Building more inclusive workspaces

To see the change, you need to be the change. This is the mentality that Dr. Vurain Tabvuma, Sobey Professor in Management, and his PhD student Katelynn Carter-Rogers BA’11 CertHON’12 MSc’15 bring to their teaching and research practices. Their research, focused on understanding how inclusion within organizations can increase well-being and performance, has been built into the Sobey School of Business Management 1281 curriculum —a foundational course for all Bachelor of Commerce students.  

“My research with Dr. Tabvuma has taught me a lot about current practices in organizations and the changes that need to be made to make them inclusive," says Carter-Rogers. "It’s one thing to be included, it’s another thing to feel like you truly belong.”

This addition to the course curriculum reinforces the importance of equity, diversity and inclusion in the minds of tomorrow’s business leaders. This is a big step forward in fostering more inclusive workplaces.  

“It’s important that organizations are able and ready to support people who come from very different perspectives, and include people who understand the world in very different ways,” says Dr. Tabvuma.

Did you know? The Sobey School of Business is a proud signatory of the United Nations Principles of Responsible Management Education (PRME) initiative. The school is also one of just two in Canada to be selected as a PRME Champion (2020-23), a leadership group committed to advancing corporate social responsibility in education and research.

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Unearthing the story of Italy's Indigenous communities

Photo credit: Roberto Lalinga

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Students at Saint Mary’s University are helping to shed new light on previously overlooked perspectives from the ancient past, thanks to new research partnerships that have taken root in Italy.

The Metaponto Archaeology Project field school was “a life-changing experience” for students who took part in it this spring, says Dr. Sveva Savelli, assistant professor in Ancient Studies and Intercultural Studies. She taught the new field course in May at the Incoronata “greca” excavation site near the town of Pisticci (Matera), along with Dr. Spencer Pope of McMaster University, under the auspices of the Soprintendenza Archeologia Belle Arti e Paesaggio della Basilicata.

Dr. Sveva Savelli
Photo: Simone Foresta

Fourth-year philosophy major Ken Finlay agrees. “I would highly encourage anybody with even the slightest interest in archaeology to sign up for the field school. It’s truly a once-in-a-lifetime kind of experience and is sure to deepen your interest in classics even further,” says Finlay, who aims to pursue a law degree after graduating with his Bachelor of Arts.

Located in the “instep of the boot” on the map of southern Italy, the site was home to thriving Indigenous communities (the Oenotrians) between the 9th and 7th centuries BCE when Greek settlers began arriving. Past archaeology efforts in the region, now known as Basilicata, have focused mainly on the Greek settler histories. This research goes farther back, investigating the colonial dynamics during a period when the Oenotrians and Greeks first interacted in the area, prior to the founding of the Greek colony of Metaponto.

“It’s very interesting because it seemed to be a very peaceful relationship, mostly traders and potters who arrived. Incoronata “greca” was a place where the relationship was fruitful for both communities,” says Savelli, co-director of the research project along with Pope.

The research has been underway for a number of years but reached a key milestone this spring with the discovery of a structure believed to be an Oenotrian hut, plus a motherlode of artifacts, she says.

“It has been an amazing season. We were not expecting quite so many archaeological finds. Our students were incredibly lucky in this sense. We basically pulled out thousands of shards of pottery!”

Available again next spring, the field course builds on Saint Mary’s existing strengths in archaeology research and education. Another offering in Italy through the ancient studies program is Dr. Myles McCallum’s annual field course at the Villa of Titus Archaeology Research Project near Castel Sant’Angelo, which resumed in May and June after a two-year hiatus during the pandemic. In both field courses, students learn many aspects of what it means to be an archaeologist, from excavation skills to lab tasks such as sorting and cataloguing artifacts—and most importantly, teamwork.

“Students were not aware of the collegial aspect of this profession,” says Savelli. “So working together as a team, especially coming out of this period of COVID isolation, really created an excitement in the group.” Visiting scholars at the field school shared expertise in everything from topography to how to use a microscope in archaeometry. Finlay said another big highlight for students was their own research presentations—each student researched a nearby temple or monument, then gave their presentations at those actual sites.

“It was a cultural experience for them,” says Savelli, who is from Rome and worked at Queen’s University before joining Saint Mary’s in July 2020. There was a lot of interest from the local community as well. Media outlets reported on a visit from Pisticci Mayor Domenico Albano, who also held a special dinner for the students and researchers.

“There is a Canadian connection already,” says Savelli. “In the town it’s like a parade, everybody stops us. Many people have a cousin or brother who moved to Canada.”

