Storytellers Gallery

Biographical information found in the Storytellers Gallery is accurate as of its original publication, but is not updated.

Year	Name
2019	Adatia Shelina Adatia University of Ottawa Shelina Adatia is a third-year PhD candidate in education at the University of Ottawa, with a focus in societies, cultures and languages. Her research will examine the inclusion of culturally and linguistically diverse learners in Ottawa’s French immersion elementary and secondary schools. Shelina is a research assistant for the Second Language Education cohort—part of the university’s Teacher Education program—and the project manager for Le génie au service des femmes: Rethinking the Faces and Spaces of Engineering. She is enrolled in a certificate program in university teaching at the University of Ottawa. View submission
2019	Bader Danielle Bader University of Guelph Danielle Bader is a PhD candidate in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at the University of Guelph. Her doctoral research was inspired by her role in the project Canadian Domestic Homicide Prevention Initiative with Vulnerable Populations. The SSHRC-funded partnership is co-directed by Myrna Dawson (University of Guelph) and Peter Jaffe (Western University). Danielle also works on various projects for the Centre for the Study of Social and Legal Responses to Violence. Her research examines how safety planning can reduce repeated and lethal violence by an intimate partner against women living in Ontario’s non-urban communities. View submission
2019	Beni Stephanie Beni Brock University Stephanie Beni is a doctoral student studying physical education in the Faculty of Applied Health Sciences at Brock University. She also teaches physical education part-time to privately and home-schooled students. Stephanie’s research interests are in identifying physical education teaching approaches and strategies that enable meaningful learning experiences for students. Through her undergraduate and graduate degree programs, she has worked on the SSHRC-funded, international research project, Learning About Meaningful Physical Education. She is passionate about sharing her love for movement with others through physical education. View submission
2019	Chew Suzanne Chew University of Calgary Suzanne Chew is a PhD student in the Department of Geography at the University of Calgary, where she is supervised by Chui-Ling Tam. Suzanne researches how vulnerable communities engage in climate-related decision-making, focusing on Cambridge Bay in western Nunavut. She is passionate about climate change, is the author of The Book of Climate Cartoons and is a board member of the Calgary Climate Hub, a local not-for-profit. As chair of the Graduate Students’ Association’s Mental Health and Wellness Committee and a Graduate College scholar, Suzanne advocates for mental health and works to connect and support the graduate student community. View submission
2019	Cooper Jodi Cooper Mount Saint Vincent University Jodi Cooper is a creative professional completing a master’s degree in communications at Mount Saint Vincent University. Her documentary and narrative films have been screened at festivals internationally. She teaches film and art appreciation at Loyalist College, from which she is a proud graduate. Jodi mentors local filmmakers and students as a member of the Belleville Downtown DocFest organizing committee. The film festival screens quality productions from around the world and focuses on nurturing independent filmmakers. Jodi and her filmmaking partners recently ran a successful crowdfunding campaign to collaborate with their audience on a short film, The Woodsmen. View submission
2019	Doucet Mélanie Doucet McGill University Mélanie Doucet is a PhD candidate in social work at McGill University and received SSHRC and Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation doctoral scholarships. She is also the co-founder of the Montreal Youth in Care Alumni Student Association (MYCASA), a peer support group for former youth in care pursuing postsecondary education. As a former youth in care and academic, Mélanie's main research interests are rooted in issues that affect youth in and from foster care. Her doctoral research examines the pathways to supportive long-term relationships for youth exiting government care at the age of majority. View submission
2019	Durocher Véronique Durocher Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières Véronique Durocher is a master’s student in literature with a focus in social communication at the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières. She is a member of the Centre de recherche interuniversitaire sur le français en usage au Québec and the Centre de recherche interuniversitaire sur la communication, l’information et la société. Her dissertation is focused on the shifting meaning of “sexual harassment” when it is used in legal, media and public discourses. She is particularly interested in the various applications of linguistics and, more specifically, in the analysis of discourse in the legal field. View submission
2019	Gold Vanessa Gold McGill University After completing her bachelor of education in 2013, Vanessa Gold spent four years teaching English as a second language internationally. Her experiences triggered an interest in educational change, which launched her on her latest academic path. Vanessa is a master’s student in education at McGill University, completing a degree in educational leadership. She continues to explore multiple interests, including alternative education, systems change and teacher education. She seeks opportunities for innovation and creativity in her field through her roles as a teaching assistant, research assistant and student council representative. View submission
2019	Grace Anita Grace Carleton University Anita Grace is a PhD candidate in law and legal studies at Carleton University. Her research focuses on some of the ways the Canadian criminal justice system impacts women. She received a Joseph-Armand Bombardier Canada Graduate Scholarship at the doctoral level in 2016. Anita has a master’s degree in conflict studies from Saint Paul University. View submission
2019	Jacob Tai Jacob McGill University Tai Jacob is a scholar, artist and writer. They are a master’s student in geography at McGill University, and their research is based in transgender studies, migrant justice, refugee regimes and how geographies of the body extend beyond the skin. Tai has hosted and produced Gender Blender, a biweekly podcast that features gender-diverse people exploring the intersections of gender, sex, race, age, class, culture, faith and ability. Their art practice consists of collage, prose and poetry. View submission
2019	Jarry François Jarry McGill University François Jarry completed his undergraduate degree in physical and health education at McGill University in 2017. He is finishing his master’s thesis in sport and exercise psychology under Shane Sweet’s supervision. François’ research interests include the use of peer modeling as a tool to increase exercise self-efficacy in populations with physical disabilities, as well as the validity of self-efficacy measuring techniques. He is also an avid runner, focusing on marathons after being part of the McGill cross-country and track and field teams for five years. View submission
2019	Labossière Sophie Labossière Université de Sherbrooke As part of her master’s degree in psychoeducation at the Université de Sherbrooke, Sophie Labossière is studying eating disorders and their related problems in university-level student athletes. She has received graduate scholarships from the Canadian Institutes for Health Research and the Fonds de recherche du Québec – Société et culture. Sophie’s training in psychoeducation has made her aware of the various aspects of child and youth development. It has equipped her to understand the complex issues facing this demographic and to develop appropriate responses. She also coordinates research projects that look at problematic food-related attitudes and behaviours among elementary school students. View submission
2019	McArthur Jane McArthur University of Windsor Final five Jane McArthur is a SSHRC Doctoral Fellow in sociology and social justice at the University of Windsor. She combines sociology and communications scholarship with 25 years of work in environmental and occupational health, doing community-based research and advocacy with a view to prevention. Jane’s recent work focuses on breast cancer from a systems or ecological perspective, which she sees as pivotal for reclaiming a true public health framework oriented to populations, as opposed to the individual. Her dissertation research draws on the experience and knowledge of women working at the Ambassador Bridge, between Windsor and Detroit, who are at risk for breast cancer. She expects to defend her thesis this year. View submission
2019	Miller Miriam Miller The University of British Columbia Final five Miriam Miller is a PhD student at The University of British Columbia in the department of Educational and Counselling Psychology and Special Education. Her research is broadly located in Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) and specifically explores the ways in which learning activities provide students with opportunities for social and emotional development. For the past 10 years, Miriam has worked with educational institutions and organizations to support ongoing professional learning in the areas of SEL, emotional literacy, and student and educator well-being. Additionally, Miriam is a senior coach and trainer with the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence at Yale University. View submission
2019	Payant Maude Payant Université Laval Maude is a BA student who intends to pursue doctoral studies in psychology, with the goal of becoming a clinical researcher. Early in her studies, she joined a research team where she discovered a passion for applied research in clinical settings. She appreciates how these two fields enrich one another. Her research interests focus mainly on personality disorders, specifically socially undesirable personality traits and their link to different interpersonal traumas, as well as the evaluation of intervention programs for patients with personality disorders. View submission
2019	Peirone Amy Peirone University of Windsor Amy Peirone is a PhD candidate in sociology, anthropology and criminology at the University of Windsor. Her dissertation research uses demographic and health survey data to explore the diversity of intimate partner violence (IPV) in Sub-Saharan Africa. By using a statistical technique called latent class analysis, Amy is examining characteristics of different types of IPV and their correlates. Her submission focuses on a project into how criminal justice outcomes in Canada vary based on geographic location. The project, for which Amy was a research assistant, was led by Myrna Dawson from the University of Guelph. View submission
2019	Preston Kayla Preston Dalhousie University Kayla Preston is a master’s student in sociology and social anthropology at Dalhousie University. She is researching the key claims that right-wing extremist groups make about Canadian culture, politics, identity, and belonging, and how they justify these claims. To further expand on her research, she is analyzing the online presence and social implications of right-wing extremism and radicalization in Canada. Kayla has also co-authored an article titled “Tropes of fear and the crisis of the West: Trumpism as a Discourse of Post-Territorial Coloniality,” which was published in the journal Postcolonial Studies. View submission
2019	Quilico Enrico Quilico University of Toronto Final five Enrico Quilico is a doctoral student in rehabilitation sciences at the University of Toronto. He runs a community-based physical activity program through the YMCAs of Québec for adults with moderate to severe traumatic brain injuries. His doctoral studies revolve around that program, which stems from his graduate work in adapted physical activity at McGill University. Enrico’s undergraduate degree is from Concordia University and he teaches English, humanities and physical education at the CEGEP level. He also works in the fitness industry and is a competitive swimmer, marathoner and triathlete. He has competed in half and full Ironman triathlons. View submission
2019	Steckley Joshua Steckley University of Toronto Final five Josh Steckley is a doctoral candidate in geography with a collaborative specialization in environmental studies at the University of Toronto. One night in 2017, he was driving through Woodstock, Ontario, when he saw a dozen people with headlamps picking earthworms from the soil in a farmer’s field. This launched his interest into the multimillion-dollar worm-picking industry unique to southwestern Ontario. His research focuses on the socio-ecological relations necessary to turn common living organisms, like dew worms, into valuable commodities sold around the world. View submission
2019	Strong Trevor Strong Queen's University Trevor Strong is a writer, musician, arts educator and a PhD candidate in education at Queen’s University. His research into conceptions of creativity was inspired by his work as an artist in the classroom. While earning a master’s in education, he wrote Understanding Humour: A Teacher’s Handbook, a booklet focused on the positive and negative effects of using humour in education. When not searching academic journals on his computer, he occasionally performs with his music-comedy group, The Arrogant Worms. View submission
2019	Sutherland Colin Sutherland York University Colin Sutherland is a fourth-year PhD candidate in critical human geography at York University. His SSHRC-funded project, Pyrogeographies in context: Geographies of Wildfire Knowledge in Canada, focuses on how conservation institutions come to understand, govern, and encounter fire adapted landscapes. More specifically, it examines how fire managers, ecologists, and other staff at Parks Canada, Canada’s national park agency, put fire back on the landscape through the use of prescribed burns. Colin is interested in how institutions, bureaucracies, and state actors engage with unwieldly and volatile natural processes, particularly in relation to global climate change. View submission
2019	Tétreault Florence Tétreault Université du Québec à Montréal Florence Tétreault is a master’s candidate in creative writing at the Université du Québec à Montréal, after having studied both literature and art history. In her creative research paper, she uses a writing lens to question the notions of presence, absence and trace. Florence always strives to apply her creativity and vitality to the various projects she takes on, whether they be research, writing, intervention, performance or composition. View submission
