City Staff Spotlight: Kristin Huigenbos

Hear from Kristin Huigenbos, Hamilton Business Center, on the impacts the CityLAB project report, BIPOC Entrepreneurship, has made in identifying synergies with mentors, community partners and programming locally and provincially.

Let's begin by hearing a little about your role in the city and how your work impacts Hamiltonians.

My name is Kristin Huigenbos. I work with the Hamilton Business Center team on the first floor of City Hall. We're an extension of economic development, in partnership with the Ministry of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade.  We work with Ministry and private sector partners to foster and support business and economic growth across Hamilton and are part of a 54-office network in Ontario. In recent years, we have navigated the challenges of the pandemic with our small business owners, focusing on their needs, their growth, their opportunity, and how we can support that journey and be part of it with them.

Tell us a bit about reflections you have on your experience working with CityLAB?

It was an amazing experience working with the CityLAB partners, students, educators and everybody involved. It was an opportunity to engage and learn from others from a different lens through different research mechanisms and connections within our community that allowed us to expand our programming and the opportunities to support and foster economic growth across Hamilton.

What were the findings in this report?

This project was done over the course of a full school year with collaboration from a Redeemer Core Capstone class and a full year McMaster Health Sciences Thesis. The Redeemer group identified barriers, researched existing programs and needs, and developed best practices on the creation of a BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Colour) entrepreneurship program. The McMaster group built on this research by exploring the barriers experienced by and needs of BIPOC entrepreneurs through interviews and surveys to inform the development of a BIPOC-specific entrepreneurship program. This process included an action agreement, background research, question development and ethics proposal, finalizing questions & ethics, data collection (interviews) and analyzing and summarizing findings. 

The report gives recommendations related to six prominent themes, highlighted in the executive summary. These include: “Acquiring Social Capital; Addressing the Psychological Side of Entrepreneurship; A Focus on Diversity, Representation, and Discrimination; Increasing Resource Accessibility; Education in Business Fundamental Skills; and Improving Access to Funding.”

Learn more: BIPOC Entrepreneurship Redeemer Fall 2021 Project and McMaster Winter 2022 Project

How are the findings from this project informing the City's work?

We're invested in and striving to learn more about how we can continue bridging relationships and building connections to increase the number of entrepreneurs in the city representing the BIPOC community. The CityLAB report - and the work completed by the teams on this - validated and continued to shape the direction we headed. At the heart of the project was a desire to listen to the real voices of Hamiltonians, their experiences, their lens, and ultimately provided helpful feedback for how we can be helpful and supportive of that entrepreneurial journey in so many ways, working with all members of our community. I believe this really helped us pivot and adopt some of our strategies. As we develop more in-person and virtual experiences, we are integrating the findings into our programming mandate for this year and in the years to come.

Which partnerships or synergies that have formed from these findings are you the most excited about?

This project has allowed us to connect, hear and learn from new mentors within the community. We have also been introduced to entrepreneurs who were previously unaware of the resources that the City of Hamilton has to support them.  Every single step of the way has been so impactful and integrated within overall success, not for us, but for the community. I think that's what's important, is that this was research in the community, by the community and for the community. We can continue to deliver services for those community members as a result.

How have you seen this work so far being shared and celebrated? Both in Hamilton and the network outside of Hamilton.

Here in Hamilton, we are very thankful that we have this great work and we're executing on the report. Immediately within our programs, both in our Summer Company and our Starter Company, we changed our mentoring style. We looked at it from a lens of everything that we heard. We have engaged with new mentors, trainers, coaches and facilitators to bring diversity to our team.  We've reached out to new partner networks to share information about application intake. I think we've seen an immediate impact from those actions. Our Starter Company Plus, for example, is a program for entrepreneurs in any stage of business provided they're starting full-time, right across Hamilton. In previous years, we've seen 60-70-80 applications. In this last intake, we saw 127 applications for 40 selections. I think that's a testament to the strength of the partnerships, collaboration and overall impact of this report. 

We are connecting well beyond the boundaries of typical connections that we would have made in the past. We're observing that impact here locally and we're sharing that with our partners at the Ministry level as well. Sitting on the small business, Central Ontario Board, we're sharing what has been learned such as the demand for different mentorship capacities, mentors, training lenses and educational opportunities in terms of how we deliver programming and services across our community. So, it is also having an Ontario-wide impact.

Do you have any projections of where this work might go?

It's going places, so we're not turning back now. We see the impacts. I look forward to expanding on it. We're seeing success with our entrepreneurs and we are hearing that enthusiasm, and hope to take it a step further. I think we must continue to evolve the dialogue and support  at a local level, but also with our partners across Ontario. We will continue the conversation of how this can help in other communities.

