Don Tapscott '66
Eleventh Chancellor (2013 - 2019)
Dr. Don Tapscott has been advancing groundbreaking concepts for over 3 decades. His 1992 bestseller, Paradigm Shift, helped coin this seminal management concept, and The Digital Economy, written in 1995, changed business thinking about the transformational nature of the Internet. Two years later he helped popularize the terms “Net Generation” and “the Digital Divide” in Growing Up Digital.
Don’s most recent and ambitious book was co-authored with his son, startup CEO and bitcoin governance expert Alex Tapscott. Blockchain Revolution: How the Technology Underlying Bitcoin is Changing Business, Money and the World was published in May 2016 and is, according to Harvard Business School’s Clay Christensen, “the book, literally, on how to survive and thrive in this next wave of technology-driven disruption.”
In 2017, Don and Alex co-founded the Blockchain Research Institute whose 70+ projects are the definitive investigation into blockchain strategy, use-cases, implementation challenges and organizational transformations.
Don is a member of the Order of Canada and is ranked the 2nd most influential management thinker in the world by Thinkers50. It is hard to imagine anyone who has been more prolific, profound, and influential in elucidating today’s technological revolutions and their impact on the world.
Don is a contributor to »The Huffington Post, »The Globe And Mail, »TIME, »Toronto Star, and the Wall Street Journal.
Don began his term as the eleventh chancellor of Trent University in 2013 and is the first alumnus to hold this distinguished role. During his time as chancellor, he presided over Trent’s 50th anniversary celebrations, the grand opening of the Student Centre, and transformation of the Bata Library.
As one of the world’s leading authorities on innovation, media, and the economic and social impact of technology, Don’s global reputation brought attention to Trent University and he proudly championed Trent wherever he went. Prior to becoming chancellor, he served as chair of Trent’s Beyond our Walls fundraising campaign, which raised more than $17 million. Throughout his tenure, Don and his wife Ana Lopes continued to be a generous donor to Trent.
When presiding over convocations, Don would always encourage new graduates to remain involved with Trent, and to live a life of consequence.
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