Up Next – May 26, 2026
Our Annual General Meeting and Banquet is open to Members and Guests. Tickets must be purchased in advance.
Speaker: Dr. Francine M.G. McCarthy
Professor of Earth Sciences and Faculty Associate, Environmental Sustainability Research Centre, Brock University, St. Catharines, Ontario; Research Associate, Natural History, Plants and Climate Change, Royal Ontario Museum
Topic: Crawford Lake: a Small Lake with a Big Story to Tell
This talk will chronicle the geologic history of the lake, the history of scientific and archaeological investigation of the lake and its watershed, and the notoriety surrounding the proposal of a ‘golden spike’ to define the Anthropocene as an epoch on the Geologic Time Scale.
Dr, McCarthy is a world-renowned earth scientist. In 2019, she was invited to lead a team of researchers to mine the effects of the human footprint over time on our planet. They chose Crawford Lake as their site. Mud was their laboratory and varves provided the way into the information lying at the bottom of the lake. Crawford Lake is one of a very few sites in the world with this information. Although still somewhat controversial, their research has led to a belief that the Earth has entered a new epoch – the Anthropene epoch.
Dr. McCarthy has a long association with the ROM. The ROM’s exhibit Crawford Lake – Layers in History is open until September 13, 2026.
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Some Previous Speakers 2025 – 2026
Craig Dixon,
Physiotherapist, Sessional Lecturer and Assistant Clinical Professor, University of Guelph and McMaster University.
Topic: Concussions – The Invisible Injury
Craig will begin with an introduction to common myths and truths about concussion, addressing misconceptions in sport and healthcare through the lens of current research. He will use the example of the journey of an athlete. Craig will also explore what happens in the brain during a concussion, including neurophysiological, cellular, and metabolic changes, and examine the broader systemic effects that explain the wide range of symptoms. The brain-heart connection and its role in autonomic regulation and heart rate variability will also be discussed. Finally, he will discuss evidence-based strategies for retraining the autonomic nervous system.
Craig Dixon is a physiotherapist at the University of Guelph’s Health and Performance Centre, where he has spent the past nine years working with athletes of all ages and competitive levels, from recreational to professional. He is also an Assistant Clinical Professor at McMaster University and a Sessional Lecturer at the University of Guelph. Craig’s clinical focus is on the management of sport-related concussion, with a special interest in autonomic nervous system dysfunction and cardiovascular retraining. He is passionate about advancing evidence-based concussion care and brings a practical, athlete-centered perspective to recovery and return-to-play decision-making.
Dr. Linda Mahood
Professor, Historian, Author
Topic – thumbing a Ride – Baby Boomers
For almost 30 years, Dr. Mahood has taught the history of family, gender, sexuality, criminal justice, children’s rights, charity and philanthropy.
She is the author of “The Magdalenes: Policing Prostitution in the Nineteenth Century” (Routledge, 1989), “Policing Gender Class and Family,” (Taylor Frances, 1996); “Feminism and Voluntary Action,” (Palgrave, 2010), co-editor of “Social Control in Canada,” (Oxford University Press, 1999). In 2013, “The Magdalenes” was republished as part of Routledge “Classics” in the Women’s History series. She has published numerous articles in journals including the “Journal of Social History”, “Histoire sociale/Social History”, “Gender and History”, “History of Education”, and the “Journal of the History of Sexuality”.
Dr. Cindy McMann
Public Educator
Topic – Working with Community Partners Dealing with Human Trafficking
“Dr. Cindy McMann (she/her) is a public educator with Guelph-Wellington Women in Crisis. Her anti-violence work includes presentations and workshops across Guelph and Wellington County on topics such as intimate partner violence, consent and human trafficking.
Kerriann McGoogan
Scientist, Biological Anthropologist, Author
Topic – Sisters of the Jungle – Stories of the Female Primatologists and their Work
Since the 1970s, the science of primatology has been dominated by women—a unique reversal, with men usually outnumbering women in other science, technology, engineering and math fields. McGoogan’s book Sisters of the Jungle shines a light on a scientific discipline in which women take the lead while transporting readers to the far country
Marion Reidel
Writer, Teacher, Volunteer
Topic – Stories from the Royal City Mission
In her own words, Guelph author, Marion Reidel took up writing after centuries teaching Canada’s youth. Her stories have won awards and local acclaim. She regularly performs at Open Mic nights because she craves attention and loves to make people laugh!
When Reidel first asked a group of people experiencing homelessness if she could document their story, she thought they would tell her to mind her own business. Instead she said most were thankful someone cared and they opened up about their past and current struggles. Marion Reidel is one of the volunteers at The Royal City Mission in Guelph. She’s been so inspired by the community around it, that she wrote a book: Stories from the Mission.
