Prof. Gigi Luk Professor, Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology, McGill University

Professor Gigi Luk is a distinguished cognitive and developmental scientist at McGill University. She is recognised for advancing the understanding of how bilingualism shapes cognition, literacy, and brain development across the lifespan. Her work integrates multiple disciplines, including psychology, cognitive neuroscience, and educational research, to advance the scientific understanding of multilingualism. Her research programme is guided by (1) a scientific aim to elucidate cognitive processes and neural mechanisms relevant to multilingualism; and (2) a practical aim to cultivate educational environments that respect and embrace linguistic diversity. Her research is supported by federal, provincial, and private organizations in Canada and U.S. Professor Luk earned her Ph.D. in Developmental and Cognitive Psychology from York University in Toronto, completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the Rotman Research Institute at Baycrest in Toronto, served on the faculty of the Harvard Graduate School of Education (2011–2018), and joined McGill’s Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology in 2019.