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Prof. Uri Michael Ascher
RSC Fellow, Academy of Sciences
Affiliation: The University of British Columbia
Keywords: Numerical Solution of Differential Equations, Nonlinear Optimization, Inverse Problems, Scientific Computing
Induction Year: 2018
ASCHER, Uri - Department of Computer Science, The University of British Columbia
Uri Ascher has made fundamental contributions to scientific computing and its application in computer graphics, geophysics, image processing, robotics, semiconductors, fluid dynamics and finance. His
achievements enhance our understanding of simulating constrained differential equations, Hamiltonian
systems, inverse problems, PDE-constrained optimization, and multiscale methods. Ascher's mark on the
practice of scientific computing is embodied in many highly cited publications, including three monographs and widely used software packages.
Anila Asghar
RSC College Member
Affiliation: McGill University
Keywords: Sustainability Education, Neurocognition, Teacher Development
Induction Year: 2017
Anila Asghar is internationally recognized for her pioneering scholarship on the complex interactions between religion and scientific reasoning in diverse Muslim communities. She has been developing effective and inclusive learning environments to promote a deeper conceptual understanding of science and sustainability models. Her work to support the development of learners’ cognition, emotions, motivation, and self-regulation while learning science has benefited hundreds of science and technology teachers in Canadian public schools.
Anila Asghar est reconnue dans le monde entier pour ses travaux novateuers sur les interactions complexes entre la pensée religieuse et scientifique dans différentes communautés musulmanes. Elle met en place des situations d’apprentissage efficaces et inclusifs afin de favoriser une compréhension conceptuelle approfondie des modèles scientifiques et de durabilité. Ses travaux sur la cognition, les émotions, la motivation et l’autodiscipline des élèves en apprentissage des sciences ont bénéficié à des centaines d’enseignants en science et en technologie dans les écoles publiques canadiennes.
Dr. E. Jennifer Ashworth
RSC Fellow, Academy of the Arts and Humanities
Affiliation: University of Waterloo
Keywords: Medieval philosophy, history of logic
Jennifer Ashworth is beyond compare among Canadians who work in the history of logic, and absolutely the best scholar in the world when it comes to specialists on the development of logic and semantic theory from the late Middle Ages to the early modern period. Her pre-eminence in the field stems from her erudition and comprehension of difficult material, plus an almost un-equalled energy. She is a national treasure among Canadian scholars, as is evidenced by her recently being awarded the Killam Research Fellowship, one of only fifteen females nationally to be so honored since the Killam program's inception in 1967.
Dr. Gordon Asmundson
RSC Fellow, Academy of Social Sciences
Affiliation: University of Regina
Keywords: Psychopathology, mental health, anxiety, chronic pain
Induction Year: 2009
Gordon Asmundson is a world class mental health scientist whose original contributions to the study of chronic pain and anxiety disorders have improved many lives in Canada and around the world.
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ASMUNDSON, Gordon-Department of Psychology, University of Regina
Gordon Asmundson is a world class mental health scientist whose original contributions to the study of chronic pain and anxiety disorders have improved many lives in Canada and around the world. He pioneered the study of how post-traumatic stress disorder in particular frequently co-occurs with chronic musculoskeletal pain as a result of common environmental stressors such as motor vehicle accidents and combat. The author of four books, thirty book chapters and nearly two hundred peer-reviewed articles in leading journals, he is also the recipient of major awards and funding from agencies such as the Canadian Institutes for Health Research.
Prof. N. Asokan
RSC Fellow, Academy of Sciences
Affiliation: University of Waterloo
Induction Year: 2023
Dr. Asokan is a leader in systems security, especially in the context of security protocols and security of mobile devices. He is widely acknowledged for his pioneering research on fair-exchange protocols, trusted device pairing and mobile trusted execution environments that has had widespread impact both in academic research, including three books, and in real-world practice, leading to large-scale deployment.
