Inclusion, Social, Justice and Equity in Urban and Rural Coastal Communities (WP9)

Dr. Nicole Power

FOCI’s Work Package on ‘Inclusion, Social Justice and Equity in Urban and Rural Coastal Communities’ carries out research activities to support the design of infrastructures in changing urban and rural coastal communities in ways that are oriented towards inclusion, social justice and equity. This Work Package examines the question, how do we create sustainable coastal communities that are inclusive, safe, just and equitable places to live and work in contexts of climate, ocean and coastal community change? Furthermore, the Work Package is divided into sub-projects that focus on the intersections of ocean and coastal changes with (i) the global and local movement of people, (ii) community responses to existing coastal land and ocean infrastructures, (iii) and fishing livelihoods and our relationship to marine animals and life.

FOCI in Focus

2022 PLACE Dialogues in Norris Point

Place-Based Solutions in a Challenged World: The Role of Social Enterprises and Communities.

In October, FOCI Work Package 7 and partners held the 2022 PLACE Dialogues in Norris Point. Attendees gathered to explore place-based solutions for building strong, resilient communities. Learn more here.

Natalie Slawinski

Community leaders were in Norris Point this past October 2022 for a conference, The PLACE Dialogues. The topic of discussion; what makes strong, resilient communities in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Joan Cranston

With increased visitation to Norris Point, community leaders and social entrepreneurs came together this past October 2022 to share and discuss experiences, lessons learned and moving forward.

Conservation Corps Newfoundland and Labrador (CCNL)

Future Ocean and Coastal Infrastructures (FOCI) partner CCNL was first incorporated in 1993 and is a not-for-profit, provincial community-based organization that works to facilitate a strong environmental ethic and create partnerships and capacity in communities across the province to address environmental and cultural issues.

Focusing on environmental and cultural projects and resources has allowed CCNL to provide strong employment training as well as a stronger connection for young people to their communities, encouraging youth to be more active in the development and conservation of the local environment and cultural resources. The basis of CCNL programs has been partnerships with community-based organizations and focusing its efforts on reaching rural and remote communities. CCNL have used direct employment programs, such as the Internship and Green Team Programs, and general public education and outreach initiatives to educate a wide audience on environmental issues. Since 2002, with the addition of the Climate Change Education Centre (CCEC), thousands of young people in schools and youth organizations throughout Newfoundland and Labrador have been made aware of the local impacts of climate change and been encouraged, and supported, to take action to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions in their daily lives.

See our Bright Spotlight feature on CCNL intern and FOCI WP2 HQP, Sydney Snow!

Meet Sydney Snow

Sydney Snow is an intern with Conservation Corps NL. Born and raised in St. John’s, she completed a Master’s in Applied Psychological Science (Cooperative) and a Bachelor of Science in Psychology at Memorial University. Her honours research focused on the autobiographical memories of individuals who identify with a different gender than assigned at birth. Her master’s research, supervised by Dr. Martin Day, investigated how social mobility and the wording of policies affect support for redistribution policies. She is currently researching factors that may relate to climate change opinions with FOCI’s Work Package (WP2). In addition to her research, she has completed work term placements and semester projects that focused on program evaluation within health care and academia.

Ocean Ranger Memorial Award

On February 15, 1982, the Ocean Ranger Exploratory Drilling Platform sank, resulting in the tragic loss of the 84 crew members on board. As a memorial to this loss, an award program was established by the Ocean Ranger Disaster Fund. These awards, valued at $500.00 per year, are tenable by students who are entering or pursuing a post-secondary programme of studies at Memorial University of Newfoundland, the Fisheries and Marine Institute, and the College of the North Atlantic. In selecting candidates, preference will be given to widows and lineal descendants (children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren etc.) of victims of the disaster. In the absence of eligible candidates from this group, the award maybe given to other full-time students at the discretion of the Ocean Ranger Award Selection Committee. Information and application forms may be obtained from the Scholarships & Awards Offices at any of the institutions noted above. Applications must include documentation to clearly verify applicant’s eligibility.

Please contact scholarships@mun.ca for an application. Completed application must be returned by the 3rd Friday in January.

OFI - Visiting Fellowship Program

Visiting Fellowship (VF) will be awarded to highly-qualified researchers who intend to conduct innovative, full-time, interdisciplinary and collaborative research. Incoming VFs will spend their research stay at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia or at Memorial University in St. John’s, Newfoundland. Outgoing VFs will spend their research stay at one of OFI's eight international partners.

Expressions of interest are due January 23, 2023.

OFI/OGEN Studentships Top-Up Opportunity

The Ocean Frontier Institute (OFI), through the Ocean Graduate Excellence Network (OGEN), is offering graduate studentship top-up funding to successful applicants to the current Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) calls for proposals.

Expressions of interest are due January 31, 2023.

About FOCI

The Future Ocean and Coastal Infrastructures (FOCI) program is facilitating innovative transdisciplinary research and outreach focused on the creative co-design of infrastructures to prepare for change and build safe, sustainable and inclusive communities in Atlantic Canada.