Barbara Crow Archives | Research & Innovation

Chancellor and professors to discuss social justice and human rights January 12

fmaquito — Mon, 10 Jan 2011 10:00:00 +0000

Chancellor Roy McMurtry and three 91��ɫ professors will discuss social justice and human rights on a panel next Wednesday as part of the Research Matters Speakers Series.

McMurtry, former attorney general of Ontario, will open with remarks on social justice in Canada. Each panelist will speak about a different aspect of the theme, followed by a question and answer period. Robert Latham, director of 91��ɫ’s Centre for International & Security Studies, will talk about rights to mobility and citizenship; sociologist Lesley Wood, about social movement, globalization and policing; and Sara Horowitz, director of 91��ɫ’s Israel and Golda Koschitzky Centre for Jewish Studies, about gender, genocide and Jewish memory.

The two-hour event starts at 1pm in 280N 91��ɫ Lanes.

Research Matters is an annual lecture series showcasing 91��ɫ research and sponsored by the associate dean of research in the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies (LA&PS). Dean Martin Singer and Barbara Crow, associate dean of research, will introduce the Jan. 12 panel discussion.

Previous panels have discussed issues such as scholarship and policy development, internationalization and global health, the north, China, knowledge mobilization, pandemic planning and interdisciplinary research. To view videos of the panel discussions, visit the LA&PS website.

Republished courtesy of YFile– 91��ɫ’s daily e-bulletin

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Search committee seeks input on criteria for new VP research & innovation

fmaquito — Fri, 29 Oct 2010 08:00:00 +0000

The search committee to appoint a vice-president, research & innovation will soon commence a comprehensive international search for a successor to Professor Stan Shapson.

The search committee will be drafting an advertisement to announce the start of the search, which will appear shortly in various publications and websites. In addition, the committee is working on a position profile to describe the priorities over the next five years, and what they are seeking in candidates in terms of experience, background and qualifications. The committee is soliciting input on the following questions in order to help shape the position profile:

What are your aspirations for the VPRI portfolio over the next five to 10 years? What do you see as the issues and challenges facing the University during this period?
What do you think the search committee should be seeking in a leader in terms of professional background and experience, personal attributes, qualifications and credentials?

91��ɫ community members can send their confidential suggestions to the search committee by e-mail (see below) or directly to the search firm, no later than Wednesday, Nov. 3.

Search committee members:

91��ɫ President & Vice-Chancellor Mamdouh Shoukri, committee chair, at mshoukri@yorku.ca,
Patrick Monahan, vice-president academic & provost, at provost@yorku.ca,
Osgoode Hall Law School Professor Allan Hutchinson, at hutch@yorku.ca,
Barbara Crow, professor of communication studies, Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies (LA&PS), at bacrow@yorku.ca,
History Professor Jonathan Edmondson, LA&PS, at jedmond@yorku.ca.
Wendy Taylor, professor of physics and astronomy, Faculty of Science & Engineering, at taylorw@yorku.ca,
Roger Keil, directory of the City Institute and professor in the Faculty of Environmental Studies, at rkeil@yorku.ca,
Psychology professor Fran Wilkinson, Faculty of Health, at franw@yorku.ca,
Janusz Kozinski, dean, Faculty of Science & Engineering, at Janusz.Kozinski@yorku.ca,
Ijade Maxwell Rodrigues, chief of staff and secretary to the committee, at ijade@yorku.ca.

Or directly to the search firm, e-mail yorkvpri@jwasearch.com.

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Graduate students mobilize research to benefit communities through United Way of 91��ɫ Region

fmaquito — Tue, 13 Jul 2010 08:00:00 +0000

When you’re a charitable organization in 91��ɫ Region seeking a research partner to inform your strategic directions and priorities, whom do you turn to?

If you’re United Way of 91��ɫ Region (UWYR), you collaborate with 91��ɫ’s Knowledge Mobilization Unit.

This summer, three 91��ɫ students will gain valuable experience through internships with UWYR’s Community Engagement & Research Committee.