N. Asokan est un leader dans le domaine de la sécurité des systèmes, en particulier dans le contexte des protocoles de sécurité et de la sécurité des appareils mobiles. Il est largement reconnu pour ses recherches pionnières sur les protocoles d'échange équitable, l'appariement d'appareils de confiance et les environnements d'exécution mobiles sécurisés. Ses recherches ont eu un large impact à la fois sur la recherche universitaire, avec trois livres à la clé, et sur la pratique dans le monde réel, avec un développement à grande échelle.
Alán Aspuru-Guzik
RSC Fellow, Academy of Sciences
Affiliation: University of Toronto
Keywords: AI, Machine learning, Self-driving laboratory, Robotics
Induction Year: 2025
Prof. Gail Marie Atkinson
RSC Fellow, Academy of Sciences
Affiliation: Western University
Induction Year: 2014
ATKINSON, Gail M. – Faculty of Science, Western University
Gail M. Atkinson is an renowned expert in earthquake ground motions and seismic hazard analysis. She
is an international leader in the development of models to predict earthquake ground motions as a
function of magnitude and distance, and in their use to solve engineering problems. She also pioneered
novel methods that use ground motion recordings to understand better the processes that generate and propagate
earthquake motions.
ATKINSON, Gail M. – Faculty of Science, Western University
Gail M. Atkinson est une experte renommée dans les mouvements du sol lors de séismes et l’analyse du
risque sismique. Elle est une chef de file internationale dans le développement de modèles permettant de
prédire les mouvements du sol lors d’un séisme en fonction de l’amplitude et de la distance et dans leur
utilisation pour résoudre des problèmes d’ingénierie. Elle a également lancé des méthodes novatrices à partir
d’enregistrements des mouvements du sol dans le but de mieux comprendre les processus qui génèrent et propagent
les mouvements causés par un séisme.
Dr. Harold Atwood
RSC Fellow, Academy of Sciences
Affiliation: University of Toronto
Keywords: Synapse, central nervous system, arthropods, ultrastructure, plasticity
Harold Atwood's major field of research is Crustacean Neuromuscular Systems. Based on his studies of their structure, function and development, he has been able to demonstrate the utility of such systems for research on synaptic mechanisms akin to those in central nervous systems. In particular he has applied this utility in the area of muscular dystrophy. Dr. Atwood's international reputation as a neurophysiologist is evidenced by over 100 journal publications (one was a "Citation Classic"; SCI, Sept. 21, 1981), numerous book chapters, associate editor of four journals, a D.Sc. awarded by the University of Glasgow, and his 1981-1991 appointment as Chairman of the Department of Physiology, University of Toronto.
Margaret Atwood
RSC Fellow, Academy of the Arts and Humanities
Affiliation: McClelland & Stewart
Margaret Atwood is a truly outstanding poet, novelist and literary critic. She is the author of many powerful and original works, including collections of poems such as "Power Politics" and "You Are Happy"; collections of short stories including "Dancing Girls" and "Bluebeard's Egg"; and novels such as "Surfacing", "Life Before Man", and most recently the dystopian "The Handmaid's Tale". Her reputation has now spread throughout the English-speaking world. On the one hand, her incisive, witty style and her ability to tell a good story have reached a wide audience; on the other hand, her black humour and penetrating insights have already been the subject of many scholarly analyses, both in North America and in Europe.
Prof. Pascal Audet
RSC College Member
Affiliation: University of Ottawa
Induction Year: 2018
Pascal Audet is internationally recognized for his work on the structure and dynamics of the solid Earth, especially his studies of subduction zones where tectonic plates interact and generate giant destructive earthquakes. He is also involved in national initiatives to deploy large-scale and dense networks of geophysical instrumentations across the country, including Canada's northern and offshore regions, to improve monitoring of natural hazards and the responsible development of natural resources.
