environment and the necessity of making decisions that take social, economic and other considerations into account.

Her course, Principles of Renewable Energy, starts this spring.

We know that the environment is all around us. But did you ever stop to think about how everything we do, from driving in our cars to going for a hike in a national park, has an impact on the environment? There are varying degrees of impact, of course, but I believe that it’s important for everyone to explore the implications of our actions. Here are seven reasons why learning about environmental management—and owning the role we play in our environment—is a critical step towards sustainability and preservation.

1. Studying environmental management can help you gain a greater appreciation for the world around you, and understand the vital role of ecosystems in supporting our ways of life. You can learn about how we can help ecosystems and other species thrive on the planet we share.
2. Environmental challenges exist on all scales, from ones close to home, to those occurring at a distance. The consequences of these challenges can be largely local, or influence entire global systems, such as the oceans or atmosphere. Exploring environmental management, and how our purchasing decisions can influence our ecosystems at home and abroad, is a necessary first step if we want to truly address environmental concerns.
3. Environmental management is about personal responsibility, but also involves governments, corporations, nongovernmental organizations, and many other parties. You can discover how to reduce your impact on Earth, and the sorts of changes and actions we can demand on the part of others.
4. In Canada, learning about environmental management, particularly the role of Indigenous peoples in environmental governance, can support reconciliation. More broadly, environmental management is critical to addressing environmental and social injustice globally, helping to reduce inequality.
5. The future must be sustainable. We cannot have sustainable development and a healthy planet for our children, grandchildren, and generations beyond them without environmental management. 
6. You’ve seen the headlines. Now you can learn the broader story behind them. Whether it’s climate change, forest fires, plastic pollution in our water systems, degrading air quality in our urban areas, or one of the many other signs of our broken relationship with nature, we are all touched by environmental change. By studying environmental management, you can deepen your understanding of these issues, as well as what we can do to fix them.
7. Whether your interest is personal, academic, or professional, environmental management is a necessary part of your education. People who study environmental management may use the information to support work in nongovernmental organizations, government settings, or private industry. Learning more about environmental management can support a deeper relationship with the biophysical world and guide your efforts to reduce your personal impact.

What I love most, is that studying environmental management can give you hope for the future. The headlines are often dire, and it is sometimes difficult to believe we can address the many environmental challenges facing us as a global community, including climate change. But there are reasons to hope, and there are many actions we take as individuals. Knowing you can make a difference, that you can help yourself, your children, family, friends, colleagues, and your community move towards a better future, is energizing and impactful.

Dr. Lucy Sportza has been in the Department of Geography, Environment and Geomatics, University of Guelph since 2006, and at the University of Toronto, School of the Environment since 2009. She has a B.A. from the University of Toronto (Geography – Environment and Resource Studies), and an M.A. and Ph.D. from the School of Planning, University of Waterloo. Her doctoral research focused on planning for urban parks and protected areas, with a focus on Toronto. Lucy’s current interests include the use of parks and protected areas in urban areas to make them healthier and more livable in the face of environmental change. A strong secondary interest is in renewable energy systems. A theme of her work is integrating the evolving scientific knowledge with what we should be doing to protect our biophysical environment and the necessity of making decisions that take social, economic and other considerations into account.

Her course, Fundamentals of Environmental Management, starts this spring.

When Naomi Jehlicka decided to up her project management game, she knew she wanted to take a foundational course, and eventually become a certified Project Management Professional (PMP®). As an Albertan who works for Alberta Transportation, coming to the University of Toronto School of Continuing Studies (SCS) may not have been the obvious choice. But Naomi found that studying online at SCS provided many unexpected benefits. 

“I’m a U of T alumni, with a background in Political Science and Criminology. I also hold a Master of Public Administration from University of Victoria in British Columbia. I’ve worked with both the federal and provincial governments, focusing on regulatory work. In 2012, I moved to Alberta, and today I’m a Policy and Program Manager with Alberta Transportation. My role involves a lot of project-based work,” explains Naomi. “A big part of my role is developing projects while dealing with the shifting nature of laws and regulations. I really wanted to formalize my project management skills, and earn my PMP, which is a standard for best practices in the Alberta Government. I was eager to earn this credential so I could take on more complicated projects, and have a more competitive resume as I grow my career.”

