Beyond the Lab Bench: Western Science Alumni Shape the Future

January 12, 2025 Dania Liu

Western Schulich

You’ve probably heard of actor Simu Liu and NDP party leader Jagmeet Singh, but let’s introduce some Western alumni in the scientific community.

Frederick Grant Banting

Frederick Grant Banting (The Nobel Prize)

As the codeveloper of insulin, Dr. Frederick Banting was awarded Canada’s first Nobel prize in 1923. However, his career had not been smooth sailing–he failed to secure a hospital position in Toronto, and his plans to open a private medical practice in London, Ontario, ended up being unsuccessful. Disheartened by these career blocks, he started working as a part-time physiology professor for medical students at the University of Western Ontario. On Halloween in 1920, Banting devised an idea with a potential to cure diabetes, a disease more terrifying than any horror movie at the time. While preparing a lecture about the role of the pancreas in blood sugar regulation, he wrote down an idea to isolate an internal pancreatic secretion. Banting risked all of his assets to conduct research in Toronto, succeeding alongside Charles Best to treat symptoms in diabetic dogs. After further experimentation, he discovered a highly effective lifesaving therapy for diabetes mellitus. Today, Banting’s home in London on 442 Adelaide Street has been turned into a museum, also known as “The Birthplace of Insulin.”

Roberta Lynn Bondar

Astronaut Roberta Bondar, Canada's first woman in space. (NASA)

Dr. Roberta Bondar became Canada’s first woman and neurologist to go to space inside NASA’s space shuttle Discovery in 1992. Prior to becoming an astronaut, Dr. Bondar’s education background consists of an MS in pathology at Western University (1971), a PhD in neuroscience at the University of Toronto (1974) and an MD at McMaster University (1977). In her medical career, Dr. Bondar specialized in the nervous system and worked as a clinical science researcher. With a dream of traveling to space since she was eight years old, she applied to the Canadian Astronaut Program in 1983. She was selected alongside five men because of her substantial research and clinical work experiences. After retiring from the program, Dr. Bondar kept expanding her career in professional nature photography. Inspired by her experiences in space, she published a chronicle (Touching the Earth), four books (including On the Shuttle: Eight Days in Space), and held several photography exhibitions. She later established The Roberta Bondar Foundation, a non-profit organization with a goal of improving environmental knowledge through art. Dr. Bondar’s journey from a neurologist to an astronaut to a photographer and environmentalist exhibits how hard work and curiosity can lead one on various paths.

Hans Moravec

Hans Moravec (https://hansmoravec.blogspot.com/)

Moravec’s paradox, one of the most fascinating concepts in AI, states that computers can complete tasks that humans find difficult, such as mathematics and logic. On the other hand, computers struggle with tasks that humans find easy, like walking and image recognition. Dr. Hans Moravec came up with this concept alongside a group of AI researchers in the 1980s, after completing a bachelor’s degree in mathematics at Acadia University (1969), a master’s degree in computer science at Western University (1971), and a Ph.D in computer science at Stanford University (1980). He continued his career at Carnegie Mellon University, as the director of the Robotics Institute. The field of technology and AI is advancing at an unprecedented rate nowadays, with the help of Moravec's contributions.

Margaret Chan

Dr Margaret Chan (WHO)

The most powerful international public health official, Dr. Margaret Chan, graduated from Western medical school in 1977. Her career in public health began at the Hong Kong Department of Health in 1978, followed by a promotion to the Director of Health position of Hong Kong. In her role, she managed the outbreaks of avian influenza and SARS. After joining WHO as Director of the Department for Protection of the Human Environment, Dr. Chan was soon elected Director-General of WHO.

Amanda Holden

Amanda Holden, BSc’87 (Western Alumni)

Amanda Holden is this year’s recipient of the Western Science Alumni Award of Achievement. After graduating in 1987 with a degree in Computer Science, Holden became one of the few women in her field. She grew professionally through training and management roles at TD Bank, and succeeded in her first executive position at Visa, where she oversaw operations, technology and fraud prevention. In 2003, Holden was promoted to Vice President, and moved to Interac Association six years later. Currently, her work at Deloitte focuses on fraud prevention in the government sector. Throughout her career, one of her proudest accomplishments is her contribution toward the Interac e-Transfer system, a method of secure contactless and mobile payments that have arguably replaced cash and physical cards. Having experienced the loneliness of being the only girl in her CS350 PC programming lab back in school, Holden has become a strong advocate for women in STEM. She is the founder of the SAS Women in Analytics Network, a networking community that promotes the growth of women in technology.

Jen Gunter

Dr. Jen Gunter (BIg Think)

Obstetrician, gynecologist, pain medicine physician and author of several New York Times Best Sellers, Dr. Jen Gunter completed her residency training in obstetrics and gynecology at Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry in 1995. Known as the Internet’s OB/GYN, Dr. Gunter advocates for women’s health. Her latest book, Blood: The science, medicine, and mythology of menstruation, was written after she noticed a rise in online disinformation regarding the menstrual cycle. Previously, Dr. Gunter has released two New York Times Instant Best Sellers, called The Vagina Bible, educating women and men about the lower reproductive tract, and The Menopause Manifesto, which talks about perimenopause and menopause. In addition to her successful books, Dr. Gunter has presented two Ted Talks with 3 million views.

Your name next?

Whether you dream of winning a Nobel Prize, exploring space, writing best-selling books, or pursuing something entirely different, a science degree from Western can open the door to endless possibilities. Science is an incredibly diverse field, and whatever your passion may be, you can make a meaningful contribution to the scientific community. When that happens, return to The Current, and we'll share your story.