Pascal Audet est reconnu mondialement pour ses travaux sur la structure et la dynamique interne de la Terre, en particulier ses études sur les zones de subduction. Ces régions sont caractérisées par l'interaction de plaques tectoniques ayant la capacité de générer des séismes gigantesques et destructeurs. Il est également impliqué au sein d'initiatives nationales visant à installer des réseaux d'observatoires géophysiques à grande échelle à travers le pays, incluant les régions nordiques et marines, afin d'améliorer la surveillance des aléas naturels ainsi que d'assurer le développement responsable des resources naturelles.
Prof. Michèle Audette
RSC Fellow, Academy of Social Sciences
Affiliation: l'Université Laval
Induction Year: 2016
Née d’un père québécois et d’une mère innue, Michèle a grandi dans un milieu engagé au confluent de deux belles cultures dont elle est la fière représentante.
Elle a été propulsée très jeune en politique d’abord comme présidente de l’Association des femmes autochtones du Québec puis comme sous-ministre associée à la condition féminine au gouvernement du Québec.
Michèle a par la suite fait le saut sur la scène nationale en présidant l’Association des femmes autochtones du Canada. Son travail incessant a contribué à faire avancer la cause des femmes et des familles. L’ÉNAP a récemment fait appel à ses compétences en vue de planifier la création d’un programme innovateur en matière de politiques publiques autochtones.
Son engagement a été reconnu par l’octroi de plusieurs prix dont celui de la Femme de l’année 2014 du Conseil des femmes de Montréal. De plus, elle est récipiendaire de la médaille du jubilé de diamant de la reine Élizabeth II en 2012.
Prof. Marie Auger-Méthé
RSC College Member
Affiliation: The University of British Columbia
Keywords: Ecology; Conservation; Animal Movement; Statistical Modelling; Statistical Ecology; Arctic; Marine Mammals; Seabirds; Caribou
Induction Year: 2024
Marie Auger-Méthé is a highly original interdisciplinary researcher
whose work in the development and application of novel
statistical methods provides impactful insights to the ecology,
movement, health, and behaviour of animals, advancing
fundamental scientific knowledge that is crucial in formulating effective wildlife
management and conservation policies. Her research brings new insights
into the responses of ecologically important species, particularly charismatic
marine species, to global environmental changes.
Marie Auger-Méthé est une chercheuse interdisciplinaire
très originale dont les travaux sur le développement et
l’application de nouvelles méthodes statistiques permettent
de mieux comprendre l’écologie, les mouvements, la santé
et le comportement des animaux, et de faire progresser les connaissances
scientifiques fondamentales qui sont essentielles à la formulation de
politiques efficaces de gestion et de conservation de la faune. Ses recherches
permettent de mieux comprendre les réactions des espèces écologiquement
importantes, en particulier les espèces marines charismatiques, face aux
changements environnementaux mondiaux.
Graeme Auld
RSC College Member
Affiliation: Carleton University
Keywords: Environmental Policy and Politics, Global Governance, Private Governance
Induction Year: 2017
Graeme Auld is recognized for his work on global environmental policy and politics, especially his examinations of the rise, evolution, and consequences of private certification programs that oversee the authenticity of ethically and environmentally labeled products in global markets. Using insights from sociology and political science and employing mixed methods, his work has shifted our understandings of why and in what ways private actors are increasingly central to global governance.
Graeme Auld est reconnu pour ses travaux sur les politiques et les orientations environnementales à l’échelle mondiale, surtout ses réflexions sur la mise en place, l’évolution et les conséquences des programmes privés de certification qui contrôlent l’authenticité des produits étiquetés comme étant respectueux de l’éthique et de l’environnement sur les marchés mondiaux. Appliquant des démarches sociologiques et politiques ainsi que des méthodes mixtes, ses travaux ont permis de mieux comprendre le rôle de plus en plus central des acteurs privés dans la gouvernance mondiale.
