Celebration of Women in Computing – CS-CAN

Welcome

The event will be held at York University in the Accolade East Building (see link for Transit and Driving Directions)

CAN-CWiC is the premiere Canadian computing conference for young women and non-binary people in technology. This annual event has been offered since 2011 and features networking, learning, sharing and mentoring. CAN-CWiC embodies the mission of encouraging curiosity and awareness for the digital innovations that change the community and world around us. Bringing together leaders in research, education and industry from across Canada. Get inspired by stories from women who have been there and done that and how they succeeded.

If you are a student interested in attending contact your department as they may coordinate the attendance of a number of students in your department. You can also register yourself via this website registration portal (opens in late September).

Transport & Accommodations

For Students (outside GTA)

Accommodation: If you, or your department, bought a ticket “with a hotel room” your registration includes a one-night stay (November 7) at the hotel. Please do not contact the hotel as all reservations are centralized through our office. Your room includes two Queen beds, and you will be matched with someone ideally from your school, but this is not guaranteed. Please do not contact our office to be matched with someone. Any switching of rooms needs to take place after you have checked in. Once you register, information about the accommodation will be included in your confirmation.

Arrival Time

ou should arrive around 4:00 p.m. local time. This will give you time to check-in, get settled and get ready for the Friday evening event (with dinner) which starts at 6:00 p.m.

Bus shuttle

If you are from outside the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), we have arranged busing to and from the hotel (and return home trip) for the following locations: Ottawa, Montreal, Kingston, Oshawa, Hamilton, Waterloo, London, and Guelph. You should contact your school’s department to be registered for the bus. These buses will also be taking you the venue for the evening of the 7th as well as the morning of the 8th from your respective hotels. If your school is not mentioned in the above-mentioned areas, you will need to arrange your own transportation to and from the hotel. Your hotel will be around 10 minutes from the York University campus. We suggest that you first check-in at the hotel and leave your luggage. The bus will stop for a washroom break. We suggest you bring your lunch as it will not be available during the bus ride.

Hotel Arrangements

Hotel arrangements have been made at local hotels. Your bus will be directed to those hotels. Your bus will arrive around 3:00 p.m. (depending on traffic). You are being matched up with another student. Do not ask the hotel or volunteer to change who you are matched up with. It will be up to you to switch with another student. You then have some time to freshen up. Make sure that you are ready to leave again at 5:30 p.m. Meet up will be in the lobby. Don’t be late!! The bus will then drive you to the facility. It will pick you up again that evening and drive you back to the hotel. The next day you have to pack and leave your luggage on the bus. The bus will leave at 7:30 a.m. so again Don’t be Late!

Food and Beverage

Your registration includes dinner on the Friday evening. Breakfast, lunch, and a snack on Saturday. Make sure to take a snack with you on the Friday trip as dinner won’t be served until 7:00 p.m.

Friday Evening Event

We had another great Canadian Celebration of Women in Computing. Hope to welcome you next year. Dates and location will be announced in early 2025

All registered students will have an opportunity to attend the amazing CAN-CWiC reception and event. There are fun photo booths and we have some amazing keynote speakers lined up. It’s a great opportunity to dress up, enjoy some food and drinks, mingle, meet other students from across Canada and have fun evening of food and entertainment.

Chairs

Steering Committee Members

CAN-CWIC Registration

Program Schedule

The full program schedule will become available in mid-October.

Friday, November 7, 2025

4:00 - 5:50 p.m.

Registration
6:00 - 7:30 p.m.

Keynote Speakers

AWS, Electronic Arts
7:30 - 9:00 p.m.

Dinner and Networking
9:30 p.m.

End of Day

Bus riders: pickup to hotel. Others arrange Uber.

Saturday, November 8, 2025

8:45 - 10:00 a.m.

Keynote Speakers
10:15 - 11:05 a.m.

Breakout Sessions
11:15 - 12:05 p.m.

Breakout Sessions
12:15 - 1:00 p.m.

Lunch
1:00 - 1:50 p.m.

Breakout Sessions
2:00 - 4:00 p.m.

Career Fair
4:00 p.m.

End of Day

See the full list of speaker profiles.

On a Bus?

