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Past Honorary Doctorates

The university  began awarding honorary doctoral degrees in 1996. The university awards its highest honour to those who have made extraordinary contributions in Canada, or internationally, to fields in which the university is active, to the development of the University or to the enhancement of Canadian culture or society.

Recipient Year Awarded Degree
Albert Rose  1996 Doctor of Laws
David Mirvish  1996 Doctor of Letters
Diane McGarry  1996 Doctor of Science
Douglas G. Hull  1996 Doctor of Science
John Craig Eaton  1996 Doctor of Commerce
Pierre Juneau  1996 Doctor of Letters
The Right Honourable Romeo LeBlanc 1996 Doctor of Letters
Thomas A. Brzustowski  1996 Doctor of Engineering
Anne Golden  1997 Doctor of Laws
Linda Lundstrom  1997 Doctor of Laws
Marian Packham  1997 Doctor of Science
Murray Enkin  1997 Doctor of Laws
Peter Laughton  1997 Doctor of Engineering
Sam Sniderman  1997 Doctor of Commerce
The Honourable Jacques Hebert  1997 Doctor of Laws
The Honourable Judd Buchanan  1997 Doctor of Laws
Alex Taylor  1998 Doctor of Engineering
Anne Ross  1998 Doctor of Laws
Arthur Lee  1998 Doctor of Laws
Barbara Hall  1998 Doctor of Laws
Gaetano Gagliano  1998 Doctor of Laws
James Cameron  1998 Doctor of Laws
Micheline Bouchard  1998 Doctor of Engineering
Ron Osborne  1998 Doctor of Laws
Bev Salmon  1999 Doctor of Laws
Beverly Mascoll  1999 Doctor of Laws
Cornelia Hahn Oberlander  1999 Doctor of Laws
Frank McKenna  1999 Doctor of Laws
Jack Granatstein  1999 Doctor of Laws
John Neville  1999 Doctor of Laws
Lionel Hurtubise  1999 Doctor of Engineering
Lorne Michaels  1999 Doctor of Laws
Roger Moore  1999 Doctor of Laws
Allan Slaight  2000 Doctor of Commerce
Bobbie Gaunt  2000 Doctor of Laws
Carol Stephenson  2000 Doctor of Engineering
Christopher Chapman  2000 Doctor of Laws
Cynthia Trudell  2000 Doctor of Engineering
Pamela Wallin  2000 Doctor of Journalism
Russell Jolliffe  2000 Doctor of Laws
Ruth Grier  2000 Doctor of Laws
Stephen Foster  2000 Doctor of Commerce
Terence Grier  2000 Doctor of Laws
Dennis Lee  2001 Doctor of Laws
Eugene Polistuk  2001 Doctor of Engineering
George Wong  2001 Doctor of Commerce
Graca Machel  2001 Doctor of Laws
Ivan Fecan  2001 Doctor of Laws
Jane Goodall  2001 Doctor of Science
Margaret Risk  2001 Doctor of Laws
Maria Klawe  2001 Doctor of Laws
Nelson Mandela  2001 Doctor of Laws
Paul Godfrey  2001 Doctor of Engineering
Shirley Douglas  2001 Doctor of Laws
Christopher Plummer  2002 Doctor of Letters
George Heller  2002 Doctor of Commerce
Hurbert Astier  2002 Doctor of Laws
Ian Rowe  2002 Doctor of Engineering
James Orbinski  2002 Doctor of Laws
Jean Pelletier  2002 Doctor of Laws
Martha Billes  2002 Doctor of Commerce
Michael De Pencier  2002 Doctor of Letters
Mira Godard  2002 Doctor of Laws
Robert E. Brown  2002 Doctor of Science
Bonnie Sherr Klein  2003 Doctor of Laws
George Yabu  2003 Doctor of Laws
Glenn Pushelberg  2003 Doctor of Laws
Harry Rosen  2003 Doctor of Commerce
Isadore Sharp  2003 Doctor of Commerce
J. Fraser Mustard  2003 Doctor of Science
Joey Tanenbaum  2003 Doctor of Commerce
Linda Hasenfratz  2003 Doctor of Engineering
Richard B. Wright  2003 Doctor of Letters
Roberta Jamieson  2003 Doctor of Laws
Toby Tanenbaum  2003 Doctor of Commerce
William Davis  2003 Doctor of Laws
Albert Berry  2004 Doctor of Laws
Edward Kilroy  2004 Doctor of Commerce
Edward S. Rogers 2004 Doctor of Laws
Fang Minglun  2004 Doctor of Engineering
Jack Cockwell  2004 Doctor of Commerce
L. Yves Fortier  2004 Doctor of Commerce
