COURSES TAUGHT
Ryerson University, 2016-2020
THE GEOGRAPHY OF TORONTO
This course integrates environmental, historical, social, and cultural perspectives on Canada's largest city. In an engaging mix of theory and practice, students discover how integral geography is to their lives. The major assignment in this course is an eight page essay that integrates background research, Census analysis, and guided fieldwork. Students love how "real life" the course is!
THE INTERNAL STRUCTURE OF THE CITY
Canadian cities are both enigmatic and paradigmatic. This course examines the basic elements of the history of cities, housing, sustainability, inequality, demography, and public space. Student presentations help shape the course content, and encourage active learning through games, debates, and role playing.
GEOGRAPHIES OF EVERYDAY LIFE
As an introduction to geography, this course addresses key concepts and theories and their relation to the quotidian. Popular culture is used to address how geography can help to shape our understanding of the world around us.
GEOGRAPHY OF THE GLOBAL ECONOMY
How are economies spatialized? Through stuff of course! Through an examination of the flow of capital through objects we begin to unravel the uneven development that we see in the media and everyday life. Basic economic concepts are taught and applied.
THE POLITICAL GEOGRAPHY OF NATIONS AND LOCALITIES
Geography is present in politics, and if we look closely many social issues are steeped in it. Gerrymandering, Indigenous sovereignty, carceral landscapes, environmental sustainability, racial violence, migration, and children's issues are all addressed using voices from these different communities through a diverse syllabus and award-winning documentaries.
FOOD, IDENTITY AND PLACE
A sense of place is embedded in our foodways and cultures. Integral to our physical, social, and cultural lives, food stands in for more than just nourishment. Geographical theories and terms are integrated with broader cultural studies in lecture presentations. Students receive a class community cookbook at the end of the course.
TECHNOLOGY AND THE CONTEMPORARY ENVIRONMENT
Students in this course learn approaches to the environment in the first half of the class and controversies to which to apply those approaches in the second. How can economic, ethical, social, and cultural approaches help us to understand nature differently? Pollution, e-waste, deforestation, and food issues all highlight how an integrative approach is required to unravel these complex situations.