Published in the American Journal of Preventative Medicine, the study provides the first population-level evidence of these disparities using national census data.

“Housing is one of those core human rights we often associate with health,” says Antony Chum, associate professor in York’s and Canada Research Chair in Population Health Data Science. “This study really aims to shed light on housing as a key social determinant, alongside mental health, food insecurity and other challenges communities are facing.”

examines housing conditions for households led by cisgender, transgender and non-binary people across the country using data from the 2021 Canadian Long Form Census.

“The Canadian census is actually the first census in the world to include transgender and non-binary people,” says Yihong Bai, co-researcher at York’s Population Health Data Science Lab and assistant professor at the University of Manitoba. “That allowed us, for the first time, to look at housing outcomes for transgender and gender-diverse household heads at a national level.”

The findings show that transgender and gender-diverse households are far more likely to experience “core housing need” – a federal measure that reflects whether housing is unaffordable, in disrepair or overcrowded.

Households led by cisgender men were the least likely to experience this outcome, with an estimated probability of eight per cent. In contrast, cisgender women-led households face a 12.8 per cent risk. Rates were markedly higher for transgender-led households, with probabilities of: 16.5 per cent for transgender men; 21.2 per cent for transgender women; 21.2 per cent for non-binary people assigned female at birth; and 19.4 per cent for non-binary people assigned male at birth.

“About 16.5 to 21 per cent of transgender and non-binary household heads are in core housing need, compared to about eight per cent of cisgender men. That’s one of the biggest findings from the study,” says Gwen Ehi, PhD candidate at �첥��Ƶ who worked on the study. Most previous research, she says, relied on small or targeted samples, limiting the ability to generalize findings to the broader population.

Bai adds that one limitation of the study is that gender identity is self-reported in the Canadian census data. “We believe the numbers of gender diverse households are likely underreported,” he says.

Researchers analyzed data from primary household maintainers aged 15 and older, using census questions on sex at birth and gender identity to distinguish between cisgender men, cisgender women, transgender men, transgender women and non-binary individuals assigned male or female at birth.

They assessed whether these households met the criteria for core housing need, while accounting for factors such as age, income, education, region and housing tenure.

“The numbers were startling,” says contributor and York PhD student Kristine Ienciu. “The disparities were largest among youth, renters and multi-person households. Those groups consistently showed the highest levels of housing need across gender-diverse populations.”

The implications extend beyond housing alone. When homes are unaffordable or in need of major repairs, residents are more likely to experience poorer physical and mental health which contributes to higher stress, chronic illness and reduced access to care, says Chum.

The study, he urges, calls for a more explicit integration of gender identity into housing policy and planning.

Peiya Cao, postdoctoral researcher in York’s Faculty of Health says affordable and supportive housing units earmarked for the transgender and gender-diverse community are essential, along with stronger enforcement of anti-discrimination protections in the rental market, and better access to supports like income and mental health services – especially for youth.

With files from Karen Martin-Robbins

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Dear York community, 

Every year, York joins communities across Canada in honouring the victims of one of the deadliest shootings in Canadian history, when 14 women were murdered on Dec. 6, 1989 at École Polytechnique in Montreal.

Their names, their aspirations and their lives remain at the centre of the : Geneviève Bergeron, Hélène Colgan, Nathalie Croteau, Barbara Daigneault, Anne-Marie Edward, Maud Haviernick, Barbara Klucznik-Widajewicz, Maryse Laganière, Maryse Leclair, Anne-Marie Lemay, Sonia Pelletier, Michèle Richard, Annie St-Arneault and Annie Turcotte. 

As we come together for this day of remembrance and action, we also acknowledge all the women and girls who continue to face gender-based violence today, which is compounded by a myriad of intersecting factors: racism, including anti-Indigenous racism and xenophobia; economic injustice; ableism; creed-based discrimination; anti-2SLGBTQIA+ ideologies, and more.

We invite all members of the York community to join us for this year’s memorial ceremony. 