Do you have anything else you want to add?

Yeah, we're just super thankful to have this opportunity. I want to say how truly thankful we are for everybody engaged in this process. From working with the CityLAB Team, the partners, and the community, to the interview participants  who felt that they could provide this feedback. The impact is very evident, very early on. I'm excited about where this is going and for the long-term impacts of where this can go for our community. And we're seeing success daily. I think that's the important part of CityLAB projects, it is not just something that was done as research or part of an educational institution. This is impactful work that is changing the landscape of entrepreneurship across our ecosystem in Hamilton and across Ontario. This is very important work, and I'm very thankful for that.

CityLAB Alumni Spotlight - Wendy Zhang

Alumni Spotlight Series: Wendy Zhang 2020

Wendy is a CityLAB SIR 2020 alum, the previous Communications and Events Assistant team member and now taking her Masters in Occupational Therapy at University of Toronto. Read more about how CityLAB has uniquely shaped Wendy's interests and aspirations within accessible and inclusive design and more!

Tell us about your studies at McMaster and how you were involved with CityLAB?

I did my undergrad at Mac in Health Sciences, a program that gives you a lot of leeway and elective space. I decided in third year to do CityLAB Semester in Residence and completed a minor in Community Engagement, since it had fulfilled most of the credits. My experience with CityLAB was great. It really supplemented the more biological aspects of my undergrad and taught me a little bit more about the people skills required to be an effective member of society and a health care practitioner.  It was really interesting to learn more about the neighborhoods of Hamilton, the city and the kind of structures that we live within. The focus of the project I worked on was sustainability and climate resiliency, which we worked on with a member of City staff. The Climate Change Resiliency Project included understanding climate change mitigation strategies, what other cities' climate resiliency plans were, and sustainability policy from a broad level. I worked with a group of wonderful students and we became very close friends despite this being the first semester of online SIR.

What are you up to now? Post-graduation life

This year I began my masters in occupational therapy.  I chose this career because it was one of the most holistic kinds of health care and it's very patient centered. You are treating the patient in the context of their everyday life, taking into consideration how their environment affects health and wellbeing. In this field I will encounter a bit of everything, which I appreciate as a big picture person. I think CityLAB has prepared me well, in that it's taught me about how to see things in context and create relationships that value the autonomy of others. CityLAB taught me how to work in a team of people with different backgrounds and strengths. CityLAB group work taught us to harness each other's strengths, ask for help and give feedback, all crucial aspects of working in health care as well. Analyzing the design of how a city is built and how people interact with their spaces is another aspect of CityLAB that is relevant to occupational therapy. 

Do you have any long term goals that have been positively impacted by your time as a SIR?

The year after I completed Semester in Residence, I was hired as CityLAB's new communications and events assistant. This was a good fit for me as I did a lot of graphic design throughout university and I like thinking about problems both visually and functionally. I worked at CityLAB part-time during the school year and then full-time in the summer. I had a great experience. What a supportive team! 

One specific area that impacted my future goals was learning from Kristen Mommertz,  a sustainability manager at Mohawk College about how to create accessible digital media. She did a lot of coaching and guiding us on how to make our digital content more accessible. This has ignited ambitions to work on designing accessible systems and technology in the future. 

I appreciate the design thinking we learn in CityLAB, understanding the context and the importance of viewing it from a lens of inclusivity,  sustainability and equity. For example, there are certain areas of Hamilton that don't have a lot of street trees, community gardens or green resources which are often the same places that are marginalized. It's important to engage the community and hear from those whose voices are often left out in designing projects. I am very interested in both public policy and consulting as well. I don't know yet, but there are many pieces of my CityLAB experience that are very relevant. 

Any words of advice for students thinking about applying to SIR?

I would say, keep an open mind about what you're going to learn and I'm sure some part of it will be relevant to what you want to be doing. You will learn things and make connections that are relevant to your future goals or you will be inspired in new and unforeseen ways! There will be lots of new skills you will pick up, so don't pigeonhole yourself into thinking you have to do something that's directly relevant to you. If you don't know how it will fit in, talk to your faculty advisor about it. Just do it! Just apply!

CityLAB Alumni Spotlight: Miranda Floreano

Alumni Spotlight Series: Miranda Floreano, 2018

Miranda is an alumna of the 2018 Semester in Residence cohort. She is now the Coordinator of Sustainability Programs and Services at Mohawk College. Read more about Miranda’s CityLAB project, career path, and how her CityLAB experience helped align her interests and long-term goals.

Tell us about your studies at McMaster and how you were involved with CityLAB?

