Chancellor Emeritus Arthur Mauro
Winnipeg, the new Geneva?
Arthur Mauro announces $5 million to Front and Centre campaign
Philanthropist Arthur Mauro, OC, OM, QC, through the Mauro Family Foundation, today donated $5 million to the University of Manitoba’s Front and Centre campaign. The gift will endow a cross-faculty Chair in Human Rights and Social Justice ($3M), and support local and international peace-building initiatives ($2M).
Renowned for his ardent work and advocacy for world peace, social justice and human rights, Dr. Mauro, Chancellor Emeritus and alumnus of the University of Manitoba, has long shared his vision for Winnipeg and Manitoba as a hub of human rights and social justice scholarship and outreach. He spoke passionately about this today at a luncheon in Winnipeg, just ahead of the United Nations’ Human Rights Day, December 10.
“I believe that Winnipeg, because of its history, existing institutions, and those still to come, can create the new Geneva. We have reason to be proud of this achievement. But the demands of social justice will not be corrected in a single generation. They require patience and continued commitment,” says Dr. Mauro.
The new Chair will significantly enhance the human rights and social justice research and education already underway at the University of Manitoba, particularly in the Arthur V. Mauro Centre for Peace and Justice, the Centre for Human Rights Research and the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation. It will help the U of M outreach and engage with organizations, including the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, the United Way and the Winnipeg Foundation.
“This gift will build capacity—in people, in ideas, in outreach and engagement—that will change the world,” says David Barnard, President and Vice-Chancellor at the University of Manitoba.
The Mauro Family Foundation’s history of generosity with the University of Manitoba is extensive. Dr. Mauro and the Mauro Family Foundation previously donated $2.7 million to establish the Arthur V. Mauro Centre for Peace and Justice and numerous scholarship funds.
“My belief is that University of Manitoba students and alumni will bring about continued social, economic, and cultural change,” says Dr. Mauro. “And that change is a direct result of their university experience, where individuals from different backgrounds work together to champion diversity and peace.”
This investment continues his legacy of teaching respect for diversity of rational discourse and human interaction, and will strengthen the trailblazing scholarship already underway at the U of M, such as the Faculty of Law’s Canadian Journal of Human Rights, the first journal of its kind in Canada.
“For decades, Arthur Mauro has stood apart as an inspirational leader in this community and this nation,” says Paul Soubry, chair of the Front and Centre campaign. “His keen and active engagement, his mentorship, and his passion shine as an example for others to emulate. I know he has inspired me and others of my generation to become more active citizens. The Front and Centre campaign benefits from his gift and his inspiration.”
The $5 million donation announced today brings the new total of the Front and Centre campaign to $456,925,065.
The Front and Centre campaign supports five priorities: Indigenous Achievement, Graduate Student Support, Research Excellence, Outstanding Student Experience, and Places and Spaces. These priorities respond to our province’s most pressing needs and allow us to be reactive to some of the world’s most urgent issues, like human rights and social justice.