Event details 

Date: Friday, Dec. 5 
Time: 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. 
Event website: National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women 

Keele Campus 
Live location: The Eatery (first floor), Bergeron Centre for Engineering Excellence 

Glendon Campus 
Viewing room: Glendon Ballroom 
Livestream:  

Markham Campus 
Viewing room: MK2050 
Livestream: 

In solidarity with survivors and in honour of those whose lives were taken, we encourage attendees to wear a white ribbon during the ceremony. Ribbons will be available at the .��

York is also participating in the international  campaign, which runs from Nov. 25 (International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women) to Dec.��10 (Human Rights Day). During these 16 days, the centre and partners across York will host events, workshops and conversations that encourage reflection, learning and community action.��You can learn more about these events and register for them .��

We hope you will join us in remembrance and in strengthening our collective commitment to end gender-based violence and to build communities founded on the equal rights and dignity of girls and women.

Sincerely, 

Rhonda Lenton 
President & Vice-Chancellor 

Laina Y. Bay-Cheng 
Professor and Vice-President Equity, People & Culture 

Jane Goodyer 
Dean, Lassonde School of Engineering 

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This global movement calls for collective action to eliminate gender-based violence and support survivors, recognizing the disproportionate impact on marginalized communities including racialized women and girls, those living with disabilities, immigrants and refugees, and members of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community. 

In Canada, this 16-day period also includes the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women on Dec. 6, honouring the 14 women killed at École Polytechnique in 1989. 

This year, York’s participation will focus on ending digital violence. , in collaboration with University partners, invites York community members to .  

Initiatives to raise awareness begin Nov. 27 with the York Lions women’s hockey team hosting the End Violence Against Women & Girls game in partnership with the North York Women’s Shelter. 

York community members are also invited to join a live, online workshop on protection against digital harassment and a virtual talk exploring how technology-facilitated sexual violence shows up in online spaces.  

To learn more about these events and to register visit the Centre's . York community members are also invited to: 

• wear purple on Nov. 25 to raise awareness about gender-based violence;
• pick up white and purple ribbons at the Centre to wear and mark the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women; and
• engage in conversations and events that challenge harmful attitudes and support survivors. 

The Centre for Sexual Violence Response, Support & Education provides confidential support to any York community member impacted by sexual violence, through a trauma-informed lens that allows survivors to make decisions that feel right to them. The Centre works to foster a culture where survivors feel supported and community members are educated on preventing violence.  

“Digital spaces should be safe spaces,” says Marian MacGregor, executive director of the Centre for Human Rights, Equity & Inclusion which includes the Centre.��“This campaign reminds us that ending gender-based violence requires all of us, on and offline, to collectively challenge harmful attitudes, support survivors and create safer spaces for everyone.” 

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A professor emeritus in York’s Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies, Gilbert has long been a leading voice in argumentation theory, feminist theory and gender studies. 

He is also a life-long cross-dresser, known as his femme alter ego Miqqi Alicia Gilbert.  

Publishing under both identities, s/he has challenged conventional thinking and helped shape the academic discourse around identity and inclusion, particularly with respect to the transgender community. 

He has also introduced Miqqi Alicia to York students, teaching classes en femme to offer a real-life example of how gender can exist beyond the traditional male/female dichotomy. This approach reflects his belief that lived experience is central to understanding and communicating the truth. 

“In 1996, then-president of �첥��Ƶ, Susan Mann, created the President's Task Force on Homophobia and Heterosexism,” recalls Gilbert. “I thought it was great, save for one thing: there was no mention of transgender issues. I was in a moral quandary until I realized that having tenure wasn't a matter of protection from being fired – but instead, that it was incumbent on me to protect those who could be.” 

Gilbert takes this framework, along with his research on gender and transgender theory, beyond the classroom and into the broader cultural and academic landscape to advocate for transgender rights and representation. 

His career and lifework – defined by courage, scholarship and a deep commitment to equity – has earned him the 2025 Transgender Pioneer Award. 

This lifetime achievement honour, given annually at TransWeek and Fantasia Fair, recognizes trans leaders who have made major personal sacrifices – including careers, families and financial security – to create safer, more welcoming spaces for trans people.  

The award celebrates Gilbert’s decades of work and acknowledges the impact he and Miqqi Alicia have had in helping others live openly and connect with community. 

S/he has contributed significantly to gender theory, including the influential essay “Defeating Bigenderism” and has used public platforms to promote visibility and understanding. Gilbert's work as editor and columnist for Transgender Tapestry, leadership of Fantasia Fair (now TransWeek) as a former director and presence at major trans events across North America are specifically noted by award adjudicators, the Board of Directors of International Transgender Education Organization. 

One of the first educators to openly raise trans issues in the classroom, Gilbert also helped launch York’s Transgender Studies initiative in the early 2000s – one of the first of its kind in Canada.  

