Tag: UN SDG 5

New lecture series to spotlight York’s research leadership

innovation image

York University’s Organized Research Units (ORU) are launching the Big Thinking Lecture Series, which will feature researchers, artists and activists taking up some of the world’s most pressing issues and ideas in their fields, from water research and aging to digital literacy and more.

As a leader in research and innovative thinking, York has a lot to show in the ways its faculty and students are helping right the future with big ideas. The new lecture series, which will consist of various talks and artistic events held throughout the calendar year, will see expert York speakers present research and creative works that span their respective fields, which include muscle health, Indigenous knowledges and languages, youth and aging, Canadian studies, technoscience and society, feminist activism, and Jewish social and political thought.

John Tsotsos
John Tsotsos

“This bold new series will showcase the depth and breadth of research excellence generated by York’s Organized Research Units and their commitment to fostering critical thought and dialogue on today’s global challenges,” said Amir Asif, vice-president research and innovation. “The Big Thinking Lecture Series builds on York’s proud tradition of interdisciplinary scholarship and participatory research. I applaud the ORU directors for bringing this series forward.”

The inaugural lecture of the series, titled “Vision Beyond a Glance,” is presented by the Centre for Vision Research and will feature John Tsotsos, a Distinguished Research Professor in the Lassonde School of Engineering. He will explore the meaning of vision and explain how we effortlessly perform visual tasks many times a day. The in-person event will take place on Jan. 26 from 2 to 3:30 p.m. in 519 Kaneff Tower.

For more details about the inaugural event and the series itself, visit yorku.ca/research/bigthinking.

LA&PS prof publishes three books in one month

colorful book shelf banner

A busy 2023 has led to Hassan Qudrat-Ullah, a professor in York University’s School of Administrative Studies in the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies (LA&PS), publishing three new books in short succession this past November, covering topics as diverse as systems thinking, supply chain management and sustainable development.

Hassan Qudrat-Ullah
Hassan Qudrat-Ullah

The first of the three, Managing Complex Tasks with Systems Thinking (Springer, 2023), is about improving human decision making and performance in complex tasks. Using a systems thinking approach, it presents innovative and insightful solutions to various managerial issues in various domains, including agriculture, education, climate change, digital transformation, health care, supply chains and sustainability.

Qudrat-Ullah’s second recently published work, a co-edited volume with York University Research Fellow Syed Imran Ali called Advanced Technologies and the Management of Disruptive Supply Chains: The Post-COVID Era (Springer, 2023), explores the cost-effective and efficient supply chain management strategies required to achieve resilience in the post-COVID environment.

“The book follows a didactic approach through which it informs global researchers and practitioners to deal with the most significant insights on future supply chains with a more in-depth analysis of post-COVID opportunities and challenges,” said Qudrat-Ullah. “In particular, it provides an in-depth assessment of disruptive supply chain management in certain industrial contexts and explores various industry 4.0 and industry 5.0 technologies to achieve resilience.”

The final book of the bunch, Exploring the Dynamics of Renewable Energy and Sustainable Development in Africa: A Cross-Country and Interdisciplinary Approach (Springer, 2023), explores the potential of renewable energy sources to promote sustainable development in Africa, with a specific focus on Cameroon, Nigeria, Uganda, South Africa and Algeria. It delves into the challenges and opportunities presented by various renewable and clean energy technologies, including nuclear power, liquefied petroleum gas, bamboo biomass gasification and geothermal energy in addressing the energy needs of African nations. Additionally, it assesses the socio-economic and environmental impacts of renewable energy projects and evaluates their alignment with the African Union’s Agenda 2063 and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

“The book’s interdisciplinary and cross-country approach, as well as its incorporation of innovative concepts like social innovation and bamboo-based development, makes it a unique resource,” said the author.

Two profs earn awards for postdoctoral mentorship excellence

Audience clapping

York University’s Faculty of Graduate Studies (FGS) honoured two exceptional professors, Alison Crosby and Amro Zayed, with the Postdoctoral Supervisor Award during an FGS council meeting on Dec. 7. The award is presented annually to a faculty member in any department and program at York who demonstrates exemplary support for postdoctoral scholars.

