Ontario science table head Peter Juni resigns to take position overseas
Posted Mar 18, 2022 08:50:14 PM.
The man at the helm of Ontario’s science advisory table is handing in his resignation.
Dr. Peter Juni has accepted a position at Oxford University in England, which begins July 1.
“While this is a great loss for Science Table, the University of Toronto and Ontarians, it is an exciting opportunity for Peter and his family, and a chance to continue his academic leadership on a global level,” read a letter sent to the rest of the science table members from co-chairs Adalsteinn Brown and Brian Schwartz.
Juni says while it was personally a difficult and emotional decision to leave, the timing was right.
“This is a transition phase and we are transitioning to something that will be different and less challenging than what we’ve experienced during the last two years,” he said in an interview with CityNews.
Juni says moving to Europe will put him closer to his children and parents, who have struggled with some non-COVID health issues during the pandemic which “showed us the limitations of being on the other side of the Atlantic.”
“When this opportunity with Oxford came up, it became very obvious that this would be the right step to do,” he said.
Juni hasn’t set a date when he will officially step down, indicating it will be late spring.
The co-chairs of the advisory table say “succession planning” for his position is underway.
The epidemiologist and professor of medicine at the University of Toronto has been with the science table since it formed in July 2020. Throughout his tenure, Juni has become known for his bluntness when it comes to dispensing advice on the COVID-19 pandemic to the Ford government.
