Research Partnerships

JFCY is grateful for the opportunity to work with community partners and academics on a wide range of issues related to children’s rights; and being study participants on justice related research. Our current on-going involvement includes:

Borderless Access to Education

• BATE is a multi-year, collaborative project of Justice for Children and Youth (JFCY), Childhood Arrivals Support and Advocacy (CASA), the Sanctuary Students Solidarity and Support Collective (S4), and Black Creek Youth Initiative (BCYI).
• Working to remove barriers and create equitable educational opportunities for students. By shifting the underlying attitude of exclusion of  “non-citizens” to an inclusion mindset and promoting the right to education for all children and youth who have made a home in Ontario, we expect to see changes in both policy and practise.
• Funded by the Ontario Trillium Foundation Youth Opportunities Fund.

Inclusive Justice Collaborative, Partner / Member

• This project aims aims to transform the youth justice system to better address the needs of neurodivergent Black and racialized youth, by seeking out and implementing recommendations from youth, families, justice stakeholders, and community organizations, and working to increase the sector’s capacity, collaboration, and knowledge.
• Project will engage youth, caregivers, service providers, and systems leaders.
• Led by Springboard and grounded in community partnerships made up of grassroots and institutional partners, youth advisors, and subject matter experts across the province.
• In year one of five; funded by the Ontario Trillium Foundation Youth Opportunities Fund.

Exploring the Lived Experiences of Justice-Involved Youth with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, Community Partner

• The project focuses on exploring the experiences of neurodiverse justice involved youth in Ontario and the extent to which their rights are appropriately protected and advanced.
• Researchers: Dr. Daniella Bendo (King’s University College at Western), Dr. Christine Goodwin-De Faria (Trent University Durham), Dr. Dale Spencer (Carleton University), Voula Marinos (Brock University), Nathan Innocente (University of Toronto Mississauga), and Brenda Morrison (Simon Fraser University).
• Supported by funding from a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada – Partnership Development Grant, King’s University College at Western and Trent University (Durham GTA).

Border(ing) Practices: Systemic Racism, Immigration & Child Welfare, Community Partner

• Collaborative research project, in partnership with child welfare, immigration, and gender-based violence service providers and advocates in Ontario and British Columbia.
• JFCY is on the Research Advisory Committee and other subcommittees.
• Principal Investigators: Professors Dr. Rupaleem Bhuyan, University of Toronto, and Dr. Mandeep Kaur Muncina, University of Victoria
• Co-Investigators: Professors Dr. Bryn King, University of Toronto, and Dr. Rhonda Hackett, University of Victoria