Crosstalk Series 2024-25

Join the Faculty of Information’s Crosstalk Series, an informal weekly speaker series in which two faculty members discuss their current research, look for common themes and answer questions from the audience. Learn about diverse research in the field of Information, uncover ‘hidden’ connections and encourage crossectoral collaboration within the Faculty.

All students, staff and faculty are welcome. Talks will take place on select Mondays from 11 am to 12 pm in BL728, 140 St. George Street (Claude Bissell Building). Light refreshments will be served.

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Fall 2024

• November 18 | Analyzing & Negotiating Platform Power

David Nieborg and Gustavo Ferreira

There is little doubt among scholars about the political-economic and socio-cultural impact of platform companies. What is less clear, is how to conceptualize “platform power” and how to study its impacts on different stakeholders. In this crosstalk, we survey recent platform scholarship and discuss emerging methods and concepts.

• December 2 | The (Human) Cost of Research: On Working Ethically with Communities

Priyank Chandra and Nadia Caidi

Communities around the world engage in rich sociotechnical practices that are embedded in their cultural, social, and material contexts. Marginalised communities, in particular, often repurpose technologies in innovative and adaptive ways that challenge formal systems. This dynamic complicates researchers’ interactions with these communities, necessitating reflexive practices regarding what constitutes public and private domains. In this Crosstalk, we critically examine the ethics of documenting these practices, alongside the power dynamics inherent in research relationships where scholars navigate their status as either ‘outsiders’ or ‘insiders / outsiders.’ We explore the methodological and ethical challenges of conducting research that is sensitive to the needs and values of the communities, while also contributing to broader academic scholarship.

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Winter 2025

• January 6 | Lost in Translation

Fiorella Foscarini and Irina D. Mihalache

This crosstalk reflects the lived experiences of two academics born in Italy and Romania respectively, whose research (but not first) language is English. Fiorella and Irina will share examples from their research and writings, as they move across and in between languages and cultures. 

The English language acts as an invisible, hegemonic force, which exerts strong influence over the framing of the global world. What are the consequences of the use of English as a lingua franca in academia and the profession? How is translation performed, and what is its impact on highly culture-dependent domains, such as archival studies and food studies? In this crosstalk, we will reflect what is lost in our daily acts of translation.

• January 20 | Pedagogical Research: Improving Student Success and Studying its Own Classroom Pedagogy

Maher Elshakankiri and Olivier St-Cyr

Pedagogical research (often called SoTL – The Scholarship of Teaching of Learning) is an important part of being a teaching stream faculty member at the Faculty of Information. In this crosstalk, professors Maher Elshakankiri and Olivier St-Cyr will highlight SoTL work they have conducted. Professor Maher Elshakankiri will present his research on how Flexible Deadlines and Timely Reminders Play Crucial Roles in Student Success and will discuss how these approaches can improve both the quality of submissions and student well-being based on recent research findings. Professor St-Cyr will present research on how teaching stream faculty members can study their own classroom pedagogy and discuss research on Monitoring the Short-Term Outcomes of Community-Engaged, Project-Based User Experience Design Courses.

• February 3 | Wayward Cultures

Jessica Lapp and Patrick Keilty

Wayward cultures often exist at the margins making their legibility difficult. In this session we discuss some of the connections between archival and data studies in accounting for wayward cultures and their material expressions.

• February 24 | Living with AI: Critical Labour and Creative Futures

Hadiya Roderique and ME Luka

How can we use AI in ways that lead us towards more equitable futures instead of less? What is the role of creative workers, journalists,  information workers, and policy makers in ensuring this future?

• March 10 | Title TBD

Claire Battershill and SA Smythe