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Honorary degree recipient Marcie Ponte tells graduands, ‘There is strength in community’

Marcie Ponte

A community builder committed to new Canadians was the recipient of an honorary doctor of laws degree during York University’s sixth spring convocation ceremony. Marcie Ponte, an advocate to promote higher education with immigrant communities, received the honour on June 18 before graduands from the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies.

Marcie Ponte

Graduating students heard an inspiring speech from Ponte, who is the executive director of the Working Women Community Centre. A small non-governmental organization focused on the Hispanic and Portuguese communities in the 1970s, the organization has transformed in the past two decades under Ponte’s leadership to become a major agency in Toronto, with five community hubs and services in 25 languages.

Her work has impacted many post-secondary institutions, including York, where she has worked with the Portuguese Student Association of York University to promote higher education to Portuguese- and Spanish-speaking communities.

Ponte, who was born in Portugal and immigrated to Canada as a child, shared her own story as a young woman advocating for newcomers, including for herself.

At the age of seven, Ponte, her three siblings and mother moved from Portugal to Vancouver to join her father, who had been settled there about four years, working on building railways. The family moved across Canada a year later to Kingston, Ont., where they stayed for several years and grew their family with three more children.

“Throughout all this, I could feel that both my parents were unhappy, but they sacrificed their wishes and desires to provide greater opportunities for their children,” said Ponte.

At the age of 14, Ponte’s father died suddenly, leaving her mother to raise seven children in a country where she didn’t speak the native language.

Ponte said it wasn’t long after that she pursued her first act of political advocacy, which was for herself.

“My teacher at the time held a meeting with me and a small group of other Portuguese students to tell us that we were not ready for the academic stream in high school,” she said. “We were told that our parents would have to come to the school if they wanted to discuss this with the teacher. I explained that my mother did not speak English, but the teacher’s response was, ‘Well, there is nothing I can do about that’ – and she said the decision was made.”

Determined to fight for her education, Ponte brought in her mother, who spoke in her native tongue and refused to leave until her daughter was accepted into the academic stream.

At age 15, Ponte’s family moved again, this time to Toronto, where she finished high school part-time and in the evenings so she could work to help support the family. She eventually found herself studying community development and political advocacy at Centennial College, and was steered by an instructor there to work in her own community at St. Stephen’s Community House in Kensington Market – so she did.

“I immediately understood why [the instructor] sent me there,” Ponte said. “My senses came alive. There were people there like me – immigrants – who understood each other’s stories.”

Chancellor Greg Sorbara, Marcie Ponte and President and Vice-Chancellor Rhonda Lenton

She invited her mother to join to help cook alongside other Portuguese women at an event she organized, and said it was the first time in a decade she had seen her mother enjoy life.

“I saw a very different woman in my mother – she was participating in conversations with other Azorean women who shared similar experiences of immigrating to Canada. She loved to cook and she was laughing – she was happy. From the age of seven, until that point, I had little memory of my mother expressing joy.”

That was the moment, she said, she knew she was in the right place and decided to pursue a career helping immigrant women and their families adjust to their new lives in Canada. It has been her life’s work for the past 45 years.

“In the spirit of my first act of political advocacy, you will appreciate for the past 18 years we have been running education programs for at-risk students of Portuguese- and Spanish-speaking descent,” she said. “We have devoted ourselves to ensuring that these students are not left behind and are afforded equal opportunity to achieve academic success.

She urged graduands to approach life with the perspective that everyone belongs in their community. Stand up for people coming here for better lives, and stand up for equity and accessible education for all students, she said.

“In an era where indifference towards newcomers/refugees and where hate is increasingly showing its ugliness, I choose to continue to do this work because I, and we at Working Women Community Centre, believe that everyone belongs in their community,” Ponte said. “There is strength in community.”

York University hosts Borderless Higher Education for Refugees authors’ workshop

From May 3 to 5, a workshop funded by Global Affairs Canada was organized at York University to bring together authors who will contribute to an edited volume tentatively titled “Borderless university education in Dadaab, Kenya: Theory and Practice.”

