Tag: UN SDG 10

Faculty of Science innovates with assist from AIF

Concept of idea and innovation with paper ball

By Elaine Smith

Making chemistry courses and labs more engaging and accessing science lab spaces – regardless of physical ability – are becoming easier to accomplish, thanks to Faculty of Science initiatives sponsored by Academic Innovation Fund (AIF) grants.

In the Department of Chemistry, Tihana Mirkovic, an assistant professor, and Hovig Kouyoumdjian, an associate professor who is also the associate dean of curriculum and pedagogy, are developing modules using e-learning tool Adobe Captivate to improve students’ learning experiences. Meanwhile, biology professors Tamara Kelly and Paula Wilson and their colleagues – project manager Jessi Nelson, accessibility expert Ainsley Latour and educational development specialist Ashley Nahornick – are identifying and supporting improvements that make labs more accessible.

Kouyoumdjian first identified the potential of Adobe Captivate as a tool for the generation of an interactive learning environment in chemistry classes. Together with Mirkovic, the pair recognized that the laboratory experience through pre-laboratory activities in undergraduate classes could be substantially improved by leveraging the multimedia learning process that could be incorporated into modules generated in Adobe Captivate.

“Our goal is to allow students to integrate their conceptual and procedural understanding of their labs through active learning opportunities. We hope that the newly developed modules, featuring slides, videos, hotspots, 360-degree navigation, software simulations and knowledge check assessments, will provide a learning environment that motivates our students and maximizes their learning potential,” Mirkovic said.

“We aim for students to stay engaged, even when the material is presented virtually,” said Kouyoumdjian. “Now, we possess an e-learning tool with an interactive component that complements the static elements of the course. It is applicable for both blended and online courses.”

The pair also collaborated with an instructional designer to craft customizable templates to help with the process of repurposing and reusing the modules across various courses.”

Tihana Mirkovic
Tihana Mirkovic

The professors have has initiated a pilot in the courses CHEM 2020 (Introductory Organic Chemistry I) and CHEM 3001 (Experimental Chemistry II) this term. “We hope to gather valuable information from the initial student experience and feedback collected from Adobe Captivate activities and linked self-reflection surveys,” Mirkovic said. During the summer, they will reflect on the pilot’s successes and explore the reusability of the created templates.

They are optimistic that the new software will contribute to student engagement, leading to increased student motivation and greater retention.

Meanwhile, the accessibility team is moving forward with its own initiative to improve – in a different way – the accessibility of biology, chemistry and physics labs for students in the Faculty.

Paula Wilson
Paula Wilson

“Paula and I have directed labs, and something we come up against regularly is accommodation,” said Kelly, the project lead and the Pedagogical Innovation Chair, Science Education. “Student Accessibility Services typically addresses lectures, but has limited expertise to support providing clear accommodations for labs.”

Added Wilson: “Students with accessibility issues have the burden of negotiating with their professors for every lab, and it’s exhausting. Also, even if professors are eager to assist, they aren’t experts in accommodation.

“In addition, by the time faculty members get a letter about accommodating a student, it may be the second or third week of the term, which leaves no time for finding and arranging creative solutions.”

Ainsley Latour
Ainsley Latour

The group plans to survey Faculty of Science students and faculty to learn more about needs and accommodations that work. Latour and Nelson developed a checklist of barriers to accessibility in labs and then, with Nahornick, toured first-year science laboratories with the technicians who run the labs. They looked for barriers and what was missing to make accommodation easier.

“There were a lot of things that were quick fixes, so Ashley emailed the lab managers to suggest changes to make before the start of the term,” said Kelly. “These included the readability of signage, repairs to broken automatic doors, among other things.”

Ashley Nahornick
Ashley Nahornick

The team also brought in Pamela Millett, an audiologist from the Faculty of Education, to determine what the sound issues might be for those with hearing concerns.

“There is a lot of ambient sound in labs, from fans and other equipment, that make it hard for students to hear instructions,” said Nahornick. “Repairing or using their microphones is an easy fix.”

The next step will be to create professional development support for instructors, technicians and teaching assistants, so they understand how to best support accessibility in labs.

Wilson said they would also like to prepare a series of recommendations for the Faculty. “Some issues may require infrastructure changes that will require additional funding. We want to take away the pressure on instructors to handle this on their own by making changes where we can and sharing best practices,” she explained. “Our aim is to make it easier for all students to have valuable lab experiences that meet course outcomes.”