“I was extremely fortunate to be at �첥��Ƶ – an affirming, positive and caring institution,” says Gilbert. “My coming out was effortless and I was embraced by faculty, students and administration. I was and am forever grateful.” 

In addition to this latest recognition, Gilbert has earned numerous accolades throughout his career, including the 2007 International Foundation for Gender Education Trinity Award and the �첥��Ƶ Faculty of Arts Excellence in Teaching Award. 

Together with his alter ego Miqqi Alicia, Gilbert has authored numerous publications, books and journal articles. Gilbert’s theory of “multi-modal argumentation,” which incorporates emotional, physical and intuitive reasoning alongside logic, has been widely cited in feminist and queer theory.  

Gilbert’s legacy continues through the students he’s mentored, the programs he’s helped build and the scholarship he’s inspired. As York deepens its commitment to equity and inclusion, his work remains a point of pride for the University. 

The Transgender Pioneer Award ceremony was held virtually on Oct. 25.  

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It is a day to honour the memory of trans and gender-expansive individuals whose lives were lost to hate, fear and ignorance. It is a day to recognize the dignity and fortitude within trans and gender-expansive communities in the face of mistreatment borne of ignorance, bigotry and injustice.

�첥��Ƶ’s Decolonizing, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy states that “Achieving an inclusive and equitable community is not a destination but rather a journey that requires ongoing attention and action.” It is our shared responsibility to support and enrich each other and to enable collective flourishing. �첥��Ƶ reaffirms its support for – and willingness to act on behalf of – trans, Two-spirit, non-binary and other gender-expansive students, staff, faculty, instructors and alumni, and denounces transphobic discrimination and violence everywhere.

Please take time and attention to mourn the losses and to honour the strengths of the diverse trans and gender-expansive communities. Please commit to making York not only inclusive, but expansive: safer, freer, open-minded and forward-looking.

Ribbons are available in the following locations:

• York Lanes, suite 301, offices of the Division of Equity, People & Culture
• Dahdaleh Building, suite 2070, the Centre for Human Rights, Equity & Inclusion and the Centre for Sexual Violence, Response, Support & Education
• GL Zone Kiosk at the Centre of Excellence, Glendon campus (10 a.m. to noon)
• Glendon Student Success Centre, YH B108 (9 a.m. to noon and 1 to 4 p.m.)
• Markham Campus welcome desk (first floor)

The Centre for Human Rights, Equity & Inclusion has identified and developed a number of resources for the community, including a guide on gender expression and gender identity, available here.

Thank you. Merci. Miigwech.

Laina Y. Bay-Cheng
Vice-President Equity, People and Culture

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Launched June 1, the initiative aligns with global and local Pride Month celebrations.

Zoeller, an event production and project management professional, has a long history with �첥��Ƶ.

“I can remember the moment so clearly when I received the acceptance letter from �첥��Ƶ,” he says, recalling when he joined the University as a Winter’s College student in 1989 to pursue a degree in visual arts. “It was life changing.”

Now, he’s hoping to help change others’ lives with the newly established Jeffrey Zoeller Queer Endowment.

The idea for the endowment goes back to Zoeller’s time as a student, when financially, he and his family also had to make sacrifices. “I was working two part-time jobs and my parents had to make serious financial decisions to make university a possibility for me,” he says.

After graduating, Zoeller became president of the York Federation of Students in 1993. In that role, he witnessed how many students, like himself, struggled to make ends meet – particularly when they were denied financial assistance. As a member of the OSAP Review Committee, he advocated to reverse those decisions. “I worked to bring the voice of students to that table and to work on reversing the ‘no’ decision for as many people as we could,” he says.

His advocacy didn’t stop there. “To my surprise, I became an activist and one of the leaders for the queer movement at York,” he says.

Over the course of 13 years, including his time as marketing and event manager with the �첥��Ƶ Student Centre, Zoeller helped shape early queer advocacy efforts on campus. His contributions included helping raise the Pride flag for the first time during the 1998 Queering the Nation Conference and serving as lead researcher for the President’s Task Force on Homophobia and Heterosexism in 1994. The task force’s recommendations led to the creation of the Sexual and Gender Advisory Committee (now SexGen) and the Positive Space campaign – initiatives that were among the first of their kind at a Canadian university.