As part of their experience with the UWYR, the interns will review literature focusing on the impact of growth and change on human services and various responses to address its impact. They will also conduct social asset mapping within 91��ɫ Region’s identified geographies of growth. And finally, they will identify, refine and pilot potential neighbourhood assessment tools for future consultation and engagement activities with residents, community groups, service providers and other key stakeholders.

Their findings will inform the way in which UWYR plans and delivers investments in communities experiencing rapid growth to further its community impact: helping youth grow up strong, enabling individuals and families to achieve economic independence, and improving the well-being of individuals and communities.

The graduate student interns bring a variety of social science research experience to bear on this project.

Jessica Carriere, who is working with Professor Gerda Wekerle in the Faculty of Environmental Studies, is researching the social aspects of city planning within major Canadian cities as she works toward completing the Master in Environmental Studies Planning Program. She hopes to work in social planning and development at the municipal level, assisting in the creation of new policy-led strategies aimed at strengthening public involvement in decision-making processes and encouraging investment in social infrastructure.

Left: Jessica Carriere

Nausheen Quayyum, has completed a master of arts in development studies under the supervision of Professors Ananya Mukherjee Reed and Eduardo Canel and will begin doctoral studies in the fall. She has previous experience as a research intern working with (Dhaka), (Toronto) and the University of Toronto’s Health & Human Rights Program.

Right: Nausheen Quayyum

Silvia D’Addario is a doctoral student in the Graduate Program in Geography. Under Professor Valerie Preston’s supervision, D’Addario was a graduate researcher on the 91��ɫ Infrastructure Project, which assessed the supply and demand of social infrastructure for three vulnerable populations – recent immigrants, low-income residents and seniors in 91��ɫ Region. Her doctoral studies explore the gendering and racializing intersections of work and residence for immigrants in suburban Toronto.

Left: Silvia D’Addario

The Knowledge Mobilization Unit’s internship program, funded in part by a Social Sciences & Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) Knowledge Impact in Society grant, awards 12 internships each year to 91��ɫ graduate students based on an internal competition.

More than 24 students have been placed to date, including 91��ɫ alumna Tammy Lowe (née Miller) (MA ’08) who was supervised by Professor Barbara Crow while completing her master of arts in communication & culture. Through her internship placement with , Lowe used her master's class and thesis work to conduct a needs assessment to understand and inform a communications strategy and new Web site for the non-profit organization. Lowe was recently hired as a campaign manager with UWYR.

Right: Tammy Lowe

With the SSHRC grant now concluded, the internship program is jointly supported by UWYR and the Office of the Vice-President Research & Innovation. It is just one way in which UWYR and 91��ɫ work together to make research accessible and of benefit to 91��ɫ Region residents.

“We share with 91��ɫ a vision for a healthy and sustainable 91��ɫ Region that uses evidence-based research to inform support for public services,” says Daniele Zanotti, CEO of United Way of 91��ɫ Region. “For us, knowledge mobilization is priceless.”

Submitted by David Phipps, director of the Office of Research Services, and Elizabeth Monier-Williams, research communications officer

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LA&PS series on why research matters to feature 91��ɫ's Knowledge Mobilization Program (KMb)

fmaquito — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 08:00:00 +0000

It’s been a year of research-intensive events and activities in the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies and one of the most notable initiatives has been the Research Matters series. It attempts to answer the question: “Why does research matter?” In particular, it focuses on the ways in which LA&PS researchers – both faculty and students – are using their skills and expertise to address timely community, cultural, social, economic and industry challenges.

Missed out on a Research Matters session? Videos and audio files are available online.

There are two more Research Matters sessions scheduled this year, open to the 91��ɫ community. The first, which will be held on March 24 from 10am to noon in 109 Atkinson Building, takes up the theme of knowledge mobilization. Michael Johnny, manager of 91��ɫ’s Unit, will provide general insights into what knowledge mobilization is and how it ties to LA&PS researchers. Professor from the School of Social Work will discuss his knowledge mobilization efforts in the field of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender research.