This award serves to applaud Crosby and Zayed for exceeding general supervisory expectations to their postdoctoral Fellows while acknowledging the important work performed by both the professors and Fellows. Alice MacLachlan, vice-provost and dean of graduate studies, said the two recipients embody the award’s spirit of mentorship creativity, excellence and dedication. “You serve as a role model for all of us to follow,” she added.

“This is the kind of work that places York in the top 40 globally in the Times Higher Education Impact Rankings, through our work as a progressive, research-intensive institution,” said Lisa Philipps, provost and vice-president academic.

Alison Crosby

Alison Crosby
Alison Crosby

Crosby is an associate professor and interim Chair of the School of Gender, Sexuality & Women’s Studies. Her research projects and publications use an anti-racist, anti-colonial and transnational feminist lens and participatory methodologies to support protagonists’ multifaceted struggles to redress and memorialize harm in the aftermath of political violence, with a particular focus on Guatemala, where she has worked for over 30 years.

Crosby is currently working on the Social Sciences & Humanities Research Council-funded project “Remembering and Memorializing Violence: Transnational Feminist Dialogues,” which brings together feminist scholars, artists, activists and community practitioners from a wide range of contexts and disciplinary perspectives to explore the transnational dimensions of how we collectively remember and memorialize colonial, militarized and state violence. The project also provided Crosby’s postdoctoral Fellow, Ruth Murambadoro, with a space to house her research and become part of this digital community.

“Professor Crosby embodies Ubuntu principles of communitarianism, humility, mutual respect, hospitality and so much more, which have enabled me to integrate and chart a new pathway for my career in Canada,” noted Murambadoro in her nomination letter. “She remains a key player in my life and role model, who taught me fundamental lessons on collegiality, humanness and effective mentorship. I value the contributions that Prof. Crosby has made in my research, scholarly and personal development over the time we have worked together.”

In response to the award win, Crosby said, “It’s my pleasure, privilege and honour to work with postdoc Fellows.” Of her nominator, she said, “I look forward to my collaborations with her for many years to come.”

Amro Zayed

Amro Zayed
Amro Zayed

Zayed, a professor in the Department of Biology and York Research Chair in Genomics, is currently the inaugural director of York’s Centre for Bee Ecology, Evolution & Conservation, leading a research program on the genetics, genomics and behaviour of social insects, using the honey bee as a model organism. 

Zayed’s lab provides opportunities to conduct research and network with academics and industry partners worldwide. Since 2009, Zayed has supervised eight postdoctoral Fellows who have collectively produced a total of 28 peer-reviewed publications and 71 conference presentations. He aims to equip postdoctoral Fellows with the skills necessary to successfully navigate the increasingly competitive job market.

“His approach to leadership has inspired us to seek creative solutions in research and to collaborate with diverse groups of stakeholders,” stated Sydney Wizenberg and Sarah French in their letter of nomination. “To this end, Amro exemplifies all of the characteristics one would expect of an intellectual leader and role model. He provides a unilateral environment of support to his research group. He is personally invested in our success and well-being, going above and beyond to help with professional skill development. He is actively involved in our career development, prioritizing our long-term success over our short-term role in his group.”

Zayed was caught off-guard by the award. “I was really surprised by this,” he admitted. “When I started my career, I never appreciated the joy of having postdocs.”

The Postdoctoral Supervisor of the Year Award accepts nominations annually by no later than June 1 of each year. Nomination letters should provide evidence that the nominee meets the following criteria: is a role model for intellectual leadership and professionalism in research; fosters an environment of support for professional skill development; promotes a climate of respect and collegiality; and offers advocacy and guidance in long-term personal and professional developments.

For more information, visit gradstudies.yorku.ca/postdoctoral-fellows/supervisor-award.

York collaborates on new app to help women experiencing abuse 

Woman with two children, holding smartphone

A new app developed by a collaborative research team that includes York University Assistant Professor Karen Campbell aims to help Canadian women experiencing partner violence and abuse.

Karen Campbell
Karen Campbell

The iHEAL app was designed as a free, secure, bilingual resource for the more than 40 per cent of Canadian women who are victims of abuse, says Campbell, a registered nurse in York’s School of Nursing. 