The Montreal, Ottawa and Kingston buses leave 4:00 p.m. sharp. Don’t be late. Other buses leave at 5:00 p.m.

On a Plane?

You are responsible for getting to and from the airport. Book and UBER to get you to the airport on time.

Event Schedule

6:00pm – 10:00pm
6:10 p.m. Opening: Maleknaz Nayebi, York University, Chair CAN CWiC
6:15 p.m. Welcome to York University – Dr. Jane Goodyer, Dean – Lassonde School of Engineering
6:20 p.m. NCWIT Alison Adnani-Evans – Program Lead, Shopify NCWIT Campus Reps – NCWIT Aspirations in Computing and Present Winners
6:30 p.m. RBC – Natalie Ripp, Senior Director, RBC Digital Cheque Processing Topic: Career Journey
6:45 p.m. AWS – Teresa Huang, Head of Solutions Architecture for Startups, Canada Topic: My Career Story: Randint as a chameleon, a Druid at heart”
7:00 p.m. Electronic Arts – Urbashi Das, lead Analyst – Infrastructure Optimization & Cost Management – Topic: Journey to EA
7:15 p.m. Dinner Starts
10:00 p.m. Friday Program Ends

Event Schedule

7:30 am – 8:30 am
Breakfast (open to students and speakers)
8:30 am – 9:30 am
8:30 – 8:45 BMO – Susan White, Chief Information Operating Officer, Commercial Banking and Capital Markets Topic: TBC
9:00 – 9:15 CN Rail – Elena Boguslavsky, Delivery Manager – Information Security Office of the CISO, I&T Topic: Introducing CN
9:15 – 9:30 CGI – Christina Fung, Senior Vice President, Consulting Services – Topic: AI for Good and Economics of AI
9:30 am – 10:00 am
Coffee Break
10:00 am – 10:55 am
Room 1	Room 2	Room 3 (large middle room)	Room 4	Room 5	Room 6
Electronic Arts	RBC	Turing Society, University of Alberta	AWS	University of Guelph	CN
Ivana Jovasevic, Manager, Software Development	Ioana Ravoiu, Manager, T&O Early Talent Programs Robertha Alvarez/ Rochelle Etwaroo/ Youyi Deng	Emma McDonald	Victoria Granova / Janet Weldon / Janet Shea **	Kate McRoberts	Elena Boguslavsky, Cybersecurity Delivery Manager
Choose Your Own Adventure – How to DIY a Career Path	Panel Discussion: Early Talent and Tech@RBC	Gathering Voices for EDI: A Student-Led Movement	Panel discussion on: “Embracing, shaping and building with GenAI”	Code Your Future: Strategies for Securing Internships and Co-ops in Tech	Cybersecurity in Rail
11:00 am – 11:55 am
Room 1	Room 2	Room 3	Room 4	Room 5	Room 6
CGI	Ontario Tech University	Dalhousie University	BMO	Morgan Stanley	Algoma University
Maria Voicu, Campus Recruitment Consultant	Dr. Annie Lee	Dr. Angela Siegel	Tammy Moorse / Suzanne Whitehead / Reshmi Choudbury / Beatrice Tam **	Elizabeth Ramirez	Dr. Mahreen Nasir
Resume and Interview Prep	Empowering the Future with Multilinguality and Language Diversity	Discover four initiatives reshaping CS: outreach programs, school partnerships, adult reskilling, and a Women in Tech Day.	Panel discussion: Girls Vision for the Future	Technical Debt Management	Trends in AI: Deep Neural Networks in E-Commerce Recommendation Systems
12:00 pm – 1:00 pm
Room 1	Room 2	Room 3	Room 4	Room 5	Room 6
Dr. Sara Nabil	Lightning Talks	Lightning Talks	Lightning Talks	Lightning Talks	Lightning Talks
Queen’s University	McMaster University	Queen’s University	University of British Columbia, Okanagan	McMaster University	Carleton University
Smart Textiles and Empowering Women in STEM	Nishttha Sharma	Farida Mohamad	Linda Okpanachi	Feyi Adesanya	Charelle Jazmin
	Redefining Data Dependencies: Harnessing the Power of Rate of Change for Modern Data Challenges	Revolutionizing Vital Sign Measurement with Remote Photoplethysmography (rPPG) in Healthcare	Combating Diabetes Misinformation in Africa: A Transformer Model Approach	Systems of Twinned Systems: State of the Art	Turning My Pants Into a Synthesizer: The Unexpected Journey of My Undergraduate Research Internship
Room 1 (12:30 – 1:00)	Room 2	Room 3	Room 4	University of TorontoRoom 5	Room 6
RCMP	McMaster University	Queen’s University	Ontario Institute of Technology	University of Toronto	McMaster University
Anshu Pandeya	Fatemeh Norouziani	Mahzabeen Emu	Stacey Koornneef	Rue Sriharsha	Swati Mishra
The process of Cybercrime investigations	The design of small-scale robots	Hybrid Quantum Classical Computing For Optimization	Run, Llama, Run: Designing and Evaluating a Cost-Accessible Computational Thinking Educational Game for K-5 Students	Beyond the Degree: Min-Maxing your Career Growth	Designing Usable, Sustainable and Reliable AI systems for Healthcare
Room 1	Room 2	Room 3	Room 4	Room 5	Room 6
	Queen’s University	University of British Columbia	Queen’s University	York University	University of Toronto
	Nisha Simon	Parinda Rahman	Hebatalla Ouda	Karolina Tchilinguirova	Kashaf Salaheen
	What your LLM won’t tell you: Telling Stories with Large Language Models and Automated Planning	Ethics and Trust in Persuasive Technology	Digital Twins For Equitable Access To Surgical Care in Canada	Biases in gendered citation practices in software engineering literature: An exploratory study and some reflections on the Matthew and Matilda effects	Early Career Advice – Imposter Syndrome, WFH vs. Hybrid vs. Office, Job Hopping, WHAT IS GOING ON!?
Room 1	Room 2	Room 3	Room 4	Room 5	Room 6
	NYIT				Queen’s University
	Fariha Chowdhury				Megan Bryson
	Breaking into Cybersecurity: A Guide for Women and Inspiring Success Stories				The Tortured Mathematics Department: A Graph Theory-Based Look at the Lyrics of Taylor Swift
Lightning Talks Time Slots
	12:00 – 12:12	12:00 – 12:20	12:00 – 12:20	12:00 – 12:20	12:00 – 12:12
	12:15 – 12:27	12:22 – 12:42	12:22 – 12:42	12:22 – 12:42	12:15 – 12:27
	12:30 – 12:42	12:45 – 1:00	12:45 – 1:00	12:45 – 1:00	12:30 – 12:42
	12:45 – 1:00				12:45 – 1:00
1:00 pm – 2:00 pm
Lunch (open to students, speakers, and sponsors) – start of photo booth
2:00 pm – 5:00 pm
Career Fair – Quebec and Ottawa/Kingston buses leave at 4:00

