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Dear Mr. Fonseca,
I thank you for your email and for your interest in the University of Ottawa. I apologize for this belated response.
Let me assure that the University of Ottawa has a keen interest in the field of Science and Society. In fact, we are very
fortunate to have several internationally recognized faculty members who specialize in science, technology and society. For
example, Professor David Castle in our Department of Philosophy holds a Canada Research Chair in Science and Society. Professor
Castle's research interests include: philosophy of the life sciences, applied ethics, science and technology innovation.
Similarly, a few weeks ago the University hosted the first Telus Dialogue on Technology, Society and the Future, featuring
Professor Ian Kerr, Canada Research Chair in Ethics, Law and Technology from our Faculty of Law, Craig Kielburger, and Jennifer
Corriero. The dialogue was moderated by Evan Solomon. These are two examples of our commitment.
As you know, universities have a long tradition of working in a collegial and democratic environment. It would be inappropriate
for the President of a University to decide unilaterally on the content of a program or on what course should or should not
be offered in any given year or semester. It would also be inappropriate for the President to decide who should or should
not be teaching a given course.
The University of Ottawa is proud to offer variety of courses and seminars that challenge and stimulate the social conscience
of our students. In June of this year, Professor Pierre Anctil, Director of the Institute of Canadian Studies, is organizing
a conference entitled 'Taking a Stand: A Conference on Activism in Canadian Cultural Archives'. For its part, the Faculty
of Social Sciences is developing a new course entitled "Le militantisme et son rôle social " (transl. Activism and its role
in society).
Once again, I thank you for your interest in this matter.
Sincerely,
Gilles G. Patry, P.Eng., PhD, FCAE
President and Vice-Chancellor
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Gilles Patry
Recteur et vice-chancelier -
President and Vice-Chancellor
Université d'Ottawa -
University of Ottawa
T. (613) 562-5809
F. (613) 562-5103
www.uottawa.ca
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