Dr. Lee Anne Block, Dr. Jino Distasio, ©UWinnipeg
WINNIPEG, MB – The University of Winnipeg will proudly honour two outstanding faculty members at the 2018 Autumn Convocation, on Friday, October 12. Dr. Lee Anne Block will receive the Campus Sustainability Recognition Award, and Dr. Jino Distasio will be given the Clarence Atchison Award for Excellence in Community Service.
“Dr. Block and Dr. Distasio represent the best of UWinnipeg. They are both making a valuable contribution to improving our community through their research and actions, said Dr. Annette Trimbee, President and Vice-Chancellor.
Dr. Lee Anne Block — Campus Sustainability Recognition Award
Block is a passionate educator and researcher who has inspired others in the core values of sustainability through education — particularly cultural sustainability.
She helped to establish the Healing Forest in St. John’s Park, located in Winnipeg’s north end. The Healing Forest is a living memorial to Indigenous children and families lost to or affected by the residential school system. This land will be a gathering place for families and communities and a place for healing, contemplation, and land-based learning. It is meant to help advance the goals of reconciliation and understanding about the need to protect the environment, as well as to promote cultural sustainability. Block is also active in several other sustainability initiatives, including the Langside Learning Garden, a partnership with Spence Neighbourhood Association.
Dr. Jino Distasio — Clarence Atchison Award for Excellence in Community Service
Distasio is the Vice President of Research and Innovation at The University of Winnipeg and has served as director of the Institute of Urban Studies (IUS) for 15 years. Distasio is a regular contributor to local and national media publications as it relates to urban issues, such as the need for affordable housing.
From his earliest academic work, to his current projects with the IUS, Distasio has remained committed to supporting local communities and relationship-building. As a teacher and a mentor, he emphasizes the importance of providing opportunities for students and community members to work with the IUS team. His focus of study and applied research seeks to address issues of access and affordability related to housing, to advance innovative solutions and policies to help solve homelessness.
Notably, he served as co-principal investigator in a $110-million project examining homelessness and mental health in Canadian cities — the largest such initiative to be conducted globally.
For more information please visit 2018 UWinnipeg Autumn Convocation.