Kelly added, “If we have a clear understanding in advance about what is needed, that’s a big step. Some things must be personalized, but there are some general things we can implement for our students. Students with disabilities are often driven away from science in high school because of barriers, and we don’t want to be part of that cycle. We want to enable people.

“For a lot of students, their first experience in a lab turns them onto science. We’ll lose talent if they don’t feel as if they can function in this setting.”

York prof’s exhibit explores life, work of social justice advocate

Cover of "Take Me, Take Me," a novella by Colin Robinson, edited by Andil Gosine

York University Professor Andil Gosine has curated a new exhibit called The Plural of He, exploring the life and work of the late Colin Robinson (1961-2021), a Trinidadian American poet and social justice advocate. It launches March 15 and will run until July 21 at the Leslie-Lohman Museum of Art in New York City, the world’s only dedicated 2SLGBTQIA+ art museum.

Andil Gosine
Andil Gosine

Gosine, whose academic focus is environmental arts and justice, recently told Trinidad and Tobago Newsday that although he had a professional relationship with Robinson that included consulting on various projects, he was surprised to learn he had been named the literary executor and custodian of Robinson’s archives. Before Robinson died, the pair discussed the idea of an exhibition inspired by the artist’s life’s work, and Robinson expressed enthusiastic support of it.

Titled after one of Robinson’s poems, The Plural of He features five newly commissioned works in which the artists – Llanor Alleyne, Leasho Johnson, Ada M. Patterson, Devan Shimoyama and York University doctoral student Natalie Wood – drew inspiration from materials encountered in Robinson’s archives: activist ephemera, carnival costumes and calypso music, letters, an unfinished novel, newspaper columns and poetry. Through their explorations of Robinson’s work, the artists discovered continuity between their lives and his, echoing and extending his pursuit of connection, community and justice.

Busshead and Hard Head, one of the components of an installation by Natalie Wood.
The costume Great Bernadine Royal Cobo of the Caribbean by Natalie Wood.

“Because community building was so important to Colin,” Gosine explains, “I wanted connection itself to be the pulse of the exhibition: what resonated with me as I went through the archives? What resonances could I find between the artists and Colin in our conversations about the project? What resonances with the materials did the artists feel in their encounters with the archival materials?”

An undocumented migrant in the U.S. throughout the 1980s and 90s, Robinson became a powerful force in New York City’s queer, HIV/AIDS and feminist movements. He co-founded the historic New York State Black Gay Network and the Audre Lorde Project, and was director of HIV prevention at non-profit organization Gay Men’s Health Crisis. He was also a member of Other Countries, a literary collective for Black, gay men, and he published provocative essays in landmark anthologies, academic journals and newspapers.

Porky was loud by Devan Shimoyama.

His work continued when he returned to the Caribbean in 2006; there, he co-founded the critically important 2SLGBTQIA+ organization CAISO (Coalition Advocating for Inclusion of Sexual Orientation) and served as its “director of imagination.” A collection of Robinson’s poetry, You Have You Father Hard Head, was published in 2016, five years prior to his untimely passing in 2021.

Lauded as a godfather of the 2SLGBTQIA+ movement by many fellow activists, Robinson can be remembered by his writing, which he considered a form of activist performance. Each of the exhibit’s commissioned works engages a specific part of his archives to reveal different dimensions of his person.

“I want audiences for The Plural of He to encounter Colin in the fullness of his humanity,” says Gosine, whose book Nature’s Wild: Love, Sex and Law in the Caribbean details Robinson’s work. “When we get to know someone, we are privy to pieces of them, usually in non-linear fashion. We might learn about a hobby, their state of mind, their sense of humour. I want the experience of walking through this space to mirror the experience of getting to know a new friend.”

With this goal in mind, each new artwork in the exhibition is accompanied by short essays in which key figures in Robinson’s world reminisce about their connections with him in various contexts, from editing his weekly newspaper columns to dealing with heartbreak.

Public programming for The Plural of He will include readings of Robinson’s poetry and publications connected to the show. A limited release of a newly published novella rescued from Robinson’s archives – Take Me, Take Me, edited by Gosine, with cover art by Shimoyama – will be available for purchase, as will a catalog featuring each artist in dialogue with a major contemporary Caribbean writer.