Prof. Jehannine Claire Austin
RSC College Member
Affiliation: The University of British Columbia
Keywords: Psychiatric disorders, genetic counseling, mental health, clinical genetics
Induction Year: 2016
Jehannine Austin’s pioneering genetic counseling research, showing that genetic counseling has meaningful benefits for people with psychiatric disorders and their families, has been acknowledged with national and international awards, and by her election as president of her professional association. Based on her data, she founded the award-winning, world’s first specialist psychiatric genetic counseling service – which is influencing health services internationally.
Les recherches pionnières de service de conseil en génétique de Jehannine Austin, démontrant que le service de conseil en génétique possède des effets bénéfiques sur les personnes atteintes de troubles psychiatriques et leurs familles, ont été récompensées par plusieurs prix nationaux et internationaux et par son élection en tant que présidente de son association professionnelle. Sur la base de ses données, elle a fondé le tout premier service de conseil en génétique psychiatrique récompensé au monde, qui influence les services de santé du monde entier.
Prof. Jonn Axsen
RSC College Member
Affiliation: Simon Fraser University
Induction Year: 2021
Jonn Axsen heads SFU’s Sustainable Transportation Research Team and conducts community-engaged research to inform effective policy design for low-carbon commercial and consumer
vehicles and alternative fuels. He also explores consumer attitudes about new mobility
innovations and accesses the socioeconomic and environmental impacts of emerging
technologies. He has produced numerous policy briefs for governments in Canada and
internationally, and regularly serves on expert committees for electric vehicles and sustainable
transport policy.
Jonn Axsen est à la tête de l'équipe de recherche sur le transport durable de la Simon Fraser University et mène des recherches communautaires afin de contribuer à la conception de politiques efficaces pour les véhicules commerciaux et grand public à faible émission de carbone et les carburants de remplacement. Il étudie également l'attitude des consommateurs à l'égard des innovations en matière de mobilité et évalue les répercussions socioéconomiques et environnementales des nouvelles technologies. Il a rédigé de nombreuses notes de breffage pour les gouvernements au Canada et à l'étranger, et siège régulièrement au sein de comités d'experts sur les véhicules électriques et les politiques de transport durable.
Olufemi Ayeni
RSC College Member
Affiliation: McMaster University
Keywords: joint preservation, surgery, osteoarthritis, treatment, prevention, orthopaedics
Induction Year: 2025
Olufemi Ayeni, Canada Research Chair in Joint Preservation Surgery, is an orthopaedic surgeon internationally renowned for advancing joint preservation care across the human lifespan. His research has resulted in the protection and prevention of joint injuries in adolescence, minimally invasive treatments that curb degenerative joint disease development in young adults, and novel treatments that delay or avoid the onset of osteoarthritis – the most prevalent cause of disability in older adults.
Olufemi Ayeni, titulaire de la Chaire de recherche du Canada sur les opérations de préservation des articulations, est un chirurgien orthopédiste reconnu internationalement pour ses travaux sur les soins de préservation des articulations des patients de tous âges. Ses recherches ont permis de prévenir des blessures articulaires chez les adolescents, de mettre au point des traitements mini-invasifs qui freinent le développement des maladies articulaires dégénératives chez les jeunes adultes et de nouveaux traitements qui retardent ou évitent l’apparition de l’arthrose, la cause la plus fréquente d’invalidité chez les personnes âgées.
Prof. Paul Ayers
RSC College Member
Affiliation: McMaster University
Keywords: conceptual density functional theory, reactivity predictors, electron transfer reactions
Induction Year: 2016
Paul Ayers is an outstanding, internationally renowned, theoretical chemist with an exceptionally wide range of research contributions ranging from the purely mathematical, to algorithms and computer programming, to applications. He has the largest research group in theoretical chemistry in Canada and publishes extremely high quality research, prolifically. His major contributions are: mathematical underpinnings of density functional theory; developing practical predictors of chemical reactivity; programs for electron-density-based population analysis.
