Our interdisciplinary impact focused research explores how young people are valued, understood and engaged in society and the economy.
In the context of this overarching theme, our areas of interest and study include: innovation, entrepreneurship, intrapreneurship, future of work, future of learning, youth engagement, social entrepreneurship, social innovation, intergenerational collaboration, youth service, volunteerism & civic and democratic engagement.
Academic publications
- Social Impact Measurement: A Systematic Literature Review and Future Research Directions (World - 2023) Article
- Wired for Innovation: Valuing the unique innovation abilities of emerging adults (Emerging Adulthood - 2018) Article, Infographic
- Youth-Led Social Change: Topics, Engagement Types, Organizational Types, Strategies, and Impacts (Futures - 2015) Article, Infographic 1, Infographic 2
- Youth-Led Social Entrepreneurship: Enabling Social Change (International Review of Entrepreneurship - 2010) Article
Non-academic reports
- Build power, share power, leverage power: How foundations can best support youth-led organizations and movements to amplify their impact (Ashoka Academy for Collaboration on Youth Allyship – 2023)
- Generation Z in Canada (The Canadian Encyclopedia - 2020) Article
- Are we making a difference? Understanding leading practices in youth volunteerism & service (Employment and Social Development Canada - 2018) Report, Infographic 1, Infrographic 2
- Developing Canadian Youth as Leaders and Stewards of the Environment (The Lawson Foundation - 2017) Report
Previous work
Dr. Amelia Clarke's previous work includes:
- Framing ‘Green Jobs’ Discourse: Analysis of Popular Usage (Sustainable Development - 2014) Article
- Student-Led Approaches to Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions at Canadian Colleges and Universities (International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education - 2009) Article
- The Campus Climate Challenge: Innovative Multi-Stakeholder Approaches to Reducing Emissions at Canadian Colleges and Universities (Interdisciplinary Aspects of Climate Change - 2009) Article
- The Campus Environmental Management System Cycle in Practice: 15 Years of Environmental, Management, Education and Research at Dalhousie University (International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education - 2006) Article
Ilona Dougherty's previous work includes:
- Youth Engagement and Mobilization in the 2010 Toronto Municipal Election (Elections Canada - 2011) Report
- Youth, Democracy and Civic Engagement: The “Apathy is Boring” Surveys (Annual Meeting of the Canadian Political Science Association - 2012) Article
- Engaging Youth in Decision-Making: Moving from Volunteerism to Active Citizenship (The Philanthropist - 2011) Article