TORONTO, ON, July 28, 2026 鈥� 91亚色鈥檚 Connected Minds: Neural and Machine Systems for a Healthy, Just Society and the (CIGI) are launching a 16-month pilot partnership to design and build new governance frameworks for artificial intelligence (AI) and neurotechnology.

The initiative combines Connected Minds鈥� university-based interdisciplinary research excellence with CIGI鈥檚 applied policy expertise to deliver a coordinated, multi-level engagement model that connects United Nations standard setting, Canadian legislative processes, and applied regulatory guidance.

鈥淚ntelligent technologies, including artificial intelligence and neurotechnologies, are transforming society at an unprecedented pace, making it more important than ever that public policy is informed by rigorous, interdisciplinary research,鈥� says Professor Shayna Rosenbaum, scientific director of Connected Minds. 鈥淥ur partnership with CIGI creates a bridge between leading researchers and policy experts, helping to ensure that technological innovation advances in ways that strengthen society, protect human rights, and contribute to a healthy, just future.鈥�

The initiative will help domestic and international legislators better address critical gaps in human rights laws created by rapidly advancing technologies. Without coordinated action, individuals, businesses, and governments face growing legal and ethical uncertainty, eroded public trust, and a decline in privacy.

鈥淧rivacy is a fundamental human right,鈥� says Aaron Shull, research director, digitalization, security & democracy at CIGI. 鈥淐anada has an opportunity and a responsibility to lead globally in creating and shaping safeguards needed to protect human rights and strengthen public trust in emerging technologies.鈥�

Through a phased approach, this partnership will:

• establish a replicable framework for similar technology and human rights initiatives in other domains; 
• position Canada as a global leader in the responsible governance of neurotechnology and AI; and
• produce tangible policy outputs and communications tools with immediate relevance to global policymakers, regulators, and industry leaders.

About Connected Minds:

Connected Minds is a visionary, first-of-its-kind research program led by 91亚色 in partnership with Queen鈥檚 University. Supported by $318 million in funding, including $105.7 million from the Canada First Research Excellence Fund (CFREF), it is the largest 91亚色-led research initiative to date.

Bringing together 300+ scholars across fields including science, arts, neuroscience, social sciences, law, and artificial intelligence, Connected Minds explores the risks and benefits of modern technology on society, both now and in the future. With more than 90 partners and collaborators from diverse sectors, the program aims to create a healthier, more just society through interdisciplinary collaboration and innovation.

About CIGI:

The Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI) is an independent, non-partisan think tank whose peer-reviewed research, foresight and trusted analysis influence policy makers to innovate. With the engagement of a global network of experts and contributors, CIGI tackles the governance challenges and opportunities of data and transformative technologies, including AI, and their impact on the economy, security, democracy and, ultimately, societies. For more information, please visit .

Media contacts:

Sandra McLean
91亚色
sandramc@yorku.ca

Richia McCutcheon
Centre for International Governance Innovation
226-988-2951
rmccutcheon@cigionline.org

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TORONTO, June 21, 2026 鈥� In a climate where walls and detention centres are built, border enforcement agencies expanded and new border control technologies adopted, there is a risk of global displacement, already at a historic high, skyrocketing. Associate Professor of Osgoode Hall Law School, along with an international collaboration, will work to understand, mitigate and respond to a burgeoning refugee crisis through a $2.5 million Social Science and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) Partnership Grant announced today.

The project, (AJRRN), will investigate the inequitable and rights-violating impact of artificial intelligence and new digital technologies increasingly used in border control on refugees, and others on the move, and develop innovative, rights-enhancing and transparent alternatives.

SSHRC Partnership Grants provide support for multi-year partnerships to advance research, research training and/or knowledge mobilization in the social sciences and humanities.

鈥淧rofessor Rehaag and his international partners are confronting one of the defining social justice issues of our time, and 91亚色 is proud to stand behind them. A project of this scale grows out of sustained investment in interdisciplinary research, and the Centre for Refugee Studies, one of 91亚色's Organized Research Units, provided the foundation of expertise and support that made it possible,鈥� says 91亚色 Interim President and Vice-Chancellor Lisa Philipps.

New border control technologies, including biometric systems, automated decision-making tools, lie-detection technologies and drones, often come with limited oversight and an exacerbation of longstanding refugee and immigration decision-making inequalities, while private sector interests and investments drive further border security developments.

