| Series of Free Lectures - 2025 |
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Membership Has Its Benefits! Enjoy Summer & Fall with LIFE's Series of Enlightening Lectures Registrations for the upcoming Free Lectures is still open!
Free Lecture #1 - Trophies and Talismans: The Traffic of Human Remains Hybrid: In-person or online through a Zoom webinar. The lectures will also be recorded and available for one week. Law enforcement is often at odds with how to proceed when discovering human remains in private collections or displayed as art. This two-part lecture is a journey into how and why the undisposed dead have become such emblematic features of contemporary culture. This lecture also investigates the blurred lines between education, collection, and possession. By tracing these entanglements across museums, private homes, and online markets, we confront urgent questions about consent, historical violence, and what it means to “own” the dead in a modern world increasingly preoccupied with identity, provenance, and justice. Dr. Myriam Nafte explores the shifting role of human remains beyond conventional burial and institutional settings. Her current research examines how bodies and bones move through legal, academic, and underground networks, alongside cultural attitudes toward death, ownership, and the ethics of display. Date: July 10th, 2025 Time: Thursday, 03:00 p.m. Presenter: Dr. Myriam Nafte
Free Lecture #2 - The Many Sides of Winston Churchill, 1874-1965 Hybrid: In-person or online through a Zoom webinar. The lecture will also be recorded and available for one week. Instantly recognizable, Winston Churchill is one of the foremost figures in British history. Since his death in 1965, his popularity throughout much of the Western world has remained high. In 2002, a BBC poll voted Churchill the “Greatest Briton” of all time. Yet there are those who challenge this view, who point to his personal failings, egregious policy mistakes, lack of judgment and attention to detail, and unscrupulous ambition. As we move further away from the Second World War, hero worship of Churchill is likely to fade, to be replaced by a more sober estimation of his qualities and abilities. This lecture charts his career in an attempt to identify and assess the real Winston Churchill. Dates: July 17, 2025 Time: Thursday 12:30 p.m Presenter: Dr. Gordon Bannerman
Free Lecture #3 - Cyber Security for End Users - That’s YOU! Online through a Zoom webinar. Feel more confident and comfortable online. In this welcoming workshop, Ian Langdon from Agile Computer will share practical steps for using technology safely and effectively. We'll explore everyday best practices and look at the exciting, ever-changing world of technology, all in a clear and accessible way. Leave with the tools to enjoy your digital life with greater peace of mind. Date: August 21, 2025 Time: Thursday, 12:30 p.m. Presenter: Ian Langdon
Free Lecture #4 - “Taking Action Together: Five Ways to Make Homes more affordable in Ontario." Online through a Zoom webinar. Learn about the key causes of the housing crisis we're in and what we can do to end it. Franz Hartmann, Coordinator of the Alliance for a Liveable Ontario, will help make sense of why condo units are sitting empty across the GTA while finding an affordable home in a neighbourhood you want to live in is increasingly difficult. He will offer hope by revealing doable solutions and propose practical actions governments can take. Date: September 17, 2025 Time: Wednesday 10:00 – 11:00 a.m. Presenter: Franz Hartmann
Free Lecture #5 - “It’ll Never Happen to Me” is Happening to 9.9 Million Canadians Hybrid: In-person or online through a Zoom webinar. The lectures will also be recorded and available for one week. In 2024, more than 1 in 10 Torontonians turned to a food bank. This presentation will explore who is using food banks—demographics and trends in client numbers—along with the growing severity of food insecurity. It will also examine the root causes driving this crisis and outline potential policy solutions to address them. Dates: September 24, 2025 Time: Wednesday, 10:00 a.m. Presenter: Neil Hetherington, CEO - Daily Bread Food Bank
Free Lecture #6 - Music as Medicine: What Science Can—and Can’t—Tell Us (Yet) Hybrid: In-person or online through a Zoom webinar. The lecture will also be recorded and available for one week. Music is everywhere—on our playlists, in our memories, and increasingly, in health headlines. Social media is filled with bold claims about music’s power to heal: that it can lift our spirits, reduce anxiety, strengthen social bonds, and even aid recovery from brain injury or neurodegenerative disease. But what does the science actually say? In this talk, we’ll explore the growing body of research on music as medicine—what we know, what we’re still figuring out, and why it matters. Along the way, you’ll be invited to take part in a few simple and enjoyable musical experiences—no musical background required! Dr. Frank Russo studies how music changes the brain—and how those changes help us connect, communicate, and thrive as we age. As a professor of psychology and director of the SMART Lab at Toronto Metropolitan University, he leads research that explores how singing and listening can improve hearing, reduce stress, and boost brain health, especially in older adults and those with communication challenges. Date: October 22, 2025 Time: Wednesday, 12:30 p.m. Presenter: Dr. Frank Russo
These events are free to attend but you must register. |
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Toronto Metropolitan University
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Toronto ON M5B 2K3
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