Loretta Rogers  2004 Doctor of Laws
Michael F. Goodchild  2004 Doctor of Laws
Phyllis Lambert  2004 Doctor of Fine Arts in Photography Studies
Ronald D. Besse  2004 Doctor of Commerce
Sheela V. Basrur  2004 Doctor of Science
Tak Wah Mak  2004 Doctor of Science
Dennis Mock  2005 Doctor of Laws
Elyse Allan  2005 Doctor of Commerce
G. Raymond Chang  2005 Doctor of Commerce
Hany Moustapha  2005 Doctor of Engineering
Herschel Segal  2005 Doctor of Laws
Janet Storch  2005 Doctor of Science
John L. Sharpe  2005 Doctor of Commerce
Julia Levy  2005 Doctor of Science
Margaret MacMillan  2005 Doctor of Laws
Peter Mansbridge  2005 Doctor of Journalism
The Honourable James K. Bartleman  2005 Doctor of Laws
The Honourable Tom Hockin  2005 Doctor of Commerce
Basil "Buzz" Hargrove  2006 Doctor of Laws
Christine Magee  2006 Doctor of Commerce
Heather Reisman  2006 Doctor of Commerce
Judith Shamian  2006 Doctor of Science
Margaret Somerville  2006 Doctor of Science
Pierre Lassonde, C. M.  2006 Doctor of Engineering
Piers Handling  2006 Doctor of Laws
The Honourable Landon Pearson  2006 Doctor of Laws
The Right Honourable Adrienne Clarkson  2006 Doctor of Laws
David Suzuki  2007 Doctor of Science
Donald Triggs  2007 Doctor of Commerce
Edward Burtynsky  2007 Doctor of Fine Arts in Photography Studies
Gail J. Donner  2007 Doctor of Science
Michael Belcourt  2007 Doctor of Commerce
Michele Landsberg  2007 Doctor of Laws
Ramsay Cook  2007 Doctor of Laws
Shirley M. Tilghman  2007 Doctor of Science
Stephen Lewis  2007 Doctor of Laws
The Honourable George Vari  2007 Doctor of Engineering
The Honourable Madam Justice Rosalie Silberman Abella  2007 Doctor of Laws
Brenda Milner  2008 Doctor of Science
Brian Segal  2008 Doctor of Laws
Dominic D'Alessandro  2008 Doctor of Commerce
Janet Rosenberg  2008 Doctor of Laws
John Honderich  2008 Doctor of Commerce
Lotfi Asker Zadeh  2008 Doctor of Science
Norman Jewison  2008 Doctor of Letters
Peter Busby  2008 Doctor of Science
The Honourable Margaret Norrie McCain  2008 Doctor of Laws
Aditya Jha  2009 Doctor of Laws
Alan Broadbent  2009 Doctor of Laws
Asad M. Madni  2009 Doctor of Science
Gina Bohn Browne  2009 Doctor of Laws
Jean Arthur Beliveau  2009 Doctor of Laws
John A. Bickley  2009 Doctor of Science
Michael Adams  2009 Doctor of Letters
Michael Guerriere  2009 Doctor of Laws
The Honourable Edward Broadbent  2009 Doctor of Laws
David E. Smith  2010 Doctor of Letters
Frances Lankin  2010 Doctor of Laws
Kyle Rae  2010 Doctor of Laws
Paula N. Goering  2010 Doctor of Science
The Honourable Louise Arbour  2010 Doctor of Laws
The Right Honourable Chief Justice Beverley McLachlin  2010 Doctor of Laws
Tony Gagliano  2010 Doctor of Laws
William Alsop  2010 Doctor of Letters
Charles S. Coffey  2011 Doctor of Laws
Des McAnuff  2011 Doctor of Letters
Joanne H. Dallaire  2011 Doctor of Laws
Julie Payette  2011 Doctor of Engineering
Justice Robert W. Metzger  2011 Doctor of Laws
Laura Formusa  2011 Doctor of Laws
Michael MacMillan  2011 Doctor of Laws
Phil Fontaine  2011 Doctor of Laws
Ruth daCosta  2011 Doctor of Laws
Ursula Franklin  2011 Doctor of Laws
Shawn Atleo 2012 Doctor of Laws
Margaret Eleanor Atwood 2012 Doctor of Letters
Sally M. Horsfall Eaton 2012 Doctor of Laws
Christiane Germain 2012 Doctor of Commerce
Graeme Gibson 2012 Doctor of Letters
Sarabjit S. Marwah 2012 Doctor of Laws
Rohinton Mistry 2012 Doctor of Letters
Valerie Pringle 2012 Doctor of Laws
Ivan Reitman 2012 Doctor of Laws
Robert B. Thirsk 2012 Doctor of Engineering
Colm Wilkinson 2012 Doctor of Laws
Mitchell Cohen 2013 Doctor of Laws