Attendees at the workshop gathered for a group photo
The BEHR workshop participants came to York University from the far reaches of the world

The workshop, organized by York University Professor Emerita Wenona Giles of the Centre for Refugee Studies and the Department of Anthropology, and Johanna Reynolds, York PhD student in geography, brought together 33 participants, all of whom have been involved in the Borderless Higher Education for Refugees (BHER) project in some way. Those attending the workshop included instructors, administrators, researchers, students and funders. They came from Canada, the United States, Kenya and Europe to discuss their contributions to the book. Among the student participants were York graduate students who have worked as TAs and researchers for the BHER project and other administrators and instructors from the University of British Columbia, York University, Kenyatta and Moi universities, and Windle International Kenya.

Giles, along with Don Dippo, University Professor in the Faculty of Education at York University, and former BEHR project manager Aida Orgocka, initiated the workshop and book concept. (Dippo and Orgocka have been with the BHER project since it was first funded in 2010.)

Attendees at the workshop
Workshop participants discuss the book concept, which defines higher education as increasingly recognized as crucial for the livelihoods of marginalized populations such as refugees, migrants and other stigmatized groups

Briefly, the book concept defines higher education as increasingly recognized as crucial for the livelihoods of marginalized populations such as refugees, migrants and other stigmatized groups, to enable them to engage in contemporary, knowledge-based global society. “When we first began to develop the BHER project, higher education for refugees claimed little attention,” says Giles. “We entered a space of underfunded education initiatives in protracted humanitarian contexts, with primary education featuring high in humanitarian appeals and limited attention to education in general in the policy context.”

The book will provide evidence that global North-South educational partnerships can work and do produce good results for both the South and North when the participating institutions are prepared to struggle through the challenges of structural inequalities imposed by funding agencies, cultural and pedagogical differences at the institutional levels, and technological deficits in course delivery, among other issues. The contributors to this book also demonstrate that universities can be development actors and papers by emerging refugee scholars, who have begun to participate in and contribute to new knowledge about forced migration as they achieve their undergraduate and graduate degrees, are part of the book. “Our methodological approach in this book is unique, as the contributors have all been involved in some way in the research, administration, teaching and learning, leading to the design, the development and implementation of the BHER project over (almost) a decade, from 2010 to 2019,” says Dippo, who is the current BHER project lead.

In addition to Global Affairs Canada, the authors’ workshop received support from the Office of the Vice-President Research & Innovation and the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies at York University.

To learn more about the BHER project, visit bher.org.

Professor Idil Boran holds official event at Bonn Climate Change Conference as primary delegate from York U

Climate change

Building collaboration between researchers, climate actors and decision-makers is crucial for strengthening and broadening climate action for a sustainable, equitable and low-carbon future. York University Professor Idil Boran takes a step toward this goal on June 17, when she co-hosts an official side event of the Bonn Climate Change Conference – June 2019 (from June 17 to 27) under the auspices of United Nations Climate Change (UNFCCC).

Idil Boran

Jointly hosted by Boran and Sander Chan (Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik/German Development Institute), the official side event, titled “Taking Global Climate Action Beyond 2020 – Accelerating the Sustainable Future We Want,” will bring researchers and practitioners together to discuss priorities for strengthening climate action after 2020. The panellists will share experiences and present their organizations’ good practices. The goal is to take stock of what has been achieved so far and make recommendations for moving forward.

“The panel discussion will present knowledge from research on tracking and measuring actions, give voice to experiences of various actors and set priorities for broadening actions. There is much to learn from the experiences of NGOs and businesses, cities and regions. Panellists will discuss pathways to strengthen the engagement of climate actors in developing countries, building trust and stronger ties with communities at local levels around the world, and forming lasting alliances between actors as well as with governments and the inter-governmental process,” said Boran, adding that these discussions are crucial for just and equitable transformations.

