Knowledge Mobilization (KMb) Archives | Research & Innovation

Explore 91��ɫ U research on public engagement for a just and sustainable world

muellerm — Mon, 14 Apr 2014 08:00:00 +0000

Explore arts, environmental studies and social sciences based-research at a celebration highlighting Public Engagement for a Just and Sustainable World. The celebration is being co-hosted by four of 91��ɫ’s Faculties, in collaboration with the Office of the Vice-President Research & Innovation on Wednesday, April 16.

The event will highlight the research of six 91��ɫ scholars, on topics ranging from the past and future of sustainable development to engagement with the historiography of Plains First Nations and Canadian criminal law to the challenges and possibilities of engaging the public to address issues of social justice and equity as it pertains to youth in Toronto’s inner cities to Canada's history of oil pipeline spills, to Knowledge Mobilization in a Tropical Biological Corridor and more.

“T�� Public Engagement for a Just and Sustainable World research celebration highlights the diversity of research programming at 91��ɫ that informs and addresses a range of challenges in urban environments, including infrastructure, educational engagement, planning, land use, and more,” said Robert Haché, vice-president research & innovation. ��“91��ɫ has a broad and diverse community of researchers interested in sustainability.�� It is important for us to continue to support the growth and development of initiatives to enable the recognition of 91��ɫ as a Canadian leader in sustainability research. ”

The celebration will take place from 2 to 4pm in the Scott Library Atrium.��The event will feature mini-research byte presentations followed by Q&As from the audience.�� All 91��ɫ students, staff and faculty are welcome to attend.

Featured presenters will include: School of Social Work Pofessor and Graduate Program Director Uzo Anucha, Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies (LA&PS); Shelley Gavigan, professor, Osgoode Hall Law School; Sean Kheraj, professor, Department of History, LA&PS; Felipe Montoya-Greenheck, professor, Faculty of Environmental Studies (FES); Janine Marchessault, Canada Research Chair in Art, Digital Media and Globalization and professor, Department of Film, Faculty of Fine Arts; and Gerda Wekerle, professor, FES.

Janine Marchessault: Landslide: An Exhibition on Possible Futures

Janine Marchessault

In her talk, Marchessault will engage with the site specific public art exhibition that took place at the Markham historical village in October 2013. The exhibition invited 30 national and international artists to consider the past and future of sustainable development. The most enlightened urban planners and designers have always been interested in public art’s capacity to communicate across diverse communities, to generate new insights, and to propose generative pathways. The cities of the 21st century need to address the most pressing tensions between ecology and economy; agriculture and development; and diversity and history, says Marchessault. The challenge is to move away from conventional top-down approaches, and instead incorporate participatory and inclusive processes in urban planning.��

Shelley Gavigan: “Legal History and the Stories We Tell: Reflections on Research into Criminal Law on the Nineteenth Century Aboriginal Plains”

Shelley Gavigan

Gavigan will reflect upon her engagement with the historiography of Plains First Nations and Canadian criminal law and the theoretical and methodological foundations of her recent book, Hunger, Horses and Government Men: Criminal Law in the Aboriginal Plains, 1870-1905 (Vancouver: UBC Press; Toronto: Osgoode Society, 2012).�� She will also discuss unexpected sources that she how she hopes to incorporate into her ongoing research based on lower criminal court records, and the relationship between Canadian criminal law, early Indian Act legislation, and patriarchal relations in the North-West Territories in the nineteenth-century.

Uzo Anucha: How does it feel to be a problem? Youth in Toronto’s Inner Cities and the Violence of Place-Based Stigma

Uzo Anucha

Youth in Toronto’s inner cities have been the focus of relentless negative public discourse that brands them as ‘problems’ and their communities as synonymous with youth-on-youth violence, poverty and lack of opportunity. How can community-engaged research with/about/for youth reframe and multiply this single narrative and why does it matter to do so? Drawing from lessons from the ACT for Youth project, Anucha will reflect on the challenges and possibilities of engaging the public to address issues of social justice and equity.

