RESEARCH INFRASTRUCTURE
The Social Innovation Exchange
For our faculty and researchers, the community is an extension of the classroom.
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Community and college, serving a common goal.
Social innovation projects at George Brown enable our researchers to increase their capacity to work with communities, with the goal of developing partnerships that foster social innovation in areas such as education, integration of vulnerable populations, health and community development.
What is Social Innovation?
Our Projects
Read the Social Innovation Report 2020.
FULL PROJECT LIST
Community Guide to Cancer Nutrition
Faculty: Amy Symington
Summary: This project is a collaboration between George Brown College and the Gilda’s Club of Greater Toronto to research, test and produce a comprehensive, informative and accessible handbook on cancer nutrition. The nutrition guide will be equipped with health – promoting recipes that could be used by Gilda’s Clubs and cancer care affiliates nationwide as a model for running similar health –promoting, and socially and emotionally supportive supper clubs. This research will be conducted in George Brown College’s Chef School. The finished product will be an evidence-based guide that contains research on health –promoting foods for persons with cancer, 80 large quantity recipes complete with photos and nutrition facts tables, a list of necessary pantry items and kitchen equipment, important culinary skills, and tips on how to run a successful supper club program.
Partner Organization: Gilda’s Club Greater Toronto
Job Talks: Innovative Study and Website for Recruitment in the Skilled Trades
Faculty: Jonathan Callegher
Summary: This project is a collaboration between George Brown College, the Canadian Apprenticeship Forum, Skills Ontario and Q. I. Value Systems to pursue innovative research to respond to identified gaps in information and communication about the trades. This research will be conducted in George Brown College’s Centre for Business. Through a national survey, recorded interviews and an interactive website called “Job Talks” the project will mobilize a new understanding of tradespeople by allowing the public to interact with the research findings, view videos of passionate tradespeople, and access career information.
Partner Organizations: The Canadian Apprenticeship Forum, Skills Ontario and Q.I. Value Systems
Generating Success for Farm to School Programs
Faculty: Gary Hoyer
Summary: This project is a collaboration between George Brown College, Sustain Ontario, Ontario Edible Education Network and Farm to Cafeteria Canada to provide support to all stakeholders who work to build and improve Farm to School programs. The project will determine best practices, fidelity features and provide concrete examples that will entice stakeholders to implement or expand Farm to School programs. This research will be conducted in George Brown College’s Faculty of Hospitality and Tourism. George Brown, in partnership with Sustain Ontario (SO) and Farm to Cafeteria Canada will determine best practices, fidelity features and provide concrete examples that will entice stakeholders to implement or expand Farm to School programs.
Partner Organizations: Sustain Ontario, Ontario Edible Education Network; and Farm to Cafeteria Canada
Adaptive Clothing for Persons Living with Hemi-paresis
Faculty: Milan Shahani
Summary: The project is a collaboration between George Brown College and the University of Toronto to explore wellness through innovative technology, allowing stroke survivors with hemiplegia to reintegrate into society. Commonly caused by stroke, hemiparesis is weakness (or complete paralysis in its most severe form) of the entire left or right side of the body. The project will undertake the research, design, and development of prototypes for a line of adaptive clothing, which will include outerwear, innerwear and lingerie.
Partner Organization: University of Toronto
The Early Childhood Cognitive Sensitivity Training Study
Faculty: Zeenat Janmohamed
Summary: This project is an innovative collaboration between George Brown College, the City of Toronto’s Children’s Services Division and the Atkinson Centre at University of Toronto. The research will respond to current challenges in delivering consistent, effective cognitively sensitive care in Early Childhood Education (ECE) contexts in the City of Toronto. The goal of the study is to develop and test an innovative model of professional learning developed by educators at George Brown College to improve the cognitive sensitivity skills of ECE.
Partner Organizations: University of Toronto and the City of Toronto Children’s Services Division
From Margins to Center through Education: Integrating Victims of Torture and Political Oppression
Faculty: Jaswant Kaur Bajwa
Summary: This 2-year project to establish innovative outreach for people seeking to integrate into Canadian society following experiences of torture and war. It is a community-based participatory action study to determine the specific needs, barriers, and expectations of victims of torture pursuing higher education; the creation of a workshop and course curriculum that addresses the higher education needs and goals of victims of torture; and the pilot implementation and evaluation of an educational program designed to address the needs of victims of torture. Partners: Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH); the Canadian Centre for Victims of Torture (CCVT)
Improving Health Numeracy in Health Science Students and Professionals Through an Online Instrument
Faculty: Taras Gula
Summary: This is a collaborative project between George Brown College and McMaster University utilizing an action research approach to conceptualize health numeracy and to act on that conceptualization by translating it into learning content for an on-line learning instrument to be developed. The research to be conducted in the Centre for Health and Community Services has the ultimate goal to improve numeracy for health sciences students and professionals.