I was in the Life Sciences program at McMaster and was part of the first cohort of CityLAB Semester In Residence, in 2018. My team and I worked with the Sustainable Mobility team at the City of Hamilton to create a Street Opening Study for King William Street in downtown Hamilton. We utilized the Principles of Community Engagement to create consensus among stakeholders on a vision for a semi-regular street opening, opening the street to pedestrians and closing it to cars. This would facilitate a community space while encouraging active transportation and allowing the restaurant businesses to expand on-street patios. My team and I conducted various community engagement pieces which included street surveys with passersby, a brainstorming session with community groups, and a design charrette with stakeholders, including restaurant owners from the street. We also researched global best practices from other street openings and contributed to public art consultations. Since working on the project, the City of Hamilton has implemented temporary pedestrianization of the street, which was furthered by the demand for patios during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Miranda Floreano at Fall 2018 Project Showcase. See more photos

What are you up to now?

After my SIR term, I continued my studies at McMaster and worked part-time as a CityLAB Ambassador. I also completed a short-term contract with the Sustainable Mobility team at the City, who I had the opportunity to network with during CityLAB. After graduating, I went to Fleming College and received a postgraduate diploma in Ecosystem Management Technology. Following my studies, I worked in Community Outreach with a local Conservation Authority. I am now the Coordinator of Sustainability Programs and Services at Mohawk College. CityLAB provided a tremendous opportunity to network and make connections with many individuals across the City of Hamilton. Many of the roles that I’ve had, have been possible due to the connections and skills that I gained. The way projects are structured at CityLAB mimics the real world, which is different from your typical lecture-based courses. The collaboration is very similar to the work that I do now, which involves working with various departments and stakeholders on sustainability programs and services at Mohawk College.

Do you have any long term goals that have been positively impacted by your time in SIR?

SIR helped me to see that Sustainability was an area I could pursue as a career. I hadn’t previously considered the career path that could come from it. Having the opportunity to learn about sustainability through the project work at CityLAB was incredibly eye-opening. My long term goals include community engagement and public education surrounding sustainability. Another valuable aspect of CityLAB was the emphasis placed on youth civic engagement and contributing to our community. Learning about the systems, processes and staff at the City was very helpful in my understanding of the municipality both as a student and as a community member.

Any words of advice for students thinking about applying for SIR?

Absolutely go for it, it’s a great opportunity! One thing I really appreciated about the application process at McMaster University was that there was no GPA requirement to be accepted, which made it more accessible than other programs at University such as a Co-op. The experiential learning and courses like dialogue and design were so different from the other courses I was taking in my undergrad. Being able to explore new topics and apply your knowledge in such a collaborative way is really neat. I think it’s an incredibly beneficial program regardless of where you want to work in the future. I’ve used experiences and examples from CityLAB in every job interview I’ve had since then. It provides you with the opportunity to build so many foundational skills (such as facilitating meetings, brainstorming sessions and writing minutes) that will carry you through your career. Also, the opportunity to learn from other students in an interdisciplinary environment that you wouldn’t otherwise work in is quite meaningful. CityLAB is also great to build your network of friends and peers! It is very much a collaborative community environment; you see each other every day and get close-knit very quickly. I would definitely recommend it!

Read more about the impact of Miranda’s CityLAB project here:

Digital Accessibility and Inclusivity at CityLAB

Digital Accessibility and Inclusivity at CityLAB

“When it comes to digital accessibility, Mohawk College is propelling our community forward with the Accessible Media Production program and the Accessibility Research Lab. ”

How can we be more inclusive: in our projects, in our programming, and in our outreach?  A good first step is ensuring digital accessibility

Inclusivity is a top priority at the City of Hamilton, and holding ourselves accountable to that priority is key. When our team at CityLAB realized we were not meeting the required guidelines to digitally comply with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA), we dug in to learn as much as we could about making necessary changes. Getting started was easy enough, but as the updates became more technical we looked to our network for guidance and expertise.

Hamilton is privileged to be home to 3 post-secondary academic institutions. The benefits that come from these institutions trickle down into programs, community initiatives, and the fabric of our city. When it comes to digital accessibility, Mohawk College is propelling our community forward with the Accessible Media Production program and the Accessibility Research Lab. 

In the Fall of 2020, we worked with Mohawk’s Accessible Media Production program to address digital accessibility and to look at the ways our website and digital services were falling short.  Digital accessibility describes the ability of a website, online services, and digital presence to be easily used and navigated by all users, including persons living with disabilities.  Jennifer Curry Jahnke, who leads the program at Mohawk, connected us with her student Kristen Mommertz for the project.

