David Estok

‘A message of hope, optimism and humanity’: U of T’s Defy Gravity brand to showcase the university to the world

Christopher.Sorensen — Thu, 10 Feb 2022 16:32:32 +0000

‘A message of hope, optimism and humanity’: U of T’s Defy Gravity brand to showcase the university to the world

Christopher.Sorensen Thu, 02/10/2022 - 11:32

Cutline

The Defy Gravity brand will showcase how U of T brings together top minds in every discipline, background and perspective in one of the world’s most diverse urban regions – and gives them the platform to achieve incredible things (photo by Neil Ta)

Rahul Kalvapalle

Topic

Our Community

David Palmer

Defy Gravity Brand

David Estok

Diversity and Inclusion

Alumni

Division of University Advancement

Research and Innovation

Climate change. Racial injustice. Mass technological disruption and pandemic recovery.

These are just a few examples of the pressing challenges the University of Toronto seeks to address by drawing on the depth, breadth and diversity of research and scholarly expertise across its three campuses – all informed by a core commitment to inclusive excellence.

They also play a central role in U of T’s new brand – Defy Gravity – which focuses on the many ways that students, faculty, staff, alumni and others are stepping up to solve intractable global problems, create new knowledge and effect meaningful change in the world, defying obstacles and expectations along the way.

“From groundbreaking medical discoveries to reinventing literary criticism and revolutionizing artificial intelligence, the University of Toronto has a long history of breaking barriers, challenging conventions and transforming society through research, teaching, and innovation,” said U of T President Meric Gertler. “Defy Gravity is our way of capturing the spirit and mindset of a place that has never viewed the impossible as a foregone conclusion.”

Created by U of T’s in-house Brand Hub marketing team, the Defy Gravity brand was developed following consultations with students, faculty, staff, alumni, prospective students and others who are invested in U of T’s mission. The team also drew on the global research capacity, data and insights of U of T’s agency of record, McCann Global.

The new brand will inform a storytelling approach that showcases how U of T brings together top minds in every discipline, background and perspective in one of the world’s most diverse urban regions – and gives them the platform to achieve incredible things.

“Having a sterling academic reputation and ranking among the world’s best universities goes a long way, but you also need a strong brand to help convey who you are, what you stand for and the urgency and relevance of your mission,” said David Estok, U of T’s vice-president, communications. “Defy Gravity does that.”

The brand aims to support and amplify the important work of U of T’s many faculties, colleges and divisions, and underpins U of T’s new fundraising and alumni engagement campaign, which was launched in December.

“Defy Gravity presents a positive and hopeful vision for the world at a time when we need it most,” said David Palmer, vice-president, advancement. “It speaks powerfully to our values of inclusive excellence and reminds all of us that U of T is one of few places in the world that can bring talent, ideas, and disciplines together to solve complex challenges and deliver much-needed change – at home and abroad.”

U of T News recently spoke to Estok and Tanya Kreinin, assistant vice-president, brand strategy and integrated marketing, about how the Defy Gravity brand came together – and the types of stories it will be used to tell.

Can you explain the importance of developing a brand for a university like U of T?

David Estok

Estok: The post-secondary sector is a highly competitive market where we are all vying for people’s time, attention and interest. The stakes are high, compounded in turn by the pressures brought on by the pandemic.

Just like everyone else, we want the best talent. We want students, faculty and staff to come here. We want our researchers to get the funding they need to thrive and succeed in groundbreaking research that will impact the country and the world at large. Our success depends on attracting the best students, faculty and staff, and building excellent partnerships with government, industry, alumni, donors and other supporters.

Having a sterling academic reputation and ranking among the world’s best universities goes a long way, but you also need a strong brand to help convey who you are, what you stand for and the urgency and relevance of your mission. Defy Gravity does that. It captures not only the impact and excellence of our university, across so many different disciplines, but it also speaks to our aspirations and optimism for the future.

With Defy Gravity, we’ve created a brand that speaks to our immense diversity, our excellence, our commitment to providing opportunities for all and our status as one of the world’s top public universities. And it does so in a warm, inviting and emotionally appealing way that will help our community tell a more consistent, inspiring and memorable story about our impact on the world.

What would you describe as the core elements of the new brand?

Estok: The brand is a distillation of the university’s vision, mission, values and spirit. We spent several months consulting with students, faculty, staff, alumni and other key internal and external stakeholders to capture insights on what made U of T unique and compelling.

The responses were remarkably consistent. They were proud that U of T is one of the few universities worldwide that’s not only excellent in so many fields but also accessible to students from every background. They were also proud of our record of discovery, innovation and impact and our insatiable drive to take on complex problems. And they highlighted our ongoing efforts to build more supportive and inclusive environments for students, faculty and staff across our three campuses. These insights helped us develop a brand that stood for excellence, as well as being accessible – and for caring, inclusive communities.

Tanya Kreinin

Kreinin: Defy Gravity captures these insights in a vivid and relatable way. It speaks to how our university somehow competes with the world’s top private universities on a sliver of their budgets and without compromising on our commitment to access and equity. It describes a community of problem-solvers that sees the impossible as a dare and are willing to defy all obstacles and expectations to solve problems and accomplish great things.

We think it’s an ideal way to express our values, character, mettle and collaborative DNA. You’ll see that through the stories we’ll be sharing of brilliant people coming together to create a more just and inclusive world and simply refusing to give up when things get tough.

