Advocacy in STEM Spaces: A Fireside Chat
To recognize LGBTSTEM Day, Science Atlantic is excited to present our Advocacy in STEM Spaces event as part of our Annual Leadership Meeting schedule.
This panel chat will discuss advocacy and organizing in STEM spaces. We aim to raise awareness to the energy invested by the members of under-represented groups to make STEM more accessible. Our panelists anticipate this talk kick-starting a thought process as regards alternative approaches to STEM.
Speakers:
Dr. Landon J. Getz (He/Him, PhD) is a Gay/Queer man and a Postdoctoral Research at the University of Toronto, studying Vibrio-bacteriophage interactions for novel therapeutic development. Dr. Getz is an award-winning researcher and post-secondary educator, with significant laboratory experience, as well as teaching experience in undergraduate biology, microbiology, and chemistry courses. Landon is an LGBTQ+ advocate and has worked to enhance the equity, diversity, and inclusion of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) through the founding and organization of Queer Atlantic Canadian STEM (QAtCanSTEM). QAtCanSTEM has organized 3 STEM conferences which highlight and focus the work of 2SLGBTQIA+ STEM folks in Atlantic Canada and beyond.
(Photo credit: Piers Macdonald)
Veronica Merryfield identifies as intersex and transgender, long story. She transitioned in the 90s.
Veronica was born in the east end of London, grew up in Southampton, did her electrical and electronic engineering degree in Portsmouth and then worked in Cambridge. She then worked in Tel Aviv and Vancouver before moving to Cape Breton. She has also travelled extensively. She works with a number of tech startups in Cape Breton and further afield. She is an expert in residence at the Dalhousie Emera ideaHUB.
She has worked in a broad spectrum of markets, including pro audio and music, automotive, rail, air, mobile, oil and gas, agriculture, medical, military and security, film and industrial control, to name a few. A polymath with multiple patents in her name, she has held positions in multiple business units in a variety of company sizes from multinational to startups.
Veronica dabbles in instrument making, speaks on the subject, plays bass guitar and keyboards, has been known to design build and fly radio control gliders, is a writer, photographer and partial to a decent cup of tea.
Moderators:
- Dr. Nola Etkin (Dean of Science, University of Prince Edward Island)
- Dr. Alison Thompson (Professor, Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Pyrrole Chemistry for Chemical Biology and Energy, Dalhousie University)
This event is open to all and will be presented in a hybrid format.
For those looking to attend in-person (3:00pm.-4:00p.m., November 18) in the Steele Ocean Sciences Building at Dalhousie University, an RSVP is required can be completed through our RSVP Form.
Links to attend the panel virtually can be found on our Annual Leadership Meeting webpage when available. RSVP also recommended.