The project is a global, interdisciplinary effort, a response to the rise of these technologies that could increase human rights violations and create a refugee crisis. In 2024, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees estimated that 120 million people were forced to move due to conflict, human rights violations and other disruptions, and that number is expected to rise.

鈥淲e are at a crucial juncture when it comes to border control and technology. There is a risk of further inequalities in the way refugee and immigration claims are handled at a time when there are more refugees around the world today than at any point since World War II,鈥� says Rehaag, director of the (RLL), which will host the seven-year AJRRN project. The RLL operates within Osgoode and the Centre of Refugee Studies at 91亚色.

The range of technological experiments happening globally directly impact refugees and the movement of displaced people. They include big data predictions about population movements in the Mediterranean, automated decision-making for United Kingdom immigration applications, photo matching technologies to detect program integrity concerns in Canada鈥檚 refugee system, AI lie-detectors at European airports, and drones and other automated surveillance devices deployed at the Mexico-US Border.

When states conduct these technological experiments in their efforts to increase border control, they often fail to consider the far-reaching human rights impacts, says Rehaag.

鈥淲ith the advance of rapid technological development and disruption, rising xenophobia, racism and far-right nationalism, there is a proliferation of anti-migrant rhetoric and policies, the rights of refugees and immigrants is more precarious than ever. This is not the first wave of such rhetoric and policies, but it occurs at an especially dangerous moment as it coincides with dramatic advancements in new technologies that amplify xenophobic rhetoric, facilitate implementing restrictive policies and encourage the private sector to invest billions of dollars in an expanding international border surveillance industry.鈥�

The partnership will bring together a diverse network spanning multiple continents. Academic co-applicants are from more than 12 universities, including Al-Quds University, King's College London, Toronto Metropolitan University, Universit茅 Toulouse 1 Capitole, University College Dublin, University of Copenhagen, University of New South Wales, University of Queensland, University of the Witwatersrand, University of Warwick and the University of Waterloo. Community partners are also diverse with a global reach from the Canadian Council for Refugees to Red en Defensa de los Derechos Digitales in Mexico to Community Creativity for Development in Uganda.

It will be the world鈥檚 first global research network to facilitate interdisciplinary and cross-jurisdictional research on law, technology and forced migration, which will happen in collaboration between 91亚色 and two core partners: Migration + Tech Monitor in the United States and the Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law at University of New South Wales in Australia. The AJRRN will integrate expertise from legal scholars, technologists, community organizations and individuals with lived experience of displacement.

The project has two complementary and overlapping streams of research.

One overarching goal, under the leadership of Associate Director of the Refugee Law Laboratory, Petra Molnar, is to critique digital border governance through human rights lenses, including by analyzing government contracts with private actors in the tech sector, exploring biases encoded in border-control technologies, mapping the use of these technologies, and identifying litigation strategies and oversight mechanisms to challenge harmful practices.

The second, led by Rehaag, will be to advance rights-enhancing innovations, developing open-source legal technology and data analytics tools that empower displaced communities, advocates, and decision-makers to counter systemic inequities.

鈥淭he project will expand research expertise for one of the world鈥檚 most pressing societal challenges, how to best respond to growing numbers of asylum seekers and other displaced people, at a time of dramatic technological change and growing xenophobia,鈥� says Rehaag.

91亚色 researchers are also co-applicants on an additional five projects funded through SSHRC's Partnership Grants worth more than $12 million delving into issues of climate resilience, healthy aging, youth well-being, and homelessness and human-animal connections.

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The wiring and rewiring of the brain never ends. Neural pathways are constantly being reshaped as we interact with the world and learn new things. At 91亚色 and MIT鈥檚 McGovern Institute, scientists are combining detailed analysis of brain activity with computational modelling to better understand that change.

91亚色 Assistant Professor , McGovern Institute Postdoctoral Fellow , an affiliate member of Kar鈥檚 lab and a member of the Centre for Integrative and Applied Neuroscience at 91亚色, and Investigator  worked together to compare what happened when monkeys and an artificial neural network with brain-like architecture were trained to visually identify the same objects. As the model鈥檚 performance improved, it reorganized itself in ways that closely paralleled changes the team detected in the brains of monkeys.