For York University community members interested in the exhibit, York’s EcoArts initiative and the Centre for Research on Latin America & the Caribbean are co-hosting a local event on March 20 at 12:30 p.m. called The Plural of He: From Archives to Art, featuring Gosine and Wood in conversation and readings from Take Me, Take Me. The event will take place on the eighth floor of Kaneff Tower on York’s Keele Campus.

For more information about the exhibit, visit the Leslie-Lohman Museum of Art’s website.

Teaching Commons helps navigate difficult classroom conversations

Teacher speaking too students in class

To help instructors navigate sensitive issues and challenging classroom dynamics, the Teaching Commons has launched a new toolkit and series of professional development sessions focused on difficult moments and conversations in the classroom.

Nona Robinson
Nona Robinson

On March 14, the Teaching Commons will host the second of a series of workshops in partnership with Nona Robinson, vice-provost students. Titled “Effective Classroom Facilitation: Managing disruptions, addressing controversial topics and supporting equity-deserving students,” this virtual session will offer concrete tools, strategies and resources for facilitating productive conversations in the classroom.

“I’m always happy to work with faculty members on student support, inclusion, and preventing and managing conflict” says Robinson. “I know this can be a source of stress for many of us, and this is a great opportunity for colleagues to share experiences and helpful ideas.” 

The session accompanies a new Facilitating Dialogue and Challenging Conversations in the Classroom resource site, also referred to as a toolkit, housed on the Teaching Commons website. and led by educational developer Shani Kipang.

“One of the goals has been to help members of the University community revisit commonly used terms like ‘safety’ and ‘comfort,’ and to think critically and collaboratively about what it means and looks like to build accountable spaces,” says Kipang, who has worked with the Teaching Commons over the past year to support initiatives in decolonizing, equity, diversity and inclusion (DEDI).

The toolkit provides a range of resources to support productive dialogue and collaborative learning in the classroom. Included in it are topic-specific resources such as strategies for facilitating discussion, addressing harm and creating community guidelines.

Shani Kipang
Shani Kipang

“Our hope is to help instructors walk into the classroom with clear goals and responsive strategies, so students can be motivated to engage and have the sense that it will be worthwhile,” she explains. “We want to help instructors address unanticipated situations with intention, and to support meaningful and carefully guided opportunities for learners to engage with critical issues in ways that shape how they learn and work and interact in the world.”

Ameera Ali
Ameera Ali

In addition to the March 14 workshop, the Teaching Commons offers a variety of other opportunities to explore strategies for teaching in times of crisis and integrating DEDI-informed pedagogies. Among these are a workshop series on trauma-informed pedagogies and a DEDI community of practice – a space where teachers can come together to learn, share, and question a wide array of topics related to DEDI in teaching and learning.

In partnership with York’s Centre for Human Rights, Equity & Inclusion and faculty co-facilitators, these initiatives are led by Ameera Ali, an educational developer in the Teaching Commons with a portfolio focused on equity, diversity and inclusion.

“These offerings invite folks to come together to collectively reflect on and discuss various aspects of trauma, race, disability, gender, wellness, belonging and more,” she says. “And through this work, building understanding in these areas, we can better support meaningful dialogue and connection within the classroom.”

For more information on resources and upcoming sessions, visit the Teaching Commons website or contact them via email at teaching@yorku.ca.

Study looks at LGBTQ2S+ workplace discrimination in Canada

LGBTQ rainbow BANNER

A York University research team from the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies (LA&PS) that researches lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, Two-Spirit and others (LGBTQ2S+) has released a study highlighting the state of workplace discrimination in Canada.

As much as Canada enjoys a reputation as a progressive country friendly to LGBTQ2S+ people, it is not perfect.

Workplace discrimination against sexual orientations, identities and expressions still exists. One York research team sought to seek out to what extent.

“There has not been much empirical evidence to show where we are at in Canada. We are quite happy to have sought an opportunity to gain better understanding of the current state of LGBTQ2S+ workplace discrimination,” says Professor You-Ta Chuang, who leads the project.  

Through a three-stage project titled “Act Up: From managing LGBTQ2S+ identity to changing workplace discrimination” that is funded by the Social Sciences & Humanities Research Council, Chuang and his team pursued a project that surveyed 4,205 participants to further understand the prevalence of workplace discrimination against LGBTQ2S+ employees in Canada and how they cope.