2019	Thériault Rémi Thériault McGill University Rémi Thériault obtained his BA and MSc from McGill University. His undergraduate research centred on the mind-body connection through the placebo effect and the malleability of the sense of embodiment, while his master’s research compared ways to decrease intergroup prejudice through perspective-taking. His current doctoral research explores ways to boost altruism and reduce aggression through meditation and loving-kindness. Overall, Rémi is passionate about putting social-psychological research to use to increase people’s well-being and intrinsic motivation to help one another. View submission
2019	Thiessen Dylan Thiessen Vancouver Island University With a background in political science, Dylan has shifted his focus toward urban and community planning. He is currently completing his master’s in community planning for which his research focuses on the role that public libraries play in creating social infrastructure and increasing quality of life in urban areas. Dylan grew up in and around public libraries and has seen firsthand the impact that they make on local communities. He will spend the summer of 2019 interviewing key stakeholders to help complete this project. View submission
2019	Xiao SIQI Xiao The University of British Columbia Final five SIQI has completed her BA in sociology and is an incoming master’s student at The University of British Columbia (UBC). SIQI is interested in understanding how gender, race, ethnicity, and social policy intertwine in complex ways to shape relationships, affect individual life opportunities, and reproduce or ameliorate inequalities. She is the leading research assistant of Romantic Relationships in Canada, a SSHRC-funded research project led by Dr. Yue Qian, assistant professor of sociology at UBC. SIQI has been inspired to explore what humour means for individuals with diverse cultural backgrounds, especially marginalized immigrants, as they navigate life in a Canadian context through online dating and beyond. View submission
2018	Champigny Claire Champigny York University Claire Champigny is a second year master’s student specializing in clinical developmental neuropsychology at York University. She examines the cognitive and academic outcomes of pediatric stroke, and works with patients at the Hospital for Sick Children. Her research interests include the academic experiences of youth who have strokes, brain injuries and neurological disorders. Claire began her training at McGill University, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a master’s degree in psychiatry. She studied neuropsychological rehabilitation techniques for children with impulse control disorders. View submission
2018	Enns Mackenzie (Mack) Enns Western University Mack Enns is a PhD candidate in musicology at Western University. He moved from his hometown of Winnipeg, Manitoba, to study game scoring, or the act of composing music for and through gaming. He has pursued this interest since 2013, when he delivered a paper on game scoring at the Innovation in Music conference in York, United Kingdom. His paper was selected for publication in Innovation in Music 2013, a compendium of proceedings from the conference. In his spare time, Mack performs visual accompaniment for music concerts in Toronto and London, Ontario, using software developed for Nintendo systems from the 1980s and 90s. View submission
2018	Maruyama Michiko Maruyama University of Alberta Final five Michiko Maruyama is a master of industrial design candidate at the University of Alberta. She is also training to be an open-heart surgeon, having completed medical school at The University of British Columbia in 2015. Her research involves combining her industrial design and medical studies to create educational toys that will teach children about health and wellness. Additionally, Michiko is a talented artist whose artwork has been showcased in galleries and exhibitions across Canada. View submission
2018	Olson Jeremy (Jay) Olson McGill University At the age of five, a magician pulled a coin out of Jay Olson’s ear. He was fascinated, and two years later, he started performing magic himself. While working as a magician, Jay noticed many of the ideas taught in psychology were similar to what he had learned in magic. This led him to study the psychology behind magic at Simon Fraser University, and he now uses his knowledge as a magician to develop new methods in psychology. For his PhD thesis at McGill University, Jay uses magic to influence people’s feelings of control over their thoughts. View submission
2018	Singh Harprit Kaur Singh McGill University Harprit Singh is a master's student at McGill University, specializing in bioethics. She has an honours bachelor of science degree from the University of Toronto, with majors in neuroscience and bioethics. As a graduate student, Harprit has conducted research on the importance of incorporating children's voices in a possible extension of Canada’s medical assistance in dying legislation to include minors. She also has professional experience providing support to clinical research coordinators in the Haematology and Oncology departments of The Hospital for Sick Children. Harprit is a student member of the Canadian Bioethics Society, and a part of McGill’s Views On Interdisciplinary Childhood Ethics (VOICE) team. View submission
2018	Fang Mei Lan Fang Heriot-Watt University and Simon Fraser University Mei Lan Fang is a transdisciplinary research scientist with a passion for understanding and exposing, across societies, the sociocultural and structural foundations that shape individuals’ experiences of marginalization throughout their lives. Mei Lan is a PhD candidate at Heriot-Watt University, Scotland, and her research is hosted within the Science and Technology Ageing Research Institute at Simon Fraser University. Her doctoral work focuses on how the experiences and histories of older Canadian migrants impact their transition into affordable housing in Richmond, British Columbia. She is also a senior research associate at MTEK Sciences, a global health research consulting firm in Vancouver. View submission
2018	Golafshani Maryam Golafshani Western University Maryam Golafshani is a master’s candidate at Western University’s Centre for the Study of Theory and Criticism. Her research interests lie broadly at the crossroads of care, where the humanities and healthcare intersect. To this end, Maryam has presented a TEDx Talk on “Why Medicine needs Literature;” developed educational programs for the American Medical Student Association and Western University; and is conducting research in both Canada and the United Kingdom. Maryam is also passionate about bridging the divide between academic institutions and the broader public. She has been a program coordinator of the Public Humanities program at Western for several years. View submission
2018	Kwon Eunjeong Eugena Kwon Western University Eunjeong Eugena Kwon is currently a PhD candidate enrolled in the Collaborative Graduate Program of Sociology with Migration and Ethnic Relations, at Western University. Her current SSHRC-funded research focuses on the factors, constraints and inequalities that shape immigrants’ post-migration food choices and food literacy in Canada. Through this research, she hopes to provide evidence-based research that can inform future policies surrounding immigration and population health, and make a meaningful social impact. Eugena is also the founder of Health Awareness Canada, a not-for-profit organization promoting immigrant health and well-being by raising awareness of the importance of food literacy. View submission
2018	Labrie Christine Labrie University of Ottawa A former lecturer at the Université de Sherbrooke, Christine Labrie is now a doctoral student in women’s studies at the University of Ottawa, and a Vanier scholar. Her research deals with the evolution of norms around maternity in Quebec. In her dissertation, she delves into cases of women who gave a child up for adoption in the 1960s or 1970s. She has been invited to present her work in France, Belgium and the United Kingdom. Labrie sits on the board of Sherbrooke’s historical society and is a member of Sherbrooke en Transition’s zero-waste committee that organized an awareness activity on ecofriendly lunchbox approaches. She also volunteers with Marraine Tendresse de l’Estrie, an organization that provides respite for mothers. View submission
2018	Weima Yolanda Weima York University Yolanda Weima is a PhD candidate in human geography at York University, and an active graduate affiliate of York’s Centre for Refugee Studies. Yolanda takes a critical geographical approach to studying humanitarian, state and refugee responses to repeated forced and return migrations. Her current research focuses on Burundian refugee encampment in Tanzania and their eventual return to Burundi. She previously worked in Burundi for four years for a non-governmental peace and community development organization. In 2014, she conducted master’s research in Burundi with returnees, many of whom have since sought refuge again. View submission
2018	Bérubé Patricia Bérubé Université de Montréal Final five After studying video game development, and a first career as a 3D artist, Patricia Bérubé decided to continue her studies, registering in the art history master’s program at the Université de Montréal. She is deeply interested in digital museology. Her research focuses on the creation of a device to let users read the colours in portraits by touch. By adapting new technologies to the world of museums, she hopes to stimulate dialogue about accessibility policies, and ensure that people with visual impairments can access the world’s major artworks and the history of art. View submission
2018	Black Meagan Black The University of British Columbia Meagan Black works for Arc Poetry Magazine, and is currently completing her master of fine arts in creative writing at The University of British Columbia. She has had work published in Carousel, ottawater, The New Haven Review and other literary magazines. She will have a short article on Canadian science fiction writer Robert Sawyer in an anthology released next fall. Five of her poems will also appear in Body Politic: Illustrated poems about the body and disability. Outside of school, her interests include used book sales, experimenting with hybrid literary forms and never finishing the edits on her young adult novel written in verse. View submission
2018	Buckley Meaghen Buckley Concordia University Meaghen Buckley is a multidisciplinary artist and teacher currently completing her master’s degree in drama therapy at Concordia University. She holds a bachelor of arts (honours) in linguistics from McGill University, a bachelor of fine arts in visual arts from Emily Carr University, as well as has professional training in ballet, improvisation and composition. Her SSHRC-funded heuristic research addresses the body’s involvement in drama psychotherapy and seeks to better understand the relationship of sensation and felt experience to verbal insight and therapeutic change. Her art practice explores interactions between body and language, fact and fiction, performer and witness. She is passionate about most things, especially play. View submission
2018	Chalas Agnieszka Chalas Queen’s University Agnieszka Chalas is currently a doctoral candidate in the faculty of education at Queen’s University. Her dissertation research examines how art museum educators collect, reflect on and incorporate feedback into their educational program development in an effort to enhance museum learning. This research direction is informed by her extensive senior management experience in the arts and culture sector. She has worked as executive director, Programming, at ArtsSmarts, as program director at Studio in a School in New York City, and as director of Public Programs and Education at the Kitchener-Waterloo Art Gallery. View submission
2018	Powell Eric Powell Concordia University Eric Powell is a sound artist, composer, teacher, and tinkerer, and is currently completing his PhD in communication studies at Concordia University. His research brings together maps, interactive technologies and field recording to create unique interfaces for exploring city sounds. His work invites users to listen in new ways, challenging them to rethink the role of sound in their daily lives. Eric is a founding member of several media arts organizations, and is currently the chair of the board of the Canadian Association for Sound Ecology. He regularly collaborates with other artists and academics, enabling him to share his work around the world. View submission
2018	Bowness Evan Bowness The University of British Columbia Evan Bowness is a PhD candidate at UBC's Centre for Sustainable Food Systems. He works with Hannah Wittman on research looking at the relationship between urban agriculture and social change in Canada and Brazil. He is a visual sociologist whose work takes an urban political ecology approach to understanding problems in the food system and social movements, most specifically the food sovereignty movement. His previous research interests include online discourse, natural resource development and the commons. View submission
2018	Ellis Adam Ellis University of Toronto Adam Ellis is a PhD candidate and Vanier Scholar at the Centre for Criminology and Sociolegal Studies at the University of Toronto. He is an ex-gang member turned advocate, counselor and academic. Inspired by his lived experiences, Adam’s doctoral work focuses on the relationship between trauma, PTSD and gang violence. His research draws on in-depth qualitative interviews to compare and contrast the experiences and stories of combat veterans and ex-gang members to understand the psychological impact of gang violence (or street warfare). Adam’s study will examine how pre-existing, event-specific and post-traumatic factors may contribute to youth joining gangs, and to the cycle of violence permeating marginalized/gang-dominated communities. View submission
2018	MacQueen Michelle MacQueen Carleton University Michelle MacQueen is a master’s student in music and culture at Carleton University. She holds a bachelor of music from Acadia University. Her master’s research at Carleton aims to investigate issues surrounding belonging and national identity in Canada, and how these ideas are represented in popular music. Specifically, she is examining how “Canadianness” is constructed through music by the iconic Canadian rock band, The Tragically Hip. Michelle will be continuing her research interests in musical counter-narratives, music and politics, and musical communities through a PhD in cultural studies at Queen’s University in fall 2018. View submission