1:00 pm – 2:00 pm

Lunch and Career Fair :On Ground Floor.

Career Fair from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. on Second Floor. Buses for Montreal and Ottawa are leaving at 4:00 p.m.

1:30 pm – 3:00 pm – Faculty Mentoring Circles

Faculty/Academia Mentoring Circles

Participate in Mentoring Circles that focus on advice and experiences with different Career Paths in academia:

Academic Leadership

If you are interested in taking the path to become a leader in an academic institute and want to be familiar with the problems, challenges, and solutions, learning from the experiences of our mentors can be the best choice. Come with your questions and hear advice and stories from women who have walked the same path.

Tenure and Promotion

Join our mentoring circle for pre-tenure faculty, a supportive space where early-career academics connect with experienced mentors. Navigate the path to tenure with insights, advice, and a collaborative community dedicated to your professional growth in academia.

Teaching Professor

Engage with experienced educators who are ready to share insights, strategies, and stories about navigating the challenges and triumphs in the academic world. Bring your questions, and benefit from the collective wisdom of mentors who have walked a similar path. Join our teaching circle, where collaboration and shared experiences can enhance your journey as an educator and leader in academia.

Speakers List Profiles

Full speaker list will be available in October

Speaker List Profiles

Keynote Speakers

Parallel Session Speakers

Lightning Talk Speakers

Call for Lightning Talks 2025

Do you have an exciting academic research project ready to share with the next generation of computer scientists? The 2025 Canadian Celebration of Women in Computing (CAN-CWiC) is your opportunity to showcase your research in a dynamic and impactful way.

