e-Dialogue on Agency: What is it?
Friday, October 30, 2009, 1:00—3:00 p.m. PST and 4:00—6:00 p.m. EST
Why does one person survive a tragedy, while another breaks down? Similarly, why does one community transcend a economic collapse while another withers away?. Is it something called agency, the will, the intent to make a change? Tune in to our research team discussing what agency mean, and what are its characteristics. Is it important for policy-makers?
This dialogue is part of the Agency project, this research program is described in the Agency section of this website.
The dialogue is available here.
Moderator
Dr. Ann Dale
Ann Dale is a Professor at Royal Roads University, where she leads several research projects, including e-Dialogues for Sustainable Development and is active in the environmental movement.
Participants
Herb Barbolet
One of the leading food activists in Canada is a consultant on food policy and programmes. He consulted on the establishment of the Vancouver Food Policy Council, was founder and executive director of FarmFolk/CityFolk (www.ffcf.bc.ca).
Kate Humpage
Kate Humpage is Director, Community Approaches and Initiatives Division, HRSDC. In her work over the past 25 years, Ms Humpage has focused in particular on social development, gender equality, human resource development, poverty alleviation, and strengthening institutional partnership machinery and capacity for NGOs, governments and community groups.
Dr Rick Kool
Dr
.Rick Kool has been a science teacher in Ucluelet Secondary School; a biology and ecology instructor at a Douglas College in New Westminster BC; and a post-secondary instructor at both the University of Victoria and now at Royal Roads University.
Dr. Nola–Kate Seymoar
Dr. Nola–Kate Seymoarhas worked in sustainable development since the late 1980s and is the President and CEO of the International Centre for Sustainable Cities (hyperlink this). Dr. Seymoar serves on UBC and SFU Advisory Boards and is a member of the Canadian Landmines Foundation and Global Urban Development (formerly the Prague Institue). She is Trudeau mentor and received the Queen's Jubliee Medal in 2002.
Dr. Kevin Hanna
Kevin Hanna is Associate Professor at Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, where he teaches environment and resource policy, impact assessment, and land use planning. His recent work addresses issues in land use planning, urban competitiveness and quality of space, and the role of planning in the economic transition of resource-based communities.
Dr. Chris Ling
Chris is a recent post-doctoral fellow living in Victoria, 
British Columbia. He is Asssociate Faculty at Royal Roads University and is part of the Canada Research Chair is Sustainable Community Development research team.
Ken Lyotier
Ken has lived and worked in the Downtown Eastside sine the late 1970s, and is the founding Executive Director of United We Can, a social business enterprise and three other business lines. A community leader, Ken has advised the city of Vancouver and many other groups on social issues, such as medical and housing services and poverty alleviation in Vancouver's inner-City.
Jennie Sparkes
Jen
nie has held numerous position in Parks Canada, starting as a Park Warden at Pukaskwa National Park. She currently works as a social science researcher examining the human dimension of ecosystem based management. She is a graduate of the Royal Roads' MEM program and is currently pursuing her PhD in Geography at the University of Victoria.