After his time at York, Zoeller continued his advocacy, serving as associate director of Pride Toronto and on the board of the 519 Church Street Community Centre.

Now, he is bringing that work full circle with the Jeffrey Zoeller Queer Endowment, created specifically to help queer youth at York. The fund will support 2SLGBTQIA+ students facing financial and other barriers to education. For every $25,000 raised, $1,000 will be available annually in perpetuity, creating a sustainable source of support for generations to come.

Research shows that queer individuals face disproportionate challenges, including lower average incomes, according to . Resources like the Ontario Student’s Guide and B.C. financial-aid guides also indicate queer students are less likely to receive financial support from parents.

The endowment aims to help address those inequities. The initial goal is to raise a minimum of $25,000 to activate the fund through a crowdsourcing model, something that was important to Zoeller. “I wanted the ability for everyone to be able to contribute,” he says. “You shouldn’t have to be rich and/or famous to be part of transformational social change.”

While the criteria for applying for the endowment funds is still under development, Zoeller does share that it will not be based solely on a student’s academic standing, but on involvement in the queer community as well as the barriers they face as a result of being queer.

Zoeller plans for funds from the endowment – nicknamed JZ.QE.YU – to begin distribution by 2029, aligning with the 40th anniversary of his first year at York.

“With ongoing donations, the hope is to grow this endowment large enough to help students continue their studies and support other academic-related endeavours,” he says.

The endowment will complement existing York resources such as the Queer Resource Centre and specialized programming that fosters inclusive, empowering environments for 2SLGBTQIA+ students.

“This new endowment will serve as a vital source of support for students in the queer community, who often face disproportionate barriers to success particularly financial ones. Many queer students take on advocacy and leadership roles to help dismantle these barriers for others, a commitment that can add significant pressure and make full-time studies even more challenging," says Marian MacGregor, executive director of the Centre for Human Rights, Education and Inclusion. "By easing financial strain, this endowment could make the difference between a student continuing their education or having to pause – or even leave – their program. It represents not just financial assistance, but a meaningful investment in equity, resilience and the future of queer student leaders.”

To learn more about the endowment or to contribute, visit the .

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The protocol was developed after MacKinnon’s team noticed a surge in suspicious activity while recruiting participants for a study on detransition experiences among LGBTQ2S+ people in Canada and the U.S.

“Early in the recruitment process for the DARE (detransition analysis, representation and exploration) study, we noticed suspicious survey responses. To ensure that we had a reliable dataset, we developed a protocol to identify and remove scam, bot and nonsense responses,” says MacKinnon, a professor in the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies.

“If a researcher applied online recruitment methods with no way of verifying the identities and eligibility of participants, there is a good chance that a significant portion of the sample would be bots or scam responses. So this poses a real threat to our knowledge production and the reliability and trustworthiness of research findings.”

The multi-step protocol excluded responses based on several criteria, including duplicate IP addresses, geolocation outside Canada or the U.S., reCAPTCHA scores below 0.5 and inconsistent or nonsensical answers. The team also inserted fictitious medical conditions – “chekalism” and “syndomitis” – to help flag inattentive or fraudulent respondents. Survey responses completed in less than 12 minutes were removed and participants who gave suspicious or conflicting information were invited to complete a Zoom screening interview. Only those who could verify their eligibility were included in the final sample. York PhD student, Naail Khan, was also instrumental in the development of this protocol.

After applying these measures, 69 per cent of the 1,377 completed survey responses – 957 in total – were deemed eligible and included in the analysis. The final sample was diverse: most participants were living in the U.S., a majority were assigned female at birth and more than half identified as bisexual or pansexual. The study’s recruitment strategy used three different flyers, distributed in English, French and Spanish, to attract a broad range of experiences and identities related to detransition, including those who stopped or reversed transition for reasons ranging from identity shifts to loss of access to gender-affirming care.

MacKinnon emphasizes that the protocol’s value extends beyond this particular study. “The protocol for removing scam, fraud, nonsense or bots could be applied to any study population, or community, being studied,” he says. 

With online recruitment becoming more common, he points out, “the risk in not doing this today is that if a researcher applied online recruitment methods with no way of verifying the identities and eligibility of participants, there is a good chance that a significant portion of the sample would be bots or scam responses.”

Despite the challenges – including public debate and some skepticism within online communities – the study was able to recruit a large and diverse sample, offering new opportunities for research on detransition and gender fluidity.