The study found that while discrimination against LGBTQ2S+ employees in Canada is declining slightly, its prevalence is still in line with a recent survey by advocacy organization Egale Canada, which showed that 72 per cent of Two Spirit, transgender and non-binary (2STNB) survey participants had experienced workplace discrimination.

The York study found too that perceived discrimination was above the national average in six provinces and territories, with the highest levels in Alberta, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.

In terms of how participants responded to discrimination, the study found that more than half spoke up when they experienced discrimination, typically by addressing it or suggesting improvements to workplace inclusivity.

Those in Manitoba, New Brunswick, Ontario and Nova Scotia were found to be most likely to speak up and participants in Alberta and Nunavut were least likely.

The study marks the completion of Stage 1 of the Act Up project. Summer 2024 will see the beginning of Stage 2, which will involve a study examining which emotion regulation strategies used by LGBTQ2S+ employees help them cope with and stand up against workplace discrimination. Stage 3 will then look toward sharing findings with academics in communities to help realize Act Up’s ultimate mission.

“We hope to increase awareness of LGBTQ2S+ workplace discrimination and to see more people (both LGBTQ2S+ employees and allies) are able to speak up against workplace discrimination,” says Chuang.

Pilot program levels field for marginalized psychology students

Black student in life sciences lab

After identifying a glaring need to better support undergraduate students in psychology from historically under-represented groups, the Justice, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Group within York University’s Department of Psychology developed the Research Experiences to Support Diversity & Inclusion (REDI) program, a pilot program providing marginalized and racialized students with low-barrier opportunities to gain experience in a psychology research lab.

To become a registered psychologist in Canada, students need to be accepted into a graduate program at a post-secondary institution. These programs are highly competitive, receiving hundreds of applicants each year and only accepting a very small percentage of them. Out of the students who get accepted each year, very few identify as Black, Indigenous or people of colour (BIPOC), first-generation students, 2SLGBTQIA+ or students with disabilities, leaving a gap between the population served and future researchers and clinicians.

One of the many requirements to these highly competitive graduate programs in psychology is that students must demonstrate robust extracurricular research experience at the undergraduate level. In psychology departments, there are a limited number of research labs, and the high number of students seeking research experience each year creates a competitive scenario. The demand often exceeds the available supply, making it challenging for students to secure these opportunities.

Jama Maxie
Jama Maxie

“BIPOC students such as myself face additional barriers to gain undergraduate research opportunities, such as limited time to volunteer in labs because of work or caregiver duties, lack of mentorship because of their first-generation student status, and racial prejudice due to having an ethnic-sounding name on their CV or being a person of colour,” said Jama Maxie, a final-year specialized honours psychology student of Indigenous and Afro-Black Canadian heritage who has plans to pursue a master’s in clinical psychology.

The issue of educational equity arises long before the graduate application process, as it is extremely difficult for historically under-represented students to gain the research experience needed to be considered for these competitive programs. York’s REDI program aims to fix this.

As part of the program, a centralized application and matching process is used to place student volunteers in available research labs. Priority is given to students from historically marginalized communities, recognizing the significant hurdles they face in accessing volunteer opportunities.

Once matched to a research lab, students gain first-hand experience with psychology research through observation, shadowing, scaffolding, mentorship and reflection. The program is designed to provide an experiential learning opportunity as opposed to a volunteer experience where the researchers are the primary beneficiaries.

In the summer of 2022, Maxie gained his first exposure to a research lab at Toronto’s St. Michael’s Hospital through Co-operative Education & Work-Integrated Learning (CEWIL) Canada’s work-integrated experiences for Black students program. He was able to leverage this experience to gain other volunteer research positions and use what he learned to inform individual research projects, conference presentations and an honours thesis. In addition, he was able to share with his peers and professors at York how impactful the experience had been to his academic and career trajectory, and bring those learnings to his role as an undergraduate student co-ordinator for the REDI program in the summer of 2023.

“When I was approached to assist with co-ordinating the REDI program pilot, it was a no-brainer to get involved, as the program is very meaningful to me,” he explained. “My most crucial responsibility was to offer peer mentorship. Having been in REDI students’ shoes as a BIPOC student in psychology, my unique experience enabled me to empathize with students in a way that not many can.”

