�첥��Ƶ

Adrienne is an experienced researcher, program evaluator, and project manager dedicated to partnering with youth as change-makers to improve and design youth-friendly organizations and policy.

Sample Scholarly Publications

1. Young, A., Toraif, N., Le C., Gergen Barnett, K., Augsberger, A., (2024) “Facing power: Navigating power dynamics in a youth participatory action research project situated within a healthcare setting.” Journal of Community Practice.
2. Young, A., Levitt, A., Kodeeswaran, S., & Markoulakis, R. (2023). ‘Just because we’re younger doesn’t mean our opinions should be any less valued’: A qualitative study of youth perspectives on a youth advisory council in a mental healthcare context. Health Expectations, 26(5), 1883–1894. doi.org/10.1111/hex.13794
3. Augsberger, A., Young, A., Toraif, N., Morris. M., Martinez. H, & Gergen-Barnett, K. (2023). Youth engagement to achieve health equity: Are health care organizations and leaders prepared? American Journal of Community Psychology, 71(3-4), 410–422.

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Academic History:

• �첥��Ƶ, School of Social Work, PhD Candidate
• MSW (�첥��Ƶ),
• Hons. BA in Child and Youth Care Practice (Toronto Metropolitan University)

Research Interests:

Child welfare, former youth in care, alumni from care, health and wellbeing of children, youth and families

Dissertation Title:

Fostering Survival of Former Youth in Care Who Work in a Helping Profession

Professional Experience:

• Senior Program Analyst, Children in Extended Society Care Review Unit, Child Welfare Operations Branch, Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services
• Manager, Indigenous Programs and Student Engagement, Save the Children Canada
• Amanda Rose Consulting for Ethical Youth Engagement
• Child Protection Worker and Child in Care Worker, Indigenous Units within various Children's Aid Societies
• Teaching Assistant, Child and Youth Advocacy, Child and Youth Care Practitioner Program, Toronto Metropolitan University
• Research Assistant, Various Indigenous Child and Youth Projects funded through Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario, MNO and Toronto Metropolitan University
• YouthCAN Program Coordinator, Ontario Association of Children's Aid Societies

Publications and Presentations:

2006-2024 - 100+ motivational and educational 1hr+ presentations to youth, university students, government and coprporate staff and Boards of Directors on child rights from varying lenses in the Canadian context.

Andrew Raya (He/Him/They/Them) is a PhD student in the School of Social Work at �첥��Ƶ. They hold an Honours Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Psychology and a Master of Social Work (MSW) from the University of Toronto (St. George). Their research focuses on "epistemic violence" and critical perspectives on psychotherapy as both theory and praxis, drawing on decolonial and post-structuralist frameworks. As a Registered Social Worker (RSW), Andrew has practiced in diverse settings, including the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) and Family Services of York Region (FSYR). They have presented at the CASWE-ACFTS Conference (2023) in Montreal and co-authored the chapter "A Global Perspective on Femicide" (Riutort & Raya, 2023) in Mulheres em tempos de pandemia (Brabo & Fujita, 2023) - a textbook utilized in the Faculty of Philosophy and Sciences at the Sao Paulo State University in Brazil (UNESP, Universidade Estadual Paulista "Julio de Mesquita Filho"). Their work seeks to interrogate dominant psychotherapeutic paradigms and expand social justice-oriented approaches to mental health care.

The DOI for the textbook chapter I mentioned is below:

DOI:

Academic History

BA in Sociology and Human Rights (Bard College), MSW (University of Toronto)

Research Interests

Anti-oppressive, anti-racist, decolonial practices in social work, neoliberal governance and organizational change in human services, Institutional Ethnography, postcolonial feminist and critical race theories

Professional Experience

10+ years of experience in community-based research, international community development (Peace Corps), adult education (TEFL), child welfare, and the immigrant and refugee serving sector;��Community Education Project Coordinator, OCASI Mental Health Promotion Project; Canadian Experience Media Project (University of Toronto)

Presentations:

• Cross, C. (2024, June 17 - 20). Navigating ARAO Organizational Change in Canadian Human Services. Presented at the 2024 Canadian Association for Social Work Education Conference, University of Montreal, Montreal, QC, Canada.
• Cross, C., Zakarian, N. (2023, October). Building Organizational Capacity to Promote Mental Health and Wellness in the Settlement Sector. Presented at 2023 OCASI Professional Development Conference: Resistance and Renewal, Toronto, ON, Canada.
• Hines, B., Cross, C., and Goldberg, L. (2020, June). The Role of Reflexivity in the Evaluation of Institutional Diversity Training. Invited to present at 2020 Qualitatives, London, ON, Canada.

Academic History:
�첥��Ƶ, School of Social Work, PhD Candidate,
MSW (�첥��Ƶ), Hons. BA in Social Work (�첥��Ƶ), Hons. Addiction Studies Certificate (McMaster University), Certificate Program, TAPE, Introduction to Mental Health (University of Toronto), BA in Social Sciences (University of Western Ontario)

Research Interests:
Intimate Partner Violence (IPV), Gender Issues, Mental Health, Addiction, Critical Social Work ��Practice and Intersectionality.

