Rise to the Climate Challenge: Accounting for the Future of Agribusiness

Panel members left to right: Diana Fox Carney, Stephenie Fox, Jean-Benoit Deslauriers, Charles Cho, John MacQuarries and moderator Nancy Foran.

Student from the audience asking the panel a question during Q&A

Audience view of stage during opening remarks 

Panelists Stephenie Fox, Jean-Benoit Deslauriers and Charles Cho during panel discussion

Nancy Foran, panel moderator, ESG Partners and Chair of the Sobey School Advisory Board

Diana Fox Carney,  a global expert in climate and energy policy speaks to audience

Group photo left to right: Diana Fox Carney, Stephenie Fox, Jean-Benoit Deslauriers, Charles Cho, John MacQuarries, Nancy Foran, Adrianna Timmons and Dr. Margaret McKee 

Group photo from Sustainability Case Competition

Group photo of Sustainability Case Competition Winners 

Students presenting during Sustainability Case Competition

The Sobey School of Business recently held its fifth annual Responsible Leadership Day on November 17, 2023, attracting over 120 attendees, including students, faculty, alumni, researchers, industry experts, and government partners. The event centered around the theme "Accounting and Sustainable Business," sparking in-depth discussions on food security and the pursuit of a more sustainable future through the new international sustainability reporting standards. 

Renowned climate and energy policy expert, Diana Fox Carney, set the tone with a stark assessment of climate challenges in agribusiness. "This year marks the hottest on record, and it's only set to get hotter," she emphasized. Highlighting the vast implications, she stressed, "Extreme heat affects farm workers, floods and storms disrupt supply chains—there's much cause for concern." 

Fox Carney pivoted the conversation to address agriculture's significant impact on the climate. "Despite incredible yield increases, agriculture's sustainability is wavering," she cautioned. "Currently, agriculture monopolizes over 70% of the world's water, a concerning statistic." 

Following the keynote, an expert panel -- moderated by Nancy Foran from ESG Partners and Sobey School Advisory Board Chair -- explored actionable solutions for climate concerns in agriculture. Panelists, including Charles Cho from York University’s Schulich Business School, Jean-Benoit Deslauriers from Benjamin Bridge winery, John MacQuarrie from Cavendish Farms, and Stephenie Fox from CPA Canada, emphasized the direct effects of climate change on Canadian business. The discussion also touched upon redefining sustainability in business, stimulating an engaging dialogue with the audience. 

As the conference concluded, the discussions revealed a collective call for innovation in transforming agriculture. There was an emphasis on the need for companies in the agribusiness sector to devise transition plans to get to Net Zero, support product carbon footprint labeling, and avoid overreliance on regenerative agriculture without a comprehensive understanding of its harms and benefits. As Fox Carney suggests, “If we are going to overcome the challenges inherent in transforming agriculture – producing more nutritious food with far fewer emissions, at a reasonable cost while also protecting water supplies, nature, nutritional content, etc. – we can’t rely on existing technologies and practices alone; we are definitely going to need innovation.” The collective sentiment highlighted the urgency and importance of collaborative efforts toward sustainable practices in the agribusiness industry. 

 The 2023 Responsible Leadership Day continued with the Sustainability Case Competition, presented in partnership with the CPA Nova Scotia Education Foundation, with $2,500 in prizes. A team of SMU BComm students: Katherine Hanscom, Mark Mitton, Pasang Sherpa, and Douglas Vincent placed first out of the eight teams.  

About Responsible Leadership Day   

Responsible Leadership Day is a flagship event for the Sobey School of Business. It brings together students and researchers with industry and government partners. It highlights the school’s commitment as signatories of PRME, a UN initiative that promotes Principles for Responsible Management Education. The Sobey School of Business is committed to upholding sustainability, as demonstrated by its research, student projects and course content.

Women in Business event highlights networking and sustainability

Chantal Brine BA’09 discusses the importance of forming meaningful connections through strategic networking techniques and how it can empower your future.

Co-Chairs of the Women in Business Committee and hosts of the “Sobey School of Business - Elevating Women in Business: Blazing Trails”, Manar Salem and Meredith Drost, welcoming our panelists and speakers.

(Left to Right) Moderator AVP, Diversity Excellence, Rohini Bannerjee and panelists Marley MacDonald MA’14, Rebecca de Condé BComm’15, Sara Shabnam BComm’15, and Dr. Denise Daley discussing their personal experiences with environmental sustainability and its positive impact.

Committee and Volunteers: (Left to Right) Luke McOnie, Tiffany Delaney, Rhonda Harrington, Mohosina Afrin Chowdhury, Nimrah Mujeeb, Manar Salem, Meredith Drost, Hallie Wedge, Stephanie Letemplier, Shrilakshmi Subramanian, Tabassum Fatima, Areej Zara.

