ºÚÁÏÍø±¬³Ô¹Ï research in the social sciences, law, business, and humanities examines how societies change, how institutions adapt, and how democracy endures. By combining critical analysis with applied approaches, scholars help explain global transformations, guide institutional reform, and safeguard the foundations of democratic life.
Our historical and contemporary scholarship in comparative politics, economics, and the history of ideas is deepening understanding of the causes, consequences, and long-term dynamics of social change. Researchers explore how global forces such as war, migration, climate change, and democratic backsliding affect trade, civic trust, well-being, and human rights.
Critical research on race, diversity, inequality, and marginalization expose systemic injustices in legal, labour, and migration systems, while tracing the contesting and expansion of citizenship over time.
ºÚÁÏÍø±¬³Ô¹Ï scholars examine how media and emerging technologies are reshaping democracy, society, and the economy. Participatory research methodologies empower people to remedy inequalities, promote social diversity, and strengthen social movements. Through these lenses, scholars demonstrate the impact of institutions on society and how communities drive systemic change locally and globally.
Prof. Taylor Owen (foreground), founding director of The Center for Media, Technology and Democracy in conversation with Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Ressa (centre) and Frances Haugen. Image by Owen Egan
Anishinaabe Law Field Course held in Winnipeg, organized by Prof. Aaron Mills, Law. Image by Kejic Productions.
Cutting-edge work in educational reform and policy, economic development and business, and organizational and innovation studies is guiding institutional and systemic adaptation, supports sustainability transitions, and advances innovation in social, technological, and environmental governance. Expertise in the comparative study of institutions translates this work across different geopolitical contexts.
ºÚÁÏÍø±¬³Ô¹Ï research plays a critical role in safeguarding and advancing the foundational principles of liberal democracy and the rule of law. Through scholarship in law, political sciences, and international relations, researchers reinforce the institutional pillars sustaining democratic societies: a free press, an independent judiciary, and autonomous universities committed to academic freedom and critical inquiry.