2018	Ogrodnik Michelle Ogrodnik McMaster University Final five Michelle Ogrodnik is a graduate student in the Department of Kinesiology at McMaster University. She studies how physical activity can help improve attention and academic performance in students of all ages. Michelle develops and implements new educational initiatives to enhance student learning at McMaster in her role at the MacPherson Institute for Innovation and Excellence in Teaching and Learning. She is passionate about knowledge translation and won the Participants Choice Award in 2017 at McMaster’s 3-Minute Thesis competition. Michelle has a bachelor of science (honours) in psychology, neuroscience and behaviour from McMaster. View submission
2018	Oppen Svjetlana Oppen University of Windsor A Yugoslavian-Bosnian-Croatian-Canadian artist, Svjetlana Oppen is an active cinematographer and director seeking to understand herself and the world around her through film. She is completing her graduate studies in film and media arts at the University of Windsor, and her research explores the fragmented national identities in immigrant lives. In 2012, she created Stagehouse Multimedia, a not-for-profit focused on creating films to benefit disadvantaged, underrepresented and at-risk groups. Svjetlana currently serves as the technical director of the Windsor International Film Festival, overseeing film projection and the festival’s entire technical team. View submission
2018	Bailey Aly Bailey Brock University Aly Bailey is a PhD candidate in the Faculty of Applied Health Sciences at Brock University. Due to a keen desire to promote positive body image in the community, she decided to pursue an action research project where she worked alongside participants to create Body Image Awareness Seminars (BIAS). She hopes her research will help propel the positive body image movement, teaching a diversity of people to have healthier relationships with their bodies. Aly bridges her research knowledge with her yoga practice, where as an instructor, she encourages people to appreciate their bodies. View submission
2018	Couse Candace Couse Brock University Candace Couse is a doctoral candidate in interdisciplinary humanities at Brock University. She researches western thought and its relationship with death and dying through autobiographical accounts of illness narratives in visual art; in particular, she is interested in what these works do for the artists and viewers, and for a broader understanding of sickness and health. Also an artist, Candace earned a master of fine arts from the University of Calgary. She brings this experience, and her knowledge of art as a site of entanglement between rhetoric, poetry and event, to her research. Highlights of her practice include being a 2012 prize winner of the international art competition, Premio Arte Laguna, and writing/directing the film Sick/Malade with the National Film Board. View submission
2018	Herrick Shannon Herrick McGill University Shannon Herrick is a master’s candidate in kinesiology at McGill University, and works in the Theories and Interventions in Exercise and Health Psychology Lab. Her work focuses on how the unique intersection between gender identity and sexual orientation influences physical activity experiences. Her research is very much informed by her work with her not-for-profit community group, Queerobics Montreal, which she founded in 2015. Shannon is excited to continue her research in fall 2018 as a PhD candidate, and her work towards inclusive physical activity practices. View submission
2018	Marquis-Manicom John (Jay) Marquis-Manicom Concordia University Final five Jay Marquis-Manicom is a musician and graduate student based in Montréal. He is currently in the second year of a master of arts program in anthropology at Concordia University, from which Jay also holds a bachelor's degree in the same field. Jay's work focuses on using ethnography to map the emergence of the alt-right in Montréal. He also challenges ideas of what anthropology represents, and how it can contribute to the fight for freedom and equality. Some of Jay's other fields of interest include emerging family structures, the cultural impacts of new communications technologies and alternative economics. View submission
2018	Watts Galen Watts Queen’s University Final five Galen Watts is a PhD candidate in the Cultural Studies graduate program at Queen’s University. His doctoral research investigates the beliefs, practices and values of Canadian millennials who identify as spiritual but not religious, and what this means for the future of Canadian society. He earned a bachelor of arts (honours) in philosophy and drama, and a master’s in cultural studies. He has won the Pall Ardal Moral Philosophy Prize and the Alfred Bader Graduate Fellowship in the Humanities at Queen’s University. He has also published in peer reviewed journals, and given presentations at conferences around the world. View submission
2017	Baird Natalie Baird University of Manitoba Natalie Baird is a visual artist and graduate student at the University of Manitoba, where she brings her community arts practice to social-ecological research. Natalie completed her bachelor of environmental sciences degree at the University of Manitoba in 2014. She is an artist-in-residence at the Misericordia Health Centre, as well as the film photography instructor at Art City, facilitating high-quality art programming to people of all ages and abilities. In 2016, Natalie began her master of environment degree at the University of Manitoba, exploring participatory visual methods to document and communicate Inuit traditional knowledge of changing ocean dynamics. View submission
2017	Boulanger Elise Boulanger Vancouver Island University Elise Boulanger is a fourth-year Global Studies student attending Vancouver Island University (VIU), located on the traditional territory of the Snuneymuxw. Before pursuing social sciences, she graduated with a diploma in classical vocal performance, and continues to pursue musical endeavours in the genres of classical, folk, pop and electro-swing. Elise is presently the Social Sciences Faculty Representative at VIU, and enjoys connecting people. She is currently studying food and water security, a topic she is passionate about. View submission
2017	Bryans John Bryans Concordia University John Bryans is an actor and graduate student based in Montréal. He is currently completing his master of arts (sociology) degree in the Sociology and Anthropology Department at Concordia University. He holds a bachelor of kinesiology degree from the University of Manitoba, and is a graduate of George Brown Theatre School. John’s current research draws primarily from the fields of critical obesity, masculinity and performance studies. His work incorporates media and creative arts, employing documentary film and sound art as research tools. John is also a member of the Centre for Sensory Studies at Concordia University. Beginning in April 2017, he will be hosting a new podcast showcasing student research titled “Best, Concordia” in conjunction with the Ethnography Lab at Concordia. View submission
2017	Chalupa Amanda Chalupa McGill University Amanda Chalupa is a PhD student in the Division of Social and Transcultural Psychiatry at McGill University, funded by the Canada Graduate Scholarships to Honour Nelson Mandela. She examines how refugees and migrants rebuild their lives, individually and as communities, and what policies and practices facilitate these processes. Although her academic research focuses on Polish people who had been sent to the gulags as children during WWII, she has also worked with Indigenous communities, Holocaust survivors, school-based programs for Montréal youth, social entrepreneurship, and documentary filmmakers. This research has taken her to five continents, where she has conducted interviews, participated in reunions focused on positive refugee camp experiences and visited the Tanzanian village where her grandparents had been refugees in the 1940s. View submission
2017	Chan Cheryl Chan University of Waterloo Cheryl Chan is a master of environmental studies candidate in the School of Environment, Resources and Sustainability at the University of Waterloo. She is also a member of the Community Conservation Research Network. Cheryl’s research focuses on small-scale fishing communities and the governance of marine protected areas in Jamaica. In particular, she is interested in the tensions between marine conservation initiatives and community well-being. Prior to attending the University of Waterloo, Cheryl was a science teacher. She holds bachelor of education and bachelor of science degrees from Queen’s University. Cheryl is passionate about marine ecosystems, science communication and community engagement in conservation.
2017	Dorland AnneMarie Dorland University of Calgary AnneMarie Dorland is a PhD candidate at the University of Calgary, where she brings together her backgrounds in design, brand strategy and research practices to explore the intersection of innovation in the creative industries and the work practices of cultural producers. Her ethnographic research explores how we can better connect creativity and innovation, and how designers apply and adapt forms of problem-solving and “design thinking” to their work. She has contributed to several international publications, and is passionate about extending and sharing her expertise through her teaching and mentorship roles at the University of Calgary. View submission
2017	DuBois Denise DuBois University of Toronto Denise DuBois is a second-year doctoral candidate at the Rehabilitation Sciences Institute in the Department of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy and the Department of Physical Therapy at the University of Toronto. Prior to beginning her doctoral studies, Denise practiced as an occupational therapist for five years at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, serving adolescents and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). In response to the current developmental sector housing crisis in Ontario, her doctoral thesis will critically examine what makes a home socially inclusive for adults with IDD. Denise has a bachelor of journalism (honours) degree from Carleton University, where she specialized in health and science communication. View submission
2017	Dutilly Audrey Dutilly Université Laval Currently completing a master’s degree in speech therapy at Laval University, Audrey Dutilly began her university training by obtaining a bachelor’s degree in language sciences. During one internship, she was research assistant to Audette Sylvestre, a researcher leading a study aimed at better understanding the links between early childhood parental neglect, language development and children’s school readiness. Audrey’s work focused on the impact of neglect on the development of sounds of speech in three- and four-year-old children. View submission
2017	Fallon Laura Fallon Memorial University of Newfoundland Laura Fallon is currently completing the Masters in Applied Psychological Science program at Memorial University. With an interest in forensic psychology, Laura’s most recent project examined the reliability of research being published in this field. She is also interested in how empirical research can improve the methods by which police officers interview witnesses, victims, and suspects, and the application of forensic psychology research in the real world. Laura has presented her work at national and international conferences, participated in the Three Minute Thesis Competition, and was recently part of the winning team at the 2016 Canadian Evaluation Society Student Case Competition. View submission
2017	Gagné Joseph Gagné Memorial University of Newfoundland Joseph Gagné is a historian originally from Chapleau, Ontario. He obtained a bachelor’s degree at Laurentian University before completing his master’s at Université Laval, where he is currently a PhD candidate. His work focuses on Quebec, Ontario and the United States. Of particular interest to him is the French Regime in the Great Lakes region. His doctoral research is focused on military intelligence during the Seven Years’ War. You can follow his activities on the Curious New France blog at: http://curieusenouvellefrance.blogspot.ca. View submission
2017	Gauthier Andrea Gauthier University of Toronto Andrea Gauthier is a PhD candidate at the University of Toronto’s ScienceVis Lab, where she is researching how “serious” game design can be harnessed to promote learning in medical and life sciences education. Specifically, her thesis investigates how game mechanics can bolster productive negativity to facilitate conceptual change in students who hold deep-rooted misconceptions about the emergent nature of molecular environments. Andrea’s interest in educational gaming stems from her prior studies at the University of Toronto, where she obtained her Master of Science in biomedical communications, and in Scientific and Technical Illustration at Sheridan Institute of Technology, where she obtained her bachelor of applied arts. View submission
2017	Gilchrist Jenna Gilchrist University of Toronto Jenna Gilchrist is a fourth year PhD student at the University of Toronto. Her research explores how emotions regulate behaviour in sport contexts, with a specific emphasis on self-conscious emotions (e.g., pride, shame, guilt). Specifically, she addresses how feelings of pride, both experienced and anticipated, are associated with grit, flourishing and goal-progress among athletes across the lifespan. She is also interested in how self-compassion can help to mitigate negative experiences in sport, including negative body-related emotions among adolescent girls. Jenna’s research is funded by SSHRC. View submission
2017	Gray Allison Gray University of Windsor Final five Allison Gray is a doctoral candidate at the University of Windsor, and is working with the Animal and Interpersonal Abuse Research Group, directed by Amy Fitzgerald. In storytelling format, Allison’s video presents a glimpse of the group’s research on the intersection of violence against women and family pets, with the goal of working with community services to mitigate its effects for both humans and animals. Allison’s other academic interests include green criminology, social harm and food crime. When not reading, Allison can be found playing volleyball and soccer, making a mess in the kitchen and cuddling her rescue animals. View submission
2017	Kantamneni Abhilash Kantamneni University of Guelph Abhilash (Abhi) Kantamneni is a PhD candidate in geography at the University of Guelph. Abhi partners with communities to research the governance and diffusion of energy transitions. His data-driven approach to knowledge mobilization and community engagement have earned him wide recognition, including being named to the “40 Under 40” list by Midwest Energy News as an energy transition leader. Abhi holds a bachelor of science in electrical engineering (Anna University, 2008), a master of science in physics (Michigan Tech, 2013) and a master of science in computer science (Michigan Tech, 2016). View submission
