April Scholars’ Hub @ Home events examine 15-year Faculty of Education-YRDSB collaboration, recognize Earth Day

April’s Scholars’ Hub @ Home Speaker Series events feature a conversation on a 15-year collaboration between York University’s Faculty of Education and the York District School Board that is exploring the relationship between families and their children’s schools, and a special Earth Day edition that will discuss an innovative ecological footprint accounting initiative at York.

The Scholars’ Hub @ Home speaker series, brought to you by York Alumni Engagement, features discussions on a broad range of topics, with engaging lectures from some of York’s best minds. Events are held in partnership with Vaughan Public Libraries, Markham Public Library and Aurora Public Library.

The next two discussions will take place on April 7 and 21 from 12 to 1 p.m. via Zoom.

April 7 – “The gathering model of community engagement: A research-driven approach to school decision-making”

This discussion will be led by York University’s John Ippolito, associate professor in the Faculty of Education. Joining him will be Sara Leung, equity teacher facilitator and Scott Milne, manager of School and Community Projects, from Inclusive School and Community Services at the York Region District School Board.

John Ippolito
John Ippolito

This presentation will examine an ongoing, 15-year collaboration between the York Region District School Board and the Faculty of Education at York, researching the relationships families – specifically marginalized families – have with their children’s schools.

Ippolito’s research in teacher education centers on public schools and their communities, focusing on education in contexts of linguistic and cultural hyperdiversity. His applied work involves adult education as outreach to caregivers and educators and is increasingly focused on migrants and refugees. He is accredited as a teacher of English as a Second Language, having taught in settlement programs for newcomers to Canada. His ongoing interventionist research targets barriers between minority communities and schools with a view to broadened relationships among stakeholders in public education.

Register for the presentation here.

April 21 – “How ecological footprint accounting can inform pathways to a carbon-neutral economy”

This special Earth Day edition of Scholars’ Hub @ Home is hosted in partnership with the Faculty of Environmental and Urban Change and will feature two researchers from York University’s Ecological Footprint Initiative, Eric Miller and Katie Kish. The speakers will be introduced by Alice Hovorka, dean of the Faculty of Environmental and Urban Change.

Eric Miller
Eric Miller

In this presentation, learn about the global ecological footprint and biocapacity accounts that are produced at York University in collaboration with researchers around the world. These accounts quantify the capacity of landscapes to sustain human consumption and infrastructure over time – information for the global community aiming for a carbon-neutral economy.

Katie Kish
Katie Kish

Miller is a research assistant at the Faculty of Environmental and Urban Change and director of the Ecological Footprint Initiative. As director, he manages multiple projects and partnerships of the initiative including the production of the National Ecological Footprint and Biocapacity Accounts. He teaches the footprint-related courses, supports students and project staff, and supports the Footprint Data Foundation as its secretary-treasurer. His prior work as a consulting economist has informed governments, industry, think-tanks and NGOs.

Kish is a research associate at the Ecological Footprint Initiative, where she supports knowledge synthesis and mobilization of the team’s research. Her research focuses on complex systems, ecological economics, labour, work and production. She is also a lecturer of ecological economics at the Haida Gwaii Institute and Research Fellow with Economics for the Anthropocene.

Register for the event here.