Dissertation Title:��Walking on Eggshells? A critical ethnography of the social construction of masculinity in Intimate Partner Violence Men’s Programs

Professional Experience:
Ontario Association of Children’s Aid Societies (OACAS) Sessional Trainer:�� “Collaborating to Address the Intersection of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV)/Violence Against Women (VAW) and Child Safety”.
Teacher’s Assistant, School of Social Work, �첥��Ƶ,��Clinical Social Worker in Private Practice and Consultant,��Clinical Supervisor, York Region Family Services - (Direct Accountability Program and Partner Abuse Response Program),��Co-ordinator Partner Abuse Response Program Family Services York Region,��Group Psychotherapist, Southlake Regional Health Centre, Child and Family Clinic,��Part-time Group Facilitator, Muskoka-Parry Sound Community Mental Health Service,��Addiction Counsellor, York Region Addiction Services,��Women’s Counsellor, Men’s Counsellor, Transitional Support Worker, Resolve Program,��Family Services and Credit Counselling Services,��Community Service Order Program, Probation and Parole,��Practicums: Mental Health Social Worker, HIV AIDS Clinic, Sunnybrook Health Sciences,��Centre and Case Manager at York Support Services Network (YSSN)

Publications and Presentations:
Trainings for the York Regional Police Department’s Domestic Violence Course
Trainings for new Partner Assault Response Program (PAR) Coordinators, PAR Group Facilitators and Partner Contact Workers
Trainings for York Region CAS workers with respect to the PAR Program and Caring Dads Program
Training Group Facilitators for the Direct Accountability Programs (DAP) including Stop Shop Theft, Alcohol and Drug Awareness and Anger Management
Providing PAR Program presentations for Judges, Crown Attorneys, Victim Witness Office, and defence counsel as well as numerous community agencies

My writing includes a PAR Facilitator Training Manual, a Partner Contact Counsellors Training Manual under the supervision of Family Services York Region (FSYR) and the curriculum for the Ontario Direct Accountability Program (DAP) Anger Management Program under the supervision of the Ministry of Attorney General – Ontario Victims Services.

Ching Pong is a doctoral student studying social work at �첥��Ƶ. As a member of the Hong Kong diaspora, he is interested in immigrants’ identity negotiation, transnational social movements, and the formation of Hong Kong diaspora. He is a Graduate Associate at the York Centre for Asian Research and a member of the Hong Kong-Canada Connections research working group at the Jackman Humanities Institute, University of Toronto. In addition to being a contributor to the booklet "Navigating Identity: From Hong Kong to Canada", he is also the recipient of the Ontario Graduate Scholarship and YCAR Global Hong Kong Essay and Creative Project Award.

Before moving to Canada, he worked as a research assistant in the Department of Social Work at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. He is a registered social worker in both Ontario and Hong Kong, with over 10 years of experience working with children and youth.

Academic History:
MSW in Social Justice & Diversity (University of Toronto), BSW, Honors (Ryerson University), BA (Sociology, University of Toronto)

Research Interests:
Black women, Caribbean women & mental health distress, access to mental health services, immigration, race, gender & the discourse (or not) of mental illness, post- colonial feminist & critical race theories

Professional Experience:
Over 10 years clinical experience in mental across diverse populations, in both private practice and the governmental sector.

Publications:
Richards, D.,Gateri, H., and Massaquoi.,N. (2018). The effects if intersectional stigma and discrimination on the mental well-being of Black, LBQ, female youth 18-25 years old. In S. Pashang, N. Khanlou, & J. Clarke (Eds), Youth Mental Health- hope, power, and resilience.

Gateri, H. and Richards, D. (2018). Exploring barriers refugees and refugee claimants experience accessing reproductive health care in Toronto. Literature Review.��Journal of Refugee Review.��1 (3), 122-131.

Taylor, D. and Richards, D. (2019). Triple Jeopardy: Complexities of Racism, Sexism and Ageism on the Experiences of Mental Health Stigma among Young Canadian Black Women of Caribbean Descent.��Frontiers in Sociology, 4(43), 1-10.

Gateri, H., Richards, D., & Edwards, F.(2020). What is the Psychological Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Social Workers, in Ontario?��Journal of Concurrent Disorders

Conference Presentations:
Richards, D.��November 2, 2017 -�� “When Black Women Start going on Prozac”:Exploring the Experience of Stigma on the Mental Health and Help-seeking Behaviour of Black Female Youth (18-29 years)in Toronto, Ontario.�� Strangers in New Homeland Conference, University of Manitoba

Banahene Adjei, P., Richards, D., Gateri, H., & Issahaku,��P. May 31, 2018 - “ An Octopus Skating, the sensation of moving while still standing: A critical look at the racial diaries of Blacks in Canada”- at Congress of the Humanities, University of Regina

Banahene Adjei & Richards, D. November 8, 2018- Race to the bottom: Trump`s Election Victory and the Perceived Insidious Greed of Whiteness- Dialoguing and living well together: Decolonizing Conference at OISE

Banahene Adjei, P. & Richards, D. November 9, 2018 – When RIP (Rest in Peace) means `Return if Possible`: The Agony of Seeking Justice as a Black person in the United States and Canada.. Dialoguing and living well together: Decolonizing Conference at OISE

Tutorial Assistant: Justice for Children, HREQ 1800.6 Liberal Arts Department

Education:

• PhD (Cand) in Social Work
• MSc in Community Health, Addictions and Mental Health Specialist (University of Toronto)
• B.A. (Laurentian University)

Research Interest:��

Race and Social inequality, Mental Health, Drug and Alcohol Addiction, Correctional Institutions, Criminal Justice Includes review and analysis of the over representation of Black Canadian youth in the Criminal Justice System and in correctional institutions due to Mental Health diagnoses, Drug and Alcohol Addiction and the intersectionality of race.

Experience:��

18 years’ experience in the Social Justice fields, Mental Health disorders, Drug and Alcohol Addiction, correctional institutions, Boot Camp for Young Offenders (punishment and rehabilitation of youth after offences)

This includes the following roles:

• Mental Health Specialist in Addictions on the Assertive Community Treatment program at Michael Garron Hospital,
• Case Manager, Rapid Access Clinic, Addictions Psychiatry Team, St. Michael’s Hospital
• Case Manager, Coordinated Access to Addictions and Mental Health Services at St. Michael's Hospital

Affiliations:

• Member and founding member of Association of Black Law Enforcement Officers,
• President, Afro-Caribbean Multicultural Association of Barrie

Academic History:
�첥��Ƶ—Master of Social Work;�� University of Toronto—Honours Bachelor of Arts in Urban Studies, and Historical and Cultural Geography

Academic History:��BA in Sociology, MSW (�첥��Ƶ)

Research Interests:
Youth mental health, specifically the experiences of Afro-Caribbean youth who are diagnosed with a mental illness and the role stigma plays in influencing help seeking behaviours and attitudes.