Can you describe how conversations with students, faculty, alumni and others helped shape the brand development process?

Kreinin: This is the first time in U of T’s history that we’ve developed a brand at such a scale. We conducted hundreds of hours of interviews and received fantastic input from stakeholders across all three campuses and from alumni worldwide. And it’s really thanks to their time, generosity and thoughtfulness that we were able to build something that represents our community’s vision and aspirations.

When you interview so many bright, diverse and passionate people, you always face a strong possibility of receiving a lot of conflicting opinions and expectations. But David and I were pleasantly surprised – and encouraged – to see tremendous alignment in our community’s views.

Estok: We really were. People had a very strong sense of what makes U of T special and relevant in today’s world. It definitely made our job easier as we translated these insights into a cohesive brand strategy that’s so authentic. We also partnered with our agency of record, McCann Global, to conduct additional local and global research to ensure we came up with something that would resonate and stand out.

A collection of marketing materials created by U of T's Brand Hub for the launch of Defy Gravity.

Did you encounter any challenges during the brand development process?

Estok: U of T is a large, complex place with a huge variety of stakeholders. This presents a challenge for brand development because you have to come up with something that captures the aspirations and strengths of so many distinct faculties, colleges, divisions and communities. It’s hard to get it right.

How will the Defy Gravity brand support the work of the U of T community now and in the future?

Estok: Telling a consistent and powerful brand story about U of T will benefit everyone. It will help our target audiences internalize why we exist and why we matter, and give them reasons to care about our work. It will help our faculties and divisions craft messages and marketing materials that help them recruit the best talent, attract funding, engage alumni and spark partnerships and collaborations with other top institutions.

Kreinin: Our goal with Defy Gravity is to create a unified voice for our institution. But for us, unity is not the same thing as conformity. We know that U of T has many distinct communities and they all defy gravity in their own way. We strongly believe that our communities need to tell their stories in their voice. What a strong, central brand offers is a way to connect this storytelling to a much larger story about the institution. It allows people to tell their stories in a way that enriches the university as a whole.

How are the challenges posed by the pandemic – and the U of T community’s response to them – reflected in Defy Gravity?

Estok: It’s difficult to overstate how challenging the last couple of years have been for so many people in our community and beyond. But the way people have risen to the challenge is truly inspiring. Our experts have worked tirelessly to lead us through this crisis. Our students and faculty have adapted to new ways of teaching and learning with unflagging creativity and ingenuity. To see how well our community has responded to the pandemic gives me hope for the future. Obviously, this reality was on our minds constantly as we developed the brand – and Defy Gravity is a testament to that hope and optimism.

Kreinin: The pandemic revealed just how resilient and indispensable our community could be during a time of crisis. This is a community that doesn't shrink from complexity or just accept the world as it is. We have a defiant streak. We're a community that wants to change the world for the better. We may not always succeed, but we don't let that hold us back. We use every setback as motivation to push onwards. We’ve seen this time and again during the pandemic. We’re a place where people come together to work on problems and overcome seemingly impossible challenges. This is a message that we think will resonate with people as we help our city and world recover from this pandemic.

What do you hope people ultimately take away from the Defy Gravity brand? What personally excites you about it?

Kreinin: As David said, it’s really a message of hope, optimism and humanity. And ultimately, we hope it will instill even greater pride in our community and inspire others to join us to take on the massive challenges we’re facing. I think what excites me the most is that it’s not a stodgy brand but one that’s incredibly human and emotional. It will allow us to tell so many great stories both locally and globally, individually and collectively.

Estok: I’d have to say it’s the storytelling that excites me the most, too. Stories not only about scholars revolutionizing their fields or trying to cure diseases, but students who are the first in their family to attend university and people who have overcome adversity, dug in their heels and kept going. These stories, featuring an incredibly diverse range of people and perspectives, are all around us at U of T and it’s an immense privilege to be able to help share them with the world.

Experts explore ‘power of place’ at Higher Education World Academic Summit co-hosted by U of T

rahul.kalvapalle — Fri, 10 Sep 2021 18:03:03 +0000

Experts explore ‘power of place’ at Higher Education World Academic Summit co-hosted by U of T

rahul.kalvapalle Fri, 09/10/2021 - 14:03

Cutline

Clockwise from top left: U of T's Meric Gertler, Susan McCahan, Susan Hill, Joseph Wong, Karen Chapple, Richard Florida, Simon Pratt, Dan Breznitz, David Estok and Geoffrey Hinton.

Topic

Artificial Intelligence

Centre for Indigenous Studies

Faculty of Arts & Science

Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy

Rotman School of Management

Times Higher Education

How are universities shaped by their surrounding regions, and how do they contribute to the economies and societies of their host cities? How has the COVID-19 pandemic transformed our use of physical and digital spaces? How do global networks complement local success?

These were some of the questions explored at the 2021 World Academic Summit hosted by Times Higher Education in partnership with the University of Toronto. Held Sept. 1-3, the virtual summit saw university presidents, researchers, lawmakers and industry leaders from across the world participate in an array of keynotes and panel discussions under the summit’s overarching theme: “How powerful is place?”