Sean Kheraj:�� An Environmental History of Oil Pipeline Spills in Canada

Sean Kheraj

For more than a half-century,��corporations have transported oil��across Canada via pipelines. And those pipelines have spilled oil. These pipelines��fueled��postwar industrial expansion, but they also leaked, ruptured, and broke, causing millions of litres of oil to spill across land,��waterways, and even a��national park. In his lecture, Kheraj will explore Canada's complicated history of oil pipeline spills.

Felipe Montoya-Greenheck: Knowledge Mobilization in a Tropical Biological Corridor

Felipe Montoya- Greenheck

Montoya-Greenheck will talk about the��Las Nubes Project that is part of the Faculty of Environmental Studies. Las Nubes is a rainforest that forms part of a biological corridor in Costa Rica. 91��ɫ has a long-term relationship with local communities and stakeholders, along with a multi-pronged research, education and community engagement program to advance sustainable community livelihoods, well-being and environmental conservation.

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91��ɫ leads pan-Canadian strategy roundtable on knowledge mobilization

muellerm — Fri, 01 Nov 2013 08:00:00 +0000

91��ɫ recently initiated a roundtable discussion on the development of a Pan-Canadian strategy to advance and support knowledge mobilization led by the ResearchImpact-RéseauImpactRecherche (RIR), Canada’s Knowledge Mobilization Network.�� The discussion was held at the University on Oct.24 and 25.

During the roundtable, members of the 91��ɫ-led RIR Network, which included vice-presidents and research directors of the 10 member Universities across Canada, participated in discussion to support Pan-Canadian knowledge mobilization initiatives and campus-community collaborations that can maximize the economic, social and environmental impacts of research and scholarship.

“91��ɫ was pleased to host this roundtable discussion for the ResearchImpact-RéseauImpactRecherche (RIR) network,” said Robert Haché, 91��ɫ’s vice-president research & innovation.�� “T�� key outcomes of the discussion were a renewed commitment to RIR as Canada's Knowledge Mobilization network and support for the development of a Pan-Canadian strategy to advance Knowledge Mobilization initiatives and best practices across the country, as the RIR Network continues to grow its membership.”

The roundtable highlighted the history of the ResearchImpact network, a discussion of the models of knowledge mobilization and successes at RIR universities, a prioritization of the goals for the RIR network, a discussion of the rationale for a Pan-Canadian strategy to support knowledge mobilization and more.

Founded in 2006 by 91��ɫ and the University of Victoria, RIR is committed to developing institutional capacities to support knowledge mobilization by developing and sharing knowledge mobilization best practices, services and tools. In 2010-2011 RIR expanded to include Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador, Université du Québec à Montréal, University of Guelph and University of Saskatchewan.�� In 2013, Kwantlen Polytechnic University, Wilfird Laurier University, Carleton University and l’Université du Montreal also joined.

For more information about the ResearchImpact-RéseauImpactRecherche network, visit the website, or or e-mail info@researchimpact.ca.

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91��ɫ's chief knowledge mobilizer nominated for a major award

muellerm — Thu, 05 Sep 2013 08:00:00 +0000

David Phipps, executive director of research and innovation services and adjunct professor in the Faculty of Graduate Studies, has been nominated and selected by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) as one of three finalists for the prestigious SSHRC Impact Award, recognizing his outstanding achievements in postsecondary knowledge mobilization.

David Phipps

Phipps, who has been nominated in the Connection Award category, which has a prize valued at $50,000, has been instrumental in building 91��ɫ’s Knowledge Mobilization Unit. Through a ��series of partnered collaborations, the unit has worked with 231 community and government organizations in 91��ɫ Region and the Greater Toronto Area, including the United Way 91��ɫ Region, Parkdale Activity & Recreation Centre, Nottawasaga Futures, Youth Emergency Shelter Services of Peterborough. Phipps has had a successful and sustained track record in SSHRC funding. The activities enabled by these grants have helped Phipps, research teams associated with these grants and collaborative partners to create 122 jobs and have generated more than $56 million in investments and funding for engaged scholarship as well as community programs and services.