Professional Experience:
I am a registered social worker providing psychotherapy/counselling support to youth and their families. I hold an advanced certificate in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. Additionally, I am a certified Mental Health First Aid Instructor providing Mental Health First Aid training and education to adults who interact with youth to better assist in responding to a mental health crisis situation and to recognize signs and symptoms of a mental health disorder. I am also a��registered safeTALk trainer whereby I train youth and adults in suicide awareness to better identify and support a person who is having suicidal ideation.

Academic History: MA in Interdisciplinary Studies (York), Hons BA in International Development (University of Guelph)

Research Interests: Child Protection System, Mandated Reporting, Social Work Ethics, Abolition Feminism, Young Parents, Precarious Immigration Status

Professional Experience: Over 10 years experience doing direct service work in shelters, with people experiencing GBV, refugee claimants, and young parents.

Publications:

• Skeete, K., & Bergen, H. (2024). Shifting Praxis: Social Work and Community-Based Approaches to Abolition. In C. Fortier, E. H.-S. Wong, & M. Rwigema (Eds.), Abolish Social Work (As We Know It) (pp. 82–91). Between the Lines.
• Schmidt, C., Bergen, H., Hajjar, O., Larios, L., Nakache, D., Bhuyan, R., & Hanley, J. (2023). Navigating bureaucratic violence in Canada’s two-step immigration system.��Journal of ethnic and migration studies,��49(19), 4887-4906.
• Bergen, H., & Abji, S. (2020). Facilitating the carceral pipeline: Social work’s role in funneling newcomer children from the child protection system to jail and deportation.��Affilia,��35(1), 34-48.
• Bergen, H. (2016). Teen moms talk back: Young mothers strategizing supportive communities. [MA Thesis]
• Bergen, H. (2020) ‘Money isn’t everything, but it’s involved in everything’: Young mothers’ experiences with poverty, their survival strategies and demands for systemic change. In K.
• Levassur, S. Paterson, & L. Turnbull (Eds.), Mothering and Welfare: Depriving, Surviving, Thriving. (pp. 187-202). Bradford, ON: Demeter Press.

Academic History:
MA in Gender Studies (Shih Hsin University, Taipei, Taiwan)- Thesis: In the Face of Marriage: Survival Tactics of Taiwan's Nutongzhis (Lesbians), BS in Mental Rehabilitation, renamed Clinic Psychology (Fu Jen Catholic University, Taipei, Taiwan)

Research Interests:
LGBTQ, Gender Studies, Employment Services, Immigration and Newcomers

Professional experience:
Project coordinator at Butterfly, Asian Migrant Sex Workers Support Network,Toronto
Case Manager at Taipei City Employment Services Office, Taiwan
Project manager in Taipei Parents Association of Autism, Taiwan

Publications:
Wing Yeung Vivian Leung, Yidan Zhu, Hsin-Yun Peng, A. Ka Tat Tsang. (2018). “Chinese Immigrant Mothers Negotiating Family and Career: Intersectionality and the Role of Social Support", British Journal of Social Work. (Online)

Hsin-Yun Peng. (2018). Book review: “Decentering Citizenship: Gender, Labor, and Migrant Rights in South Korea”, Transnational Social Review, 8(3), pp. 339–341.

Hsin-Yun Peng. (2018). “Intersectionality of ethnicity and sexuality: LGBTQ+ newcomers workshop”, Happiness of Yangpu, (22), 46-47. (Printed in Chinese)

Hsin-Yun Peng. (2013). “The Reflection on Sexual Discrimination in Workplace”, edited by Taipei Women’s Center, Department of Social Welfare in Taipei City Government. Taipei Women (86). (Printed in Chinese)

Hsin-Yun Peng. (2011). “LGBTQ Social Movements in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and China: Oral History Chronicle”. Forum in Women’s and Gender Studies 94:76-85. (Printed in Chinese)

Denise Tse Shang Tang, Hsin-Yun Peng. (2010). “The Girl is Looking: Musings on a Young Girl’s Po Subjectivity in Zero Chou Mei-Ling’s Drifting Flowers” in The Research of Taiwan directress 2000-2010. (Printed in Chinese)

Conference Presentations:
Hsin-Yun Peng, Di Tang (2018, Nov). “Asian Queer Women (Im)migrants support��project in Toronto”, Poster presentation at Ontario Association of Social Workers Provincial Conference in Toronto.

Hsin-Yun Peng, Elene Lam (2018, Aug). “Life, work, and immigration: Asian migrants��sex workers in Toronto”, oral presentation at Social Work and Sexualities Conference��in Montreal.

Elene Lam, Hsin-Yun Peng (2018, Aug). “Rights not Rescue: Case study of how��migrant sex workers advocate their rights and stop the harm of anti-trafficking campaign and policy”, poster presentation at Social Work and Sexualities Conference in Montreal.

Wing Yeung Vivian Leung, Hsin-Yun Peng (2018, Jul)."Family vs. Career: Negotiating Experience and Mobility of Chinese Immigrant Mothers in Toronto", oral presentation at the XIX ISA World Congress of Sociology in Toronto, Canada.

Hsin-Yun Jaden Peng (2018, Mar). “Overcoming barriers of health care for Chinese Lesbian newcomer couples in Ontario”, Poster presentation in Rainbow Health Ontario’s 2018 Conference: Because LGBTQ Health Matters, Sudbury, ON.

