The Department of Companion Animals at the Atlantic Veterinary College will interview Dr. Ana Carolina Brandão de Campos Fonseca Pinto for one of the open tenure-track faculty positions in radiology and diagnostic imaging. Dr. Pinto will be on campus on Thursday, August 4, and Friday, August 5, 2022.

Dr. Pinto completed the following programs from the School of Veterinary Medicine & Animal Sciences at the University of São Paulo in Brazil:  DVM (1995); MS (1999); and PhD (2003).  In between her studies, she has worked as a veterinary radiologist in private practice; been an Assistant Professor, an Associate Professor, and Department Head in the School of Veterinary Medicine & Animal Sciences at the University of São Paulo, Brazil. In 2019, Dr. Pinto moved to the United States and is currently in the third year of a diagnostic imaging residency program at Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine.

As part of the interview process, Dr. Pinto has been asked to present a 50-minute seminar on two separate topics: the first, a topic that would be appropriate to teach third-year DVM students; the second, to cover her research interests or demonstrate some of her past research experiences.

SEMINAR NOTICE: Dr. Ana Carolina Brandão de Campos Fonseca Pinto

Pulmonary Nodule:  Radiographic & Computed Tomographic Assessment

REVIEW of Professional Background & Research Projects

 Thursday, August 4, 2022, 12:30 pm, AVC Lecture Theatre "C"

Any interested faculty, staff, and students are invited to attend. A copy of Dr. Pinto's CV and letter of application will be available from Laurel Fisher (fisher@upei.ca) in the Department of Companion Animals.

The PEOPLE 2022 International Conference on Persistent, Emerging, and Organic Pollution in the Environment – Challenges and Solutions under Climate Change will be hosted at UPEI on August 23-26, 2022. This is a hybrid event co-organized by

• PEOPLE Network (Memorial University)
• Canadian Centre for Climate Change and Adaptation (University of Prince Edward Island)
• Sigma Academy
• Center for Catastrophic Risk Management (University of California, Berkeley)

and partnered with

• Canadian Association on Water Quality Atlantic Region
• International Water Association Young Water Professionals (IWA YWP) Canada
• Network of reference laboratories, research centres, and related organizations for monitoring emerging environmental substances (NORMAN Network)
• Journal of Environmental Systems Research (Springer)

This is an annual conference of the Network on the Persistent, Emerging, and Organic Pollution in the Environment (PEOPLE Network), funded by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC). This conference is also jointly held as the Canadian Association on Water Quality (CAWQ) Atlantic Symposium.

Conference Website: https://sigma.academy/people2022/

Conference Speakers: https://sigma.academy/people2022/keynote-speakers

Conference Agenda: https://sigma.academy/people2022/conference-agenda

Conference Registration: https://sigma.academy/people2022/conference-registration

The University of Prince Edward Island received the sad news that Dr. Benet Davetian, Associate Professor, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, passed away on Monday, July 25. The flags in front of the Kelley Memorial Building and at UPEI Alumni Canada Games Place have been lowered to half-mast in his memory.

In a message to the University community, UPEI President Greg Keefe expressed condolences to Dr. Davetian’s family, friends, colleagues, and students.

MSc Environmental Sciences Thesis Defense: Jenna Cahill

Supervisor: Dr. Pedro Quijon, Biology

Title: Exploring coastal birds in relation to off-bottom oyster aquaculture sites in two productive areas on Prince Edward Island

Abstract: The coastal bays of Prince Edward Island (PEI) support a robust bird population and booming aquaculture industry. Off-bottom oyster aquaculture has been gaining popularity, though relatively little is known about its impact on vulnerable bird species. This project aims to address knowledge gaps in this area, with an emphasis on shorebird foraging behaviour. Monitoring sites with and without aquaculture in two Important bird areas, Malpeque Bay and Orwell Bay, displayed increased bird abundance and diversity within aquaculture sites. Changes in behaviour between aquaculture and non-culture areas highlighted the use of oyster gear as an important resting site for coastal birds. Additionally, there was a correlation between an increase in sediment invertebrates in aquaculture sites and the increase in bird abundance. These results suggest that coastal birds and current levels of off-bottom oyster culture can successfully co-utilize PEI’s nutrient-rich estuaries. 

