Lydia Dotto
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Lydia Dotto (1949–2022) was a Canadian science journalist and author, a wildlife photographer, and an educator on science communication.


Career

Dotto was a journalist with the ''
Edmonton Journal The ''Edmonton Journal'' is a daily newspaper published in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It is part of the Postmedia Network. History The ''Journal'' was founded in 1903 by three local businessmen — John Macpherson, Arthur Moore and J.W. Cunn ...
'' in 1969 and with the ''
Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and part of Torstar's Daily News Brands (Torstar), Daily News Brands division. ...
'' between 1970 and 1971. She graduated with an Honours degree from
Carleton University Carleton University is an English-language public university, public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1942 as Carleton College, the institution originally operated as a private, non-denominational evening college to se ...
School of Journalism in 1971. Her articles were published in ''The Globe and Mail,
Canadian Business ''Canadian Business'' is the longest-publishing business magazine based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and founded in 1927. The print edition terminated in the end of 2016. Beginning in January 2017, the magazine was published online only. In Octob ...
'' and '' en Route'' among others. Dotto was staff science writer for ''
The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Newspapers in Canada, Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in Western Canada, western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of more than 6 million in 2024, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on week ...
'' from 1972–1978. Her writing on nuclear terrorism, high-energy physics, global warming and other topics earned awards from the Canadian Science Writers' Association. She completed two dives under the Arctic ice for an article on cold-water diving. She covered space missions including
Skylab Skylab was the United States' first space station, launched by NASA, occupied for about 24 weeks between May 1973 and February 1974. It was operated by three trios of astronaut crews: Skylab 2, Skylab 3, and Skylab 4. Skylab was constructe ...
,
Apollo Apollo is one of the Twelve Olympians, Olympian deities in Ancient Greek religion, ancient Greek and Ancient Roman religion, Roman religion and Greek mythology, Greek and Roman mythology. Apollo has been recognized as a god of archery, mu ...
, the
Space Shuttle The Space Shuttle is a retired, partially reusable launch system, reusable low Earth orbital spacecraft system operated from 1981 to 2011 by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as part of the Space Shuttle program. ...
and the
International Space Station The International Space Station (ISS) is a large space station that was Assembly of the International Space Station, assembled and is maintained in low Earth orbit by a collaboration of five space agencies and their contractors: NASA (United ...
. She was the first female member of the press corps permitted aboard the aircraft carrier to cover the splashdown of
Skylab 4 Skylab 4 (also SL-4 and SLM-3) was the third crewed Skylab mission and placed the third and final human spaceflight, crew aboard the first American space station. The mission began on November 16, 1973, with the launch of Gerald P. Carr, Edwar ...
astronauts. Dotto's association with
NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States ...
and the
Canadian Space Agency The Canadian Space Agency (CSA; ) is the national space agency of Canada, established in 1990 by the ''Canadian Space Agency Act''. The President of the Canadian Space Agency, president is Lisa Campbell (civil servant), Lisa Campbell, who took ...
continued even after leaving ''The Globe and Mail'', in part through her rapport with astronauts
Chris Hadfield Chris Austin Hadfield (born August 29, 1959) is a Canadian retired astronaut, engineer, fighter pilot, musician, and writer. As the first Canadian to perform extravehicular activity in outer space, he has flown two Space Shuttle missions and ...
and
Marc Garneau Joseph Jean-Pierre Marc Garneau (; February 23, 1949 – June 4, 2025) was a Canadian Armed Forces officer, astronaut, and politician. Garneau served as a naval officer before being selected as an astronaut as part of the 1983 NRC Group. He be ...
. She held interviews with Canadian astronauts and participated in a zero-gravity training flight at the Johnson Space Centre. Through her skills and sources, Dotto published books and articles on space and the environment to become a leading freelance science writer and environmental journalist (see Bibliography). Dotto was President of the Canadian Science Writers' Association from 1979–1980 and executive editor of Canadian Science News Service from 1982–1992. For her accomplishments, she was awarded the Sandford Fleming Medal for science communication by the
Royal Canadian Institute The Royal Canadian Institute for Science (RCIScience), known also as the Royal Canadian Institute, is a Canadian nonprofit organization dedicated to connecting the public with Canadian science. History The organization was formed in Toronto as t ...
in 1983. She was chosen to give a talk on "Planet Earth as a Life Support System" for the 1990
Royal Astronomical Society of Canada The Royal Astronomical Society of Canada (RASC) is a national, non-profit, charitable organization devoted to the advancement of astronomy and related sciences. At present, there are 30 local branches of the Society, called Centres, in towns an ...
General Assembly. The year she turned 65, Dotto shifted her focus to wildlife photography. Wildlife magazines published her pictures from Canada, Costa Rica, Tanzania and elsewhere''.'' Starting in 2005, Dotto taught environmental communication at
Trent University Trent University is a public liberal arts university in Peterborough, Ontario, with a satellite campus in Oshawa, which serves the Regional Municipality of Durham. Founded in 1964, the university is known for its Oxbridge college system, sma ...
close to her home in
Peterborough, Ontario Peterborough ( ) is a city on the Otonabee River in Ontario, Canada, about 125 kilometres (78 miles) northeast of Toronto. According to the 2021 Census, the population of the City of Peterborough was 83,651. The population of the Peterborough ...
and led science writing and communication workshops.


Personal life

Lydia Dotto was born to August and Assunta Dotto in
Cadomin, Alberta Cadomin is a hamlet in west-central Alberta, Canada, within Yellowhead County. It is along the McLeod River in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, approximately south of Hinton near the Bighorn Highway. It is served by a spur of the Canadia ...
, moving to
Edmonton Edmonton is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. It is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Central Alberta ...
when she was a few years old. She has a younger sister, Terry. Dotto attended the first
Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...
concert in Canada at Empire Stadium in Vancouver and was a lifelong Beatles fan. Lydia graduated from Austin O'Brien Catholic High School in 1968. In her online art store, Dotto stated "I enjoy merging diverse artistic paths, never knowing where they will take me but always enjoying the journey".


Death and legacy

Lydia Dotto died in 2022 in Peterborough with her family by her side. Her archives are held by and available for research in Special Collections & Archives at the University of Waterloo.


Bibliography

* * * * Conference Report: * * * * * ** French Translation: ''Le ciel nous tombe sur la tête: sommes-nous entrain de risquer le climat de notre planète? (2001)'' * Encyclopedia Article: Canadian Space Agency


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dotto, Lydia Canadian newspaper journalists Women science writers Canadian science writers Canadian science journalists 1949 births 2022 deaths Canadian women journalists