His national leadership in knowledge mobilization is seen in the leadership of Canada’s knowledge mobilization network.�� Researchers, students and research partners in 10 universities in 9 communities across Canada are developing knowledge mobilization support services based in part by those Phipps developed at 91��ɫ.�� His expertise has also been used by agencies and universities in the United Kingdom, Australia, and the US and by a network of 24 African universities all of whom are seeking to develop an institutional capacity for knowledge mobilization. Phipps’ publishing in the knowledge mobilization blog, has been viewed over 115,500 times by readers in 148 countries.

“David Phipps’ innovative work has transformed the flow and exchange of research knowledge within and especially beyond the academic community,” said Robert Haché, 91��ɫ’s vice-president research & innovation.�� “T�� impacts of his work on Canadian research, community organizations, government policy, and the Canadian economy are dramatic, exciting and unparalleled.�� He is recognized nationally and internationally for his leadership in knowledge mobilization.�� The award nomination is well-deserved.”

The Connection Award recognizes an outstanding SSHRC-funded initiative to facilitate the flow and exchange of research knowledge within and/or beyond the academic community.�� It is given to an individual or team whose project has engaged the campus and/or wider community and has generated intellectual cultural, social and or/economic impact.

Phipps has also been named the most influential knowledge broker in Canada in 2011 and 2012, according to a report by Knowledge Mobilization Works,��a consulting and training company based in Ottawa and he was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2012 for his work in knowledge mobilization.�� In 2012, 91��ɫ’s Knowledge Mobilization Unit received a global best practice award from the EU based Knowledge Economy Network.

The announcement of the winners will be made at a ceremony during the in Montreal on Oct. 15.

Republished courtesy of YFile– 91��ɫ’s daily e-bulletin to research stories on the research website.

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91��ɫ hosts a new knowledge translation group

muellerm — Tue, 20 Aug 2013 08:00:00 +0000

91��ɫ’s Knowledge Mobilization (KMb)��Unit��has joined forces with NeuroDevNet, a Network of Centres of Excellence (NCE), to provide knowledge translation (KT) leadership and services within the University of British Columbia-based network.

��“91��ɫ’s Knowledge Mobilization Unit is continuing to make an impact by supporting transformative research through knowledge translation,” said Robert Haché (left), 91��ɫ’s vice-president research & innovation. “We are proud of the important work 91��ɫ’s leading KMb Unit is providing to NeuroDevNet, and warmly welcome the new members of the knowledge translation team.”

“For seven years, 91��ɫ's Knowledge Mobilization Unit has been providing professional knowledge mobilization services to 91��ɫ's researchers, students and their partners to maximize the economic, social and environmental impacts of research," said David Phipps (right), executive director, research & information services at 91��ɫ. "I am delighted to be the knowledge translation lead for NeuroDevNet and provide services to accelerate the impact of their research and training programs on the lives of children and families living with neurodevelopmental disorders."��

Anneliese Poetz, NeuroDevNet��knowledge translation manager, and Matt Calverley,��knowledge translation coordinator, are being hosted in 91��ɫ's KMb Unit, in suite 201, Kaneff Tower, as of this month.

“This is an exciting development for NeuroDevNet,” says Dan Goldowitz, the organization's scientific director. “With NeuroDevNet moving strongly towards a translational phase, we are going to have many great stories to tell and then move toward important outcomes. The expertise present at 91��ɫ’s Knowledge Mobilization Unit and our new KT lead, David Phipps, is hugely welcome and the network members are enthusiastically looking towards engagement with his team.”

NeuroDevNet is in its fourth year as an NCE, and has drawn together world-class researchers and clinicians across the country with expertise in three initial areas of focus, in autism spectrum disorder, fetal alcohol spectrum disorder and cerebral palsy.��Translation of research into practice and commercial ventures, as well as engagement with policy makers, are key elements of the NCE mission.��Knowledge translation is a central pillar of the NeuroDevNet initiative, funded for an initial period of five years by the NCE and Industry Canada through the Tri-Councils.

One in six Canadian children is affected by a brain-based developmental disorder. “NeuroDevNet exists to help these children and their families overcome the challenges that stem from neurodevelopmental conditions,” adds Goldowitz. “NeuroDevNet’s research is making important strides towards that objective. I am confident our new KT team will help ensure our findings reach stakeholders who share our commitment and can put that knowledge into action.”

For more information, visit the website.

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Inked in: 91��ɫ prof to launch first digital archive of memorial tattoos

muellerm — Wed, 14 Aug 2013 08:00:00 +0000

Death leaves an indelible mark on the hearts of those left behind, and an increasing number of individuals are choosing to make that loss visible by commissioning tattoos honouring their deceased loved ones.

Now, 91��ɫ sociology Professor Deborah Davidson (right), along with a cross-disciplinary team of researchers, plans to capture these images – and the stories behind each act of remembrance – as part of a new project funded by the Social Sciences & Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) to build the framework for the world’s first comprehensive public archive of memorial tattoos.

“Memorial tattoos both embody memory and serve as a kind of translator of memory into a language readable by others – a way to hold and share memories,” says Davidson. “To date, I have not found a digital or physical archive of memorial tattoos and their contextualizing narratives, so such an archive will be significant because it will serve as a cultural heritage site, acknowledging important memories and sharing them publicly, and provide scholars with a digital database of memorial tattoos and narratives for analysis.”

Davidson says the archive will not just be an academic tool, but will also serve as a place to foster new relationships between academics and individuals with memorial tattoos, along with tattoo artists and community groups. In addition, it will offer users the option to become a part of the project by uploading their own images and stories.

Having already collected dozens of stories and photos for earlier research, Davidson is now in the process of crowd-sourcing more potential contributors. Moving from memorializing the deceased to a broader definition of memorialization, Davidson and her team are looking for potential participation from persons with “tattoos in remembrance or honour of a person, place, animal, relationship, event or transition within the life course.”

With a goal of 500 images and stories to start, Davidson says this archive is just the first phase of a larger international, interdisciplinary collaboration, comprised of social science, humanities, electronic library science and computer science scholars at 91��ɫ and the University of Toronto, the University of Bath and Plymouth University in the U.K., and Monash University in Australia.

“Our project is directed at both the co-production and mobilization of knowledge. The archive will provide a rich source of data for researchers engaged in a broad span of work, including in memorialization, memory and visual narrative and computer-assisted data collection methods. The importance and contributions of this project lie precisely within the intersections between the public and the private, providing a valuable resource for the collection and sharing of memorial tattoos and the stories that are embedded within.”

To find out more about contributing to Davidson’s project, e-mail yorktattooarchive@gmail.com ��

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InVISIBILITY: Indigenous in the City -- a celebration of urban Aboriginal art, voices, stories

muellerm — Thu, 27 Jun 2013 08:00:00 +0000

Members of the urban Aboriginal community, including students, parents and teachers from the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) will gather at Macdonald block Thursday, June 27 to invite politicians, administrators, policymakers and the public to see, listen and participate in conversations with the Aboriginal community.

It is part of inVISIBILITY: Indigenous in the City, a knowledge mobilization project directed by Professor Susan Dion of 91��ɫ’s Faculty of Education, a national expert in urban Aboriginal education, which includes Carla Rice, Anna Hudson, Tanya Senk and Hannah Fowlie, and is funded by the Social Science & Humanities Research Council of Canada.