Over the course of the 2020-2021 school year, Kristen worked to complete a full audit of our website, digital presence, and online services. She developed an assessment report which included two rounds of end-user testing, identifying areas that needed improvement or were not in compliance, and finally concluded the project with a recommendation report in which she laid out step by step guidelines to implement those changes, and linked to helpful resources and toolkits to further guide us. After completion of the program, Kristen is now serving as a technician for the Accessibility Research Lab team.

We are currently working to implement her suggestions across our website and in our archives. 

If your online presence is falling short of meeting accessibility standards and, like us, you aren’t sure where to start, we encourage you to set up a meeting with the Accessibility Research Lab at Mohawk and explore the ways they can assist you. 

In the meantime, based on our experience, we have compiled a set of tips you can follow to make your website more accessible: 

1. COLOUR CONTRAST: Check colour contrast in places where text/graphics are displayed on a differently coloured background to ensure legibility. Ensure all colours pass Level AA. You can use free online colour contrast checkers, like this one from Web Aim.

2. KEYBOARD NAVIGATION: Check the ease of keyboard navigation by hitting the “tab” key. Ensure that all menu items and buttons are able to be viewed and selected.

3. SIMPLE FONTS: Choose simple fonts, such as sans-serifs like Arial, Helvetica, and Calibri. Avoid fonts that are too hard to read, such as some curly, decorative, and cursive fonts.

4. ALT TEXT: Ensure all displayed images and infographics contain alt text. Alt text allows individuals using a screen reader to access the content of the image. To check if alt text has been assigned to an image, inspect your webpage’s HTML code. Ensure the alt text is concise but sufficiently descriptive. Alternatively, for complex graphics requiring a longer description, you can create a link on the webpage that leads to a separate document containing the alt text. Moz.com has a good resource for learning to write alt text.

5. VIDEO CAPTIONS & DESCRIBED VIDEO: Add captions to all videos - remember to include captions for sound effects, music, and dialogue. Additionally, any visuals, text, and actions on the screen that are important to understanding a video should be narrated using described video. To read more about adding captions to Youtube videos see the Youtube support forum. To learn more about writing effective captions, please see The Described and Captioned Media Program. To learn more about described video best practices, please see the guides from AMI 

6. ADD TAGS: Add tags and correct reading order to all PDFs. Tagging allows individuals with visual disabilities to understand the organizational structure and content of the PDF. For more information about how to add tags, view this guide from Common Look.

CityLAB Alumni Spotlight: Tanisha Palmer

Alumni Spotlight Series: Tanisha Palmer, 2020

Tanisha is an alumna of the 2020 Semester in Residence cohort. She is now attending Wilfrid Laurier University as a Masters of Arts Candidate in Social Justice and Community Engagement. Read more about Tanisha’s path and how her CityLAB experience helped align her interests and long-term goals.

Tell us about your studies at McMaster and how you were involved with CityLAB?

In the Faculty of Social Sciences, I studied Health and Society at McMaster University and graduated in 2021. While in my fourth and final year of studies I applied to the CityLAB Semester in Residence (SIR), which I can confidently say was the highlight of my academic career at McMaster. While participating in SIR I worked on the ‘Complete Streets Intersection Makeover Project’. As part of an interdisciplinary team of three other undergraduate students, City staff and Ward 1 Councillor Maureen Wilson, this project aimed to address barriers in current traffic infrastructure, using complete street design. Through engaging with Ward 1 residents, and community stakeholders we identified potential intersections deemed fit for a ‘makeover’ and what design features residents felt passionate about seeing in their community. After hosting a community event, we created a document of recommendations for City staff to serve in tandem with the Transportation Master Plan and other City documents.

What are you up to now?

Post-graduation I have continued my studies at Wilfrid Laurier University as a Masters of Arts Candidate in Social Justice and Community Engagement. Without a doubt participating in CityLAB SIR guided me to graduate studies within this field. CityLAB pushed me to think about how I would be able to engage in a career that addressed the most prevalent issues my own community was facing. Spending a semester critically thinking about what makes a community healthy, livable, and safe and how to take part in challenging conversations surrounding what that means for all residents allowed me to gain a deeper insight into what community engagement and support looks like on a municipal level. The experience allowed me to hear from multiple perspectives, and individuals who held different positions in the decision-making process, which inspired my own career aspirations. The SIR allowed me to think about how I can challenge the structures creating inequities in our communities, and how to engage with individuals who are more often than not left out of the conversations but most impacted by their outcomes.

Do you have any long term goals that have been positively impacted by your time in SIR?