Boran will attend the Bonn Climate Change Conference as primary delegate from York University. Boran has organized official events in the past where she has been featured as host and panellist. Her accreditation as observer is granted by York University Professor Dawn Bazely (Faculty of Science), the contact point for York’s accreditation to UN Climate Change. In her activities at UN Climate Change, Boran works closely with the Constituency of Research & Independent Non-Governmental Organizations (RINGO), one of the nine recognized constituencies.

Official side events form a unique venue for UNFCCC observer organizations to share research, network and explore actionable options, said Boran. This year’s side events speak to the theme “Accelerating the Implementation of the Paris Agreement.”

In addition to co-hosting the side event, Boran will appear in an interview in the Climate Action Studio during the conference. The Climate Action Studio is a platform for showcasing action of non-party stakeholders in the climate change process, through interviews with nominated observers admitted to the UNFCCC process around specific themes linked to the negotiation process. She was selected, together with Sander Chan, to discuss her research in climate action.

“2019 is a critical year for climate action,” said Boran. “The prominence of climate change in the public spotlight has been gaining new heights. Citizens and youth movements throughout Europe and elsewhere are making strides, calling for climate change to become a public policy priority. We see a growing social movement calling to make climate change a priority. Moreover, from around the world, cities and regions, businesses and NGOs, universities and colleges are taking action on climate change.

“Stronger actions are needed at all levels. It is crucial to bring the resources from multiple disciplines from academic research, and build working relations with practitioners on the ground and decision-makers at the international, national and local levels.”

Boran celebrated the release of her new book, titled Political Theory and Global Climate Action: Recasting the Public Sphere (Routledge, 2019), on June 13 at a launch hosted by Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik/German Development Institute.

For further information, contact Boran, Department of Philosophy, Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies, at iboran@yorku.ca.

York professor receives Insignia of Professional Merit from government of Azores

Maria João Dodman, associate professor of Portuguese & Luso-Brazilian Studies in York University’s Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies, travelled to the Azores to take part in the celebrations of the Day of the Azores, where she received the Insignia do Governo Regional dos Açores – Medal for Professional Merit.

The recognition is one of the most distinguished honours given by the government of the autonomous region of Azores.

Presenting the medal to Dodman on June 10 was Vasco Cordeiro, president of the Azores.

Maria João Dodman receives the medal from Vasco Cordeiro, president of the Azores.

“I’m particularly honoured to receive such recognition from the Government of the Azores,” said Dodman. “Considering that I came to Canada to search for a better life like many of those immigrant women who came before and after me, this was a surreal moment.

“There is much work to be done and I remain more committed than ever to continue to tell the stories of a people who suffered greatly from centuries of isolation and neglect, who were victimized by corruption, by extreme poverty and violence.”

Dodman immigrated to Canada from the Azores in 1989. Originally a Renaissance scholar, Dodman turned her interests in 2006 to the literature produced in the Azores, and to bringing more awareness to the archipelago’s unique identity. She developed an undergraduate discipline that focuses solely on the Azores, the only of its kind in a Canadian university.

Her research interests include Renaissance literature, colonial encounters and representations of beauty, ugliness and otherness in early modern Iberian literature.

She is also co-founder and co-director of the Canadian Centre for Azorean Research & Studies. In 2016, Dodman published AndarIlha. Viagens de um Hifen (Wanderer. Voyages of a Hyphen), a book of short narratives that focuses on Azorean identity, immigrant issues and hyphenated culture. The book received high praise from literary critics in Portugal and an expanded English translation is slotted for publication in spring 2019 in the United States.

It is mostly in Dodman’s creative work where the Azores appears frequently as a site of inspiration and magic steeped in açorianidade, a concept in which nature, isolation, insularity, sea and volcanic rock triumph over history. Dodman is particularly interested in rescuing marginal voices and their stories of injustice and exclusion.

A video of the ceremony can be viewed online.

York hosts young historians for Ontario Provincial Heritage Fair

Professor Marcel Martel, History Department with Sarah Mai, Ottawa Regional Fair participant
Professor Marcel Martel, History Department, with Sarah Mai, Ottawa Regional Fair participant

Dozens of students from Grades 4 to 11 gathered recently at York University’s Founders College to showcase their award-winning posters on Canadian history. The event was hosted by the Department of History in the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies (LA&PS), in collaboration with the Archives of Ontario.

