BRN Brilliance Season 2 puts research, teaching and collaboration in focus

From public health and sport inclusion research to dance studies and environmental justice, members of the Black Research Network (BRN) at the University of Toronto are advancing work that crosses disciplines and connects with communities. 

BRN Brilliance features interdisciplinary researchers drawing on diverse perspectives and expertise to make an impact within and beyond the university. The series returns Jan. 21 for its second season highlighting research, teaching and community-engaged initiatives led by BRN members. 

This season includes Seika Boye, an assistant professor, teaching stream in the Centre for Drama, Theatre and Performance Studies, whose project archiving Black performance is making its way across Canada. Ferdinand (Reke) Avikpe, a PhD candidate at the Institute of Biomedical Engineering, examines the optimal conditions requiredfor heart tissue development.  

BRN Brilliance will explore identity, safety and sport participation through the respective research and teaching practices of Chelsi Ricketts, a postdoctoral research fellow in the Faculty of Kinesiology and Physical Education (KPE), and Shalom Brown (KPE’23), a PhD student at the Women and Gender Studies Institute. 

The series also highlights research advanced through BRN grants and programming. With support from the BRN IGNITE Grant 4.0, Kariuki Kirigia, an assistant professor in the School of the Environment and the African Studies Centre, is addressing environmental justice concerns of Maasai communities in southern Kenya. As a BRN Faculty Fellow, Husam Abdel-Qadir, an associate professor (status-only) at the Institute for Health Policy, Management and Evaluation and cardiologist at Women’s College Hospital, is looking to answer questions about lipoprotein(a), a type of cholesterol, as it relates to Black health and heart disease. 

BRN Brilliance is a multimedia series that includes videos and articles on BRN News.  

Subscribe to our YouTube channel to watch our premiere feature.