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SEEC program funding to boost immigrant skills training

laptop webinar computer virtual

The Schulich Executive Education Centre (SEEC) at York University will help unemployed and underemployed immigrants to acquire project management skills thanks to a $400,000 joint agreement with partner organizations and Ontario’s Ministry of Training, Labour and Skills Development.

The Immigrants Working Centre (IWC) of Hamilton will collaborate with the Schulich Executive Education Centre and partner McGraw Hill to develop and deliver a suite of skills development activities for 80 recent immigrants, focusing on employment in manufacturing supply chain operations.

“This initiative is a perfect fit for our capabilities as custom training providers and learning designers,” said Rami Mayer, executive director of SEEC at the Schulich School of Business. “We are pleased to work with our partners in this effort and provide an important impact for clients of the Immigrants Working Centre so that they may be able to upgrade their skills, integrate better into Canadian society and thrive. I look forward to creating a meaningful program for those seeking to learn project management as it applies to the manufacturing and supply chain sector.”

The program is part of the ministry’s $115-million Skills Development Fund that will enable market-driven solutions and unlock the economic potential of skilled trade and broader workforce development initiatives to facilitate economic recovery.

“This project will also help a sector that was hard hit by COVID-19 to recover faster.”

– Elena Caprioni, SEEC associate director

SEEC will support the Newcomers in Supply Chain Operations (NSCO) project by developing a suite of online resources to support recent immigrants facing multiple barriers to economic participation and sustainable, living-wage work. The project will create an opportunity for internationally educated individuals to enhance and apply their skills in the local economy and to fill specific workforce gaps related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We are excited to be part of this project that will not only help with the post-pandemic recovery but also allow us to showcase SEEC’s capabilities to develop learning programs that directly help educated newcomers find work,” said Elena Caprioni, SEEC associate director. “This project will also help a sector that was hard hit by COVID-19 to recover faster.”

The program aims primarily to serve unemployed and underemployed newcomer job seekers in Hamilton, Ont., and the surrounding area, as well as the Halton and Niagara regions and Brant County. While the program will be delivered remotely, the project will maintain a regional focus to respond to the local labour market context and enable local job development activities towards employment outcomes for participants.

The Immigrants Working Centre delivers innovative models of integrated, employment-focused settlement and language programming to support immigrants’ success in a just and supportive Hamilton.

More information is available on SEEC’s offerings for organizations.

UNESCO Chair Charles Hopkins recognized with lifetime achievement award

Featured image for stories related to sustainability

York University’s UNESCO Chair Charles Hopkins is the recipient of the Clean50 Lifetime Achievement Award for his work on a global scale to reorient education towards sustainable development. This prestigious award recognizes Hopkins’ focus on creating a better future for all.

Charles Hopkins

Climate challenges facing Canada can not be resolved by anything less than a collaborative, full assault on every element of the problem. Broad solutions are needed. To create holistic strategies for future economies and imagine better ways of living together in Canada and beyond, thought leaders from all sectors of industry, business, academia, the arts and civil society need to be involved.

Canada’s Clean50 award program and annual summit were founded in 2011 by Canada’s leading clean tech and sustainability executive search firm Delta Management Group to bring these sustainability leaders together. In its 10th edition, Canada’s Clean50 Awards celebrate the 2022 top sustainability leaders in Canada. Fifty remarkable and inspiring individuals in 16 different categories as well as emerging leaders, Canadian business and five selected sustainability heroes will be recognized with Lifetime Achievement Awards during this year’s summit, which took place Oct. 1. A record number of nominations were received for this year’s awards.

Charles Hopkins, York University’s UNESCO Chair, received the 2022 Lifetime Achievement Award for decades of dedicated engagement in reorienting education systems towards sustainable development as well as fostering cross-sector thinking connecting academia with business, industry, the arts and the general public towards a better future for all. As one of the early advocates for place-based and experiential learning as a principal of outdoor schools in Canada during the 1970s and 1980s, his list of involvements is long. He presented to the Brundtland Commission and co-authored Chapter 36 in Agenda 21, the first United Nations implementation plan for a more sustainable future, coming out of the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992.

