“We are very fortunate to have these inspirational leaders join us to be recognized and speak to our graduating class. Both Jason and Tom have accomplished so much in their distinguished careers and I believe they will demonstrate to the graduating class that there is no ceiling on their futures. Jason is both a pioneer and innovator in his industry, and Tom is another world-class leader who has chosen to give back so much to Laurentian. They are both so deserving of the highest honour we can bestow, ” said Dr. Lynn Wells, President & Vice-Chancellor, Laurentian University.
The convocation ceremonies will be streamed live via YouTube and are available from laurentian.ca
Award Dates
- November 2, 10:00am: Jason F. McLennan - Honorary Doctorate of Architecture
- November 2, 2:30pm: Tom Blake - Honorary Doctorate of Sports Administration
Jason F. McLennan
Chief Sustainability Officer of global firm Perkins&Will, and founder of McLennan Design, Jason is a distinguished designer, author, speaker, consultant, and environmentalist, he stands as one of the world's most influential individuals in the field of architecture and the green building movement. His ideas have earned national and international acclaim, including winning the Buckminster Fuller Prize, the ENR National Award of Excellence, and the Ashoka Fellowship. Jason has designed and consulted on many of the world’s greenest projects and is regularly sought out by leading companies and institutions for sustainability and social justice strategy. Jason created the Living Building Challenge, the planet’s top standard for certifying green buildings and he is the author of seven books on sustainability and social justice, including the pioneering Philosophy of Sustainable Design that has been used in dozens of architecture schools around the world. He was born and raised in Sudbury before moving on to work all over the world.
Tom Blake
One of the world’s most respected and dynamic sales executives. Tom is the author of the best-selling book “Championship Selling”, is the Co-Founder of Optimé International, and worked for 18 years from the entry level to executive at global sales and marketing leader Procter & Gamble. Tom and Optimé have trained hundreds of sales organizations like AT&T, PepsiCo, P&G, and many other Fortune 100 companies. The company was recently recognized as a 2024 Top Sales Training Company by Selling Power. In 2011, he co-founded Sprout Wellness Solutions, a holistic digital health and wellness solution, which was acquired by Telus Health in 2022. Tom was part of the inaugural intake for the School of Sports Administration (SPAD) in 1972 and is one of SPAD’s first graduates. Tom has regularly contributed to Laurentian over the past 50 years by serving on multiple Advisory Boards, hiring Laurentian graduates, intern and teaching Championship Selling in the SPAD program for 15 years.