This year, the fair featured the work of 90 young people from across the province and was organized with the assistance of York University history Professor Marcel Martel. This is the second year York has hosted the Ontario Provincial Heritage Fair. Martel admits to being a big fan of the event.

“You have young people who are enthusiastic about what they have done and want to share that passion,” said Martel.

One of the projects of the grade school students

The event was standing room only as the participants presented their posters on Canadian heroes, legends, milestones and achievements. In many cases, students revisited some of Canada’s darkest moments in history, such as the recently released report on Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, the internment of Japanese citizens and the treatment of homosexuals in the public service and military.

“It is important to offer young students the opportunity to share with others their love for history,” said Martel. “I think it’s also an opportunity for them to discover that York is a welcoming place.”

The Heritage Fairs program has provided young students an opportunity to explore Canadian history for more than 25 years.

Final event in 2018-19 Scholars Hub Speakers Series at Markham explores rivers of Asia

A partnership between the Markham Public Library and York University, the Scholars Hub Speakers Series brings some of York’s top academic minds to York Region from the Faculties of Health, Science, Liberal Arts & Professional Studies (LA&PS), Osgoode Hall Law School and the Schulich School of Business.

Andre Robert
André Robert

The 2018-19 Markham Public Library Scholars Hub Speakers Series, titled “School of Thought,” closes out its season on June 13 with André Robert (professor, LA&PS) on “The World’s Majestic Rivers in Peril: Views of the Yangtze, Ganges and Mekong Rivers.”

The event takes place from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at the Markham Village Branch located at 6031 Highway 7. Childcare will be provided for children ages four to 12.

This session is a well-illustrated talk of a four-month journey along the large rivers of Asia, emphasizing human activities and environmental impacts on the river systems. The physical geography of the river basins will be discussed, as well as the impacts of large dams on the rivers’ evolution and, in particular, on the populations living on and off the Mekong’s delta.

This unique partnership is part of York University’s goals for community engagement and reputation-building, with a collaboration that invites alumni, students, their families and the public to engage in meaningful talks and discussions.

Pre-registration is required, as space for each talk is limited. Refreshments will be provided.

York University shares research on gender-based violence against refugee youth

Affiliates/students/staff of Office of Women’s Health Research Chair in Mental Health, from left to right: Negar Alamdar, Kelly Zhang, Amirtha Karunakaran, Attia Khan, Nazilla Khanlou, Tali Filler, Luz Maria Vazquez, and Funmilayo Otasanya Agbi

Research findings out of York University from a review on gender-based violence against refugee youth was presented during a roundtable discussion on May 30 to inform community program and service development.

“Roundtable: Gender-Based Violence in Refugee Youth:Toward Trauma-Informed Practice” was organized by Nazilla Khanlou, Women’s Health Research Chair in Mental Health and associate professor, School of Nursing, and took place as part of the “Gender-Based Violence and Refugee Youth: Toward Trauma-Informed Practice” project.

“The goal of this roundtable consultation session was to present research findings from a review on gender-based violence against refugee youth to service providers and program managers from community agencies, and to receive their input and to work with them towards developing a youth-centered and trauma-informed service delivery framework,” said Khanlou.

Affiliates/students/staff of the Office of Women’s Health Research Chair in Mental Health, from left to right: Negar Alamdar, Kelly Zhang, Amirtha Karunakaran, Attia Khan, Nazilla Khanlou, Tali Filler, Luz Maria Vazquez, and Funmilayo Otasanya Agbi

During the consultation, service providers, community organization representatives, academics and students responded to questions and discussed intersectional and trauma-informed approaches and strategies to address gender-based violence against refugee youth.

Existing practices and policies around gender-based violence and the uptake of “trauma informed” practices were also discussed; and the intersectionality of refugee youth identities, their context, and power relations was also closely examined, said Khanlou.

