Junaid Ahmed, M.A.

  • Writer and Journalist at MaRS Discovery District
  • Advanced Placement® English Language and Composition Teacher

Junaid (aka Mr. Ahmed) has six years of experience teaching Advanced Placement® English Language and Composition. His tutoring experience includes helping undergrads with their thesis statements, coaching STEM students in application writing, and helping Master’s and PhD students improve the grammar and persuasive quality of their dissertations. He is also a writer by trade, specializing in helping high-tech businesses explain the science and the impact of their inventions. He is currently wrapping up his first novel, and working as a journalist for MaRS Discovery District, a University of Toronto-affiliated research and innovation centre. He likes playing hockey, practicing karate, and hosting conflict resolution sessions between his cats.

Publications
www.thestar.com
Tech Update: New stats and UN treaty highlight need for solutions to keeping microplastics out of our bodies
Plus, Canadian contenders in XPRIZE Top 100 and carbon removal efforts gets a boost.
www.thestar.com
Five hopeful tech developments on the horizon for 2024
From tweaking genes to extracting metals from the moon, technological innovations offer plenty of reasons to be optimistic about the future
www.thestar.com
Everything you wanted to know about wastewater — but were afraid to ask
Most of us flush and forget. But at the other end of the pipe, innovators are at work finding better ways to clean our waste and protect our waterways.
www.thestar.com
Three key challenges on the road to electric vehicles — aside from their cost
In a little over a decade, all new cars sold in Canada must be emissions free. There are a lot of hurdles — but plenty of ideas for overcoming them.
www.marsdd.com
Open Ocean Robotics is shedding light on the murky depths – MaRS Discovery District
“Close to 80 percent of our oceans are unobserved, unexplored, unmapped,” says CEO Julie Angus. Her company’s drone boats are working to change that.
www.marsdd.com
6 tech trends that are shaping the world right now – MaRS Discovery District
As the Elevate Festival returns to Toronto, here’s a look at some of the major trends that are sure to spark debate.
www.marsdd.com
7 productivity-boosting technologies from the U.K. that you need to know – MaRS Discovery District
A collaboration between Innovate UK and MaRS is bringing a host of new ways to improve manufacturing efficiency to Canada
www.marsdd.com
MaRS Magazine – MaRS Discovery District
June 2023 In this special print issue, we explore how Canadian innovators are fine-tuning technological advances to transform healthcare, robotics, transportation and quantum computing. Download the magazine
www.marsdd.com
12 Canadian companies rank on the Global Cleantech 100 list for 2023 – MaRS Discovery District
Ventures considered among the world’s most innovative are working in geothermal power, energy storage, hydrogen fuels and more.
Education and Scholarships
  • Master of Arts, English Literature (York University)
  • Winner of the York Graduate Scholarship
  • Thesis: Using the Philosophy of Humour to study Italian-American author Don DeLillo, in order to decipher his critique of mass culture in the media age.
  • Honours Bachelor of Arts (University of Toronto)
  • English Literature
  • Peace, Conflict and Justice Studies (Munk School of Global Affairs)
  • Graduated with Distinction
  • Winner of the Samuel J. Stubbs Award

For more information on Junaid’s work, visit his portfolio.

Maybelle Leung, PhD (ABD)

  • Medievalist (specialist in Medieval history and culture)
  • Award winning Teaching Assistant

Maybelle lives the trivium creed through her work in Medieval studies. She has a Ph.D. (ABD) in English from York University. Her achievements include winning the English Department’s Teaching Assistant Award of Excellence, and attaining Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council funding for her work in medieval literature – totaling $105,000. She has more than a decade of experience tutoring high school and university students in writing, literature, and piano. She is currently working on her dissertation, which studies the writings of 14th century nuns through the lenses of Classical philosophy and medieval theology.

Education and Scholarships
  • PhD (ABD), English Literature (York University)
  • Specializations in Medieval Literature, Psychoanalytic and Feminist Theory, and Traditions in Phenomenology
  • Thesis: The reception of the French allegorical poem, Le Roman de la Rose (1278) in late Medieval England
  • Winner of the Joseph Armand Bombardier Canada Graduate Scholarship (CGS-D), Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, $105,000
  • Master of Arts, English Literature (York University)
  • Winner of the Ontario Graduate Scholarship (OGS), $15,000
  • Winner of the Joseph Armand Bombardier Canada Graduate Scholarship (CGS-M), Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, $17,500
  • Winner of the York Graduate Scholarship
  • Honours Bachelor of Arts (University of Toronto)
  • English Literature
  • Minors in Art History and Semiotics
  • Graduated with High Distinction
  • Winner of the Samuel J. Stubbs Award
  • TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) Certificate

For more information on Maybelle’s work, visit her portfolio.