We are delighted to announce that Dr.Lynn McDonald will be receiving the Scottish Studies Society's 2025 Scot of the Year Award in view of her long public career and many contributions to building a better Canada, especially in relation to women's equality and pay equity. Dr. McDonald has been in the news recently for her work in correcting misunderstandings about key historical figures such as Sir John A Macdonald, Egerton Ryerson and Henry Dundas by placing them in historical context. The event will take place at the Arts & Letters Club in Toronto on April 5, 2025. Details will be posted soon.
Dr.McDonald has made enduring contributions as a scholar and social activist. She is professor emerita of sociology at the University of Guelph and has written extensively on the impact of women thinkers in the 18th and 19th centuries. She also served as a Member of Parliament when her Non-Smokers' Health Act of 1988 led the world in enacting legislation to establish smoke-free work and public spaces. In addition, in a labour of love, she published the definitive collection of Florence Nightingale's writings, bringing renewed attention to this important female icon for a new generation. She was named a Member of the Order of Canada in 2015 and elected a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society in 2019. In 2020, she joined with Ryerson academics and supporters to form the Friends of Egerton Ryerson, whose goal is the restoration of Ryerson's reputation by offering a fact-based assessment of the accusations made about him.
In 2023, she was appointed to the Advisory Board of the Canadian Institute for Historical Education and has been instrumental in correcting erroneous information about Canadian events and individuals.
It was back in 1993 that we initiated our Annual Scot of the Year Award to honour individuals with a Scottish connection who have achieved distinction through their contribution to Canadian society or the international community at large. A list of previous recipients can be seen here.
Photo of Dr.McDonald © Oxford Brookes University.