Transforming Research for Social Impact Hub
The Transforming Research for Social Impact (TRSI) Hub builds methodological capacity and knowledge in interdisciplinary, community-engaged, and socially responsive research.
Hosted within the College of Social Sciences & Humanities (CSSH) at the ß÷ßäÉçÇø, the TRSI Hub is the first pan-university initiative in ß÷ßäÉçÇø focused on developing innovative methodologies that promote community-driven social change and address complex social issues. The Hub responds to a rapidly changing world of social research by offering comprehensive social research methods training and advancement targeted toward social impact.
Developed in partnership with the KIAS Research Cluster in Advancing Research Methods and Training for Social Change, the International Institute for Qualitative Methodology (iiQM), and the Community University Partnership (CUP), the Hub brings together researchers across and beyond the university to promote three interwoven cornerstone areas of activity -- education, engagement, and research.
By creating an ecosystem for innovative social research approaches and pedagogies embedded in the principles of equity, diversity, and inclusion, the Hub establishes the ß÷ßäÉçÇø as a leader in transformative research for social impact.
To get in touch with the TRSI team, please email trsihub@ualberta.ca.
Education
TRSI supports, develops, and coordinates innovative methodological training, with an emphasis on experiential learning opportunities that connect students, academics, and community partners through hands-on research.
Engagement
TRSI co-creates research and training partnerships with the community, with a focus on methods for applied and community-engaged research.
Research
TRSI connects methodological expertise across and beyond the ß÷ßäÉçÇø to advance methodologies in socially transformative research and enhance interdisciplinary collaborations.
Meet Our Directors
Sara Dorow
Sara Dorow is a Professor of Sociology at the ß÷ßäÉçÇø and the Director of the International Institute for Qualitative Methodology (iiQM). Dorow uses qualitative research methods and intersectional and transnational approaches to examine mobility and migration, work and family, and processes of racialization and gendering. She has applied ethnographic, narrative, and community-engaged approaches to the study of transnational adoption and to multiple projects in the northern ß÷ßäÉçÇø oil sands region. Currently, she heads the interdisciplinary, multi-media project Work-Life in Canada (SSHRC Insight Grant) and is project holder for the Intersectionality in Action Partnership: Co-learning for Inclusive Community Outcomes (2023–2025) – a project that applies an intersectional lens to two community-based housing partnerships (SSHRC Partnership Development Grant). She served as founding director of the Uß÷ßäÉçÇø Community Service-Learning program and a co-founder of the Intersections of Gender signature research area.
Michelle Maroto
Michelle Maroto is a Professor of Sociology and Director of the Certificate in Applied Social Science Research (CASSR). As described on her , her research interests include social stratification, gender and family, race and ethnicity, labor and credit markets, and disability studies. Her projects address the many dimensions of wealth inequality, the complicated dynamics behind social class in Canada in the Great Canadian Class Study, and labor market outcomes for people with different types of disabilities. Dr. Maroto's methodological expertise extends across qualitative and quantitative areas and includes survey development, longitudinal data analysis, and audit study methods. In addition, Dr. Maroto has a strong interest in community-engaged research, and she regularly brings together students and community partners through her course.
Jared Wesley
Jared Wesley is a Professor in the Department of Political Science, Associate Dean (Graduate Studies) of the Faculty of Arts, and a member of the Black Faculty Collective at the ß÷ßäÉçÇø. Prof. Wesley’s research and teaching concern the intersection of political culture, political parties, and public policy. His major research project is Common Ground: a multi-method study of the unspoken norms and values underpinning politics in Western Canada and the American West. The study combines surveys with persona-based focus groups to uncover the difference between who people are as individuals and who they see themselves to be as communities.
Gillian Lemermeyer
Gillian Lemermeyer, PhD, RN is an Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Nursing at the ß÷ßäÉçÇø, Canada, and the Associate Director of the International Institute of Qualitative Methodology (IIQM). Dr. Lemermeyer’s research explores the embodied ethics of healthcare practices, investigating questions situated in the relational encounters between nurses and other healthcare practitioners with the people in their care. Her research program is focused on themes of relational ethics, the lived body (of patient and practitioner), the nurse’s touch, and the ethics of artificial intelligence in healthcare. Methodological approaches include phenomenology and other qualitative methods. Dr. Lemermeyer is co-lead of the AI + health hub and a core member of the John Dossetor Health Ethics Centre.
Karen Edwards
Karen Edwards is the Director of Community-University Partnership for the Study of Children, Youth, and Families in the School of Public Health. Karen is a community engaged researcher with three decades of experience, Karen is passionate about forging authentic and reciprocal partnerships between communities and the university. Her work across ß÷ßäÉçÇø, northern Canada, and internationally focuses on understanding and addressing critical health, education, and social issues to enhance community well-being Karen has supported the development of impactful collaborations such as a municipally led poverty elimination strategy, a national Indigenous leadership program for health research, the outreach and knowledge mobilization for a global polar science initiative, and national indoor air quality program in schools. She is a fervent advocate for the power of collaboration across systems, recognizing the power of strong networks that engage community, government, researchers, funders, and students. Her work centres on the importance of community voice, embraces evidence-informed decision-making, and empowers stakeholders to drive meaningful change in practice, program, and policy.