Accessibility Services will be closed for the day (8 am to 4 pm) on Wednesday, August 3, and will re-open Thursday, August 4, at 8 AM. 

For any inquiries, please visit Student Services on the fifth floor of Dalton Hall, or email accessibility@upei.ca.

Thank you!

Central Printing will be closed from Friday, July 22, to Monday, August 8 inclusive, re-opening on Tuesday, August 9.

The University of Prince Edward Island received the sad news that Dr. Benet Davetian, Associate Professor, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, passed away on Monday, July 25. The flags in front of the Kelley Memorial Building and at UPEI Alumni Canada Games Place have been lowered to half-mast in his memory.

In a message to the University community, UPEI President Greg Keefe expressed condolences to Dr. Davetian’s family, friends, colleagues, and students.

Overview: Communication is critical to success in every field, especially in business and the workplace. In this certificate program, participants will gain knowledge and practical experience in all key areas of communication, including proper workplace writing, public speaking and presentation skills, blog posts, websites, social media, and other forms of communication essential to functioning and growth in the professional world, as well as in-depth communication plans. This certificate is hybrid in nature; some content is online and asynchronous, and some content is in-person.

*Please note: If you already have completed the Intro to Workplace Writing course, you can take the rest of the certificate, and the price of the Intro to Workplace Writing course will be subtracted from the cost.

Designed for: People who deal with communication in businesses/organizations and in the workplace, from administrative professionals to communication officers, entrepreneurs, and executives

Type of Delivery: Virtual and in-person

Duration: Three courses for a total of approximately 28 hours

Facilitator: Christine Gordon Manley, Tracy Stretch, and Ann Worth

Cost: $1,800 for the entire certificate; $599 plus HST for Intro to Workplace Writing; $499 plus HST for Event Communication; $720 plus HST for Public Speaking Fundamentals

For more information, go to https://www.upei.ca/professional-development/certificates/professional-communications-certificate 

Music and the Mind - Maritimes will take place today (Thursday, July 28) from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm, featuring the research work of summer students and faculty members approaching issues of music from interdisciplinary perspectives. All are welcome!

The Robertson Library invites members of the campus community – students, faculty, and staff – to attend a virtual presentation by Katelyn Browne, candidate for the permanent-track position of Instructional Services Librarian (position posting), on Thursday, July 28.

At 10:45 a.m, the candidate will address the topic, "Information Literacy at UPEI: Strategies for engaging today's students in first year and beyond." The prepared presentation will be approximately 25 minutes, followed by 10-15 minutes for Q&A and discussion. To access the presentation, please use this Zoom link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/86360362139

At 1:30 pm, the candidate will offer a demonstration information literacy session. Approximately 45 minutes has been allocated for this session, with an additional 10-15 minutes for Q&A and discussion. To join this session, please use this Zoom link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/82022029022

Katelyn Browne received their Master of  Science - Library Science degree from the University of North Carolina (Chapel Hill), and is currently Youth Services Librarian/Associate Professor of Library Services at the University of Northern Iowa (Cedar Falls, IA). 

For more information, please contact Simon Lloyd, chair of the Library Appointments Committee, at slloyd@upei.ca or 902-566-0536. 

The deadline for Fall 2022 Tuition Waivers is Friday, August 19, 2022.  We encourage you to have your tuition waiver submitted as soon as possible to assist in the timely processing. Tuition Waiver forms must be submitted electronically.   

Online Employee and Spouse/Dependent Tuition Waiver fillable forms can be found on the main page of MyUPEI under UPEI Forms. 

If you have any questions, please contact Human Resources at: (902) 566-0514 or hrgeneral@upei.ca. 