Dr. Mark Raymond, Interim Dean of the Sobey School of Business opening remarks for the Elevating Women in Business: Blazing Trails event. 

Attendees practicing the networking skills that keynote Chantal Brine BA’09 presented on.

Dr Robert Summerby-Murray President at Saint Mary’s delivering the closing remarks.

On October 17, the Sobey School of Business celebrated women in business, with the Elevating Women in Business: Blazing Trails event. Now in its 5th year, the annual event shines a light on women business leaders and this year, brought a special focus on how to create a more sustainable world.

Keynote speaker Chantal Brine BA’09, who is the CEO and Founder of EnPoint, spoke to a crowd of more than 80 attendees about the importance of mentorship and strategic networking techniques. Another highlight was a panel discussion with Dr. Denise Daley, Executive Director of the Parker Street Food and Furniture Bank; Sara Shabnam BComm’15, Founder & CEO of Better Day Vintage; Rebecca de Condé BComm’15, Owner of Effex Curated Vintage; and Marley MacDonald MA’14, Director of Responsibility and Sustainability at the NSLC, who came together to discuss sustainability among their respective professions.

During this event, Dr. Rohini Bannerjee, AVP Diversity Excellence, moderated the discussion which explored how these accomplished professionals seamlessly integrated sustainability into their careers and discovered the art of building meaningful connections through networking.

This thought-provoking and inspirational gathering not only fostered a sense of unity within the Saint Mary’s community but also set a precedent, illuminating the path toward a brighter and more sustainable future.

Innovative retail store will revolutionize how we shop

Saint Mary’s University, recognized as a top Canadian university, is teaming up with some of Canada’s most influential retail companies to create one of the foremost retail laboratories on the continent. It’s all part of the ground-breaking research at SMU’s David Sobey Centre for Innovation in Retailing and Services.

Visitors will soon become part of a living experiment designed to transform the future of shopping and reshape the retail landscape. Students and visitors to the south end of campus will walk into a deceptively simple convenience store that is actually a cutting-edge laboratory.

The retail robot is programmed to glide through stores tracking price tags, missing items and other information, which it relays to employees.

Inside, a retail robot glides through the aisles, logging items that have run low and sending messages to the stockroom. The robot is designed for large stores where it tracks inventory on shelves and assesses planogram and price compliance, explains Ramesh Venkat, Director of the David Sobey Centre. “The robot, equipped with cameras, matches price tags to the computerized lists, checks price tags for compliance for the latest discounts, spots misplaced or missing items, generates a report and sends a real-time alert to an employee.”

And if a shopper wants to take an item home? No need to look for a cashier; there isn’t one. Instead, when you exit the store your credit or debit card is charged automatically. But wait, maybe you want to try on something before purchasing? Step in front of 3D digital screen to model clothing using virtual fitting technology.

SMU researchers are building a futuristic “frictionless customer experience” without inconveniences such as line-ups and check-outs, where customer privacy and protection of information are priorities. “We don't collect any video footage or store any credit card or debit card information. We will provide best-in-class privacy and security, which will set us apart from companies that are doing computer vision in retail environments,” adds Venkat.

The David Sobey Centre for Innovation in Retailing and Services brings together university researchers and Canadian retailers to test new technologies such as artificial intelligence, augmented reality, and robotics. Vivek Sood MBA’98, Executive Vice President, Related Businesses, Empire Company Limited and Sobeys Inc., and Chair of the David Sobey Centre notes, “The retail sector is one of the main drivers of Canada’s economy and an incredibly exciting place of major innovation right now. Each time I visit campus I am eager to see the advances being made by the professors and their top research students.”

Students gain hands-on experience building tech solutions for retail

The retail store and its related labs offer SMU students unparalleled opportunities for hands-on learning and collaboration. Saint Mary’s University professors and students are building leading-edge tech from scratch: computer vision systems, augmented reality and robots.

The digital lab and mock store will allow researchers to track shoppers as they interact with digital platforms, including websites and advertisements. In the biometrics lab, graduate students will use advanced tools such as EEG (Electroencephalography), eye-tracker glasses and GSR (Galvanic Skin Response) sensors to understand customer behaviour and decision-making. Faculty and student researchers from several disciplines–marketing, psychology, information systems, engineering, and computer science all benefit.

Jason Rhinelander

Engineering Professor Jason Rhinelander, Head of Technology and Innovation for the David Sobey Centre, understands that the David Sobey Centre presents him and SMU students with a huge opportunity. “Retail has so many challenges and that is key for engineers and computer scientists. We don’t invent algorithms for the sake of it. We need problems to solve.”

