UWaterloo Alumni Podcasts

Joshua Pope (BASc ’19) came to Waterloo with a big idea to change how people play and train for sports. With the right support at Waterloo, the right partner  — Rowan Ferrabee (BASc ’19) — and plenty of grit and perseverance, that dream is now a reality. 

The Trajekt Arc is a pitching robot that replicates pro players and is being used by dozens of professional teams. Josh and Rowan came back to campus to chat about how they’re changing the game for professional baseball players.

Read more about their story in Waterloo Magazine. 

Christina Sullivan (BASc ’23) never planned to work in Formula One racing. But when her sister convinced her to binge-watch Netflix's Drive to Survive during the pandemic, everything changed. 

From studying mechatronics engineering at Waterloo to securing a placement that turned into a full-time position at Williams Racing — Christina is still early in her career, but she’s proving that she’s on track for a bold future. 

Read more about Christina and other champions of change in Waterloo Magazine.

Eyitemi Popo (MDEI ’16) is changing the way we explore Africa through Girls Trip Tours, a luxury travel company connecting women travelers with authentic African experiences while empowering local women and girls.

Read more about Eyitemi in Waterloo Magazine.

Stephanie Boutari (BAS ’11, MArch ’14) blends her passion for painting with architectural knowledge to create vibrant murals. But this career path wasn't a natural step for the UWaterloo architecture alum. In this episode, Stephanie shares her story of taking a brave leap into the world of art. We also discuss her meticulous design process and the landscape of career possibilities for artists.

Read more of Stephanie's story in Waterloo Magazine.

In a deeply personal conversation, Brian Orend (BA ’94) opens up about his frustrating journey of medical misdiagnosis after having his first seizure at age 30. Brian's anger motivated him to research happiness and share his findings in a book, which offers practical tips for a more positive life. As a philosophy professor at the University of Waterloo, he's now teaching a course on happiness.

Read more about Brian and other stories about happiness in Waterloo Magazine.

After completing her co-op terms at the University of Waterloo, Alice Chu (BA ’18) felt a corporate career was no longer the right fit for her. On this episode of Uncharted, she shares her journey from the Honours Arts and Business program to a thriving career in the food industry, then pursuing a second career in law. Alice opens up about her transformative co-op terms, how an exchange to Singapore ignited her passion for food and how she’s committed to lifelong learning and pursuing new interests. 

In May, the University of Waterloo launched a new alumni chapter in Ottawa. As part of the event, alumni from the Ottawa region joined an expert panel to explore happiness.

Moderator: 

Salman Jivani (BA ’11, MA ’17), associate vice-president, office of advancement, University of Waterloo 

Panelists: 

Dr. Linda Duxbury (BSc ’75, MASc ’77, PhD ’83), professor, management, Carleton University 

Niraj Bhargava (BASc ’86), founder and CEO, NuEnergy.ai and The New Energy Group  

Robert Beamish (BA ’15), senior officer, transformation team, Global Affairs Canada 

Michelle Li (BSc ’05) has always been interested in sustainability and took a leap in 2017 to become vegan when she wanted to do more to decrease her own carbon footprint.

Today, she’s the founder of Clever Carbon, a playful educational website with the goal of increasing carbon literacy amongst consumers. 

“When we don’t understand the impact, it’s easy to ignore it.”

Michelle is also passionate about empowering other women working in climate and has founded a global network of over 4,000 people.

On the podcast, Michelle shares how her dream of studying optometry brought her to the University of Waterloo, an interest in business drew her to Silicon Valley and a side project to make a user-friendly carbon footprint quiz grew to a successful career in sustainability. 

It can be daunting to decide what schools you want to apply to and what you want to study when you’re only a teenager in high school. But it’s important to remember that what you choose to study doesn’t always dictate what type of career you’ll have. 

And it didn’t for Ahmed Mezil (BASc ’14). He’s one of many alumni who have taken an unexpected career journey. How do you start in engineering at the University of Waterloo and end up becoming the CEO of the cleaning company Hellamaid? That’s what we’re going to find out. 

Think back to when you got your first bank account. What year was it? How did you deposit cheques, pay for items or check your balance? I bet a lot has changed since then. Today, you can do all of this from your phone, in any location you choose. 

Thanks to the financial technology (or FinTech) industry, more is changing every day. Our banking apps are constantly being updated with new information and tools. Do-it-yourself platforms are giving more access and control than ever. And AI has the power to improve security, giving way to new services and products. Ben Janetos (BA '08) joins the podcast to talk about the latest updates in FinTech and what the future might hold. Ben has worked in the financial sector for more than a decade, and eventually jumped into the world of FinTech startups. Today, he's an advisor at Frank Mortgage, a company transforming the broker industry in Canada.

Exclusive Frank Mortgage offer for alumni: https://uwaterloo.ca/alumni/frank-mortgage