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Ontario Tech acknowledges the lands and people of the Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nation.

We are thankful to be welcome on these lands in friendship. The lands we are situated on are covered by the Williams Treaties and are the traditional territory of the Mississaugas, a branch of the greater Anishinaabeg Nation, including Algonquin, Ojibway, Odawa and Pottawatomi. These lands remain home to many Indigenous nations and peoples.

We acknowledge this land out of respect for the Indigenous nations who have cared for Turtle Island, also called North America, from before the arrival of settler peoples until this day. Most importantly, we acknowledge that the history of these lands has been tainted by poor treatment and a lack of friendship with the First Nations who call them home.

This history is something we are all affected by because we are all treaty people in Canada. We all have a shared history to reflect on, and each of us is affected by this history in different ways. Our past defines our present, but if we move forward as friends and allies, then it does not have to define our future.

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UOIT researcher appears in documentary about digital life

Dr. Isabel Pedersen, Canada Research Chair in Digital Life, Media and Culture.
Dr. Isabel Pedersen, Canada Research Chair in Digital Life, Media and Culture.

Dr. Isabel Pedersen, Tier 2 Canada Research Chair (CRC) in Digital Life, Media and Culture, was recently featured in a TVO documentary entitled Life After Digital. The one-hour special explores ways digital technology has changed human life in the last few years. Specifically, it focuses on the consequences that have arisen from the hundreds of billions of personal images shared online since the dawn of the digital age.

Dr. Pedersen discussed participatory media, such as Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat and Instagram, where the audience plays an active role in the process of collecting, reporting, analyzing and disseminating content. She noted that participatory media seems to be mandatory in today’s network culture; however, users haven’t had time to sort out their values about online participation. She also talked about online social media as a form of autobiography, where users disclose their life stories by posting status updates, photos and other content.

The documentary premiered on October 15. It re-aired on October 19, 20 and 23.

As a follow-up to the documentary, Dr. Pedersen also appeared as a guest on TVO’s The Agenda with Steve Paikin on October 16. The discussion, entitled Our Digital Lives, explored the good, bad and unintended consequences of living life online.