“We can benefit small and medium-sized Atlantic Canadian companies recovering from the pandemic and battling stressors like inflation. By placing their products in our store which acts as a ‘living lab,’ we can provide data about how customers feel about their packaging, service and overall quality. We can also test the retail environment for accessibility: lighting levels, noise levels, and colour schemes.”

Watch: Jason Rhinelander loves solving problems with technology

Vinod Bachhao

Vinod Bachhao came to SMU as a Master’s student in 2015, graduated to PhD studies and is now the university’s first AI engineer. “I could have gone to Toronto, but I love Halifax and the environment here. I grabbed the opportunity to work on the SMU robot and state-of-the-art AI and computer vision. There is nothing better than this.”

The labs, mock store and the cashier-less store all provide the infrastructure for exploring new ideas and innovations that can shape the future of Canadian retail. “The purpose of the David Sobey Centre is to develop and share innovations, expertise and skills that help build a vibrant retail sector–domestically and globally. This new infrastructure and the collaboration between researchers, retailers and technology companies vitally enable us to achieve that vision. It's really exciting,” says Venkat.

ICCM celebrates 20 years of co-operative management education and research excellence

Graduates of the 2023 MMCCU class

This year marks 20 years since the launch of the International Centre for Co-operative Management’s (ICCM) flagship Master of Management, Co-operatives and Credit Unions program. Today, ICCM has grown to offer a suite of online, part-time graduate programs, short courses, a credit union leadership program, international co-op study tours and special topics webinars.

Since their creation, ICCM’s education programs have engaged more than 1,100 co-operative professionals in over 360 organizations from 41 nations. Additionally, ICCM is acknowledged as a global leader in co-operative research, which has culminated in symposia, books, journal articles and reports.

Read the 2023 ICCM Impact Report

On September 21 and 22, 2023, more than seventy founders, faculty, staff, students, alumni, partners and friends gathered at Saint Mary’s University to mark ICCM’s 20-year anniversary. This event focused on learning, networking, visioning and celebrating and featured:

• A day of storytelling, reflexivity, visioning and knowledge-sharing;

• Local co-operative tours with Glitter Bean Café Co-operative, Bus Stop Theatre Co-operative, Healthy Minds Cooperative and Halifax Circus Co-operative;

• A harbour boat tour and networking social;

• Convocation ceremony for the 2023 class followed by an evening of revelry.

“During my time with ICCM, I can see the impact of our work within the co-operative sector,” says Karen Miner, ICCM Managing Director and Adjunct Professor. “We have built a global network of partners, been meaningfully involved in key areas of research, and provided a wide spectrum of education opportunities for working professionals. We continue to innovate and adapt to meet the needs of co-operative enterprises of all sizes, types, sectors, and locations. Marking 20 years is a significant achievement.”

ICCM exists to elevate the global co-operative sector through education and research that is by, for and about co-operatives.

Saint Mary's University shines at Atlantic Schools of Business Case Competition

Ashish Ganapathy, Lauren Golding, Professor Jeff Muton, Ramji Srinivasan, Shiva Kakkar

Team 1: Lindsey Nalunga, Katherine Hanscom, Mark Mitton

Team 2: Ashish Ganapathy, Lauren Golding, Ramji Srinivasan, Shiva Kakkar

On September 24, Sobey School of Business Bachelor of Commerce students Lauren Golding, Shiva Kakkar, Ramji Srinivasan and Ashish Ganapathy walked away with a second-place win at the Atlantic Schools of Business (ASB) Case Competition sponsored by Grant Thornton LLP (Canada), hosted by Mount Saint Vincent University. The competition was part of the annual ASB Conference—one of Canada’s longest-running academic business conferences. 

“I had a wonderful, enriching and insightful experience at the ASB Case Competition,” said Ganapathy, a third-year BComm student majoring in Accounting and Finance. “I prepared forecasts using financial analysis techniques and improved my public speaking and financial analysis skills.” 

Teams representing universities across the Atlantic provinces participated in a competition where students were asked to analyze and create a solution to a business case (a narrative about a real-life company and the problems it’s facing) and present it to a judging panel. This year’s business case was centered around a Newfoundland-based Childcare Cooperative in need of expansion to meet the overwhelming demand for such services.

“It was a proud moment for our team. Our case was based on real challenges faced by Atlantic Canadians—immigration and population growth. We were tested on an array of skills like critical thinking, quantitative and analytical skills.” said Shiva Kakkar, a second-year BComm student majoring in Finance. “Jeff Muton, professor for the BCOM 4481 Business Case Competition course, provided excellent mentoring throughout our preparation for the competition. The learning experience was exceptionally valuable, as we acquired a solid framework for effectively tackling business cases.”