By the end of the program, students can expect to use their experience as a valuable addition to their graduate school or job applications, or as a networking opportunity for future positions.

For participating faculty members, the program serves as an opportunity to enrich their labs by including more diverse student perspectives and aligning with York University’s Decolonization, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (DEDI) Strategy. This not only benefits the faculty members but also enhances the overall lab culture, making it more inclusive and reflective of the community they research and serve.

“I am reminded of the importance of initiatives like REDI when I walk into a psychology lab; the stark reality often hits – the under-representation is palpable,” said Maxie. “The REDI program provided me with a foot-in-the-door opportunity so that I have the same opportunity for graduate school as anyone else.”

In its pilot phase, the REDI program was offered to 29 students in Fall 2023, who were placed in one of 12 research labs in York’s Psychology Department. The faculty member overseeing the development of the program, Professor Jeffrey Wardell, received funding from the Faculty of Health’s Funds for Innovations in Teaching to support the initial development of the program. The goal of the pilot was to establish the feasibility of the program and gain feedback from participating students about their experiences.

Now that the pilot phase is complete, Wardell and other members of the department’s Justice, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Working Group have plans to scale up the initiative and are looking into ways to secure additional funding to support the administrative aspects of the program.

YSpace program gets boost for under-represented founders

hands holding out food banner

YSpace will receive more than $476,000 in new funding from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) over the next two years to expand its Food & Beverage Accelerator program across the country and support over 100 racialized and women founders to scale and thrive in the industry.

YSpace created Ontario’s first food and beverage accelerator in 2019 to help grow consumer packaged goods ventures in the field. The five-month program provides customized workshops, expert mentorship and peer-to-peer circles to ventures as they develop their strategy, grow their network and scale their business.

To date, the YSpace accelerator has supported 93 ventures and over 200 entrepreneurs who are scaling into mass retail, raising funds and getting acquired. Many ventures in the program have seen exponential growth and established valuable connections in the industry.

YSpace Food Accelerator entrepreneurs gather at the September 2023 Canadian Health Food Association (CHFA) Pitch Competition. From left: Ari Alli – Noble Snacks, Charlene Li – EATABLE, Kieran Klassen – Heartwood Farm & Cidery, Dominique Mastronardi – The Happy Era, Rebecca Prime – Beck’s Broth, Muna Mohammed – eight50 Coffee).
YSpace Food Accelerator entrepreneurs gather at the September 2023 Canadian Health Food Association (CHFA) Pitch Competition.
From left: Ari Alli, Charlene Li, Kieran Klassen, Dominique Mastronardi, Rebecca Prime and Muna Mohammed.

One example is EATABLE, a company that produces all-natural gourmet popcorn with flavours inspired by classic cocktails, wines and spirits, which has expanded their retail footprint to over 1,600 doors across Canada and the U.S. “As part of the YSpace Food Accelerator, we connected with industry experts who helped us grow 19 times in revenues since our launch in 2019,” says Charlene Li, co-founder and CEO.

Another example is Zing, which creates vegan and gluten-free condiments and seasoning salts that are designed to be pantry shortcuts. It is available in over 400 retail doors across Canada and the U.S. “YSpace programming and mentorship helped our company develop and execute an effective retail strategy that allowed us transition from an e-commerce to an omni-channel business,” says co-founder and CEO Jannine Rane.

The new funding provided by the AAFC’s AgriDiversity Program will support under-represented groups in the food and beverage industry and help provide them with the resources to build their entrepreneurial and business skills. The program was created under the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership, a $3.5-billion, five-year agreement between the federal, provincial and territorial governments to strengthen the agriculture, agri‐food and agri‐based products sector.

“We are thrilled that our Food & Beverage Accelerator will soon be able to support racialized and women founders nationally,” says David Kwok, director of entrepreneurship and innovation at YSpace. “We have built a robust and impactful program, and now with the funding resources to serve these groups, we can expand not only our reach but impact across Canada.”

In his role as Canada’s minister of agriculture and agri-food, Lawrence MacAulay has seen first-hand how integral women are to creating a thriving economy. “A more diverse and inclusive labour force can provide significant benefits to the agriculture sector by supporting competitiveness and risk management, innovation and rural vitality, and sustainable growth,” he says.

