York University’s DEDI & Wellbeing Symposium was held on Sept. 25, with breakfast, lunch, and snacks provided. Held in the Second Student Centre’s conference room, the event was invitation-based and hosted approximately fifty speakers and audience members comprising students, faculty members, and staff.
The day was broken into several presentation blocks separated by fifteen minute breakout discussions, allowing for an integration of dialogue and learning. Following lunch, Bashar Al-Shawwa, director of Strategic Communications and Advocacy at C-Space Group, took the stage for a guided discussion and speech. The day wrapped up with a networking social.
Each speaker presented a six-minute, 40-second PechaKucha — a Japanese style of presentation that means “chit-chat” and consists of 20 slides that automatically advance every 20 seconds. Notable contributions came from students involved in the Calumet College Council; the YFS; artist-in-residence Ar Ducao; and Associate Professor of Sociology, Sylvia Bawa.
Assistant Professor Lisa Davidson and undergraduate student Jordan Fiegehen partnered together to present a PechaKucha titled “Mentorship, Community, and Work-Integrated Learning: DEDI Principles for Student Success.” The presentation was focused on a second- year anthropology course taught by Professor Davidson, in which students learn from survivors of Japanese internment camps and present their findings at a symposium.
“It’s intentional for me to bring in student voices,” Davidson said when asked about her experience. “Because teaching is not just teaching, but also learning, and I still learn from the undergrads as well.”
As an Indigenous Studies major, Fiegehen’s program was suspended in the winter term. Davidson points out the importance of highlighting multidisciplinary work that has an impact on Indigenous and racialized students, and how student voices enable York faculty and staff members to continue to grow.
“I was completely amazed by the breadth of presentations from undergrad to grad, from staff to faculty, and the presentations…really brought together all of these disconnected parts,” Davidson continued when prompted on her major takeaways from the symposium. “Sometimes when you’re doing DEDI work, it feels really disconnected, and here was a place where everything was brought together.”
The second annual symposium had a few differences from last year’s, which was half a day each for the DEDI and wellbeing portions, compared to this year’s combined full-day event. In addition, the 2025 symposium featured Palestinian voices and experiences with the intention of creating a space beyond opinions of right and wrong. A space where discussion and conversation could thrive.
The Vice President of Equity, People and Culture described the symposium as a multi-vocal, brave space for DEDI advocates from across the university to connect through narrative and storytelling. The purpose of this year’s DEDI & Wellbeing Symposium was to learn from each others’ “successes, failures, lessons learned or passion projects,” promoting interdisciplinary and university-wide dialogue.
To learn more about York’s decolonizing, equity, diversity and inclusion initiatives and plans, contact the Office of Equity, People and Culture at epcinfo@yorku.ca.
