Women’s Leadership in the COVID-19 Response: Distinct, Effective and Successful Approaches

Join us for an exciting virtual panel discussion featuring prominent women leaders and academics discussing the important role played by female leadership at various local, national and global levels in successfully responding to public health challenges posed by COVID-19. The focus will be on the compassionate value-based approach, reliance on expert advice, good judgment and effective communications which have marked the leadership style of many women leaders.

About the speakers:

Dr. Eileen de Villa is the Medical Officer of Health for the City of Toronto. In this role, she leads Toronto Public Health, Canada’s largest local public health agency that provides public health programs and services to 2.9 million residents. Dr. de Villa received her degrees as Doctor of Medicine and Master of Health Science (MHSc) from the University of Toronto and holds a Master of Business Administration from the Schulich School of Business. She is also an Adjunct Professor at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto.

Natalia Linos is a social epidemiologist and the Executive Director of the FXB Center for Health and Human Rights at Harvard. Previously she worked at the United Nations and the New York City Health Department, tackling some of the most urgent issues of our time: from climate change to structural racism. In 2020, she ran in the Democratic Primary to represent Massachusetts 4th district in Congress.

Ontario Regional Chief RoseAnne Archibald of Taykwa Tagamou Nation, is a calm, respectful and heart centred leader, who has over 25 years of experience in First Nations politics. She represents a generational change, bringing diplomacy and encouraging unity in the First Nations political system, while breaking down barriers since the start of her political career, having been the first woman and youngest: Chief for Taykwa Tagamou First Nation (1990), Deputy Grand Chief for Nishnawbe-Aski Nation (1991), Grand Chief for Mushkegowuk Council (1994). As Ontario Regional Chief, she remains dedicated to empowering women and youth in seeking community based solutions that encourage capacity-building, leadership development and resiliency

Laurel Weldon (University of Pittsburgh, 1999) is Distinguished Professor of Political Science at Simon Fraser University in Canada. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, she is co-editor of the American Political Science Review (2020-2024). Previously, she held a Distinguished Professorship at Purdue University, where she served as Director of the Purdue Policy Research Institute, founding Director of the Center for Research on Diversity and Inclusion, Interim Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs and (very briefly) Acting Provost. Professor Weldon’s work focuses on: the role of social movements in influencing public policy; violence against women; representation; women, work and poverty; intersectionality and diversity and inclusion. She was founding co-editor of Politics, Groups and Identities from 2011-2018. She specializes in comparative research that is global in scope. Recent awards include the Award for Best Book from the Human Rights Section of the International Studies Association. She has consulted for international organizations such as the UN and the World Bank and has worked for national, local and Indigenous governments.

About the moderator:

Piya Chattopadhyay is the host of CBC Radio’s The Sunday Magazine, a lively and wide-ranging program that helps you make sense of our changing world and reflects upon ideas in the air. In her more than two decades as a journalist, Piya has been a reporter and host, for both radio and TV, in Canada and abroad. Piya has reported from many international locations including Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, India, Israel, Lebanon, Egypt, the Palestinian territories, Kenya, the United Kingdom and France. She has received many accolades for her work including: New York Festival awards, RTDNA awards, two Gabriel awards and a South Asian Journalists Association award.

We are committed to hosting an inclusive and accessible event for everyone. Please let us know if you require accommodations. Contact Melissa Wong, melissawong@torontomu.ca (opens in new window)  for more details.