Participants also agreed that methods of inquiry, from sensitive data collection to interventions that focus on prevention, and support to victims of gender-based violence are critically needed and should be trauma-informed, guarantee safety and security, and facilitate disclosure and promote reporting.

“Participants critically appraised our gender-based violence framework and the underlying principles of the matrix of acceptance and resistance,” she said. The event, Khanlou said, “highlighted York University as a high-quality research and learning institution that focuses on promoting human rights-based and gender transformative policies and practices through community collaboration.”

Presentations and interactive discussions during the roundtable also highlighted the diversity of perspectives ranging across the intersections of gender, migrant status, context and power.

“Policies and practices around gender, violence, youth and refugee resettlement are constantly reshaped in the face of war, conflict, global politics, migration trends and the resettlement of displaced women, youth and children,” said Khanlou. “To arrive at solutions, we need to collaborate with our community partners to understand which trauma-informed approaches are grounded in the lived experience of refugee youth who have experienced gender-based violence.”

The roundtable was funded by the LaMarsh Centre for Child and Youth Research, York University and Canadian Crime and Victim Foundation (CCVF).

York University will celebrate outstanding community leaders with honorary degrees during convocation

York University will award 10 honorary degrees during spring convocation this year to recognize outstanding contributions to community building, social justice, health research and philanthropy.

“The individuals we are honouring are transforming the lives of teachers in the Dadaab refugee settlements and new Canadians in Toronto. They are leading the way on social justice and human rights issues, and providing the world with groundbreaking health research,” said Rhonda L. Lenton, president and vice-chancellor of York University. “Their achievements serve as inspiration for York’s newest graduates and for all of us.”

Convocation will be held at York’s Keele Campus from Friday, June 14 to Friday, June 21 (see schedule). Ceremonies will be held at the Convocation Pavilion, Aviva Centre, located at 1 Shoreham Dr., on the west side of the Keele Campus.

Below are the honorary degree recipients in order of the Faculty ceremonies at which they will be honoured. Biographies of the honorary degree recipients can be found here.

The honorary degree recipients for spring convocation are: (top row, left to right) Lynn Posluns, Paul Alofs, Paul Gross, Marcie Ponte, Anne C. Cools, (bottom row, left to right) Jennifer Doudna, Marangu Njogu, Cheryl McEwen, Kimberlé Crenshaw and Gregory Belton

Lynn Posluns (Faculty of Health, Faculty of Environmental Studies and Lassonde School of Engineering – June 14, 3:30 p.m.)
Lynn Posluns is founder and president of Women’s Brain Health Initiative, which she established to ensure researchers considered gender differences in the brain.

Paul Alofs (Faculty of Health – June 17, 10:30 a.m.)
Paul Alofs is a social sector champion and former CEO of Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation, where he successfully led the Billion Dollar Challenge fundraising campaign.

Paul Gross (Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies – June 17, 3:30 p.m.)
Paul Gross is an eminent Canadian actor, writer, director, producer and arts supporter who brings Canada’s stories to Canadians.

Marcie Ponte (Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies – June 18, 10:30 a.m.)
Marcie Ponte is executive director of the Working Women Community Centre and a community builder committed to new Canadians.

Anne C. Cools (Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies – June 19, 10:30 a.m.)
Anne Cools was appointed to the Senate of Canada in 1984, becoming the first Black Canadian senator, and served for 35 years until retiring last year. She is a social justice and civil rights advocate and a pioneer in the protection of women from domestic abuse.

Jennifer Doudna (Faculty of Science – June 20, 10:30 a.m.)
Jennifer Doudna is a biochemist and leading genomics researcher whose co-discovery of CRISPR-Cas9 genetic engineering technology has had huge impact on biology and medicine.

Marangu Njogu (Faculty of Education – June 20, 3:30 p.m.)
Marangu Njogu has provided leadership in the development of refugee education in Africa for three decades, including in the Dadaab refugee settlement where York University’s Faculty of Education delivers teacher education programs.

Cheryl McEwen (Schulich School of Business – June 21, 10:30 a.m.)
Cheryl McEwen is an entrepreneur and community leader. Cheryl and Rob McEwen’s philanthropy has made a tremendous impact on Canadian health care and education.