The conference – which drew roughly 700 participants, including nearly 100 university presidents, vice-chancellors and rectors – also explored several sub-themes, including the role of post-secondary institutions in advancing reconciliation with Indigenous communities and why the humanities and social sciences are needed to guide the development of new technologies.

President Meric Gertler said U of T was honoured to host the 2021 World Academic Summit, noting that the university and its partners at Times Higher Education had planned and prepared for the event for more than two years.

“There is no other event on the annual calendar that gathers together a broader or more impressive array of academic and industry leaders from around the world to discuss shared concerns and themes that span our sector,” President Gertler said.

“After more than two years in the making, our theme for the summit has only grown in importance and timeliness – ‘How powerful is place?’ The COVID-19 pandemic has challenged many of our long-held beliefs about the nature of place and the importance of physical proximity. It has also highlighted some difficult questions for higher education.”

The conference also featured release of the prestigious Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2022, which saw U of T ranked first in Canada and 18th in the world for the third straight year. Among North American public universities, U of T was the second highest-ranked school.

In remarks to kick off the summit, Toronto Mayor John Tory said the city and its institutions of higher education have long enjoyed a “strong and collaborative” relationship.

“A strong university – or better yet, a strong university system – helps build a strong urban region and vice-versa, and a strong country for that matter as well,” Tory said. “These excellent institutions, plus an inclusive and enviable quality of life, see our city ranked among the most liveable in the world.

“Make no mistake, the universities and the education system – its accessibility, its excellence – contribute to that.”

Tory added that the pandemic had produced powerful innovation and dialogue, and that he’s “delighted that Toronto and the University of Toronto are hosting the World Academic Summit to explore some very important questions and topics.”

Addressing inequality and geographic division

President Meric Gertler said improving access to education is key to tackling challenges such as poverty, exclusion and disenfranchisement, which have been magnified by COVID-19.

The summit’s first panel discussion saw President Gertler join counterparts from Johns Hopkins University, the University of Oxford and the University of Cape Town to discuss how world-leading universities can address inequalities and ensure they don’t contribute to the perpetuation of social divisions.

President Gertler said that improving access to education is crucial to tackle challenges such as poverty, exclusion and disenfranchisement, which he noted have only been magnified by the pandemic.

“Higher education is a vitally important driver of social mobility and prosperity. It’s one of the primary mechanisms by which those who come from economically and socially disadvantaged backgrounds become full participants in our society,” he said, calling education “the great leveller.”

A professor of urban geography whose research explores city-regions as sites of global innovation, President Gertler challenged the notion that universities’ global aspirations are in constant tension with their local responsibilities.

“I would argue that our international impact depends directly on the liveability and quality of life in our host cities, and also that our international impact can be advanced in really important ways by serving our local communities,” he said.

“The more that universities do to improve social inclusion and quality of life – broadly defined for their local community – the more they’re actually doing to enhance their own success in attracting and retaining the talent that drives that global impact, standing and acclaim.”

That includes working to boost access to education, which is crucial to tackling the rise of anti-science and anti-truth sentiments, President Gertler said.

“In those communities where participation in higher education … is lowest, that’s where we see the highest rates of vaccine hesitancy, anti-vaccine sentiment and suspicion about science.”

Innovation, equity and attracting the best in the world

Dan Breznitz, chair of innovation studies at the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy, said universities have a key role to play when it comes to fostering an innovative mindset among students.

Issues of equity were also addressed in the conference’s opening keynote, in the context of the innovation economy.

University Professor Dan Breznitz, chair of innovation studies at the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy, discussed innovation policy and how it can be used to create a more equitable and sustainable economy.

He said the oft-admired Silicon Valley model of innovation – one driven by venture capital and tech startups – is difficult to replicate and creates high levels of income inequality. A better approach for most jurisdictions, he said, is to find and fill a niche stage of innovation that promises to bring wider economic benefits to the surrounding region.

Universities, meanwhile, should remain focused on teaching and research – but take note of what’s happening in their city and region, Breznitz said. That allows them to engage locally by reminding government policy-makers about the value of different innovation models.

Also key, according to Breznitz: Teach students to have an innovative mindset so they have the tools to create strong businesses and local jobs.

Richard Florida, University Professor at U of T’s Rotman School of Management, said “it’s hard to imagine your region being a centre for science, technology and innovation” without a great university.

The role of universities in creating dynamic regions was also discussed by a panel that looked at how post-secondary institutions can attract and retain talent.

Panel member Richard Florida, University Professor at U of T’s Rotman School of Management, said that leading, research-intensive universities are necessary to attract the brightest minds from around the globe.

“Universities are catalytic hubs of the knowledge economy,” said Florida, who has been studying the question for nearly four decades, making it a central theme of his influential book Rise of the Creative Class.

“Without a great university – or great universities – it’s hard to imagine your region being a centre for science, technology and innovation.”

Another benefit: Universities tend to create an environment of open-mindedness and tolerance, which is also a big draw for talent globally.

Florida, who was joined by panelist Stephen Cairns, co-director of the Future Cities Laboratory at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, noted the concentration of great universities, innovation and start-ups is incredibly uneven.

For example, he said six metropolitan areas around the world account for 50 per cent of all venture capital startups. Therefore, any discussion of addressing economic inequality or class-based inequality needs to consider such geographic inequalities, he said.

Universities in the community

Clockwise from top left: Karen Chapple, Rufus Black, Denise Pires de Carvalho, Subhasis Chaudhari and Dame Nancy Rothwell participate in a panel discussion that brought together university leaders from the Global North and South.