Paul Ayers est un théoricien en chimie remarquable de renommée mondiale ayant apporté de nombreuses contributions scientifiques exceptionnelles, des mathématiques pures, aux algorithmes et à la programmation informatique, en passant par les applications. Il possède le plus grand groupe de recherche en chimie théorique au Canada et publie de nombreuses recherches de très haute qualité. Parmi ses contributions majeures : les fondations mathématiques de la théorie de la fonctionnelle de la densité ; le développement de prédicteurs pratiques de la réactivité chimique ; et l’élaboration de programmes pour l’analyse de populations basée sur la densité électronique.
Meghan Azad
RSC College Member
Affiliation: University of Manitoba
Induction Year: 2021
An international expert in human milk science, Meghan Azad’s research has broadly publicized how infant nutrition and the microbiome shape lifelong health. Azad leads a diverse team (www.azadlab.ca) with collaborators in over 20 countries. She co-founded the Manitoba Interdisciplinary Lactation Center (MILC) and co-directs the International Milk Composition Consortium. Azad’s trailblazing research is shaping policy and practice regarding infant feeding, human milk banking and maternal-child healthcare.
Meghan Azad, experte internationale dans le domaine de la science du lait humain, a largement fait connaître la manière dont la nutrition infantile et le microbiome façonnent la santé tout au long de la vie. Elle dirige une équipe diversifiée (www.azadlab.ca) avec des collaborateurs dans plus de 20 pays. Elle a cofondé le Manitoba Interdisciplinary Lactation Center (MILC) et codirige l'International Milk Composition Consortium. Les recherches novatrices d'Azad façonnent les politiques et les pratiques relatives à l'alimentation des nourrissons, aux banques de lait humain et aux soins de santé maternels et infantiles.
Molly Elizabeth Babel
RSC College Member
Affiliation: The University of British Columbia
Keywords: Phonetics; Speech Perception; Language and Society
Induction Year: 2016
Molly Elizabeth Babel is Associate Professor of Linguistics at the University of British Columbia. Her research innovatively marries such diverse fields such as linguistics, experimental and social psychology, sociology, cognitive science, and speech perception/production, allowing her to explore how social knowledge is manifested through spoken language, revealing insights into such basic questions as how personal and social attributes like attractiveness or foreignness affect how people use language.
Molly Elizabeth Babel est professeure agrégée de linguistique à The University of British Columbia. Ses recherches innovantes combinent des domaines aussi variés que la linguistique, la psychologie expérimentale et sociale, la sociologie, la science cognitive et les sciences de la parole. Elle parvient ainsi à explorer comment la connaissance sociale se manifeste à travers le langage parlé, offrant des éclaircissements sur des questions de base, par exemple, savoir comment les attributs personnels et sociaux affectent la façon dont les gens perçoivent et produise le langage.
Prof. Marcia Babineau
RSC Fellow, Academy of the Arts and Humanities
Affiliation: Université de Moncton
Keywords: Art dramatique,
Induction Year: 2020
Marcia Babineau has been instrumental in developing and establishing an authentic voice for Acadian theater. Actress and director, she is also a co-founder of théâtre l’Escaouette, a company dedicated to the production of new works endowing Acadia with a new dramaturgy. As Director of the Dramatic Arts Department at the Université de Moncton, she has trained an entire new generation of actors who are acclaimed in the many aspects of Acadian theater.
BABINEAU, Marcia – Département d’art dramatique, Université de Moncton
Marcia Babineau a été instrumentale à la création d’un théâtre acadien authentique et original. Comédienne et metteur en scène, elle est l’une des cofondatrices du théâtre l’Escaouette, voué à la production de nouveaux textes qui ont donné une nouvelle dramaturgie à l’Acadie. Directrice du département d’art dramatique de l’Université de Moncton, elle a formé toute une nouvelle génération d’interprètes qui s’illustrent dans les multiples dimensions du théâtre acadien.
