The last 10 years (9 as Chair) have been a (mostly) fun ride, mainly due to the wonderful faculty, staff and students I have had the honour to work alongside. Together, we have navigated interesting times—budget cuts, increases, and renewed cuts, administrative roll-over, strikes and changes in collective agreements, and the COVID pandemic. Yet, though all this, the Department has evolved as a powerhouse. We have a vision to be a leading Geography Department in Canada, globally known for creative, cutting-edge research that defines the evolving discipline and fuels the education of informed and responsible global citizens through innovative, engaged and relevant teaching.

Geography’s QS ranking has risen from 7th to 4th in Canada (since 2015), a clear indicator that we punch above our weight in research and scholarship. Thirteen exceptional new faculty hires have enriched research and teaching and appreciably lifted morale, and the department is becoming more diverse and inclusive.

We have reimagined existing academic programs and developed new ones that address societal challenges (e.g., urban change; climate change and society) and set clear educational goals, better fit our research strengths and faculty complement, advance our commitment to reconciliation and experiential learning, and better address job readiness and professional requirements. Our innovative and responsive teaching practices and new curricula alongside targeted marketing have garnered enrolment growth (~25% since 2018-19). We secured funds (>$1M) for and renovated teaching and research laboratories and student study spaces.

We acquired a bright department meeting space and community-painted an Indigenous-created mural in the hallway to enhance an inclusive sense of belonging. We will soon have a new “intellectual commons”—a coffee/lunch room with a kitchenette (no more cleaning dishes in the wash room!). We have begun to more consistently engage alumni through newsletters, social media, events, and careers panels. And while we have much more to do here, alumni donations and endowments have begun to reduce the student cost of experiential learning and increase graduate student funding. A Big Thank You.

A range of department co-curricular and extra-curricular events are more consistently mounted and participation is strong. It is truly heartwarming to see and feel the energy and commitment of the current Geography Student Union to its peers and the discipline through socials, experiential learning trips and RANGE: a Geography Conference aimed at high school and undecided undergraduate students.

It is this—the change in culture—that I am most proud of in my 9 years as chair. Welcoming, community mentorship and generous celebration pervades the Department. Thank you all for your trust and support over the last 10 years; it has been a truly humbling, sometimes mindboggling, yet mostly joyous experience. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

- Tracy