Forward Thinking Speaker Series

Randy Boyagoda is a novelist, professor of English and the University of Toronto’s Advisor on Civil Discourse, the first such position in Canada. In this talk, he explores the state of civil discourse in our personal, professional, and shared public lives, the stakes for getting it right. Civil discourse advances knowledge, serves the common good, and aids in the pursuit of truth and Intellectual Freedom. But it only works if people are willing to trust each other, be curious about other viewpoints, admit they might be wrong about something, and want to learn more. This is thinking out loud together, this is civil discourse in action.      

About Randy Boyagoda 
Randy Boyagoda (Dante's Indiana) is a novelist and Professor of English at the University of Toronto, where he also serves as the university's advisor on civil discourse, the first such position in Canada. He was named one of Toronto’s fifty most influential people by Toronto Life magazine because of his work in civil discourse. He is the author of seven books, including four novels that have been nominated for the Giller Prize, the IMPAC Dublin Literary Prize, and named New York Times Book Review Editor's Choice selections and Globe and Mail Best Books of the year. A frequent contributor to CBC Radio, including as a national columnist on civil discourse, and former President of PEN Canada, he writes opinions, essays and reviews for publications including the Atlantic, the New York Times, the Financial Times of London, the Globe and Mail, and The Walrus. He also podcasts for the Toronto Public Library and lives in the east end of Toronto with his wife and their four daughters. His new novel, Lords of Serendipity, comes out later this year.