The new Food & Beverage Accelerator program will build and implement specialized tools and resources to support the unique challenges faced by under-represented groups in the consumer packaged goods and agri-food sector. To achieve this, YSpace will be leveraging its expertise from both ELLA, which provides dedicated programming for women entrepreneurs, and the Black Entrepreneurship Alliance, which provides specialized streams for Black entrepreneurs to better engage with those communities. YSpace will also look to leverage those experiences and expertise to consciously expand its offering into other under-represented communities in consultation with those communities.

“This specialized and comprehensive programming designed for under-represented communities doesn’t quite exist yet on a national level and will fill an ecosystem gap in the consumer packaged goods and agri-food sector,” says Judy Wong, consumer packaged goods program advisor at YSpace. “This is incredibly important for both our economy and the entrepreneurial ecosystem to further drive growth and innovation in the agri-food sector.”

Further information about YSpace and its diverse programming for existing and aspiring entrepreneurs can be found through its website.

Open Education Month puts spotlight on accessible education

Faculty of Environmental & Urban Change students in class

March is Open Education Month, a time to celebrate open educational resources (OER), which are openly licensed, freely available educational materials that can be used, accessed, adapted and redistributed with limited restriction. York University’s engagement with OER has continued to expand and grow over the recent years, helping faculty create inclusive and adaptable learning environments while advancing a number of United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) – specifically, UN SDG 4: Quality Education, UN SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities, and UN SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities.

In an upcoming series of webinars scheduled for this month, Dominique Scheffel-Dunand, an associate professor in linguistics at York and co-lead for Camerise, York’s French-as-a-second-language (FSL) hub, will spearhead efforts to promote the use of Camerise, H5P, and Pressbooks for developing inclusive OER for FSL and English as a second language (ESL). Supported by a $5,000 award from eCampusOntario, Scheffel-Dunand and her co-presenter, education technology consultant Sushumna Rao Tadinada, will deliver these webinars in both English and French.

“The events that York is hosting and participating in for Open Education Month show that the University is making great strides to support the University Academic Plan’s priority of Access to Success,” said Sarah Coysh, associate dean of digital engagement and strategy at York University Libraries. “Open educational practices in the classroom help provide students with access to course learning materials from the first day of classes. Our York eCampusOntario OER Rangers have also been instrumental in helping to spread awareness of open education on campus and providing faculty, staff, and graduate students with training and guidance on embedding these practices into their teaching and outreach programs,”

The first webinar, titled “Creating Accessible Interactive OER with H5P for Language Teaching (FSL and ESL),” on March 14 from 8 to 9 a.m., will demonstrate the use of the Canvas (LMS) and H5P platforms to design massive open online courses (MOOCs) – open-access courses with unlimited participation – in both English and French, focusing on the values of openness and diversity.

The subsequent events will delve deeper into using Pressbooks and H5P to publish interactive and inclusive learning modules.

The second and third event, titled “Libérer la puissance de l’apprentissage interactif et inclusif avec Pressbooks et H5P en FLS et ESL,” will be offered first as a webinar and then as a hands-on workshop by Scheffel-Dunand and Tadinada Ra. Delivered in French, the sessions will illustrate using Pressbooks to publish collections of training modules developed with H5P and made accessible on Lumi, H5P.com, HTML or in PDF format. The two events focus on how to conceptualize the interoperability between various tools and publishing platforms such as H5P or Pressbooks to foster accessible and interactive learning, from K-12 to post-secondary education.

Interested individuals can attend the March 21 webinar from 8 to 9 a.m. or the March 28 hands-on workshop from 8 to 9:30 a.m.

“These webinars and workshop have been co-designed with Ontario educators to ensure stakeholders in FSL and ESL in the province and beyond explore how to author high-quality content and why it matters that such content be discoverable, reproducible and modified for localized contexts to meet community needs for language and culture,” said Scheffel-Dunand.

During the first week of March, eCampusOntario – a nonprofit organization supporting technology-enabled teaching, learning and innovation at Ontario’s publicly funded universities, colleges and Indigenous institutes – will also be hosting several webinars to promote OER and open educational practices. Charlotte de Araujo, an assistant professor in York’s Faculty of Science, and Stephanie Quail, acting director of the Libraries’ Open Scholarship department, were accepted into eCampusOntario’s OER Ranger program last August, making them York’s institutional champions of the use of OER.