Partner: McMaster University
Literacy Uplift
Faculty: Przemyslaw Pawluk
Summary: This is a collaborative project between George Brown College, Teaching English as a Second Language Toronto, Literacy Nipissing and Development Made Simple to build upon the potential of mobile learning to promote and support literacy training. The research to be conducted in the Centre for Arts, Design and Information Technology will develop a set of design principles for an effective mobile learning literacy solution that will address low literacy skills among Canadian adult first and second language English learners, and equip them with the language and digital literacy skills needed to thrive in Canadian communities and workplaces. Based on these principles, a prototype of an effective mobile learning solution will be produced.
Partners: Teaching English as a Second Language Toronto, Literacy Nipissing, and Development Made Simple.
Partnership for Applied Research to Support the Development and Evaluation of the Post-Secondary Students with Disabilities Network (PSDNet)
Faculty: Charles Anyinam
Summary: The Post-secondary Students with Disabilities Network (PSDNet) is a partnership-based, applied research program to promote the empowerment and personal development of post-secondary education (PSE) students with disabilities across Ontario primarily via the creation of an evidenced-based, Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) compliant, website that uniquely mobilizes the potential of online and mobile social media technology. Partners: The National Educational Association of Disabled Students (NEADS); Nipissing University; the University of Ontario Institute of Ontario.
Co-designing On-line Tools for Engagement and Holistic Crisis Planning with Diverse Youth Groups in the Region of Peel
Faculty: Elise Hodson
Summary: This 3-year project aims to increase understanding of the potential for new interactive technologies, social networks and modes of communication to support crisis planning for marginalized youth and their support networks, resulting in an interactive, client-centered crisis planning tool designed for web and mobile platforms. Partners: Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH); CoDesign; the Peel Service Collaborative (PSC); Loughborough University/Design School in the UK
Supporting young people: a response to sex trafficking in Ontario
Faculty: Melissa Teles (Project Director); Heather Finch (Research Coordinator)
Summary: This project is an innovative, community–based participatory project, which will develop, pilot and assess a practice framework and training tools. The framework will reflect and expand current research and service provision for youth impacted by Human Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation (HTSE) in Ontario. It will create an unprecedented professional development opportunity for Child and Youth Care Practitioners (CYCP) and contribute to the betterment of the lives of youth impacted by HTSE. This research will be conducted in George Brown College’s School of Social and Community Services in partnership with the Ontario Association of Child and Youth Care (OACYC), Covenant House and Ryerson University. Partners: Ontario Association of Child and Youth Care (OACYC), Covenant House and Ryerson University
Toys or Tools? Using Tablet Computers for Open-Ended Literacy Learning
Faculty: Monica McGlynn-Stewart
Summary: This 3-year project addresses the complexity of literacy teaching in 21st Century early learning classrooms, drawing on three bodies of literature – literacy, digital technology, and teacher development—to allow educators to provide an innovative learning environment for their students while exploring digital technology applications that allow for active, creative, and open-ended literacy learning. Partners: Peel District School Board
Design Thinking to Optimize Pre-Surgical Care (PEACE): Using Big Data for Holistic and Integrated Patient Care
Faculty: Ana Rita Morais
Partner: Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre
In Ontario, medical professionals perform approximately 350,000 complex surgeries per year requiring a preoperative assessment to evaluate patient health, coordinate care needs, and assess the risk of adverse events. With an aging Canadian population, patients require more complex care putting an immense pressure on clinics to perform full preoperative assessments in a timely manner. At Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre alone, over 700 patients are seen each month. The PEACE project will create an e-health platform for pre-surgical patient care in collaboration with healthcare professionals, interactive designers, patients and caregivers to support sustainable and progressive patient care.
Designing and Implementing Environmental Inquiry Strategies in Urban Early Years Programs in Canada to Support the Healthy Development and Environmental Awareness
Principal Investigator: Dr. Monica McGlynn-Stewart
Partners: Dr. Eric Jackman Institute of Child Study Laboratory School at the University of Toronto, The Learning Enrichment Foundation, Toronto Early Learning and Child Care Services
This project will explore the complexities of connecting young children to nature in urban areas and address the gap in knowledge on children’s active engagement in environmental inquiry and the training that early years educators receive. Changes, challenges, growth, and practices will be documented to develop a framework and identify the necessary resources for integrating environmental inquiry, including Indigenous perspectives on land-based learning to transform existing early years’ environmental inquiry programs. It will be made available to Canadian childcare centres, schools, and educator pre-service programs.
