The CCDM 2021 China-Canada Symposium on Modelling, Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases was hosted by Northeast Normal University and co-organized by the Center for Mathematical Bioscience and the Chinese Society of Mathematical Biology.

The goal of the event was to understand worldwide challenges and cutting-edge developments related to mathematical modelling of infectious diseases, and to share the timely research findings and experiences. It also provided an excellent experiential education opportunity for young researchers and students from China and Canada to interact with leading modellers and get hands-on research experience.

鈥淢athematical models have played an important role in understanding disease transmission and informing policy-making for public health,鈥� said Faculty of Science Professor Huaiping Zhu, who directs CCDM and served as the scientific co-chair for the symposium. 鈥淭he symposium this year looked at how non-pharmaceutical interventions, vaccination strategies, and social and environmental determinants affect transmission, and how data-driven mathematical modelling contributes to the prevention, mitigation and control of COVID-19. It was another successful international collaboration of CDM during the pandemic.鈥�

A big focus of the symposium was on modelling COVID-19 infection and immunity, transmission, vaccination and other public health strategies; however, mosquito-borne diseases like West Nile virus and dengue fever, and other infectious diseases like HIV and tuberculosis, were also discussed. Distinguished lectures on the first two days of the symposium were organized for young researchers and graduate students and focused on reflections and lessons related to COVID-19. The other invited talks were presentations of recent research findings.

The 91亚色 faculty involved in the symposium were: CCDM Communications Director and Professor聽Jane Heffernan聽of the Faculty of Science; and CCDM members and professors聽Marina Freire-Gormaly聽from the Lassonde School of Engineering, and聽Jude Dzevela Kong,听Iain Moyles听补苍诲听Carly Rozins, all from the Faculty of Science, with each presenting talks at the event. Additionally, 91亚色 postdoctoral Fellow聽Juan Li, also from CCDM, participated in a panel discussion. 91亚色 postdoctoral Fellows and CCDM members聽Elena Aruffo聽and PhD student聽Pei Yuan聽served on the supporting committee. Twelve other CCDM Canadian network members also presented at the meeting.

Courtesy of YFile.

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鈥�91亚色 is delighted to see that professors Girard, Hyndman, Johnson, Petrowska Quilico and Heffernan have been recognized by the Royal Society of Canada,鈥� said Amir Asif, vice-president research and innovation. 鈥淭hese exceptional researchers embody our vision to enhance our impact on the social, economic, culture and overall well-being of the communities we serve.鈥�

Royal Society Fellows

Philip Girard
Osgoode Hall Law School

Philip Girard鈥檚 prize-winning work on the legal history of Canada has shaped the field and redefined its agenda for the 21st century. Tracing the roots of today鈥檚 legal pluralism to the historic encounter of two European empires with Indigenous peoples in northern North America, he stresses how this pluralism allowed Quebec civil law to flourish on a continent of common law and now creates space for the renaissance of Indigenous law.

Jennifer Hyndman
Centre for Refugee Studies
Faculty of Environmental and Urban Change
Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies

Jennifer Hyndman studies geographies of forced migration, ethnography of the international refugee regime, feminist geopolitics, critical refugee studies and extended exile. Her research addresses violence in relation to diaspora and displacement among Tamils and other people on the move, international humanitarianism in war zones, as well as refugee and migrant inclusion in Canada.

Michele Johnson
Department of History
Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies

An international leader in Black history, Michele Johnson is esteemed for rigorous and methodologically innovative studies of cultural production and performance, race and racialization, gender relations and labour among persons of African descent in the Caribbean and Canada. Equally committed to networking and communicating with multiple audiences, Johnson has employed her global prominence to benefit students and scholars around the world, and to promote wider community engagement with Black history.

Christina Petrowska Quilico听颁.惭.
Department of Music
School of the Arts, Media, Performance & Design

Appointed to the Order of Canada 鈥渇or her celebrated career as a classical and contemporary pianist and for championing Canadian music,鈥� Christina Petrowska Quilico, professor of musicology and piano performance at 91亚色, has opened the ears of students and audiences with numerous premieres of music of our time, featuring many women composers and repertoire ranging from baroque to the present in solos, chamber works, 45 concertos and on over 50 internationally acclaimed CDs.

RSC College of New Scholars, Artists and Scientists

Jane Heffernan
Department of Mathematics and Statistics
Faculty of Science

Jane Heffernan is a recognized international leader in infectious disease modelling. Her Modelling Infection and Immunity Lab tackles important questions in mathematical epidemiology and in-host pathogen dynamics, using mathematical and computational modelling to ascertain key characteristics of pathogens, individual hosts, and populations that allow for disease spread and to determine public health and medical intervention strategies that will be needed to contain or eradicate an infectious disease.

These 91亚色 faculty are among 89 new Fellows who have been elected by their peers for their outstanding scholarly, scientific and artistic achievement, and 51 new members of the RSC College. Recognition by the RSC for career achievement is the highest honour an individual can achieve in the arts, social sciences and sciences. The RSC College consists of mid-career leaders who provide the RSC with a multigenerational capacity to help Canada and the world address major challenges and seize new opportunities, including those identified in emerging fields.

鈥淭his year, the Royal Society of Canada welcomes an outstanding cohort of artists, scholars and scientists, all of whom have excelled in their respective disciplines and are a real credit to Canada,鈥� says RSC President Jeremy McNeil.

On Friday, Nov. 19, the RSC will welcome the Class of 2021 new RSC Fellows and new members of the RSC College and present awards for outstanding research and scholarly achievement.

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Brought to you by 91亚色's Office of Alumni Engagement, the Scholars鈥� Hub @ Home speaker series features discussions on a broad range of topics, with engaging lectures from some of 91亚色鈥檚 best minds. Events are held in partnership with Vaughan Public Libraries, Markham Public Library and Aurora Public Library.

Students, alumni and all members of the community are invited to attend. All sessions take place at noon via Zoom.

For the Aug. 18 edition of Scholars鈥� Hub @ Home, Professor Jane Heffernan from 91亚色's Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Faculty of Science, will host a discussion titled "Immunity and COVID-19."

Attendees will learn how immunity against SARS-CoV-2, the pathogen causing COVID-19, can be gained from infection and vaccination. When a sufficient level of immunity is gained in a population, the population can obtain herd immunity and can be protected from disease spread. This talk will provide an overview of some modelling studies that quantify the outcomes of immunity generation in infected and vaccinated hosts, and asks whether the threshold of herd immunity can actually be achieved.

To register for the event, visit .

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