Guest blog by Erika Katzman, PhD, OT Reg. (Ont.), and Assistant Professor of Disability Studies at King’s University College at Western University.

When I met Gini* five years ago, I was surprised to learn that she doesn’t get any extra break time at work. The context of our meeting was that she hired me to give her a hand with everyday physical tasks: things like dressing, using the toilet, and getting in and out of bed. At home, Gini’s personal support needs are met by a publicly funded attendant care service. When Gini travels, however, she pays out of pocket for supports that can travel with her.

Because I help Gini with toileting, I know that it takes her at least 15 minutes to execute a simple pee break. When I am at work, my relatively able body can...

Guest blog by James Deaville, professor and musicologist at Carleton University.

Post-secondary institutions have responded with alacrity to the needs of undergraduate students, whose lives and studies have been disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Graduate students whose research relies upon lab work, ethnography or archival study have found themselves more severely disadvantaged by the novel coronavirus’ impacts on access to these vital resources (Zahneis 2020). Faculty and staff have experienced significant disruptions of their own, as entry to campus offices is prohibited and the distinction between home and work further erodes. Some of us have the extra charge of home-schooling children while teaching, administering and—as time and energy permit—engaging in research activities. Add to that the veritable...

Guest blog by Fenwick McKelvey, Associate Professor in Information and Communication Technology Policy in the Department of Communication Studies at Concordia University.

Here in Montreal, the pandemic coincided with an unusually cold spring, so my family has been spending our days indoors, connected to the outside world through the Internet. As someone who studies how we measure the Internet, I have been thinking about the value of my connection. On World Telecommunications Day, I would like to share my reflections on the relationship between how we measure the Internet and how we judge its effectiveness during a pandemic.

Like the weather, there are lots of ways to describe Internet. It. Instead of temperature, UV index or that...

Guest blog by Shumaila Hemani, Ph.D in Music from the University of Alberta and Instructor at the Faculty of Extension, University of Alberta.

In what ways can we adapt our teaching in times of crisis to exhibit resilience such that the arts we teach inspire and empower students to act, especially in times of stress and crisis, and nurture their right to imagination?  I was part of the Music faculty at the Semester at Sea’s Spring 2020 voyage that abruptly ended a month early as a result of COVID-19.  I responded to the loss in experiential learning opportunities as a result of cancellation of the students’ field-classes in South Africa by bringing forward my own artistic practice and research at...