The project, in addition to being a ��celebration of urban Aboriginal presence, its diversities and complexities, strives to create an indigenous space where urban Aboriginal peoples represent themselves, tell their own stories and invite people to attend, listen and converse.

“I’ve been attending Aboriginal art exhibits, film festival and celebrations in Toronto for years and I love meeting friends, family and Aboriginal colleagues at these events,” says Dion. “As an Aboriginal educator, I go to meetings with people who make policies that impact the lives of Aboriginal people, yet I rarely see these people at our events. I wanted an event that would bring communities together.”

inVISIBILITY: Indigenous in the City is that event. “As indigenous people we always represented ourselves, told our own stories and shared our teachings,” says Dion. “However, up until recently most non-indigenous people have not had much interest in seeing and hearing our experiences and perspectives. I think that’s changing, I think people want to know us.”

In collaboration with the TDSB Aboriginal Education Centre staff, Dion, Rice and Hudson have brought together a thought provoking and exquisite collection of visual art, performance video and digital stories, along with a speaker series that provides the public with multiple opportunities to come together, engage with content and have conversations.

Attend the opening reception at the John B. Aird Gallery, 900 Bay St. (at Wellesley) in Toronto June 27, from 5 to 8pm. Meet the artists and storytellers and experience Aboriginal visibility.

The art exhibition and speaker series will take place at the gallery, Monday to Friday, from 10am to 6pm. It will feature the work of five Aboriginal artists who address questions of urban Aboriginal identity and education. The exhibition includes a series of digital stories created by Aboriginal students, parents and teachers from TDSB.

The artists will include Jeff Thomas, an urban-Iroquois and self-taught photo-based artist; Vanessa Dion Fletcher, a Potawatomi/Lenape working in performance, video, printmaking and beading artist; Beth Kotierk, an Inuk born in Nunavut working in painting, installation, video and performance art; Nigit'Stil Norbert, a Gwichin/Irish/Russian from Yellowknife working in stop-motion, photography, beading and installion; and Walter Kahero:ton Scott, a Mohawk from Kahnawake working in print, video, sculpture and comic books.

Upcoming Speaker series:

June 28, from 4:30 to 6:30pm – artist talks

July 4, from 4:30 to 6:30pm – digital story screening with student, parent and teacher storytellers

July 11, from 4:30 to 6:30pm – film screening and discussion
July 18, from 2:30 to 4:30pm – guest lectures by Verna St. Denis and Jan Hare.

For more information about the gallery, contact Dale Barett at director@airdgallery.org and for the��inVISIBILITY Project, contact Susan Dion at sdion@edu.yorku.ca.

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91��ɫ leads the country with SSHRC awards valued at $1 million or more

muellerm — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 08:00:00 +0000

91��ɫ leads the country in the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada’s (SSHRC's) large-scale awards competitions valued at $1 million or more.

An analysis conducted by the Strategic and Institutional Research Initiatives Unit, in the Office of Research Services at 91��ɫ, revealed that between 2006 and 2012, 91��ɫ researchers received more SSHRC awards valued at $1 million or more than any other institution in Canada. SSHRC’s large-scale awards offered between 2001 and 2012 have included the Community-University Research Alliance (CURA), Major Collaborative Research Initiatives (MCRI), the Strategic Knowledge Clusters and the SSHRC Partnership Grants.

“91��ɫ is a leader in collaborative, interdisciplinary, social sciences and humanities research in Canada,” said Robert Haché, 91��ɫ’s vice-president research & innovation. “Research at 91��ɫ is research with impact. These research projects led by York University researchers demonstrate our capacity and continued commitment to work collaboratively with governments, non-profit organizations, NGOs, community organizations and private sector partners to advance knowledge for maximum impact both nationally and internationally.”