The Bachelor of Commerce Business Case Competition course takes students from classroom learning to real-world challenges. Students get to test their abilities to think on their feet and compete against other students, in consultation with industry leaders. 

At the Sobey School of Business, students will not only learn how to do business well, they’ll learn how to do business for good. 

Remembering Dr. David Sobey, C.M., DComm'91, Chancellor Emeritus

Dr. David Sobey, CM, DComm’91, Chancellor Emeritus
1931-2023

The Saint Mary’s University community mourns the passing of Dr. David Sobey, C.M., DComm’91, Chancellor Emeritus of Saint Mary’s University. We join with his family, friends and colleagues in sharing their grief and honouring the life of this steadfast Nova Scotian and exemplary Canadian.

David has left an indelible mark on the lives of students, faculty and staff at Saint Mary's University. His unwavering generosity and guidance over the years have transformed the university and the Sobey School of Business. His legacy will continue to shine through the countless students he has empowered to pursue their dreams and through the David Sobey Centre for Innovation in Retailing and Services established through David’s generosity and vision.          

David Sobey had a long and warm association with the university and in particular with the Sobey School of Business named in honour of his father, Frank H. Sobey. David received an Honorary Doctorate of Commerce in 1991 and cut the ribbon for the new Sobey Building in 1998.  Along with his wife, Faye, he was a strong supporter of Saint Mary’s for more than three decades, beginning in 1986 with his service on the Board of Governors. From 1991 to 1998, he chaired the Building on Strength Capital Campaign, helping to raise $24 million. When the Sobey School of Business Advisory Committee met for the first time in 2002, David was a member. From 2008 to 2010, he served as Saint Mary’s first lay chancellor, conferring degrees to thousands of students at convocation.

In 2019, David announced the $18 million gift from the Sobey family, The Sobey Foundation, Sobeys Inc. and Empire Company Limited. As part of that gift, the Sobeys Inspiration Hub is opening this fall, another stellar tribute to the legacy of David Sobey, the Sobey family, The Sobey Foundation, Sobeys Inc. and Empire Company Limited.

“We are very saddened to hear the news of David’s passing,” said President and Vice-Chancellor Dr. Robert Summerby-Murray. “We are honoured to count David Sobey as a friend and guide over many years. He visited campus not only for important events and meetings but often came to watch the progress of the latest building project or meet with faculty, staff and students and hear about their achievements. I will miss his presence and thoughtful leadership that have touched the lives of so many.”

We invite the campus community to sign a book of condolences that will be in the lobby of the Sobey School of Business.

David with members of the Sobey family

A Saint Mary’s Times article from 1992

Dr. Sobey at Convocation in 2010

David Sobey and honorary degree recipient Bob Kelly

David Sobey at convocation

L-R: David Sobey, Rob Dexter, Fred Smithers, Paul Sobey

David Sobey with Myra and Larry Freeman

David Sobey announcing the $18 million Sobey gift in 2019

Meet the new face of retail: the Saint Mary's retail robot

L-R, Mohammad Rahimipour MSc in Applied Science; Professor Adel Merabet; Lucas Orychock first-year Diploma of Engineering; Uzair Tahir MSc in Applied Science; Abhishek Vijayakumar Latha MSc in Computing and Data Analytics; Francis Kuzhippallil MSc Computing and Data Analytics.

Students are arriving to Saint Mary’s University from Nova Scotia and around the world to create the next generation of robots.

Uzair Tahir

“It was a very big decision to leave my country, my family, come to Canada and start from zero,” says Uzair Tahir, a Master of Science in Applied Science student who left Pakistan to join the team in Dr. Adel Merabet’s lab on the third floor of the McNally Building. Only three months into his studies, he is enhancing his skills in computer vision and machine learning and can see a bright future. “My work here leads to a career in robotics and I see the potential for commercial application.”

The Saint Mary’s robot is the brainchild of the university’s David Sobey Centre for Innovation in Retailing and Services. The robot is just one of several technology-based innovations currently being pioneered at the Centre, all designed to transform our everyday shopping experience. The robot will certainly free up retail employees from humdrum tasks, but that is only the beginning. The real advantage is its ability to capture voluminous data about customers’ buying habits, which can lead to greater efficiency in inventory management and eventually enable retailers to anticipate shopper demands. Combine the robot with machine learning and AI, as the Saint Mary’s team is doing, and we are entering the Fourth Industrial Revolution which will transform how we work, conduct business and how we shop for goods and services.

Does this mean robots will commandeer grocery aisles or replace humans at your favourite big box store? No, but robots are finding their niche by enabling better data capture before and after point of sale, allowing managers to respond more quickly to customer demands for everything from potato chips to batteries.

