The Royal Society of Canada is venerable institution 鈥� more than 130 years old 鈥� and being named a fellow is one of the highest recognitions a Canadian academic can receive. Normally, fellowship comes later in a distinguished career. But for two AV俱乐部 faculty members, Roberta Barker and Randall Martin, the honour has come comparatively early.
That鈥檚 because the RSC has created a new College of New Scholars, Artists and Scientists. Its mission is 鈥渢o address issues or particular concern to new scholars, artists and scientists, for the advancement of understanding and the benefit of society, taking advantage of the interdisciplinary approaches fostered by the establishment of the College.鈥�
Dr. Barker and Dr. Martin are two of the 91 inaugural members of the college drawn from universities across Canada.聽
Bridging disciplines
鈥淚 was blown away to be invited to join the college," says Dr. Barker. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a big honour.鈥�
An associate professor in Dal鈥檚 Fountain School of Performing Arts and at King鈥檚, Dr. Barker is an award-winning research and teacher, and an active director of opera and theatre.Her research focuses on the relationship between performance and the social construction of identity. Her latest investigations explore the performance of illness in the 19th century.
鈥淚n the last few years, I鈥檝e had the chance to get involved with interdisciplinary projects relating to medical history and medical humanities, and that has been extremely exciting,鈥� she says.
Halifax and the Canadian contexts have particularly inspired her work. 鈥淚鈥檝e become really committed to the study of performance in Canada, partially because it鈥檚 such a fabulous theatrical community today and partially because the history of realism in Canada is incredibly interesting. As a theatre historian, Halifax is an awesome place to be because it was a hive of theatrical activity in the late 18th and 19th centuries.鈥�
Improving our understanding
Dr. Martin is a Killam Professor in the Department of Physics and Atmospheric Science as well as the Department of Chemistry. He leads the Atmospheric Composition Analysis group.
鈥淲e seek to understand how humans or the environment interacts with the atmosphere to influence its composition and how that influences the quality of air that we breathe,鈥� he explains.
The group combines satellite remote sensing, global modeling and ground-based observation to produce an estimate of fine particulate matter in the atmosphere. The estimates they produce inform policy decisions to improve the health of Canadians and are also used to improve awareness of the quality of air that people breathe around the world.
鈥淢y work is inspired by concern for human well-being and for the environment in which we live鈥� I enjoy trying to understand why things happen, how things happen and I enjoy the stimulation of working with talented people around the world.鈥�
Government departments like Health Canada and Environment Canada, as well as public policy organizations like the World Health Organization and the World Meteorological organization, are using Dr. Martin鈥檚 work to make policy recommendations and decisions. He has won prestigious awards for his research and teaching, including the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada鈥檚 E.W.R. Steacie Memorial Fellowship.
Both researchers will be officially welcomed into the Royal Society of Canada鈥檚 College of New Scholars, Artists and Scientists at a ceremony in November.
RSC videos
Roberta Barker
Randall Martin