The instructors and City partners involved with the SIR not only care deeply about the real consequences of program outcomes, but the students they’re working with and our own aspirations and goals. Stepping into the program I had no experience in many of the avenues I would explore - such as transportation planning or design thinking, but the instructors guided us all in a way that was challenging and supportive all at once. Not only did my CityLAB experience allow me to connect my own interests and skills to long-term career goals, but it was also an active part of allowing me to achieve such goals. From having the SIR experience as a unique part of my academic career to highlight in letters of interest, to instructors writing letters of recommendations, I have since achieved professional and personal goals thanks to the relationships I was able to build in this program

Any words of advice for students thinking about applying for SIR?

I would encourage anyone considering participating in SIR to apply! If you are wanting to critically think about the everyday challenges the Hamilton community is facing and how to engage with multiple stakeholders to address such issues, CityLAB is the place for you! You will be surrounded by a community like no other, learning from the instructors, guest speakers and your classmates; the interdisciplinary environment strengthens the overall achievements of the program. You never know what you might learn about your own goals and passions and undoubtedly I think everyone walks away from the program with an experience they’ll never forget!

CityLAB Receives Council Endorsement

CityLAB Receives Council Endorsement (…also, learn about the City’s budget process!)

Messages of support from CityLAB partners

On October 6th, CityLAB presented to the General Issues Committee, seeking endorsement to move the program from a pilot to a permanent program. Council members discussed the incredible impact CityLAB has had on the local community and unanimously voted in support of our request to make CityLAB permanent. CityLAB originally started in 2017 as a 3-year pilot, and due to its initial success, was extended until May 2022. With Council’s recent endorsement, as well as support from each of our post-secondary partners, the program is set to receive permanent annual funding from the City as part of the regular budget process. Pending the City’s budget deliberations, CityLAB will continue to operate past 2022, bringing together creative minds to address Hamilton’s most complex issues. We are so proud of the faculty, students, and staff who have created 136 + partnerships making Hamilton more vibrant, healthy, and sustainable and look forward to an exciting future!

So, speaking of the budget process, what is it and why is it important? So glad you asked!

As former Vancouver chief planner Brent Toderian says, “The truth about a city’s aspirations isn’t found in its vision. It’s found in its budget.” In other words, the breakdown of Hamilton’s City budget shows where our priorities as a municipality truly lie.

Patrick Byrne presenting to Council

The City’s budget process begins in October and runs through April each year. At budget meetings, councillors have an opportunity to ask questions and seek clarification from staff on proposals to fund various programs and departments. There is also the opportunity for delegations (presentations) from members of the public. Regular citizens (like you!) can sign up to speak to your elected representatives about what you think is important for us as a city to fund.

The City is currently beginning the 2022 budget process. Public delegations will be held November 8, 2021 and a second day to be decided in February 2022. Your input into what our city should be like is important! For more information about the budget process, and to get involved, read more on the City’s website.

CityLAB Alumni Spotlight: Taylor DeCoste

Alumni Spotlight Series: Taylor DeCoste, 2019

Before the holidays, we sat down with 2019 Semester in Residence alumni Taylor DeCoste. Since graduating from McMaster in 2019, Taylor has taken on a new challenge at Durham College. Read our interview below to hear how CityLAB has helped guide his post-graduate path.

Tell us about your studies at McMaster and how you were involved with CityLAB?

At Mac, my undergraduate degree was a double major BA in sociology and health studies. Through my first three years I was a very uninvolved student. Living off campus at home, roughly an hour bus ride away, definitely made me feel very disconnected from campus life and other students, so I would just keep my head down, do my work and leave. When I saw the opportunity that CityLAB SIR offered, I felt like that was my opportunity to finally get more involved and meet more like-minded people. I was lucky enough to partake in the same project, the Sustainable Neighbourhood Action Plan (SNAP) throughout the full SIR term, rather than getting put on a new one for the second half of the semester. Our focus was on implementing a SNAP pilot in the North End neighbourhood of Hamilton. The idea of implementing SNAP in any neighbourhood is to create and implement unique climate mitigation and adaptation projects based on specific community needs and priorities. Some examples of these initiatives include adding bioswales, rain gardens or depaving within a neighbourhood. This project enlightened me to the issues we face with climate change, and some relatively simple but effective solutions to battle challenges that arise from it. Working on the project taught valuable skills and valuable lessons about project management. We were afforded the opportunity to build skills in networking, stakeholder mapping, identifying assets and vulnerabilities, creating and executing meeting agendas, creating and executing a preliminary survey, analysis of a preliminary survey, creating and hosting a neighbourhood workshop, among many other things. We also learned how adaptable one must be when working alongside community partners and a municipality’s staff, as priorities and needs are ever changing, and staff’s focus can be demanded elsewhere in an instant.

