Professor Maydianne Andrade’s distinguished career is marked by innovative leadership and actualizing best practices for inclusion in the workplace. She is the founder of the Toronto Initiative for Diversity and Excellence (TIDE), co-founder and president of the Canadian Black Scientists Network, and the Vice Dean of Faculty Affairs and Equity at the University of Toronto Scarborough (UTSC). Andrade shows leaders how to mitigate and resolve unconscious bias and systemic barriers in the workplace to cultivate cultures of inclusion and equity.
Andrade earned her Ph.D. in neurobiology and behaviour from Cornell University and has been a professor at UTSC for more than 20 years. She became the Vice Dean of Faculty Affairs and Equity in 2017, where she advised on academic equity issues and oversaw all academic HR matters with the goal of increasing transparency and inclusive practices. In 2019, Andrade was awarded the Ludwik and Estelle Jus Memorial Human Rights Prize for her work initiating conversations about race, gender, and bias.
As the founder of TIDE, Andrade leads a multi-disciplinary group of faculty volunteers that provide data-informed talks, workshops, and practical advice on increasing representation and inclusion in the university. She also works to elevate and support Black STEM professionals and trainees through the Canadian Black Scientists Network, developing partnerships with universities, government agencies, community groups, and sponsors to facilitate new employment pathways.
An award-winning teacher, researcher, and science outreach educator, Andrade is an elected member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, a Fellow of the Animal Behaviour Society and the Royal Canadian Geographical Society, and sits on the Scientific Advisory Committee of the Council of Canadian Academies. She’s been featured on CBC’s Quirks and Quarks, Ideas, and The Nature of Things, and was the host and co-creator of The New Normal, a well-received podcast exploring equity and collective action.
