City Hall / en 91Թ task force on city hall reform featured in Toronto Life /news/u-t-task-force-city-hall-reform-featured-toronto-life <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">91Թ task force on city hall reform featured in Toronto Life</span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2017-07-20-city-hall.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=qqMV4oUl 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/2017-07-20-city-hall.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=DhzV_QWd 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/2017-07-20-city-hall.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=WAwsXAeR 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2017-07-20-city-hall.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=qqMV4oUl" alt> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>ullahnor</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2017-07-20T15:41:52-04:00" title="Thursday, July 20, 2017 - 15:41" class="datetime">Thu, 07/20/2017 - 15:41</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">A city hall task force launched by 91Թ recently made recommendations on how to reform municipal government in Toronto (photo by Thomas Hawk via Flickr)</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/city-culture" hreflang="en">City &amp; Culture</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/cities" hreflang="en">Cities</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/urban" hreflang="en">urban</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/city-hall" hreflang="en">City Hall</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/government" hreflang="en">Government</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/school-public-policy-governance" hreflang="en">School of Public Policy &amp; Governance</a></div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p><em>Toronto Life</em>&nbsp;features a&nbsp;School of Public Policy &amp;&nbsp;Governance (SPPG)&nbsp;task force that&nbsp;recently released recommendations for reforming city hall.</p> <p>The task force, launched by 91Թ's&nbsp;<strong>Gabriel Eidelman</strong>, an assistant professor at SPPG, released a report titled <a href="http://publicpolicy.utoronto.ca/events/cityhalltaskforce-2/">“A Practical Blueprint for Change”</a> that makes&nbsp;14 recommendations such as&nbsp;capping council meetings&nbsp;to 12 hours and restricting councillors’ questions to staff.</p> <h3><a href="/news/reforming-toronto-s-city-hall-u-t-task-force-says-don-t-overhaul-system-just-fix-it">Read more about the task force</a></h3> <p>The magazine features an interview with&nbsp;Brian Kelcey, an urban policy consultant who led the project along with Eidelman.</p> <p>He says he and Eidelman first met over Twitter. They bonded over their mutual frustration with the process at city hall.</p> <p>“In Gabriel’s case, he had been bringing 91Թ students to see city council firsthand, and his students were walking away baffled and a little bit dumbfounded by what they were seeing,” Kelcey says in the article.&nbsp;</p> <h3><a href="http://torontolife.com/city/toronto-politics/qa-brian-kelcey-policy-consultant-plan-fix-torontos-city-hall/">Read the article</a></h3> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> Thu, 20 Jul 2017 19:41:52 +0000 ullahnor 110506 at Frontier City: 91Թ’s Shawn Micallef takes on populism and potential in Toronto /news/frontier-city-u-t-s-shawn-micallef-takes-populism-and-potential-toronto <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Frontier City: 91Թ’s Shawn Micallef takes on populism and potential in Toronto</span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/Micallef%20main.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=5hUfpZPL 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/Micallef%20main.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=zZiyulTP 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/Micallef%20main.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=1AIumcmK 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/Micallef%20main.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=5hUfpZPL" alt="Shawn Micallef "> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>Romi Levine</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2017-03-09T12:00:32-05:00" title="Thursday, March 9, 2017 - 12:00" class="datetime">Thu, 03/09/2017 - 12:00</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">Shawn Micallef's new book ‘Frontier City: Toronto on the Verge of Greatness’ explores what's behind the rise of populism in Toronto (photo by Romi Levine)</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/romi-levine" hreflang="en">Romi Levine</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-legacy field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Author legacy</div> <div class="field__item">Romi Levine</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/city-culture" hreflang="en">City &amp; Culture</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/populism" hreflang="en">Populism</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/innis-college" hreflang="en">Innis College</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/university-college" hreflang="en">University College</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/shauna-brail" hreflang="en">Shauna Brail</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/smart-cities" hreflang="en">Smart Cities</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/city-hall" hreflang="en">City Hall</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/toronto" hreflang="en">Toronto</a></div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Before Donald Trump was elected president of the United States, before the United Kingdom voted in favour of Brexit, there was Rob Ford.</p> <p>The late former mayor of Toronto made it clear that populism was alive and well in Canada.