Since assuming the role of UNESCO Chair in Reorienting Education towards Sustainability at York in 1999, he has been co-ordinating two global research networks, each active in more than 50 countries: the International Network of Teacher Education Institutions and the #IndigenousESD Network. He is advisor to the Global Network of Regional Centres of Expertise on ESD hosted by the United Nations University’s Institute of Advanced Studies in Sustainability, and co-director of the Asia-Pacific Institute on ESD in Beijing.

As a member of the President´s Sustainability Council at York University and the co-chair of the Knowledge Working Group, Hopkins works to embed the idea of the “university as a whole” moving towards sustainability, placing sustainable development as a theme in the curriculum, rethinking operations, facilities and management practices, and changing the culture on York’s campuses.

As part of its new University Academic Plan 2020-2025, York University articulated its commitment to elevate action on the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals and contribute meaningfully to building a better future.

Learn about ‘The Changing Face of Iceland’ at EUC film viewing and panel discussion

Iceland mountain under white clouds

On Oct. 6 at 12 p.m. Eastern Time, join renowned filmmaker Mark Terry, a contract faculty member in York University’s Faculty of Environmental and Urban Change (EUC), for a film viewing and panel discussion on The Changing Face of Iceland, his new documentary about the impacts of climate change on the island nation of Iceland.

"The Changing Face of Iceland" movie poster. From the director of "The Polar Explorer" and "The Antarctica Challenge: A Global Warning"

The documentary examines the toll climate change has taken on Iceland’s glaciers, land, flora, fauna, fish, economy and people. The film also includes exclusive footage of the recent eruptions of Fagradalsfjall, an active volcano only 40 kilometres from Iceland’s capital, Reykjavík.

The virtual event will be moderated by EUC Professor and Associate Dean Philip Kelly, with opening remarks from Hlynur Guðjónsson, the ambassador of the Embassy of Iceland in Ottawa.

Panellists include: filmmaker Terry, producer Melanie Martyn and EUC Professor Kathy Young.

Terry is a documentary filmmaker, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, and an instructor in York’s Faculty of Environmental and Urban Change. This film completes his trilogy of documentaries revealing the impacts of climate change on the Arctic and Antarctic. The two previous films in the series – The Antarctica Challenge: A Global Warning (2009) and The Polar Explorer (2011) – have been aired on CBC in Canada and released in the U.S. by PBS, as well as screened at United Nations climate summits.

Martyn makes her documentary film-producing debut with The Changing Face of Iceland. A devoted environmentalist and long-time colleague of Terry’s, she is excited to have been given this opportunity to contribute to his work with the United Nations.

Young is a physical geographer and hydrologist whose work has focused on wetland and snow hydrology in northern Canadian environments. More recently, she has been exploring the impact of dust and volcanic ash on the hydrology of slopes and wetlands in Iceland.

To register for the event, visit bit.ly/3AVRt7o.

York U in the news: climate action, democratization missions and more

Canada’s federal election made big strides for climate and the environment
An op-ed by York University Professor Mark Winfield was published in the Conversation Sept. 30. Read full story.

Afghanistan shows the U.S. folly of trying to implant democratic institutions abroad
An op-ed by York University Professor Sirvan Karimi was published in the Conversation Sept. 29. Read full story.

What are Indigenous knowledge systems and how can they help fight climate change?
Osgoode Hall Law School Professor Deborah McGregor was quoted on tvo.org Sept. 30. Read full story.

Managing the Earth’s ‘code red’
Osgoode Hall Law School Professor Barnali Choudhury was quoted on lexpert.ca Sept. 30. Read full story.

First Nation’s heart remains broken 49 years later
York University Professor Celia Haig-Brown was quoted in the Winnipeg Free Press Sept. 29. Read full story.

Hellenic Heritage Foundation gifts $1.4 million for Greek archives
York University President and Vice-Chancellor Rhonda L. Lenton was quoted on PappasPost.com Sept. 30. Read full story.

Why Canadians should plan early to age in place in their later years, an update on reverse mortgages and debunking the four per cent rule for retirees
Schulich School of Business Professor Moshe Milevsky was quoted in the Globe and Mail Sept. 30. Read full story.

Protracted proceedings a problem for Law Society of Ontario advertising regulation: experts
Osgoode Hall Law School Professor Trevor Farrow was quoted in Law Times Sept. 29. Read full story.

