This article is part of a series shining a spotlight on the personalities and priorities of Dal's senior leadership team. Revisit previous profiles聽at the Leadership and Vision website.
Both of Graham Gagnon鈥檚 parents thought he would go into agriculture. They worked at the University of Guelph in the field, after all, his dad as a chemist in a farming extension lab and his mom as a secretary in the agricultural college.
And it鈥檚 true that Dr. Gagnon spent the summers of his youth doing labour on farms, including some that were part of the university. He planted various tree species on rotating experimental plots and had fun doing it. 鈥淚t was part of a group of experiments being done by the agroforestry program. It got me thinking about university as a career.鈥�
But, to everyone鈥檚 surprise, he got a scholarship to study environmental engineering at the University of Guelph instead.
鈥淚 liked the idea of doing some sort of public good,鈥� he says. 鈥淚n the early 鈥�90s a lot of farmers were using their land to bury other people鈥檚 waste and having their water contaminated as a result. Environmental engineering seemed an opportunity to help.鈥�
A focus on clean drinking water
For his PhD degree, Dr. Gagnon headed a mere 28 kilometres west to the University of Waterloo, but it felt like it was a world away. It was a thrilling spot for a young engineer, with seemingly limitless opportunities.
鈥淲aterloo was one of the biggest engineering hubs in the country. We had Microsoft on campus. Open Text was starting. Sun Microsystems invented Java at that time and it was an exciting place to learn and code.鈥�
But Dr. Gagnon was still pulled by the desire to help people access clean drinking water, at a time when Milwaukee was making headlines for the largest waterborne disease outbreak in U.S. history. His PhD in civil engineering focused on water treatment, and when he graduated in 1997, he applied for a job as a professor with what was then the Technical University of Nova Scotia (TUNS).
鈥淚 had a room at the Cambridge Suites and walked across the street to Sexton Campus. I talked to the department head and a young professor, and they were excited to be in the process of merging with 麻豆传媒. I went for a walk down to the ocean past Government House and sat on a park bench at what is now Bishop鈥檚 Landing and thought that this would be a special place to live and work.鈥�
Later, in 2007, he became the NSERC / Halifax Water Industrial Research Chair, and four years after that the director of the . Last year, he became Dal鈥檚 associate vice-president of research.
Supporting the Dal research community
Two decades after joining Dal, he still finds it special, but in a completely different way. 鈥溌槎勾� brought on computer science, engineering and architecture at the same time [in the merger with TUNS] and at first it was a lot of getting used to each other, figuring out how it all functioned together,鈥� he says.
But now the makeup of students and faculty have become much more diverse and as institution we have grown to be more inclusive. 鈥淲hen I first started my career at Dal felt like a very regional school,鈥� he recalls. Now it reminds him of the buzz he felt as a young student in Waterloo, with big-name tech companies onsite to recruit and the attraction of international students with a collective goal sharing the latest thinking.
鈥�Tesla is on campus. I see us as a national, outward facing university with international reach, thanks to a series of excellent leaders at all levels, inspiring the community to reach a new levels.鈥�
Dr. Gagnon, who still maintains an active lab, is working with Alice Aiken and Marty Leonard toward the ambitious goal of doubling the number of PhD students at Dal.
鈥淲hen that goal was stated aloud, it was a groundbreaking moment,鈥� he says. 鈥淓veryone stopped to say, wow, how are we going to that?鈥� From there, the leadership team at Dal started carefully considering how the university鈥檚 research strategy and its work with international partnerships could support that goal.
Dr. Gagnon also takes inspiration from Dal鈥檚 work on the 鈥� 鈥渢alented researchers doing extraordinary things鈥� 鈥� and is working on initiatives to create similar collaborations in health and environment. 鈥淲e know we have a strong research team in energy, water, and environment,鈥� he says, 鈥渁nd we鈥檙e consulting with senior and early-career researchers about their visions to develop a Clean World strategy that enable our research communities鈥� goals.鈥�
A focus on collaboration
Collaboration is a significant part of Dr. Gagnon鈥檚 work, and a natural part of his approach. He spends much of his time developing a range of policies including a recent Policy on Research Centres and Institutes.
鈥淚鈥檓 an engineer not a lawyer,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 never thought I鈥檇 be too excited about a policy. But it鈥檚 been interesting and exciting to meet with people around campus to develop policy for the Senate, meeting subcommittee members and different deans and leaders.鈥�
In his research work, he says the key to finding workable solutions to environmental challenges lies in the ability to meaningfully consult all stakeholders. This skill has helped him immensely in his policy role at Dal, because it鈥檚 through consultation that he comes to understand everyone鈥檚 desired outcomes and he knows he has the Dal community behind him.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a matter of learning from others and doing your best to understand different views,鈥� he says.
On the importance of personal stories鈥�
鈥淎s leaders sometimes you have information about a situation. But you don鈥檛 necessarily have an appreciation of the on-the-ground perspective or 鈥渢his-is-what-I鈥檓-experiencing story鈥� from the people affected. You have the data but it鈥檚 not until you see the faces in the community that you can learn how they鈥檒l be affected. As leaders, problem solvers, and decision makers, we need those personal anecdotes. You have to sit down to get the whole story.鈥�
On his approach to collaboration鈥�
鈥淚 guess you could say I use a collaborative approach to manage workflow. When projects succeed it鈥檚 often because the full range of people are engaged and empowered in the activity. For example, in my research activities in drinking water, I have found that if professional leaders in work partnership with the communities that they serve in a meaningful way, engineering projects are able to achieve a long-lasting impact.鈥�
Five questions
When you were a student, what was your favourite course?
Economics and statistics.
What鈥檚 your favourite hobby or pastime?
Running.
If you could only bring one artist鈥檚 music with you to a desert island, who would it be?
The Tragically Hip.
If you were to leave academia and go into any career you wanted, what would you choose?
I would probably become a farmer.
If you could have dinner with one person 鈥� living, deceased or fictional 鈥� who would it be and why?
Jackie Robinson. I鈥檓 a big baseball fan and I鈥檇 love to learn more about him.