The UPEI Health and Wellness Centre will be providing booster shots in mid-September for COVID-19. For anyone who is not yet vaccinated against COVID-19, we can provide vaccines as well as third and fourth doses (booster shots). Watch Campus Notices in August for dates/times of the clinics.

The theme for World Hepatitis Day 2022 (July 28) is "I can't wait." Every 30 seconds, someone dies from a hepatitis-related illness. We can't wait to act on viral hepatitis!

I can't wait........

• People living with viral hepatitis unaware can’t wait for testing.
• People living with hepatitis can’t wait for life-saving treatments.
• Expectant mothers can’t wait for hepatitis screening and treatment.
• Newborn babies can’t wait for birth dose vaccination.
• People affected by hepatitis can’t wait to end stigma and discrimination.

Some of the risk factors are as follows: received a blood product prior to 1992; use needles to take illegal drugs; snort cocaine; work around blood or needles; are on dialysis; have more than one sexual partner; have a spouse or partner with hepatitis; have body piercings or tattoos; or were born to a mother with Hepatitis C.  

Contact the UPEI Health and Wellness Centre to request a blood test to test for Hepatitis C (email: healthcentre@upei.ca). You could have this virus for 20 to 30 years before getting symptoms. Hepatitis C is now curable, and there is a provincial program to assist those affected (https://www.princeedwardisland.ca/en/news/hepatitis-c-treatment-and-resources-are-changing-islanders-lives).

Don't wait! Get tested now!

Music and the Mind - Maritimes will take place today (Thursday, July 28) from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm, featuring the research work of summer students and faculty members approaching issues of music from interdisciplinary perspectives. All are welcome!

The Robertson Library invites members of the campus community – students, faculty, and staff – to attend a virtual presentation by Katelyn Browne, candidate for the permanent-track position of Instructional Services Librarian (position posting), on Thursday, July 28.

At 10:45 a.m, the candidate will address the topic, "Information Literacy at UPEI: Strategies for engaging today's students in first year and beyond." The prepared presentation will be approximately 25 minutes, followed by 10-15 minutes for Q&A and discussion. To access the presentation, please use this Zoom link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/86360362139

At 1:30 pm, the candidate will offer a demonstration information literacy session. Approximately 45 minutes has been allocated for this session, with an additional 10-15 minutes for Q&A and discussion. To join this session, please use this Zoom link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/82022029022

Katelyn Browne received their Master of  Science - Library Science degree from the University of North Carolina (Chapel Hill), and is currently Youth Services Librarian/Associate Professor of Library Services at the University of Northern Iowa (Cedar Falls, IA). 

For more information, please contact Simon Lloyd, chair of the Library Appointments Committee, at slloyd@upei.ca or 902-566-0536. 

Overview: This course will give employees and managers a better sense of how to fully support LGBTQ+ members within the workplace. From discussions around inclusive concepts, terminology, and vocabulary to how to create a fully positive space within the workplace, this course will teach behaviours that can help bring diversity and inclusion into the modern workplace. Diversity and inclusion are essential for building a modern, high-performing workplace!​

Designed for: Anybody--from employees to executives, to managers and entrepreneurs

Type of Delivery: In-person

Duration: One course for a total of six (6) hours

Facilitators: Tracy Stretch

For more information, go to https://www.upei.ca/professional-development/course/equity-diversity-and-inclusion-in-the-workplace 

The Faculty of Sustainable Design Engineering is interviewing two candidates for a 21-month term position. Each candidate is invited to provide a public presentation and everyone is welcome to attend. Dr. Veluchamy Chitraichamy will present on July 27, 2022, at 2 pm, in FSDE 128B, and Dr. Shakirudeen Salaudeen on July 29, at 2 pm, in FSDE 202.

