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Alumni Distinguished Speakers Series: Setsuko Thurlow
March 15, 2018 @ 6:00 pm - 8:30 pm
Setsuko Thurlow: Survivor, Activist, Trailblazer
Ms. Thurlow is one of the Faculty’s prominent alumni who recently accepted the Nobel Peace Prize on behalf of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN).
Date: Thursday, March 15th, 2018
Location: Toronto Marriott Bloor Yorkville Hotel, Forest Hill Ballroom (1st Floor), 90 Bloor St E, Toronto, ON M4W 1A7
Time: 6:00 – 8:30pm
Talk followed by reception
The Distinguished Speakers Series is an annual event hosted by the Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work’s Alumni Association.
This event is free and open to the public. Registration required.
Please register at https://fifswspeakersseries.eventbrite.ca.
Speaker Bio:
Setsuko Thurlow survived the Hiroshima atomic bombing in 1945. She was a 13-year-old, grade 8 student at the time. Thurlow, who married a Canadian and moved to Toronto in 1955, was in Oslo in December to accept the Nobel Peace Prize on behalf of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN). Throughout her life, she has worked tirelessly to campaign against nuclear weapons and has been a leading figure in its movement, playing a key role to push the United Nations to adapt a landmark treaty outlawing nuclear weapons.
One of our prominent alumni, Setsuko Thurlow earned both a Bachelor and Master-level degree of social work from the Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto. Spanning more than four decades, Ms. Thurlow has had an illustrious and impressive career, working in several different organizations, such as the Toronto Board of Education, the YWCA of Metropolitan Toronto, and the Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital (then-called the Ontario Crippled Children’s Centre). She was the founder and President of the Japanese Family Services of Metropolitan Toronto and provided leadership within many other multicultural organizations. She has been the recipient of numerous awards and honours, including the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Award and the Order of Canada for her outstanding contributions to social work and her tireless efforts to rid the world of nuclear weapons. To this day, Ms. Thurlow continues to share her inspiring story around the world.