After doing some research, Naomi decided to stick with her alma mater for a few reasons. “I really liked that SCS provided a Foundations of Project Management course that would cover all the bases of project management. I felt this would help prepare me for the PMP exam. And interestingly, the time difference really worked in my favour! I have a young daughter, so I had concerns about my time management. But the time difference between Ontario and Alberta meant that I just stayed at work a bit later to attend my class online, then headed home for dinner. It worked out perfectly,” reflects Naomi. “I then discovered that SCS has a PMI® Authorized PMP® Exam Prep course. I was having such a positive online learning experience that I decided to go for it. I started the prep course in March 2021. The biggest advantage for me was access to the practice exam questions. There was a bank of hundreds of questions that we had access to for six months, and they all reflected the most up-to-date content, with a focus on agile, iterative, and hybrid questions.”

In August 2021, Naomi passed her exam and is now PMI certified. “I use my enhanced project management skills in my daily workflow. I have more tools in my toolkit, and I’m more organized. I’ve even encouraged my staff to explore learning opportunities at SCS, and two are now taking courses!” says Naomi. “The methodologies I learned at SCS are truly helping me thrive. I originally had hesitations about going back to school as a working parent, but I was lucky to have the support of my family, and I’ve learned that when you don’t have a ton of free time, you just have to be intentional about how you spend it. For me, that meant growing my skills and earning a certification I’d wanted for a long time. Lifelong learning can mean bursts of short-term commitment, but it brings amazing long-term benefits.”

Copywriting is an exercise in agility. Especially in light of recent events such as the pandemic, being eternally responsive, and changing messaging as crises unfold, are basic but crucial steps in the copywriter’s day-to-day choreography. 

Since copywriting involves words, let’s go ahead and define the thing: copywriting is all about using powerful lingo to drive action in your audience. The goal is to compel readers to go do a particular thing, such as engage with you, your product, charity, or service. Also, it encourages them to do it now. You come across examples of this kind of motivating language everywhere: in your inboxes, on your social platforms, in your mailbox, and in physical environments like public transit.

But copywriting isn’t just about direct selling and getting leads. Its other function is equally important, especially during times of crisis: building relationships to support your business’ bottom line in the long run. Never has this second function been more important than during COVID times, where audiences are truly taking stock of brands, their promises, their products, and the way they handle themselves during a time of uncertainty and frequent upheaval. 

Good copy helps us tell the powerful story of our product or service, and why an audience should be interested in us. But in light of the global pandemic, our audiences have been impacted, businesses have been impacted, and we have been impacted.

So, in times like these, more scrutiny must be applied to the copy we put into a world that admittedly has more pressing concerns than reading our ads. This is truly our greatest opportunity to be subtle with sales, and double down on building relationships. Here’s how.

Keep your audience top of mind 

Keeping your audience at the forefront should always be your main tactic when writing copy – but it matters even more right now. Whether you are catering to a B2B or B2C audience, your readers have likely experienced pandemic-related impacts on professional and personal levels – whether that is job loss, incurred debt, general anxiety about the goings on, increased scrutiny on spending, and more. For businesses, many have the monumental challenge of surviving social distancing, having to lay off or furlough employees, cut spending, align their businesses with government-mandated health and safety practices, and manage frustrated customers – and they also may have to find ways to move into the ecommerce space. 

The point: right now, there is a seismic shift in your audience's challenges, needs, and pain points. So, we have to respond to these shifts with our copy in order to stay relevant and relatable.

Create empathetic copy

But you’re probably asking yourself: how do we respect my audience’s unique needs (personal, professional, and financial) in times of crisis, and support my bottom line with compelling copy? 

This is a big lesson right now: it is our job as copywriters to constantly shift gears, empathize, and present our pitches in ways that are actually helpful, and not just a hard sell. But for many businesses right now, their goal is to maintain their livelihood – and to keep selling and marketing. By ‘businesses’, I’m not talking just about big brands: I’m also referring to small shops and entrepreneurs. These businesses need to keep advertising with compelling copy to meet their bottom line. But what will help us strike the balance here? A few things:

• Research –constantly and daily– into your audience and the news of the day is going to be the most important aspect of your copywriting journey; never write without a keen sense of what’s going on around you.
• Make a list of the reasons that your product or service is especially of help right now.
• Try to remain tactful with the frequency and tone of your messaging; your audience may be in a sensitive position.
• Your audience knows full well you have to sell, but it can be done in a subtle way that doesn’t offend.
• When possible, have others edit your work and weigh in; gain different and diverse perspectives on your copy.

Don’t forget your audience when writing about yourself
It helps to use ‘you’ language, and write copy that speaks to an effortless solution to their problem. Moments where you can personalize can be helpful, and a bit of a break from the canned messaging bombarding your audience every day. Also keep in mind the ethics and various causes that your particular audience values.