Robert Haché

From the development of models for violence prevention in Aboriginal communities, to the creation of a comprehensive youth strategy that supports positive youth development in urban communities, to measuring the costs of the social justice system, to identifying promising practices for the improvement of long-term residential care and more, 91��ɫ researchers are working to develop solutions to complex challenges and to mobilize knowledge to make a difference in the world.

The large-scale SSHRC projects led by 91��ɫ’s researchers seek to employ a collaborative method to support the creation of new knowledge and undertake knowledge mobilization initiatives so that research and evidence resulting from these projects can help inform decisions about public policy and professional practice.

To view a list of project descriptions of each of the active large-scale SSHRC projects at 91��ɫ, click here.

Republished courtesy of YFile– 91��ɫ’s daily e-bulletin to research stories on the research website.

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SSHRC awards $499,152 to five 91��ɫ researchers

muellerm — Thu, 19 Jul 2012 08:00:00 +0000

Five researchers from 91��ɫ have been awarded $499,152 from the Social Sciences & Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) to support social research and knowledge mobilization initiatives. The Public Outreach Grants support existing and ongoing projects that mobilize research results to a range of audiences beyond academia.

The grants, part of $6.3 million in funding and awards invested across the country, will support over 95 research projects to improve Canadians’ quality of life, while addressing important socio-cultural and economic issues.

“91��ɫ continues to build on and strengthen its commitment to community engagement,” said Robert Haché (right), 91��ɫ’s vice-president research & innovation. “91��ɫ’s researchers continue to share and co-create knowledge with the broader community, as exemplified by the success of our researchers in the receipt of funding for engaged scholarship through SSHRC’s Public Outreach grants program and the work of our researchers and Knowledge Mobilization Unit in further developing community-academic partnerships.”

Researchers from 91��ɫ include:

Sheila Cavanagh, a professor in the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies (LA&PS) Department of Sociology and coordinator of the Sexuality Studies program in the School of Gender, Sexuality and Women’s Studies, received $102,117 in funding to professionally stage a research-based theatrical production titled Queer Bathroom Monologues, at Buddies in Bad Times Theatre, and to curate an accompanying research-based art exhibition. The objective of this project is to enable multi-layered conversation and networking between partners in support of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) advocacy, and proactive policy and educational programming in the Ministry of Education to combat LGBT bullying in Ontario high schools. The Queer Bathroom Monologues are based on interviews with LGBT interviewees published in Cavanagh’s book, Queering Bathrooms: Gender, Sexuality, and the Hygienic Imagination (2010).

Professor Mark Winfield, program coordinator of the Master of Environmental Studies/Juris Doctor joint program in the Faculty of Environmental Studies and co-chair of the Faculty's Sustainable Energy Initiative (SEI), received $86,000 in funding to mobilize the knowledge developed through the initiative in order to support the development and deployment of sustainable energy technologies in Ontario and elsewhere in Canada. The project activities will include an SEI Sustainable Energy Policy Seminar Series employing virtual and live formats and the development of social media tools to engage students, staff, faculty and��private sector, non-profit and municipal��audiences��around sustainable energy technologies and strategies.

Paul Lovejoy, Distinguished Research Professor and Canada Research Chair in African Diaspora History in the Department of History (LA&PS) and director of the Harriet Tubman Institute for Research on the Global Migrations of African Peoples, received $132,442 in funding to enhance public understanding of, and appreciation for, the crucial role played by African Canadians during the War of 1812. He will work with Caitlin Fisher, professor and Canada Research Chair in Digital Culture in the Faculty of Fine Arts Department of Film, Michele Johnson, associate professor in the Department of History (LA&PS), and Murray Wickett, chair of history, Brock University, on this project. The project is administered by Naomi Norquay, associate professor, Faculty of Education, and Karolyn Smardz Frost, Senior Research Fellow at the Harriet Tubman Institute and Visiting Bicentennial Professor in Canadian Studies, Yale University, for the coming year. The project builds on a workshop organized by the Tubman Institute, in collaboration with the History Department at Brock University, and is titled: We Stand on Guard for Thee: The African Canadian Experience in the War of 1812, which was held at Brock. This project will develop a series of concurrent public and educator-engagement sessions and be delivered using cutting-edge digital technology.

