Bringing Conversations that Matter into the Classroom
By Noah Laycock, 2023
During the 2022 fall semester at Mount Royal University, two sections of third year students in the Journalism and Digital Media and Broadcasting programs, partnered with the Trico Changemakers Studio and the Calgary Foundation to find examples of local changemakers. Three themes that inspired their search were Right Relations and Racial Equity, Environment and sustainability and Wellbeing and Belonging.
More specifically, students probed topics such as Poverty Reduction, Living a Creative Life and Encouraging Mental Health. Through this process, the students were exposed to how much their communities are connected, what true leadership looks like and even how they in their own way can contribute to being changemakers too. A key message: change can be made by anyone who is socially conscious, activated and responsible.
One medium the students used to translate the knowledge they obtained was podcasting. With only simple microphones and complex questions, they recorded critical conversations with those making real change on campus and off; highlighting some of the most pressing social problems and exciting social solutions facing us today.
Read or listen below to the story of how two sections of students got activated by interviewing local changemakers, and how you can become a changemaker too.
List of Changemakers discussed in the project
Additional Changemakers from the student projects
CREDITS
Story written and produced by Noah Laycock.
Noah is a student at MRU studying Journalism, and is interested in sports like rock climbing, mountain biking and skiing. Noah is curious about different types of music from around the world, and is passionate about minimizing human impact on the plants, water and animals that sustain us.
Projects from students in COMM 3738: Research Design and Methodology course by Dr. Amanda Williams inspired by the Changemaker Conversations Project.
Dr. Amanda Williams is an Assistant Professor in the School of Communication Studies. You can reach Dr. Williams at: awilliams2@mtroyal.ca or https://www.linkedin.com/in/amanda-williams-1121a1137/
The Changemaker Conversations Project is brought to you by Trico Changemakers Studio in partnership with the Calgary Foundation.