Their research, reported  , shows how changes in visual processing support animals鈥� ability to learn to discriminate new kinds of objects. By modelling these changes, the researchers hope to better predict how training reshapes perception, which could one day inform educational strategies for a wide range of learners.

鈥淥ur visual brain does not undergo a drastic reconfiguration when we learn a new object. Instead, it subtly reshapes how visual information is represented, making the distinctions that matter easier for the rest of the brain to read out. What is powerful about this study is that artificial neural networks could predict these subtle brain changes, giving us a concrete bridge between neuroscience and AI,鈥� says Kar. 鈥淏y translating inferences from animal neuroscience into computational models that can generate human-testable predictions, this framework makes translation much more feasible. It allows us to move from understanding how learning changes the macaque visual system to perhaps asking in the near future: why some children may struggle to form stable, generalizable representations 鈥� such as recognizing letters across fonts, linking words to objects, distinguishing faces, or applying knowledge in new situations.鈥�

Subtle changes

Learning about a new object calls on many parts of the brain. Visual-processing areas work together to make sense of information taken in through the eyes, then communicate with other brain areas to give the visual information meaning and guide behavior. Multiple parts of this system likely change during learning, and the research team wanted a clearer understanding of how that change is distributed.

Neuroscientists have debated how much change occurs in the brain鈥檚 visual-processing areas when an animal learns to recognize new objects. Some suspected that visual-processing pathways remain largely unchanged during learning to avoid broadly disrupting visual perception, but others have reported changes in activity within dedicated visual-processing areas with this kind of learning in humans and other primates. 

To take a closer look, the team focused on neural activity in a key component of the brain鈥檚 visual object-processing network, the inferior temporal (IT) cortex. By the time visual information reaches the IT cortex, key object features are clearly represented 鈥� so much so that it鈥檚 possible to 鈥渄ecode鈥� what object a monkey is seeing and even predict what errors it鈥檚 likely to make in identifying it, simply by analyzing patterns of neural activity there.

The team recorded neural activity in the IT cortex from two groups of monkeys as the animals looked at and identified images of objects. Some of the monkeys were untrained, so the images they saw had little meaning to them. Others had already learned to identify similar objects, so they could usually discriminate between elephants, chairs and other select objects, even when those objects were presented at different sizes, from different angles, or against different backgrounds than the ones they had seen before.

The broad pattern of activity in the IT cortex was largely similar in trained and untrained monkeys, suggesting that learning had not dramatically rewritten this high-level visual representation. Still, the group found subtle but reliable differences in the way neurons in the IT cortex responded to images in monkeys that had learned to recognize the kinds of objects they were shown, compared to the untrained monkeys.

Modelling learning

The group turned to computational models to investigate how those modest changes might contribute to learning. S枚rensen trained a suite of artificial neural networks whose internal components had been mapped to monkey IT cortex to identify the same categories of objects the monkeys had seen. The models were designed to learn using gradient descent, meaning they continually improved their accuracy by adjusting their parameters in response to errors.

Only some of the primate-like models showed learning behavior that matched that of the monkeys. In those that did, the IT-like stage changed in ways that resembled the learning-related changes the researchers had observed in the IT cortex of trained monkeys.

While gradient descent is commonly used to train artificial intelligence, it is generally considered biologically implausible as a direct model of how the brain learns. The researchers say the strong match in learning effects between the monkeys and their model demonstrates that these kinds of artificial neural networks can offer insights into biological learning at a useful level of abstraction, even if the brain does not learn in the same way.

鈥淭his shows that you can actually build in silico versions of future experiments,鈥� S枚rensen says. 鈥淚 think that gives us this playground of asking 鈥榳hat if鈥� questions 鈥� and potentially predicting new things that go beyond the experimenter鈥檚 intuition.鈥�

Most of the changes that allowed for learning in the model occurred outside of the IT cortex. 鈥淭his tells us that there is a lot between the area we recorded from and the final behavioral readout that needs to change during this process,鈥� Kar says. He adds that the team鈥檚 model will be useful as researchers look more deeply into how downstream brain areas contribute to learning.