Students work together on the retail robot in Professor Merabet’s lab

Francis Kuzhippallil and Abhishek Vijayakumar Latha, both current students in the Master of Science in Computing and Data Analytics program, see the project as a great gain for their future careers. They contributed to the development of algorithms and codes that enable the robot to take photos of products on store shelves and transmit the information without overlap or duplication, a key factor in planogram compliance, which lets retailers know exactly which products have been moved or purchased and when to restock.

“I want to be one step ahead and this project gives me that opportunity,” says Latha. For Francis Kuzhippallil, the project has boosted his portfolio. “Interviewers and colleagues are always interested to know more about this project. I am honoured to have a role.”

Francis Kuzhippallil

Abhishek Vijayakumar Latha

Mohammad Rahimipour, who is in the Master of Science in Applied Science program, came to Saint Mary’s from Iran in 2022. “My experience here has been amazing,” says Rahimipour. “Saint Mary’s University is very multi-cultural. The environment is collaborative; students know their input is valued and the professors support us.”

Mohammad Rahimipour

Rahimipour is the team leader—he has led the construction of version 3, a robot that is autonomous and able to operate without a human controller. New cameras allow it to take accurate photos at a greater distance, all advantages for a machine that will need to navigate around bargain shoppers or avoid a ‘cleanup on aisle two.’

“I have made a lot of changes to the robot. I see my progress every day as the robot performs and the project improves. I can’t wait to try out the robot in a real store. That’s the next step,” says Rahimipour.

Lucas Orychock

Entering his second year in Engineering at Saint Mary’s, Lucas Orychock from Bedford, Nova Scotia, knows it is unusual for an undergraduate student to gain this type of first-hand experience. During his summer work with Dr. Merabet’s team, he had the opportunity to learn how to use sophisticated tools to capture photos from high-quality cameras. “Achieving this level of exposure to hands-on research is motivating. There is a place for everybody’s input.”

For Professor Adel Merabet, the collaboration with the David Sobey Centre for Innovation in Retailing and Services and the participation of many students from programs such as Engineering, the Master of Science in Applied Science and Computing and Data Analytics, is the perfect example of a project that is interdisciplinary, combining the talents of many researchers and pragmatic, demonstrating real-world application and commercial potential.

Sobey School undergrad contributes to COVID research for Scientific Reports

Kyle Morton BComm’23

Kyle Morton had yet to complete his undergraduate degree at Saint Mary’s University when he used machine learning in a ground-breaking study of the COVID-19 virus for Scientific Reports. To contribute to an article in the world’s largest scientific journal would be an accomplishment for more experienced researchers. For Morton, it was a miracle.

 “I remember when my economics professor, Yigit Aydede, told me the article had been accepted,” said Morton. “I jumped out of my seat and clapped my hands. It was another fantastic experience that Saint Mary’s made possible.”

Morton participated in the research project over six months during 2022, when he linked two large data sets, one from Statistics Canada and the other from Nova Scotia’s 811 system that recorded influenza symptoms during the first four months of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Dr. Yigit Aydede and Kyle Morton work together examine data for their research

The resulting article by Saint Mary’s University’s Dr. Yigit Aydede, and Jan Ditzen, Free University of Bolzano, Italy, Identifying the regional drivers of influenza-like illness in Nova Scotia, Canada, with dominance analysis - Scientific Reports, unveils a new methodology, one that may assist health officials to both predict where viruses will spread and target interventions to halt them. Read more about the study.

“Working with large data sets, it is easy for errors to go unnoticed, because you cannot visually inspect them. The challenge was: How do you make sure there are no mistakes that will end up leading to the wrong conclusions when you actually perform your analysis?”

Morton sees machine learning as a third form of statistics, one that is predictive. Once he had prepared the data, making sure it was clean and free from errors, Professor Aydede and the research team used powerful algorithms to combine both sets. The results revealed the spatial as well as the temporal spread of the virus in real-time, something that was only possible due to the extraordinary and detailed data concerning COVID-19 symptoms, unparalleled access to Nova Scotia’s 811 records and the unique adaptation of algorithms originally designed for the finance industry.

The opportunity to study and work alongside Dr. Aydede in the Sobey School of Business has transformed Morton’s career aspirations, inspiring him to use machine learning to solve problems.

“I chose Saint Mary’s because it had a very good reputation for its business school. I liked the smaller yet international campus and the undergraduate focus. I gained a lot more experience, working with my peers and my professors one-on-one; I would not have had the same opportunity at other, larger institutions.”