Reconciliation begins with acknowledging the past, looks to establish mutually respectful relationships
Osgoode Hall Law School Professor Deborah McGregor was quoted in Yahoo! News Sept. 29. Read full story.

How the laws make sex work less safe
York University student Elene Lam was quoted in The Local Sept. 30. Read full story.

Iwanski Architecture building on legacy by preserving Calgary’s history
York University alumnus John Iwanski was profiled in the Calgary Herald Sept. 29. Read full story.

Toronto’s universities and colleges urge councillors to pass rooming house proposal
 York University President and Vice-Chancellor Rhonda L. Lenton was mentioned in the North York Mirror Sept. 30. Read full story.

Green Party should probe Annamie Paul’s racism claims: ex-leadership contender
York University Professor Mark Winfield was mentioned in Global News Sept. 29. Read full story.

AGO X RBC Artists in Residence in conversation
York University alumni Nada El-Omari and Sonya Mwambu were mentioned in Now Magazine Sept. 29. Read full story.

Lessons learned reading ‘From the Ashes: My Story of being Métis, Homeless and Finding My Way’ by Jesse Thistle
York University Professor Jesse Thistle was mentioned on tmlawyers.com Sept. 28. Read full story.

Richard Bogoroch and Heidi Brown of Bogoroch & Associates on personal injury and access to justice
York University’s Osgoode Hall Law School was mentioned in Canadian Lawyer Sept. 29. Read full story.

French Catholic board announces new superintendent of education
York University’s Osgoode Hall Law School was mentioned on SooToday.com Sept. 29. Read full story.

Sudbury briefs: Board hires new superintendent; Cambrian therapy, dental clinics available
York University was mentioned in the Sudbury Star Sept. 30. Read full story.

York University Student Union criticized for tapping pro-BDS Jewish group to hold anti-Semitism training
York University was mentioned in the Algemeiner Sept. 30. Read full story.

Humber College student is using his personal experience to advocate for people living with disabilities
York University was mentioned in Now Magazine Sept. 30. Read full story.

Universities mark National Day for Truth and Reconciliation
York University was mentioned in University Affairs Sept. 29. Read full story.

Trevor Farrow

Osgoode Professor Trevor Farrow

The Justice Crisis: The Cost and Value of Accessing Law (UBC Press), edited by Osgoode Hall Law School Professor Trevor C.W. Farrow and Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies Professor Emeritus Lesley A. Jacobs, was named an honourable mention in the 2021 Walter Owen Book Prize competition.

Schulich announces inaugural Krembil Chair in Health Management and Leadership

handshake and books

Schulich School of Business Adjunct Professor Joseph Mapa, executive director of the Health Industry Management Program, has been appointed to a three-year term as the inaugural Krembil Chair in Health Management and Leadership, effective July 1.

The new Chair was made possible by a $5-million gift from the Krembil Foundation and is one of the cornerstone components of Schulich’s newly launched Krembil Centre for Health Management and Leadership, said Schulich Interim Dean Detlev Zwick.

“The Chair will help develop the school’s research capacity in the health-care field and expand Schulich’s reputation as an international thought leader in health sector strategy, transformation and organizational leadership,” said Zwick.

Joseph Mapa
Joseph Mapa

Mapa teaches on leadership and strategic rethinking in the health-care sector, and joined York University’s Schulich School of Business in 2013 as an executive-in-residence and adjunct professor after having served in various roles at Schulich, including teaching, advising and mentoring. Prior to joining Schulich, he served as president and CEO of Mount Sinai Hospital from 2001-14, and as the founding president and CEO of Sinai Health System from 2015-17.

He has been recognized for his leadership and academic contributions, including: the Chairman’s Award for Distinguished Service by the Canadian College of Health Leaders; the Leadership Award and a Literary Award from the Society of Graduates in Health Administration; Ontario Regent’s Award and the Canadian Chapter of ACHE Service Award from the American College of Healthcare Executives; the Thomas G.Elliott Memorial Publication Award from the Association of Young Health Executives; the Arbor Award in recognition of his contribution and service to the University of Toronto; and the Teaching Excellence Award at the Schulich School of Business (first-place winner in 2008-09 and top 10 winner in 2017-18). He also received the Canadian College of Health Leaders inaugural national Mentorship Award, and in 2012 he was recognized with a Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal.