Hsin-Yun Peng, Deng-Min Chuang, Wing Yeung Vivian Leung, Yunxian Huang, Ka Tat Tsang (2018, Jan). “Professionalization and Colonized Body? the Career Rebuilding of Chinese Immigrants in Toronto Canada”, Poster presentation in Society for Social Work and Research 22nd Annual Conference, Washington, DC, USA.

Wing Yeung Vivian Leung, Hsin-Yun Peng, Deng-Min Chuang, Yunxian Huang, 
Ka Tat Tsang (2018, Jan). “Negotiating between Family and Career: Chinese Immigrant Mothers' Experience and the Role of Community Support in Toronto, Canada”, Oral presentation in Society for Social Work and Research 22nd Annual Conference, Washington, DC, USA.

Hsin-Yun Jaden Peng (2017, Jul). “Ignored Subjectivity: A Critical Review on Chinese Lesbian immigrant Literature”, Oral presentation in Inter-Asia Cultural Studies Conference at SungKongHoe University, Seoul, Korea.

Hsin-Yun Jaden Peng (2016, Oct). “Life Experience and Career Plan of Chinese Lesbian and Gay Migrants in Canada”. Oral presentation in Global Labour Research Centre, Graduate Student Symposium 2016, �첥��Ƶ, Toronto, ON.

Hsin-Yun Peng (2016, Mar). “Work Conditions and Health of LGBTQ Employees in Taiwan.” Poster in Rainbow Health Ontario’s 2016 Conference: Because LGTBQ Health Matters. London, ON.

Academic History:����BA (University of Ottawa)
MSW (Wilfrid Laurier 2013)

Research Interests:
Social Work, Nature & Ecology, Critical Animal Studies, Social Justice, Mental Health

Professional Experience:
Jasmine Ferreira has worked in non-profit settings for 10+ years. Her work experience includes direct practice, psychotherapy, outreach, program delivery, communications, health care policy, employment counselling, and crisis intervention. A Registered Social Worker in Ontario, she also has her Child and Youth Counsellor (CYC) designation.

Lectures & Presentations
Begun, S., Ferreira, J., McSween, V., & Rankin, V. (2018, November). Advocacy in Action Across the Lifespan of Your Social Work Career. Presentation to the Ontario Social Work Provincial Conference, Toronto, ON

Ferreira, J., Matsuoka, A., & Sorenson, J. (2018, October). Barriers to Inclusion of Animals in Ontario Social Work Practice. Presentation to the Animals and Us: Research Policy and Practice Conference, Windsor, ON

Ferreira, J. (2017, May). Mood Walks for Youth in Transition. Presentation to the National Aboriginal Physical Activity and Wellness Conference, Guelph, ON

Ferreira, J. (2017, March). Mood Walks for Youth in Transition. Presentation to the Canadian Parks Conference, Banff AB

Ferreira, J., & Mitchell, S. (2016, September). Mood Walks for Youth in Transition. Presentation to the Annual Canadian Mental Health Association National Conference, Toronto, ON

Academic History:��BA (University of Waterloo, 1987), BSW (�첥��Ƶ 1993), MSW (�첥��Ƶ, 2004)

Research Interests:
Child Welfare, Sanism, Critical Race Feminism, Social Policy and Feminist Political Economy

Dissertation Title:��
Working Title: Service Implications related to Working conditions for Child Welfare Workers in Ontario.

Professional Experience:
Over 2 decades of frontline child welfare work and over 2 decades of frontline union activism

Publications:
Chapman, C., Poole, J., Ballen, R and Azevedo, J (forthcoming) “A Kind of Collective Freezing-out:” How Helping Professionals’ Regulatory Bodies Create “Incompetence” and Increase Distress. In Bonnie Burstowed. Psychiatry Interrogated, Chapter 3. Palgrave.

Azevedo, J. (2004) ""What we can learn from children in care who repeatedly self-harm?” MSW dissertation, �첥��Ƶ (Academic Advisor, Dr. Brigitte Kitchen)

Lectures & Presentations:

June 3 2015 – ‘Us and them: The impact of mental health diagnosis for practicing social workers in Ontario.’ Part of panel presentation at Congress of the Humanities; In whose interests? Un/Fitness to practice, ‘mental health’, and the Ontario College of Social Workers and Social Service Workers.

June 2, 2015 – ‘Us and them: The impact of mental health diagnosis for practicing social workers in Ontario.’ paper presentation for CDS, Congress of the Humanities.

September 25, 2012 – Workplace Bullying in Child Welfare: Implications for anti-racist & anti-oppressive practice. �첥��Ƶ School of Social Work symposium.

Academic History:

MSW in Social Work (University of Windsor), B.A, Psychology (Tyndale University College and Seminary), Post-Graduate Certificate in Addictions and Mental Health (Durham College)

Research Interests:

Racial trauma, Black girls, identity construction, elite educational institutions, Black feminism, Critical race theories, Black mental health

Professional Experience

As a registered social worker, Karla has worked in mental health and addiction settings for over 15 years. Her work experience includes direct and indirect practice in hospital, community treatment, education, and private practice settings with a specialty in group-based psychotherapy and mood disorders for young adults and youth.

For fifteen years, Ken Williams has dedicated his career to social services, focusing on incarcerated men and justice-involved youth in economically disadvantaged communities. He has developed and managed several non-profit youth programs centred on education and liberatory practices for Black youth. As the co-founder of Heartbase, he offers programs that utilize the arts, music, and culture as methods of liberation and critical healing for Black youth. Currently, Ken serves as a Coordinator and Student Case Manager in the Office of Student Care at Toronto Metropolitan University. He is also pursuing a PhD in Social Work at �첥��Ƶ, where his research examines the intersection of wellbeing, education, and race. Ken's work critically analyzes how neoliberal wellbeing discourses and systemic messages impact Black youth and explores their resistance through creative expressions and forms of radical wellbeing.

