Dear Friends of UMIH,

I write today to thank you for your support for UMIH this fall. We’ve explored a wide range of topics, skills, and methods that matter to the humanities. They have included, among many other things, a contemporary staging of an historical drama, professional editing skills, the media history of hobbyist woodworking, strategies for dissertation writing, connections between beading and storytelling, Ukrainian diasporic writing, and the crafting of haiku. We temporarily transformed a boardroom into a studio space to explore weaving methods and block printing traditions and we made time to learn from the many people who generously contributed to UMIH’s programming as speakers or event hosts.

Those contributors include (from the University of Manitoba): Dr. Brenda Austin-Smith, Dr. Alison Calder, Dr. Warren Cariou, Dr. Sean Carleton, Dr. David Churchill, Dr. Sarah Elvins, Dr. Michelle Faubert, Dr. Erin Keating, Dr. Len Kuffert, Dr. Mike Sampson, and Dr. David Watt. They also include (from beyond the University of Manitoba): Dr. Urvashi Chakravarty, Dr. Celiese Lypka, Dr. Emily Maggiacomo, Dr. Carla Manfredi, Dr. Mariya Shymchyshyn, Dr. Maria Zytaruk, Lisa Hislop, Michelle Waitzman, Kristian Enright, Mark Nowak, Dr. Melanie Dennis Unrau, Moni Brar, Jenna Butler, Sam Jones, and Kelly Shepherd.

Special thanks go to our UMIH Research Cluster leaders, Dr. Jamie Paris and Dr. Serenity Joo. Thanks also go to UMIH Research Assistant Lakshmisree Shaji Marar and to UMIH student interns Hanako Teranishi and Patrick Fermin. Thank you to Ekene Emeka Maduka for all her work for the Institute. Of course, I also want to thank all who attended talks, participated in hands-on crafting sessions, or made time to prepare for and participate in our book group.

We will be sharing our winter schedule with you early in the new year. By way of a sneak peek, we can let you know that we look forward to collaborating with the Centre for Creative Writing and Oral Culture on several events. We can also look forward to presentations by UMIH affiliates Dr. Youcef Soufi and Rachel Shields and by Graduate Fellows Karen Brglez and Carla Kennedy. It’s going to be another great term at UMIH.

As always, I welcome your suggestions for ways that UMIH can support your teaching, learning, research, and outreach in the humanities. This is especially true as we finalize plans for the Winter Term. Don’t hesitate to be in touch.

With best wishes for a restful break, Vanessa

Dr. Vanessa Warne (Interim Director UMIHhttps://www.instagram.com/umih___/?hl=en, 2024-2025)