Mapa is the author of numerous articles, and is co-author and/or co-editor of three books focusing on health-care management, including a publication co-edited with Professor Peggy Leatt (University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill) on effective government relations in the health-care industry, with contributions drawn from the public, private and academic communities of Canada and the U.S.

“Joe brings to the centre years of real-world experience, extensive connections to the health industry, and the ability to manage the centre’s experiential and research activities,” said Zwick. “We are fortunate to have a widely respected and admired figure in the Canadian health sector leading the centre and serving as the inaugural Krembil Chair.”

Read more about the Krembil Centre for Health Management and Leadership here.

Applications are open for the new Innovation York Commercialization Fellowship

York University's Accolade Galleria, Keele Campus

York University postgraduate students and postdoctoral Fellows have until Oct. 29 to apply for the new Innovation York Commercialization Fellowship, funded by Innovation York in the Office of the Vice-President Research and Innovation. The fellowships are intended to support the research commercialization process by providing strategic, short-term funding to assist in the development of commercially viable projects.

The Innovation York Commercialization Fellowships, which will support projects with commercial potential from across the University, are offered on a short-term, part-time basis and are intended to run alongside existing research work without detracting from it. Recipients will be given $7,500 per fellowship. While matching funds are not mandatory, applications that include matching funds will be looked upon favourably.

As part of the fellowship, the Fellows will receive education on intellectual property and commercialization, exposure to industry/community partners relevant to their field of study and an experiential learning opportunity. Fellows will be supported by a series of educational activities, including workshops and seminars, and expected to complete tasks to enhance their commercial awareness.

The fellowships can be used to support proof of concept, prototype testing and validation studies, to fund a stipend for the Fellow and to pay for materials required for the project.

Each Fellow will be assigned an Innovation York commercialization manager to work with and ensure that the project plan described in the application is carried out. Fellows will meet monthly with their allocated manager to monitor progress. In addition, Fellows will be required to generate two reports and give one final presentation.

Important dates:

  • Oct. 1 – applications open
  • Oct. 29 – applications close
  • Nov. 26 – awards confirmed and funds allocated
  • Jan. 29, 2022 – IN-PART report due
  • March 31, 2022 – projects completed
  • April 30, 2022 – final report and presentation

*Dates are tentative and subject to change.

How to apply:

  1. Visit innovationyork.ca/commercialization-fellowship and download the application form by clicking “apply now” at the bottom of the web page.
  2. Fill out the application form.
  3. Send the completed application form to innovationyork@yorku.ca by Oct. 29 at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time.

For more information about the Innovation York Commercialization Fellowships, visit innovationyork.ca/commercialization-fellowship.

Ontario’s Family Law Limited Scope Services Project comes to Osgoode

Osgoode Hall Law School entrance to the Ignat Kaneff building

Osgoode Hall Law School at York University is the new home to Ontario’s Family Law Limited Scope Services Project.

Trevor Farrow (left) with Shelley Kierstead

Ontario’s Family Law Limited Scope Services Project is a private-bar driven collaborative initiative that will now live under the mantle and care of the Winkler Institute for Dispute Resolution and the Osgoode Mediation Clinic (OMC), two organizations closely tied in both mandate and operations. The Winkler Institute, established in 2014, is a vibrant research centre committed to innovation and excellence in dispute resolution and access to justice. The OMC provides free mediation and conflict-resolution training to the York University community as well as the Greater Toronto Area.

Over half of the family law cases in Canada’s courts involve self-represented litigants. Ontario’s Family Law Limited Scope Services Project seeks to improve access to justice for middle-income Ontarians by establishing an online directory of trained lawyers willing to provide unbundled legal services. These services, which include limited-scope retainers, legal coaching and summary legal counsel in family law matters, allow clients to maintain general control over the case while also receiving legal services from a lawyer on specific tasks.

Shelley Kierstead, academic co-director of the Winkler Institute and family law professor, “is delighted that this valuable and necessary endeavour has found a new home at Osgoode” and “look[s] forward to further developing its various components to respond to Ontario families’ evolving needs.” Trevor Farrow, Kierstead’s Osgoode colleague and academic co-director, agrees: “Finding creative ways to provide more legal services to more people will be an important part of solving Canada’s growing access-to-justice crisis, particularly in the area of family law.”