Academic History:����Master of Arts - Integrated Studies (MA-IS), Athabasca University (2016)
Graduate Philosophy Courses at the University of Calgary
Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Philosophy (Major) & Political Science (minor), McGill University (2007)

Research Interests
International Social Work, Race, Racism and Identity, Practical Ethics, Social and Political Philosophy, Philosophy of Race, Leadership and Institutionalism, Human Rights

Dissertation Title:�� Working title:��Morality of Blackness

Professional Experience
Graduate Teaching Assistantship at �첥��Ƶ
Immigrant settlement practitioner at Calgary Bridge Foundation for Youth at both the front line and leadership level for over nine years.

Media Appearances

Publications
Book Chapter
Garang, K. (2018). “Failed Leadership: Corruption, Kleptocracy, and Democratic Exclusion.” In Steven C. Roach & Derrick K. Hudson (Eds.),��The Challenge of Governance in South Sudan: Corruption, Peacebuilding, and Foreign Intervention. New York: Routledge.

Journal Article
Garang, K. (2016).��Rethinking Race and Racism. Journal of Humanities and Cultural Studies R & D, 1 (6).

Independently Published Books
Non-Fiction
Garang, K. (2017).��South Sudan: The Dying Optimist in Me (Political Essays: 2004 -2013):��Calgary: The Nile Press.
Garang, K. (2013).��South Sudan Ideologically: Tribal-Socio-Democracy, SPLM Ideologues, Juba Corruptocrats, Khartoum Theocrats and their Time-Frozen Leadership, Calgary: The Nile Press, 2013
Garang, K. (2013).��Is ‘Black’ Really Beautiful? Dehumanizing Ethics of Descriptions and Vilifying Philosophies of Naming. Calgary: The Nile Press.
Fiction
Garang, K. (2017).��Angelina and Adut and Their Multicultural Trifles. Calgary: The Nile Press.
Garang, K. (2013).��The Pipers and the First Phase. Calgary: The Nile Press.
Garang, K. (2013).��Deng Nyan-Nhialdit and the Talking Crow.��Calgary: The Nile Press.
Poetry
Garang, K. (2016).��The Carcass Valley.��Calgary: The Nile Press.
Garang, K. (2012).��Exegesis of Despotism. Calgary: The Nile Press.
Garang, K. (2016).��Twilight Murders, Other Poems and Essays. Calgary: The Nile Press.

Lectures & Presentations
Garang, K. (2018).��The effects of Tribalism on Leadership, Institutional Development and Coexistence.��July 30, 2018. South Sudan Youth of Canada Conference. MacEwan University, Edmonton, Alberta.
Garang, K. (2015).��Settlement Hopes and Settlement Despair: From Hopelessness of Refugee Camps to The Complexity of Canadian Life. October 31. Alberta Teachers Association (ATA) ESL Conference. Delta Lodge Kananaskis, Alberta.
Garang, K. (2014).��The Role of South Sudanese Diaspora in Peace Building in South Sudan. Dialogue on South Sudan. September 27. Winnipeg, Manitoba.
Garang, K. (2012. Feb.16).��When Are You a Refugee?: A War-child’s Perspective on Multiculturalism.��Calgary Teachers’ Convention.
Garang, K. (2014, July 8).��Immigrant Settlement Sector and Refugee life. Panel Presentation to Social Work Students. University of Calgary. (Dr. David Este’s course)

Personal Website:��

Academic History:��MA in Journalism & Communication (Carleton University), B.Ed English - Junior/Intermediate (University of Western Ontario), Hon. BA in English and Communications - Double Major (�첥��Ƶ)

Research Interests:
Inclusion/exclusion of racialized youth, examining how positive inclusionary technologies of power such as participation reinforce racial neoliberal order. Utilizing critical race theories, and Foucauldian racial biopolitics and governmentality framework

Professional experience:

Collective Impact for Toronto Youth (CITY), Toronto ON, Backbone Project Staff (Part Time), 2014 - 2016.

Ryerson University & �첥��Ƶ, Toronto ON, Project Coordinator 2014 - Spring 2015. Project Coordinator- Elder Abuse in Immigrant Communities

For Youth Initiative (FYI), Toronto, ON, Director of Programs and Sustainability, 2012 – 2013. Director of Community Engagement and Communications, 2010 – 2012.

Canadian Tamil Youth Development Centre (CanTYD), Toronto, ON, Programs & Operations Manager, 2008 – 2010.

Publications:

Bernard, Maria. (Spring 2016). Politics of Youth Inclusion & Affirmative Governmentality: Youth Voice in Policy & Practice. Canadian Review of Social Policy, 75. (Refereed)

Anucha, U., & Bernard, M. (Spring 2017). The Well-Being Of Youth From Immigrant Families. In M. Chung Yan, and U. Anucha. (Eds), Working with Immigrants and Refugees: A Handbook for Social Work and Other Human Services. Toronto: Oxford University Press (Refereed)

Conference Presentations:

Bernard, M. (2016). Exploring Institutional Racism in the Youth Sector & the Included Racialized Other.�� National CASWE-ACFTS Conference. Calgary, ON. June 1.

Matsuoka, A., Guruge, S., Bernard, M. & Giacomini, M. (2015). Looking at elder abuse in the face of Canada's changing older population: Respecting strengths and resilience of older people, 44th Annual Scientific and Educational Meeting, Canadian Association on Gerontology, Calgary, AB. October 24.

Bernard, Maria. (2015). Understanding Global Citizenship and Plural Identities: Canadian Tamil Youth's Practices of Belonging in a Time of Crisis in their Homeland. Social Work at the Intersection of Ideas, Languages and Cultures. National CASWE-ACFTS Conference. Ottawa, ON. June 3.

Bernard, Maria. (2015). Spaces of Youth Participation: Practices of Governmentality, Self-Surveillance and Performativity. Critical Social Work Research Symposium. Toronto. ON. May 8.

