Public Lecture: From Madness to the Order of Canada

In celebration of Dr. Austin Mardon receiving an honorary degree from Dalhousie University this spring, he will be delivering a public lecture: From Madness to The Order of Canada: My journey with schizophrenia as an academic on Thursday, May 30th from 1:00 to 3:00 PM ADT in the Scotiabank auditorium in Halifax. The event is hosted by Dalhousie's Faculty of Science, in collaboration with the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience and the Department of Psychiatry in the Faculty of Medicine.

Following the public lecture a reception will be held with refreshments. Everyone is welcome to attend. Please register online via Eventbrite.

Dr. Austin Mardon is a polymathic explorer whose commitment to the fields of astronomy, geography, political history, theology, and medicine, and his mental health activism, have had far-reaching impacts. Born in Edmonton, Alberta, and growing up in Lethbridge, Dr. Mardon completed undergraduate studies in geography at University of Lethbridge and soon headed south — 170 miles from the South Pole as part of an Antarctic meteorite expedition for NASA and the National Science Foundation. Medical complications from environmental exposure on the trip earned him an Antarctic Service Medal but curtailed his aspirations of heading to space.

Dr. Mardon’s earthly ambitions were undeterred, however. He went on to earn master’s degrees in education and science, and his PhD in geography from the University of Greenwich in Australia. In the mid-1980s he started the Antarctic Institute of Canada, a non-profit promoting research and exploration, of which he is still the director. He’s authored upwards of 500 articles and books. After his 1992 schizophrenia diagnosis, Dr. Mardon became an advocate for people experiencing mental illness, writing numerous books on the subject and receiving the Canadian Medical Association Medal of Honour.

A Member of the Order of Canada, the Royal Society of Canada and the Royal Geographical Society of Canada, he currently holds adjunct professorships at the University of Lethbridge and in the University of Alberta Department of Psychiatry — the first time someone with schizophrenia has been appointed to such a position. He lives in Edmonton with his wife and frequent collaborator, Dr. Catherine Mardon.

Host or Publisher Dalhousie Faculty of Science