MacKinnon’s approach, now published and openly detailed in the , provides a template for researchers facing similar challenges in the digital era.

MacKinnon is also behind the research website , which provides resources, support and data-driven information about identity evolution and detransition/retransition. He will also share recent findings from the DARE (Detransition Analysis, Representation, and Exploration) study – the largest 2SLGBTQ+ community-engaged project to ever examine detransition, retransition and shifts in identity post-transition in Canada and the United States – during a June 17 .

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This year’s convocation will include 14 individual ceremonies, marking a significant transition for thousands of students as they move into the next phase of their lives.��

Glendon College will kick off the celebration on June 12 at 10 a.m., with its convocation to be held at the Sobeys Stadium for the first time. Following the ceremonial proceedings, a Principal’s Reception will be held at the Glendon Campus at 2 p.m., with shuttle services offered for travel from the Keele Campus. All other ceremonies will take place at Sobeys Stadium.

Updates to enhance the overall experience for all involved will also be introduced this year. For the first time, graduates will not have to return their academic robes before collecting their diplomas, allowing more time for photos. As well, this year frame sales and diploma collection will be positioned together for improved ease and flow. 

Attendees will also have the opportunity to provide feedback on their convocation experience through a new survey that can be activated on site. 

Kathleen Taylor, the University's chancellor, will confer degrees on new graduands during these ceremonies. She will be joined by an array of distinguished honorary degree recipients, who will share their insights and experiences with graduates. 

All convocation ceremonies will be webcast live and a link to the feed, as well as a schedule of ceremonies, can be accessed on the Convocation website.  

Other ceremonies to note 

�첥��Ƶ’s (SCS) will hold two graduation ceremonies, June 12 and June 17, at the Sobeys Stadium. This year, more than 1,400 students from 32 programs will earn their SCS certificates, marking 10 years of enriched continuing education offerings. Over the past decade, the school has evolved to help thousands of learners from dozens of countries, supporting Canada’s labour market. In April, it announced the launch of four new industry-aligned programs and is focused on its next phase of growth to become a full-cycle solution for organizations to build their workforce. 

�첥��Ƶ’s Sexuality and Gender Advocacy (SAGA) Alumni Network invites alumni and their guests to the 2025 , an evening recognizing the achievements of graduates identifying as 2SLGBTQIA+. Planned for June 3, from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Martin Family Lounge in Accolade East at the Keele Campus, this event will bring together faculty, staff, graduates and allies for an evening of celebration, community and pride. The event includes music, food and heartfelt reflections from the York community. 

�첥��Ƶ’s Black Alumni Network (YUBAN) invites alumni and their guests to the , an evening dedicated to honouring the achievements of Black-identifying graduates from the Class of 2025. Taking place June 5, from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Tribute Communities Recital Hall and CIBC Lobby at York’s Keele Campus, this event will feature music, food and inspiring words from members of the York community, a recognition ceremony and dinner. 

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For over 50 years, Pride has provided an opportunity to celebrate 2SLGBTQIA+ identities, relationships, communities and rights. Pride has grown each year in size, reach and prominence.

As we look forward to this June’s festivities, however, it is clear we cannot take such progress for granted. In Canada and beyond, we are witnessing concerted efforts to reverse course and turn away from equity, diversity and justice. Amid such challenges, it is important to remember our formative experiences and values: that Pride was born of 1969’s Stonewall Riots and the resistance to oppression; that Toronto, one of the world’s most multicultural cities and home to one of the largest Pride celebrations, thrives through its embrace of diversity; and that York was founded on the conviction that knowledge is a means to social justice.

Recalling these roots will allow us to safeguard hard-won progress, weather current storms and continue moving forward.  

See below to learn about recent relevant scholarship and creative work by York community members and how you can play a part in affirming 2SLGBTQIA+ rights and dignity:  

• Associate Professor Antony Chum’s on the intersection of gender identity and disability using Canadian census data paves the way for new advocacy and action to improve health-care policy and systems for gender diverse individuals.  
• York alumna Lesley Loksi Chan’s film, , is an award-winning short documentary about Lloyd Wong, a Chinese Canadian gay man living with AIDS in Toronto during the early 1990s, connects individual experience and memory with collective identity and future.  

