Fellows recognized for outstanding contributions to engineering in Canada and provide strategic advice on matters of critical importance to the country
10 members of the U of T Engineering community have been elected as 2026 fellows of the Canadian Academy of Engineering (CAE). Professors Timothy Barfoot (UTIAS), Dimitrios Hatzinakos (ECE), Hans-Arno Jacobsen (ECE), Alex Mihailidis (BME), Goldie Nejat (MIE) and Steven Thorpe (MSE), along with alumni Fred Dermarkar (MechE 8T1), David Harquail (Geo 7T9), Nader Mahinpey (ChemE PhD 0T1) and Andre McDonald (MechE PhD 0T7), are among the CAE’s 50 new fellows. The CAE is a national institution through which individuals who have made outstanding contributions to engineering in Canada provide strategic advice on matters of critical importance to Canada and to Canadians.
“The election of these exceptional faculty and alumni to the Academy is a significant recognition of their impact as engineering innovators, educators and leaders, both nationally and globally,” says U of T Engineering Dean Christopher Yip.
“On behalf of the faculty, congratulations to all our new CAE fellows.”
Barfoot is a leading researcher in autonomous navigation for mobile robots. He takes his ideas from theory to novel field tests in order to facilitate their transfer to industry.His work has found application in self-driving cars, mining, space exploration, the military and agriculture. Barfoot pioneered the Visual Teach and Repeat navigation framework and has continued to improve it over the past two decades. This technique allows a robot to be manually driven through a network of paths just once, and builds a map using its sensors; it can then accurately repeat these paths as often as desired. His widely adopted book, State Estimation for Robotics, has also had a significant impact on the field. A leader in his professional community, Barfoot is a fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and serves as Editor-in-Chief of IEEE Transactions on Field Robotics. He co-founded the Robotics Institute and the undergraduate robotics major at U of T.
Hatzinakos has made significant scholarly contributions in the areas of multimedia signal processing, multimedia security and multimedia communications. He is most widely known for his research on blind signal deconvolution, blind image restoration and digital watermarking of multimedia content. His recent work in medical biometrics and bio signal analysis has established his group as leaders in this field. Hatzinakos is co-founder and director of the Identity, Privacy and Security Institute at U of T (IPSI). Bringing together more than 20 professors across several disciplines, the IPSI is developing new approaches to security that safeguard the privacy, freedom and safety of the individual and the broader community. Hatzinakos was co-chair of the International Symposium on Smart Data at U of T in 2012. He held the Bell Canada Chair in Multimedia from 2004-2014 and received a U of T Inventor of the Year award in 2012. He is a fellow of IEEE and of the Engineering Institute of Canada.
Jacobsen is a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Data-Intensive Systems. His research spans distributed systems, data management and AI-driven systems, with a focus on large-scale infrastructures for cloud, telecom and emerging computing paradigms. He has made foundational contributions to event processing and scalable distributed systems. Jacobsen is also advancing research in quantum computing, including distributed quantum computing and quantum applications to machine learning. He serves as scientific director of the Quantum Software Consortium, which unites three universities and industry partners to advance distributed quantum computing and train highly-qualified personnel across Canada. Jacobsen has helped shape international standards and chaired premier conferences in his field. He is an IEEE Fellow and has received multiple best paper and test-of-time awards, including the VLDB 10-Year Best Paper Award.
Mihailidis has redefined how engineering addresses one of humanity’s most urgent challenges— population aging. His work has transformed how societies support and empower older adults by applying robotics, artificial intelligence and human-centred design to enhance health and independence. Over the past two decades, Mihailidis has been a global pioneer in the field now known as AgeTech, positioning Canada at its forefront. As scientific director and co-founder of AGE-WELL, Canada’s national technology and aging network, he has built an innovation ecosystem that translates engineering research into social and economic benefits. Mihailidis is a fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences and past president of RESNA, the leading North American professional society for rehabilitation engineering and assistive technology. He was recognized as one of the Healthy Ageing 50 global leaders by the United Nations and appointed Chevalier of the Ordre des Palmes Académiques by the Government of France.
