UWindsor alumni receive one of the country's highest civilian honours

Governor General Julie Payette announced the appointment of political scientist Janine Brodie BA ’74, MA ’76 on December 29, and invested movie make-up artist Gordon Smith BFA ’75 at a ceremony in Rideau Hall on January 24.

Dr. Brodie is a Distinguished University Professor at the University of Alberta, where she holds a Canada Research
Chair in Political Economy and Social Governance. Her Order 
of Canada citation notes her contributions as a scholar of Canadian politics and public policy, notably in the areas of social governance and gender politics. Her 1985 book, Women and Politics in Canada, was the first on the topic.

Brodie was elected a fellow of the Royal Society of Canada in 2002 and awarded a Trudeau Fellowship in 2010. In 2013, she became a fellow of the Broadbent Institute and, in the following year, she was awarded the Royal Society of Canada’s Innis-Gerin medal for significant and sustained contributions to the social sciences in Canada. She will be invited to accept her insignia at a ceremony to be held later this year.

A master of illusion, Smith is considered a pioneer in the film and television make-up and prosthetics field. He has designed special effects make-up and meticulously crafted cutting-edge prosthetics for more than 80 motion pictures, including Platoon, JFK, and the X-Men movie franchise.

A release announcing his investiture noted the ground- breaking contributions of his Canadian crew in the development of silicone gel prosthetic technology, now the industry standard around the world.

Nominated for an Emmy for his work on the 1995 television biography Truman, Smith won a Saturn award for best make-up from the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films for Guillermo del Toro’s 1997 Mimic.

Created in 1967, the Order of Canada recognizes outstanding achievement, dedication to the community and service to the nation. Their contributions are varied, yet they have all enriched the lives of others and have taken to heart the motto of the order: Desiderantes meliorem patriam (“They desire a better country”).