While studying in the Bachelor of Commerce program at the Sobey School of Business, Morton was the recipient of two scholarships from donors to Saint Mary’s University: The Chrysler Canada Scholarship and the KPMG Future Leaders Scholarship. He also received the Fred and Ruth Stork German Studies Award from Waterloo University. This Fall, Morton begins his Master’s in Data Science at the London School of Economics, something he describes as “a dream come true.”

Sobey School of Business launches new Bachelor of Commerce curriculum

Leadership and innovation in sustainability and entrepreneurship

The Sobey School of Business has launched its new Bachelor of Commerce (BComm) curriculum in time for the Fall 2023 academic term. After extensive consultation with students and stakeholders including alumni, business leaders and entrepreneurs, new core courses have been developed in sustainability, entrepreneurship and operations management to complement Saint Mary’s exceptional foundational business courses in management, finance and accounting.  

“Business is constantly changing, and we have adapted our curriculum to respond to demands from industry and students alike,” says Interim Dean Mark Raymond. “Today’s students are extremely conscientious and mindful of their place in the world. Here, students learn the fundamentals of good business as well as how to do business for good.”

BComm student Adrianna Timmons (left) speaking at the 2023 PRME Global Forum

BComm student Adrianna Timmons learned about the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals in her first-year classes and then travelled with her professors to New York to speak at an international conference supported by the United Nations. Back in Halifax, she is planning a new student society to promote sustainable business practices.

“It was eye-opening. There were people from institutions around the world, all dedicated to making a change and developing groundbreaking tools, everything from software to management practices. It really gives me hope for the future.”

One of the most unique aspects of the Sobey School of Business BComm program is the extent of customization and flexibility. There is the option to participate in the co-op program, international learning experiences and students can choose majors and minors relevant to them such as marketing, economics and entrepreneurship, integrating elective courses from Arts and Science in everything from Indigenous culture to computing science. The result is a contemporary program, providing students with knowledge and skills to make a positive impact on people, organizations and the planet.

The Sobey School of Business is one of the most highly respected business schools in Canada, one of only seven business schools in Canada and the only school in Atlantic Canada to be awarded accreditation with AACSB and EQUIS–global organizations that conduct rigorous quality reviews of business schools around the world.  

Saint Mary’s University is known for providing students with unparalleled access to knowledgeable faculty, academic and peer support, hands-on learning opportunities and research opportunities. In keeping with providing an exceptional student experience, the university will open new buildings in Fall 2023. The Sobeys Inspiration Hub will foster innovative multidisciplinary work and entrepreneurship, bringing together BComm students and students from Arts, Science and Graduate Studies along with professors, researchers, entrepreneurs and business executives.

MTEI researcher passionate about innovation, growth and social impact in the Atlantic Region

Kjeld “KJ” Mizpah Conyers-Steede

Hailing from Bermuda, KJ—short for Kjeld Mizpah Conyers-Steede—has spent the past nine years in Atlantic Canada, primarily in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. Presently rooted in Windsor, NS, KJ is passionately committed to driving economic progress in rural communities.

"My work revolves around social innovation and policy, designed to nurture a thriving innovation culture in these settings," shares KJ. "Having experienced life in both urban and rural areas, I strongly believe that rural communities hold untapped potential for innovation and growth."

During the COVID-19 pandemic, while working as a policy advisor for Spring Garden Business Association, KJ witnessed the challenges small businesses faced. This experience ignited his interest in economic development, which he had previously explored at an academic level. He further expanded his expertise in change management while working with Hockey Nova Scotia.

KJ established Catalyst Conversation Strategies, a consulting firm aimed at tackling complex challenges in collaboration with clients and municipalities. Through this venture, he engaged in solving significant problems through innovative approaches, bridging the gap between policy, academia and economic growth.

Inspiring Communities led KJ to his current research position, working alongside Dr. Chantal Hervieux, Director, Centre for Leadership Excellence – Impactlab at Saint Mary’s University, in the realm of regional innovation ecosystems. This journey has shed light on the lack of Black and Indigenous people of color (BIPOC) representation in economic development research, prompting KJ to strive for a more inclusive academia.

“Engaging in research has instilled in me a newfound confidence, spurring aspirations of teaching and bridging the gap between socially conscious mindset and business success. It’s a vehicle for transformation, allowing me to create a playground of ideas and engage with like-minded individuals who share my passion.”

KJ’s connection to Saint Mary's is deeply personal. His father's experience as an alumnus and the impact SMU had on his career inspired KJ to pursue his own journey at the university. KJ is enrolled in the Master of Technology, Entrepreneurship, and Innovation program in the Sobey School of Business. The program aligns with his interests in innovative implementation and understanding social impact. His broader vision revolves around connecting Atlantic Ocean-facing regions for collaborative problem-solving, particularly regarding economic resilience, climate change and social issues.