The summit’s third panel, moderated by Karen Chapple, director of U of T’s School of Cities, presented education leaders from the Global North and South the question: What kind of universities do we need?

The panel included Dame Nancy Rothwell, president and vice-chancellor of the University of Manchester; Subhasis Chaudhari, director of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay; Denise Pires de Carvalho, rector, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro; and Rufus Black, president and vice-chancellor, University of Tasmania in Australia.

Reflecting on lessons learned since the start of the pandemic, the four experts discussed change management, learning about students – particularly those who are digitally excluded – and, most recently, working with communities on vaccination efforts.

“There’s this recognition that we’re all in this together,” Chapple said during the event. “We’re all excited to see how we leverage that new creative action to lift up people not just in the university but the communities that around us.”

The sentiment was echoed by Pires de Carvalho: “The society nowadays knows the importance of our institutions for the country – [and] not only because we are well known by our ability to [develop] doctors, engineers or lawyers.”

Rothwell, similarly, said she hopes to see universities and their communities come together around important issues such as climate change – just as they did in combatting COVID-19.

“If we can deploy the same spirt of collaboration and bringing together experts from different fields that we did over vaccination – if we can deploy that sort of approach to net zero and climate change – I think we’ve got a real chance of tackling what is an even bigger issue than COVID,” Rothwell said.

The legacy of place

Associate Professor Susan Hill, director of U of T’s Centre for Indigenous Studies, said reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples is a process, not a destination, and that universities have a key role to play.

Yet, even as universities seek to forge a better future, critical questions remain about how they can help society make amends for the past – particularly the legacy of colonialism, slavery and mistreatment of Indigenous Peoples.

These and other questions were addressed in a pair of panel discussions.

The first, titled “What universities owe the descendants of slavery,” explored the ways in which Western universities benefited from slavery and helped to legitimize the practice, according to an article in Times Higher Education.

“It was the university sector more than any other that strengthened the ideological and public base of slavery,” Sir Hilary Beckles, vice-chancellor of the University of the West Indies, was quoted by Times Higher Education as saying during the discussion.

While universities have taken steps to acknowledge their ties to slavery, Beckles – who was jointed on the panel by Anton Muscatelli, principal and vice-chancellor of the University of Glasgow and Daina Ramey Berry, professor and chair of the history department at the University of Texas at Austin – said they also need to be ethical leaders on the matter and listen to outside voices “on their true level of accountability.”

A second discussion – a keynote titled “The legacy of place: How to take transformative action” –focused on Indigenous Peoples and featured Associate Professor Susan Hill, director of U of T’s Centre for Indigenous Studies, and Professor Shaun Ewen, pro vice-chancellor (Indigenous), at the University of Melbourne in Australia.

Hill said it’s crucial to view reconciliation as a process rather than an end.

“I think reconciliation has been framed in the Canadian context as a starting place for conversation,” she said. “Far too often, people assume that it’s a destination. But, in reality, I think we’re always going to be in some aspect of movement within that – and I think that’s fine. It’s about relationship.”

Asked how universities should respond to the discovery of unmarked graves on the grounds of former residential schools in Canada, Hill said universities have a responsibility to help ensure such atrocities never take place again by making sure all community members are educated about the past.

“This isn’t actually news to people who have been listening … it’s unfortunate that it took this information about unmarked graves to get people’s attention, but I’m glad that so many people are now listening,” she said. “It’s really on the shoulders of universities to make sure their students, faculty and staff are not unaware – so, thinking about how we have a campaign of information mobilization that also helps to empower people … and also equipping people with the tools so that they can do something about it.”

Ewen, meanwhile, noted similarities between best practices to advance reconciliation in Canada and Australia, as evidenced by the findings of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada and Australia’s 1997 Report of the National Inquiry into the Separation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children from Their Families (also known as the “Bringing Them Home” report). But he also warned each countries’ unique context will determine how reconciliation unfolds.

“I don’t think Australia is the same as Canada, and I don’t think the University of Melbourne is the same as the University of Toronto,” he said. “We have our similarities, of course, but our understanding of our histories and our responses will be locally informed and nuanced in a place-based way.”

While both panelists agreed that universities have a long way to go to advance reconciliation, they identified areas where universities have made progress.

“What I’m really excited to see is that more institutions are starting to listen to the Indigenous communities that they’re trying to partner with,” Hill said. “They’re taking more of a sitting-back approach and giving space for Indigenous communities to lead relationships and partners.

“In many cases, the communities know what needs to be done, they just don’t always have the resources to make it happen. That’s where universities have something to offer.”

Why technology needs the humanities (and universities)

Deep learning pioneer Geoffrey Hinton said the humanities and social sciences are needed to guide technological developments – which is why universities are essential to the development of artificial intelligence.

The summit’s first day ended with a one-on-one interview with U of T Distinguished Professor Emeritus Geoffrey Hinton, an AI luminary and pioneer of deep learning.

Hinton, who works at Google, revisited a career trajectory that took him from the United Kingdom to the United States – and, ultimately, Canada and Toronto. He discussed how each of those places influenced the field of AI, noting Toronto is now a leader in the field of deep learning – a technology that many believe is poised to revolutionize everything from medicine to transportation. He also hailed the creation of the Vector Institute for Artificial Intelligence, a partnership between U of T, government and industry where he is chief scientific adviser.