2017	Lapointe-Gagnon Myriam Lapointe-Gagnon Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières Myriam Lapointe-Gagnon is a PhD candidate studying psychology, research and intervention component, at the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières. She has worked as a youth worker in one of Montréal’s most ethnically diverse boroughs. Through engaging, at the grassroots level, with youth who had recently immigrated to Canada, she learned about the fascinating resilience of certain young people to the challenges of immigration. Driven by a genuine desire to understand the resilience of these youth, she invited them to tell their story. Her goal: to develop interventions aimed at guiding and supporting this resilience. View submission
2017	Masson Mimi Masson University of Toronto Final five Myriam Lapointe-Gagnon is a PhD candidate studying psychology, research and intervention component, at the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières. She has worked as a youth worker in one of Montréal’s most ethnically diverse boroughs. Through engaging, at the grassroots level, with youth who had recently immigrated to Canada, she learned about the fascinating resilience of certain young people to the challenges of immigration. Driven by a genuine desire to understand the resilience of these youth, she invited them to tell their story. Her goal: to develop interventions aimed at guiding and supporting this resilience. View submission
2017	Mazurik Kathrina Mazurik University of Saskatchewan Kathrina Mazurik is a PhD candidate at the University of Saskatchewan. Interested in the intersection of family and the transition to adulthood, her SSHRC-funded dissertation explores the experiences of Canadian young adults who live with their parents. Although she works out of the Department of Psychology, Kathrina is always striving to build interdisciplinary bridges between the sociological, anthropological and psychological fields. Her research is guided by a dual aim to situate young people within their sociocultural worlds, and to highlight the creative reconfigurations of family and adulthood across time. View submission
2017	McCardle Meagan McCardle Memorial University of Newfoundland Meagan McCardle is a graduate student at Memorial University of Newfoundland, where she is pursuing her master's degree in experimental psychology. She conducts research in forensic and legal psychology, with a focus on improving youth comprehension of legal rights and youth protection in the criminal justice system. Her research interests also include testing assumptions about human behaviour that underlie Canadian law, juror assessments of witness credibility and human assumptions surrounding deception detection. Meagan hopes her research will lead to lasting changes in the Canadian criminal justice system that increase the protection of youth, and ensure the proper implementation of the law. View submission
2017	Mian Akram Ayesha Mian Akram University of Windsor Final five Ayesha Mian Akram is a doctoral student in sociology at the University of Windsor, where she is conducting research into the sociology of religion. She is a graduate of the University of Alberta, with undergraduate and graduate degrees in education. Her master’s thesis explored the identity experiences of Canadian Muslim women who practice hijab. In 2013, Ayesha was hired as a consultant with the Edmonton Police Service on a project to incorporate the hijab headscarf into the official police uniform. Ayesha has been working as a student researcher with the Closing the Employment Standards Enforcement Gap project since 2015. View submission
2017	Naffi Nadia Naffi Concordia University Final five Nadia Naffi is a PhD candidate in education at Concordia University in Montréal. As part of her work, she studies the role that social media plays in the inclusion and integration of Syrian refugees into host societies. Her research is a first step toward developing recommendations to help representatives of government and non-governmental agencies, social workers and professionals in the education field create learning and training programs focused on the inclusion and integration of newcomers, in a context where the presence of these newcomers is construed through content shared on social media. View submission
2017	Peirone Amy Peirone University of Windsor Amy Peirone is a PhD candidate in the Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Criminology at the University of Windsor. There, she is involved with the Animal and Interpersonal Abuse Research Group and the Health Research Centre for the Study of Violence against Women. Her research interests include intimate partner violence, policing and perceptions of the police, and quantitative research methodologies. View submission
2017	Sharifkhani Ali Sharifkhani University of Toronto Ali Sharifkhani is a PhD candidate in finance at the Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto. His primary research interests lie at the intersection of finance and labour economics. Prior to joining Rotman in 2013, Ali worked at the International Monetary Fund where he was involved in projects investigating the linkages between financial markets and the real economy. He enjoys playing and listening to traditional Iranian music, traveling, and reading history. View submission
2017	Soma Tammara Soma University of Toronto Final five Tammara Soma received a Joseph-Armand Bombardier Canada Graduate Scholarship in 2014, and is also a 2014 Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation doctoral scholar. As a doctoral candidate in urban planning in the Department of Geography and Planning at the University of Toronto, she is the principal investigator and project manager of its Food Systems Lab. Tammara’s research investigates the factors that influence overconsumption and food waste in Bogor, Indonesia. She also blogs for the Huffington Post, and is the co-founder of the International Food Loss and Food Waste Studies Group. View submission
2017	Szto Courtney Szto University of Toronto Courtney Szto en est à la quatrième année du programme de doctorat en communication de la Simon Fraser University. Ses recherches portent sur les liens entre le sport, la citoyenneté et la race. Blogueuse invétérée, elle fait partie des équipes de rédaction des blogues Hockey in Society et Engaging Sports. Dans ses temps libres, elle fait du bénévolat à titre d’ancienne présidente de la section de Vancouver de l’Association canadienne pour les Nations Unies, fournit des services d’entraînement personnalisé à de petits groupes et adore faire de la randonnée tout en prenant des photos. À l’aise au poste d’ailier droit, elle n’aime pas être au centre et se situe dans la moyenne des femmes quand elle joue à la défense. View submission
2017	Wilson Megan Wilson University of Guelph Megan Wilson is a fourth-year undergraduate student studying English and media studies at the University of Guelph. She is also a student research assistant on a project called Privacy Stories, which is supervised by associate professor Mark Lipton. This collaborative, SSHRC-funded research applies transmedia and digital storytelling to learn about young adults' negotiations with digital policy, online privacy and data tracking. Privacy Stories aims to provide Canadians with resources to improve their digital engagement, and protect their data ownership. Megan plans to start her master’s degree at Guelph this September, studying media education and teaching in the digital age. View submission
2016	Bahrami-Rad Duman Bahrami-Rad Simon Fraser University Duman Bahrami-rad is a doctoral candidate at Simon Fraser University. An international student from Iran, Duman studies development economics—most recently, he has been analyzing the interplay between culture, institutions and economics. Duman hopes his research will provide new insights and better understanding on poverty, corruption and conflict in developing countries, leading to more effective evidence-based policy. View submission
2016	Bouchard Élodie Bouchard University of Montreal Final five Élodie Bouchard is a master’s student at the University of Montreal. She began her university studies at the undergraduate level in psychology and sociology, before receiving a degree in sociology. Élodie studies the sociology of the body and sociology of science and technology; more specifically, she is interested in exploring issues related to new reproductive technologies and the reproduction of bodily norms. She also works as a teaching assistant for undergraduate courses offered by her university’s sociology department. View submission
2016	Cheeseman Adam Cheeseman Dalhousie University Dalhousie University’s Adam Cheeseman is pursuing a master’s degree in environmental studies. His research deals with childhood environmental education and learning. Specifically, Adam studies the learning experiences of children in summer camps and other extracurricular educational programs. An avid outdoors enthusiast, Adam enjoys hiking, travelling, fishing and photography, and has worked with a number of organizations promoting healthy childhood development and outdoor time for children. View submission
2016	Cochrane Logan Cochrane The University of British Columbia Vanier scholar Logan Cochrane is a doctoral candidate at The University of British Columbia. His research centres on food security in the developing world, with a particular focus on Ethiopian smallholders. Logan has extensive international work experience, having consulted for clients including Save the Children, Management Sciences for Health, UNICEF and UNAIDS. He was a 2009 nominee for a YMCA Peace Medal, completed a Mitacs project in 2014 and is the 2015 recipient of the Robert M. Netting Award. View submission
2016	Darvin Ron Darvin The University of British Columbia Ron Darvin is a doctoral candidate and Vanier scholar at The University of British Columbia. His research looks at the impact of social class in the development of digital literacy among high school students. A host on Vancouver Coop Radio, Ron has also written a play about the experiences of migrant caregivers and their families. “Waiting” has been performed in schools, helping educators understand the challenges of long-term family separation and reunification. Ron is a co-recipient of the 2016 TESOL Award for Distinguished Research. View submission
2016	Dufour Emanuelle Dufour Concordia University Trained in anthropology and the arts, Emanuelle Dufour holds a master’s degree from the Université de Montréal, with a focus on Aboriginal cultural safety in a postsecondary context. Her research findings have contributed to the establishment of culturally-sensitive services for Aboriginal students at that university. Emanuelle is currently studying for her PhD in the teaching of visual arts at Concordia University, with a view to exploring the potential for subjectivity and encounter in graphic memories. To date, her work has focused on education and intercultural dialogue, drawing on contributions from nearly forty countries. View submission
2016	Farnan Michael Farnan Western University Michael Farnan is a multidisciplinary artist and doctoral candidate at Western University. His research explores Canadian representational history and discourses surrounding colonialism, wilderness, nature and nationhood. Michael’s work employs humour, parody and collaboration as tools for critical inquiry and reflection on how we think about relationships to nature. Michael’s final dissertation exhibition opens June 3, 2016, at Western’s McIntosh Gallery. View submission
2016	Fortie Ryland Fortie Thompson Rivers University Ryland Fortie studies visual arts at Thompson Rivers University. His artistic practice covers a wide range of interests, from perceptual tools and light-based artwork—such as the camera obscura—to online media. Ryland’s work has been exhibited in public and artist-run galleries in Dawson City, Kamloops, Salmon Arm and Vancouver. View submission
2016	Gauthier Rachelle Gauthier Université de Moncton A native of Prince Edward Island, Rachelle Gauthier received her bachelor’s degree in education from the Université de Moncton. She was a teacher with Prince Edward Island’s French-language school board for five years before beginning her graduate studies at the University of Prince Edward Island. After obtaining her master’s degree, she worked as principal of a French-language school in a Francophone-minority community for 12 years. Rachelle is currently on leave from her job to work on her PhD in Education at the Université de Moncton. Her interests include identity-building in Francophone minority communities and francization. View submission
2016	Gurman Elissa Gurman University of Toronto Final five Elissa Gurman is a doctoral candidate at the University of Toronto. Her research looks at British and American realist novels from 1860 to 1918, focusing on representations of women in love and problems of consent. Elissa currently serves as president of the Association of Canadian College and University Teachers of English Graduate Student Caucus. Her work was recently featured on CBC Radio’s “Ideas from the Trenches.” View submission
2016	Hobson Nicholas Hobson University of Toronto Nicholas Hobson is completing his doctorate at the University of Toronto’s Laboratory for Social Neuroscience. His primary research focus is the psychological and neural bases of ritual. Using an array of different methodologies (including behavioural and neurophysiological experiments, survey reports and big data), Nicholas is working to better understand how (and why) these ancient and universal behaviours are formed in the mind and brain. He has published widely in a number of top psychology and neuroscience journals. View submission
2016	Jacques Olivier Jacques McGill University A PhD candidate studying architectural theory at McGill University, Olivier Jacques obtained a double master’s degree (MArch and MSc) from Université Laval in 2011. He studied at the École nationale de génie civil in Hanoi in 2005. Olivier returned to Vietnam several times to conduct field research, in particular for the Hanoi Youth Public Space project, funded by SSHRC and completed in 2015. In 2010, he was awarded the Japanese government’s Monbukagakusho Scholarship to study industrial design at the Tama Art University. Olivier is a full-time architectural consultant for Montreal-based Architecture Microclimat. View submission
2016	Khan Fatima (Noori) Khan University of Waterloo Passionate about the environment, Fatima (Noori) is pursuing a master’s of environmental studies at the University of Waterloo. Noori’s research is based along India’s east coast. As part of a collaborative research team, she studies how environmental changes are understood by those directly affected in coastal communities—rural women in particular. Through her work, Noori hopes to illuminate complex socio-ecological and cultural systems, exploring narrative histories of human interaction with natural resources and empowering locals as agents of change. View submission