According to the iHEAL team – which includes researchers and experts from Western University, the University of British Columbia, the University of New Brunswick and York University – only 20 per cent of women who experience intimate partner violence access formal support. 

“There are many barriers to receiving services, including shame, stigma, fears over privacy and anonymity, fear of the abuser finding out, or just not knowing where to start or what to expect,” says Campbell. “Furthermore, services can be hard to access with long waitlists, costs to women who require transportation or time off work, and some services do not meet women’s cultural needs.” 

To address these barriers, the team developed the private, secure and free app iHEAL, which is backed by two decades of research and was developed and tested with women and service providers. 

“The iHEAL app is intended to help women across Canada, who have experienced violence from a current or past partner, find personalized ways to stay safe and healthy while getting their basic needs met and reclaiming their power,” says Campbell. “Through an interactive platform, it offers users help with safe housing, food, health and well-being, child care, finances, legal options and builds a network of support.”

Features of the iHEAL app include risk and health assessments, grounding exercises and safety features to attend to women’s physical, spiritual, and emotional safety and well-being. The app also provides information about services that women may find helpful, with links to more than 400 of these resources across Canada, personalized to the woman’s province or territory.

iHeal app screenshot
A screenshot from the iHeal app.

“iHEAL is what we call trauma- and violence-informed: it’s designed to work with women where they’re at, to recognize the many types of stressors and traumas, including partner violence but also other potential violence and barriers that can be affecting their ability to plan their next steps,” says Campbell. “It emphasizes their strength and their successes in keeping safe, as well as looking for ways to build on those. It also takes into account complexity – of their life, and their options – and gives her control over what’s next.”

The app is designed for women but is also useful for friends and family supporting women. Women can use the app to help explain to others the health, social and financial effects of the violence. Those supporting women who are victims of abuse might use the app to find a way to approach a conversation about abuse. 

The iHEAL app is available in English and French online and can be accessed on a computer or downloaded to a mobile device. Other resources, including printable posters and stickers, are also available. 

The development of iHEAL is supported by funding from the Public Health Agency of Canada, with contributions from Women and Gender Equality Canada.

Watch a video on iHEAL to learn more:

Community-driven exploration of girls’ mental health leads to new support

A graphic of a women with a cloudy head

Partnering with community organizations is essential for equity-informed population health researchers, and York University Faculty of Health professors Cheryl van Daalen-Smith and Marina Morrow have embarked on a community-driven inquiry exploring girls’ and young women’s mental health, leading to new local supports.

The project, titled “Pressure, Judgement, Fear & Girlhood: A Girl-Centred Understanding of the Social Determinants of Girls’ Mental Health and What We Can Do About It,” investigates the issues – as seen by diverse girls and young women – that enhance or erode mental health.

Partnering with Girls Incorporated of York Region and the Canadian Mental Health Association of York Region, the researchers and York Research Assistant Ariella Markus (master of arts, interdisciplinary studies) pursued a girl-centred exploration of girls’ own views regarding the issues they face.

In September, a community knowledge mobilization launch was held in Newmarket, Ont., where an open-access research monograph was shared and discussed with representatives from community organizations, policy developers, girl-serving organizations and government. As a result, a new and community-driven girls’ mental health network initiative, led by community partners, is in the early stages of development in York Region.

The community-based study strove to: explore girls’ and young women’s views regarding the current state of girls’ mental health; understand the issues impacting mental health; understand what they deem as helpful models of mental health support; and hear and document their views about what needs to change.

“The research team heard that girls’ lives are full of worry, with girls routinely hearing negative comments, and that the pervasiveness of judgement and pressure leaves girls simultaneously feeling too much and not enough,” says van Daalen-Smith.

While the participants varied in age, experience, cultural background and other aspects, the top three pressing issues identified in the project are: anxiety and depression related to judgement from others/society; social expectations and the constant comparison to others; and learned hatred of their own bodies and wishing they were (like) someone else.

“All of this pressure, judgment and fear gave way to clouded thinking, with the young women clearly telling us that their anxiety ‘was a symptom of gender-based devaluation and social pressure’ and not so-called ‘poor coping skills,’” says Morrow.

The inquiry, say researchers, confirmed the continuing trend that how girls are viewed, referred to and treated determines their mental health and well-being. It was also determined that the erosion of mental health is linked to a breach of their rights – something Girls Incorporated has been working to address over the past three decades.

The team also consulted with girl-serving professionals, including social workers, peer support workers/specialists, gender-affirming care workers, youth mental health workers, nurse practitioners and more. From listening to girls, young women and girl-serving professionals, the researchers put forth recommendations to consider when seeking to support girls’ and young women’s mental health.

Some of these recommendations are:

  • Believe, affirm and validate girls’ appraisals of their lives and experiences. They want to be believed.
  • Girls are afraid that others will find out they went to talk with someone. Help them find you in ways that feel safe.
  • Don’t focus on the symptom nor infuse girls with psychiatric labels through which to view themselves – language matters.
  • Girls want comfortable, girl-friendly spaces to be heard, affirmed, valued and believed – not fixed.
  • Empower girls to actively remove self-deprecating notions of themselves and other girls through individual and group activities that protect girls’ social vulnerabilities.
  • Remind girls about their right to authenticity, safety, bold expression, achievement, body appreciation, confidence and future self-reliance. Help them achieve these rights. Speak out when girls’ rights are breached.

The full list of recommendations can be found in the report.

Centre for Feminist Research celebrates feminist scholarship with new award

Rear view of four diverse women

York University’s Centre for Feminist Research has launched the inaugural Medal for Excellence in Feminist Scholarship in Canada to support and raise the profile of the rich and diverse contributions of feminist scholars nationally.

Ena Dua, Bonita Lawrence and Meg Luxton.
From left to right: Ena Dua, Bonita Lawrence and Meg Luxton.

“This award is a reminder that feminist research matters and that feminists of all genders are producing rigorous, relevant research and writing for our times,” says Elaine Coburn, director of the Centre for Feminist Research. “It creates a space to celebrate all that is excellent in feminist scholarship, across Canada.”

The award was created with an anonymous donor to honour and bring visibility to the work of three York University faculty members – Ena Dua, Bonita Lawrence and Meg Luxton – who have set standards of excellence by transforming understanding of women’s everyday realities and struggles through anti-racist, Indigenous feminist and feminist political economy scholarship.

Dua is a professor and graduate director in sexuality and women’s studies in the School of Gender, Sexuality & Women’s Studies who teaches critical race theory, anti-racist feminist theory, postcolonial studies and feminist theory. She has taken up the question of racial justice, from feminist perspectives, across all of her writing. She forthrightly confronts racial injustices in Canada, and her scholarship has unpacked racial, gendered inequities in the University with the aim of creating space for each and all voices in the academy.

Lawrence (Mi’kmaw), who teaches in the Indigenous Studies program, has taken up the questions of colonialism and Indigenous identity, especially centering the experiences of non-status and urban Indigenous people. Her important work has looked at Indigenous Peoples’ “fractured homelands” under colonialism and celebrated strong Indigenous women, their power and their agency, despite a genocidal context.

Luxton is a professor in the School of Gender, Sexuality and Women’s Studies, and one of Canada’s best-known feminist political economists, with her work shedding new light on gender divisions of labour and the relationship between paid employment and unpaid domestic labour; working class lives, communities and class politics; and the history of the women’s movement, in Canada and internationally.

“We hope that the new award, in honouring these three scholars, makes clear the ways that feminisms must and does take up questions of racism, indigeneity and working class women’s lives as central to anti-oppressive feminist scholarship,” says Coburn. “Together, they inspire us to feminist scholarship that matters: scholarship that looks squarely at injustice and that celebrates and supports struggles for a more just world.”

Over the next 10 years, the medal will provide each recipient with $500, and winners will be invited to give a lecture at the Centre for Feminist Research – both to help further scholars and the Centre’s impact on the challenges still facing women today.

“We hope that others see this medal and CFR’s activities, more broadly, as contributing to important national and international conversations about women’s struggles for equality and our hopes for more just and liveable worlds,” says Coburn.