Below is information about the candidates and their respective presentations:

Dr. Veluchamy Chitraichamy:

Dr. Veluchamy Chitraichamy is currently a Post Doctoral Fellow and Lecturer at the University of Guelph (UoG) Ridgetown Campus. Dr. Chitraichamy graduated from Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU), India (B.Tech. Agricultural (Bioresource) Engineering -2014). In 2018, he earned his Doctorate from the Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati (IITG) in Civil Engineering with specialization in Environmental Engineering. He received a Shastri Indo-Canadian Research Student Award, allowing part of his PhD research to be conducted at UoG. As a postdoc at UoG, Dr. Chitraichamy received the Webster Postdoctoral Award, which is given for “ground-breaking environmental science research toward making a better planet”, from the School of Environmental Sciences.  During his PDF, he gained industrial experience in operations of a 250-kW commercial scale on-farm anaerobic digester which uses a combination of agricultural residues and industrial organic waste streams to generate renewable electricity for the Ontario grid. His research is focused on biochemical conversion of organic wastes into biofuels and bioenergy production. He has expertise in pre-treatment of lignocellulosic waste materials for development of value-added by-products, bioreactor designs, kinetic studies, modeling of biochemical reactions, evaluating techniques including empirically screening feedstock to estimate energy potential, waste valorization, profiling microbial communities, determining the fate of pathogens during anaerobic digestion, monitoring greenhouse gas emissions and developing decision support guidance. Dr. Chitraichamy has published numerous articles in Q1 journals such as the Journal of Cleaner Production and Bioresource Technology and presented his findings at renowned international conferences such as the European Biomass Conference and Exhibition. He is currently acting as a Guest Editor for a Special Issue on ‘Development and Utilization of Agricultural By-Products Based on Agricultural Wastes” in the Agronomy MDPI journal. Dr. Chitraichamy’s research has been supported through competitive grants awarded from NSERC, OMAFRA, and Ontario Pork.

Public presentation: Renewable bioenergy production and by-product development from bioresource waste material:

Increasing global energy demands and the threat of climate change due to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions have made urgent the need to develop sustainable, affordable, and environmentally friendly energy resources and technology. Anaerobic digestion (AD) converts organic material into biogas, a renewable fuel that could be used to produce electricity, heat or as vehicle fuel. In recent years, AD of waste and residues from agriculture and industry, municipal organic waste, sewage sludge, etc. has become one of the most attractive renewable energy pathways. In this presentation I will present the results from two large projects, one focusing on AD of pulp and paper mill sludge (PPMS) and one focused on co-digestion of swine manure and crop residues in a plug-flow reactor.

In the PPMS study, the substrate was studied with and without pretreatment in biochemical methane potential (BMP) assay, in a batch reactor, and in a semi-continuous lab scale anaerobic reactor.   In the BMP test, PPMS was observed to have a high potential for energy recovery, but substrate hydrolysis was the rate limiting step. To overcome this challenge, different pretreatment methods were employed such as thermal, biological, and electrohydrolysis. Chemical and instrumental (FT-IR, XRD, FESEM) analyses were used to demonstrate that all the pretreatment methods showed improved substrate solubilization.

In the swine manure study, long-term continuous experiments were conducted in a newly designed plug-flow reactor at both lab-scale (65 L) and pilot-scale (1 m3). The studies focused on impact of increasing organic loading rate (OLR) on CH4 production and associated physicochemical parameters, along with community level physiological profiling of the microbial community.  As OLR increased, biogas volume increased while CH4 content decreased. Furthermore, a mathematical model was developed on the effect of moisture content on mass diffusion for solid-state anaerobic digestion (SS-AD). This model proposed that decreased moisture content causes augmented mass diffusion resistance by the accumulation of hydrolytic product, leading to reduced CH4 production. Based on this hypothesis, a new SS-AD model was developed based on mass diffusion limitation and hydrolysis inhibition.

