Amy Kipp, Project Lead
Dr. Amy Kipp is postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Guelph’s Community Engaged Scholarship Institute. Her research explores community care and wellbeing, social infrastructures, and community engagement in local governance. She is committed to doing research that centres relationships, creativity, and social change. Amy grew up in Oxford County, so conducting a community-engaged research project focused on changing social dynamics in the region is especially meaningful to her.

Leah Levac, Co-lead

Dr. Leah Levac is a professor and Canada Research Chair in the University of Guelph's Department of Political Science and Social Practice and Transformational Change program. Her research focuses on the intersections between critical community engaged scholarship and public policy. She is particularly interested in: 1) exploring how community engaged scholarship (CES) can become more critical and attentive to the knowledges and practices of often-invisible communities; 2) fostering innovations in public policymaking through critical CES; and 3) facilitating critical CES capacity-building.

Iram Ahmed, Cultural and Creative Support

Iram Ahmed is a professor at the School of Business at Conestoga College. She grew up in Delhi, India and made Canada her home in 2008. She is interested in entrepreneurship, social impact, and sustainable development. Iram runs a social enterprise called the All India Company, focused on sustainable textiles sourced from across India.​

Varun Joshi, Research Assistant

Varun Joshi is a Punjabi-Canadian doctoral candidate in Sociology at the University of Guelph. Throughout his academic and professional journey, he has worked towards ensuring that South Asian community voices are represented authentically and respectfully, particularly those whose stories are often overlooked. He believes that storytelling is a powerful form of research, capable of preserving community histories while creating opportunities for dialogue, understanding, and social change. Varun is particularly interested in the diverse experiences of South Asians in rural Ontario and how identity, migration, relationships with place, animals and community shape everyday life. 

Lilian (Lily) Barraclough, Project Coordinator

Lily Barraclough is a PhD candidate in Social Practice and Transformational Change at the University of Guelph. Her background is in climate justice organizing, climate change adaptation, and arts-based research for social change. She is passionate about supporting resilient, equitable, reciprocal, and just communities through the arts and social practices.