“Saint Mary's University. It's a place where I can harmonize my diverse background and unconventional approach to academia, while also contributing to the broader narrative of Canadian higher education.”

SMU Professor examines virus spread in Nova Scotia

Article by SMU Professor Dr. Yigit Aydede, published in Scientific Reports, examines virus spread in Nova Scotia

Dr. Yigit Aydede

Understanding how influenza and other viruses such as COVID-19 migrate from one community to the next is key to predicting where disease will spread and determining how to curtail its progress. A new article by Saint Mary’s University’s Dr. Yigit Aydede, and Jan Ditzen, Free University of Bolzano, Italy, published in Scientific Reports unveils a new methodology, one that may assist health officials to both predict where viruses will spread and target interventions to halt them.

“The COVID-19 pandemic put mapping at the forefront of both the general public’s and public health experts’ tracking of the outbreak. Dr. Aydede’s research demonstrates the essential role of spatial and temporal analysis when tracking and predicting outbreaks between and within communities.”

— Dr. Mathew Novak, Director, Wicked Problems Lab, Saint Mary’s University and Associate Professor, Department of Geography & Environmental Studies

The study, Identifying the regional drivers of influenza-like illness in Nova Scotia, Canada, with dominance analysis - Scientific Reports, is hailed by the journal’s editors as the first epidemiological study of its kind because it combines data concerning geographical or spatial spread with temporal spread (incidents over time), as opposed to more common epidemiological studies which examine temporal spread alone. 

The research was only possible due to a unique set of circumstances: unparalleled access to unique provincial healthcare data, new methodology, and the use of machine learning.

“Research Nova Scotia was proud to support Dr. Aydede’s work through the Nova Scotia COVID-19 Health Research Coalition,” says Stefan Leslie, CEO of Research Nova Scotia. “Better understanding relationships between viral transmission rates, air quality, and social mobility will help inform public health decision making, optimize allocation of healthcare resources, and ultimately benefit Nova Scotians.”

The ideal circumstances for data collection arose in Nova Scotia during the first four months of the COVID-19 pandemic. From March to July 2020, health officials asked Nova Scotians to report their symptoms to the province’s 811 telehealth system, where nurses painstakingly recorded and referred citizens reporting a minimum of four influenza-like symptoms. When the data was made available to researchers at Saint Mary’s University, they realized it was exceptional. Far more detailed than COVID-19 PCR tests which only confirm the presence or absence of disease, the symptom data from the 811 records reveals how viruses, in real-time, spread across Nova Scotia’s neighbourhoods and communities.

“This type of data that records symptoms as they arose, early in the pandemic, simply does not exist anywhere else in the world and is due to decisions taken by provincial health authorities that turned the Province of Nova Scotia, in effect, into a living laboratory,” says Dr. Aydede, Sobey Professorship in Economics and the study’s principal investigator. 

Dr. Mat Novak, Dr. Yigit Aydede and student, Kyle Morton BComm’23

The inability of scientists and health officials to predict where COVID-19 would strike was a key feature of the disease, one that remained a constant source of frustration throughout the pandemic. “We could watch the overall trajectory of the disease as the number of incidents rose and fell, and we understood the R factor (degree of virulence) but there was no ability to predict the spread of the disease on the ground,” says Dr. Aydede. “Thanks to the Nova Scotia COVID-19 Research Coalition and a grant from Research Nova Scotia we had an unbelievable data set that allowed us to look back at what occurred and identify the communities or locations that were driving the spread in Nova Scotia and further identify key socio-economic factors as well.” 

Dr. Aydede adapted algorithms recently developed for the finance industry to analyse economic ‘shock waves.’ “It is not always clear which features or factors are essential and which ones can be dropped without compromising predictive or statistical power,” says Dr. Aydede.  “Machine learning, particularly Tree-based methods such as the Random Forests algorithm used here, helps identify relevant predictors in large complex data sets with complex variables and factors.” 

The study analysed 112 Nova Scotian communities identified by postal codes and found that 18 communities were drivers of viral spread and then analysed 1,400 socio and economic factors, such home mortgage ownership, employment status and use of public transit that all coincided with the spread. 

“This important health-related study led by Dr. Aydede is a terrific example of many elements that allow our Saint Mary’s professors to establish research leadership in areas that may seem unexpected for our university,” says Dr. Adam Sarty, Dean of the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research. “By applying methods used in economics to health-related problems and drawing on the expertise of both his international colleagues and the technical data-visualization talents of our multi-disciplinary research lab at Saint Mary’s, Dr. Aydede was able to partner with Research Nova Scotia and the provincial health authority to illustrate the power of such interdisciplinary networking.” 

Want to learn more about Machine Learning? 

