In Part 2 of our Community Advocates Episode, our guests are Elizabeth Mohler (Accessibility Commissioner), Geneveave Barbo (Indigenous Commissioner), and Shannon-Thomas Carnahan. They discuss about what they do as our community advocates at Western with our hosts Yousuf Hasan and Rhys Paterson. They also chat about what difficulties they face in improving the student experience.

Full Video on YouTube 

Recorded on March 6, 2021

Produced by Yousuf Hasan

Intro theme song produced by Mathew Becker

Outro theme song provided by https://freebeats.io/ Produced by White Hot

There are plenty of options for a burgeoning MESc. in Electrical and Computer Engineering like Hira Nadeem to apply her skills towards space technology. Hira tells Ariel Frame and Yimin Chen about her recent internship at Planet, the Brooke Owens Fellowship she was recently awarded and how these have led up to her studies at Western and aspirations to work on aerospace engineering. Hira also gave an overview of the mentorship program she co-founded, Zenith Canada Pathways Foundation.

To find out more from Hira, follow her on Twitter @HiraInSpace

Recorded on Mar 16, 2021

Full video available on YouTube

Produced by Ariel Frame

Theme song provided by https://freebeats.io/ Produced by White Hot

Abbie Bechard tells Ariel Frame and Laura Munoz Baena about her MSc in biology research that she is working on. Abbie explains how she tests social spacing in flies and how this can be used to test models with autism related genes, such as Neuroligin. 

To get in touch with Abbie, find her on Facebook.

Full video available on YouTube

Recorded on March 9, 2021

Produced by Laura Munoz Baena

Theme song provided by https://freebeats.io/ Produced by White Hot

After First World War new methods for the administration of colonial territories were required. In this episode, Benjamin Gladstone chats with hosts Elizabeth Moller and Laura Muñoz-Baena about the Americanization of the global colonial and economic systems and its impact on the growth of the United States as a world power and its continues involvement in several economies around the globe. 

Recorded on March 2nd, 2021

Produced by Laura Munoz Baena

“Theme song provided by https://freebeats.io/ Produced by White Hot”

In this #GlobalGrads episode, co-hosts Liam Clifford, Rhys Paterson, and Laura Baena are joined by Political Science PhD student Maxwell Bogpene.  Max now finds himself at UWO to further his studies after originally leaving his native Ghana to pursue a degree at Ohio State University. But this was not without the hassle of being an international student during a global pandemic. As the conversation continues, it becomes clear that jollof rice and good banter are the keys to fostering community amongst grad students.

If you would like to connect with Max, you can find him on Twitter at @BogpeneMax

Recorded on March 4, 2021

Produced by Liam Clifford

Theme song provided by https://freebeats.io/ Produced by White Hot

On this episode the past chairs of GradCast gather together to discuss their history on the podcast, their experiences and where they are now. This light hearted conversation with Alexander Moszczynski, Tristan Johnson, Susan Anthony and Ariel Frame is facilitated by longstanding committee member, Yimin Chen. Listen in to find out how it all started, how we've grown and what makes this production a special experience for Western University graduate students. 

Full Video on YouTube 

Recorded on Feb 5, 2021

Produced by Ariel Frame

Intro theme song produced by Mathew Becker

Outro theme song provided by https://freebeats.io/ Produced by White Hot

In this episode, Rosemary Giles gives us an overview of all she knows about Western Counties Veterans Lodge, a rehab facility in London, ON that used to house soldiers recovering from World War 2. As an MA in History student, Rosemary enthusiastically explains to hosts Francesco Colosimo and Ariel Frame about the past functions and environment at this facility which she has determined to date and hopes to uncover in the future.

To find out more from Rosemary, follow her on Instagram @rosemary_giles 

Full video available on YouTube

Recorded on Feb 23, 2021

Produced by Ariel Frame

Theme song provided by https://freebeats.io/ Produced by White Hot

Contaminants in food sources can cause serious problems for wildlife physiology, especially for birds who feed of marine life and aquatic insects that are exposed to high levels of methylmercury (MeHg). On top of contaminants, birds experience food stress from many environmental factors such as predators, food shortage, unpredictable weather, and interaction with humans. Now, what happens when birds consume MeHg contaminants while experiencing food stress? Does this contaminant worsen the physiology of birds when under food stress or does it somehow counteract the effect? Biology PhD student Claire Bottini talks about her research on this topic with hosts Gavin Tolometti and Laura Munoz. Claire tells the hosts how she studies the effects that food stress and MeHg exposure have on the song sparrow species Melospiza melodia, and how she plans to continue her experiments through the pandemic.

To learn more about Claire's research, check out her twitter account @ClaireBottini

Recorded on Feb 16, 2021

Produced by Laura Munoz Baena

“Theme song provided by https://freebeats.io/ Produced by White Hot”

For Black History Month, on our show we had Western University's Society of Graduate Students (SOGS) Racial and Inclusivity Commissioner (Denise Kamyuka) and the Pride Commissioner (Shannon Carnahan) to chat about an important documentary recently screened at a SOGS Advocacy event: The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson. Denise and Shannon discussed the remarkable life of Marsha as the leading gay rights advocate especially in the Stonewall uprising in 1969. Hosts Elizabeth Mohler and Yousuf Hasan asked questions about Marsha's impact, mysterious death, and why Johnson chose "Marsha P. Johnson" as her drag queen name. 

Hear more about SOGS Advocacy on the Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/SOGS.Advocacy and check out their upcoming online event on THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2021 AT 11 AM EST – 12:30 PM EST Anti-Racism and EDI in Higher Education with Dr. Kaniki https://www.facebook.com/events/535326700761000/

Denise Kamyuka is available by email at [email protected] and Shannon-Thomas Carnahan is available by email at [email protected] or on the SOGS Discord https://discord.gg/A7hMX34 

Full Video Available on YouTube

Recorded on Feb 15, 2021

Produced by Ariel Frame

Theme song provided by https://freebeats.io/ Produced by White Hot

Sample return on Mars, an ancient lake, oceans beneath the surface of icy moons. These are among the topics talked about in this episode!

In this episode, hosts Gavin Tolometti and Rhy Paterson talk with PhD student Leah Sacks in the Department of Earth Sciences and the Institute for Earth and Space Exploration. Leah recently defended her M.Sc where she studied how material ejected from impact events on Mars are deposited on the surface. Now, she starts her PhD research studying the icy moons in our outer solar system! As a bonus! We talk about the Mars Perseverance rover mission, the newest NASA rover to land on the surface of Mars and collect samples that will be returned to Earth by another mission in the future.

If you would like to learn more about Leah's work on Mars and Icy Moons you can check out her website, Leah Sacks - Planetary Geologist (leahinspace.com) or follow her on Twitter @LithicLeah

Full video available on YouTube

Recorded on Feb 9, 2021

Produced by Gavin Tolometti

“Theme song provided by https://freebeats.io/ Produced by White Hot”