&nbsp;But what drew people to become loyal followers of Ford Nation?</p> <p>That’s what <strong>Shawn Micallef</strong> is exploring in his new book <a href="https://www.amazon.ca/Frontier-City-Toronto-Verge-Greatness/dp/0771059329"><em>Frontier City: Toronto on the Verge of Greatness</em></a>.</p> <p>Micallef is an author, co-founder of <em>Spacing Magazine</em>, a <em>Toronto Star</em> columnist and a lecturer at University College and Innis College at 91Թ.</p> <p>“When you're downtown, it's very easy to be seduced by the prosperity of this place with cranes in the sky,” Micallef said at a book launch on Tuesday at Innis Town Hall. “There's a lot of Toronto&nbsp;that doesn't get to participate necessarily in all of that prosperity and all of that Sesame Street urbanism.”</p> <p>Micallef was joined by <strong>Shauna Brail</strong>, 91Թ’s presidential adviser on urban engagement and director of the urban studies program, who moderated the event, as well as Jennifer Pagliaro, <em>Toronto Star</em> city hall reporter and former city council candidates Alejandra Bravo&nbsp;and Keegan Henry-Mathieu – who were both interviewed for the book.</p> <p><em>Frontier City </em>tells the story of Toronto’s neighbourhoods often neglected by downtown-centric politicians through conversations with 12 former non-incumbent City Hall candidates on walks around their wards.</p> <p>“What was great about underdog candidates – people who were challenging power – was they were critiquing power. They’re not trying to hold on to it,” said Micallef. “They're a lot freer to come up with ideas, to talk about the future potential of the city – what’s wrong with it and where it's going. That kind of liberation of thought was a fun thing to explore.”</p> <p><img alt="panelists " class="media-image attr__typeof__foaf:Image img__fid__3724 img__view_mode__media_original attr__format__media_original" src="/sites/default/files/panelists.jpg" style="width: 750px; height: 500px;" typeof="foaf:Image"><br> <em>Panelists at the </em>Frontier City<em> book launch, from left to right,&nbsp;Jennifer Pagliaro,&nbsp;Alejandra Bravo, Keegan Henry-Mathieu and Shauna Brail&nbsp;(photo by Romi Levine)</em></p> <p>Henry-Mathieu, a Ward 7 candidate, said he enjoyed reflecting on his neighbourhood with Micallef.</p> <p>“It was the first opportunity for me to really walk around and see the neighbourhood differently – to be able to make that connection between the greatness of our people and the potential of our neighbourhoods.”</p> <p>It’s important for all Torontonians to remember that different people experience the city in different ways, said Bravo, who was a candidate in Ward 17.</p> <p>“It's important to challenge our generalized assumptions about how inclusive and diverse our city is,” she said.</p> <p>“For so many people, they've only ever known low wages, high unemployment, really expensive housing – this generates a sense of insecurity and fear about the future. That's what a lot of our neighbours are contending with.”</p> <p>The danger comes when we think we’re immune to the discourses the United States has been confronted by, she said.</p> <p>“We have a tendency to mythologize Canadian exceptionalism,” she said.</p> <p>If City Hall continues to brush these issues aside, Toronto runs the risk of electing another Ford-like leader, said Micallef.</p> <p>“These looming crises of being left out of the prosperity that a lot of people in the city enjoy means it's going to come back,” he said. “There's no one on the radar yet, but if a populist leader with the magical charisma that Rob Ford had...if another person like that comes along, they'll be unstoppable.”</p> <p>But Micallef’s message is also hopeful, said Pagliaro who cited an exerpt from the book that reads: “We're always longing for a city we don't allow ourselves to have.”</p> <p>“It is both an urgent callout but also something that's very hopeful,” she said.</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> Thu, 09 Mar 2017 17:00:32 +0000 Romi Levine 105514 at 91Թ McLuhan salons take the classroom to the city /news/u-t-mcluhan-salons-take-classroom-city <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">91Թ McLuhan salons take the classroom to the city</span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/McLuhan%20main.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=NRu91ePB 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/McLuhan%20main.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=OCOWrbvu 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/McLuhan%20main.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=AswKUmlm 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/McLuhan%20main.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=NRu91ePB" alt="Attendees at McLuhan Salon"> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>Romi Levine</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2016-11-08T14:35:05-05:00" title="Tuesday, November 8, 2016 - 14:35" class="datetime">Tue, 11/08/2016 - 14:35</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">The first McLuhan salon took place in the City Hall council chamber (photo by Romi Levine)</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/romi-levine" hreflang="en">Romi Levine</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-legacy field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Author legacy</div> <div class="field__item">Romi Levine</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/city-culture" hreflang="en">City &amp; Culture</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/marshall-mcluhan" hreflang="en">Marshall McLuhan</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/city-hall" hreflang="en">City Hall</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/toronto" hreflang="en">Toronto</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/cities" hreflang="en">Cities</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/community" hreflang="en">Community</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/faculty-information" hreflang="en">Faculty of Information</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/mcluhan-centre-culture-technology" hreflang="en">McLuhan Centre for Culture &amp; Technology</a></div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Toronto's place in an increasingly interconnected world was the subject&nbsp;of the inaugural McLuhan Salon, hosted by 91Թ's <a href="http://www.chi.utoronto.ca/about-us/">McLuhan Centre for Culture &amp; Technology</a>.