Sean Kheraj, assistant professor, Department of History (LA&PS) received $36,795 in funding to facilitate the mobilization of Canadian environmental history scholarship to a wider audience by creating and disseminating audio podcasts that feature interviews, round-table discussions and lectures on topics in Canadian environmental history that are relevant to key contemporary environmental issues in Canada. He will work with two project partners, Canada’s History magazine and the Network in Canadian History and Environment (NiCHE), on this project, in order to reach environmental groups, educators, and public policymakers.

Faculty of Education Professor Stephen Gaetz received $141,798 in funding to invest in knowledge mobilization focused on income and housing vulnerability. He will be collaborating and working with co-applicants Daniele Zanotti, CEO, United Way of 91��ɫ Region (UWYR), David Phipps, director, Research Services & Knowledge Exchange, and Michaela Hynie, professor in the Department of Psychology and the Program Evaluation Unit in the 91��ɫ Institute for Health Research on this project. Building on their five year knowledge mobilization partnership, 91��ɫ and UWYR will implement a community-campus knowledge mobilization strategy based on best practices so that 91��ɫ housing and income vulnerability research and expertise is accessible to community partners. For more information on this project, visit the .

Gary Goodyear, minister of state for science & technology, announced the investments in research that will help build a better understanding of important societal issues.

“Our Government’s top priority is the economy: jobs, growth and long-term prosperity. To remain at the forefront of the global economy, our government is investing in the people and ideas that will produce tomorrow’s breakthroughs,” said Goodyear. “T�� mobilization of knowledge leads to a more robust economy and helps develop new opportunities for economic growth while strengthening Canada’s research advantage.”

“Knowledge-sharing among multi-sectoral partners is essential to innovation and to building the expertise needed for Canada’s future,” said Chad Gaffield, president of SSHRC. “T��se Public Outreach Grants enable the flow and exchange of knowledge across campuses and the private, public and not-for-profit sectors, which, in turn, produces benefits for Canadians.”

For more information about the projects, please visit the website.

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

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Cardiac rehab urgently needed around the globe

fmaquito — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 08:00:00 +0000

Cardiovascular rehabilitation programs following heart attacks or surgeries should be considered an essential health service in every country, says 91��ɫ Professor Sherry Grace, who is leading an international initiative to promote the low-cost, lifesaving programs.

Sherry Grace

Grace returned yesterday from the World Congress of Cardiology, held in Dubai, where she presented an��. The document, created by scientists from several universities and cardiac rehabilitation associations, is endorsed by 10 cardiovascular organizations in high-income countries such as Canada, the United States��and Britain, as well as middle-income countries such as India.

Cardiac rehabilitation is an outpatient chronic disease management program to which patients should be referred after a cardiac event or procedure. Each patient is assessed and managed by clinical staff, undergoes an exercise test and follows a four-to-six-month program of exercise, nutrition counselling and health education. While bypass surgery may cost $40,000 to $80,000, the cardiac rehab that should follow it costs only $1,500.

“T�� benefits of cardiac rehab are well established. There are over 11,000 patients tested in 40 trials performed around the world. The data shows 25 per cent lower death for patients who go to rehab versus those who don’t, as well as significant reductions in re-hospitalization,” says Grace.

[stream provider=youtube flv=http%3A//www.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3DHAru-JEItqI img=x:/img.youtube.com/vi/HAru-JEItqI/0.jpg embed=false share=false width=400 height=300 dock=true controlbar=over bandwidth=high autostart=false /]

“T�� magnitude of the benefit is similar to what patients see with aspirin and statins. Doctors always recommend those but they don’t always recommend cardiac rehab and that’s a shame,” adds Grace.

