WILFRID LAURIER UNIVERSITY

Jonathan Crush

Biography

Jonathan Crush was raised in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Swaziland. After obtaining his first degree at Cambridge University, he moved to Canada and completed his M.A. at Wilfrid Laurier University and Ph.D. at Queen's University. Jonathan is a frequent commentator on issues of migration, food security and xenophobia in the Global South and has consulted for the IOM, ILO, UNDP, UNAIDS, UNESCO, CIDA-CIC, OECD and various African governments.

Andrea Brown

Biography

Steffanie Scott is a Professor in the Department of Geography and Environmental Management at the University of Waterloo. She is past president of the Canadian Association for Food Studies (2012-14) and co-chair (2007-11 and 2022-present) of the Food System Roundtable of Waterloo Region. Over her career, Steffanie's research focused on China, Vietnam, and Canada has critically analyzed avenues for rural development, regenerative food systems, and alternative food networks-especially those that prioritize small-scale and organic farmers. Steffanie's research and teaching has been inspired by how 'food systems thinking' enables a holistic view that integrates many dimensions of socio-ecological resilience. Steffanie is passionate about and committed to community engagement, public education, and action research on food system change and land connection.

Jenna L. Hennebry

Biography

Jenna Hennebry is a Professor at the Balsillie School of International Affairs, Coordinator of the Women and Gender Studies Program, and Associate Dean of the School of International Policy and Governance at Wilfrid Laurier University. She is Co-Founder of the International Migration Research Centre and the Migration Worker Health Project, and Founder of the Gender+Migration Hub funded by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Jenna is a member of the Canadian Council for Refugees Subcommittee on Migrant Workers and the UN Expert Working Group on Women's Human Rights in the Global Compact for Migration. She is an Expert Advisor to the Auditor General of Canada, Performance Audit on Temporary Foreign Farm Workers - Covid-19, a member of the UN Network on Migration's Thematic Working Group 4 on Bilateral Labour Agreements as well as the newly formed Thematic Priority Group 7 on Gender. She also sits on the Advisory Board of the Global Migration Data Centre (GMDC) and the Migration Research and Publishing High-Level Advisers, both of the IOM.

Stacey Wilson-Forsberg

Biography

Dr. Stacey Wilson-Forsberg is an Associate Professor in the Human Rights & Human Diversity program at Wilfrid Laurier University and current Director of the Tshepo Institute for the Study of Contemporary Africa. Her research and much of her teaching focus on migration and multiculturalism. She is especially interested in the experiences of youth with refugee backgrounds in schools and the labour market, and migrants with precarious immigration status in North America, Africa, and Latin America.

Margaret Walton-Roberts

Biography

Dr. Margaret Walton-Roberts is Professor of Geography and Environmental Studies at Wilfrid Laurier University and affiliated to the Balsillie School of International Affairs. She is widely published on migration related themes. Over her career her research has maintained a focus on South Asian migration, with a focus on gender and skilled migration, and she has maintained active supervision with students interested in South Asian immigrant settlement in Canada, global remittances, and the representation of diasporas. She has published over 40 book chapters, more than 50 journal articles, and five co-edited books including, Diasporas, Development and Governance with Springer Global Migration Series.

Liam Riley

Biography

Dr Liam Riley is an Adjunct Research Faculty member at the Balsillie School of International Affairs, Wilfrid Laurier University. He holds a PhD and MA in Geography from the University of Western Ontario and a BA from McGill University. Dr Riley's work highlights the intersection of gender, food, and urbanization in sub-Saharan Africa. This area of research draws together broad questions about social equity and inclusion, environmental and demographic change and the politics of development in African cities that sheds light on critical policy issues. Much of his work is focused on Malawi where he has been working since 2007.

Lucy Luccisano

Biography

Sujata Ramachandran

Biography

Dr. Sujata Ramachandran is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Balsillie School of International Affairs with the SSHRC-funded MiFOOD Project. She received her PhD in Human Geography from Wilfrid Laurier University. Sujata has extensive experience studying various aspects of migration in Canada, Southern Africa and South Asia. Her research interests include migration and development, migrant integration, and migration governance. As part of her postdoctoral research, Sujata will conduct a study on South-South migration to India for the MiFOOD Project.