De Araujo will be speaking at the eCampusOntario Zoom webinar titled “Designing and Publishing OERs: Creator Panel Discussion” on March 7 from noon to 1 p.m.

“The OER Ranger program has provided us with the opportunity to share the benefits of OERs with our academic community, promoting a collaborative dialogue between stakeholders and encouraging OER integration in our teaching practices,” says de Araujo. “Being able to implement OERs, whether it is a textbook chapter or an ancillary resource to review course content, can be one solution to help alleviate cost challenges, enabling students to freely revisit course material, fostering lifelong learning for all stakeholders.”

Quail adds, “Being an eCampusOntario OER Ranger has provided me with the opportunity to build my network of open education advocates across Ontario, while also co-creating events at York University with my fellow ranger to support faculty, staff and student engagement with open educational practices.”

As York University continues to champion OER and open educational practices, it exemplifies its commitment to accessible and inclusive education, paving the way for innovative pedagogy and community-driven learning initiatives.

York community working together to achieve UN SDGs

York University's Las Nubes EcoCampus

In response to global challenges like climate change, pandemics, inequality and political polarization, York University continues to advance positive change through the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) with innovative thinking, groundbreaking projects and meaningful collaborations.

Introduced in 2015, the UN’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development outlines 17 interconnected SDGs aimed at addressing global social, economic, and environmental issues to promote the well-being of all people and the planet.

United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
The 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

York’s University Academic Plan, which was launched in 2020, includes a commitment to enhance the University’s contributions to the SDGs. Notably, the University’s achievements in advancing the SDGs were recognized in the 2023 Times Higher Education Impact Rankings, where York was positioned among the top 40 universities globally. York placed in the top 100 in nine SDGs, with a strong standing in the following categories:

  • SDG 1: No Poverty (21st in the world);
  • SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities (25th in the world); and
  • SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities (12th in the world).

“York’s third and most recent annual report on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals demonstrates how we are bringing positive change to communities around the world,” said Lisa Philipps, provost and vice-president academic. “Our community has demonstrated once again why our partnerships, research and academic innovation are at the centre of our success as a leading Canadian university dedicated to building a better future.”

York has prioritized ethical research practices by establishing the first wholly autonomous Indigenous Research Ethics Board at a Canadian post-secondary institution. This initiative, which addresses SDG 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions, reaffirms York’s commitment to decolonizing research methodologies and amplifying Indigenous voices and perspectives in academic discourse. Indigenous knowledge is also being recognized in the context of municipal climate solutions through the creation of a Climate Change Solutions Park in the town of Penetaguishene, Ont., which is led by Faculty of Environmental & Urban Change Professor José Etcheverry.

For students, organizations like the SDG Student Hub facilitate learning and engagement with the SDGs. Events such as York Capstone Day provide platforms for students to present sustainable solutions to societal challenges.

The University is celebrating these accomplishments and more during SDG Week Canada from March 4 to 8, featuring workshops, panels, and other interactive programming to increase awareness of and engagement with the 17 SDGs. Learn more about York’s progress on the UN SDGs by visiting York’s SDG Week website and following the University on social media.

Black Studies program expands to include major, minor options

Two Black students at York University

York University is entering a new phase in its commitment to Black Studies with the expansion of its existing program to include major and minor degree options under the continued guidance of Professor Andrea A. Davis.

A professor of Black cultures of the Americas in the Department of Humanities, Davis will lead the development of the major with Paul Lawrie, a professor in the Department of History and the Black inclusion advisor in the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies (LA&PS).

Andrea Davis
Andrea Davis
Paul Lawrie
Paul Lawrie

The Office of the Dean in LA&PS and the program development and curriculum innovation specialist in the Office of the Vice-Provost Academic are also involved in supporting the creation of what Davis calls “a very ambitious and exciting new degree program.”

“This new development,” Davis says, “marks a significant advancement in the University’s dedication to providing a comprehensive education that authentically reflects Black histories and experiences within academia.”

Under her leadership, York previously introduced the Black Canadian Studies Certificate in 2018, demonstrating a commitment to fostering inclusive educational environments. At the time, it was only the second Black Studies program in Canada to offer the study of Black Canada through humanities and arts approaches, including cultural studies, history, literature and music.

The expanded program will build on the foundation laid by the Black Canadian Studies Certificate, offering students a broader and more in-depth exploration of Black experiences across various academic disciplines, including arts, media, performance and design.

