Annual Report 2019-2020

Research that Supports Positive Community Change

Designed around a collaborative research infrastructure, Simon Fraser University’s Community-Engaged Research Initiative (CERi) promotes principles of participation, cooperation, social transformation and knowledge translation to lift up and strengthen the capacity of SFU’s researchers and students to engage respectfully and ethically with community members.

Directors' Message

As CERi has launched full steam ahead into its implementation phase in 2020, it has been a year of extraordinary growth and change. Earlier this year, we launched SFU’s presence at 312 Main along with SFU Public Square and Lifelong Learning, we built out an exceptional staff team and launched multiple programs ranging from seed funding for community engaged research by faculty and students, a new graduate fellowship program and a researcher-in-residence program. Despite the restrictions and challenges posed by a global pandemic like COVID-19, we have been able to continue the growth of CERi in complicated circumstances.

Building on SFU’s historical strengths in community engaged research, we are well on our way to building the social infrastructure that is needed to enhance, deepen and institutionalize support systems that will allow this essential feature of the university to succeed, flourish and showcase groundbreaking research that is of national and international significance. Graduate students, faculty members at various stages of their career and community organizations have benefited from the range of activities and programs that have launched. We have also partnered on a number of research grants with SFU faculty members and partner institutions across the country.

We are grateful for the support of the Office of the Vice-President Research for their ongoing support, as well as an active and engaged Advisory Board that represent Faculties across the university. We look forward to an upcoming BC symposium on Community-Engaged Research in Times of Crisis, as well as an international conference in the near future. We look forward to carrying on the momentum as we work to establish CERi as a permanent research facility at SFU in the future.

Am Johal and Stuart Poyntz
Co-Directors
SFU's Community-Engaged Research Initiative (CERi)