2016	MacKinnon Kinnon MacKinnon University of Toronto Kinnon Ross MacKinnon is an academic, activist and athlete. He is a PhD student in public health at the University of Toronto, where he applies social theory to understand issues affecting the health and well-being of LGBTQ people. Kinnon is an award-winning, openly transgender powerlifter, taking home a gold medal at the 2014 Gay Games in Cleveland, Ohio. View submission
2016	Mills Kelly Mills University of Toronto Kelly Mills completed a bachelor’s degree in neuroscience at the University of Lethbridge before entering the University of Saskatchewan’s counselling psychology program. Kelly studies how older adult members of a writing group experience the practice of creating and sharing their work. Through her research, she aims to better understand how creative communities impact individuals in later life. Kelly aspires to become a psychologist in a community-based setting, and regularly participates at open mic poetry events. View submission
2016	Mobley Erin Mobley Memorial University of Newfoundland Erin Mobley is a master’s student pursuing gender studies at Memorial University of Newfoundland. Her research explores “safe” spaces in the narratives of young, trans-identified and non-binary people. Through her work, Erin aims to expand our understanding of safe space and to explore how schools can (and should) do better in creating comfortable and affirming spaces for trans- youth. Other areas of interest include community building, affordable housing and food security. View submission
2016	Moore Shelley Moore The University of British Columbia Final five Shelley Moore’s research integrates inclusive education, special education, curriculum and teacher professional development. Based in Vancouver, The University of British Columbia doctoral candidate is particularly interested in how students with developmental or intellectual disabilities can meaningfully participate, while also contributing to the learning of their peers. Shelley has presented at a number of conferences throughout North America. View submission
2016	Rodas Tara Rodas The University of British Columbia Tara is master’s student at The University of British Columbia. She works in the area of special education, with a particular focus on developing and analyzing teaching strategies for individuals with autism and developmental disabilities, training for instructors and parents, and positive behaviour support. Tara is an experienced service provider for people with autism, having worked in home, school, sports and recreational settings. View submission
2016	Sanger William Sanger Polytechnique Montréal A PhD candidate at Polytechnique Montréal, William Sanger is responsible for the big data project within the Strategy and International Economy Group at CIRANO. Having obtained a bachelor’s degree in biomedical engineering from Polytechnique Montréal, William’s research focuses on big data. He was a co-recipient of the Discovery Award at the 2013 FinTech Montréal Forum. For his master’s degree, he developed an application for processing information contained in financial postings on social media, winning the Relève universitaire award at the 2014 FinTech Forum. William sits on the Board of Directors of PolyFinances. He is particularly interested in the linkages between big data and democracy. View submission
2016	Tan Tanya Tan Ryerson University Tanya Tan est étudiante à la maîtrise au programme de littérature de la modernité de la Ryerson University. Si l’écriture et le récit créatif la passionnent, elle s’intéresse également à l’étude du courant artistique des performances, aux études de genre, à la théorie des médias et aux humanités numériques. Auxiliaire de recherche à la Ryerson University, elle travaille aussi comme rédactrice-réviseure pigiste. Bien qu’elle habite Toronto, Tanya considère encore Vancouver comme son chez-soi. View submission
2016	Tremblay Karl-Philippe Tremblay Université du Québec à Montréal Since obtaining an undergraduate degree in secondary education from Université de Québec à Montréal in 2013, Karl-Philippe Tremblay has been enrolled in a mathematics education graduate program. He works at the university’s Laboratoire Épistémologie et Activité Mathématique where he is learning about the multiple dimensions of mathematics and developing his mathematics education research skills. The projects conducted at the lab focus on rethinking the construction of mathematical knowledge, the nature of mathematical knowledge itself, and learning and problem-solving processes. Participants in these projects are continually rethinking the teaching of mathematics through these multiple lenses. View submission
2016	Vossen Emma Vossen The University of Waterloo Final five University of Waterloo doctoral candidate Emma Vossen is currently writing a dissertation examining the accessibility of games and games culture to girls and women. She is editor-in-chief of the game studies publication First Person Scholar, and co-founder of UWaterloo’s women’s video games advocacy group the Games Institute Janes (GI Janes). Emma has published widely on games, games culture and pop culture, including pieces on The Walking Dead, Fifty Shades of Grey and the fetish art of Superman co-creator Joe Shuster. View submission
2016	Weller Jon Weller University of Victoria Jon Weller is a master’s candidate in history at the University of Victoria, where he studies land management in the southern Gulf Islands. Through his research, Jon hopes to contribute to the challenges of developing dynamic and constructive ways of seeing, acting and responding to global challenges. In particular, his work is concerned with encouraging broad ownership, together with a deeper connection and greater democratic participation in the places where we live. View submission
2016	Wereley Ian Wereley Carleton University Final five A doctoral candidate at Carleton University, Ian Wereley also serves as managing director of the Journal of the Canadian Historical Association. He studies energy transitions and the cultural history of oil. Ian’s dissertation explores Britain’s transition from coal to oil power, reconstructing the attitudes and experiences of early twentieth century Britons in the process of becoming modern oil consumers. Through his research, Ian seeks to demonstrate how these histories offer contemporary petro-societies important lessons, particularly in their efforts to transition away from oil. View submission
2016	Woolner Leah Woolner McGill University Currently completing a master’s degree at McGill University, Leah Woolner also works at the university’s Centre for Research on Children, War, Violence and Arts-based Technologies (CREATE). Her research interests include LGBTQ forced migrants, gendered labour migration and arts-based interventions for war-affected populations. Leah is an executive committee member of PINAY, a Montreal-based, grassroots community organization for migrant and immigrant Filipino women and domestic workers. View submission
2015	Boschmann Kathryn Boschmann Carleton University Second-year master’s student Kathryn Boschmann studies history at Carleton University. Her research interests include identity negotiation, performance, conceptualisations of place, and the potential of digital history. Her current work explores oral history interviews she conducted in 2014, when Kathryn spoke with first-generation Irish Canadians living in Winnipeg. These interviews form the backbone of her graduate project: a series of online exhibits complementing each thesis chapter and sharing her findings with the public. View submission
2015	Bushey Jessica Bushey The University of British Columbia Vancouver’s Jessica Bushey studies contemporary photographic practices involving mobile devices and social media platforms. The University of British Columbia doctoral candidate focuses on issues of access to personal digital archives and the preservation of trustworthy digital photographs. Jessica currently works with the InterPARES Trust Project and the Law of Evidence in the Digital Environment Project. In addition publishing in peer-reviewed journals, Jessica is engaged in a collaborative art practice with Cam Andrews. View submission
2015	Crucil Courtenay Crucil The University of British Columbia Nanaimo native Courtenay Crucil engages with her community in roles ranging from advocate to researcher, counsellor to gardener. The University of British Columbia graduate student is completing her master’s degree, focusing on the integration of social justice into counselling psychology practice. Courtenay’s research interests include community psychology and resilience, social justice, and counselling psychology. When not at her practicum site or conducting research, she enjoys gardening, cycling and exploring B.C.’s coastal mountains. View submission
2015	Desbiens Viviane Desbiens Université Laval Abitibi’s Viviane Desbiens studies educational psychology at Université Laval. A decade working in science education for scientific literacy organizations led Viviane to further explore what motivates young people towards the sciences. As part of her master’s degree research, she looks at using extracurricular activities to make scientific culture more accessible for students. Viviane is currently busy dividing her time between her research and her responsibilities as a new parent. View submission
2015	Devasagayam Naveen Devasagayam University of Toronto Final five Naveen Devasagayam studies biomedical communications at the University of Toronto. His master’s research explores using 3D animation to visually display complex concepts in molecular biology. Naveen hopes to spark new discussion on educational design and teaching strategies. His current work focuses on using animation to better present complex, dynamic molecular processes. A biomedical illustrator, Naveen has also produced an educational animation for liver donors at Toronto General Hospital. View submission
2015	Dufour Emilie Dufour HEC Montréal Émilie Dufour hails from Chibougamau, a small mining town in northern Quebec. She studied journalism and environmental geography before moving on to a master’s in international logistics at HEC Montréal. Émilie’s thesis project, developed with the World Food Programme, focuses on the implementation of humanitarian aid depots in East Africa. Passionate about research and humanitarian logistics, Émilie, a mother of two, is actively involved in her community, most notably as an advocate for housing rights and food security. View submission
2015	Elchuk Tanya Elchuk York University Final five Writer and theatre artist Tanya Elchuk recently received her MFA in theatre from York University. Her CGS-funded research explores performance itself: specifically, her studies explore how an actor’s work as a performer may be influenced by theories of embodiment and “psychophysical” acting. Tanya also looks at ways to apply her research findings to therapeutic and educational contexts. Her most recent play—Heartsong and Other Ways to Say I Love You—premieres in Toronto July 2015. View submission
2015	Franks Kristine Franks Concordia University Concordia University master’s student Kristy Franks studies water worldviews. She works with James Bay Cree youth in northern Quebec, exploring their potential contributions to water education and the promotion of respectful relationships and sustainable water-related practices. Kristy co-founded Canal bleu, a local coalition engaged in the stewardship of Montreal’s Lachine Canal. At the UN Rio+20 Earth Summit, Kristy served as a global representative for Canadian youth. View submission
2015	Funk Carla Funk Royal Roads University Royal Roads University’s Carla Funk is a social sciences doctoral candidate. Her research examines private giving and the impact that wealthy philanthropic leaders have on development aid. Carla has lived and worked in Ethiopia, managing a program feeding hundreds of thousands of refugees, in Zimbabwe on food security and education-related projects, and in Switzerland for a private family foundation supporting education for poverty-stricken South African and Eastern European populations. In B.C., she has provided management and capacity building expertise to environmental, health research, arts, children and First Nations not-for-profit organizations. View submission
2015	Gallagher Bryan Gallagher Simon Fraser University Final five Bryan Gallagher is an experienced and capable advisor, educator and scholar focusing on indigenous entrepreneurship and economic development. Bryan recently completed a PhD in philosophy of management at Simon Fraser University’s Beedie School of Business. His research focuses on how entrepreneurship can strengthen indigenous identity and culture, and how indigenous entrepreneurs integrate identity and culture into their businesses. He currently lectures in SFU’s Executive MBA program in Aboriginal Business and Leadership. View submission
2015	Harvey Alexandre Harvey Université de Montréal Saguenay, Quebec’s Alexandre Harvey is a graduate student at the Université de Montréal. Alexandre’s strong interest in political institutions and science drives his current research in public policy. He is particularly focused on issues related to energy policy, expertise and government decision making. Following his master’s studies and a host of enriching experiences—including a one-year internship at the National Assembly and an exciting research assistantship—Alexandre will continue on to pursue his PhD. View submission
2015	Howe Holly Howe University of Toronto University of Toronto master’s student Holly Howe studies exercise physiology under the supervision of kinesiology professor Catherine Sabiston. Her research centres on how stereotypes, both positive and negative, impact women’s weight training. Holly also works on projects aimed at increasing overall mental wellbeing through exercise. While completing her undergraduate degree, Holly conducted an innovative exercise intervention for women with generalized anxiety disorder. View submission
2015	King JP King OCAD University Jp King is Toronto-based artist, teacher, designer and scholar. Currently completing an interdisciplinary master’s degree at OCAD University, Jp was a founding force behind the Journal of Disposability and Ex-possession, a publication dedicated to systematically questioning society's relationship with discarded matter. Jp also operates the experimental publishing lab Paper Pusher, sits on the Board of Directors at Art Metropole and was named one of Canada's Top 30 Under 30 Artists by Blouin ArtInfo in 2012. His social sculpture projects have been installed at the Art Gallery of York University, Whippersnapper Gallery and Xpace, among others. View submission
2015	Lisaingo Simon Lisaingo The University of British Columbia Final five Simon Lisaingo is a master’s student at The University of British Columbia. While teaching in rural Yukon schools, Simon discovered an interest in exploring how the field of psychology could be better applied to the classroom. He hopes to use his classroom experiences to better inform his research in school psychology. Simon aims to identify new ways to help students overcome challenges they face at school and at home. When not at school or at work, Simon is an avid soccer player. View submission
