Equity, diversity, inclusion, and reconciliation are not aspirational values in my work - they are operational principles that shape how I teach, lead, collaborate, and conduct research. What follows is a brief statement of philosophy, the lived experience that grounds it, and the concrete practices that put it into action.
My commitment to equity, diversity, inclusion, and reconciliation (REDI) is grounded in lived experience. I've faced discrimination as a gay man, navigated university as a first-generation college student, and learned the unwritten rules of academia after growing up in a low-income, strongly religious, conservative household. I also live with chronic illness and non-visible disability, and have made my way through health and education systems that weren't designed with those realities in mind. Those experiences have shown me, firsthand, how institutions reproduce exclusion through hidden curricula, administrative barriers, and unexamined assumptions about who belongs.
These experiences have clarified for me that systemic inequity is not an abstract concept - it is an everyday reality. Transforming it requires more than inclusive ideals; it requires action, accountability, and a willingness to redistribute voice and opportunity. My orientation to this work is also shaped by mentorship from Indigenous Elder Val Nicholson, whose teachings have grounded my understanding of Indigenous ways of knowing, relational accountability, and respect for place, and by ongoing formal training in accessibility, Indigenous cultural safety, anti-Black racism, anti-racist pedagogy, trauma-informed teaching, and decolonial research approaches.
I approach REDI through a firm belief in the truth of lived experience and the necessity of integrating diverse perspectives into knowledge creation. I draw on Self-Determination Theory, Social Identity Theory, Two-Eyed Seeing, Universal Design for Learning, and critical pedagogy to understand how identity, recognition, and safety shape people's ability to engage, thrive, and contribute. Above all, I treat this work as relational - rooted in a commitment to seeing and treating others as whole humans, and in a genuine desire to connect deeply and respectfully across difference.
REDI principles are embedded across the four domains of my academic practice: research, teaching, mentorship, and service.
My research program is organized around participatory, team-based approaches that prioritize equity, transparency, and shared governance. Each project team co-develops an EDI charter, appoints EDI champions, and treats lived experience as a form of expertise in recruitment, authorship, and recognition. I use community advisory structures, co-design workshops, and consensus-based decision-making to ensure that people most affected by inequities help shape research questions, methods, and dissemination - applying frameworks such as Sex- and Gender-Based Analysis Plus (SGBA+), intersectionality, and OCAP principles where appropriate.
I design courses using Universal Design for Learning and trauma-informed pedagogy, with multiple formats (text, audio, visual, captioned video), flexible assessment options (papers, infographics, podcasts, videos, policy briefs), and scaffolded, effort-based grading schemes. Course materials centre Indigenous, Black, racialized, 2SLGBTQ+, disability-identified, and women scholars as core contributors to public-health knowledge - not as add-ons - and use "funds of identity" assignments that validate lived experience as a legitimate source of knowledge.
More than 80% of the 60+ trainees I have supervised come from low-income, queer, racialized, disability-identified, or otherwise structurally marginalized backgrounds. I use structured mentoring plans, milestone tracking, and individualized goal-setting so that opportunities do not depend on informal networks or unspoken norms. I work to demystify the "hidden curriculum" of academia - actively sponsoring trainees for first-author publications, leadership on grants, scholarships, and media training - while making accessibility a design principle rather than an after-the-fact accommodation.
On tenure, promotion, hiring, and awards committees, I apply an explicit equity lens that accounts for differential access to opportunity and cumulative structural disadvantage - and I have stood alone in those rooms when needed to advocate for procedural fairness. As President of Island Sexual Health, I led the establishment of a Reconciliation and EDI committee, paid Indigenous cultural-safety training, anti-oppression criteria in hiring and evaluation, and clinic policies that better serve Indigenous, 2SLGBTQ+, and racialized clients. Through CASCH and the MHCCA, I have built advisory structures that centre Indigenous Elders, BIPOC youth, and disability communities in shaping national guidelines and policy.
A non-exhaustive list of the practices I have implemented or commit to maintaining across my research program, classroom, lab, and service roles.
I treat REDI as a practice that requires continuous learning, not a credential. I have completed (and continue to seek out) formal training in inclusive pedagogy, anti-racist practice, and Indigenous cultural safety, including:
I approach this work knowing that I will not always get it right. I am committed to listening carefully, repairing harm when I cause it, holding myself and the institutions I serve accountable to our REDI commitments, and walking alongside others - especially those most affected by inequity - in shared, long-term effort.