The second session will be held on April 19 from 10am to noon in 305 91��ɫ Lanes and will focus on human rights, international law and global health policy. Political science Professor Lesley Jacobs, director of the , will present in collaboration with four emerging 91��ɫ scholars: Hope Olumide Shamonda (PhD candidate in philosophy); (PhD candidate in philosophy); Ruby Dhand (PhD candidate in law); and Mariette Brennan (PhD candidate in law).

The series has also explored topics ranging from pandemic planning, indigenous research and China’s competitive advantage in the world market to the grammar of aid in international development, community engagement as methodological practice, and, most recently, the value of Canada’s North.

“One of the highlights of the year for me in the role of associate dean, research, has been the launch of this series,” says Professor Barbara Crow. “I’ve gained helpful insight into the individual and collaborative research undertakings of faculty and students, and enjoyed watching connections being made between academic research and what’s going on in our communities, our workplaces and our lives.”

To RSVP for either of the upcoming sessions, e-mail Lorraine Myrie at lmyrie@yorku.ca.

Republished with files courtesy of YFile – 91��ɫ’s daily e-bulletin.

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Are seniors losing out in the cellphone market?

fmaquito — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 10:00:00 +0000

In February, Barbara Crow will meet with her mother-in-law’s quilting bunch in Peterborough, her mother’s synagogue friends in Toronto and a group of retirees in Duncan, British Columbia. She and co-researcher Kim Sawchuk of Concordia University want to know whether and how seniors use cellphones.

Right: Barbara Crow

“Many senior citizens use these mobile technologies, yet they are completely absent from any discussion on their use,” says Crow (BA Hons. ’84, MA ’86, PhD ’94), a communications and women’s studies professor and now associate dean of research for 91��ɫ’s Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies.

Seventy-two per cent of Canadians have access to cellphones, and wireless carriers offer coverage to more than 99 per cent of Canadians. More than a phone, it is increasingly versatile – the communications device of choice for sending text messages, taking photos, surfing the Internet, listening to music, playing games and updating a calendar.

The industry markets almost exclusively to youth and middle-aged professionals. And researchers studying cellphone use have also focused on the young and upwardly mobile.

Left: Kim Sawchuk

Crow and (PhD ’86, PhD ’91) have begun preliminary research to find out if, how and why seniors are using mobile technologies. “We both have aging parents and we’ve been watching how cellphones are changing everyday lives,” says Crow. They have received a three-year standard grant totalling $103,903 to complete this research by 2011.

“Kim and I argue that individuals over 60 are soon going to make up a larger proportion of the population than youth,” says Crow, who has been studying digital technologies and their social, cultural, political and economic impact since the early 1980s.

“So many government services are online,” says Crow. Yet many older people, especially impoverished women, have no way to access those services. “Do we think because people can’t afford them, they shouldn’t have access to them?” The question is, “How can we ensure their needs are going to be served?”

Compared to other countries, information and communication technology services in Canada – including cellphone and Internet – cost more and deliver less, says Crow. A 2009 by Harvard University's Berkman Center for Internet & Society ranked Canada in the bottom third among 30 countries for speed and cost.

If these new communications devices are so critical and costs are high, who is being penalized? Those on lower incomes, including the elderly, suggest Crow and Sawchuk.

“With our research, we’ll be able to say to government, here’s a list of things you should think about when designing public services,” says Crow, who, believe it or not, doesn’t own a cellphone.

“This is about making a group who can provide us with wisdom and reflection a part of significant changes that are happening,” says Crow.

This research could lead to other projects. For Crow and Sawchuk, the growing popularity of cellphones raises questions around communications policy: What portion of the spectrum of airwaves used to transmit digital signals should be public and not commercial? How do we address privacy issues? Cellphones work best in urban areas, but should the government ensure rural and remote parts of Canada also have access?

Crow and Sawchuk are also co-directors of the , which supports interdisciplinary research into wireless communications and mobile technology. They are co-editors, along with 91��ɫ Professor Michael Longford, of The Wireless Spectrum: The Politics, Practices, and Poetics of Mobile Media, to be published by the University of Toronto Press this year.

Republished courtesy of YFile – 91��ɫ’s daily e-bulletin.

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