Why CAN-CWiC is Your Ultimate Canvas

Showcase Brilliance

This is your moment to bring your innovation, hard work, and creativity to the forefront. Share your projects and achievements with a receptive audience that hungers for inspiration.

Energize Discourse

Engage in spirited discussions and steer conversations toward the next horizon of computing. Your input could be the spark that ignites new ideas and collaborations.

Ignite Connections

Forge connections with like-minded minds and potential collaborators. CAN-CWiC is a bustling hub of future computing leaders.

Elevate Your Profile:

Woven into a conference experience that fosters growth, CAN-CWiC provides a unique opportunity to bolster your professional standing. Your contribution will be recognized among the brightest minds in the computing sphere.

Submissions

Submissions closed on September 30, 2025.

Session Length

Each lightning presentation on November 8 is slated for a 10–15 minute duration.

Seize The Spotlight:

Don’t let this opportunity pass you by. Become a beacon of inspiration at the 2025 Canadian Celebration of Women in Computing – where your voice, your insights, and your journey shape the next generation of computing excellence.

Ignite curiosity. Fuel progress. Spark connections. Join us at CAN-CWiC 2025.

Please Register For Your Lightning Talk

For more Info Contact:

Gina van Dalen, Executive Director, CS-CAN|INFO-CAN

gina_vandalen@cscan-infocan.ca

Call For Presentations 2025

Unveil Your Expertise & Knowledge at Canada's Premier Conference for Emerging Computing Minds!

Do you have a research project, technical innovation, or industry case study ready to inspire the computing community? The Canadian Celebration of Women in Computing (CAN-CWiC 2025) invites proposals for presentations to be delivered during our upcoming conference on November 7–8, 2025.

Presentation Format

50-minute sessions (including Q&A)
Presentations may be academic, technical, or experiential
Submissions from students, professionals, and non-profit leaders are welcome

Why Present?

Share your research, insights, or real-world experience with an engaged audience
Spark meaningful dialogue and expand your professional network
Contribute to the ongoing growth and visibility of computing in Canada

Who Will You Reach?

Our audience is a dynamic community of post-secondary students, early-career professionals, educators, and leaders from across academia, industry, and non-profit organizations.

Key Dates

Conference Dates: November 7–8, 2025
Presentations: November 8, 2025

Technical Tracks

Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning
Cybersecurity / Privacy
Data Science / Big Data / Analytics
Cloud Computing / DevOps
Software Engineering / Development Practices
Human-Computer Interaction
Quantum Computing
Hardware / Embedded Systems
Open Source Technologies

Career & Professional Development

Leadership skills for women in tech
Career transitions and advancement
Building personal brand and executive presence
Negotiation and salary transparency
Entrepreneurship and startup journeys
Technical interviewing and resume tips

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging (DEIB)

Academic Research & Innovation

Social Impact & Ethics

Student & Early Career Focus

Elevate Your Profile:

Submissions

Submissions Closed on September 30, 2025.

Session Length

Each parallel presentation on November 8 is slated for an engaging 50-minute duration, allowing ample time for immersive insights and vibrant exchanges.

Note on Participation Compensation:

Participation in this captivating journey is a voluntary endeavour, an investment in your personal growth and in nurturing the future of computing. While monetary compensation isn’t part of the equation, the intrinsic rewards of knowledge sharing and community engagement are boundless.

Seize the Spotlight:

Step forward into the limelight by expressing your interest through the form below. The CAN-CWiC Program Committee will curate an electrifying program that aligns with the conference’s essence, making every effort to accommodate as many remarkable sessions as possible. We will notify you the first week of October if your presentation made it into the program.
Don’t let this opportunity pass you by. Become a beacon of inspiration at the 2025 Canadian Celebration of Women in Computing – where your voice, your insights, and your journey shape the next generation of computing excellence.

Ignite curiosity. Fuel progress. Spark connections. Join us at CAN-CWiC 2025.