“We have made significant progress in mapping a unique, 21st-century curriculum, with cohesive learning outcomes and assessments, and we will be expanding consultation shortly with colleagues, students and affiliated programs,” Davis says.

Central to her pedagogical approach is the belief in education as a transformative force that extends beyond academic achievement. The goal is to empower students to critically examine the intersectionality of race, gender and class, fostering a deeper understanding of societal structures and inspiring them to become catalysts for positive change within their communities.

By delving into contemporary issues such as environmental sustainability, social justice and cultural identity, the expectation is that students will develop critical-thinking skills essential for addressing the pressing challenges of the modern world.

Presently in the development stage, the proposal for the new, expanded program is expected to be ready for the various approval stages within LA&PS by the spring of this year. Announcements of signed agreements between LA&PS and two historically Black colleges and universities in the U.S. are also expected to happen by this time.

“Without giving away too much, the curriculum will remain embedded in the humanities and expressive cultures,” Davis says. “The goal is to make it completely accessible and to include international student exchanges and teaching and research partnerships, as well as carefully mapped work-integrated learning opportunities.”

York University professors help shape national pandemic strategy

Medicine doctor and robotics research and analysis. Diagnose checking coronavirus or covid-19 testing

Earlier this month, two York University professors – Mathieu Poirier and Susan Rogers Van Katwyk – joined Canadian experts and government representatives at the Pandemic Agreement Regional Engagement Series. Organized by the Government of Canada, this series of meetings held across the country were intended to facilitate productive discussion about Canada’s role in pandemic prevention, preparedness and response.

Mathieu Poirier

“With the COVID-19 pandemic, it became clear that there were real inequities that emerged, and there were issues with the International Health Regulations, which are the main international law we use to deal with pandemic threats,” said Poirier. “So when we see medical countermeasures, vaccines that were extremely inequitably distributed, it became clear that we need a new agreement – a Pandemic Agreement – to deal with these pandemic threats.”

Attendees at the meetings, which built on the Pandemic Instrument Partner and Stakeholder Engagement Forum that took place in Ottawa last March, were encouraged to share their input on and updates to the development of the Pandemic Agreement (previously referred to as the Pandemic Instrument). The agreement seeks to address policy gaps in preventing, preparing for and responding to pandemics, and is scheduled to be presented to the 77th World Health Assembly in May of this year.

Poirier, an assistant professor in York’s School of Global Health, a Tier II Research Chair in Global Health Equity and co-director of the York University- and University of Ottawa-based Global Strategy Lab (GSL), participated in a Toronto-based meeting focused on enhancing capacities to detect, understand, and act on public health threats through improved global co-operation on data standardization and interoperability.

“It’s important to remember that Canada is less than one per cent of the world’s population, and that means that there’s something like a 99 per cent chance that a future pandemic will emerge outside of Canada,” said Poirier. “And in the likelihood that occurs, we have to have strong international co-operation between countries so that we are prepared to detect, understand and act on those pandemic threats, and that other countries are as well.”

The session he attended, he said, brought widespread support for creating a committee to facilitate the adoption of international data standards and interoperable systems. Participants emphasized the importance of supporting low-and middle-income countries in strengthening their systems and advocating for a decolonized approach that learns from best practices globally while minimizing potential harms to countries that choose to participate in data sharing.

Rogers Van Katwyk, an adjunct professor at York and managing director of the AMR (Antimicrobial Resistance) Policy Accelerator at the Global Strategy Lab, participated in the Vancouver-based session, which focused on equity within the pandemic agreement.

The Global Strategy Lab’s previous research on the pandemic treaty has gained significant recognition. A comment in The Lancet, by the Intergovernmental Negotiating Body spearheading negotiations on the pandemic agreement, cited GSL’s research on what makes for an effective international treaty, and a symposium issue of the Journal of Law, Medicine, and Ethics (JLME) on the inclusion of AMR in the Pandemic Agreement, co-edited by Rogers Van Katwyk and GSL Director and York Professor Steven J. Hoffman, has greatly contributed to the discussion. With GSL members taking part in high-level discussions like the recent Pandemic Agreement Regional Engagement Series, the lab’s international influence is sure to continue its trajectory of growth.

To hear more from Poirier about his participation in the meetings and their potential impact on our global health future, watch the video below: