Guest blog by Caleb Snider, Congress 2017 blogger

The Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences brings together leading thinkers, academics, researchers, policy-makers and innovators to explore some of the world’s most challenging issues. Congress celebrates the vitality and quality of Canadian research contributions, and helps train the next generation of Canadian ideas leadership. This year’s theme “The Next 150, on Indigenous Lands" celebrates the history, legacy and achievements of the peoples and territories that make us who we are, and anticipates the boundless opportunities of the future. Organized by the Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences, this year’s Congress is being hosted by Ryerson University in Toronto from May 27-June 2. Follow this series of Big Picture at #congressh blogs.

According to the incomparable Wade Davis, it is the role of anthropology to show us that every culture has something to say and each...

Print coverage

The forgotten nudes of Canada (National Post)
Date: May 31, 2017
Thousands of academics have gathered in Toronto this week for the annual Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences, presenting papers on everything from whether poutine is a form of cultural appropriation to the ampersand as a symbol of gentrification. 

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Guest blog by Dr. Vianne Timmons, President and Vice Chancellor, University of Regina

We are now officially a year away from Congress 2018 and, as host university, we are thrilled to invite you to our community! 

Regina has proudly hosted a number of large-scale events in recent years – the 2013 Grey Cup, the 2013 Juno Music Awards, and the 2014 North American Indigenous Games come to mind. What strikes visitors to events such as these is the unique way our community comes together to ensure attendees feel welcomed and experience the hospitality for which Saskatchewanians are known across Canada.

Community is at the heart of who we are and what we do.  It is also the inspiration for the theme for 2018, “Gathering diversities,” which honours Regina’...

Guest blog by Caleb Snider, Congress 2017 blogger

The Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences brings together leading thinkers, academics, researchers, policy-makers and innovators to explore some of the world’s most challenging issues. Congress celebrates the vitality and quality of Canadian research contributions, and helps train the next generation of Canadian ideas leadership. This year’s theme “The Next 150, on Indigenous Lands" celebrates the history, legacy and achievements of the peoples and territories that make us who we are, and anticipates the boundless opportunities of the future. Organized by the Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences, this year’s Congress is being hosted by Ryerson University in Toronto from May 27-June 2. Follow this series of Big Picture at #congressh blogs.

In the first of Congress 2017’s Big Thinking series, writer and activist Professor Niigaanwewidam James Sinclair...

Guest blog by Scott White, Editor, The Conversation Canada

There’s a sad irony facing society today: at a time when people need strong journalism more than ever, the business model of the legacy journalism industry is broken and may be beyond repair. In a world where “fake news” has found its way into the lexicon over the last year, how will Canadians get factual and important information they need to help them make informed decisions about significant issues in their lives?

One solution can be found in the world of academia. Consider the possibilities if academics, armed with years of knowledge, expertise and research relevant to many of today’s current events, could work with journalists to provide a new form of journalism.

That’s exactly the model for The Conversation Canada. I’m the new Editor of The Conversation Canada and we will be launching...

Guest blog by Karen Leiva, Congress 2017 blogger

The Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences brings together leading thinkers, academics, researchers, policy-makers and innovators to explore some of the world’s most challenging issues. Congress celebrates the vitality and quality of Canadian research contributions, and helps train the next generation of Canadian ideas leadership. This year’s theme “The Next 150, on Indigenous Lands" celebrates the history, legacy and achievements of the peoples and territories that make us who we are, and anticipates the boundless opportunities of the future. Organized by the Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences, this year’s Congress is being hosted by Ryerson University in Toronto from May 27-June 2. Follow this series of Big Picture at #congressh blogs.

In this digital era, the humanities and social sciences are vital to advancing technologies, creating content and spurring innovation. ...

Guest blog by Karen Leiva, Congress 2017 blogger

The Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences brings together leading thinkers, academics, researchers, policy-makers and innovators to explore some of the world’s most challenging issues. Congress celebrates the vitality and quality of Canadian research contributions, and helps train the next generation of Canadian ideas leadership. This year’s theme “The Next 150, on Indigenous Lands" celebrates the history, legacy and achievements of the peoples and territories that make us who we are, and anticipates the boundless opportunities of the future. Organized by the Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences, this year’s Congress is being hosted by Ryerson University in Toronto from May 27-June 2. Follow this series of Big Picture at #congressh blogs.

For the first time in over a decade, the premier event for Canada’s scholarly community returns to Toronto. From May 27 to June 2,...

York University postdoc applies anthropology principles to social media strategy

Guest blog by Robyn Dugas, Content Specialist, Mitacs, Inc.

If you’re running a company, a social media presence is probably an essential component of your marketing strategy. Your impact can be measured in terms of clicks and impressions — but what if you wanted to get a deeper, more personal idea of how social media works?

Treefrog, based in Newmarket, Ontario, knows all about social media for businesses. It provides a variety of marketing services to clients, including ‘traditional’ social media strategy. But a series of conversations between Sean Stephens, Treefrog CEO, and Laurie Baker, then an anthropology PhD candidate at York University, sparked a shift in how the company approaches social media....

Guest blog by Matthew Adams, Between the Lines Publicist

In 2017 three Canadian publishers and Congress 2017 exhibitors — University of Manitoba Press, Between the Lines and Fernwood Publishing — will celebrate big anniversaries.  See below for more information about the party!

Founded in 1967, the University of Manitoba Press (UMP) is a leading publisher of books on Indigenous studies and Canadian history. UMP produces books that combine important scholarship with a deep engagement in issues and events that affect our lives, including immigration studies, ethnic studies, the study of Canadian literature, culture, politics, Indigenous languages and a wide-ranging list of books on the heritage of the peoples and land of the Canadian prairies. UMP books have been recognized for their excellence with dozens of prestigious awards.

In 1977, a small group of activists founded...

Guest blog by Caitlin Gordon-Walker, interdisciplinary scholar, Department of Anthropology, University of British Columbia

Exhibiting Nation: Multicultural Nationalism (and Its Limits) in Canada’s Museums begins with my memories of visiting the Royal BC Museum as a child, as a young adult, and  later  as a museum scholar. I have a nostalgic fondness for this museum and its exhibitions, but also see reflected within them commonly held narratives of the province and more broadly the nation, which by celebrating a certain form of unity in diversity also work to inscribe particular kinds of limits on the diversity they seek to celebrate.

While my personal sense of...

Guest blog by Sean Guistini

Nunavut Arctic College Media (NAC Media) is the newest member of the Association of Canadian University Presses (ACUP). NAC Media is the first scholarly press in Canada’s territories. Please visit our site to view our books and films, and download our 2017 catalogue. www.nacmedia.ca 

Too Many People
NAC Media is excited to announce the release of our newest book – Willem Rasing’s Too Many People: Contact, Disorder, Change in an Inuit Society, 1822-2015. This is a sweeping and rigorous socio-historical examination of the contact between the outside world and a group of Inuit, the Iglulingmiut, living in Canada’s Eastern Arctic. The nature of these encounters...

Guest blog by Constance Crompton Assistant Professor, Digital Humanities, Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies, The University of British Columbia

We've all heard that digital tools can help enhance our research, teaching, and dissemination. That said, it's not always clear how to get started. On May 27 and 28, the DHSI@Congress  will return to Congress for its fourth year. The series features eight  2.5-hour introductory workshops covering everything from augmented reality and 3D printing to DH pedagogy and DH theory and a plenary by Ryerson's Centre for Digital Humanities Director, Lorraine Janzen Kooistra.

The DHSI@Congress is built on the community model of the Digital Humanities Summer Institute at the University of...

Guest blog by Dean Pamela Sugiman, Ryerson University 

Celebrating Congress 2017, Ryerson University is pleased to present “An evening with Cornel West.”

Known for his passion, humility, grace and humour, Cornel West is one of America’s most outspoken critics on race, poverty and democracy. The Princeton University professor and civil rights activist is committed to keeping alive the legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr. — a legacy of truth-telling and bearing witness to love and justice. Dr. West's incisive commentary on race and justice lays at the core of the Congress 2017 theme: Canada the Next 150 On Indigenous Lands.

On the street, in prisons, churches, or lecture halls, Dr. West’s writing, speaking, and teaching mash the traditions of the black Baptist Church...