Applications for the Medal for Excellence in Feminist Scholarship in Canada will be evaluated by a committee of three faculty members. Those interested in being on the committee can write to cfr-coor@yorku.ca with their CV and one paragraph expressing their interest by Jan. 15, 2024.

Applications for the medal will open on Jan. 30, 2024 and the deadline is March 1, 2024 for submissions. The inaugural winner will be announced on May 1, 2024.

Annual event spotlights student choreographers, dancers

Figures dancing on stage in silhouette against sunset-coloured background

Dance Innovations 2023: Infinite Corners, running Nov. 22 to 24 at the McLean Performance Studio, will feature 25 new choreographic works by York University fourth-year bachelor of fine arts students addressing various social issues and personal experiences.

Performed by students in all years of York’s undergraduate programs in dance, this series engages with a range of human emotions. Each piece presents a unique concept, created in collaboration between the choreographer and the dancers. With the support of the faculty to turn their creativity into a full production, the student choreographers also collaborate with lighting designers, stage crew and technicians.

The underlying motif throughout the show is an exploration of the spectrum of feelings that humans experience through the successes and hardships in life. It considers themes like climate change, feminism, emotional development and gender theory.

“As we find ourselves in a time of recuperation following the pandemic, these creators are asking: what does it mean to move forward now?” says Infinite Corners Artistic Director Tracey Norman. “How are we coming alive in our collaborative work differently? If infinite corners lead to circles and cycles, the goal of this production is to enliven the ideas, processes and narratives that are important to this group of emerging artists.”

to move through dancers

Presented in two series – Continuous and Unbounded – the show also features a new work by Professor Susan Lee for the department’s third-year performance class.

One piece that will address difficult emotions is to move through by Gabriella Noonan, which examines the grieving process and how to grow throughout it. Dancers Megan Bagusoski, Isabella Castro, Autumn Ivan, Olivia Pereira and Colleen Wiebe will portray a depiction of grief after losing a loved one. As the dancers weave a narration of regret, nostalgia and hope, they demonstrate the possibilities of moving forward after a heartbreaking event. “With those still here around us we must find how we can move forward in a world that is missing a piece,” says Noonan.

perennial dancers

Another piece that will highlight resilience in the face of hardship is Jemima Cummings’ Perennial. Using the metaphor of perennial flowers, Cummings’ work will demonstrate the human ability to overcome obstacles. Noting how flowers always grow back after a long and cold winter, she uses her choreography to suggest that people can also find joy after difficult moments. Performed by Isabella Castro, Alessia Di Palma, Autumn Ivan, Travis Keith, Eva Rodriguez Castro and Olivia Williams, the work encourages audiences to pursue happiness after challenging circumstances, rather than settle for mere survival. “Never stagnate in moments of utter desperation and sadness. Pick yourself back up and bloom towards the sun,” says Cummings.

undivulged dancers

Undivulged by Emma Tate will bring light to the challenges experienced by women in a patriarchal society. One of her choreographic goals is to break the stigma around problems that women face, as she and the dancers expose the less glamorous parts of being a woman. Performers Liz Cairns, Sabrina Doughty, Madelyn Moneypenny, Emily Morton, Sonya Singh, Grace Sokolow and Tehillah James use their movement to support each other through externalization of their hidden obstacles. Throughout the piece, Tate asks, “How do we move forward in a world that diminishes the female voice and body?”

artificially authentic dancers

Christiano DiDomenico’s Artificially Authentic questions how to find authenticity despite the influence of others. This solo work, performed in alternance by Katherine Colley and Maya Erwin, engages with the idea of personality and how one’s personality is affected or altered by the people around them. In the creation process, DiDomenico explored “social chameleon” tendencies, which he describes as the habit of changing one’s outward personality based on the expectations of others. To highlight this research, as the soloists perform the work, they are surrounded by a 15-person ensemble. The presence of the supporting dancers sets the stage for a display of self-discovery.

