Giving thanks and having spooky fun: Check out these October U of T events

Fall is a wonderful time of year to explore the city – beautiful foliage serves as the background for all the events that play out over the month of October.

Mark the end of the harvest season with a Thanksgiving feast, celebrate the spooky and the grotesque for Halloween, appreciate Canadian choral music or find your new favourite spot.

With so much going on this month, what will you discover?

Oct. 2

Journalists discuss the policy issues that matter in the upcoming municipal election and how changes in today’s media landscape affect reporting on the city. Behind the City Beat: A Pre-Election Media Panel is co-sponsored by the Institute on Municipal Finance and Governance at the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy and the School of Cities at U of T.

Hear from author Ali A. Rizvi at the annual Snider Lecture at U of T Mississauga as he speaks about The Muslim Enlightenment: The Rise of Secular Thought Among Young Muslims. His wide-ranging talk will include topics such as his life as a young Muslim who lost his faith and the consequences of coming out as a non-believer in the Muslim community. The talk is followed by a Q&A session.

The Zero Waste Farmers’ Market, at U of T Mississauga, will run today and tomorrow, with tree planting scheduled for Oct. 4. It's all part of DisOrientation Month, held by the U of T Mississauga Students' Union, that runs until Oct. 13.

Oct. 3

Ever wondered what goes on in the greenhouses perched atop the Earth Sciences Centre on the downtown Toronto campus? The Environmental Students Union has the answers, providing an interactive tour of some of the exotic plants and experiments.

Oct. 4

Whether you’re missing your family’s Thanksgiving feast or celebrating the holiday for the first time, Hart House’s Traditional Canadian Thanksgiving Dinner serves turkey and all the trimmings, with a vegetarian entrée, too. Make sure to buy your tickets early, as they sell out fast.  

Celebrate culture and diversity at ARTSIDEOUT, the one-day multidisciplinary arts festival at U of T Scarborough. This year’s theme is rebirth – examining the stories that shape us through installations, exhibitions, performances and film screenings.

Oct. 11

Who’s going to be crowned the mac n’ cheese champ this year? Taste all the cheesy goodness that U of T chefs have to offer at the Mac N’ Cheese Smackdown VII. 

‘Tis the season of college book sales. If you missed the annual book sales at Victoria College and the University of St. Michael’s College, there are still more on the downtown Toronto campus. Hunt for fun reads and literary treasures at the University College Book Sale, running until Sunday.

Oct. 15

What does urban beekeeping look like on campus? The Environmental Students Union and Beekeeping Enthusiast Education Society invites you to join one of their hive visits at the Faculty Club. All students and community members are welcome to attend – just be sure to arrive dressed for the occasion.

Oct. 18

Line up on opening day for Trinity College’s 43^rd Annual Friends of the Library Book Sale. Seeley Hall at Trinity College is transformed into a spectacular matrix of books, containing thousands of volumes in both academic and popular categories. The sale closes on Monday.

Oct. 19

Ulli Krull, vice-president and principal of U of T Mississauga, leads the Principal’s Walk – a fun stroll around campus highlighting some of the interesting research and teaching that happens there.

Oct. 21

Celebrate the music of Canada with Voices of the Land and Sea, a performance by the Faculty of Music’s MacMillan Singers and Women’s Chamber Choir at the Church of the Redeemer. Special guest Jenny Blackbird of the Centre for Indigenous Studies collaborates with the choir to focus on Indigenous voices of Canada.  

Oct. 22

Seeking Justice Amidst Complexity: Sea Otters, Poachers, Kelp, and Coastal Communities is the name of a talk by Kai Chan, a professor at UBC. It is hosted by U of T's department of ecology and evolutionary biology.

Oct. 24

Learn about some of the Indigenous histories on the downtown Toronto campus through a walk with First Story Toronto. Hear the stories of Tkaronto and consider how they are still relevant and shape our lives today. Read about a past tour here. 

What does decentralization in health systems look like and is it good policy? Hear from Thomas J. Bossert, director of the international health systems program of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, as part of the North American Observatory on Health Systems and Policies lecture series. Stay for the reception, where the inaugural Comparative Health System Award will be presented to Professor Leslie Boehm. Held at the Faculty Club, this event is free and open to everyone.

Oct. 25

Join the week-long celebration of the 200^th anniversary of Frankenstein that starts today and is organized by the University of St. Michael's College. Events take place across U of T and Toronto, with lectures, readings and special exhibits. All events are free and open to the public.

Oct. 31

Lace up your skates and put on a costume: MoveU’s Scary Skate is back again for some spooky fun both on-ice and off-ice. All welcome, including beginner skaters.

It runs all month and until Dec. 21, but Halloween is the perfect time for De monstris: An Exhibition of Monsters and the Wonders of Human Imagination at the Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library. Explore the history of monsters in texts, both in literary tradition and in illustration.