Bernard, Maria. (2015). Global Citizenship Education: Moving from Epistemological Blindness to Seeing Complex and Layered Identities. Sovereignties & Colonialisms: Resisting Racism, Extraction and Dispossession. Critical Ethnic Studies Conference. Toronto, Ontario. On. May 2.

Guruge, S., Matsuoka, A., Bernard, M., Seifi, S. (2015). Focusing on Leadership, Resilience and Capacity Building to Address Elder Abuse in Immigrant Communities: Lessons Learned. Poster Presentation. Faculty Achievement Celebration at Faculty of Community Services, Ryerson University. Toronto, ON. April 2.

Marisa has been a therapist for over 15 years, with a special focus in narrative approaches with young people and their families. More recently, Marisa’s work has been focused on working with people who have experienced trauma and loss.

Marisa is currently working with autoethnographic methods to explore experiences of professional rupture and limit. She brings her academic, teaching and clinical practice together in supporting people to navigate their own professional and personal narratives.

Selected Publications

• Nobe-Ghelani, C. & Barnhart, M. (2024). Care as Experiential Pedagogy:��Soil��Building in Social Work Education. Access: Critical exploration of equity in higher education. Under Review.
• Barnhart M. & Nobe-Ghelani, C. (2024). Melting Pedagogies in Times of Despair: Engaging with and through Rossiter’s Ethics. Critical Social Work, 25(Special Issue).
• Barnhart, M. (2017).�� Oppositional Defiant Disorder: The psy apparatuses and youth resistance.�� Journal of Progressive Human Services, 29(1), 6-27.

Academic History:��PhD Candidate (�첥��Ƶ),��MSW (Wilfrid Laurier University),
BSW (University of Waterloo),��Social Services Diploma (Conestoga College),��BA in Philosophy and Religion & Culture (Wilfrid Laurier University)

Research Interests:

Social Work; Poverty; Social Change; Community-Based Research; Canadian Social Policy; Corporate Social Responsibility Activities of Leading Companies

Dissertation Title:
�첥��Ƶing Corporate Social Responsibility Activities for Low Income Individuals and Communities at the Canadian Banks

Professional Experience:

Outreach Worker and Affordable Housing Policy in Kitchener-Waterloo, 2004-2011, 2016-present.

Co-Founder and Volunteer for Voice and the Voiceless Productions, Inc. (documentary company), Waterloo, 2002-2006.

Publications/Conference Presentations:
Good Gingrich, L., Swift, K. & Brown, M. (2016). Social work education: The challenge of neoliberalism. In I. Taylor, M. Bogo, M. Lefevre, and B. Teater (Eds.), Routledge International Handbook of Social Work Education.

Brown, M. (September, 2012). Critical discourse analysis of bank documents. Paper presented at the PhD Social Work symposium, �첥��Ƶ, Ontario.

Academic History:
MSW (McGill University, Nov. 2000), Advanced Diploma in Social Work Supervision (Bethlehem University, Bethlehem, Palestine, June 1996), Hons. BA in Social Work (Al-Quds University, Jerusalem, Palestine, June 1986)

Research Interests:
Community-based Action Research, Community Organization, The Philosophy of Voluntarism, Program Planning and Evaluation in Community Advocacy Organizations, Human Rights and Empowerment, Pedagogy under Siege.

Silwadi-Eidda is greatly interested in the organizing experiences and activism of Palestinian women living under Israeli settler colonialism, and their ability to transfer their everyday struggle against multiple sites of oppression to agency and creative methods of resistance. To examine her research subject, Silwadi-Eidda builds on her first-hand experience working for 20 years with women, their children, families, and community who are facing different types of violence from the institutions, policies and practices of the settler colonialism such as home demolitions, limited access to education, family unification, and lack of freedom to move or speak.

For her doctoral research, Najwa hopes to build more space for these women’s experiences and agencies to be heard and recognized. Through the voices and stories of Palestinian women, she hopes to make a contribution to understanding the intersecting relations of power manifest in their experience of organizing to resist the humiliation and injustice that face them everyday.

Professional Experience:
Community Action Center (CAC), Jerusalem 1999-2013. Non-profit rights-based organization, affiliated with Al-Quds University Founding Director.

Jerusalem Community Advocacy Network (JCAN), Jerusalem 2009-2011 Expansion of CAC model to a network of rights-based centers operating in marginalized areas in East Jerusalem Founder & Organizational Consultant.

Jerusalem Unity, Office of the President, Ramallah 2001-2010 EU funded project in the Jerusalem Unit in the Office of the President of the Palestinian Authority Consultant. Commissioned by the Office of the President to conducted community-based research to evaluate the welfare sector in Jerusalem, as part of a multi-sector review.

Legislative Activity
Testimony before United Nations Secretariat of the International Fact-Finding Mission on Israeli Settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory on the impact of settlements in East Jerusalem.

Community Service
The Welfare Association, Ramallah-Palestine; volunteered to coordinate strategic plans of welfare organizations in Jerusalem in accordance with the Presidents Office welfare report (2003-2005);��Parent-Teacher Association of the Ramallah Friends School, Ramallah-Palestine; president (2003-2005);��The Palestinian Authority’s Elections Committee of East Jerusalem; member (2006);��Al-Quds Capital of Arab Culture, Jerusalem; member and organizer in the planning committee of the opening and closing ceremonies (2009-2011);��Cooperation International South South (CISS), Hebron-Palestine; facilitated training of group of women activists in Hebron on women’s empowerment in theory and practice (2010);��The Palestinian Initiative for the Promotion of Global Dialogue and Democracy (MIFTAH), Ramallah- Palestine; conducted training for women elected representatives in municipal councils on community mobilization (2006).

Publications/Conference Presentations:
Invited Conference Presentations
• Silwadi, N. (August, 2012). Community Education: the Case of the Community Action Center; Long Life Learning in Palestine Conference at Glasgow University, UK.

