January 14, 2022

Congratulations to Dr. Vanessa Andreotti on her appointment as the David Lam Chair in Multicultural Education for a three-year term

Dr. Vanessa Andreotti, Canada Research Chair in Race, Inequalities and Global Change, has been appointed the David Lam Chair in Multicultural Education for a three-year term, from January 1, 2022 to December 31, 2024. Established in 1991, the David Lam Chair in Multicultural Education supports increased interest, programming, and research in multicultural and anti-racist education, and assists schools to foster multiculturalism.

Helping resolve historical and systemic patterns of inequalities

Dr. Andreotti has worked extensively with teachers, non-governmental organizations, professional associations, governments, and the private sector in areas related to cultural differences, social and global justice, international development and internationalization.

Her research examines historical and systemic patterns of reproduction of inequalities and how these can limit or enable possibilities for collective existence and global change. Her publications in this field include analyses of political economies of knowledge production, discussions of the ethics of international development, and critical comparisons of globalism, pluralism and internationalization in education and social innovation, highlighting representations of and relationships with marginalized communities. Her work in teacher education conceptualizes education as an expansion of frames of reference and fields of signification to increase possibilities for ethical solidarities.

Reimagining multiculturalism in times of global crises

Dr. Andreotti is a dynamic scholar with extensive academic and pedagogical expertise related to multicultural and social justice studies in education. As the David Lam Chair in Multicultural Education, she will work in three different fronts of engagement (student-led activities, community collaborations, and curriculum development), with three cross-cutting thematic areas that will be emphasized in each year of her term as Chair. These themes include:

Reimaging multiculturalism in relation to decolonization: working at the interface between questions of cultural difference, immigration, citizenship, Indigeneity and decolonial futures
Reimagining multiculturalism in relation to the climate crisis: addressing climate justice, and amplifying the voices of Indigenous, Black and people of colour as leaders in this area
Reimagining multiculturalism in relation to generational gaps of understanding of contemporary critiques: promoting intergenerational dialogue in relation to different movements of identity, culture, Indigenization and decolonization that are interpreted differently across different generations

To learn more, read Dr. Andreotti’s exciting vision for the Chair.

Fostering multiculturalism and supporting anti-racist education

Supporting multicultural and anti-racist education, and assisting schools to foster multiculturalism, the David Lam Chair in Multicultural Education has a mandate to:

Research multicultural and social justice studies in education
Advise on programs and courses that will build capacity for educators concerning intersectional, anti-racist, decolonizing politics of difference
Work with an advisory group that foregrounds a climate of intercultural communication, anti-racism and anti-oppression politics and practices
Facilitate community engagement and dissemination of scholarship in multicultural and social justice studies in education
Offer an annual interdisciplinary course in multicultural and social justice studies in education
Arrange public lectures, events and media networks in social justice studies in education
Encourage and promote the growth of such scholarship and praxis across the University and beyond

Dr. Andreotti exhibits distinction in research, teaching, mentorship, community building and educational leadership relevant to the Chair’s mandate.

Visit Dr. Andreotti’s profile to learn more about her work, research and publications.