What are you up to now?

Currently I am attending Durham College in their Sport Business Management Graduate Certificate. I can honestly say if it wasn’t for CityLAB I wouldn’t have pursued further schooling. Nearing the end of the SIR semester everyone in their fourth year were preparing their applications for graduate programs. This was something I had kind of written off for myself as I never thought I would get accepted into anything. I had always been a good student but wouldn’t have considered myself an exceptional one. On top of that, I was so unsure what I really wanted to do career wise post-degree. As a kid the dream was to always work in the sports industry, but the reality of that became apparent as I got older and I learned how competitive and challenging it is to get into.

After talking to and listening to my fellow SIR classmates, I felt much more motivated and confident to pursue anything that crossed my mind. Having the support of so many people in that moment made my current opportunities possible. Aside from the support my classmates gave me, I firmly believe my experiences with SIR are the main reason I got accepted into the Grad certificate, and why I also was accepted for a competitive placement opportunity next semester. Even before applying and being accepted to Durham, I had applied for an internship through the Ontario Internship Program (OIP) and had made it to the final stage of the application process. Almost every question I had to answer or experience I shared came from my time with SIR. Whether it was a direct moment or something I had learned about dialogue, design or project management, SIR consistently gave me a strong foundation to build my ideas off of.

Do you have any long term goals that have been positively impacted by your time in SIR?

As I mentioned earlier, my experiences with SIR are the influencing factor as to where I am right now. Ultimately, I want to be working for a professional sports team, and along the lines of community outreach and initiatives. I always knew from my experiences as a sales associate that I loved interacting, connecting and building relationships with a diverse group of people. My experiences at SIR taught me a bit more about who I was and what I desire.

My role with my SNAP team was to outline all potential stakeholders, organize them based on influences in the community and likelihood to participate, etc. I also was one of the primary contacts for the stakeholders. What I found was, these interactions and relationships that were being built felt so much better than your typical sales interaction because you were building them to make a real change. The work we were doing was going to be used to make an actual difference for an entire community of people. That feeling, of doing meaningful and important work, trumps almost anything. That’s had a profound influence on what I want to do with my future career. If my dream job doesn’t happen, I know I want to get into a career where I can make a difference in other’s lives. Whether that may be working with a community organization to help get underprivileged kids into sports, or working in municipal politics in the city I was raised in and love. These ideas of potential careers wouldn’t have existed or felt attainable to me if it wasn’t for SIR.

Any words of advice for students thinking about applying for SIR?

Just do it. Don’t hesitate or question if you’ll get accepted, or if it’s right for you. SIR has been proven to be a successful program for people of diverse educational, cultural, and social backgrounds. That’s the whole idea of this program, to bring together a wide range of students and create unique ideas through a breadth of knowledge. This program got me out of my shell, and it wound up building what I believe are lifelong friendships and connections. It is an experience that you will not find in any other course at Mac. It’s an experience that will open your eyes to new ideas, perspectives, and opportunities. It’s an experience that I believe will impact and influence you forever.

February 2021 update from Taylor since our interview:

I am now a month and a bit into my placement with Golf Ontario and I can say it has been a fantastic experience. I am helping plan and prep all of their 2021 events and tournaments. This has come in the form of data entry, website design, email communication, juggling of multiple projects, etc. I have definitely used many of the project management skills that CityLAB taught me and enabled me to practice to help balance all of the tasks at hand. This placement is also going to lead to a summer job for me as well, meaning I will be able to follow through on the events I helped plan and execute them. As I mentioned earlier, I want my work to be meaningful. Golf Ontario has a very dedicated strategy to making golf a more diverse and inclusive sport. Having the chance to work for them and play a role in the growth of one of my favourite sports is special. It’s crazy how in just a few months I went from hoping to work in the sports industry and make a difference, to attaining a job and truly play a role in the diversification in the game of golf. I owe a lot to CityLAB, as it taught me so many skills to navigate the crazy work world I am slowly entering, and it also helped ignite where my passions really lie.

CityLAB Alumni Spotlight: Claire de Souza

We recently caught up with 2019 Semester in Residence alumna Claire de Souza, who is currently earning her Masters in Urban Planning at McGill University. She explained how her CityLAB experience has directly influenced both her admission into this program, and has impacted her approach to many of her classes.

Tell us about your studies at McMaster and how you were involved with CityLAB?

I studied Geography and Environmental studies and earned my Bachelor of Arts. I had a keen interest in urban planning throughout my studies and was introduced to CityLAB through a sustainability course. I participated in CityLAB SIR in Fall of 2019 - my fourth year at McMaster. I specifically worked on the project “Climate Ready Hamilton”.

