Showcase highlights research benefiting the local community

Posted: November 4, 2015 4:00 p.m.

Graduate student Melissa Wuerch will present findings from her research project that examines victim reporting programs for sexual assault survivors. Photo courtesy of Melissa Wuerch.

Research at the U of R is having an impact in the community and it will be on display, Friday, November 6 at the 2015 Community-Based Research Showcase at the Core Ritchie Neighbourhood Centre at 445 - 14th Avenue, Regina.

The event is designed to highlight the wide range of collaborative research projects currently underway among researchers at the University of Regina/University of Saskatchewan and community groups, non-profit organizations, and public sector organizations based in Saskatchewan.

The event is hosted by the Faculty of Arts, the Community Research Unit and Heritage Saskatchewan.

The Showcase is geared toward anyone interested in learning more about ongoing university-community-based research.

"We are excited this year to be partnering with Heritage Saskatchewan to host this unique event that brings together campus and community to discuss research projects and challenges,” says Dr. Michelle Stewart, Community Research Unit Director, who is also associate professor in the Department of Justice Studies. “This free event is a great opportunity to hear about important research taking place in our communities."

The Showcase will feature presentations from various research project leaders, from Regina and area and invite discussion from other participants.

Some of the research presented includes:

- The promotion of First Nations art as a means of preventing suicide among Aboriginal youth.

- Enhancing resettlement services for immigrants to Regina.

- A project examining inclusivity at the University of Regina for students with complex physical disabilities.  

- Examining the root causes of HIV and AIDS among Aboriginal Women.

- A collaborative research project including the U of R that is examining the vulnerability of extreme climate on rural areas of the prairies and the Americas.

Community Research Unit Coordinator and Showcase organizer Naomi Beingessner believes the event will illustrate the positive impact collaborative research is having in the local community.

“From understanding effective community responses to intimate partner violence in rural and northern regions, to identifying populations involved in cooking fire incidents in order to better direct education programs, these projects lead to research-based actions that are changing our communities for the better,” says Beingessner.

In total, sixteen local projects will be presented, along with posters outlining several more.

The presentations are open to the public.

Registration is required. For more information, please see the Community Research Unit website here.