Event Date: October 1, 2026 - 4:00pm to 6:30pm
Location: University of Ottawa

Registration: Google Forms

Presented by Canadian Leadership for Nuclear Disarmament and the Centre for International Policy Studies

Recipient of the 2026 Distinguished Achievement Award from Canadian Leadership for Nuclear Disarmament: Robin Collins

Robin Collins will deliver a keynote lecture: “How Optimists Triumph and Change Happens.” Historical precedents reveal that change is unpredictable yet possible. This lecture will briefly examine three urgent contemporary global threats — nuclear war, the Covid pandemic and the climate crisis — and suggest why commitment to our common goal is what can save us.

Mr. Collins will receive his Distinguished Achievement Award from CLND Chairperson Alex Neve.

Lecture and award presentation at 4pm, followed by a reception.

Please note that this is a hybrid event – participation can be in person or online.

The room number for this event, to be held on the University of Ottawa campus, will be circulated at a later date.

Speaker:

Robin Collins has supported disarmament, alternative defence, peace and UN peacekeeping for 35 years through a variety of organizations, including as a chair of Mines Action Canada, and as a co-chair of the Canadian nuclear weapon abolition network CNANW. He is currently secretary of Canadian Pugwash Group and a board member of the Rideau Institute.

Award presentation by:

Alex Neve, O.C. is the Chairperson of Canadian Leadership for Nuclear Disarmament. He is a professor of international human rights law, a Senior Fellow with the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs and Principle Researcher affiliated with the Centre for International Policy Studies at the University of Ottawa.

Word of welcome:

Dr. Alexandra Gheciu is a Professor at the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs and Director of CIPS.