The Shine Cast

Our guest this episode is Dr. Chelsea Larsson, a newly minted PHD in Scottish History, who’s also a Writing Specialist with the U of G Library. Chelsea shares what she’s learned about finding balance between academic and work pursuits and her self-care. Her tips? Work in environments that respect your boundaries, find the things that nourish you, and frame every act of self-care as an anti-capitalist, feminist movement. And of course, also visit Learning Services in the Library.

In our second episode of season 3, Marco and Jordie are joined by Farqd, an upper year UoG Wildlife Biology and Conservation student. Over the course of the episode, Farqd takes us through her journey of navigating life and balancing expectations as a young person, a university student, and a daughter. She explains her transition to campus life, molded together with internal battles encompassing identity conflicts, faith, and family dynamics. In an attempt to provide insight into her personal...

In our first episode of Season 3, Jordie and our new co-host Marco sat down with Bella Mangiapane, a 3rd year U of G student studying Agricultural Science with a minor in Business. Bella gets the conversation started with a struggle that all university students can relate to (especially now) - making social connections. From there Bella shares her story about her on-going mental health journey, and how an unrelated trip to the ER helped Bella to break down her own mental health stigma a...

In the final episode of season 2, we hear from Wing Tse, a University of Guelph student pursuing his Bachelor of Arts in Psychology, with a minor in Studio Art. In addition to this, he has served in the armed forces and is currently a firefighter. Wing describes his tough upbringing and recalls his struggle with mental health beginning at a very early age - a time where he had limited access to resources and support. He reflects on finally accepting his identity and background, now seeing his...

In this episode we talk with Prof. Matt Demers, an Associate Professor of Mathematics and Statistics at the University of Guelph, and streams on Twitch connecting with old friends and students. Matt explains his journey transitioning from high school to university, from his undergrad to his masters, and finally his PhD and professorship. He explores what has helped him through all those changes and the joy he has always had for teaching. He describes his experience with impostor syndrome, soc...