Don’t overuse phrases 

Be aware of what terms and phrases you are using; too much repetition is always annoying for audiences, but this is especially true right now. And we’re seeing quite a bit of overuse these days across brands. Arguably, you could say that common phrases or repetition are strong in that they reinforce brands in our memories – but it could also be said that these phrases, when overused in abundance at the same time by different brands, can detract from the meaning. Overuse of phrases can ultimately make your message feel hollow and reduce impact. 

If you’re making claims like “We’re all in this together” – ask yourself, is it true? Are we in this together? How are we in this together, and what concrete actions are we taking to support the audience? This will have more impact than simply using a repetitive phrase. It will also help you differentiate.

Promote the helpful aspects of your business 

This can result in brand loyalty and repeat business in the long run. Are you having an extended free trial promotion? Are you making a catalogue or service free for the foreseeable future? Or, are you offering discounts for frontline workers, parents, teachers, or small business owners? Anything that is true, that helps right now, that values your audience, and gives back to them – put that front and centre. Make it the single message in your campaign. Remember, you want to help and incentivize, not just sell, sell, sell.

Respect your audience’s time 

Especially in a scenario where many are juggling kids, family responsibilities, pets, multiple jobs, and working from home, it’s best to give them a break on the reading. I am a big proponent of cutting down on word count, weeding out what you don’t necessarily need. The faster you get to the point, the more you take into consideration your reader’s attention span or time constraints – and the more likely it is that your copy will have impact. Challenge yourself to cut, first 5%, then 50%, and if you’re feeling dangerous, 75%. See how much you can remove without sacrificing the vital information. Keep in mind what Microsoft found in its 2015 study: you may only have up to around 8 seconds to grab your audience’s attention – and that’s not a lot of copy!

You’re a writer. We all can write. And when you write, you wield a devastating amount of power if you are in control of words being amplified on any public channel. Use this power wisely and compassionately, and try to have fun while doing it.

Samantha Mehra (MA) is a senior copywriter and content strategist in Toronto, and an instructor at The University of Toronto's School of Continuing Studies. With a diverse background in technology, history, and arts journalism, her writing credits include The Canadian Encyclopedia, Feathertale, Oxford Journals, and Routledge Encyclopedia of Modernism. She is a National Magazine Award nominee, and enjoys puns. Samantha instructs courses in our Certificate in Strategic Copywriting.
 

Returning to work in an office space or building after COVID-19 has its challenges, but offers Facility Managers the opportunity to let everyone know the importance of facility management (FM).

Don’t forget that FM has always been an essential service during COVID-19. Buildings don’t care about a pandemic, they continue to have important needs! It’s been our responsibility to:

• Ensure customers, clients, and our buildings are safe.
• Keep buildings functioning at top capacity and performance.
• Stay on top of critical maintenance and address outages
• Make sure sufficient PPE is available, and social distance measures were in place.
• Set social distance rules for staff/students/clients who require access to facilities/buildings.
• Leverage remote contact devices for meetings and maintenance.

So, now that we can see the light, how do we prepare to ease a large portion of the workforce back into our buildings? How can we help them feel safe in their work environment? Here are five things Facilities Managers can do to help ease people's transition to in-person work:

1. Safeguard the well-being of your workforce.

Ensure PPE protocols continue to be placed and followed. Adhere to COVID rules, make sanitizers available, ensure people wear masks when appropriate, and keep social distance measures in mind when designing workspaces.

2. Ensure regular routines are maintained with heightened awareness of sanitization.

Buildings need to be kept in good condition to mitigate business disruption and risk (ie. air circulation systems).

3. Be empathic

Keep your staff needs in mind, as some may be returning to the office environment with stress and uncertainty. Remember that this transition will feel different for everyone.

4. Develop a staged approach on returning to the workplace.

Develop a gradual return to the workplace plan. Start asking staff to return to the office 1-2 days or alternate days a week. Changing this plan will be dependent on workspace availability and staff risk tolerance.

5. Communicate!

Ongoing communication for customers and staff on your company’s back-to-work plans is critical. Keep everyone informed, and use language that is accessible to everyone. Be clear, honest, and transparent in your communication.

Facilities Management plays a crucial role in how we experience this migration back to work, whether full time or in a hybrid model. By leading and communicating with empathy, while ensuring important safety measures are in place, we can support a calmer, easier, and healthier transition.

Marcia O’Connor is a strategic-minded leader with more than 25 years of progressive experience in corporate real estate and integrated facilities management Marcia has impressive credentials and a passion for working in high-energy, fast-paced growth companies in the non-profit, private and public sector, building high-performance teams, mentoring young professionals, and helping people, teams, and organizations see their potential.

