Faculty members sitting at tables at the 2025 UM Faculty Symposium.
Faculty members attending the 2025 Faculty Symposium.
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Teaching and learning

Entrepreneurship, innovation and how it shapes research

Faculty shared how entrepreneurship and innovation applies in their work.

Estimated Read Time:
1 minute
Faculty members attending the 2025 Faculty Symposium.

Nearly 100 people gathered for the second annual Entrepreneurship & Innovative Thinking Faculty Symposium on Thursday, November 27th.  

The event, co-hosted by The Centre for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning, Stu Clark Centre for Entrepreneurship, IDEA START, and Partnerships, Knowledge Mobilization and Innovation, brought our UM community together to learn about entrepreneurship in various forms.

A speaker at the 2025 Faculty Symposium standing on stage.
A speaker at the 2025 Faculty Symposium on stage.
Faculty members sitting at tables and enjoying lunch at the 2025 Faculty Symposium

After an inspiring welcome from UM Chancellor, David Angus, four faculty members shared their experiences applying entrepreneurship and innovation:  

  • Associate Professor Kathy Yerex, Dr. Gerald Niznick College of Dentistry, shared about a new module in the Dental Hygiene program to help students develop skills for professional innovation and small business.  
  • Dr. Wenxi Pu, Asper School of Business, shared about his new research method that uses linguistic analysis of U.S. media, supported by machine learning algorithms and AI, to reveal cultural attitudes about entrepreneurship.
  • Dr. Stephane McLachlan shared how his work in Indigenous data sovereignty led him to create a social enterprise that supports an app called Our Data Indigenous.
  • Dr. Geoff Tranmer shared about the journey to create Borotherapeutics, an early-stage drug development company that seeks to develop boron-based therapeutics particularly focused on ALS disease.   

Attendees also heard brief introductions from the units on campus that support entrepreneurship in all its forms:

Janine Carmichael speaking on stage behind a podium at the Faculty Symposium.
Faculty members sitting at a circular table talking and having lunch.
A speaker standing on stage presenting at the Faculty Symposium.
People smiling and having a conversation at the 2025 Faculty Symposium.
A speaker on stage at the 2025 Faculty Symposium

November marked the third annual Entrepreneurship & Innovative Thinking Month at the University of Manitoba. Along with the symposium, the month featured events, initiatives and highlights of how entrepreneurship and innovative approaches can support the pursuit of big ideas to help make the world a better place.  

Check out the latest Entrepreneurship & Innovative Thinking Report on Activities for 2024/25.

A smiling faculty member chatting with two other attendees.
A speaker standing behind the podium and speaking to an audience.
People mingling in groups at the Faculty Symposium
Mr. David Angus speaking on stage at the 2025 Faculty Symposium