2015	Liu Lingfei Liu McGill University McGill University’s Lingfei Liu is completing his master’s degree in architecture. Immigrating to Canada when he was nine, Lingfei has long been fascinated by the phenomenon of urban transformation. Recent research interests include instances of urban decay and regeneration. He is deeply engaged in exploring new and innovative tools and modes for observing, exploring and projecting ideas. View submission
2015	McCullough Glenn McCullough University of Toronto As an undergraduate, Glenn McCullough noticed religion was at the heart of culture and history, but that most scholars were not paying it significant attention. Now a doctoral student in theology at Knox College, University of Toronto, Glenn is doing SSHRC-funded research that explores modern psychology’s religious roots. He is tracing the idea of the “unconscious mind” back to mystics, and looking at how dreams and their interpretation have shaped western history. Glenn lives in Toronto with his wife, Rachel, and son, Cole. View submission
2015	Payton Jonathan Payton University of Toronto Before coming to the University of Toronto, Jonathan Payton received an Honours BA in philosophy from York University and an MA in philosophy from Dalhousie University. His current research interests are mostly in the philosophy of action and metaphysics. He is writing a dissertation on the problem of accommodating actions considered “negative” (such as omissions and refrainments) within standard metaphysical theories of agency. When not philosophizing, Jonathan can be found spending time with his fiancé and their cats. View submission
2015	Pekic Alexander Pekic Ryerson University A master’s candidate in Ryerson University’s immigration and settlement studies program, Alexander Pekic’s current research focuses on the theoretical evolution of Toronto's Sanctuary City policy. A researcher with the Landscapes of Injustice project's Oral History Cluster, and the Ryerson Centre for Immigration and Settlement, Alexander holds a BA and MA from the University of Toronto. His previous positions include work at India’s Centre for Development and Human Rights in New Delhi, Elections Ontario and Statistics Canada. View submission
2015	Prime Heather Prime University of Toronto Final five Heather Prime is completing her PhD in school and clinical child psychology. She researches patterns of interaction in families, and their impact on children’s social, emotional and mental development. Heather has worked at institutions including the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Hincks-Dellcrest Centre, and Toronto District School Board, to support mental health in children and their families. Interested in teaching and public health, she has worked with George Brown College and the Atkinson Centre to promote translating research into policy and practice. View submission
2015	Raber Caylee Raber Emily Carr University of Art and Design Caylee Raber is a master’s of design candidate at the Emily Carr University of Art and Design. Her thesis project explores integrating design into K-12 classrooms to help students learn and to foster creative problem-solving skills. Her research involved more than 100 students in 11 different classrooms at a school for children with learning differences. This project led to design-based learning resources for teachers and a proposed coaching model for teacher training. Caylee is passionate about the role design can play in addressing contemporary social challenges. View submission
2015	Rocchi Meredith Rocchi University of Ottawa Graduate student Meredith Rocchi studies experimental psychology at the University of Ottawa. Working as a member of Luc Pelletier’s Human Motivation Research Laboratory, Meredith is interested in researching the motivational processes of sport coaches. Other research interests include examining coach-athlete relationships, parents' roles in youth sport and sources of motivation for healthy behaviour. Meredith is actively involved in the figure skating community as both a coach and athlete. View submission
2015	Ruiz-Serna Daniel Ruiz-Serna McGill University Daniel Ruiz-Serna is a PhD candidate in anthropology at McGill University. Daniel has worked with indigenous and Afro-Colombian organizations engaged in the enforcement of rights and the expansion of democracy in Chocó, a region with one of the lowest standards of living and highest level of human rights violations in Colombia. Daniel’s research focuses on extractive economies and political violence—specifically, with how they shape the relationship between people and the surrounding environment. He has also been involved in the Agape for Colombia Foundation, a program helping former child soldiers while raising awareness among Canadians. View submission
2015	Siddall Erica Siddall Ottawa University Originally from Winnipeg, Erica Siddall is a master’s student in social work at the University of Ottawa. Her research focuses on the plight of female Aboriginal victims of conjugal violence. By examining the nature and effectiveness of the interventions carried out by Caucasian frontline workers, Erica looks for ways to improve the quality of services offered to these women and their families. View submission
2015	Smee Joshua Smee Memorial University of Newfoundland A graduate student and community development worker in St. John’s, NL, Joshua Smee studies political science at Memorial University of Newfoundland. His master’s research looks at how the built environment shapes the social and political engagement of citizens. As a project associate at the Community Sector Council NL, Josh works to support not-for-profit organizations across the province. In St. John’s, Josh chairs the boards of the thriving St. John’s Farmers’ Market cooperative and the advocacy organization Happy City St. John’s. He is also helping to build a new car-sharing cooperative. View submission
2015	Zyfi Jona Zyfi Ryerson University Ryerson University student Jona Zyfi studies criminology. She intends to pursue a master’s degree with a research focus on migrant and refugee rights. Jona is particularly interested in the relationship between securitization and human rights in domestic and international jurisprudence. Jona has worked with multiple organizations abroad and in Toronto, including the Red Cross and Red Crescent societies and the Ontario Justice Educative Network. She currently sits on the executive board of the Canadian Association of Refugees and Forced Migration Studies (CARMFS). She is also the CARFMS Conference Coordinator. View submission
2014	Abdi Klara Abdi The University of British Columbia A PhD candidate in the department of language and literacy education at The University of British Columbia, Klara Abdi studies how transnational movement impacts the educational experiences, worldviews and multilingual socialization of Chinese-Canadian children and their families. Klara’s research was inspired by the experiences of her own children living in China for four years. Originally from Prague, Czech Republic, her love of languages led her to study six languages and become a French, Spanish and English as a second language teacher. Supported by a doctoral Canada Graduate Scholarship, Klara is interested in the language development and identity construction of multilingual children. She examined Canadian youth with Hispanic backgrounds learning Spanish as part of her SSHRC-funded master’s research. Klara has a passion for travel and wants her children to grow up with the broad perspective that comes from living abroad. View submission
2014	Barbeau Audrey-Kristel Barbeau McGill University Audrey-Kristel Barbeau has both a bachelor’s (UQAM) and a master’s (McGill) degree in music education. Her research focuses on the effects that playing a musical instrumental have on people’s health. Since the beginning of her doctoral studies, she has been studying how active participation in music affects the health of seniors (especially with respect to quality of life, anxiety, depression, respiratory function and blood pressure). She is also interested in how performing in a concert can impact the stress levels of amateur musicians aged 60 and over. Audrey-Kristel is currently working at McGill as a teaching assistant in the instrumental conducting course and frequently replaces the lead instructor in the basic conducting course. She is the founder and musical director of the Montreal New Horizons Band, a bilingual and intergenerational ensemble for adults who are learning to play an instrument. View submission
2014	Hollingdale Hazel Hollingdale The University of British Columbia Hazel Hollingdale is a doctoral candidate in sociology at The University of British Columbia. Focusing on risk-taking behaviour and masculinity within male-dominated organizations, her research explores organizational sociology, gender and the effects of organizational structures on social processes and inequality. Her PhD research tests the Lehman Sisters hypothesis, examining whether risk-taking in financial firms varies based on the sex composition of the workforce. Hazel’s earlier graduate research looked at the organizational response to occupational health and safety in high-risk, male-dominated fields. View submission
2014	Jacobson-Konefall Jessica Jacobson-Konefall Queen's University A doctoral candidate in cultural studies at Queen’s University and visiting associate at the University of Manitoba’s Centre for Globalization and Cultural Studies, Jessica Jacobson-Konefall's research focuses on how First Nations new media art shapes and defies concepts of civic space and related notions of identity and community in Winnipeg, MB. Jessica is currently digitizing the archived holdings of a contemporary aboriginal art gallery to support the development of the educational, interactive website ArtCan.ca—part of the University of Toronto’s CACHET (Canadian Art Commons for History of Art Education and Training) initiative. As a researcher for Diana Brydon, Canada Research Chair in Globalization and Cultural Studies, Jessica is working with Brazilian scholars on contemporary, indigenous, audio-visual aesthetics in both North and South America. View submission
2014	Katz-Rosene Ryan Katz-Rosene Carleton University A doctoral candidate in political economy at Carleton University, Ryan Katz-Rosene studies the ecological political economies of Canada’s energy and transportation infrastructure. He obtained his bachelor’s degree in political studies and history at Trent University and his master’s degree in political economy at Carleton University. Ryan enjoys playing competitive ultimate frisbee and playing music during increasingly rare “moments of leisure.” He lives on a farm in Cantley, QC, with his wife and daughter (along with pigs, chickens, sheep and a dog). View submission
2014	Stork Matthew Stork McMaster University Matthew Stork is pursuing his master’s degree at McMaster University. His research examines the role played by self-control in first-year university students in terms of their ability to succeed, both socially and academically. He intends to apply his research to develop and implement specialized training programs to enhance students’ learning, studying, social habits, and overall academic performance. A former strength and conditioning coach and sport medicine therapist at McMaster, Matthew has mentored numerous undergraduate students, helping them grow as students, athletes, coaches and therapists. He is also a teaching assistant and the co-ordinator for undergraduate volunteers in his lab. View submission
2014	Vesely Ashley Vesely Western University Ashley Vesely is a doctoral candidate studying clinical psychology at Western University. She completed her Master of Science at the University of Calgary in 2011, and moved to Ontario to continue working under the supervision of Western’s Donald Saklofske. In addition to her clinical work in youth and adult mental health, Ashley is involved in a range of research initiatives, including studies looking at theoretical constructs of emotional intelligence, stress, well-being and resilience. Her dissertation examines a group of pre-service student teachers, to identify potentially beneficial factors—like emotional intelligence—that might aid teacher well-being and classroom performance. A triathlete and member of a chamber choir, Ashley is active in promoting mental health awareness. View submission
2014	Petzinger Genevieve von Petzinger University of Victoria A doctoral candidate in the University of Victoria’s department of anthropology, Genevieve von Petzinger studies European Ice Age rock art, with a particular focus on how the appearance and practice of geometric imagery could provide insights into the cognitive evolution of modern humans. Genevieve is also interested in the development of early graphic communication, and in the potential of using these abstract markings to track migration patterns and cultural exchange during this period. Her current project involves documenting geometric signs at under-studied sites in France, Spain and Portugal. Named a TED Senior Fellow in 2013, Genevieve has appeared on the Discovery Channel's Daily Planet, and her research has twice been featured in New Scientist. She will also be the subject of upcoming pieces on CBC's The National and Radio-Canada’s Les Années Lumière. View submission
2014	Westlake Bryce Westlake Simon Fraser University Bryce Westlake is a doctoral candidate studying criminology at Simon Fraser University. As the university’s International Cybercrime Research Centre’s research co-ordinator, he oversees projects tackling online child exploitation. His past research has examined the structure of child exploitation website networks (CEWN), finding key players and determining the best methods for identifying exploitative content. With his colleagues, Bryce is exploring the evolution of CEWN to better understand why they succeed or fail, and to track the tactics they use to avoid detection by law enforcement. Bryce plans to expand his future research to include the “dark web.” View submission
2014	Zakharova Maria Zakharova Simon Fraser University A doctoral candidate in political science at Simon Fraser University, Maria Zakharova is particularly interested in party politics, voting behavior and comparative politics. Her main research focus is on party or candidate valence: those qualities or criteria unrelated to policy—such as leader charisma, perceived competence and party integrity—by which voters evaluate parties and candidates. Maria’s research looks at the sources for these subjective judgments, how they might be measured across countries and elections, and their potential impact on electoral outcomes and government formation. She is also interested in Canadian politics and in methodology in political science. View submission