Déjà Vécu dancers

Déjà Vécu by Rosie Halpin also explores beliefs about human nature. In contrast to the other works, Halpin’s choreography uses a mystical lens to approach the notion of already having lived through a situation. She directed her questioning of past events toward an exploration of life after death. This piece, danced by Regan Baird, Clara Chemtov, Kerry Halpin, Annie Spence, Hanna Thakore and Andie Weir, examines the idea of reconnecting with previous iterations of oneself from an undetermined afterlife. In her process, Halpin muses, “Maybe we are all just warped versions of past selves, like a cracked mirror that distorts a reflection.”

Series A: Continuous will run from Nov. 22 to 24 at 7 p.m. Series B: Unbounded runs on the same days at 8:30 p.m.

Tickets are $15 in advance (until Nov. 19) and $22 at the door. They can be purchased through the box office at 416-736-5888 or online at ampd.yorku.ca/boxoffice.

Research day to highlight environmental studies PhD students

Panoramic photo a hand clasping miniature globe with view of arid mountain range behind in the distance

On Nov. 14, the PhD Environmental Studies Association (PhESSA), with the support of the Environmental Studies (ES) PhD Program and the Faculty of Environmental & Urban Change (EUC), is curating an in-person research day that will engage the exciting and provocative work of ES PhD students.

The event, titled “On Fire,” will take place in N120 of the Ross Building from 9 a.m to 4 p.m, with the aim to celebrate the work of ES PhD students working for social and environmental justice, while bringing them together with faculty members and larger communities of scholarship, activism and practice.

The event’s theme – “On Fire” – is drawn from how the day’s event will focus attention on the many fires involved in the students’ work: material, political, inspirational. As the event’s description explains: “On Fire because the world is burning, literally and politically. On Fire because inspirational people and movements are working for social and environmental justice.”

Following arrival and coffee, attendees will be welcomed to the days-worth of panels by Melvin Chan, a graduate teaching assistant representing PhESSA, and Philip Kelly, associate dean of EUC.

Each panel – all chaired by Phyllis Novack, director of Maloca Living Labs, and made up of three to four speakers – is organized by theme.

  • Panel I: Multispecies Research “On Fire”;
  • Panel II: No Extraction Between the Branches: Epistolary in the Ruins of Fossil Capitalism;
  • Panel III: Burning Political Questions; and
  • Panel IV: Setting Creative Fires.

At noon, a special keynote presentation will also be given by Camille Turner, an artist who recently completed her PhD in environmental studies at York, titled “UnMapping: An Afronautic Journey.”

Closing thoughts will be provided by Alice Hovorka, dean of EUC.

The event is open to all York community members. For further information contact Novak at phyllisnovak4@gmail.com.

York community invited to advance DEDI learnings through new toolkit

DEDI three diverse adults in conversations

The York University community is invited to the launch of the Decolonizing, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (DEDI) toolkit on Thursday, Nov. 16, from 1 to 2 p.m.

This one-hour event will show community members how to engage with the toolkit and give a preview of some of the activities included in the course.

The toolkit is available at yorku.ca/yulearn for the community to add to their learning courses at any time.

“The Decolonizing, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Self-Reflection Toolkit was developed and created to support everyone in the York community in actualizing the University-wide Decolonizing, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy. It aims to support effective decolonization strategies and to make our campuses, our community and our world a more inclusive and equitable space,” said Marian MacGregor, executive director, Centre for Human Rights, Equity & Inclusion.

“The modules focus on you – your lived experiences and strengths, your biases, how you can use your skills to contribute to DEDI work and more,” MacGregor added.

Participants will receive a certificate upon the completion of the toolkit, which is offered as a five-part series that focuses on guided self-reflection, with the goal of building the internal tools and skills needed to engage in meaningful decolonizing, equity and inclusion work. The learning happens through short interactive videos, scenarios and activities, as well as access to additional resources. It provides five key reflective questions that can be worked through in any order and at any pace.

Visit the toolkit website to learn more and register to attend the online kickoff event.

Make a difference – join York’s DEDI Council

DEDI three diverse adults in conversations

York University is seeking members of the University community with an interest in decolonizing, equity, diversity and inclusion (DEDI) work. The DEDI Council is looking for those with diverse perspectives, experiences and talents.