</p> <p>The salons are a nod to famed 91Թ professor&nbsp;<strong>Marshall McLuhan</strong>,&nbsp;whose ideas about mass media, technology and culture still have a huge impact on today’s thinkers. They kicked off last week with Torontonians packing into the City Hall council chamber for the first event.&nbsp;</p> <p>“We thought it would be good to get out of the university, get out of the centre, to bring the McLuhan Centre into the city in order to better explore the city under the broad theme of ‘City as Classroom’,” said the McLuhan Centre’s&nbsp;<strong>David Nostbakken</strong>, who was once McLuhan’s teaching assistant.</p> <p>Nostbakken moderated the event. Speakers included author <strong>Anne Michaels</strong>, Toronto’s poet laureate and a 91Թ alumna;&nbsp;Vickery Bowles, city librarian at Toronto Public Library; and Kevin D’Innocenzo‎, a consultant with Lord Cultural Resources.</p> <p>Altogether, there will be six events held by the Faculty of Information's McLuhan Centre, each at different cultural institutions monthly. The salons will&nbsp;bring&nbsp;together experts from different academic disciplines and city institutions. Attendees are encouraged to participate in the discussion.&nbsp;</p> <h3><a href="http://www.mcluhansalons.ca/mcluhan-salons.html">Find out more about the McLuhan salons&nbsp;</a>&nbsp;</h3> <p>Keeping in line with McLuhan's idea of the “global village,”&nbsp; the first salon explored&nbsp;the role Toronto and its cultural institutions&nbsp;play in the&nbsp;world. For example, the Toronto Public Library&nbsp;has found that&nbsp;technology has “transformational power” in public libraries.&nbsp;</p> <p>“We’ve been able to reach people in ways we never dreamed of before,” said Bowles.</p> <p>For example, when the library published a blog post welcoming refugees from Syria to Toronto, &nbsp;a refugee&nbsp;living in Beirut sent a&nbsp;message in response:&nbsp;“Thank you for welcoming us to the big Canadian family.”</p> <p>“It was a real-time connection that social media allowed us to achieve,” Bowles&nbsp;said. “It’s important for us to be able make that kind of connection available to everyone. That’s an important part of what the public library does and what we’re so dedicated to.”</p> <p><img alt class="media-image attr__typeof__foaf:Image img__fid__2422 img__view_mode__media_original attr__format__media_original" height="500" src="/sites/default/files/McLuhan%20salon%202.jpg" typeof="foaf:Image" width="750" loading="lazy"><br> <em>Author Anne Michaels (left) and Lord Cultural Resources consultant Kevin D'Innocenzo (right) spoke at the event &nbsp;(photo by Leona Seely)</em></p> <p>Michaels said bringing together different groups of people who speak different languages is the perfect opportunity to showcase the richness of Toronto’s cultural communities.&nbsp;</p> <p>“In this really extraordinary city, we speak over 140 languages,” she said.</p> <p>“As we have more and more [newcomers]&nbsp;come to the city –&nbsp;more and more immigration and languages –&nbsp;this kind of history is extremely important. It’s giving this place its own stories.”</p> <p>The city is starting to share those diverse histories through projects like <a href="http://myseumoftoronto.com/">Myseum</a>, which explores the stories of newcomers to Canada, D'Innocenzo said.</p> <p>“We are very cognisant and keen on giving people a platform to tell their story, and we’re only getting better at it.”</p> <p>After all, it’s the core of what the city stands for, Bowles said.&nbsp;</p> <p>“The city’s motto is ‘Diversity Our Strength’, and I think that’s something that’s so important for everyone to remember all the time because it’s so true about our ability to understand other people and understand their cultures. It builds connections that are so important for us as individuals, as communities, as cities.”</p> <h3><a href="/news/u-t-breathes-new-life-marshall-mcluhans-toronto-school">Read more about the&nbsp;McLuhan&nbsp;Centre</a></h3> <p>&nbsp;</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> Tue, 08 Nov 2016 19:35:05 +0000 Romi Levine 102378 at Four Toronto universities join forces in major student transit survey /news/four-toronto-universities-join-forces-major-student-transit-survey <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Four Toronto universities join forces in major student transit survey</span> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>sgupta</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2015-09-22T10:09:28-04:00" title="Tuesday, September 22, 2015 - 10:09" class="datetime">Tue, 09/22/2015 - 10:09</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">President Meric Gertler with 91Թ students Aqsa Malik and Cyntia Kocan (photo by Johnny Guatto)</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/alan-christie" hreflang="en">Alan Christie</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-legacy field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Author legacy</div> <div class="field__item">Alan Christie</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/city-culture" hreflang="en">City &amp; Culture</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/ttc" hreflang="en">TTC</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/transit" hreflang="en">Transit</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/toronto-transit-0" hreflang="en">Toronto