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Ontario Tech acknowledges the lands and people of the Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nation.

We are thankful to be welcome on these lands in friendship. The lands we are situated on are covered by the Williams Treaties and are the traditional territory of the Mississaugas, a branch of the greater Anishinaabeg Nation, including Algonquin, Ojibway, Odawa and Pottawatomi. These lands remain home to many Indigenous nations and peoples.

We acknowledge this land out of respect for the Indigenous nations who have cared for Turtle Island, also called North America, from before the arrival of settler peoples until this day. Most importantly, we acknowledge that the history of these lands has been tainted by poor treatment and a lack of friendship with the First Nations who call them home.

This history is something we are all affected by because we are all treaty people in Canada. We all have a shared history to reflect on, and each of us is affected by this history in different ways. Our past defines our present, but if we move forward as friends and allies, then it does not have to define our future.

Learn more about Indigenous Education and Cultural Services

Book Club

The book club is an opportunity to engage in learning and professional development by reading a book, getting together with your colleagues to explore new ideas, network, discuss the content of the book, and create an action plan to apply your learning at work and in life.

Format

The book club follows this format:

  • Participants will meet three times per book as a group.
  • Each person receives a personal copy of the book (yours to keep), along with guided questions to consider for discussion with the larger group.
  • Participants, please read the book.
  • Sessions focus on a discussion about the contents and themes of the book, sharing thoughts about how the ideas presented in the book may be applied within the university community.

Facilitator

Jennifer Topping, Organizational Development, Human Resources

Session information

  • Fall Offering

    What Might Have Been

     

    What Might Have Been Book Cover

    The Two Lives of Lydia Bird meets This Time Next Year in a sliding-doors style romance and coming-to-self story about fate, chance, and the choices we make.

    What if “meant to be” happened twice?

    Lucy is at a crossroads. The same night she quits her thankless job she meets Caleb, a local photographer in her seaside town, and has a run-in with Max—the once love of her life. As Lucy decides the right path forward—finally pursue her dream of becoming a writer, or move to London and revive her career—her choice will change her life in unimaginable ways.

    Stay. After a decade of trying to run from her dream, Lucy is finally facing her fears and putting pen to page. With her budding romance with handsome, artistic Caleb, she has more inspiration now than ever. But can Lucy and Caleb open themselves up after their past heartbreaks? And will their different paths take them to the same place?

    Lucy can’t believe her luck when a room in her best friend’s London house share opens up and she lands a job at the prestigious Supernova. It gives her the courage to face Max, who’s serendipitous encounter still has her reeling, and ask what really happened almost a decade ago? But does she really want to know, when being together feels like fate?

    In concurrent storylines that track what would have happened if Lucy chose to Stay or Go, What Might Have Been is a sweeping story that poses the questions: is it destiny or chance that decides who we are meant to be, and who we are meant to love? And is there such a thing as a soul mate?

    Join us to discuss :
    Time:  11am - 12pm
    Dates:

    Monday, October 16, 2023
    Monday, November 13, 2023
    Monday, December 18, 2023

    REGISTER

  • Winter Offering

    A Court of Thorns and Roses


    Sarah J. Maas A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas, Paperback | Indigo Chapters | Square One
    When nineteen-year-old huntress Feyre kills a wolf in the woods, a terrifying creature arrives to demand retribution. Dragged to a treacherous magical land she knows about only from legends, Feyre discovers that her captor is not truly a beast, but one of the lethal, immortal faeries who once ruled her world.

    At least, he's not a beast all the time.

    As she adapts to her new home, her feelings for the faerie, Tamlin, transform from icy hostility into a fiery passion that burns through every lie she's been told about the beautiful, dangerous world of the Fae. But something is not right in the faerie lands. An ancient, wicked shadow is growing, and Feyre must find a way to stop it, or doom Tamlin-and his world-forever.

    Join us to discuss:
    Time: 11:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.
    Dates: 
    First Meeting: Monday, February 12, 2024
    Second Meeting: Monday, March 18, 2024
    Third Meeting: Monday, April 15, 2024

    Register

     

  • Spring Offering

    If at Birth You Don't Succeed: My Adventures with Disaster and Destiny

    if-at-birth-you-dont-succeed-book-jacket-cover.png

    "Comedian Zach Anner opens his frank and devilishly funny book with an admission: he botched his own birth. Two months early, underweight and under-prepared for life, he entered the world with cerebral palsy and an uncertain future. So how did this hairless mole-rat of a boy blossom into a viral internet sensation who’s hosted two travel shows, impressed Oprah, driven the Mars Rover, and inspired a John Mayer song? Zach lives by the mantra: ‘when life gives you wheelchair, make lemonade.’ If at Birth You Don’t Succeed is a hilariously irreverent and heartfelt memoir about finding your passion and your path even when it’s paved with epic misadventure.”

     

    “Cerebral palsy couldn't stop Anner from becoming a celeb, traveling the world, and Friending Oprah (for starters).”―Cosmopolitan

    “Zach makes you want to be a better person, with his humor and his heart and everything he's had to deal with from the time he was born. I've never met anyone like him, and I've met a lot of people.” ―Oprah Winfrey

    “I think I speak for everybody when I say...I want to see more of Zach.” ―John Mayer

    “Comedian Zach Anner takes readers on his wild wheelchair ride through 30 years of dealing with cerebral palsy―‘the sexiest of the palsies,’ as he likes to say. He rides a Mars Rover, wins an Oprah contest to create his own travel series and discovers he’s not only datable but desirable too. Hilarious and inspiring, Anner has made a life filled with fans, love, and Internet fame―reminding us that disability is no match for dreams.”―People (Book of the Week)

     “Forget the travel show, Oprah. Give him a sitcom.” ―The New York Times

    “Our favorite lovable, optimistic, and absolutely hilarious YouTube star in a wheelchair.” ―The Huffington Post

    Join us to discuss:
    Time: 1:00 p.m.-2:00     p.m.

    Dates: Wednesday, May 29th, 2024

    REGISTER