The goal of the project was to strengthen Hamilton’s resilience to extreme weather caused by climate change (including heat, cold, flooding, drought, etc.). We worked with Environment Hamilton and different community groups in Hamilton during this project.

In addition to the project work within CityLAB, I met some of my life long friends in the program.

What are you up to now?

I am currently doing a Masters in Urban Planning at McGill University. Several of my courses are based around the idea of community engagement in the planning process, and my experience at CityLAB often comes back to me during these classes. I am reminded of how critical community dialogue and participation is within a democratic planning process.

My program application actually required 1-3 years of experience in the field, but I applied right out of my undergrad having no experience with planning. I utilized my CityLAB experience on my CV to show that I did small scale planning within the semester. The experience that CityLAB gave me was unlike anything I had ever done in undergrad. I actually gained “real world” experience in project management, making presentations, public speaking, leadership, interdisciplinary collaboration, and the list goes on.

I used my experience at CityLAB as a tool to apply to my program, and honestly I don’t think I would have gotten in if I didn’t have that experience.

Do you have any long term goals that have been positively impacted by your time in SIR?

I think the biggest impact SIR had on me was the idea of community work. Before CityLAB I had never acknowledged the importance of community engagement including advocacy work and grass roots movements. CityLAB showed me how impactful local communities can be in their activism and in the fight for change.

After my masters, I hope to work for non-profits centered around urban issues - affordable housing, climate resilience, homelessness, and similar issues. The instructors and students at CityLAB instilled the ideas around empathy, equity, and inclusivity in me - I am better off because of it. I know I will take those lessons with me into whatever profession I decide to pursue.

Any words of advice for students thinking about applying for SIR?

Just go for it!

Even if you don’t think it is related to your program, or you’re afraid you won’t know anyone, all of those fears will be eliminated within the first week of the semester.

It is the best thing I did in my undergrad. I think university is a great thing, but I also think it is quite easy to get trapped within your program and inside your comfort zone

Personally, I found I wasn’t being challenged in my regular classroom setting as I’d hoped - assignments and coursework were beginning to get repetitive, I worked with the same people, had the same professors, and felt that I was not using my skill set to the best of my ability.

CityLAB challenged me more than any course I had ever taken. School became less about this repetitive, structured,  rubric-following entity, and more about passion, creativity, leadership, and innovation. We were challenged with things you can only really be challenged with when you enter the workforce. It was a much needed experience. 

Thank you, Claire!

Alumni Spotlight Series: Claire de Souza, 2019

New CityLAB Staff: Jen Kelly, CityLAB Coordinator

In the process of completing my fourth and final year at McMaster University, I am currently studying Honors Political Science with minors in Sociology and Philosophy. Born and raised in Hamilton, I have always had a strong passion for bettering our incredible city. Over the last month of working for CityLAB I have met so many wonderful people working for and throughout the City of Hamilton. Although being a large city, there is a certain sense of community and togetherness that comes with living and working in Hamilton. Being part of an organization such as CityLAB has been such a fulfilling and beneficial experience for myself and others involved. CityLAB plays such an important role for students to gain real life experience and understand more about our communities. My role as coordinator involves reporting on our ongoing projects, communicating with faculty, City staff, and students to build and maintain our relationships. All with the goal of working to implement our CityLAB projects throughout the City. I am excited to be a member of CityLAB and look forward to seeing all we can accomplish in the upcoming year!

New CityLAB Staff: Randy Kay, Director of Outreach-Semester in Residence

After two decades working with McMaster student volunteers at OPIRG McMaster, I am thrilled to join an engaged and supportive team working with upper-year students at CityLAB Semester in Residence. The same sense of adventure is evident as these students take action on real issues with the support of city staff, community groups, and the guidance of semester instructors; it is a fast-paced, lively and fun environment that is buoyed by a clear purpose and real-life challenges, all taking place in the heart of Hamilton.

My role is to support student learning in the various hands-on projects and to assist with identifying and connecting community resources to enhance student's learning experience. 

Some highlights from the term: working with students to create CityLABSIR social media accounts, getting the students on SOBI bikes, exploring the downtown (finding the Universal Gemini portal in a chocolate glazed doughnut at Granddads!), the re-purposed pizza boxes that became signs for the Climate Strike, and the many ongoing and evolving conversations as the students bring their authentic and individual personalities to the team.

I’ve done some recent reading that I have found handy with the SIR, so I’ll share some here: 

• Scrum: The Art of Doing Twice the Work in Half the Time, by Jeff Sutherland. 

• The Design of Everyday Things by Don Norman. 