transit</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/toronto" hreflang="en">Toronto</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/students" hreflang="en">Students</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/student-life" hreflang="en">Student Life</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/meric-gertler" hreflang="en">Meric Gertler</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/community" hreflang="en">Community</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/city-hall" hreflang="en">City Hall</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/cities" hreflang="en">Cities</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/top-stories" hreflang="en">Top Stories</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-subheadline field--type-string-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Subheadline</div> <div class="field__item">Student commutes have city-wide implications, university presidents say</div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p><strong>Aqsa Malik</strong> and <strong>Cyntia Kocan</strong> barely know each other but have something in common – the miserable commute they have to endure to get to 91Թ for classes.</p> <p>Malik and Kocan joined 200 university students at a symposium on public transit in Council Chambers at Toronto City Hall on Sept. 21. The event was organized by StudentMoveTO, a joint initiative of the 91Թ, York University, Ryerson University and OCAD University.</p> <p>The two 91Թ students were among five asked to represent the views of their colleagues, who not only filled the seats of city councillors but took up most of the space in the public gallery.&nbsp;They submitted written questions to representatives of public transit agencies in the GTA.</p> <p>Malik, in her first year of a master’s program in science and urban geography,&nbsp;told the audience it takes her an hour and a half to get to St. George campus from Markham – a span of time that does not include “the 20 minutes it takes for someone in my family to drop me off at the subway station.” Even small improvements like bicycle posts at the station would help, allowing her to cycle and leave her bike there during the day.</p> <p>Kocan, in her final year in urban studies, human geography and mapping at the St. George campus, said her commute could be 45 minutes from Thorncliffe but is often two hours because of TTC service disruptions. She said improvements would include bus shelters where people could remain safe and dry.</p> <p>Both women have to prepare in advance, bringing food and other supplies in case they end up spending extra hours getting to and from class.</p> <p>Officials from all four Toronto universities attended the session.</p> <p><img alt="Toronto City Hall" src="/sites/default/files/2015-09-21-Transit-Survey-Launch_18.jpg" style="margin: 5px; width: 600px; height: 400px;"></p> <p>91Թ President <strong>Meric Gertler</strong> explained that the presidents have been meeting for the past couple of years to discuss how to make progress on the challenges that all four institutions confront. “It didn’t take us long to converge on transportation within the city and the Greater Toronto Area as an obvious place to start,” he said.</p> <p>This decision led to the formation of StudentMoveTO and to the announcement during the symposium that a major transit survey is about to be launched. Every university student in Toronto will be emailed a questionnaire on travel experiences. The data will be unprecedented and will result in concrete actions, the organizers say.</p> <p>There are more than 180,000 students enrolled in the four universities, Gertler said, plus 310,000 at the various colleges in the GTA. Three-quarters of 91Թ students commute, often taking more an hour to get to school.</p> <p>“This is a bit of a problem,” Gertler said, “a problem for them, because it’s often soul-destroying, given the kind of arduous journey that they have to endure.”</p> <p>He continued: “Every minute they’re spending in transit going to or from one of our campuses is time they cannot spend on their studies or engaging in life on one of our campuses. So it has a direct impact on the student experience, something we feel acutely.”</p> <p>At a time when key decisions are being made about long-term transit plans “it is vitally important for the daily travel experiences and needs of our students be properly represented in the planning process,” Gertler said. The goals of the four universities are to improve the transit needs of their students, “but also improve the quality of life in this region that we call home.”</p> <p>Sara Diamond, president of OCAD University, cited affordability as another major challenge for students. More bike paths and even the ability to walk freely and safely in the city are options that make transit more affordable, she said.</p> <p>“It is important to understand that student issues resonate for other low-income groups, so the kinds of approaches that we develop will have an impact far beyond the student population,” Diamond added. York President Mamdouh Shoukri and Ryerson Provost Mohamed Lachemi also spoke to the students.</p> <p>Student transit is just the first of several issues the universities will be collaborating on, Diamond said. The next is affordable housing. The institutions are already working together on bringing Syrian refugees to Canada. <a href="http://news.utoronto.ca/responding-refugee-crisis-u-t-ocad-york-university-partner-ryerson">(Read more about the Lifeline Syria Challenge collaboration)</a></p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-picpath field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">picpath</div> <div class="field__item">sites/default/files/2015-09-21-Transit-Survey-Launch_70.jpg</div> </div> Tue, 22 Sep 2015 14:09:28 +0000 sgupta 7295 at