Impact of a Canadian Newcomer’s Country of Origin’s Culture on AI and Robot-Enabled Canadian Workplace Culture
Principal Investigator: Dr. Robin Yap
Partners: CultureLink Settlement and Community Services, TELUS, TD Bank, XYZ Storage
The Canadian workplace is rapidly evolving with the introduction of new technologies to increase productivity. Concurrently, many workplaces are employing Canadian newcomers with a diverse set of backgrounds and experiences. For companies and organizations to thrive in the coming decade and beyond, they must be able to leverage new technology and the strengths of newcomer talent. However, the challenges lie in varying work ethics and work culture experience. This research will answer the question: What is the impact of a newcomer’s culture on Canadian workplace culture where artificial intelligence and robotics are installed?
JobTalks Access: Innovative National Surveys and Video Series of Workers with Disabilities
Principal Investigator: Dr. Jon Callegher
Partners: Canadian National Institute for the Blind Foundation, Q.I. Value Systems, The Career Foundation
Job Talks Access will conduct two national surveys and create a video series to understand the underlying values, emotions and goals among persons with disabilities to support the development of employment support programs and toolkits for the Canadian National Institute for the Blind Foundation, the Career Foundation, and their partners. These resources will benefit employers, particularly those in the private sector who are less prepared to hire persons with disabilities. It also seeks to comprehend the underlying drivers related to job satisfaction, especially as the proportion of employees with disabilities increases as the workforce ages.
Supporting Peer Work
Principal Investigator: Dr. Griffin Epstein
Partners: Toronto Drop-In Network, Working for Change
The transformative potential of the peer work service remains under-utilized and under-realized as peer workers in drop-in programs face structural and funding barriers to adequately perform their duties. The Supporting Peer Work project takes a community-based participatory research approach to improve service outcomes for members of Toronto’s marginalized communities by increasing the drop-in sector’s capacity to integrate relevant, equitable and sustainable peer work. The project will sustain and expand peer work by developing resources for drop-in Boards of Directors, managers and supervisors to create innovative training and employment opportunities for peer workers.
The Communal Lunch Project: Building Capacity in Programming to Support Student Well-Being
Principal Investigator: Jennifer Mitsche
Partners: Joshna Maharaj, Meal Exchange, Peerconnect at GBC
The Communal Lunch Project addresses two issues disproportionately represented in the post-secondary student population: food insecurity and social isolation. In partnership with Meal Exchange and Joshna Maharaj and with support from George Brown College’s Peerconnect program, a weekly recipe is broken down and each student is asked to bring one ingredient. On the day of the lunch, students collectively build a healthy, inexpensive meal, interact and learn from their peers, and develop self-care strategies. The program will develop, pilot, and assess a communal lunch framework and training program to support post-secondary student well-being across Canada. It will also include a website which will address the challenges that students may face in the next year. The lunch project website will be a virtual table where students can meet and share resources, be guided to create meals using the ingredients they have in their homes, learn how to stock a pantry and plan meals, and participate in virtual community lunches.
Resources for Further Reading
COVID-19 Related Funding
| Amount: | Flexible |
| Length: | Flexible |
| Eligibility: | Flexible |
| Disciplines: | All |
| Notes: | This grant is to combat COVID-19 in Ontario by supporting:
· Technology driven solutions and services to help businesses open, or · Solutions and services to strengthen inter-provincial trade and supply chains |
Partnership Engage Grants COVID-19 Special Initiative
| Amount: | $7,000 to $25,000 |
| Length: | 1 year |
| Eligibility: | Staff or faculty affiliated with a Canadian post-secondary institution |
| Disciplines: | Social sciences and humanities |
| Notes: | · Provides short-term and timely support for small-scale, stakeholder-driven partnerships to combat COVID-19 and related issues, challenges and impacts
· Upcoming deadline: September 15, 2020 |
To learn more, email Eva Aboagye.
George Brown College Funding
| Amount: | Up to $15,000 |
| Length: | 1 year |
| Eligibility: | George Brown faculty or staff |
| Disciplines: | All, must be related to social innovation |
| Notes: | · The grant supports engagement of GBC faculty or staff in original research and innovation activities related to teaching and learning or applied research |
To learn more, email Eva Aboagye.
