Student-led conference goes “WAC to the Future”

Says Year 12 student Adrian Chi Hong Mak, one of WAC’s co-chairs, “We recognize the world’s in a changing state, especially here in Canada, where everything  seems to be moving at [unprecedented speed] into a unique space. Our goal this year, more than ever, is to inspire our attendees to understand where they stand and how they can make meaningful change as the leaders of tomorrow.”

The March 5 event’s three keynote speakers reinforce those ideas. 

Bill Weir, CNN’s chief climate correspondent, brings his expertise in a subject that has created anxiety and sparked activism in young people.

“We always try our best to include a diverse range of speakers who touch on various fields, and sustainability is at the forefront each year,” says Darwin Li, UCC’s other Year 12 co-chair. “We’ve included Bill because he has a strong message to share. And being involved with CNN, we’re sure he’s going to be wonderful on the public stage.”

Dr. James Orbinski, who was president of Doctors Without Borders when it won a Nobel Peace Prize, will deliver the closing keynote. He currently serves as principal at the University of Toronto’s Massey College and professor in global health at York University, and is another timely speaker given the humanitarian crises and scenes of conflict occurring across the world.  

“There was no better choice, especially with his focus on education,” Mak says. 

Meanwhile, fans of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Toronto Raptors, Toronto FC and Toronto Argonauts won’t want to miss the keynote from Keith Pelley, president and CEO of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment (MLSE), which owns those teams. 

“That will be a perfect extension of last year’s keynote by Raptors president Masai Ujiri,” Mak says. “We expect he’ll talk about sports leadership and his wealth of experience managing not only MLSE, but also as former president of TSN and CEO of Rogers Media. Many of the students are athletes and interested in the business side of sports.”   

Providing insight from an opponent’s perspective will be James Suh, CFO of the Florida Panthers, the defending champions that eliminated the Maple Leafs from the playoffs two seasons ago. 

“With the Panthers’ Stanley Cup win, we thought he’d be a promising speaker and a potentially key figure in our networking session,” Li says. “He’s someone who works on the finance side of things, which we felt would be an interesting angle for our attendees.” 

The conference is organized in partnership with Branksome Hall, with students Katherine Ma and Ruhani Mainra also serving as co-chairs. 

“The Branksome side has always brought fresh perspectives and emphasized an aspect of female leadership among our speakers,” Li says. “We’re always making sure half our team and a significant portion of our attendees are well served.”

Some of the female speakers this year include Dr. Justina Ray, president and senior scientist at Wildlife Conservation Society Canada, and Branksome grad Emma Lozhkin, a software engineer at Nvidia and former member of Canadian national gymnastic teams.