Cardiovascular disease remains the leading killer of adult men and women globally, so cardiac rehab programs could extend and improve millions of lives, says Grace. A professor of kinesiology and health science at 91��ɫ, Grace is also director of research into cardiovascular rehabilitation and prevention at the Peter Munk Cardiac Centre, University Health Network.

On average, about 30 per cent of Canadian patients are referred for cardiac rehab after a heart attack or surgery. Grace��has developed strategies in the past few years to increase the number of Canadian heart patients being referred to cardiac rehab programs – as a result, in some hospitals in Ontario, the rate is as high as 85 per cent. In contrast, only about 20 per cent of middle- and low-income countries around the world have any sort of cardiac rehab at all, and only the elite can afford it, says Grace.

“We really do need to do more to promote the availability of cardiac rehab in these countries, considering that many middle-income countries now have full operating theatres to perform revascularization procedures,” says Grace. “If we can provide that acute care, which is quite expensive, certainly we can provide the low-cost care provided by cardiac rehab with similar benefits.”

The International Charter on Cardiovascular Prevention and Rehabilitation and the international effort to gain support for its call for action was funded through a knowledge-mobilization grant from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research.

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

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Experts wanted: 91��ɫ's Knowledge Mobilization Unit helps United Way 91��ɫ Region

fmaquito — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 10:00:00 +0000

Two upcoming events hosted by the United Way 91��ɫ Region��have��a special connection to 91��ɫ's Knowledge Mobilization Unit.��

The first is a community forum��tomorrow, Nov. 9 to discuss food policy and the development of a��food charter for 91��ɫ Region. The��second event on Tuesday, Nov. 29, features a community dialogue on��pressing social issues facing the region. Members of the 91��ɫ community are invited to both events.

Since September, a knowledge broker placed at the United Way��91��ɫ Region has been working in close partnership with the University's Knowledge Mobilization��Unit to enhance opportunities for collaboration in research with respect to social determinants of health. The partnership is the result of a��successful application to the Canadian Institutes of Health Research submitted in February 2011.��(Knowledge brokers are project staff acting as intermediaries that connect researchers to potential research users.)

“This is a tremendous opportunity to maximize the impact of 91��ɫ research and build on a significant partnership for 91��ɫ in knowledge mobilization,” said Michael Johnny (right), manager of 91��ɫ’s Knowledge Mobilization Unit.

The Nov. 9��forum, , hosted by the United Way��91��ɫ Region��in collaboration with various partners, will bring together representatives from a number of community organizations to discuss��food security and agriculture issues. Participants will also embark on a��discussion about establishing a Food Charter for 91��ɫ Region.��

A food charter is a statement of values and principles to guide a community’s food policy, and is a key document for communities working towards developing a��food system that is healthy, equitable and sustainable.��The organizers of Food��for Change are��hoping that��academic partners��from 91��ɫ will attend the event and engage in a dialogue to��explore ways that research can inform and support this initiative in both the short and longer term.

On Nov. 29, the United Way 91��ɫ Region��will host��the��,��part of a series of community dialogues on pressing social issues in 91��ɫ Region.��During the meeting house, participants will��explore the implications��for social infrastructure development in communities that��are facing��major population growth.��Over the next few months, meeting house dialogues will also be held in Newmarket, Vaughan, Markham and Richmond Hill.

“Working within Canada’s leading knowledge mobilization university, 91��ɫ’s Knowledge Mobilization Unit continues to work together with our partners to make 91��ɫ’s research and talent accessible and relevant to the community,” said Robert Haché, vice-president research & innovation. “This partnership will help facilitate initiatives to improve the quality of life for residents in 91��ɫ Region.”

For more information on knowledge mobilization services at 91��ɫ, or about this partnership,��e-mail 91��ɫ's Knowledge Mobilization Unit��at��kmbunit@yorku.ca.

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

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