College and Community Innovation (CCI) Program by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) of Canada
Engage Grants
| Amount: | Up to $25,000 |
| Length: | 6 months |
| Eligibility: | Staff or faculty affiliated with a Canadian post-secondary institution |
| Disciplines: | All |
| Notes: | · Applications are accepted on a rolling basis
· Aims to foster the development of new research partnerships by supporting short-term research and development projects aimed at addressing a company-specific problem
Applications are judged based on the following: · Technical merit · Industrial relevance and potential for innovation impact · Industrial participation and plan for technology transfer · Benefit to Canada |
Connect Grants
| Amount: | Level 1: $5,000; Level 2: typically, $5,000 but up to $25,000 (with justification) |
| Length: | Flexible |
| Eligibility: | Staff or faculty affiliated with a Canadian college |
| Disciplines: | All |
| Notes: | · Applications are accepting on a rolling basis
· Level 1: Intended for travel, accommodation, meals and meeting costs within Canada for researchers · Level 2: provides support for activities that will position NSERC as an enabler of research and development in Canada (e.g., contributes to the overall objectives of the CCI program, networking activities to develop new college-industry partnerships) |
College and Community Social Innovation Fund (CCSIF)
| Amount: | Up to $120,000 per year |
| Length: | 1 to 3 years |
| Eligibility: | Staff or faculty affiliated with a Canadian college |
| Disciplines: | All |
| Notes: | · Aims to foster social innovation within Canadian colleges that align with the research needs of local community organizations
Applications are judged based on the following: · Potential for innovation impact (40%) · Excellence of the proposal (30%) · Team expertise (30%) |
Innovation Links Grants
| Amount: | Up to $250,000 per year ($125,000 for the college and $125,000 for the university) |
| Length: | Up to 3 years |
| Eligibility: | Staff or faculty affiliated with a Canadian post-secondary institution |
| Disciplines: | All |
| Notes: | · Applications are accepting on a rolling basis
· Supports college-university collaborations working with the business sector to realize successful commercialization · Project costs are shared between the company partner and the grant · The company partner must contribute at least equal to the amount requested from NSERC with at least a third of the amount being cash
|
To learn more, email Eva Aboagye.
Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC)
Connection Grants
| Amount: | Events: $7,000 to $25,000; Outreach activities: $7,000 to $50,000 (can be higher with justification) |
| Length: | 1 year |
| Eligibility: | Staff or faculty affiliated with a Canadian post-secondary institution |
| Disciplines: | Social sciences and humanities |
| Notes: | · Targeted towards short-term, targeted knowledge mobilization initiatives
· Projects must align with the Connection program – to realize the potential of social sciences and humanities research for economic, cultural, intellectual and social influences, benefits and impact internally, to the institution, and externally, to the community, by facilitating the flow and exchange of research knowledge · Supporting organizations must match the amount (cash or in-kind) to a minimum of 50%
Applications are judged based on the following: · Challenge – the aim and importance of the project (40%) · Feasibility – the project plan (30%) · Capability – the research expertise (30%) |
Insight Development Grants
| Amount: | $7,000 to $50,000 |
| Length: | 1 to 2 years |
| Eligibility: | Staff or faculty affiliated with a Canadian post-secondary institution |
| Disciplines: | Social sciences and humanities |
| Notes: | · Projects must align with the Insight program – to build knowledge and understanding of people and societies by supporting research excellence
· Insight Development Grants support research in its initial stages (e.g., the development of new research questions, methods, or ideas) which can involve pilot projects, case studies and/or critical analyses of existing research
Applications are judged based on the following: · Challenge – the aim and importance of the project (50%) · Feasibility – the project plan (20%) · Capability – the research expertise (30%) |
Insight Grants
| Amount: | Stream A: $7,000 to $100,000; Stream B: $100,000 to $400,000 |
| Length: | 2 to 5 years |
| Eligibility: | Staff or faculty affiliated with a Canadian post-secondary institution |
| Disciplines: | All |
| Notes: | · Projects must align with the Insight program
· Provides funds for long-term research initiatives (e.g., normally as a continuation of an Insight Development Grant)
Applications are judged based on the following: · Challenge – the aim and importance of the project (40%) · Feasibility – the project plan (20%) · Capability – the research expertise (40%)
|
Partnership Engage Grants
| Amount: | $7,000 to $25,000 |
| Length: | 1 year |
| Eligibility: | Staff or faculty affiliated with a Canadian post-secondary institution |
| Disciplines: | Social sciences and humanities |
| Notes: | · Projects must align with the Insight program and the Connection program
· Provides short-term and timely support for partnered research activities for a single partner organization
Applications are judged based on the following: · Challenge – the aim and importance of the project (60%) · Feasibility – the project plan (20%) · Capability – the research expertise (20%) |
Partnership Development Grants
| Amount: | $75,000 to $200,000 |
| Length: | 1 to 3 years |
| Eligibility: | Staff or faculty affiliated with a Canadian post-secondary institution |
| Disciplines: | Social sciences and humanities |
| Notes: | · Projects must align with the Insight program and the Connection program
· Provides funds for teams working in a formal partnership between postsecondary institutions and a partner organization (existing or new partnership)
Applications are judged based on the following: · Challenge – the aim and importance of the project (50%) · Feasibility – the project plan (20%) · Capability – the research expertise (30%) |
To learn more, email Eva Aboagye.
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Project Portal
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