Dr. Shakirudeen Salaudeen:

Dr. Salaudeen is an Assistant Professor at FSDE, UPEI. His research focuses on the thermochemical conversion of biomass and waste into high-value bioproducts including bioenergy, biofuels, chemicals, and materials. He received his bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Nigeria; his MSc in Mechanical Engineering from King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Saudi Arabia, and PhD from the University of Guelph, Canada. He previously worked as a postdoctoral fellow at the Bio-Renewable Innovation Lab of the University of Guelph before joining UPEI. So far, he has published 22 peer-reviewed journal articles, 1 book chapter, and 9 conference presentations.

Public Presentation: Development of high-value bioproducts from low-value biomass:

The quest for renewable energy, climate change, and demand for sustainable fuels has increased interest in the bioeconomy. Research on renewable resource-based chemicals and materials to facilitate a smooth transition to a bioeconomy is vital from social, economic, and environmental perspectives. Biomass, an abundant and renewable source of feedstock, has a significant role in the sustainable production of energy, fuels, chemicals, and materials. This, however, requires continuous innovation to develop low-cost and high-quality homogenous feedstock, innovative pretreatment, conversion and upgrading technologies, and new approaches for utilizing intermediate products. The inherent properties of biomass also provide significant challenges for the development of high-value bioproducts. In this presentation, I will talk about the development of innovative and environmentally friendly processes and technologies to convert low-value biomass and waste into high-value bioproducts. The bioproducts include biofuels, biocarbon, and hydrogen-rich syngas, which are suitable for a variety of industrial applications.

The Robertson Library invites members of the campus community – students, faculty, and staff – to attend a virtual presentation by Katelyn Browne, candidate for the permanent-track position of Instructional Services Librarian (position posting), on Thursday, July 28.

At 10:45 a.m, the candidate will address the topic, "Information Literacy at UPEI: Strategies for engaging today's students in first year and beyond." The prepared presentation will be approximately 25 minutes, followed by 10-15 minutes for Q&A and discussion. To access the presentation, please use this Zoom link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/86360362139

At 1:30 pm, the candidate will offer a demonstration information literacy session. Approximately 45 minutes has been allocated for this session, with an additional 10-15 minutes for Q&A and discussion. To join this session, please use this Zoom link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/82022029022

Katelyn Browne received their Master of  Science - Library Science degree from the University of North Carolina (Chapel Hill), and is currently Youth Services Librarian/Associate Professor of Library Services at the University of Northern Iowa (Cedar Falls, IA). 

For more information, please contact Simon Lloyd, chair of the Library Appointments Committee, at slloyd@upei.ca or 902-566-0536. 

DYKT Microsoft Word has a translate tool? Use the Translate feature from the Review tab. Translate a word or a sentence. Or you can translate the entire document and display it in a separate Word document. The Translator tab appears on the right, and you can choose and change languages.

Dr. Paul G. Hayes, University of Lethbridge

Phosphazides: A New Functional Group for Ligand Design

The Staudinger reaction,1 wherein a tertiary phosphine is reacted with an organic azide, is a commonly utilized process to generate an iminophosphorane (RN=PR3). Because they are prone to facile loss of N2, the rarely observed phosphazide (RN3=PR3) intermediate is generally considered a fleeting species with no synthetic value. However, various stabilization methods (e.g., hydrogen bonding, steric hindrance and metal coordination)2 have been employed to isolate several phosphazides. In an effort to glean a deeper understanding of these functional groups, we developed several families of thermally robust mono- and diphosphazides that have been characterized by multinuclear NMR spectroscopy and X-ray crystallography. The synthesis, characterization and reaction chemistry of group 1 (Li, Na and K) and actinide (U3a and Th3b,3c) complexes supported by phosphazide ligands will be presented. Notably, divergent chemistry has been observed for complexes supported by these phosphazide-containing ancillary ligands compared to their phosphinimine counterparts, thereby suggesting that with judicious design phosphazides represent a viable functional group for coordination chemistry and homogenous catalysis. As proof of concept, a synthetic cycle of actinide-mediated CO2 functionalization was established. All aspects of these unqiue phosphazide-containing compounds will be discussed in detail.

All are welcome.