Kenneth Dryden 2013 Doctor of Laws
Diane Francis 2013 Doctor of Laws
Sue Gardner 2013 Doctor of Laws
Thomas E. Kierans 2013 Doctor of Laws
Judith Levkoe 2013 Doctor of Laws
Deepa Mehta 2013 Doctor of Laws
The Honourable Justice Murray Sinclair 2013 Doctor of Laws
Calvin R. Stiller 2013 Doctor of Science
Chief Justice Warren Winkler 2013 Doctor of Laws
Mary Jo Haddad 2014 Doctor of Laws
Christopher Hume 2014 Doctor of Laws
Shafique Keshavjee 2014 Doctor of Science
Roy McMurtry 2014 Doctor of Laws
Peter Oliver 2014 Doctor of Laws
Bonnie Patterson 2014 Doctor of Laws
Jack Rabinovitch 2014 Doctor of Laws
Brian Stewart 2014 Doctor of Journalism
Hayley Wickenheiser 2014 Doctor of Laws
Salah Bachir 2015 Doctor of Laws
Ed Clark 2015 Doctor of Commerce
Steve Gupta 2015 Doctor of Laws
Ralph Lean 2015 Doctor of Laws
Gordon Pinsent 2015 Doctor of Laws
Adel Sedra 2015 Doctor of Engineering
James (Jim) Temerty 2015 Doctor of Laws
Louise Arcand Temerty 2015 Doctor of Laws
Annette Verschuren 2015 Doctor of Commerce
Catherine Zahn 2015 Doctor of Laws
Catharina Birchall 2016 Doctor of Laws
William Birchall 2016 Doctor of Laws
Dennis Edney 2016 Doctor of Laws
Patricia Edney 2016 Doctor of Laws
Siamak Hariri 2016 Doctor of Architecture
Peter Gilgan 2016 Doctor of Laws
Nick Saul 2016 Doctor of Laws
John Smol 2016 Doctor of Science
Carole Tanenbaum 2016 Doctor of Laws
Howard Tanenbaum 2016 Doctor of Laws
Lisa de Wilde 2016 Doctor of Laws
Cindy Blackstock 2017 Doctor of Laws
Frank Iacobucci 2017 Doctor of Laws
Heather McGregor 2017 Doctor of Laws
David McKay 2017 Doctor of Laws
Bonnie Schmidt 2017 Doctor of Science
Masai Ujiri 2017 Doctor of Laws
Louis Vachon 2017 Doctor of Laws
Helen Vari 2017 Doctor of Laws
Phyllis Yaffe 2017 Doctor of Laws
Mohamad Fakih 2018 Doctor of Laws
Elyse Goldstein 2018 Doctor of Laws
David Johnston 2018 Doctor of Laws
Alanis Obomsawin 2018 Doctor of Laws
Ratna Omidvar 2018 Doctor of Laws
Brian Porter 2018 Doctor of Laws
Michael Tulloch 2018 Doctor of Laws
Maria Campbell 2018 Doctor of Laws
Hassan Yussuff 2018 Doctor of Laws
Richard Atleo 2019 Doctor of Laws
Samantha Nutt 2019 Doctor of Laws
Eric McCormack 2019 Doctor of Laws
Jean Augustine 2019 Doctor of Laws
Victor G. Dodig 2019 Doctor of Laws
Hazel McCallion 2019 Doctor of Commerce
Maryka Omatsu 2019 Doctor of Laws
Sajjad Ebrahim 2019 Doctor of Laws
Donette Chin-Loy Chang 2021 Doctor of Laws
Mitch Frazer 2021 Doctor of Laws
Silvio De Gasperis 2021 Doctor of Engineering
Emmanuelle Gattuso 2021 Doctor of Laws
Gregory Regis 2021 Doctor of Laws
Tanya Talaga 2021 Doctor of Laws
Malala Yousafzai 2021 Doctor of Laws
Brian Gluckstein 2021 Doctor of Fine Arts
Wes Hall 2021 Doctor of Laws
Louise Penny 2021 Doctor of Letters
Avvy Yao-Yao Go 2022 Doctor of Laws
George Russell Strathy 2022 Doctor of Laws
Mohammad Al Zaibak 2022 Doctor of Commerce
Michael Clemons 2022 Doctor of Laws
Anju Virmani 2022 Doctor of Engineering
Sherrill Tekatsi’ tsia:kwa Cook Barreiro 2022 Doctor of Laws
Edward Sonshine 2022 Doctor of Laws
Gabrielle Scrimshaw Sagalova 2022 Doctor of Laws
Avie Bennett 2022 Doctor of Laws
Vivienne and Neville Poy 2022 Doctor of Laws
Toby Heaps 2022 Doctor of Laws
Lynn Factor 2022 Doctor of Laws
Nigela and Wayne Purboo 2023 Doctor of Laws
Lawrence Loh 2023 Doctor of Laws
Michelle DiEmanuele 2023 Doctor of Laws
Dwight Drummond 2023 Doctor of Laws
Deborah Flint 2023 Doctor of Laws
Rola Dagher
2023 Doctor of Laws
John England 2023 Doctor of Science
Kimberly Murray 2023 Doctor of Laws
Izzeldin Abuelaish 2023 Doctor of Laws
Lisa LaFlamme 2023 Doctor of Laws