Partnership with the National Archaeological Museum of Naples

National Archaeological Museum of Naples

Museum Director Paolo Giulierini

The Piana Campana: A Land Without Borders
Photo credit: Livia Pacera MANN/Electa

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Here on campus this fall, students have another unique opportunity for hands-on research experience in Savelli’s new course, ANCS/ICST 3506: Cultural Property Protection in a Global World. Through a partnership between Saint Mary’s and the Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli (MANN), led by Museum Director Paolo Giulierini, the class will collaborate with the museum on a project involving the “Spinelli Archaeological Collection” led by Senior Curator Dr. Emanuela Santaniello.

“Students will be involved in the tracking of archaeological finds from the necropolis of Suessula, in the interland of Naples, that are now dispersed in museums all over Europe and North America,” says Savelli.

Mapping these objects will help the museum lay the groundwork for future exhibitions, narrating the story of how cultural heritage has scattered to different parts of the world. With some creativity, other museums housing artifacts could take part in presenting this international picture, even in a digital format.

“I hope the class becomes a workshop and a think tank on cultural property and the international issues related to its restitution and repatriation,” says Savelli.

She worked closely with the museum last year as a member of its research team behind an exhibition, “The Piana Campana. A Land without Borders.” Still ongoing, the exhibition focuses on Iron Age interactions among Greek settlers, Etruscans and Indigenous communities in the Piana Campana region north of Naples.

It’s all part of a bigger project that will enable more field schools, student exchanges and internships in the future. The opportunities for students stem from a memorandum of agreement between the museum and Saint Mary’s, signed in 2020 to foster scientific and academic cooperation.

“Through this partnership, ancient studies in Italy take a prime position in our international academic offerings,” says Dr. Robert Summerby-Murray, President and Vice-Chancellor of Saint Mary’s. “It’s a tremendous opportunity for us to collaborate with one of the most important archaeological museums in the world, whose holdings include the Farnese and Pompeian Collections and thousands of other artifacts from Etruscan, Greek, and Egyptian civilizations.”

Dr. Giulierini adds: “The MANN is pleased to offer educational opportunities for Canadian students and faculty, and to provide first-hand knowledge of ancient material culture.”

The partnership complements the field projects at Villa di Tito and Incoronata “greca”, says Savelli, enhancing opportunities for students to learn about the conservation and management of archaeological collections. As a researcher, the most intriguing aspect for her is taking a fresh look at colonial times in the ancient world, and seeing what it can teach us about the present.

“This is really about how each country defines its own identity through its past. And it’s not just about the past—for us in Canada, it’s also about our reality.”

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Learn more about the Ancient Studies program and field schools available through the Faculty of Arts. Follow the Metaponto Archaeology Project on Instagram at @metaponto_arch_proj and the Villa of Titus Archaeology Project on Facebook at @villaditito.

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Wicked problems of food insecurity

Dr. Mathew Novak, Geography and Environmental Studies, Faculty of Arts

How can Geographic Information Systems (GIS) help support people experiencing food insecurity across Nova Scotia? Made possible by gifts from the Windsor Foundation, the Hewitt Foundation and alumnus Dr. Daniel McCarthy, the lab is a hub where faculty and students collaborate on solving issues using geospatial software.

Partnering with the province’s largest food assistance organization, the Wicked Problems Lab at Saint Mary’s University is bringing a world of expertise to facilitate data-driven food distribution.

“Food insecurity is a crisis in our province,” says Nick Jennery, executive director of Feed Nova Scotia. “While we advocate for much-needed change to address systemic issues, we need to ensure people have food today and that they can access that food in a dignified way. An important piece in making food support more accessible is understanding where gaps exist in our current food distribution program.” In September 2020, Feed Nova Scotia began working with the lab to better understand food accessibility. Led by Dr. Mathew Novak, an expert in retail geography and GIS, the lab mapped out current food bank locations and paired them with regional census data to predict where demand for services is high.

The result? The data clearly identified locations that could benefit from greater food distribution. “Our research allowed us to make recommendations for more effective distribution of resources,” says Dr. Novak.

“For instance, we found areas of suburban Halifax with high potential demand but limited access to food banks and other food support programs. GIS allows us to combine a variety of data sources and perform sophisticated analysis to reveal spatial patterns that may have otherwise remained hidden.” Feed Nova Scotia distributes more than 2 million kilograms of food to 140 food banks and meal programs each year.

“We’re excited to see where this project will take us, knowing that good data is a critical factor that contributes to better decision making,” says Jennery.

Recently, Dr. Novak made presentations to Feed Nova Scotia’s leadership and community connections teams, outlining the first findings of the analysis. Moving forward, more analysis will be performed on the organization’s needs and distribution locations. This continuation opens the door to endless possibility, with opportunities to partner with other not-for-profit organizations to better match needs and resources.

Learn more about supporting Saint Mary’s students who are struggling with food insecurity.