Marcia has been accredited in pioneering the first Facilities Management Certificate Program at the University of Toronto, where Marcia also leads the new Health Care Environmental Service Management Course, Advanced FM Course, Accessibility, Health and Safety for Building Professionals as well as the Disaster Recovery for Building Professionals course offered at SCS.

Marcia has also been recognized by her peers and awarded “Facility Manager of Excellence” through the Toronto IFMA Chapter. This award was a nomination from her peers and recognized Marcia as an outstanding contributor to the FM profession.

Marcia currently provides program expertise and is the lead instructor for the Facility Management Certificate Program at SCS. Her Advanced Facilities Management course starts March 28, 2022.

This International Women’s Day, SCS Dean Dr. Catherine Chandler-Crichlow reflects on the past two years, their impact on women’s careers, and how continuing education can support women in their successful return to the labour force. 

Two years into the COVID-19 pandemic we are still learning what the long-term impacts of the virus will be on our society. One thing we do know for certain is that when it comes to careers and income, women have been disproportionately impacted.

According to Oxfam, The COVID-19 crisis cost women around the world at least $800 billion in lost income in 2020 alone. Globally, women lost more than 64 million jobs that year —a 5 percent loss, compared to 3.9 percent loss for men.

RBC Economics reported that in just the first few months of the pandemic, Canadian women’s participation in the labour force went from a historic high to its lowest level in over 3 decades. Between February and October of 2020, while nearly 68,000 men joined the Canadian labour force, 20,600 women fell out of it entirely. 

While women in Canada have since been making their way back into the labour force, RBC Economics says there is still a nearly 8 percentage point disparity between working age men and women’s participation rates. And that gap is twice as wide for parents of young children.

The reasons for this disparity are not new. We know that women, and particularly racialized women, are over-represented in the industries hardest hit by the pandemic, as well as in sectors offering low wages, low security, and few benefits. 

According to Statistics Canada, before the pandemic, women tended to perform a larger share of parental tasks than men.

While they existed before, these inequities have been thrown into sharp relief and exacerbated by the pandemic. 

Many women who worked in industries such as hospitality lost their jobs entirely, and those in frontline positions deemed essential faced risking their health and the health of their families for low wages. 

Meanwhile, daycare and school closures meant those parental tasks that fell to women before, now included additional, time-consuming responsibilities such as homeschooling. 64% of women reported to Statistics Canada that they mostly performed homeschooling or helping children with homework, while only 19% of men reported being mostly responsible for this task.

It is easy to see why many women’s careers and incomes were affected negatively. What may be less clear is how we can move forward and support women in bolstering their careers as they re-enter the workforce.

Of course, we must work to address pressing issues such as the gender pay gap, daycare funding, paid sick days, and creating more flexible work environments (allowing for flexible hours and work-from-home arrangements wherever possible) so that fewer women might be forced to leave the workforce entirely to take on family care requirements.

I believe continuing education also has a vital role to play in ensuring the incredible resilience women have displayed over the past two years (and beyond) is reflected and built into their careers. 

With a variety of in-class and online part-time courses, continuing education at the University of Toronto School of Continuing Studies offers a flexible, affordable, and accessible way for women to learn new skills or update the skills they may have stopped practicing. And they can do so in a way that works around their existing employment and family responsibilities. 

The important networking opportunities women may have lost in their time outside of the labour force can be found with both industry expert instructors and classmates with similar professional interests. 

And finally, we are here to support women in reflecting on what their existing strengths are and how those strengths might be applied to a variety of positions and industries they may not have previously considered. This in turn can help prepare them to seize new opportunities and successfully adapt in times of adversity. 

Helping women return to and thrive in the labour market is not just important for women themselves, it is an economic imperative. When women are able to bring their strengths to the table, everyone benefits. 

As RBC Economics reports, “The benefits of women participating in the labour market equally with men would provide a lift to economic output of about $100 billion per year. COVID-19 has created a hole which will take a long time to fill – ensuring that women return to the labour market is critical to Canada’s recovery and ongoing success.”

Women’s inspiring resilience has carried them through the past two years of extreme challenge, now we need to support them in building that same resilience into their career paths.

With innovations driven by the Fourth Industrial Revolution’s (4IR), project management has evolved from simply a way of managing resources and stakeholders, to a set of coveted skills that can make or break an organization. Today, companies are seeking agile project managers who can adopt and adapt to help them navigate the unknown, and the changing nature of industry. This is where upskilling comes in; keeping on top of new trends, skills, tactics, tools, and strategies is what sets one project manager apart from the rest. Here are some top reasons why project manager must embrace lifelong learning.