The researchers stress that their study allowed more granular measurements of brain activity than would be possible in humans, and because monkeys鈥� brains are organized similarly to our own, their experiments have direct relevance to human learning. They say understanding the impact of plasticity in monkeys鈥� IT cortex could help researchers design new learning strategies for humans.

鈥淥ur prior conceptual working model of you 鈥� or a monkey 鈥� learning new objects was that your brain makes changes to synaptic connections that are largely downstream of your visual system, so you don鈥檛 destroy your visual system,鈥� says DiCarlo, who is also the Peter de Florez Professor of Brain and Cognitive Sciences and director of the MIT Siegel Family Quest for Intelligence. 鈥淵ou wouldn鈥檛 want your whole visual system to become an elephant detector [just because you鈥檝e learned to identify an elephant]. But this study went beyond that to say actually, when you learn 鈥榚lephant,鈥� your IT does change a little bit to make it a little more relevant to elephants.鈥�

That likely has consequences for recognizing other visual features, too. Subtle changes in the IT cortex that support elephant recognition might also make you better at identifying things other than elephants, DiCarlo says. Likewise, the same changes might make it a little harder to identify something else.

These kinds of consequences may be difficult to predict intuitively, but become obvious with computational modelling. For instance, the team鈥檚 models revealed that after learning to recognize new objects, the IT cortex contained more information about objects鈥� locations. By providing insights like these, models could aid the design of more effective training strategies for visual tasks, including for people with altered sensory processing, who may learn from visual information in atypical ways.

With files from MIT's McGovern Institute

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91亚色 is poised to welcome 11 doctoral students and postdoctoral researchers through the first wave of the federal (CIRTA) initiative, reflecting the University鈥檚 strong research excellence and ability to attract top international research talent.

In total the CIRTA are worth $1.4 million in funding 鈥� $40,000 per year for three years for seven doctoral students and $70,000 for two years for four postdoctoral researchers at 91亚色 鈥� to address critical national and global challenges in some of Canada鈥檚 priority areas. Altogether, the CIRTA will go towards funding 600 doctoral students and 400 postdoctoral researchers at universities across Canada.

"We are thrilled to welcome these 11 exceptional doctoral students and postdoctoral researchers to 91亚色. They will bring an array of international experiences and perspectives to their work alongside some of our most accomplished faculty, researchers whose expertise spans multiple disciplines, methodologies, and questions. It is the strength of these mentors and the vibrancy of our research community that draws top talent from around the world to 91亚色,鈥� says Lisa Philipps, 91亚色 interim president and vice-chancellor.

The recently CIRTA results are part of the a $1.7 billion strategy to strengthen the country鈥檚 position as a go-to-place for the world鈥檚 top scientists and innovators. They are jointly administered by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC).

91亚色 received a large number of highly qualified candidates for the positions, which will receive funding from all three funding agencies. In addition, two of the four postdoctoral researchers are coming from the social sciences and humanities.

鈥淲e are equally grateful to the Government of Canada and to CIHR, NSERC and SSHRC, whose Canada Impact+ Research Training Awards make these opportunities possible. This kind of bold public investment in emerging academic talent is exactly what strengthens our research culture and allows ambitious ideas to take root. Together, the vision of our funders and the dedication of our scholars and supervisors will help tackle some of the most pressing challenges of our time, from removing forever chemicals from our water to strengthening our preparedness against emerging diseases. I could not be prouder of what this community will achieve,鈥� says Philipps.

The CIRTA research awards target specific high priority research needs identified by the federal government across disciplines.

At 91亚色 the doctoral students and postdoctoral researchers and their supervisors will embark on a vast array of research, including a climate-sensitive disease early-warning system, advanced functional materials for low-energy carbon capture, AI forecasting tools to improve outbreak prediction and public-health decision-making, methods to remove forever chemical contamination from wastewater sludge, and a better understanding of new drivers of aging and development of new personalized therapies to improve health span.

鈥淩esearch thrives when talented people are given the opportunity, support and freedom to pursue ambitious ideas. These scholars are asking important questions and bringing fresh perspectives to issues that matter deeply to society. Their arrival enriches our academic community, and we look forward to the contributions they will make during their time at 91亚色 and throughout their careers,鈥� says Alice MacLachlan, vice-provost and dean of the Faculty of Graduate Studies at 91亚色.

