Unwrap the Research 2010 Videos: Educating for Democratic Citizenship in an Oil-Dependent Economy

Description

Andrew Hodgkins, PhD Candidate 2010, Educational Policy Studies, University of Alberta.

Unwrap the Research was a community-research encounter in October 2010 that allowed residents to interact with researchers from across Canada working on the social and economic aspects of Fort McMurray's oil boom experience in the mid 2000s.

A series of videos are posted on Vimeo, representing diverse points of view at the time. Opinions not necessarily shared or endorsed by CRSC nor University of Alberta. Click on "Vimeo" in the lower right of the video to see our other videos.

From the Conference 'Introduction':

In the first decade of the 21st century Fort McMurray has become a household name in Canada and abroad. Situated at the heart of the second largest known petroleum reserves in the world (the Athabasca Oil Sands), the city of Fort McMurray and the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo have experienced growing stresses on social and physical infrastructure, a population nearly doubled in size, a highly mobile and diverse global workforce, and a multinational oil industry under environmental scrutiny. The region is also gaining attention for attempts by government, industry, and civil society groups to find solutions to this set of social demands.

During this time, dozens of academic, government, and social researchers conducted a diverse array of studies on social issues in and around Fort McMurray. Yet there has been little opportunity for researchers to share information with each other and with people affected by their research.

The first of its kind, this conference was structured to facilitate dialogue and learning opportunities
a) among researchers from multiple disciplines; and
b) between researchers and local residents.

Unwrap the Research offered a unique opportunity for social researchers and local residents to share and learn from research conducted in Fort McMurray and the oil sands region of Alberta. These and other topics were covered:

Education in a Resource Economy
Childhood Well-being
Work and Gender
Mobile Workers
Francophone Newcomers
Immigrants/TFWs in the Service Sector
Comprehensive Bibliography of the Region
Demographics and Census
Urban Planning and Space
Recreational Land Use
Health and Substance Use
Social Meanings of Environment
Aboriginal – Industry Relations
Visual Images of Community


Tags: "Canada, "Alberta", "Bitumen", "Bitumount", "Fort McMurray", "Oil Sands", "Tar Sands", "Unwrap the research", "Wood Buffalo, racism, challenges, Children. Families, colonialism, Community, culture, education, learning, Pedagogy, planning, sharing, sustainability, Workers, youth