�ճ�� YUPride website  provides a schedule of events open to all community members throughout Pride Month. This includes the Keele Campus flag unfurling in the Vari Hall Rotunda, as well as events at Glendon Campus’ Centre of Excellence and the first floor atrium at Markham Campus. All celebrations take place at 1 p.m. on June 4.�� We hope you will join us there to celebrate and sustain the momentum toward Pride.�� 

Thank you. Merci. Miigwech. 

Rhonda L. Lenton 
President & Vice-Chancellor       

Laina Y. Bay-Cheng 
Vice-President, Equity, People & Culture 

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Sometimes it’s an actual dinner, a salon-style dinner, to bring grad students together and help them relax into their roles. Sometimes it’s a cross-cultural dinner that brings together researchers, activists and artists from across the Americas to dine and discuss – and likely laugh and play – and gain understanding. Sometimes it’s work that helps students understand the underlying issues of food insecurity.  

“I co-organized (with Zoë Heyn-Jones and Tracy Tidgwell) a field school with students in Mexico City on art and food sovereignty where we spent a week working with and learning from artists, as well as local agricultural and food activists, to engage larger questions around how we are connected globally via food systems and the inequalities that are built into them,” says Levin, an associate professor of theatre and performance studies in �첥��Ƶ’s .�� 

She is interested in how visual and performance artists can call attention to shared human rights and environmental justice issues, but also how artistic work can help to build communities – community being a recurring concept in her work. 

“Internationalization” is another important theme which Levin expresses in the number of global experiences she has co-developed for her students in the Faculty of Graduate Studies. The list of these experiences is lengthy. A sampling: bringing students to an encuentro – a gathering – of the Hemispheric Institute for Performance and Politics in Montreal; co-designing with Professor Brandon Vickerd a new course on global artist residencies at York’s Las Nubes campus in Costa Rica; and supporting (with project leads Mary Bunch and John Greyson) a Queer Summer Institute at York which looked at how queer intermedial performance can respond to transnational politics.��

Levin says her aim with the field schools and residencies is to educate her grad students about social justice issues that may seem remote from their lives, and to expose them to transnational arts pedagogies that bridge cultures. The experiences also model ways for students to form transborder coalitions in the face of rights emergencies that connect north and south, from the dramatic rise in anti-immigrant sentiment to expulsions of refugees from Central America and then from the U.S. to the displacement of Indigenous communities by resource extraction.  

Levin supervises students on a wide range of topics beyond international relations. Recently supervised dissertations included work on critical drag performance, which involved tracing an alternate history of drag in the Americas (Stephen Lawson), Yiddish performance and knowledge transfer (Avia Moore), and critiques of Canadian militarism. The latter, an award-winning dissertation written by Helene Vosters, included a research-creation project in which Vosters sat with community members as they collectively unstitched military uniforms, thread by thread, while they discussed their relationship to militarism. 

Jayna Mees is one of the eight grad students that Levin supervises. The PhD candidate says her work has evolved under Levin, shifting from her initial interest in site-specific theatre to her current focus on disability justice in digital and extended reality performance.�� 

Mees points to Levin’s “ability to balance the practice-based side of things with the theoretical side of things. She's brilliant at both, but she doesn't view them as separate. They're two sides of the same coin, and that's how I view them as well. 

“Laura empowers us to self-direct our own projects, giving us the space to develop the skills and self-discipline needed to do this work. But she’s always there to help and support us when we need it.” 

Hurmat Ul Ain, another grad student, appreciates that aspect of Levin’s mentorship. She outlines the difference between the purpose of performance art and the writing of a dissertation about it. She says Levin, despite being part of a university structure for nearly 20 years, is still able to move freely and truthfully through the performance world.��

“That's what the magic of Laura is all about,” Ul Ain says. “She embodies the performance spirit. She calls us disciplinary misfits. A lot of people are frightened by it. But some of us really thrive in it. And Laura is somebody who is able to see and capture that energy and still build the platforms and systems that allow space for those energies.”  

Levin ponders the supervisory relationship. “I think my role is to respond to the kinds of things students are doing research on, but also to help inspire them through different frameworks.  

“As a supervisor, I try to provide opportunities for students to think more deeply in relation to their artistic practices. Developing international partnerships and taking time to learn about other cultural contexts are critical parts of carrying out community-led research,” says Levin. “At the same time, this kind of work deepens students’ understandings of the complexity of the social justice issues they’re writing about.” 

With files from Julie Carl

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