Being the best version of you is essential to success, said Indira Samarasekera, president and vice-chancellor of the University of Alberta and the first female university president in Alberta.
Samarasekera spoke to graduates from the Faculty of Engineering, the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry and the School of Graduate & Postdoctoral Studies at the Friday, June 14, afternoon session of Western’s 301st Convocation.
Western conferred an honorary Doctor of Laws, honoris causa (LL.D..), upon Samarasekera in recognition of her successful career in engineering and academics, as well as her dedication to advancing innovation in higher education and the private sector.
“Be you, be yourself and be your best, ” Samarasekera said to the graduates. “Each one of you is coming to an end of (an educational) journey unique to you. A new journey must be rooted in who you are, and here’s the tricky part – it must be rooted in knowing who you are and finding a place where you can have the greatest impact.”
Samarasekera, who was born in Sri Lanka, studied at the University of Ceylon. She was the first woman to become a mechanical engineer in her country. She continued to study at the University of California, where as a Fulbright Scholar, she earned her MSc in 1976. In 1980, she received her PhD in metallurgical engineering from the University of British Columbia.
Across Canada, Samarasekera is recognized as one of the country’s leading metallurgical engineers because of her groundbreaking work on the process engineering of materials, especially steel.
Under Samarasekera’s administration, the University of Alberta established the Killam Research Fund for the Social Sciences, Humanities and Fine Arts, redeveloped and opened Enterprise Square (the university’s downtown campus) and opened the National Institute for Nanotechnology, Centennial Centre for Interdisciplinary Science and Edmonton Clinic Health Academy.
The university’s international profile was heightened during Samarasekera’s presidency, establishing institutional partnerships with the Helmholtz Association of German Research Centres and the Li Ka Shing Foundation, and participating in major research agreements.
Chair of the World Universities Network, a member of the Science, Technology and Innovation Council of Canada, and a member of the Board of Directors for the Bank of Nova Scotia, Samarasekera was moderator and speaker at the 2010, 2011 and 2012 World Economic Forums and in the prime minister’s roundtable on Canada-India higher education cooperation.
Samarasekera received the EWR Steacie Memorial fellowship in 1991, awarded by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada to the top four researchers under 40 in science and engineering. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, she also received the Order of Canada in recognition of her outstanding contributions to steel process engineering.
Samarasekera told the graduates they must pursue excellence relentlessly, focusing on being the highest quality persons they can possibly be.
“Be true to the fundamentals of who you are. Steel is a fundamental building block of our world – it is essential that the material be of the highest quality. The same is true for (you). We need to have personal strengths of the highest quality,” she said.
In his citation, Faculty of Engineering Dean Andy Hrymak called Samarasekera an exceptional role model for women in engineering.
“A signature feature of Dr. Samarasekera’s leadership is building strong international partnerships. Under her direction, researchers at the University of Alberta are working with international communities in countries such as Germany and India, to find solutions to shared challenges,” he said.
“Dr. Samarasekera has devoted her career to advancing innovation in higher education and the private sector, providing national and international leadership through invited lectures and participation on national and international boards and councils. She is an inspiration to female and male students alike, who aspire to enter the profession of engineering.”
Samarasekera added graduates can draw inspiration from their alma mater as well as those who paved the paths before them, offering up inspiration and opportunity for success.
“First, be you, get to know the fundamental you, find the steel within you, then nourish and polish those talents, aiming for nothing else than being the best you can be,” she said. “I call on you all to make magic happen in your life.”