This council provides advice for advancing York University’s DEDI initiatives, projects and practices, as well as oversight of the required actions from approved recommendations. The council enables and supports York students, faculty, instructors and staff to participate meaningfully in the planning and implementation of York’s DEDI Strategy, initiatives, projects and practices, with the goal of cultivating a diverse campus culture that is equitable and inclusive. The council will be guided by the principles set out in the DEDI Strategy. 

The application period for at-large representative positions is now open. The application period will close at noon on Friday, Oct. 20. Find the application here.

Key objectives of the council 

The council will:  

  • Receive annual updates on the progress of implementation of the DEDI Strategy and provide input and advice on the implementation.  
  • Monitor the external environment for emerging issues and promising practices on DEDI to provide advice to the University. 
  • Provide a forum in which members discuss DEDI challenges and identify opportunities to foster an integrated and collaborative approach to DEDI initiatives across the University. 
  • Receive advice and direction from the sub-committees of the council, which include RISE, Sex-Gen and Enable York.  
  • From time to time, connect with emerging communities of practice, such as gatherings of DEDI practitioners, affinity groups etc. 
Council membership composition 

The membership shall consist of no more than 25 members at any given time and will include no fewer than six faculty or instructors, six non-academic staff and four students, and will aim for representation from all campuses in the combined categories below.

Appointed members: members appointed by the vice-president equity, people and culture and/or the president, consisting of no more than 10 individuals, which may include, but is not limited to, appointments from any of the following: SexGen, RISE, Enable York, Indigenous Council, Black Inclusion Advisory Council, President’s Sustainability Council, appointments from the community at-large.

At-large representatives: through an open call for expressions of interest, at-large representatives will be selected by the vice-president equity, people and culture and a group of advisors, ensuring the selected representatives will be broad-based, and include members of the student body (both graduate and undergraduate), staff, instructors and faculty. A minimum of 12 and maximum of 14 members will be selected.  

Chair: ex-officio (vice-president equity, people and culture). 

Technical support: administrative and technical support for the council will be provided by the Office of the Vice-President Equity, People and Culture. 

Committee member competencies: 

The council is seeking members who can demonstrate some or all of the following competencies: 

Knowledge of decolonizing, equity, diversity and inclusion in the post-secondary sector, which includes the knowledge, skills and dispositions needed to create learning environments that foster equitable participation of all groups and that seek to address issues of accessibility, equity and inclusion, oppression, privilege and power. Individuals with this competency have a sense of their own agency and social responsibility that includes others, their community and the larger global context.  

Lived/living experience, including personal knowledge about the world gained through direct, first-hand involvement in everyday events as an individual who identifies as a member of at least one equity-deserving group as a part of their identity. 

Ability to cultivate a common vision, including the ability to engage with students, faculty, staff and administrators to understand their unique and complex needs and commit to working collaboratively with all levels of leadership to build policies and programs that advance DEDI and equity-mindedness. 

Institutional and political acumen, including an understanding of the University’s unique organizational and governance structures as well as its intersections with government, community and industry at all levels, which include law, policy and history; and an ability to respond effectively to sensitive situations, reconcile competing interests and build consensus around a policy and plan of action. 

Results-orientation, including the ability to demonstrate strong commitment to the development of practical and effective strategies, actions etc., and an ability to develop and articulate goals that unite people in the pursuit of objectives worthy of their best efforts.

Time commitment and tenure: 

Meetings are expected to be two hours in duration a minimum of two times per year, with an understanding that in the early years of the establishment of the council, the meeting frequency will likely be more. 

Ex-officio members shall hold their position for the duration of their appointment in that role. 

Students appointed to the council will serve either a one-year or two-year term, depending on their ability to make such a commitment. 

Employees appointed to the council will require acknowledgement and permission to serve on the council by their supervisor and will serve a two-year term. Two-year terms will be scheduled on a staggered basis to ensure overlap of council membership. The first year of the council’s existence will require some appointments to be either a one- or two-year term to support this staggered approach to membership. 

The website Terms of Reference for the Council can be found here. For more on York’s work in DEDI, visit yorku.ca/vpepc and yorku.ca/dedi-strategy.