The following 91亚色 faculty members welcome doctoral students funded by the program:

Associate Professor and Canada Research Chair in Global Health and Humanitarianism Godfred Boateng, School of Global Health, Faculty of Health (supported by SSHRC)

Boateng鈥檚 research interests lie in resource insecurity, health and sustainable livelihoods; environmental pollution, climate change and health effects; the socio-ecological determinants of cardiometabolic conditions in aging adults; health equity and health systems research; and implementation and scale-up science in low- and middle-income countries. The research of his doctoral student will focus on the development a climate-sensitive disease early-warning system for informal settlements in Accra, using satellite data, health records, and machine learning to predict emerging disease hotspots. By co-designing tools with local health workers and communities, the project aims to enable earlier public-health interventions and create a scalable model for climate-health resilience in rapidly urbanizing cities.

Associate Professor , Department of Mechanical Engineering, Lassonde School of Engineering (supported by NSERC)

Freire-Gormaly鈥檚 research focuses on the development of stand-alone solar powered reverse osmosis water treatment systems and energy recovery systems for remote communities that lack access to grid electricity. She also is interested in machine learning applications for smart design of innovative energy and water systems. The research of her doctoral student will foster the development advanced functional materials for low-energy carbon capture and drinking water treatment, with a focus on modular, affordable systems that can operate in remote and resource-constrained settings. By combining materials innovation, computational modelling, and life-cycle assessment, the project aims to deliver scalable clean technologies that support climate mitigation, water security, and community resilience.

Associate Professor , Department of Electrical Engineering & Computer Science, Lassonde School of Engineering (supported by NSERC)

Ghafar-Zadeh鈥檚 research focuses on microelectronic and biosensing technologies for clinical diagnostics and environmental monitoring to address critical challenges in health care, environmental monitoring and scientific research through his Biologically Inspired Sensor and Actuator Laboratory. The research with the doctoral student will develop a new version of DePerio, an AI-powered saliva screening tool that uses deep learning to detect oral neutrophils as biomarkers of periodontal disease and potential neurological disorders, enabling earlier, non-invasive diagnosis. Building on proof-of-concept results achieving 88 per cent precision and 94.7 per cent mAP, the project aims to validate a clinically deployable system that links oral inflammation to disease progression and improves preventive care for both oral and brain health.

Associate Professor , Department of Social Science, Faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies (supported by SSHRC)

Hamraie鈥檚 doctoral student will be part of 91亚色鈥檚 Science and Technology Studies graduate program. His research will address the tensions between approaches to accessibility based in mass standardization and those that are rooted in disability activism. In particular, he is interested in how disability activists and technologists have shared information, theories and concepts, and how accessible computing, in particular, has influenced architectural practice. As a graduate student, he will also continue to work in Hamraie鈥檚 , a collective of disabled artists, designers and researchers who approach accessibility through disability cultural frameworks. 

Professor , Department of Earth & Space Science & Engineering, Lassonde School of Engineering (supported by NSERC)

Hu鈥檚 research focuses on developing scalable and interpretable AI approaches for forest characterization, carbon estimation, biodiversity assessment and environmental monitoring using multi-source remote sensing data. Her doctoral student鈥檚 research will develop multimodal AI techniques that combine LiDAR, multispectral imagery and forest inventory data to identify individual tree species in Ontario鈥檚 mixed and transitional forests. By enabling scalable species-level forest monitoring, the project will improve biodiversity assessment, forest carbon quantification, and evidence-based forest management to support nature-based climate solutions in Canada.

Professor and 91亚色 Research Chair in Mechanisms of Cardiometabolic Disease Gary Sweeney, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science (supported by CHIR)

Sweeney鈥檚 doctoral student鈥檚 research will build on evidence that high adiponectin levels are linked to exceptional longevity and protection against age-related diseases, while low levels are associated with poorer health outcomes. It proposes combining adiponectin biology with extracellular vesicle science to identify new drivers of aging and develop personalized therapies to improve health span in individuals with low adiponectin.