Kimberlé Crenshaw (Osgoode Hall Law School – June 21, 3:30 p.m.)
Kimberlé Crenshaw is a professor of law at Columbia Law School and the University of California, Los Angeles, and a leading scholar and thought leader in civil rights and Black feminist legal history.

Glendon Campus opened convocation season last Friday by awarding an honorary doctor of laws to businessman and philanthropist Gregory Belton.

The convocation website includes a full schedule of all ceremonies.

Introducing the first Queer Graduate Student Caucus

With Pride Month upon us, isn’t it time that York’s queer-identifying grad students had a space of their own?

Janelle Curry

That’s what Janelle Curry (MA candidate in Social Anthropology) realized. Curry is the founder of the Queer Graduate Student Caucus at YorkU, the first group of its kind of York’s grad students. Aiming to launch at the beginning of the 2019-2020 academic year, the caucus will provide queer grad students with a vital space for community-building.

“I was kinda shocked we didn’t already have one at York,” says Curry. “I contacted TBL Gay at York and they said it was very specifically for undergraduates. I thought there was a need for this.” Many have already agreed: the nascent group is receiving support from the Faculty of Graduate Studies and the York University Graduate Students’ Association.

The group will offer regular events and networking opportunities, and will help queer-identifying students navigate challenges that are distinct to the graduate level. “I think TBL Gay does a very good job with their events, and it seems like things that I would love if I were 18 and doing an undergrad. But at this level, it’s lot of professionalization. It’s a lot of how to navigate a space like this in your career, or applying for PhDs and knowing which schools will allow you to be yourself and where you’ll get pushback. The difficulties of having a personal life in graduate studies are very different,” says Curry.

“When I was applying for graduate studies, I had a prof who said that academia was incredibly heteronormative. … Even in the first month, I had an interaction with a prof that was just a misunderstanding—nothing wrong—but I did feel like I would like to speak to other queer graduate students to see if this happens often, and how we can navigate this heteronormative space.”

To learn more about the Queer Graduate Student Caucus at YorkU, email qgscyork@gmail.com or visit their Facebook page.

Kick off Pride Week celebrations with film screening and quilt unveiling

The pride flag

Members of the York University community are invited to kick off Pride Week celebrations with a free screening of the film Queer Collie-tudes and the unveiling of the York community Pride Quilt on Monday, June 17.

Film screening

  • Where: Nat Taylor Cinema (N102 Ross Building)
  • When: 1 to 3 p.m.
  • What: Queer Coolie-tudes is an 80-minute film that explores the experiences of queer Canadians from the Indo-Caribbean diaspora. Following the screening there will be a Q-and-A with filmmaker and York U faculty member Michelle Mohabeer.
  • Note: The film Queer Coolie-tudes is not closed captioned. Learn more about the film by visiting the REI Pride web page.

Pride Quilt unveiling

  • When: Approximately 3:10 to 4 p.m.
  • Where: East Bear Pit (Central Square, Ross Building)
  • What: York students, staff and faculty have designed quilt squares for the York Pride Quilt, which will hang in Vari Hall during Pride Week, from June 17 to 21. Come see the unveiling of the quilt and enjoy light refreshments and rainbow cake.

At York, Pride is a time of visibility and celebration for 2SLGBTQIA students, staff and faculty. It is a time to reflect on the progress the University has made towards ending discrimination on the basis of sex, gender identity and gender expression. It is also an important opportunity to recognize the strength, resilience and contributions of 2SLGBTQIA community members.

All York community members are welcome at these community-building events. Drop-ins are encouraged and registration is appreciated.

Those who require accommodations can email abishop@yorku.ca by Thursday, June 13.

This event is hosted by the Centre for Human Rights, Equity & Inclusion, the SexGen York Committee and the Art Gallery of York University. The event has been made possible due to contributions from the Faculty of Science, the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies, the Faculty of Graduate Studies, the Faculty of Education and the Faculty of Environmental Studies.