Critical Conversations in CEL: Bridging Theory and Practice I - What Kind of University Do We Want? Interrogating Community, Crisis and Hope through CEL

Guests in Conversation: 

• Michael Classens, PhD, Assistant Professor, Teaching Stream, Undergraduate Associate Director, School of the Environment, University of Toronto 
• Kari Grain, PhD, Lecturer & Coordinator, Adult Learning and Global Change, Department of Educational Studies, University of British Columbia   
• Am Johal, PhD, former Director, Vancity Office of Community Engagement & Co-Director of Community Engaged Research Initiative, Simon Fraser University, Executive Artistic Director, Indian Summer Festival, Chair, Vancouver International Film Festival 

Each of our invited speakers brings deep expertise at the nexus of community engagement, climate crisis, and critical pedagogy. As scholar-practitioners, they will collectively interrogate, reframe, and mobilize three key concepts resonant for our community-engaged learning pedagogy and practice in this moment: “community,” “hope,” and “crisis.” Our guests will be in dialogue with one another and our audience on the following: 

• In what ways might critically unsettling the notion of “community” inform and transform our pedagogical practices in CEL, deepen student engagement with complexity, and reimagine the ethics and praxis of relationship-building? 
• What is the role of hope in CEL pedagogies in a context of evidence-oriented helplessness—a condition shaped by the convergence of global and local crises and the stark inequities of their impacts? 
• Can hope serve as a generative force in our teaching, and if so, how might it be ethically and critically enacted?

To ground and extend this dialogue, our speakers have selected some recommended readings, which we encourage participants to engage with in preparation for our collective conversation.

AI-generated closed captioning in English will be available at this event. We strive to create accessible event spaces that suit the needs of all attendees. Are there any accessibility considerations we can address for you in advance of the session? Please email Rebs Lee at rebs.lee@utoronto.ca.