New mayor, new year, new vision

Community leader and Calgary journalist Deborah Yedlin was elected the 14^th chancellor of the University of Calgary, effective July 1^st, 2018.

Yedlin has been observing, commenting and writing about business and politics for more than two decades, as a journalist for the Financial Post, Globe and Mail and Calgary Herald newspapers.  In addition to her writing, she has been a regular commentator for CBC Radio and Television, and CTV since 1996.

Her journey to becoming a business columnist was unconventional – but an undergraduate degree from the University of Alberta in Economics and English in 1984, coupled with her business experience that was augmented with an MBA from Queen’s University in 1991, have all built towards a resume that includes working on Wall Street and Bay Street.

Born and raised in Edmonton, Yedlin witnessed firsthand the power of education to provide the opportunity to rebuild a life in a new country, as the daughter of immigrants. As both her parents went on to become educators – in the public primary system and at the post-secondary level – Yedlin grew up immersed in the academic world.

Since moving to Calgary in 1992, Yedlin has been very active in the Calgary community. She was co-chair of the 2016 United Way Campaign, which raised more than $55 million during a difficult economic time for the city. She has served on the board of a number of arts and community organizations, including the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, Calgary Opera, YMCA Calgary, United Way Calgary, and Winsport. She was previously a member of the President’s Advisory Council at the University of Alberta and served on the Deans’ Advisory Council for the Faculty of Science at the University of Calgary.

Jyoti Gondek was sworn in as Calgary's 37th mayor and the first woman to be elected to this role on October 25, 2021.

Prior to being elected as mayor, she served as city councillor for Ward 3 from 2017 to 2021. She holds both a masters degree and PhD in sociology from the University of Calgary.

Throughout her career, Mayor Gondek has taken a big picture approach to pressing challenges. Often, she has found processes and policies exist simply because they have never been questioned. She has come to understand that by probing and chipping away at issues, we move forward with improvements that have meaning in our everyday lives.

Many challenges face Calgarians including the economic recovery, climate crisis, lack of affordable housing, truth and reconciliation, and women’s participation in the labour force. Mayor Gondek believes that solutions to these issues must be bold, and rooted in economic, social, and environmental resilience.

Mayor Gondek’s professional background includes leading the Westman Centre for Real Estate Studies at the University of Calgary’s Haskayne School of Business where she examined the challenges facing Calgary’s commercial sector as property values in the core plummeted. She knew then that this issue would be a big one for Calgary. She also ran a successful consulting practice for 12 years helping clients in the energy and city-building sectors evolve their business models to fit a changing regulatory and economic environment.

Throughout her career, Mayor Gondek has been known to be a driven community builder and diversity champion who understands the power of cross-sector partnerships where business, social organizations, and educational institutions are connected to local governments to better serve the people. She is honoured to serve Calgarians as Mayor.