Nejat is a pioneer in the development of intelligent socially assistive robots, which provide cognitive and social interventions, and assist with daily tasks to improve the quality of life of older adults. Her groundbreaking work includes the development of multimodal interactive robots and their perceptual, behavioral and affective intelligence. She has deployed these robots in partnership with care facilities to help with patient care. Nejat is the Canada Research Chair in Intelligent Assistive and Collaborative Robots and a fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and the Canadian Institute for Applied Research. She has received the Engineers Canada Young Engineer Achievement Award, the Professional Engineers Ontario Engineering Excellence Medal, and the Robotics Society of Japan Pioneering Research Award in Robot & Human Interactive Communication. Her assistive robots were recognized by the Ontario Society of Professional Engineers as one of the top 150 Canadian engineering innovations for Canada’s 150th birthday.
Thorpe is working to advance fundamental materials synthesis and cell/component design in next-generation water electrolysers for green hydrogen energy production. He has worked with Canadian hydrogen energy companies to advance the design of water electrolysers and fuel cells for decarbonization and reduced greenhouse gas emission. Thorpe has partnered with Canadian and international suppliers, cell manufacturers and end users through research collaborations and university-industry consortia such as Ni-ElectroCan and Auto21 to commercialize his research endeavors. He has held many leadership roles in ASM, the world’s largest materials engineering society, and has garnered several prestigious awards, including the Academics in Industry Award and the CIM Distinguished Lecturer Award. Thorpe has also made outstanding contributions to engineering education. He received the President’s Teaching Award, U of T’s highest honour for teaching, and has served as co-chair of U of T’s Teaching Academy.
Dermarkar is the president and CEO of Atomic Energy of Canada Limited, overseeing Canada’s nuclear laboratory, reducing federal research-related radioactive waste liabilities and optimizing CANDU intellectual property. As CANDU Owners Group president and CEO (2014-2020), he strengthened collaboration among operators of 47 CANDU reactors globally, expanded membership, research programs and strategic mandate. His 33-year Ontario Power Generation career included post-Fukushima leadership and reactor physics innovations. Recipient of the Canadian Nuclear Society Ian McRae Award and the World Association of Nuclear Operators Excellence Award, Dermarkar is recognized for advancing nuclear safety, fostering Indigenous partnerships and strengthening Canada’s nuclear leadership.
Harquail is a visionary Canadian mining entrepreneur whose career spans 4 decades of transformative leadership. As CEO/Chair of Franco-Nevada, he scaled royalty/streaming financing, enabling the development of mines while advancing sustainability and governance. He contributed to global ESG requirements and Canadian disclosure standards, mentored and advocated for diversity, and contributed generously to engineering education, health care and children’s charities. Notable recognition includes University of Toronto’s Alumni Hall of Distinction, CIM’s Robert Elver Award, CIM’s President’s Medal, and Canadian Mining Hall of Fame inductee. Harquail’s career exemplifies innovation, leadership and societal impact.
Mahinpey’s pioneering work in greenhouse gas reduction, global research leadership and award-winning mentorship have made lasting contributions to climate science, industry and academia. His patented carbon capture and conversion technologies are used worldwide, helping industries reduce emissions and move toward net-zero. Representing Canada in major international consortia, he strengthens the country’s role in climate innovation. At home, he has launched four companies with his trainees, fostering thriving careers and building networks that connect research, commercialization and professional development.
McDonald is an internationally recognized expert in thermal spray surface technologies and heat transfer. His pioneering research on the development of high-value protective coatings for the energy, defence and aerospace sectors have been implemented by technology companies, used broadly to inform industry policy and strategy, and is the basis for other novel engineering research programs. He champions major technical and community initiatives that enhance people’s lives and create equitable, diverse and inclusive employment. He leads major national initiatives that have transformed research into deployable technology, created jobs and engaged youth on training platforms to develop the future engineering workforce.
– This story was originally published on the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering News Site on May 12, 2026 by Carolyn Farrell.