Hinton also highlighted the importance of the social sciences and humanities in ensuring that technologies such as AI are harnessed in ethical and socially conscious ways – a focus of the recently created Schwartz Reisman Institute for Technology and Society, which will be located at U of T’s new Schwartz Reisman Innovation Campus.

“Technology allows us to create lots of goodies, but how those goodies get distributed and used depends on things that aren’t technology – it depends on social decisions about how we should divide things up, and those are really important,” Hinton said.

Universities, he added, “are going to be essential for ethical research on AI.”

Remote learning and teaching

Universities must be “technologically excellent,” but make sure to use that technology in a way that supports an in-person experience for students, said Professor Susan McCahan, U of T’s vice-provost, innovations in undergraduate education.

The pandemic has underscored, many times over, the importance of technology in the education sector – and several of Thursday’s sessions explored how COVID-19 restrictions have affected teaching, learning, research and collaboration.

One of the panels saw the Times Higher Education consultancy team present insights from the THE Student Pulse, which surveyed more than 2,000 students around the world about their views on online and in-person learning experiences. The results were consistent with what U of T learned from its students since March 2020, according to Professor Susan McCahan, U of T’s vice-provost, innovations in undergraduate education.

“As we went through the pandemic, we observed that students were very hungry for in-person experiences and particularly for opportunities to connect with peers,” said McCahan, who was joined by Christine Ofulue, associate professor of linguistics at the National Open University of Nigeria, Jose Escamilla, director of educational innovation at Tecnológico de Monterrey, and Betty Vandenbosch, chief content officer at Coursera.

“Building that social interaction into online classes became critical.”

McCahan added the findings support the idea that students are looking for a university that is not only technologically excellent, but uses educational technology in a way that supports in-person learning effectively.

“They’re looking for that high-tech part of education technology – but only as a piece of supporting the in-person experience, particularly the connection between students and other people, their peers, their mentors, professors, our staff and the place that they are located in,” McCahan said.

Collaboration and Communication during COVID-19

Clockwise from top left: Joseph Wong, Philip Cotton, Gül İnanç, Tassew Woldehanna and Annalise Riles participate in a panel on global collaboration.

Yet another panel saw Joseph Wong, U of T’s vice-president, international, moderate a discussion about global academic, educational and research collaboration during the pandemic.

He emphasized that COVID-19 occurred at a time when deep structural inequalities of society are being brought to the surface in very public ways. This means universities must do more to create opportunities for greater inclusion when it comes to collaboration, he said.

Annelise Riles, associate provost for global affairs at Northwestern University, expressed optimism about how the current climate might allow voices that were traditionally marginalized to finally be heard.

“The world is on the verge of a global reset and the traditional paradigms that we take for granted no longer hold,” Riles said. “The opportunity here is to create a new conversation globally.”

Tassew Woldehanna, president of Addis Ababa University, said it’s been challenging for African universities to maintain collaborations with universities in the West. He said the number of student exchanges, which African universities value particularly highly, have dropped significantly. Yet, despite the challenges, Woldehanna said his university was able to forge new connections with fellow African universities, as well as some universities globally, to work on COVID-related projects such as developing sanitizers, medicines and ventilators.

U of T created a program in 2003 that now sends dozens of its teaching staff every year to provide medical and academic training at Addis Ababa University – an initiative that has helped produce more than 250 medical professionals in Ethiopia, who, in turn, have helped staff local universities, according to a recent article in Times Higher Education magazine.

Wong emphasized the important contributions Western institutions can make overseas during the panel discussion. “That means building partnerships with diverse institutions, with institutions that don’t look like ours, that bring to the table different kinds of resources,” Times Higher Education quoted him as saying.

The pandemic has also had a significant impact on the ways in which universities communicate with their students, faculty, staff and external audiences such as government and the news media.

The pandemic revealed gaps in university communications, but also led to important innovations, said David Estok, U of T’s vice-president, communications.

David Estok, U of T’s vice-president, communications, outlined some of the ways in which the pandemic affected U of T’s approach to communication in a panel discussion with Johanna Lowe, director of marketing and communications at the University of Sydney, and Jane Chafer, director of marketing, recruitment, communications and global at the University of Exeter.

Estok reflected on how U of T communicators responded to an unprecedented scenario in which 6,000 courses were moved online over the course of a weekend as the university and wider society scrambled to adapt to the onset of the pandemic.

“Hundreds of decisions needed to be made in the ever-changing context of public health regulations, and needed to be communicated simply, accurately and quickly,” Estok said.

He added that U of T communicators did a remarkable job, under challenging circumstances, to respond to what he dubbed the “COVID curveball.”

“Just when you think you’re going down a certain path and you’ve done all this work, planning and communications, there’s a new announcement or new development,” he said. “One of the lessons is the importance of flexibility – the ability to say, ‘Here’s another day, here’s another challenge,’ and respond as quickly as you can.”

In the case of U of T, Estok said its COVID-19 communications underscored three broad themes: how U of T scientists and scholars were contributing to pandemic research; how U of T was mobilizing university resources to help the community and the country fight COVID-19; and the resilience and caring shown by the university community amid the crisis.