1. Explore different methods and strategies

It’s is essential to understand the traditional methodologies, but it’s even more critical to expand your understanding of various frameworks. Continuing education gives you the up-to-date skills to manage and facilitate project work, set expectations, and ensure project success. 

2. Gain practical insights 

Whether through learning opportunities that demonstrate real-world projects/cases, or by networking with others project management professionals, continuing education empowers you to gain practical hands-on experience. These are skills you can apply immediately at work. 

3. Get out of your comfort zone 

Lifelong learning requires that you push past boundaries, and let go of limiting beliefs. Lifelong learners are change-makers. 

4. Expand your career opportunities 

Growing your project management skillset is one of the best ways to ignite forward momentum in your career. Continuing education can enhance your resume, increase your connections within the industry, or lead to earning a professional designation. But most importantly, your new skills speak for themselves; whether you aim to thrive in your current role, or explore new opportunities, lifelong learning is the way forward.

5. Design your journey

This is YOUR learning journey, and it’s yours to create. Whether you are looking to enhance or refresh your skills, or learn something completely new, continuing education puts you in the driver’s seat.

We are witnessing unprecedented transformative changes in how we work, study, shop, and communicate. Project management professionals must continue to upskill to be competitive and own their future.

Dr.Waffa Adam has 20+ years of experience across management consulting, financial services, IT, Project management, and Education industries focusing on organization change management, digital transformation, Agile and Lean adoption and sustainability, strategy execution, Program, Portfolio, and project management office (PMO). She led numerous PMO's and PPM ranging from $100 million to a Billion to help organizations address complex business and enterprise initiatives. Waffa is a change agent who brings together pragmatic solutions aligned with organizations' strategic planning to help organizations optimize their resources and product delivery to achieve operational excellence. She is an Agile Coach certified, SAFe Agilist certified, PMP certified, ACP certified, and Lean Six Sigma Green Belt certified. She holds a Bachelor of Computer Science and Minor in Business Administrations, a Master's in Information Technology and a Ph.D. in Strategy and program management. Waffa is an instructor at U of T SCS, where she develops, enhances, and contributes to various course offerings. Waffa authored two books about the PMO; one is used as the framework for this course. 

Her SCS course, Project Management Office, starts in March 2022.

Ki-Youn Kim was making a big career change. After years of working in the non-profit sector, she decided to pursue her dream of becoming a freelance Science Communication Specialist. With two Bachelor’s degrees (one in biology with a minor in politics, and one in neuroscience), and a Master of Science Communication, she holds a unique skillset. “My passion is making science accessible for all audiences, and deconstructing complex scientific information, so anyone can easily understand its importance and impact,” says Ki-Youn. “I recently took the leap and started my own freelance business, which is exciting and overwhelming all at the same time. In my graduate degree, I gained a strong set of multimedia skills, and learned about podcasting. Now that I’m self-employed, I decided to further explore this 
communications tool, and enhance my podcasting skills. That’s why I came to the School of Continuing Studies (SCS).” 

In Fall of 2021, Ki-Youn started taking Podcasting: Strategy and Success with instructor Fatima Zaidi. “I love learning from industry leaders. Fatima taught us how to be strategic podcasters, but she also explored how there needs to be more diversity and inclusion in podcasting. She encouraged us to get your voice out there,” recalls Ki-Youn. “For years I’ve had a podcast idea in my head. But I don’t want to just talk about science, I want to provide stories so listeners can learn about STEM without it being hard-core science or inaccessible. Scientific content can be fun and entertaining, and this course made me realize that a podcast really is the right medium to share my ideas once they’re ready to go.” 

When it comes to continuing education, Ki-Youn says learning from experts is the fastest way to grow and meet your goals. “Taking the opportunity to learn from someone who is an expert just expedites your journey; it makes so much sense to learn from their mistakes and grow from their experiences,” reflects Ki-Youn. “It’s such a benefit to learn strategies and shortcuts from people who have been there. That’s the benefit of learning from an expert, and that’s how I approach professional development. Even though it’s a commitment, it’s saving me time in the long run because I can be more strategic in what I do, and ideally make fewer errors along the way.”

Next, Ki-Youn aims to grow her freelance business, launch her podcast, and pursue an MBA. “This course helped me think bigger picture, and encouraged me to leverage podcasting as a tool in my marketing and branding efforts,” she says. “These skills will help me grow my business, as I find new ways to tell stories, communicate my message, and support my clients.”