Dr. Emma Allen-Vercoe
Professor, Canada Research Chair,
Topic – the Human Gut
Dr. Emma Allen-Vercoe is an internationally recognized expert in the rapidly evolving field of the human microbiome. Dr. Allen-Vercoe will be speaking to us on the Human Gut Biome. She obtained a BSc (Hons) in biochemistry in 1993 from the University of London, and her PhD in molecular microbiology through an industrial partnership with the Veterinary Laboratories Agency, conferred through the Open University in 1999.
In 2005 she chose to focus her research on the normal microbes of the human gut. As time went on, she broadened her interest to focus her research on the unculturable microbes. To assist in this, she developed a model gut system dubbed ROBOGUT. Dr. Allen-Vercoe moved her lab to the University of Guelph in 2007. She has again enlarged the scope of her research to include the gut biomes of insects such as bees. Her byline is “We are the spaceship for our microbes”
Naomi Smith
Indigenous Artist and Educator
Topic – Indigenous History through the Art of Beading
Naomi Smith is an award-winning Indigenous Artist, Maker and Educator from the Chippewas of Nawash First Nation, Neyaashiinigmiing, Ontario. She has for over 25 years shared traditional teachings with various communities and groups.
Her work focuses on the ways of the Indigenous people of the Great Lakes region from a historical and contemporary perspective often through the story of beads. Naomi’s artwork embraces ancestral designs using quillwork, beadwork and other indigenous methods and materials. She has exhibited her work across Canada and internationally.
Janice Mason Steeves, Artist
Bloom – Coming to Art in Later Life
Born in Saskatchewan, Janice Mason Steeves graduated with an M.A. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Manitoba. She held School Psychology positions before leaving the field to focus on painting. Further studies were completed at the Ontario College of Art and Design. Janice is represented by galleries in Canada and has work in public, corporate, and private collections in North America and internationally. She has been awarded artist residencies in Spain, Ireland, Sweden, Iceland and the U.S. Janice’s book Bloom: On Becoming an Artist Later in Life is an inspirational look at how our older years are a time of inner soul work and continued growth through our creativity.
Janice is passionate about helping artists form a deeper connection to the earth and to that end, she has developed an art teaching initiative called Workshops in Wild Places. In these unique workshops, we travel to remote locations throughout the world to experience the beauty, energy and power of the wild landscape, to deeply connect with it and then, through a contemplative and creative process, translate that response into abstract paintings
Susan Glasauer
Associate Professor, School of Environmental Sciences, University of Guelph
Protecting Canada’s Wetlands
Dr. Susan Glasauer is a faculty member in the School of Environmental Sciences at the University of Guelph, and the president for the Canadian chapter of the Society for Wetland Scientists. She completed an undergraduate degree in Plant and Soil Biology and a Masters in Soil Chemistry at the University of California at Berkeley, and a doctoral degree at the Technical University of Munich in Germany. Following several years as an environmental consultant, with wetland restoration projects in Nigeria, she joined Dr. Terry Beveridge at the University of Guelph as a post-doctoral researcher. She joined the faculty of Land Resource Science (now Environmental Sciences) at U of Guelph in 2003.
Her research has two main directions: the ability of wetlands to retain elements of concern such as arsenic and uranium, and the changing capacity of wetlands to store carbon in response to the climate crisis. These biological hotspots are affectionately called “Earth’s kidneys” for their astonishing ability to clean up water. Canada holds almost one quarter of the world’s wetlands; this presents us with rights and obligations in our stewardship of a globally vital resource.
Ken McGoogan, writer
Shadows of Tyranny: Defending Democracy in an Age of Dictatorship.
Ken McGoogan is the globe-trotting Canadian author of seventeen books — mostly nonfiction narratives but also novels and memoirs. His new book, Shadows of Tyranny: Defending Democracy in an Age of Tyranny, brings him full circle thematically. His first book, published in 1991, wasScreenshot Canada’s Undeclared War: Fighting Words from the Literary Trenches – a polemical work that won a nonfiction award and caused a bit of a stir. His bestselling titles include Searching for Franklin, Fatal Passage, Lady Franklin’s Revenge, and Flight of the Highlanders. His many accolades include the Pierre Berton Award for Popular History and the University of British Columbia Medal for Canadian Biography. Ken was born in Montreal, has lived in towns and cities throughout Canada, and now resides in Guelph. www.kenmcgoogan.com
Ken looks forward to talking about his latest book, Shadows of Tyranny: Defending Democracy in an Age of Dictatorship. The book’s theme comes from Mark Twain: “History doesn’t repeat itself but often it rhymes.”