From April 23 to 25, postsecondary leaders from around the world – including a delegation from Niagara College – converged on the World Congress event at Palais des congrès de Montréal. The event was a chance to share and learn about topics relevant to professional, technical and vocational education and training.
Peter “Dutch” Vandenberg at World Congress.
The theme of collective intelligence marked the joint event hosted by Colleges and Institutes Canada (CICan) and the World Federation of Colleges and Polytechnics (WFCP). The three-day gathering was a space for idea-sharing for the betterment of education across the globe.
Dutch wins gold and silver
The highlight of the event for NC was beloved Program Coordinator of NC’s Broadcasting – Radio, Television and Film (BRTF) program Peter “Dutch” Vandenberg winning two prestigious 2023 Awards of Excellence: a gold Leadership Excellence Award for Faculty from CICAN and silver Outstanding Educator Award from the WFCP.
Vandenberg took to the stage to accept the awards which elevated teaching excellence at NC.
Collective wisdom: NC’s EDI Blueprint
Also on Monday, a delegation from the College, Pamela Skinner, Senior Vice-President, College Operations, Julie Stitt, Director, Centre for Organizational Excellence, Samah Sabra, Workplace Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Manager, and Sam Jemison, President, NCSAC, delivered a session on NC’s EDI Blueprint.
The group’s presentation centered on the concept of collective wisdom for strong institutions and sustainable communities in partnership with students. Together, they provided an overview of how NC partnered with NCSAC to conceptualize, draft, and implement our EDI Blueprint to share and invite lessons learned.
Senior Vice-President Skinner explained that the NC team “purposefully designed the process to be collaborative and inclusive so that the outcomes of the Blueprint would be the same.”
Sabra added that the plan itself was an exercise in trust-building for the College.
From L to R: Samah Sabra, Sam Jemison, Pam Skinner, Brooke Pasco, and Julie Stitt.
Leadership in Sustainability
On April 25, Sustainability Manager Taryn Wilkinson co-hosted a session on Demonstrating Leadership in Sustainability with World Wildlife Fund Canada (WWF). In the session, Wilkinson and senior manager at WWF Kate Landry highlighted the national and global climate and biodiversity goals. They also outlined activities that NC and the WWF have collaborated on to address biodiversity loss and climate change while helping to implement action towards institutional sustainability strategies and advance progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals.
Wilkinson celebrated the College’s recent signing the SDG Accord and Nature Positive Pledge. She also cited the importance of governance and leadership, crediting the College’s leadership team for supporting and elevating sustainability work. Wilkinson emphasized NC’s focus on being in sync with the community and local partners with respect to biodiversity and climate action.
WWF-Canada called NC a “superstar partner.”
From L to R: Judy Vargo-Toth, CICan, Kate