• Nudge: Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth, and Happiness, by Richard H. Thaler

• The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History, by Kolbert, Elizabeth

• Happy City: Transforming Our Lives Through Urban Design, by Charles Montgomery

Experiential Learning and CityLAB Hamilton

Semester at CityLAB is not your typical university academic term. Although the course offers a full term of credits, the lessons learned far exceed what you would receive in your typical lecture hall. This can be largely attributed to the integration of experiential learning into the pillars and structure of the 15-unit course.

But what is this loosely defined term “experiential learning”, that we hear being praised more and more within academic settings? David Kolb defines experiential learning as grounded in experiences and supported by cyclical processes of concrete experience, reflection, conceptualization, and active experimentation.

Thus, how can a university course apply this model? To begin with concrete experience, we are located in the heart of Hamilton, right beside City Hall, a court, a historic building, and one of Hamilton's busiest malls. We are integrated into the centre of municipal activity and we draw lessons and inspiration from interacting with the spaces around us. When referencing an area or neighbourhood, such as Beasley, we can easily walk through it to gain a richer understanding and visual conceptualization of the space. We have opportunities to reflect upon and interact with experts in given fields of study, community members, and stakeholders. CityLAB gives us a platform to connect and work with many City staff members who provide valuable guidance and mentorship to our projects. These experiences are rare and provide students with a personal connection and a real insight into their work. This leads to conceptualization of innovative yet feasible project designs.

Our final project installations extended our learning far past our cohort and into the community. The installations ranged from mobility lab charrettes, educational booths, and waste management workshops. They were certainly the first step of active experimentation towards our project design. However, they were also a chance for community and staff members to experience and interact with our project, at which point the cycle of experiential learning has the potential to start again.

For example, my working group, Public Health, was first introduced to the concept of poor air quality in Hamilton through guest speakers and community discussions and events. Through reflection and consultation with our City champion Trevor Imhoff, the Senior Project Manager for Climate Change and Air Quality, we found that there was a project in the city that aligned with our interests. We conceptualized our ideas of air quality mitigation by working with Meghan Stewart, Landscape Architect, on the tree grove designs and educational aspects of the new John Rebecca Park. Finally, at our installation we showcased our results, launched our website, and brought in various stakeholders for an air quality panel discussion. From this work I learned that in order for a project to be successful and have long term impacts, it needs to have integrated partnerships with differing viewpoints and concepts.

Yet the beauty about experiential learning and CityLAB is that students from varying academic and social backgrounds are all in the same course. The lessons we learned are not uniform but rather custom and individual. Despite being together for four months, we will each take something different out of the Semester in Residence program and proceed to take these experiences down extremely different future paths. I am confident that the cycle of experiential learning at the first CityLAB Semester in Residence has prompted many more downstream learning cycles both within the students, instructors, city staff, and community stakeholders involved. I am very much looking forward to seeing the impacts that CityLAB has on Hamilton’s future.

Martha Kilian, Fourth Year Arts and Science Student, McMaster University

Building relationships: My first two weeks at CityLAB

After completing my first week of CityLAB, I would like to acknowledge a quote from a reading by Clapp and Dauvergne in their book Paths to a Green World. They alluded to the following, “a quick analyses to complex questions often raises contradictory answers. Each of these answers are persuasive. Each seem to be filled with their own logic.” (Dauvergne and Clapp, 2011). In essence, life is often complex. That’s the first thing I learned with my team at CityLAB.

The uniqueness of an idea-sharing environment like CityLAB can be further cemented by Bohm’s On Dialogue. By illustration, when Hamilton artist Hitoko Okada was at CityLAB, leading us in her lesson on community and collaboration through art, we were set up in a square formation in groups of four. According to Bohm in his book, this was the perfect modality for having dialogue. Each person was able to be equally respected, as there was no one in a center-point position. This shape allowed us to have meaningful conversations where we could let our ideas flow through each other. There was no sense of breakage, and no sense of what Bohm would call discussion, only dialogue. We all had our ideas suspended for the other to see, without any critical judgement. If an idea was not as good as another, we moved on to the next one. Always learning, always being inspired. There were no grudges if we did not utilize someone’s idea for our projects. It was nice to see the teams working efficiently and communicating effectively to get the job done. It felt like a nice community space. This was also emphasized by Shylo Elmayan (Senior Project Manager, Urban Indigenous Strategy) when she spoke with us about her time with Northern Ontario populations while working with Ontario Hydro. To build a strong community, you cannot just jump into it; it takes time to grow. You have to learn how to work around issues, and you have to build relationships.  

Corey Mckibbin, Third Year Honours Philosophy, McMaster University