The Royal Society of Canada (RSC) has named three York University professors to the College of New Scholars, Artists & Scientists.
Mark Jurdjevic, professor of history at Glendon College; Kristin Andrews, professor of philosophy; and Fuyuki Kurasawa, professor of sociology in the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies, have been named members of the college. In total, the RSC named 48 new members to the College of New Scholars, Artists & Scientists. The presentation of this cohort will take place on Friday, Nov. 27, at the Fairmont Empress in Victoria, B.C.
A social historian of ideas, Jurdjevic studies the political and intellectual history of early modern Europe. His books and articles have shown how abstract ideas became powerful agents of social and political change in the Italian Renaissance. Collectively, his scholarship excavates a dramatic and illuminating moment in a much larger debate about the relationship between the humanities, active conceptions of citizenship and robust democracies.
“This appointment to the RSC College of New Scholars is a testament to the breadth and quality of Professor Jurdjevic’s scholarship,” said Christina Clark-Kazak, associate principal, Research and Graduate Studies, Glendon College. “We are proud of his achievements and his ongoing contributions to enriching Glendon’s liberal arts mandate.”
Andrews has been instrumental in developing the field of philosophy of animal minds. Her interdisciplinary work in the philosophy of psychology demonstrates evolutionary continuity between human and other animals in ways that challenge human uniqueness claims based on supposedly human-unique cognitive capacities. This prize-winning research has received international attention among scholars and in the popular press, and has practical policy consequences about how we should treat other species.
Through his pioneering work on the culture and politics of global civil society, Kurasawa has contributed substantially to research on cross-cultural analysis, human rights and humanitarian crises, and the impact of new technologies on public understanding of global problems. The recipient of several national and international distinctions, he is an inaugural York Research Chair in Global Digital Citizenship and a sought-after bilingual media analyst.
“Congratulations to Professors Andrews and Kurasawa on their remarkable achievement,” said Dean Ananya Mukherjee-Reed of the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies. “Membership in RSC’s College of New Scholars recognizes the significant contributions they have made to their respective fields, even at this early stage in their careers. They are among our emerging research leaders.”
Together, the members of the college will address issues of 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.
“The college is Canada’s first national system of multidisciplinary recognition for the emerging generation of leaders,” said RSC President Graham Bell. “Together, the members of the college will be in a position to provide guidance on issues of importance to Canadians, and to promote Canadian achievements in the arts, humanities and sciences around the world.”
For more information, visit the RSC website.
*Article courtesy of yFile