November 12, 2025

Humber Polytechnic has launched its new School of Clean Energy, which will be housed within its Faculty of Applied Sciences & Technology. The school will approach learning through an interdisciplinary lens and will offer hands-on learning experiences in emerging technologies. “The future of work is changing, and this new educational hub is designed to provide our learners with the edge they’ll need to succeed in high-demand fields,” said Francis Syms, who has been appointed the Head of the School of Clean Energy.

Université du Québec à Montréal has launched a new promotional campaign called “Penser haut et fort,” which emphasizes the role of university education in the advancement of society. A UQAM release explained that the campaign departs from the usual conventions for student recruitment and instead highlights the values and issues that are relevant to 18-to-25-year-olds. The campaign is being rolled out through billboards, video ads, web banners, social media, and select publications.

The University of Toronto Indigenous Research Network has launched the International Indigenous Research Consortium. The consortium will foster global collaboration and knowledge exchange on Indigenous-led research and ensure that Indigenous community priorities, research methodology, data sovereignty, and research ethics are at the forefront and are respected in academic settings. U of T IRN Managing Director Meagan Hamilton explained that the consortium will help respond to the “urgent need for Indigenous scholars globally to connect and share experiences on similar challenges.”

Northern Lights College has launched the Centre for Applied Energy and Environmental Sustainability (CAEES), which will partner with industry and communities to develop training and education for the alternative energy industries. It will offer an expanded curriculum, including traditional trades and emerging clean energy technologies. “[T]he CAEES launch was very, very important to get [a] reaction from industry and make sure that we brought the needs of that community to life so that we can provide a workforce that can contribute and actually innovate as they progress through their careers,” said CAEES Director Dave Jeffers.

In a new article for University Affairs, Loleen Berdahl (University of Saskatchewan) discusses student loneliness and how universities can better support student connection and belonging on campus. Berdahl points to several studies from over the last decade that demonstrate the pervasive issue of student loneliness in education, before describing the importance of social connection to success in higher education. She then explains how universities can combat loneliness by raising awareness, implementing policies and strengthening the campus’s social infrastructure to promote student social connection, and teaching students how to build high-quality relationships and interactions.

Conestoga College has received a $2M donation from Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada Inc to fund the creation of the Toyota Smart Factory Learning Hub at the college’s Cambridge – Fountain Street campus. This new smart factory will be equipped with Industry 4.0 technologies and will offer hands-on experiences to students in engineering and technology programs. CTV News reports that the funding will be used to create three additional manufacturing lines so that an entire class can work on the lines at the same time. “Toyota hires a fair number of co-op students from our programs,” said Conestoga Professor Christine Burns, adding that the tools students use in the lab will be reflective of what “they would actually see in the industry.”

University students are turning to “circus” strategies to survive in today’s world and economy, writes Alison Taylor (University of British Columbia). Taylor describes the many “circus arts”—ranging from high-wire walking (adjusting and recalibrating activities and expectations) to sword swallowing (expending energy instrumentally to avoid burnout)—that students engage in within their academic, work, and social lives. The author writes that students learn to take up these “arts” in different ways depending on their personal situations. While youth may be seen as autonomous and able to stretch themselves into the systems they face, she explains that “contorting” themselves like this comes at a cost. Taylor concludes by detailing the need for a paradigm shift that provides students with the time and space they need to develop their aspirations.

In a recent article for Le Devoir, Zacharie Goudreault discusses how student interest in pursuing an education in Québec may be changing, due to the new tuition fees charged to out-of-province domestic students. Goudreault writes that tuition fees are nearly 18% higher than the Canadian average and 6.4% higher than the Ontario average. Additionally, the 33% fee increase that was put into place in Fall 2024 for these students has had repercussions for English-language universities. The Comité consultatif sur l’accessibilité financière aux études argued that QC should return to its previous approach to enhance education accessibility.

The University of New Brunswick’s McKenna Institute, ContactNB, and a network of partners have launched the AI Adoption in Contact Centres project. This project will accelerate AI adoption and workforce readiness in the province’s contact centre sector by providing organizations and employees the skills, tools, and applied learning experiences they need to integrate AI into their operations. “When we introduce these tools thoughtfully, we strengthen our workforce, make businesses more efficient and create opportunities for our province to thrive in a changing economy,” said McKenna Institute founder Frank McKenna.

Laurentian University has signed a memorandum of understanding with the L M Thapar School of Management at the Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology in India. The signing of the agreement marked the first step of the partnership to enhance collaboration between the institutions, with plans to create MBA and undergraduate pathways, PhD collaborations, faculty exchanges, and joint training programs. “Collaborating with LM Thapar School of Management allows us to connect our students and faculty with new perspectives, research opportunities, and networks that enrich our learning community and strengthen our global presence,” said Laurentian Faculty of Management Dean Dr Parvinder Arora.