Invited Speakers

Dr. Brock Fenton, Professor Emeritus, Department of Biology, Western University and Dr. Bonnie Schmidt, Founder and CEO, Let's Talk Science, will deliver our invited lectures at OBD 2019.

 

Dr. Brock Fenton

Dr. Brock Fenton is a bat ecologist, currently an Emeritus Professor of Biology, University of Western Ontario in London, Ontario, Canada, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. His research primarily in bat ecology, evolution, and behaviour, has resulted in over 250 research publications in refereed journals as well as numerous nontechnical contributions. For a general audience, he has also written four books on the fascinating biology of bats: Just bats (1983), Bats (1992, revised 2001), The bat: wings in the night sky (1998) and most recently Bats: a world of science and mystery (2014). He has also strived for excellence in undergraduate teaching and has been an author for many textbooks, including Biology: Exploring the Diversity of Life, now in its 4th edition (2018).

Dr. Fenton received his Ph.D. in 1969 and prior to coming to the University of Western Ontario in 2003, he held academic positions at Carleton University (1969 to 1986) and York University (1986 to 2003). On his way to his Ph.D, he gave his first presentation in 1965 at the Ontario Technical Sessions, the predecessor of Ontario Biology Day.

We look forward to hearing from Dr. Fenton about an amazing career in Biology that grew from his start at Ontario Biology Day.

Dr. Bonnie Schmidt

Dr. Bonnie Schmidt, CM, FRSC is the founder and president of Let’s Talk Science, an award-winning, national charitable organization that she started in 1991 while completing a PhD in Physiology at Western University. Let’s Talk Science helps children and youth fulfill their potential and prepare for their future careers and citizenship role by supporting their learning through science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) engagement. Since its inception, well over 7 million youth and educators have been reached and an estimated 26,000 volunteers have been engaged with Let’s Talk Science. Supporting education transformation and developing creative, critical thinkers, the organization aspires to positively impact all youth in Canada.

Bonnie has been active in a variety of national and provincial organizations and initiatives. Currently she serves as Chair of the National Leadership Taskforce on Education & Skills for the Information and Communications Technology Council (ICTC) and on the Mitacs Science Policy Fellowship Advisory Committee.

For her efforts in education and youth development, Bonnie was named a Member of the Order of Canada in 2015 and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada in 2018. She has received several awards, including an Honorary Doctorate (Ryerson University), the Purvis Memorial Award (Chemical Institute of Canada), MindShare’s Shifting Systems Award, Community Service Award (Life Sciences Ontario); and the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Award.

Bonnie lives in London with her daughter and enjoys working with her horse, travelling, cooking and gardening.