Associate Professor , Department of Electrical Engineering & Computer Science, Lassonde School of Engineering (supported by NSERC)

Tabassum鈥檚 research focuses on developing trustworthy AI for wireless sensing, localization, spectrum intelligence, and next-generation communications. Her work combines optimization, machine learning, large language models, and multimodal AI to advance intelligent resource management, integrated sensing and communications, wireless forecasting, and energy-efficient 5G/6G networks, with applications in digital health, smart infrastructure, and connected and autonomous systems. The research of her doctoral student will develop multimodal AI techniques for wireless localization and spectrum intelligence by combining radio-frequency measurements with complementary sensing modalities to enable accurate positioning and automated understanding of complex wireless environments. By integrating trustworthy AI, deep learning, and large language models, the project aims to improve spectrum awareness, network intelligence, and wireless resilience, supporting the deployment of next generation 5G/6G systems for smart infrastructure, public safety, and autonomous applications.

The following faculty members will welcome postdoctoral researchers funded by the program:

Professor and James and Joanne Love Chair in Environmental Engineering and Director of the One WATER Institute , Department of Civil Engineering, Lassonde School of Engineering (supported by NSERC)

Brar is a globally recognized researcher with expertise in value-added waste processing through the development of bioproducts from wastewaters and sludge using fermentation technologies and the removal of emerging contaminants, such as microplastics and pharmaceuticals. She also works on innovative treatment technologies for environmental remediation. The postdoctoral researcher鈥檚 work will address the wastewater sludge contamination of per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), a group of 4,700 man-made 鈥渇orever chemicals鈥� found in non-stick cookware, cosmetics and waterproof textiles, and everywhere from groundwater to human blood. Current wastewater treatment plants were not designed to primarily remove PFAS, however, if they are not properly treated prior to discharge, it can lead to contamination of soil and groundwater. Conventional PFAS removal methods like sludge pyrolysis, incineration, electrochemical oxidation are energy and cost intensive and cannot be easily integrated into existing plants. Through their research, Brar and her postdoctoral researcher will develop a circular-economy pretreatment approach using ultrasonication and biochar to reduce 鈥渇orever chemicals鈥� while enhancing biogas production. Through lab and pilot-scale testing on anaerobic digester sludge, the research aims to optimize conditions for PFAS removal in a way that is compatible with existing treatment infrastructure.

Associate Professor , Department of Sociology, Faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies (supported by SSHRC)

Jean-Pierre鈥檚 research in the sociology of education, sociology of race and ethnicity, youth studies, and research methodology. She focuses on school and postsecondary trajectories, policies and interventions, and qualitative research. The research of her postdoctoral researcher will redefine democracy as every day, community-based practice by examining how Black women in Brazil, Argentina, and Canada build collective infrastructures of care, mutual aid, and political organizing amid systemic exclusion and democratic crisis. Through comparative ethnography, it shows how these grassroots practices sustain and reimagine democratic life beyond formal state institutions, challenging dominant models shaped by anti-Blackness and inequality.

Professor and Scientific Director of the Artificial Intelligence for Public Health Advancement Seyed Moghadas, Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Faculty of Science (supported by NSERC)

Moghadas鈥檚 research involves advanced theoretical and computational methods for modelling and analysis of infectious disease dynamics, evaluating public health interventions and policies, and health economics of healthcare programs. The postdoctoral researcher will develop transparent, uncertainty-aware AI forecasting tools that combine machine learning with mechanistic disease-transmission models to improve outbreak prediction and public-health decision-making. By integrating diverse data sources and explicitly quantifying uncertainty, the project aims to strengthen preparedness, resource allocation, and health system resilience against emerging infectious disease threats.

Associate Professor and Canada Research Chair in Social Reasoning , Department of Philosophy, Faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies (supported by SSHRC)

Rini is an internationally recognized expert in the philosophical disciplines of ethics and epistemology. In ethics, she specifically examines structural injustice and the complexities of moral disagreement, while in epistemology, she has studied the effects of online misinformation on public debate and the erosion of digital recording as a regulator of testimony. Rini will supervise a postdoctoral researcher examining how testimonial narratives in the Colombian and Canadian truth commissions contribute to reparative justice by helping survivors reclaim agency, foster collective understanding and rebuild social trust after systemic violence. Through a comparative philosophical analysis, the project develops a framework for understanding narrative as a tool for epistemic repair and reconciliation while exploring its limitations in addressing ongoing structural inequalities. The research will look at the following three questions: The guiding questions are: What is the relationship between testimonial narrative and reparative justice; How does narrative support individual healing, collective recognition and the rebuilding of social trust; and What tensions arise between individualized testimonies and structural accounts of systemic injustice?