Dr. Lorne Babiuk
RSC Fellow, Academy of Sciences
Affiliation: University of Alberta
Keywords: Virology, infectious diseases, pathogenesis, vaccinology, COVID-19, Covid-19, corona virus
Lorne Allan Babiuk, Veterinary Infectious Disease Organization, University of Saskatchewan, has an international reputation in virology and infectious diseases. He has contributed invaluable information to the bovine herpesvirus- 1 (BHV-1) field, developed a vaccine against the virus, played a significant role in culturing the newly discovered bovine rotaviruses and unravelled some of the roles of cytokines in immune modulation. His work has had a significant economic impact in Canada and has reduced animal suffering generally. As Director of the VIDO, Babiuk plays a seminal role as a scientist, supervisor of post-graduate students, administrator and entrepreneur.
Dr. Constance Backhouse
RSC Fellow, Academy of Social Sciences
Affiliation: University of Ottawa
Keywords: Legal history, feminism, racism
LONG
Constance Backhouse is a legal historian whose books on gender and race have been path-breaking in their originality and significance. Her research was the first in Canada to examine the full sweep of the nineteenth-century legislation and judicial decisions as they affected women and racial minority groups across the country. Reviewers of her work have found it to exemplify an importance of language and voice in story-telling; to be groundbreaking, impressive in depth and breadth, respectful of a multiplicity of perspectives, and to have contributed to a fundamental shift in the research and writing of Canadian legal history.
SHORT
Legal historian Constance Backhouse’s books on gender and race are ground-breaking in their significance. She is the first scholar in Canada to examine nineteenth-century legislation and judicial decisions as they affected women and racial minority groups. Her work demonstrates the importance of language and voice in story-telling and has contributed to a fundamental shift in the research and writing of Canadian legal history.
Prof. Peter Backx
RSC Fellow, Academy of Sciences
Affiliation: York University
Keywords: ion channels, heart disease, arrhythmia, molecular structure, contraction
Long Citation (for publication and press release)
Dr. Backx is a world leader in the field of the structure-function relationships of ion channels with particular emphasis on ion channels in heart disease. He has provided original observations and insights into the mechanisms of cardiac arrhythmias, the control of cardiac contractility by ion channels, the regulation of ion channel expression and the development of novel therapies for treating heart disease. His research is particularly innovative. Dr. Backx a leader in Cardiovascular Sciences. The excellence of his scientific discoveries is supported by his remarkable ability to routinely publish in outstanding international journals such Cell, Nature, Science and Circulation Research.
Short Citation (to be read at the Induction Ceremony)
Dr. Backx is a world leader in the field of the structure-function relationships of ion channels with particular emphasis on ion channels in heart disease. He has provided original observations and insights into the mechanisms of cardiac arrhythmias, the control of cardiac contractility by ion channels, the regulation of ion channel expression and the development of novel therapies for treating heart disease.
Prof. Reem Bahdi
RSC College Member
Affiliation: University of Windsor
Keywords: human dignity, Canada and human rights, Middle East
Induction Year: 2015
Reem Bahdi is a human rights scholar and international development innovator. The only Palestinian-Canadian law professor, she has served as expert witness in most legal proceedings involving Canadian-Muslim rights and national security. She has spearheaded reforms to the Palestinian justice system and promoted human dignity through judicial education in the West Bank. She has over 100 papers, edited volumes, conferences, workshops and reports to her credit.
Reem Bahdi est une inovatrice en matiere des droits humains aux niveaux scolaire et international. En plus d'etre la seule professeure en loi Canado-Palestinienne, elle a servie en tant qu'expert temoin dans la plus part des procedures legales impliquant les droits Canado-Musulman et de la securite nationnale. Elle a ete a la tete des reformes du systeme de justice Palestinienne et a promue la dignite humaine au travers l'education judiciere en Cisjordanie. Elle a offert, jusqu'a present, plus d'une centaine d'essais, de livres, de conferences, d'ateliers et de rapports le tout confondus.