He said COVID-19 also revealed gaps in university communications, especially in the area of internal communications because most resources are externally focused. He added that the pandemic also accelerated innovation in U of T’s university communications, including the creation of highly successful podcasts and increased use of videos to highlight the knowledge of university researchers and experts.

‘The epitome of power of place’

Simon Pratt, director of research strategy and excellence at U of T, answered questions about the progress of universities’ impact in relation to the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

The third and final day of the summit featured a Festival of Data, which comprised an array of discussions that explored opportunities to use data and analytics in higher education. Among the programs was a session that saw members of the Times Higher Education Impact Rankings Advisory Board – including Simon Pratt, director of research strategy and excellence at U of T – field questions from attendees about the progress of universities’ impact in relation to the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

In his closing remarks to end the summit, Phil Baty, chief knowledge officer at Times Higher Education, cited data from conference partner Elsevier that showed the extent to which U of T drives research, innovation and reputation for the city of Toronto, calling it “the epitome of power of place.”

Baty also referenced a remark from School of Cities Director Chapple’s panel – “We deal in transformation, and we deal in kindness” – and said it exemplified what contemporary universities should strive to be.

“So much of the conversations have been around how we need to re-engage with disenfranchised communities, how we need to connect with people who have been victims of widening inequality [and] how we need to look at really powerful reconciliation with Indigenous people,” Baty said.

“Universities are kind in so many ways – in terms of making the world a better place, in terms of transforming people’s life chances, and in terms of empowering their communities and cities. And I think that’s a really exciting and special raison d’être for universities worldwide.”

President Gertler closed out the conference by hailing “a truly wonderful couple of days of insight and conversation” that covered themes from innovation, creativity and collaboration to reconciliation and sustainability.

He said the diversity of perspectives represented in the various panels was a key element in the summit’s success.

“Only by creating the biggest tent, learning from the broadest range of perspectives, can we hope to meet the challenges facing us all.”

U of T communications win rare ‘grand gold’ recognition at CASE District II awards

sungjimi — Thu, 28 Jan 2021 15:10:02 +0000

U of T communications win rare ‘grand gold’ recognition at CASE District II awards sungjimi Thu, 01/28/2021 - 10:10

University of Toronto communicators were recognized with 29 awards and three rare ‘grand gold’ wins this year from the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) District II competition – nearly double the achievements of last year.

Judges praised U of T’s expert handling of communications during challenging times, calling the work “current yet optimistic,” and “compassionate and very effective.”

“In 2020, we worked with our communications colleagues across the university to tell our pandemic story in an easy to understand and engaging way,” said David Estok, U of T’s vice-president of communications. “We succeeded thanks to the breadth of our team’s expertise, talent and commitment. Everyone was called upon to think differently during an incredibly challenging time. I’m immensely proud of what we collectively accomplished.”

The university’s wins included three grand golds, eight gold, 10 silver, six bronze, as well as an honourable mention and a finalist position in platinum or “best in” categories. A grand gold is the highest level of recognition in the program, awarded to an entry that is extremely exceptional or “game-changing.” They are rarely awarded and only one may be given in a category.

U of T Communications (UTC), which received 23 of the 29 awards, was recognized with a grand gold for the “This is U of T” video in the News and Research Videos category. The video featured President Meric Gertler and highlighted the university’s historical accomplishments and work under COVID-19.

As one judge wrote, “This inspiring, beautiful video is all the more notable for managing to convey carefully crafted messaging in the midst of a crisis.”

The second grand gold was awarded to a U of T News story about students offering to help busy front-line workers with their domestic chores. The final grand gold was for UTogether2020, an innovative and comprehensive communications effort that supported the university’s pandemic response and helped to encourage and build U of T’s “caring community.”

The CASE awards recognize outstanding work in news and feature writing, photography, best practices in diversity, media relations, strategic communications and brand marketing.

The awards showcase innovative work at institutions in the largest of CASE’s eight districts, including schools like New York University and Johns Hopkins University.

The following are the awards won by communications staff from across the university:

U of T Communications:

Platinum category

Best Practices in Communications and Marketing: Honorable mention – UTogether2020: Building U of T’s “caring community”
Best in Photography: Finalist – Meet Anne Dale, Dentistry’s Unofficial Historian

Communications

Communications Pivot: Grand Gold – UTogether2020: Building U of T’s “caring community”
Communications Pivot: Gold – 3 Qs at the U
Media Relations: Gold – Media relations and the Flight PS752 tragedy
Media Relations: Silver – Increased performance for the Breaking News Experts
Communications Pivot: Bronze – This Is U of T

Digital Communications:

Social Media: Silver – 3 Qs at the U
Websites (Micro-site): Bronze – UTogether2020: COVID-19 recovery micro-site

Magazines

General Interest: Silver – University of Toronto Magazine (Autumn 2019 and Spring 2020 issues)

Writing

General News: Grand Gold – “COVID-19: Students offer health-care workers help on the home front” by Geoffrey Vendeville
General News: Gold – “U of T physician builds virtual ER system” by Rahul Kalvapalle
Feature: Gold – “The Power of Good Intentions” Autumn 2019 issue, by John Lorinc
Feature: Silver – "The Truth Saved My Life" Spring 2020, by Rahul Kalvapalle
Research, Medicine and Science News: Silver – “U of T, Sunnybrook develop tools to combat coronavirus” by Geoffrey Vendeville
Profile: Bronze – “The value of education: ‘I had to fight for it’” by Rahul Kalvapalle