• Silwadi, N. (July, 2011). Community Mobilization and Gender Empowerment in East Jerusalem. Napoli, Milano and Roma; Italy.

• Silwadi, N. and Ben White (May, 2010). Capital Murder: Inside Israeli Authorities’ Regime of Discrimination and Control in Occupied East Jerusalem.��Amnesty International, London,��UK.

Research Studies
• Silwadi, N. and Mayo, P. (2012, November). Pedagogy under siege: long life learning in Palestine. Glasgow University

• Silwadi, N. (2011, March). Community Based Participatory Research (CBPR): A practical experience expanded community engagement in East Jerusalem. Community Action Center.

• Massarwa, L. and Silwadi, N. (2010, April). Community Case “Wisconsin Plan: From Welfare to Work; Palestinian Action, against Privatization and New Slavery, Community Action Center.

Profile: Combination of strong educational background, with experience in teaching, research, social work practice, legislative processes, and administration of programs in public and NGO sectors. Dedicated collaborator in areas of social policy and public administration searching for economic, political, and social equality. Presently recognized leader within the education and practice scenarios of social work in Puerto Rico. Experience supervising and administrating social programs.

Academic history: Master’s degree in economics and master’s degree in social work.

Research interests: Interlocking and Decolonial understanding of Neoliberal-Capitalism; the overrepresentation of marginalized/oppressed groups in poverty statistics; Debates around Independent/Private Social Work Practice; The Political Economy aspects of the Universal Basic Income; Social Work in the Promotion of Local Economic Development.

Professional experience: The current director of a university-based community engagement program; Teaching experience in grad and undergrad level of social work courses; 18 years of Social Work practice experience.

Publications: Evidence-based Practice and the Profession of Social Work; Critical Reflection around Professional Examination (entry to practice exam) for Social Work; The Entailment of the Independent/Private Practice of Social Work with the Construction of a Professional Project.

Academic:

MPH (University of Waterloo), MSW (University of Toronto), BA (�첥��Ƶ)

Contemplative Practices:

Yoga Therapy Program (IAYT accredited 1000+ hours), Certified Yoga Instructor (300+ hours), Forest Therapy (Association of Nature & Forest Therapy Guides & Programs)

��Research Interests:

Social justice activism| Collective, embodied care | Indigenous and racialized peoples’ knowledges | Decolonizing theories | Transnational feminism

��Professional Experience:

• Full-time Faculty, Seneca Polytechnic.
• Founder/Director, . Consultancy serving local and global clients.
• 10+ years as Executive Director of Blue Door and CAYR Community Connections.

Media:

• Newmarket Era

Research|Presentations:

• Principal Investigator for research Seneca Polytechnic. 2021.
• “Self-care strategies for mental well-being”. The Nottawasaga Community Safety �첥��Ƶ and Wellbeing Local Table. Town of New Tecumseth. 2024.
• “Self-Care and Community Care”. International Association of Yoga Therapists Symposium on Yoga Therapy and Research (SYTAR), 2021.

Academic History:
Hon. BA in International Development Studies & Sociology—Double Major (�첥��Ƶ, 2009), MEd—Language, Culture & Teaching (�첥��Ƶ, 2011),

Research Interests:
Surveillance and policing, neighborhoods and housing, urban poverty/income polarization, youth development, race and policing, immigrant and diaspora communities, identity development and citizenship,

Professional Experience:
Over 15 years’ experience in immigration settlement and counselling, health and wellbeing of Black youth and Black immigrant women, and non-profit management (grant-writing, evaluation and curriculum development). Extensive experience in grassroots community organizing addressing community health needs in the areas of housing and victims of community surveillance/ police brutality.

Dissertation Title:��Working Title: State Surveillance and Social Control of Urban Poverty and the Racialized Poor

Publications:

Anucha, U., Srikanthan, S., Siad-Togane, R. & Galabuzi, G.E. (2017).��Doing Right Together for Black Youth: What We Learned from the Community Engagement Sessions for the Ontario Black Youth Action Plan. Youth Research and Evaluation eXchange (YouthREX). Toronto, ON.

Siad-Togane, R. (2012).��Disproportionalities of Streaming, Suspensions and Expulsions in the Education of Black Youth: Considering the lived realities of Black students living in the inner-city.��(Unpublished Thesis). �첥��Ƶ, Toronto, ON

Conference Presentations:

Siad-Togane, R. Challenges and Opportunities in Employment and Equity-Seeking Youth.��11^th��Annual Diversity at Work Conference. Skills for Change, Toronto, Ontario. November 24, 2020

Siad, Togane, R., Anucha, U., Hagar, A., Cromwell, C. Reflection, Engagement and Action against Anti-Black Racism in Ontario- Part II.��Scholars Hub. �첥��Ƶ, Toronto, ON. June 19, 2020.

Siad, Togane, R., Cromwell, C., Bernard, M., Youth Work in Ontario is…��A��Provincial Knowledge to Action Exchange: The Youth. The Work. The System, Data and Stories for Action. YouthREX, �첥��Ƶ. October 25, 2018.

Siad-Togane, R. & Anucha, U. Growing Roses in Concrete? Problematizing Youth Resilience in a Canadian Urban Neighbourhood.��Pathways to Resiliency; Global South Perspectives. Resilience Research Centre, University of Pretoria, South Africa. June 14, 2017.

Siad-Togane, R., Srikanthan, S., Cromwell, C. Social Investments, Neoliberalism, and Ontario’s Youth Sector.��Canadian Association of Social Work Education. Congress, Ryerson University. May 29, 2017.

Siad-Togane, R. & Anucha, U. Growing Roses in Concrete? Problematizing Youth Resilience in a Canadian Urban Neighbourhood.��A��Provincial Knowledge to Action Exchange: The Youth. The Work. The System. YouthREX, �첥��Ƶ. October 28, 2016.