Working tirelessly on the project since its launch in 2018 were: principal investigator Rachel Birnbaum, a professor of social work at King’s University College, Western University; legal co-investigator and Queen’s University Law Professor Nicholas Bala; Chair of the project’s steering committee, Tami Moscoe, senior family counsel for the Office of the Chief Justice, Superior Court of Justice; and senior program director Helena Birt, a private family law practitioner.

For more information about Ontario’s Family Law Limited Scope Services Project, contact Jean-Paul Bevilacqua, assistant director of the Winkler Institute and director of the Osgoode Mediation Clinic, at JBevilacqua@osgoode.yorku.ca.

Join The Centre for its annual Consent Week at York U

Featured image for the Centre's week of Consent events

York University students, staff and faculty are once again invited to join the Centre for Sexual Violence Response, Support & Education (The Centre) for an online Consent Week at York U, Oct. 4 to 8.

During Consent Week at York U, The Centre will be hosting a series of panels, sessions and events online through Zoom in an effort to raise awareness, facilitate discussions and offer resources about consent as York community members settle into a new academic year. By bringing in experts to provide insight, knowledge and resources focused on consent, The Centre hopes Consent Week at York U will raise awareness about the supports and services offered by their office, staff, peers and external partners.

“We invite all of our community members to join us as we navigate consent within a variety of disciplines,” said Joanie Cameron Pritchett, director of community support and services. “We’re here for survivors on our campus, but also those who support survivors, engage in this type of work or want more information.”

Community members who are interested in attending should register early. Here’s a snapshot of the events taking place throughout the week.

Monday, Oct. 4

Consent 101
This session will go over the basics of consent, where community members are encouraged to engage in lively group discussions, watch videos, practise with scenarios, and gain practical knowledge and skills for communicating consent and boundaries.

Wen-Do Virtual Workshop
Wen-Do Women’s Self-Defence offers a training space for non-binary individuals and women, of all abilities, aged 10 and up.

Tuesday, Oct. 5

Power in Pleasure
In this trauma-informed consent workshop, attendees will discuss sex and consent at the intersection of race, status, labour and criminalization, and why a fear-based “no means no” approach fails to recognize the greater agency and power we are capable of wielding.

Wednesday, Oct. 6

Human Trafficking in Canada: Hiding in Plain Sight
Learn how traffickers prey on vulnerabilities and what you can do to mitigate risk and prevalence.

Thursday, Oct. 7

Informational Consent for Black and Racialized Bodies in Virtual and IRL Spheres
Attendees will explore the delightful range of informational consent for Black and racialized queer, trans and shapeshifting bodies in virtual and real-life spheres.

Trauma Recovery Yoga
This class aims to give participants tools to understand how trauma affects the body and to let go of trauma stored in the body through movement. The practices will consist of gentle movements, simple postures and breath awareness. Everything in the class is optional and beginner-friendly.

Friday, Oct. 8

The Guise Guide: Pods as Praxis
Learn about “My Public Living Room” (MPLR) from Good Guise – a creative collective of racialized men (Black, brown, latinx, cis, trans, queer) – which seeks to explore “pods”: intentional small groups of friends that meet regularly for specific purposes such as mutual aid, emotional support, intimacy, learning, vulnerability and more.

To learn more about Consent Week at York University, visit: thecentre.yorku.ca/consent-week.

To learn more about the services offered by The Centre, visit thecentre.yorku.ca.

A statement from the Indigenous Council on this day for Truth and Reconciliation

The Heart Garden at Skennen’kó:wa Gamig

The Indigenous Council joins the York community in acknowledging this day for Truth and Reconciliation. We, as Indigenous Peoples, mourn the lives lost and grieve for all who were taken from our families and communities. While the impacts can at times feel overwhelming, so too is our determination.

The Indigenous Council calls on the York University community to participate in learning the truths and to join us in doing the work necessary to accomplish reconciliation. We know that this will not always be an easy journey, but we invite you to join us on this journey together, as we heal from the truths and press forward in the name of reconciliation.

We encourage you to review the 94 Calls to Action found in the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Final Report and the York University Indigenous Framework in order to find ways that you can take action in order to implement or advocate for their inclusion in your unit, Faculty, and throughout the larger institution.