2014	Kuruc Katarina Kuruc Carleton University Katarina Kuruc is a doctoral candidate at Carleton University’s School of Journalism and Communication. She immigrated to Canada from the former Communist Czechoslovakia in the late 1980s, and her personal experience of living in a Communist state, together with her exposure to its limited fashion industry, informs her research. Katarina’s research studies the importance of fashion as a form of visual communication in otherwise restrictive social systems. Her other research interests include visual communication, material culture and semiotics. In addition to her graduate studies, Katarina is an avid traveller, photographer, fashion blogger and devoted Pinterest fan. View submission
2014	Mager Alanna Mager Ryerson University Alanna Mager is a master's student in Ryerson University’s School of Professional Communication. A Torontonian with a background in English literature, print publishing and journalism, Alanna, as part of her graduate research, has shifted her focus from analog to digital. Her graduate research focuses on cross-platform, brand storytelling. Informed by narrative, transmedia and marketing discourses, her project aims to establish a new model for creating digital engaging content that communicates brand narrative across platforms. With this focus on storytelling, Alanna hopes to help organizations better promote their work through creative, shareable audio, visual and written content. View submission
2014	Manson Daniel Manson The University of British Columbia Daniel is a doctoral candidate studying anthropology at The University of British Columbia. He is currently interested in the politics of migrant illegality, and the ongoing deportation of Roma migrants from France. Daniel’s dissertation examines how the practice of deportation—and the requisite labelling of some migrants as “illegal”—creates spatial and social boundaries by removing undesirable individuals. Daniel’s ethnographic research focuses on the everyday, lived experiences of Romanian Roma migrant youth living in a number of illegal settlements, and one state-sanctioned site, in Strasbourg, France. View submission
2014	Mathews Justin Mathews Queen’s University An undergraduate student studying political science at Queen’s University, Justin Mathews is news director for Queen's TV, the student-run, campus news station. Justin is also a research assistant for postdoctoral fellow Heather Bastedo, contributing to her ongoing study of the representative work of parliamentarians, both in their local ridings and on Parliament Hill. He was also a recent panelist on TVO’s The Agenda with Steve Paikin. Justin’s interests include Canadian politics, political communication, media and journalism, the role of social media in politics and youth participation. View submission
2014	Perry Bernadette Perry University of Victoria Bernadette Perry is pursuing a master’s degree in the University of Victoria’s French studies program. Specializing in applied linguistics, she is currently studying the “gamification” of second-language acquisition. Her research consists of developing Explorez, a quest-based, French language learning tool. After incorporating this system into a first-year French course at the university, Bernadette will analyze the data collected on student engagement, participation and language acquisition to determine how effective the tool is as a teaching aid. View submission
2014	McEwen Annie McEwen Carleton University Annie McEwen is a doctoral candidate at Carleton University’s School of Public Policy and Administration. Her research interests involve social policy, poverty and inequality, with a particular focus on child and family policy. In her dissertation, she is using data from the National Longitudinal Survey on Children and Youth to explore the effects income levels have on child development and well-being. Her aim is to inform evidence-based public policy to reduce childhood inequality. A former policy analyst with the federal public service, Annie holds a master’s in public policy and administration from the London School of Economics. She began her doctoral studies at the University of Oxford’s department of social policy and intervention. View submission
2014	McKerracher Luseadra McKerracher Simon Fraser University Victoria, British Columbia’s Luseadra McKerracher is a doctoral candidate at Simon Fraser University, working in the university’s human evolutionary studies program. Luseadra’s research addresses how evolutionary ecological methods and theory are applied to contemporary public health issues. Her doctoral dissertation focuses on weaning among humans: unlike other apes, humans begin weaning their infants from breast milk well before those infants are capable of foraging for, processing or digesting adult foods without assistance. Luseadra investigates when and why we switched from an ape-like weaning strategy to the relatively early weaning strategy that characterizes all contemporary human populations. In addition to her doctoral research, Luseadra is also collaborating on a project studying diet during pregnancy among Fijian women. View submission
2014	Nafte Myriam Nafte McMaster University Myriam Nafte is currently completing her PhD at McMaster University’s anthropology department. After receiving an MA in physical anthropology from McMaster in 1993, she worked in forensic anthropology, combining this with advanced studies in visual art, sculpture and anatomical drawing. For the past 20 years, Myriam has focused her art and research on the human body. She has developed a particular interest in how different cultures process human remains for display as art objects, relics and specimens. From early tribal customs through to medical and religious practices and contemporary art scenes, Myriam explores the notion of the body as material culture through its transition from cadaver to an object of power, identity, art and ideology. View submission
2014	Pickerill Kelly Pickerill Dalhousie University A master’s student at Dalhousie University, Kelly Pickerill studies international development. Her current research examines the participation of women in transactional sex practices in East Africa’s Lake Victoria fishing communities, as well as how these practices impact fisher livelihoods. Kelly is also looking at small-scale agriculture in East African communities. Currently a teaching and research assistant at Dalhousie, she has also worked abroad, both with a Ugandan-based agricultural non-governmental organization and a women’s social entrepreneurship program. View submission
2014	Smith Alison Smith Université de Montréal Alison Smith is a doctoral candidate pursuing studies in political science at the Université de Montréal. Her main research interests are Canadian politics, urban governance and social protection. Alison holds an Master of arts degree from The University of British Columbia, and spent a year working on Parliament Hill through the non-partisan Parliamentary Internship Programme. Inspired by her experience volunteering at a shelter in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, Alison has focused her doctoral work on a broad comparative study of local responses to homelessness in Canada, with the goal of contributing to a broader understanding of its causes and potential solutions. Alison is the Canadian and Quebec politics editor for Politikos, the Université de Montréal’s undergraduate student journal. View submission
2014	MacEwan Robin MacEwan Carleton University Final five Originally from Quesnel, British Columbia, Carleton University’s Robin MacEwan is completing a master’s degree in social work. After graduating from The University of British Columbia-Okanagan (UBC-Okanagan) in 2009, Robin began working with vulnerable children and youth in the foster-care system. This experience inspired her research interest in social support networks for youth raised in foster care. Robin hopes to use the findings from her research to improve policies and support programs in place for these young people. In Robin's downtime, she enjoys snowboarding, reading fiction, travelling and all things culinary. She thanks her research supervisor, Adje Van de Sande, for his ongoing support of this project, and UBC-Okanagan professors Patricia Tomic and Ricardo Trumper for cultivating her ability to think critically about social problems. View submission
2014	Muthukrishna Michael Muthukrishna The University of British Columbia Final five A doctoral candidate at The University of British Columbia (UBC), Michael Muthukrishna studies the psychological and evolutionary processes underlying culture, including how culture is transmitted, maintained and modified. Michael’s research combines mathematical and computational modelling, as well as experimental psychology, to better understand the dynamic relationship between cultures and individuals. A Vanier scholar and Liu scholar originally from Brisbane, Australia, and technical director for UBC’s Database of Cultural History, Michael is interested in applying cultural evolution research to public policy. His work explores how cultures emerge over time from the interactions of individuals, who are, in turn, shaped by the emerging cultures they help constitute. View submission
2014	O'Callaghan James O'Callaghan McGill University Final five James O’Callaghan is an award-winning composer and sound artist based in Montreal. His music intersects acoustic and electro-acoustic media, employing field recordings, computer-assisted transcription of environmental sounds, and unique performance conditions. In 2014, his Isomorphia—a composition for orchestra and electronics—was nominated for a Juno Award for Classical Composition of the Year. The work was the result of a commission from the National Youth Orchestra of Canada, with which James was composer-in-residence in 2012-13. James’ music has been performed across North America and Europe, as well as in New Zealand and Japan, while his artistic research has been published and presented internationally. In 2014, James received a master’s in music in composition from McGill University, where he also taught a course in electro-acoustic composition. View submission
2014	Sekharan Vineeth Sekharan York University Final five Vineeth Sekharan is an undergraduate psychology major at York University. Interested in helping empower young people who have been unfairly stereotyped, Vineeth became involved with the Assets Coming Together for Youth (ACT) project in 2013. His role at ACT involves documentation, youth mentorship and creative dissemination of research findings. Vineeth’s research interests include epidemiology, theories of power and persuasion (including the power of the situation), and the elimination of barriers to accessing vital services like health-care and education. View submission
2014	Steckley Marylynn Steckley Western University Final five A doctoral candidate studying geography at Western University, Marylynn Steckley is interested in the ecological and sociological impacts of the idiom “you are what you eat.” Marylynn studies how the pursuit of greater social status through conspicuous consumption of luxury foods and delicacies can shape food systems in ways that reproduce poverty and facilitate ecological destruction. Despite this, she argues that food systems and eating practices can potentially also be emancipatory. Her current research investigates local responses in rural Haiti to encroachment by the global food market—specifically, how peasant resistance manifests in dietary choices and farming practices. Marylynn has also conducted field research in Cambodia, Indonesia, Thailand and Haiti. View submission
2013	Luther Kirk Luther Memorial University of Newfoundland Final five Pursuing his master’s in forensic psychology at Memorial University of Newfoundland, Kirk Luther is deeply committed to finding innovative ways of protecting vulnerable populations. Supported by a Canada Graduate Scholarship, Luther’s submission—a video profiling his project, Creating a Better Tomorrow: Protecting Youth’s Legal Rights—integrates music, text and strong imagery to frame his research as a call to action: vibrant, immediate and compelling. A member of the university’s Psychology and Law Lab, Luther’s work—and that of his colleagues—is contributing to the advancement of scientific literacy within the criminal justice system. View submission
2013	Maddison-MacFadyen Margot Maddison-MacFadyen Memorial University of Newfoundland A doctoral candidate in the interdisciplinary PhD program at Memorial University of Newfoundland, Margot Maddison-MacFadyen’s research investigates and authenticates the historical dimensions of the enslavement narrative, The History of Mary Prince, A West Indian Slave, Related by Herself. As a research assistant for the Insight Grant-funded Nin Tshaukuesh: The Diaries of Elizabeth Penashue, Maddison-MacFadyen captures the haunting, compelling quality of prominent Innu elder Tshaukuesh’s diaries. Her text-based submission emphasizes the innovative approach of the collaborative team as an example of original, ethical and progressive scholarship. A doctoral candidate in the interdisciplinary PhD program at Memorial University of Newfoundland, Margot Maddison-MacFadyen’s research investigates and authenticates the historical dimensions of the enslavement narrative, The History of Mary Prince, A West Indian Slave, Related by Herself. View submission
2013	McGoveran Catherine McGoveran Dalhousie University A candidate in the master of library and information studies (MLIS) program at Dalhousie University, Catherine McGoveran is also a member of the university’s Social Media Lab, where her research looks at the increasing relevance of these digital platforms in the lives of Canadians. Her video submission, Making Sense of a Networked World, presents the newly opened lab—the first of its kind in Canada. Under director Anatoliy Gruzd—whose own work is supported by a Standard Research Grant—the lab’s researchers study the impact of social media on the social, economic and political norms and structures of modern society. View submission
2013	Jolicœur Manon Jolicœur Université de Moncton Final five For Manon Jolicœur, a doctoral student in the faculty of education at the Université de Moncton, reading matters! Reading is also important to the young hockey players (aged 9 and 10), the coaches and the fathers who participated in her master’s project, Lire, ça compte!—the scope of which she can now broaden thanks to a Canada Graduate Scholarship award. Her video submission gave voice to the project participants, whose testimonials confirm that a “hockey club-reading club” approach is potentially a concrete solution for addressing the issue of boys’ disinterest in reading. In November, Jolicœur received the Prix Allard-Landry from the Centre de recherche et de développement en éducation at the Université de Moncton for her article entitled, Du patin aux bouquins... (“From skates to books…”). View submission
