M I R E L L A S T R O I N K , P H . D .D E P A R T M E N T O F P S Y C H O L O G Y

C O N N I E N E L S O N , P H . D .S C H O O L O F S O C I A L W O R K

F O O D S E C U R I T Y R E S E A R C H N E T W O R KL A K E H E A D U N I V E R S I T Y

C O M M U N I T Y - E N G A G E D S C H O L A R S H I P : C R I T I C A L J U N C T U R E S I N R E S E A R C H , P R A C T I C E A N D P O L I C Y

C O N F E R E N C E

G U E L P H , O N T A R I ON O V E M B E R 4 - 5 , 2 0 1 0

Community Engaged Scholars: Impact of an Interdisciplinary

Food Security Partnership Model

OUR MISSION

The FSRN began in 2006 and is dedicated to bringing together a unique blend of resources from the academy and the community for the purposes of

ó Developing resilient, thriving and adaptive local food systems in Northwestern Ontario through community service learning (CSL), graduate student theses and community-based research

ó Giving participants life-influencing experiences in being a symbiotic part of the organic transformation to an ecological focused food system

OUR VISION

ó A knowledge commons emerges from a confluence of faculty, students and community interactive engagement.

ó From this culture of engagement, the emergent knowledge commons becomes the foundation for a self-organizing approach for generating adaptive, resilient and innovative community-based solutions to regional food security.

Why Food Security Theme?

ó Food is a core and essential social determinant of our physical and mental health and well-being; and

ó Food has proven to be an engaging unifying and rallying issue for bringing together faculty, students and community.

A BRIEF GLIMPSE OF FSRN

Our core activities are encapsulated through our

messaging of EAT, THINK, LEARN AND GROW

as we engage in the transformation of the industrial

food system.

CHN13

Slide 5

CHN13 I wanted to add all the examples as is included in the notes for this slide, but we don't have time...so how about what I have on this slide and then I will say that we will quickly (15 seconds) present the Eat, Grow, Learn, Think slides and welcome more discussion on any specifics throughout the conference.Connie Nelson, 31/10/2010

Academy Academy Local, regional and external partnersLocal, regional and external partners

ó 10% of student population

ó 20 academic courses

ó 12 academic departments

ó 5 Faculties – Business, Education, Forestry Sciences, Health and Behavioural Sciences Social Science & Humanities,

ó National – FSC, CAFS, Sustain Ontario, Foodshed, CCEDNet, PFPP, Norkik

ó Regional - Rural and First Nation communities, schools

ó Local agriculture organizations (TBARS, TBFA, TBSCIA, Cattlemen) producers and market systems

ó Educational system –elementary, secondary, post-sec.

ó Charitable and social organizations, community gardens, cooperatives, CSA, emergent new farm markets

Who is the FSRN Network?

CHN15

Slide 11

CHN15 I will follow-up on finding someone for help with the spiral for the submission of the paper by Dec. 1.I will spend about 5 seconds on this slide and on to the specific examples. The real meaning of this presentation needs to be focused on your case example. Hopefully, your case study will make our approach 'live and be dynamic'!Connie Nelson, 31/10/2010

CONTEXT-BASED

A context focus can promote significant place-based dialogue

VISION

Vision is the ‘glue’ for keeping our network on course.

FLUIDITY

Complex issues like food systems thrive when engagement is in constant motion receptive to both formal and informal linkages.

Web of Networks

The energy from the FSRN network spawns additional self-organizing networks that provide for the diversity essential for resilience to the ever-changing political, physical, social and economic forces in building a local food system.

Strange AttractorsThe fifth dimension of CF offers insights into how components of complex systems can exhibit energy that can draw in other components to itself and hold them there. This phenomenon is called a ‘strange attractor’ as the energy or force can be observed even when it is difficult to identify (Gleick, 1987).

FACULTY ENGAGEMENT: A Case Study of Building Knowledge Commons

ó Community Service Learning facilitates reaching out and trying out ideas in the ‘real world’ and connecting the ‘real world’ with the intellectual content of the classroom to develop knowledge commons thus enriching pedagogy

ó Develop new avenues for community-based research and the essaying of theory

ó Develop beneficial interdepartmental and community relationships which can benefit and improve research capacity and increase professional standing.

A CASE STUDY IN TRANSFORMATIVE CSL

Dr. Mirella Stroink:

Pedagogy

ó My approach to Community Service Learning evolved over 3 years and 6 courses¡ “Standard” CSL experience in large 2nd year Social Psychology

course

¡ “Expanded” CSL experience in 4th year Community Psychology course

¡ “Transformative” CSL experience in 3rd year Environmental Psychology course and two Graduate Directed Studies courses

÷ Community knowledge integrated into the course

÷ Community needs drive student learning and knowledge creation

Graduate Student Supervision

ó 3 Master’s Level Student Theses as CSL¡ 1 MA Psychology

¡ 1 Masters of Public Health

¡ 1 Masters of Environmental Studies

ó 1 PhD Level Student Dissertation as CSL¡ Education

ó 3 Undergraduate Honours Theses as CSL¡ Psychology

Research

ó Research moving toward increasing community engagement

ó Community-driven research questions

ó Community taking control of its own knowledge creation, recognizing its own “right” to create and use valid knowledge

Observations of CF Model in Action

ó Context Based:¡ Faculty member IS a community member. This recognition

provides the passion to which I lend the tools of my craft.

ó Vision:¡ Vision shared by students and partners and me. Vision

becomes the centre out of which swirls an abundance of innovation and research

ó Fluidity:¡ Being Fully Present. Serving the task at hand in the situation;

not coming “at” the task with a set of a-priori roles to play, categories to apply, and hidden goals or fears to act upon

Observations of CF Model

ó Web of Networks:¡ Continuously self-expanding network of relationships fuels

ongoing work toward the vision. Diversity of connections as a source of innovation.

ó Strange Attractors:¡ Particular combination of connections creates an energy that

fosters emerging social movements; people are finding the hubs on their own

Next Policy Steps: In Building a Knowledge Commons

Our findings to date reveal that knowledge appears to be profoundly generated within context and raises challenges to a more traditional positivistic university oriented approach to knowledge creation and transmission.

Next Policy Steps: In Building a Knowledge Commons

ó Re-think and re-tool university structures

ó Rigid application of university structures acts as a barrier to community participation in knowledge creation. For example:¡ Calendaring transdisciplinary courses

¡ Relevant recognition of knowledge creation

¡ Distinction between “course” and “research”

¡ Recognition of faculty contributions

Next Policy Steps: In Building a Knowledge Commons

ó Re-consider the role of the university¡ The university is a hub of knowledge creation

¡ The context has changed

ó Re-imagine the university in a world where knowledge creation is being democratized¡ Can information, ideas, knowledge creation be “owned”?

¡ Are university structures useful in light of how knowledge creation is occurring today?

Thank you!