Siad-Togane. R. & Trevelayn. Improving Mental Health Services in the Jane and Finch Community: Research with the Afro-Caribbean, Latin-American, Somali, Tamil and Vietnamese communities.��Diversity and Mental Health, Hong Fook Mental Health Association. May 3, 2013.

Barrett, S, Barkaoui, K., Alidina, S., Dahya, N., Sameroo, J., Siad-Togane, R. Towards an Inclusive Approach: Opportunities, challenges and next steps.��School Community Engaged Education Summer Symposium.��York Centre for Education and Community. �첥��Ƶ. August 18, 2010.

Gray, B., Brand, D., Siad-Togane, R. Inner-city Youth and Mental Health.��Young Leaders Project & Griffin Centre Research Launch. Griffin Centre, Driftwood Community Centre. November, 2008.

Lectures:

Siad-Togane, R. (2021).��Lessons from Research and Consultations about Black Youth in Ontario. Centering Black Youth Wellbeing- A Certificate on Combatting Anti-Black Racism. YouthREX, �첥��Ƶ.

Siad-Togane, R.��The Policy Context of Ontario Youth Work. Critical Youth Work Certificate. YouthREX, �첥��Ƶ, January 17, 2019

Siad-Togane, R.��The Policy Context of Ontario Youth Work. Critical Youth Work Certificate. YouthREX, �첥��Ƶ, November 22^nd, 2018

Siad-Togane, R.��Social Work Practice with Refugees and Asylum Seekers. Social Work with Immigrants and Refugees Course. School of Social Work, �첥��Ƶ. November 21, 2017.

Siad-Togane, R.��Honouring the Wholeness of Identities and Communities: Reflecting on the Inter-relatedness of People, Spaces and Struggles.��Spirituality and Critical Social Work Course, School of Social Work, �첥��Ƶ. June 5, 2017.

Registered Social Worker with 9+ years of experience in educational, therapeutic, and clinical settings. She works primarily with neurodivergent/Autistic youth, and Black/racialized children and families. Safia holds a Masters in Social Work and an Honours BA in Developmental Psychology with Thesis from the University of Windsor, as well as a certification in Autism and Behavioural Sciences. Recently, Safia was named one of ‘Canada’s Top 100 Black Women to Watch’ for 2024, and previously held the title of Youth Delegate for the 2019 UN Youth Assembly Conference. Currently, Safia works as a Clinical Therapist, Professor and Educator, and Research Assistant. Her doctoral work focuses on the often-ignored lived experiences of Black, neurodivergent youth, and her research interests included the racial disparities in disability and social work. Safia operates from anti-racist, anti-colonial, neurodiversity-affirming perspectives, and her work centers the liberation of marginalized/oppressed peoples.

Academic History:

• BA in Social Sciences and Liberal Arts (Institute of Business Administration, Karachi, Pakistan)
• MSc in Social Work with Families and Children (Erasmus Mundus Scholar, University of Stavanger, Norway)

Research Interests:
Gender Studies, Youth Mental Health, Decolonial Mental Health Perspectives.��Post-Colonial Feminism, International Social Work.

Professional Experience:
Research assistant in the office of Human Development and Potential at Sheridan college; program coordinator working with young adults with down syndrome and their families in Karachi; remedial teacher and facilitator in organizations working with children with learning disabilities; researcher and curriculum developer in a non-profit organization providing teacher training in schools across Pakistan.

Publications:

• Bilwani, S. (2023). Experiences of Microaggression by Black Social Service Practitioners in Portugal, Journal of Progressive Human Services, DOI: 10.1080/10428232.2023.2227537
• Bilwani, S. & Anjum, G. (2021). Gender Differences in Making Moral Decisions: The Ethics of Care Perspective in Pakistan, Ethics and Social Welfare, DOI: 10.1080/17496535.2021.1937264
• Anjum, G., Kamal, A. & Bilwani, S. (2018). Antecedents of gender gap in workforce participation: A phenomenology of psychologists and medical doctors in urban Pakistan, Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment, DOI: 10.1080/10911359.2018.1536576

Academic History

MSW in Mental Health and Health (University of Toronto) completed collaborative Addiction Studies Certificate. BSW, Honours (Toronto Metropolitan University).

Research interests

Grief, drug-related death, masculinity, critical theory, addictions

Professional experience

10 years clinical experience in concurrent disorders in the community

Publications

• Ferkul, S. (2024). Mourning, Responsibility, and Social Work: A Call for Emotions in Knowledge Production [Unpublished Manuscript]. Critical Social Work.
• Ferkul, S., Agabani, Z., Minami, O., Bormann, J., Le Foll, B., Lobo, L., & Hassan, A. N. (2024). The acceptability and feasibility of a virtual mantram program for patients with posttraumatic stress disorder and substance use disorders: mixed method results.��BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine,��24(1), 9–9.
• Ferkul, S. (2019). Masculinity, Poststructuralism, and Recovery: Moving beyond Theory to Practice.��Men and Masculinities,��22(4). 602.

Presentations

Ferkul, S. (2024) Grief as a Guide for Social Change: Following the Ghosts (Poster Presentation). BONC.

Academic History:
B.Sc. in Political Science & Public Administration (University of Benin, Nigeria),��B.A. in Law and Society (�첥��Ƶ),��M.A. in Public Policy and Administration

Research Interests:
Critical International Social Work (Privatization, Globalization and Knowledge Capitalism in the Global South)

Professional Experience:
I am a Policy/Research Project Coordinator/Program Adviser with the Government of Ontario. Prior to joining the PhD program at York, I worked as a Policy and Project Coordinator with the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities in dealing with social policy issues. As a Program Adviser with the Office of the Fairness Commissioner, I worked with Ontario's Regulated Professionals to ensure transparent, objective, impartial and fair registration practices for both local and foreign trained professionals.