Research Blog
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Hurry Up and Wait: Forest Fires and Disaster Prevention
The year I started working as an Assistant Fire Management Clerk, I was a shy 19-year-old, timidly running radio communications for the Thunder Bay District’s…
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Classroom Connections: Linking Contemporary Youth with Historical Students’ Transnational Experiences of Disasters
On December 17th and 18th 2024, two groups of grade 10 Geography students from Colonel By High School journeyed to Carleton University to tour the…
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The Ethics of Disaster Research
As earlier posts have noted, the seeds for the Disaster Lab research project were planted before the Covid-19 pandemic. They emerged out of an observation,…
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“History Doesn’t Repeat Itself, but It Often Rhymes.”
I was knee-deep in my continuous research on the history of disasters when the above quote by American writer Mark Twain came to mind. Coincidentally,…
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Hurricane Hazel’s Best Dressed: Reading between the headlines in the Toronto “Evening Telegram”
On October 16, 1954, buried between the pages of the Toronto Evening Telegram, reads a seemingly out of place headline, “Beautiful Gowns Worn to Ball…
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Gone to the Dogs: Disasters and the Pet Perspective
Pet-owning families will know the important role that animal companions play in the household. From dinner table companions anxiously awaiting fallen scraps, to bedside (or…
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A Hurricane is Not Just a Hurricane
The impact of Hurricane Hazel can be approached from a spatial historical perspective. Spatial history focuses on the relationship between humans and place over time.…
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Thoughts, Prayers, and Typhoons: Catholicism in the Midst of a Disaster
“To God Be the Glory.” It says at the end credits of a Filipino telenovela playing on tv at a family friend’s living room. Growing…
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What is a Disaster?
At a recent Disaster Lab meeting, the question of “what is a disaster?” came up. We realized that despite researching how other people were…
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Summer (and Wildfire Season) Are Not Yet Over
As September ushers in feelings of a new school year, the once casual “how was your summer?” exchange has taken on a sombre tone. Informally…
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The “Canadian” Wildfires of 2023
On June 5, 2023, as over 200 wildfires raged across the country, the federal government through a whole-of-cabinet approach issued a lengthy official update informing…
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On Classroom Experiences
One of the really great things about being awarded funding by the Early Researcher Award program is that youth outreach is built into the granting…
