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Latest Entries
Urban Infrastructures and Informal Sovereignties: A Research Project
Ethnography is not the first thing that comes to mind when you hear about urban infrastructures. Infrastructure is more often considered the domain of planners, civil engineers and policy-makers. However, the Sheri Lynn Gibbings’ SSHRC funded project Urban Infrastructures and Informal Sovereignties: Understanding 20th Century Politics uses ethnography as the central methodological approach to uncover … Continue reading
Dr. Francis Cody: A Discussion on Digital Ethnography
Join us for the Ethnography Lab’s Inaugural Talk!
Digital Ethnography Group – research without boundaries
As more and more of the world gains access to the internet, cell phones, and accompanying technologies, ethnographers’ field sites often multiply and become at least partially digital. Traditional ethnographic field methods for physical locations remain crucial to training junior anthropologists, but methodologies that do not keep pace with ever-shifting loci of communication and cultural … Continue reading
Infrastructures Research Group team
Dr. Joshua Barker, DirectorAssociate Professor of Anthropology, University of Toronto Jean Chia, MemberAnthropology PhD Candidate, University of Toronto Emily Hertzman, MemberAnthropology PhD Candidate, University of Toronto Jacob Nerenberg, MemberAnthropology PhD Candidate, University of Toronto Tammara Soma, MemberUrban Planning and Environmental Studies PhD Candidate, University of Toronto Jessika Tramblay, MemberAnthropology PhD Candidate, University of … Continue reading
“This is Anthropology” – revisiting the values of social research
Anthropology is just one of many disciplines that uses ethnography – or the systematic and in-depth description of various social or cultural phenomena – to enrich our understanding of the strange and familiar goings-on around us. “This is Anthropology” is a detailed slideshow put together by the students at the University of South Florida a … Continue reading
Welcome to the Ethnography Lab
I’m excited to announce the launch of the Ethnography Lab at the University of Toronto. The Ethnography Lab is a meeting place for ethnographers working within and beyond the university who wish to reflect upon, develop, and refine their craft.
The craft of ethnography has two poles. On the one hand, there is the research itself, which includes methods such as participant observation, interviewing, and writing field notes. On the other hand, there is the communication of research to various publics, through writing, filmmaking, storytelling, and the like. … Continue reading
Infrastructures – A social approach
The Infrastructures Research Group (IRG) is a collection of projects that use ethnography to understand the formal and informal politics that affect global access to urban infrastructures like railroads, water pipes, and electricity. In an ideal world, governments would provide all citizens with access to urban infrastructures in an equal and fair manner. Yet as … Continue reading
Kensington Market Project — A multi-year ethnographic study
The Kensington Market Research Project (KMRP) aims to produce an unprecedented body of rich and detailed knowledge about Toronto’s most celebrated multicultural heritage district. Bordered by China Town and adjacent to the University of Toronto’s downtown campus, Kensington Market boasts the city’s best known enclave of social diversity and counter-culture nestled in a backdrop of … Continue reading
Applied Ethnography – Reaching out beyond academia
There is a growing interest in ethnographic methods outside of academia where organizations and practitioners are discovering the impact of in-depth qualitative research on strategy and execution. In the applied cluster, we will explore the various applications of ethnography in private sector, public sector or not-for-profit organizations, as well as in product and service design. … Continue reading
Ethnography Lab 