Photography

Series of Photographs: Gold – “Taking a Stand,” Spring 2020 University of Toronto Magazine Spring, by Luis Mora
Series of Photographs: Gold – Remembering the victims of Ukraine International Airlines Flight PS752 by Nick Iwanyshyn
Individual Photographs: Silver – U of T physician builds virtual ER system by Johnny Guatto
Individual Photographs: Bronze – Twin sisters Mikhaela and Nakeisha Ekwandja’s portrait by Nick Iwanyshyn
Series of Photographs: Bronze – “The Power of Good Intentions,” Autumn 2019 University of Toronto Magazine, by Brett Gundlock

Video

News and Research Videos: Grand Gold – “This Is U of T”
General Information: Gold – “This Is U of T”

Other U of T awards:

Advancement services

Donor Relations & Stewardship: Silver – Clark Report, University College

Marketing

Marketing Improvement: Bronze – Virtual Convocation Promotion, Faculty of Arts & Science

Publications

Student Recruitment – Publications Packages: Gold – University of Toronto Viewbook Overhaul, Student Recruitment
Student Recruitment – Individual Publication: Silver – Within Reach: How to Finance Your University of Toronto Experience, Student Recruitment
Publications Pivot: Silver – University College Perspectives on COVID-19, University College

Special events

Special Events Pivot: Silver – Have Your Cake and Eat It, Too, University College

U of T communications win rare ‘grand gold’ recognition at CASE District II awards

UTogether2020: Building U of T’s “caring community” was recognized with a grand gold award.

Jenny Rodrigues

Off

U of T communications staff win 16 CASE awards

sungjimi — Mon, 27 Jan 2020 20:29:28 +0000

U of T communications staff win 16 CASE awards sungjimi Mon, 01/27/2020 - 15:29

In recognition of the excellent work in telling the stories of students, faculty and staff, the University of Toronto has earned 16 awards from the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) in its 2020 District II Accolades competition.

U of T won the most awards of any institution in the group, which is the largest of CASE’s eight districts and includes schools like New York University and Johns Hopkins University.

It’s the second straight year that U of T has won 16 awards in the international competition.

“U of T’s communications staff have proven for the second year in a row that our creative and diverse storytelling is making an impact,” said David Estok, U of T’s vice-president of communications.

“From writing to photography and digital design, the talent at the university is exceptional.”

U of T’s 16 awards included four gold, four silver and four bronze medals, as well as four honourable mentions in platinum or “best in” categories.

U of T News won a gold medal for excellence in news writing for a series of stories that celebrated resilience. University of Toronto Magazine, meanwhile, won a gold medal for digital issues from Autumn 2018 and Spring 2019.

The CASE awards recognize outstanding work in news and feature writing, photography, best practices in diversity, media relations, strategic communications and brand marketing.

The following are the awards won by communications staff from across the university:

U of T Communications

Platinum category

Best Article of the Year: Honorable Mention – University of Toronto Magazine, “Doing the Devil’s Work” by Stacey Gibson
Best Practices in Diversity Programming: Honorable Mention – The Bulletin Brief, Celebrating National Indigenous Peoples Day 2019
Excellence in Photography: Honorable Mention – When students were soldiers: Remembering U of T’s war effort by Nick Iwanyshyn

Traditional categories

Excellence in News Writing (General): Gold – Celebrating resilience at the University of Toronto
Excellence in News Writing (General): Silver – Celebrating diversity at the University of Toronto
Excellence in News Writing (General): Bronze – The past, present and future is female: telling the stories of inspiring women
Excellence in News Writing (Research, medicine, science news): Bronze – From AI to genetics: University of Toronto researchers are making waves
Staff Writing: Bronze – Stacey Gibson
Individual Special Public Relations Projects: Silver – Convocation 2019: Celebrating Our Diverse Graduates
Individual Special Public Relations Projects: Silver – Back-to-School 2018 Campaign
Institutional Media Relations Programs: Silver – Schwartz Reisman Innovation Centre: Attention, influence and impact
Institutional Marketing and Identity/Branding Programs: Bronze – This is The Place 2019 Entrepreneurship Campaign
Magazines – Online/Digital: Gold – University of Toronto Magazine, Autumn 2018 and Spring 2019 issues

Other U of T awards

Platinum category

Best Practices in Communications and Marketing: Honorable Mention – Sidney Smith Commons, University of Toronto, Faculty of Arts & Science

Traditional categories

Web Site: Individual Sub-Websites: Gold – Sidney Smith Commons, University of Toronto, Faculty of Arts & Science
Recruitment Videos: Gold – Access, Inclusion and the Road Ahead: U of T Students Find Community, University of Toronto, Office of Student Recruitment

U of T communications staff win 16 CASE awards

This composite image of University College in 2018 and 1918 was one of the photos that earned an honorable mention for Excellence in Photography (composite by Nick Iwanyshyn, including a U of T Archives photograph)

Staff

Off

University of Toronto Magazine takes home 2019 National Magazine Award

sungjimi — Tue, 04 Jun 2019 15:36:43 +0000

University of Toronto Magazine takes home 2019 National Magazine Award sungjimi Tue, 06/04/2019 - 11:36

University of Toronto Magazine took home the silver medal in this year’s National Magazine Awards in the category of best editorial package, for its Autumn 2018 issue, The Cities We Need.

