Thursday, January 11, 2024

Building Inclusive Research Capacity program now open to students

A message from the Office of the Vice-President, Research and International.

The Inclusive Research Team in the OVPRI is excited to formally extend our core inclusive research learning opportunities to students conducting or involved in research and interested in developing their understanding of equitable and inclusive research practices.

The Building Inclusive Research Capacity (BIRC) Program provides monthly offerings including webinars, interactive workshops, and highlights from the Inclusive Research Resource Hub. The Hub is a repository of curated resources that Waterloo community members can access to support continued learning on best practices in Equity, Diversity, Inclusion (EDI) in research as well as best practices in Indigenous research.

 BIRC webinars are grouped into two focus areas:   

1. Inclusive Research Practice (IRP) – focused on building inclusive teams and training programs  
2. Inclusive Research Design (IRD) – focused on inclusive research design and knowledge mobilization.  

Upcoming sessions:

Overview and Introduction: Inclusive Research Resources (Introductory Session) - January 23, 3:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.

More information is available on the Inclusive Research Resource Hub, and future sessions will be shared through the Daily Bulletin as well as the GSPA.

We hope to see you there!

Resources

• Inclusive Resource Hub;
• Our website.

For more information or questions, please reach out to research.equity@uwaterloo.ca or  Indigenous.Research@uwaterloo.ca.

IST's Annual Report - our year in review

A message from Gregory Smith, Chief Information Officer, Information Systems & Technology (IST).

It is with immense pride that I share with you the 2023 IST Annual Report. The initiatives profiled here represent important work that IST has undertaken on behalf of the campus community to strengthen our campus cybersecurity defences, enrich the educational technologies used for teaching and learning, and to modernize information systems used to serve our campus community. This work is done in partnership with the many IT units and people across campus, who work together to provide you, our campus community, with a seamless IT experience to support research, teaching and learning, and efficient administration of the University.

Below the profiled initiatives you will find links to planned and upcoming initiatives and a more fulsome list of other initiatives that were started or completed in 2023.

My sincere thanks and gratitude to everyone who has contributed to the success of IT projects across campus in 2023!

Visit the IST Annual Report site at https://uwaterloo.ca/ist-annual-report. 

EDI-RO announces winter 2024 workshops

The Education and Outreach team at the Office of Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Anti-racism has announced a series of workshops for the winter term. Online seminars include:

Understanding Allyship, Solidarity and Advocacy (Thursday, February 29, 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m., online)

This brand new 201 level workshop aims to equip staff, faculty, and graduate students with the knowledge and tools to become intentional allies, community members standing in solidarity, and empathetic advocates for change. Participants will learn to identify central concepts to social justice, including advocacy, allyship, solidarity, and activism, and be able to explain the important differences between them. Most importantly, the workshop will cover the complexity of individual responsibility for collective injustice. Previous experience taking the 101 level "Introduction to Equity" workshop and working knowledge of equity and anti-racism frameworks are beneficial. Please refer to Intro to Equity before taking this workshop. 

Equity and Mental Health Literacy (Thursday, March 28, 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m., online)

The Mental Health Literacy Certificate Program is designed to support and address mental health within the University of Waterloo community. It is a five-module program that encourages discussions and reflections of mental health through an equity-focused lens. The Office of Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Anti-racism (EDI-R) will co-facilitate Module 2—Equity and Mental Health—with Campus Wellness. This module is dedicated to equity because it is inextricably linked with mental health. There is a plethora of evidence demonstrating that inequity has a significant detrimental impact on marginalized communities, and it is challenging, if not impossible to address the mental health of members of those communities without at least acknowledging the inequity and discrimination they face on a regular basis. If you’re interested in signing up for the Mental Health Literacy Certificate or any other mental health trainings, please visit Campus Wellness’ training page for more details and instructions.

Unlearning the Binary (Thursday, June 27, 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m., online)

This workshop aims to help grad students, faculty, and staff understand the historical and contemporary forms of oppression that impact trans and non-binary Black, Indigenous, and racialized identities. Participants will engage in debunking and demystifying conversations regarding trans inclusion, discussing accountability frameworks, and building a toolkit of practices to affirm and uplift trans identities. Previous experience taking an introductory session on 2SLGBTQIA+ identities and working knowledge of equity and anti-racism frameworks are beneficial. Please refer to the 2SLGBTQIA+ Fundamentals resources that are available online.