Prefix

First Name *

Last Name *

Organization *

Select Your Country

Email Address *

Phone *

Select Your Presentation Topic (indicate one or more) *

if you choose other please specify

Presentation Title

Select Type of Presentation *

Abstract *0 / 250

Attach Your File (Optional)

No file chosen

Accepted file types: pdf, doc, docx, Max. file size: 2 MB

For more information contact:

Gina van Dalen, Executive Director, CS-CAN|INFO-CAN

gina_vandalen@cscan-infocan.ca

Sponsorship

Thank you for your interest in the 15th Celebration of Women in Computing Conference (CAN-CWiC)

CAN-CWiC provides an excellent opportunity to network with hundreds of female computing students from across the country.

Sponsorship Benefits:

CAN-CWIC is funded by sponsorship by industry, government and universities/colleges. Becoming a sponsor of the CAN-CWIC affords your organization the opportunity to:

Influence and attract tomorrow’s computing professionals.
Showcase your commitment to diversity.
Provide opportunities for your technical women to mentor and network with the next generation of women.
Participate in the networking fair.
Promote your organization
Strengthen relationships with participating universities, scope out potential collaborations.
Support a program that improves the climate for the sector at large.
Academic Sponsors - recruit Graduate Students.

Statistics from 2024:

CAN-CWIC is funded by sponsorship by industry, government and universities/colleges. Becoming a sponsor of the CAN-CWIC affords your organization the opportunity to:

650 attendees.
Over 35 organizations attended.
30+ institution were represented from B.C., Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec and Nova Scotia.
Over 30 sponsors.
100% of sponsor funding went towards supporting students allowing them to attend the event.
25 amazing lightning talks.
3 awards presented through our partnership with NCWIT Aspirations in Computing Award.
30 booths at the job fair.

Attendees

Orgnizations

0 +

Institutions

0 +

CAN-CWiC is 75% funded through sponsorship by industry, government, universities and colleges.

All funds are used to support student participation. Sponsorship allows CAN-CWiC to offer highly subsidized fees for students to attend all presentations, panels and workshops, participate by giving talks or presenting posters, network with other attendees and attend the networking fair. Thanks to our sponsors, we are also able to provide overnight accommodation, and, in many cases, transportation for students.

Welcome

The event will be held at York University in the Accolade East Building (see link for Transit and Driving Directions)

Transport & Accommodations

For Students (outside GTA)

Arrival Time

Bus shuttle

Hotel Arrangements

Food and Beverage

Friday Evening Event

Chairs

Maleknaz Nayebi

Steering Committee Members

Joanne Atlee

Kate Larson

Andrea Bunt

Vlado Keselj

Ouldooz Baghban Karimi

CAN-CWIC Registration

Program Schedule

Event Schedule

6:00pm – 10:00pm

Event Schedule

7:30 am – 8:30 am

8:30 am – 9:30 am

9:30 am – 10:00 am

10:00 am – 10:55 am

11:00 am – 11:55 am

12:00 pm – 1:00 pm

Lightning Talks Time Slots

1:00 pm – 2:00 pm

2:00 pm – 5:00 pm

1:00 pm – 2:00 pm

Lunch and Career Fair :On Ground Floor.

Career Fair from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. on Second Floor. Buses for Montreal and Ottawa are leaving at 4:00 p.m.

1:30 pm – 3:00 pm – Faculty Mentoring Circles

Speakers List Profiles

Speaker List Profiles Keynote Speakers

Christina Fung

Parallel Session Speakers

Christina Fung

Anne Marie Salter

Bethany Edmunds

Jennifer Chan

Lightning Talk Speakers

Enas Aitarawneh

Call for Lightning Talks 2025

Why CAN-CWiC is Your Ultimate Canvas

Showcase Brilliance

Energize Discourse

Ignite Connections

Elevate Your Profile:

Submissions

Session Length

Seize The Spotlight:

Please Register For Your Lightning Talk

For more Info Contact:

Call For Presentations 2025

Unveil Your Expertise & Knowledge at Canada's Premier Conference for Emerging Computing Minds!

Presentation Format

Why Present?

Who Will You Reach?

Key Dates

Suggested Topics

Technical Tracks

Career & Professional Development

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging (DEIB)

Academic Research & Innovation

Social Impact & Ethics

Student & Early Career Focus

Elevate Your Profile:

Submissions

Session Length

Note on Participation Compensation:

Speaker List Profiles

Keynote Speakers