It’s the first win in 25 years for the magazine in the prestigious competition.

“We overhauled the magazine last year to really focus on ideas from faculty, students and alumni, and brought in a great design team to update the look,” said Scott Anderson, the magazine’s editor. “Winning for an issue all about cities, where U of T demonstrates real strength, is especially gratifying.”

U of T Med Magazine, published by the Faculty of Medicine, was also nominated in the best editorial package category, for its issue, Cannabis is Coming. The gold medal in that category went to Maclean’s magazine for its WWI commemorative issue.

University of Toronto Magazine’s Autumn 2018 issue received a total of four nominations, including for Issue Grand Prix, Art Direction Grand Prix and best photojournalism/photo essay – for the article “The Cities We Need Are Sustainable.”

U of T Med Magazine was also nominated for best magazine, special interest – and received an honourable mention in the category.

David Estok, vice-president of communications at U of T, congratulated all the nominees.

“The University of Toronto is home to some of the world’s most creative and innovative thinkers and problem-solvers across its three campuses – and their important and compelling stories,” Estok said. “The teams who publish these magazines – the writers, photographers, editors and designers – know what a privilege it is to help tell those stories.

“It’s great to see their creativity and dedication recognized.”

University of Toronto Magazine takes home 2019 National Magazine Award

Scott Anderson (left), the editor of University of Toronto Magazine, attended the National Magazine Awards presentation on May 31 with the creative team at Studio Wyse who design the publication: photo editor Della Rollins, art director Nicola Hamilton and creative director Vanessa Wyse (photo courtesy National Magazine Awards)

Off

Having a Field Day: U of T communicators explore storytelling at annual conference

sungjimi — Tue, 21 May 2019 18:05:44 +0000

Having a Field Day: U of T communicators explore storytelling at annual conference sungjimi Tue, 05/21/2019 - 14:05

At the University of Toronto, the job of a communicator doesn’t fit into a single box. From organizing events and publishing annual reports to handling media relations, U of T communications professionals perform many duties and are therefore constantly seeking to add to their skill set.

That is what U of T’s annual Field Day conference – sponsored by University of Toronto Communications – is all about.

Now in its third year, the May 15 event at the Rotman School of Management’s Desautels Hall boasted its highest-ever attendance, with more than 240 communicators representing all three U of T campuses sharing best practices and insights.

“Field Day has always been one of our favourite events as U of T communicators – it’s such a joy to be a part of,” said Larysa Woloszansky, a U of T media relations specialist who co-chaired this year’s Field Day alongside Jesse Carliner, a communications and user services librarian at U of T Libraries.

“I thought that this was a really good opportunity to make an impact on how we learn across the university.”

The pair added that the conference, which included keynote speakers and “caselet” presentations by U of T staff, is a chance to put names to faces of the many communications colleagues who may only know each other through email, while amplifying professional development within the university.

In his opening remarks, David Estok, vice-president of communications, noted the unique challenge and importance of communication in 2019.

“When ‘fake news,’ the ‘deep web,’ the fabrication of misinformation and the weaponization of content continues to grow, it is getting harder and harder to know what is actually true,” he said.

“That is just one reason why our institutions are so important, why content with a purpose matters, why we continue to learn, grow and evolve to respond to the historic shifts in understanding, communicating and working with stakeholders.

“No mission can be achieved until it is communicated, understood, challenged and accepted.”

This year’s theme focused on the many aspects of storytelling, including how we tell stories and how we build trust and cut through the noise.

Jodie Glean, the director of U of T’s Anti-Racism & Cultural Diversity Office, delivered a keynote talk on the importance of acknowledging our differences while maintaining a lens of inclusion.

“Every word, every photo that you use matters,” she said, stressing the importance of representation and the value of considering diversity, equity and inclusion during a project’s initial stages.

Journalists Elamin Abdelmahmoud from BuzzFeed Canada and Daniel Dale from the Toronto Star also delivered keynote talks – Abdelmahmoud on how to stand out in a crowded digital media environment and Dale on how to build trust in an era of fake news and misinformation.

Abdelmahmoud, who curates BuzzFeed’s daily newsletter, highlighted the importance of “taking the internet seriously” in order to rise to the top in what he called “the attention economy.” Dale, the Toronto Star’s Washington bureau chief, stressed the value of confronting dishonesty face-on to foster trust with readers.

“Truth is a story in itself,” said Dale.

Participants said they walked away from the conference with valuable insights and applications.

“I look forward to Field Day every year – the quality and the relevance of the sessions just get better and better, and the keynotes are so insightful,” said Nicolle Wahl, director of content at U of T Mississauga.

“At the same time, it’s also such a phenomenal opportunity to meet our colleagues in person – it reminds me of the scope of our community and refreshes my excitement about our role in U of T’s success.”

Carliner echoed the sentiment.

“David Estok’s goal was to get all of us together and to get us excited because we are such a large institution,” he said.

“Everyone is really excited about the work that we do as communicators and that’s what I think Field Day is all about.”

Having a Field Day: U of T communicators explore storytelling at annual conference

More than 240 U of T communications professionals participated in Field Day 2019 (photo by Nick Iwanyshyn)

Jenny Rodrigues

Off