2013	Kurguzova Xenia Kurguzova McGill University A graduate student at McGill University’s school of information studies, Xenia Kurguzova is pursuing her master’s in library and information studies (MLIS). The Standard Research Grant-funded work of political science professor Maria Popova into the judicial prosecution of high-level corruption in Eastern Europe inspired Xenia to present Popova’s arguments in an engaging and highly visual style. Her submission harnesses the infographic aesthetic to call our attention to the far-reaching impact of political and bureaucratic corruption—not just for a post-Communist European Union, but globally. In clear, stark imagery, Xenia makes a compelling case that such activities have a profound impact on our lives, our world and our future prosperity. View submission
2013	Besanger Kendra Besanger Concordia University A media studies master’s candidate at Concordia University and supported by a Canada Graduate Scholarship, Kendra Besanger’s research centres on issues of space and place: urban and public environments, community engagement and access, public discourse and communication across different media. Besanger’s audio submission leverages the podcast format to present the “Active Ageing Mobile Technologies initiative” in an accessible, engaging way. Spearheaded by Concordia professor Kim Sawchuk and based at the university’s Mobile Media Lab, this Partnership Development Grant-funded project brings together an international team of researchers from Canada, Malaysia and Spain seeking new insights into the intersections between communications, ageing and mobility. View submission
2013	Alam Johnny (El‑) Alam Carleton University Johnny (El‑) Alam is a doctoral candidate in visual culture at Carleton University’s Institute for Comparative Studies in Literature, Art and Culture. Supported by a Canada Graduate Scholarship for his PhD research, El‑ Alam studies relations between art, memory, war, trauma and the nation. His submission—a short video documentary on Lebanese-Canadian artists exploring Lebanon’s civil wars through their work—examines the issue of art as a response to trauma and how it reflects and informs Canadian identity. View submission
2013	Battersby Sarah-Joyce Battersby Ryerson University Currently pursuing her master’s degree at Ryerson University’s School of Journalism, Sarah-Joyce Battersby created a podcast on the research of graduate student Elizabeth Wong, who is pursuing her master’s in psychology with the help of a Canada Graduate Scholarship. Battersby’s audio-based piece focuses on Wong’s deep commitment, and provides insight into her research on the effects that gender stereotypes have on women’s math performance. View submission
2013	Browne Daniel Browne Ryerson University Daniel Browne, pursuing his doctorate in Ryerson University’s Communication and Culture program, produced a video highlighting the work of esteemed literary historian and Canada Research Chair in Modern Literature and Culture Irene Gammel; Gammel's research on the life and writings of L. M. Montgomery has helped establish the study of Montgomery’s work as an internationally recognized academic field. Browne is an active member of the Loop Collective, a Toronto-based group of multidisciplinary artists who promote an interm edia approach to cinema by examining its links with other artistic forms. View submission
2013	Donato Alfea Donato Ryerson University A first-year undergraduate student at Ryerson University’s school of journalism, Alfea Donato submitted a video exploring the work of criminal justice professor Emily van der Muelen. Van der Muelen’s research, supported by an Insight Development Grant, examines the effects of video surveillance on women living in some of Toronto’s marginalized communities, seeking a connection between the presence of CCTV and their perceived safety—or its absence—inside the “surveillance state.” View submission
2013	Herry-Saint-Onge Véronique Herry-Saint-Onge Ryerson University A master’s student in Ryerson University’s school of journalism, Véronique Herry-Saint-Onge created an audiovisual slideshow outlining her Canada Graduate Scholarship-funded research on the history and experience of Yukon women in politics. Featuring prominent former members of the Yukon legislative assembly, as well as other women with significant achievements in the territory’s political history, Véronique’s piece highlights the Yukon experience, situating it within the larger Canadian narrative. View submission
2013	Gordon Dylan Gordon University of Toronto Dylan Gordon, a PhD candidate in anthropology at the Univeristy of Toronto, is studying the Canadian wild food trade with the aid of a SSHRC Doctoral Fellowship. Having spent a year living in the wilderness with wild mushroom- and plant-pickers, he accepted the Storytellers challenge as an opportunity to share their stories through his audio submission. Gordon offers a clear representation of the tough life foragers face and impels listeners to better understand ethics in the wild food trade. His story goes beyond the trendiness of foraged food and highlights the skill and dedication required to survive the wild food industry, with a goal to inform people about some of the challenging issues surrounding environmentalism and sustainable foods. View submission
2013	Wilcox Steve Wilcox University of Waterloo Final five Steve Wilcox is pursuing his PhD in game studies and media phenomenology at the University of Waterloo, looking at linguistic substructures of media—from web design to videogames. His engaging video submission highlights Neil Randall’s Partnership Grant-funded IMMERSe (Interactive and Multi-Modal Experience Research Syndicate) project, which looks at video-game player immersion and behaviour. Wilcox’s video clearly communicates the IMMERSe project’s goal of understanding the player’s experience—particularly in increasingly immersive video games in a rapidly evolving technological landscape—pointing to technical, psychological, sensory, and social factors that engage and motivate players. View submission
2013	Wood Owen Wood University of Windsor Owen Wood, a Canada Graduate Scholarship master’s student in visual arts at the University of Windsor, submitted a video pitch entitled “I Am Not Present” that sums up the complexity and volume of the Noiseborder Ensemble’s creatively challenging work. The ensemble—made up of audio and visual artists—creates and performs multimedia works combining acoustic and electronic instruments as well as live processing, sound mixing and video. Its members strive to highlight the connection between sight and sound. Wood’s submission explores how this kind of work can be documented and communicated to a broad audience. View submission
2013	Stockford Janine Stockford University of Alberta Final five Janine Stockford is a Canada Graduate Scholarship master’s student in the music department at the University of Alberta. Her text submission highlights the globalization of Canada’s pop divas Céline Dion and Shania Twain, investigating the great mystery of how a musician becomes a global superstar. Stockford’s ethnographic research in the music industry and fan communities reveals answers that speak to both commercial and consumer interests. She is decoding the mechanisms behind international success to open doors for better understanding of how to market Canadian musicians to global audiences. View submission
2013	Briard Annie Briard Emily Carr University of Art + Design Annie Briard, an artist and master’s student in media arts at Emily Carr University of Art + Design, created a video about her Canada Graduate Scholarship-funded project Perceptual Moment. Briard has been exploring moving image art to situate wonderment and its function within visual perception. Through a series of works ranging from animation to stereoscopic 3D video and interactive installation, her research seeks to provide insights and techniques for more powerful and inspiring visual communication. Briard is also an arts educator and sits on the board of directors for both Studio XX and Contraste Art Agency. View submission
2013	Erfan Aftab Erfan The University of British Columbia An advocacy expert and CGS-funded doctoral student at The University of British Columbia’s school of community and regional planning (SCARP), Aftab Erfan spent three years working alongside members of the Gwa’sala-‘Nakwaxda’xw nation to implement a section of their community plan focussing on parenting and family. A visual artist as well, Erfan later helped the community memorialize this process through art. Measuring nearly two metres by four metres, ‘The Art of Parenting According to Old and New Wisdom’ captures the effort, energy and collective will behind successful completion of the community plan. In addition to the mural, the final project resulted in the formation of a parent’s advisory committee as part of the band’s formal governance structure.
2013	Blair Brett Blair Royal Roads University Brett Blair is a master’s student in intercultural and international communication at Royal Roads University. Through a compelling video piece, Brett showcases Insight Grant-funded work of Robin Cox, head of the university’s Disaster and Emergency Management program and an experienced educator, psychologist, consultant and researcher. Her research examines child-centered disaster recovery in Canada and the U.S. Emphasizing the research’s model of participatory, creative engagement, Blair’s video also explores the increasingly-vocal youth demographic and its impact on shaping disaster policy and practice. View submission
2013	Heykoop Cheryl Heykoop Royal Roads University Final five Supported by a Canada Graduate Scholarship, Cheryl Heykoop is a doctoral candidate in the faculty of social and applied sciences at Royal Roads University. An advisor to the International Institute for Child Rights and Development (IICRD), as well as a researcher for the Makerere University’s Refugee Law Project in Uganda, Heykoop has spent a decade helping young people in Africa and Southeast Asia better understand their experiences and perspectives about issues that affect them. Her video project highlights her work exploring meaningful child engagement methods for post-conflict truth-telling with children in northern Uganda. View submission
2013	Laurie Roberta Laurie Royal Roads University Currently pursuing her master’s in environmental education and communication at Royal Roads University, Edmonton-based Roberta Laurie is a writer, educator, editor and co-founder of independent publishing house Prairie Dog Publishing. Her video submission presents her Canada Graduate Scholarship-supported research on the ‘ethical oil’ movement, including its influence on and framing by Canadian media. Laurie also hosts seminars and teaches creative writing through a number of adult education programs. She is currently completing her first full-length book, A Light in the Warm Heart of Africa. View submission
2013	Bence Shannon Bence Vancouver Island University Pursuing her master’s in sustainable leisure management at Vancouver Island University, Shannon Bence created a multimedia piece highlighting the new and innovative ways her research is engaging with young adults. Bence’s CGS-funded project looks at the complexities involved in attracting and retaining young people in Western Canada’s remote and rural communities. Her submission focuses on the need to identify with the unique perspectives of young adults in order to develop more effective policies and outreach practices. View submission
2013	Girvan Anita Girvan University of Victoria Supported by a Canada Graduate Scholarship, Anita Girvan is a doctoral candidate at the University of Victoria completing her PhD in cultural, social and political thought. Girvan's research focuses on the cultural politics of climate change, exploring ecological metaphors to foster deeper insights. Her video submission is a uniquely musical creation. "My song," Girvan says, "began in a dream a few months ago during the writing of my dissertation, a typically linear document. The SSHRC Storytellers Competition inspired me to creatively assemble the pieces of the song along with visual images of carbon footprints in order to make sense of the urgent cultural politics of climate change that my project seeks to bring to public attention." View submission
2013	James-Lomax Alison James-Lomax University of Victoria Completing her master’s degree in political science at the University of Victoria, Alison James-Lomax’s research focuses on transitional justice and truth commissions in South Africa. Her video spotlights the SSHRC-funded research partnership between the University of Victoria and the Victoria International Development Education Association (VIDEA), examining the impact on women in Uganda, Zambia and Tanzania of new funding models for development programs. “I was inspired to share this project,” writes James-Lomax, “because it is a unique partnership between an academic institution and a non-profit organization. The choice of format was easy: VIDEA’s photos are so rich and powerful [and they tell] the story of the people who are involved in this project.” View submission
2013	McAlister Stuart McAlister University of Victoria University of Victoria Juris Doctorate candidate Stuart McAlister has a background in film, photography and graphic design, making his choice of a digital multimedia piece a natural fit for profiling the research of Jeremy Webber, Canada Research Chair in Law and Society. Given Webber’s recognized expertise in cultural diversity, constitutional theory and indigenous rights, it seemed natural, according to McAlister, to evoke the breadth of these scholarly contributions by using multiple tools and visual styles within the same medium. “Professor Webber’s research is representative of the multitude of perspectives and diverse ideas supported at our school,” says McAlister. View submission
2013	Millar-Usiskin Jana Millar-Usiskin University of Victoria A graduate student pursuing her master’s in English at the University of Victoria, Jana Millar-Usiskin studies modernism, the digital humanities, and in particular, Canadian women’s writing. “Women's voices have historically been overlooked in a national context,” writes Millar-Usiskin. “It’s important to use new media to recover local women’s voices in order to reshape contemporary understanding of national history and culture.” Millar-Usiskin, with her team at the Maker Lab in the Humanities, submitted a video piece outlining her Canada Graduate Scholarship-funded research project, a curated digital exhibit of Nanaimo-born poet and writer Audrey Alexandra Brown. The MLab video team consists of Alex Christie, Arthur Hain, Mikka Jacobsen, Adele Barclay, Katie Tanigawa, Shaun MacPherson, and Nina Belojevic. View submission

Search

About SSHRC

Funding

Competition Results

Connecting with Society

News Room

Storytellers Gallery