Panel to talk about social justice for a more empathetic world

OTTAWA, ONTARIO — Young adults are navigating a rapidly changing world where climate change, social justice, and the economic and societal aftermath of the pandemic will be the defining events of their youth. But with change comes an extraordinary opportunity for this generation to embrace a more empathetic value system and define their own futures.

To help mark its 25th anniversary, the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) will be holding a panel May 16, 2022 (from 3 to 4:30 EDT), as part of the 2022 Congress of the Federation for Humanities and Social Sciences (FHSS).

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The panel hopes to engage young people in answering the question, “What does social justice mean for you today, and how can research help advance it to forge the future you want?”

Four experts will address this question by sharing their research in fields ranging from climate activism, social justice learning, queer and gender difference, and health and well-being.

Moderator

Lesley Gittings, University of Toronto

Lesley Gittings is a postdoctoral research fellow with an interest in social justice, and the social and structural factors that shape health across the life course. Her research focuses on understanding and addressing gender inequities and social determinants of health for HIV and sexual and reproductive health (SRH)-related outcomes; and engaging participatory and community-based research approaches for the empowerment and well-being of adolescents from marginalized communities.

Panelists

Lindsay Galway, Lakehead University

Lindsay Galway is an interdisciplinary health researcher trained in public health and environmental health. Her work spans the social, natural and health sciences, and aims to bring together multiple perspectives to comprehensively understand and collaboratively address complex social-ecological challenges, with a focus on climate change. Dr. Galway’s areas of expertise include: planetary health, ecological determinants of health, climate change and health, and environmental justice.

Manu Sharma, Thompson Rivers University

Manu Sharma is an Assistant Professor at Thompson Rivers University in the Faculty of Education and Social Work, where she teaches foundational courses in the Masters of Education program. Dr. Sharma’s research interests and publications in the field of education are based on equity initiatives, critical curriculum studies, social justice pedagogy, deficit thinking, action research, educational law and international teaching experiences. She is currently working on a project that analyzes social justice initiatives in six Canadian secondary schools.