Professor Aydede has just published his book for students of business and social science. Machine Learning Toolbox for Social Scientists | Applied Predictive An (taylorfrancis.com) 

About Scientific Reports 

Scientific Reports are open-access journals publishing original research from all areas of the natural sciences, psychology, medicine and engineering. It is the fifth most cited journal in the world and its editorial team, in partnership with an extensive network of peer reviewers, provides expert and constructive peer review. Scientific Reports is part of the Nature Portfolio.  

Sobey School recognized again for positive impact on Nova Scotia and the Atlantic Region

The Sobey School of Business, the largest business school in Atlantic Canada and one of the top business schools in Canada, has received the Business School Impact System (BSIS) designation for a second time in recognition of its intellectual and social impact on Nova Scotia and beyond. 

 “We were advised today that we have again received the BSIS designation confirming that the Sobey School’s impact reaches far beyond its economic contribution and also influences the business and cultural life of the Atlantic Region,” says Saint Mary’s University President, Dr. Rob Summerby-Murray.

“Saint Mary’s University is known for our research that addresses real-world problems and for our strong partnerships with local businesses and communities. The BSIS designation demonstrates the role of the Sobey School in fulfilling these key strategic priorities for the University.” 

In 2016, the Sobey School was the first business school in North America to be awarded the BSIS label for its economic impact, and now is the only one to receive a second affirmation, this time for its intellectual and societal impact.  An international review team using a methodology developed by the European Foundation for Management Development (EFMD), the leading international network in the field of management education, re-examined the business school over a three-year period (2020-2022).  

Sobey School professor Ather Akbari with students on the Halifax waterfront

“This BSIS reassessment has seen SSB confirm its position as a strong and highly visible business school, firmly embedded in the business and cultural life of the region. The impact demonstrated on the impact zone since the first BSIS  assessment in 2016 is compelling in terms of scope and ambition. The commitment of the leadership team, faculty and staff has ensured that the school continues to make significant impact gains across the intellectual and societal impact dimensions.”  BSIS Final Report, July 2023 

The BSIS external review is a comprehensive and multi-dimensional assessment process that evaluated a business school's impact on its region. Reviewers examined the Sobey School faculty’s scholarly publications and a pre-visit report and then conducted a campus visit in March 2023. In their Impact Report, reviewers noted key accomplishments related to intellectual impact.

• An impressive 94% of faculty are active researchers; 70 Sobey School faculty members have produced 223 journal papers in 173 different journals. 

• Research topics are based on regional problems with a national or global relevance.  

• Conferences profile the intellectual impact of the School with significant number of conference papers and presentations and two large academic conferences hosted on campus.  

• Local managers are enthusiastic about the professional development benefits they gain from collaboration with the Sobey School. 

• The School has demonstrable strength in developing and sustaining research partnerships with regional companies and organisations (32 over the past 3 years).  

The BSIS review team also noted that the School has a growing reputation for its societal impact through research and teaching as well as its own Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and sustainability initiatives. Evidence of the School’s commitment to CSR includes: 

• 92% of business students receive instruction in CSR and sustainable development and have the opportunity to work with businesses. 

• The Sobey School is one of the Principles of Responsible Management Education (PRME) signatories since 2014 and PRME champions since 2020. 

• CSR and sustainability are attractive to actual and potential students.  

• There is wide evidence of activity mapping against the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (teaching, research and engagement activities).  

• Societal research is growing in impact and visibility with 48 professors focused on societal research through four research groups.  

• Service learning is a clear differentiator for the school and its students. 

• Saint Mary’s University reduced carbon emissions by an impressive 40% in 2022 and is installing one of North America’s tallest solar arrays on its path to green energy production. 

“It is gratifying to receive external validation that our commitment to social responsibility and sustainability is a distinguishing hallmark for the Sobey School. We know that this differentiator attracts students, and helps faculty and students stay connected, says Acting Dean, Mark Raymond. “Service learning is now embedded in our renewed BComm Program – it’s another example of the School’s impact on business and society.” 

In 2016, a BSIS review found that the Sobey School had a financial and economic impact of $329 million on the Province of Nova Scotia. 

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 About BSIS 

The Business School Impact System (BSIS) scheme is designed to determine the extent of a school’s impact on its local environment – the city or region in which it is located. The BSIS process is offered in collaboration between EFMD Global and FNEGE (Fondation Nationale pour l’Enseignement en Gestion des Entreprises), as a service to EFMD members in any part of the world. The impact of the business school is analysed based on the following seven areas of impact: financial, educational, business development impact as well as intellectual, societal, image, and impact within the impact zone selected by the school and its regional ecosystem. 

There are currently 63 schools across 19 countries that have received the BSIS label.