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After launching a successful business and charitable program, Chadwin and Camille Bartley graduate with their BEd in Tech Ed, taking the next step in their mission to bring barbering and hairstyling to Ontario high schools

Graduands at the Faculty of Education Spring Convocation ceremony on June 12 reached an unforgettable milestone, including Chadwin and Camille Bartley of the graduating Class of 2026, whose mission is to bring their trade, barbering and hairstyling, into Ontario high schools.

As their three children, aged nine, seven and four, along with Chadwin鈥檚 mother and grandmother cheered them on, the Bartleys proudly crossed the stage together, having earned their Bachelor of Education in Technological Education (BEd in Tech Ed) degrees.

鈥淲hat started as a dream has become a reality. Every mentor, teacher, student, and supporter has played a role in helping my wife and me reach this moment,鈥� said an emotional Chadwin, acknowledging his family and friends who supported the couple throughout their extraordinary journey as mature students, starting their post-secondary education in their 30s.

Celebrity stylists to community mentors

The couple is already well-established in the barbering and hairstyling industry, with a clientele that includes celebrities like Toronto Raptors player RJ Barrett. However, their passion is to promote their profession to youth as a skilled trade and a pathway to successful careers.

鈥淢y decision to become an educator stems from a desire to nurture and encourage young minds to pursue their passions fearlessly. I believe teachers play a pivotal role in shaping the future, and I am eager to take on this responsibility,鈥� said Camille, who has been a hairstylist since the age of 16. She was also instrumental in inspiring Chadwin to pick up the clippers and learn the craft more than 15 years ago.

鈥淚 was able to parlay a barber career into a degree that will help me further my desire to inspire our youth to dream big and work hard,鈥� said Chadwin, crediting his wife for his personal and professional growth.

鈥淔rom the moment we got married 14 years ago, we committed to doing things differently from what we experienced growing up,鈥� added Chadwin, highlighting how their partnership in life, business, and community has changed lives for many, including their own.

Filling a gap in Ontario high schools

Having had a rough life as youth and understanding the hardship young people experience, they decided to launch the Bartley Skills Development Program, a charitable organization in 2018. Through the charity, with partnership support from major private and public corporations, they have taught youth across the Greater Toronto Area barbering and hairstyling.

鈥淲e started noticing that a lot of students are coming wanting to learn how to do hairdressing and barbering, but it wasn't provided in their local high schools,鈥� Chadwin noted. 鈥淏ecause we became successful through the skilled trade, we decided to impart those skills to those who are interested in learning through mentorship.鈥�

Having worked with local high schools and connecting with school administrators who encouraged them to pursue teaching, the couple took the leap and joined 91亚色. 鈥淲atching trained teachers interact with students, we realized formal teacher training would enhance our teaching of the trade.鈥�

Pathway through 91亚色

This is when they came across the BEd in Tech Ed program鈥檚 consecutive stream which is designed to encourage trade professionals to combine their passion for their sector with their desire to teach. The program equips graduates with the skills and knowledge to teach in high schools across the province.

A key admission requirement of the program, whether applying for the concurrent or consecutive stream, is that the candidate must have work experience 鈥� along with industry licensing where applicable 鈥� in one of these areas: Communication Technology, Computer Technology, Construction Technology, Green Industries, Hairstyling & Aesthetics, Health Care, Hospitality and Tourism, Manufacturing Technology, Technological Design, and Transportation Technology.

While the Concurrent BEd is offered to 91亚色 students in a related degree program, the Consecutive BEd is open to those like Camille and Chadwin, who meet .

As successful graduates, both Chadwin and Camille have been accepted by the Halton and Peel school boards and are waiting to be placed. They have also been occasional teachers at the Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board and hold Secondary Occasional Teacher Roster positions with Guelph鈥檚 Upper Grand District School Board.

鈥淲e are off to Jamaica for a summer vacation with our kids in a couple of days! We are excited to start teaching in regional school boards as trades teachers when we return,鈥� said Camille, who plans to work as a teacher full-time, while Chadwin would like to work part-time as a teacher and full-time as a mentor guiding youth into entrepreneurship.

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