Explore the public engagement initiatives that occurred throughout the Laurier Legacy Project, including video recordings of the fireside chat with scholars Katelyn Arac and Tedla Desta and the three lectures by visiting Indigenous scholar Justice Gethin Edward.
Feb. 23, 2023
Hosted by the Office of the Associate Vice President, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, the Laurier Legacy Fireside Chat was the first public engagement of the Laurier Legacy Project.
It provided an opportunity to engage in meaningful dialogue about Sir Wilfrid Laurier and the history of Wilfrid Laurier University. It includes presentations by the project’s postdoctoral fellows, Dr. Katelyn Arac and Dr. Tedla Desta, in which they shared their research findings.
Jan. 15, 2024
The purpose of this symposium was to listen, learn, and engage with research from other postsecondary institutions, and examine how it has informed our understanding of institutions’ histories and legacies. There was also discussion of how research findings can be mobilized to advance equity, diversity, and inclusion.
Read a full recap of the symposium.
The first panel featured scholars whose works recover histories of marginalization, resistance, and activism at postsecondary institutions. The discussion touched on histories from Wilfrid Laurier University’s archives; stories of eugenics education at the University of Guelph and its impacts on those targeted by eugenics policies in Southern Ontario, and the students who led the Sir George Williams Occupation at Concordia University.
Speakers included:
The second panel discussed research on university origins, historical legacies of university namesakes, and how universities in settler colonies acquired the land on which they were situated. The session included discussions of the legacy of Sir Wilfrid Laurier; Land Grab Universities in settler colonies; the University of Toronto endowment lands; and the use of funds held in trust for First Nations to bail McGill College out of bankruptcy.
Speakers included:
The final panel featured a discussion of how research findings can be mobilized towards institutional change that advance equity, diversity and inclusion. Panelists discussed how the research findings of scholars examining critical institutional histories can be mobilized towards institutional change that advances equity, diversity, and inclusion at postsecondary educational institutions.
Speakers included:
Spring 2024
As part of this initiative, during the winter and spring of 2024, the Laurier Legacy Postdoctoral Fellows presented their research findings and held discussions with classes, clubs, teams, and departments across all Laurier’s campuses and in the community.
Presentations included the following topics:
Dr. Katelyn Arac:
Dr. Tedla Desta:
Winter 2024
In winter 2024, Justice Gethin Edward joined Laurier as a visiting Indigenous scholar as part of the Laurier Legacy Project. Renowned for his leadership in establishing Brantford’s first Indigenous Persons Court, Justice Edward hosted three public lectures that explored decolonization of the legal system in Canada. These lectures contributed to the Laurier Legacy Project’s goal of leading public engagement on institutional history within Laurier and broader communities.
Watch recordings of the three lectures:
