Thank you for making Earth Week 2019 a success. Please help The Office of Sustainability by filling out this Earth Week feedback survey.
If you have any questions regarding Earth Week or how to get involved with events at the Office of Sustainability, please email Tayler Buchanan at tayler.buchanan@humber.ca.
This month's REB Bulletin explores privacy rights when public research is being conducted.
Conducting public research: The impact of privacy rights
Humber researchers often conduct various forms of “public research”. For this discussion, I have chosen to define “public research” as the observation of human subjects in a public setting, the interrogation and/or recording of persons in public spaces or the examination of publicly available human related data and images. Defined in such expansive terms, “public research” would capture research activities such as:
An issue common to all of these research activities is the consideration of whether people who are in a “public setting” have a reasonable expectation of privacy and what impact this would have on the research ethics review process.
In conducting ethics reviews of research proposals, Research Ethics Boards (REBs) are guided primary by the Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans. The latest version, TCPS 2 (2014) provides the following guidance:
1. REB review is not required for research involving the observation of people in public places where:
The application of this guideline means that Humber researchers do not need to submit REB applications where the research to be conducted calls for the mere observation of persons in public spaces, provided that these persons would have no reasonable expectation of privacy in such places.
2. Research that relies exclusively on information that is publicly available, or made accessible through legislation or regulation, does not require REB review.
The application of this guideline means that Humber researchers do not need to submit an application for review when the research to be conducted would involve an examination of things such as photographs and recordings which have been legitimately placed in the public domain. For example, research involving a review of political debates to determine the tone of the discourse surrounding Indigenous issues would not require REB review.
3. REB review is not required where research uses exclusively publicly available information that may contain identifiable information and for which there is no reasonable expectation of privacy.
The TCPS guidance notes that “identifiable information may be disseminated in the public domain through print or electronic publications; film, audio or digital recordings; press accounts; official publications of private or public institutions; artistic installations, exhibitions or literary events freely open to the public; or publications accessible in public libraries.” The application of this guideline means that Humber researchers do not need to submit an application for REB review where the proposed research would, for example, involve determining the reaction of different ethnic groups to specific issues, or where the primary research material is archival footage of interviews conducted with named individuals. The caveat is that it must be clear that the persons who gave the interviews had no reasonable expectation of privacy.
It is clear that an assessment of whether members of the public have a reasonable expectation of privacy in specific circumstances, will be an important determinant of whether research ethics clearance is required for proposed research. In a 2019 case, the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) has provided guidance that will prove invaluable in making an assessment of when a reasonable expectation of privacy may be deemed to exist even in a public setting.
Many of us are aware of the recent case of R v. Jarvis[1] in which the SCC held that a former teacher at a high school in Ontario was guilty of the Criminal Code offence of voyeurism for having secretly made video recordings of female students. As defined in section 162 (1) of the Criminal Code (the “Code”), the offence of voyeurism involves inter alia, surreptitiously, observing or making a visual recording of a person who is in circumstances that give rise to a reasonable expectation of privacy.
Jarvis made the recordings within the open areas of the school. These were acknowledged to be “public” areas and in light of this, the SCC had to determine whether the students had a reasonable expectation of privacy when they were present in these areas. The SCC appreciated that a key consideration in the application of section 162 (1) of the Code is whether persons who are observed or recorded, are in circumstances that give rise to a reasonable expectation of privacy. The Court ruled that even when persons are in a public space, the determinative factor will be whether they are in circumstances in which they would reasonably expect not to be the subject of the type of observation or recording that in fact occurred.
This guidance presented by the Court was in the specific context of an analysis of section 162 (1) of the Code. It is nonetheless useful for informing other determinations of those circumstances in which persons who are in public spaces will have a reasonable expectation of privacy. As such, applying the guidance provided by the SCC, an REB would be quite justified in examining an application involving public research to determine whether research subjects in a public setting such a shopping mall, library or school, would nevertheless have a reasonable expectation that their appearances in such a setting would not be subject to image capturing without their consent for the specific purposes proposed by the researcher.
This analysis also impacts on social media research. Whereas Facebook users may have their information “open” on their Facebook page, a researcher interested in harnessing images and recordings of these persons for research purposes should demonstrate an appreciation that although the images and recordings have been made publicly available, the users may nevertheless retain an expectation that their identifiable data will not be utilised for research purposes without their explicit consent.
A determination either by the researcher or the REB that a person in a public setting would still have a reasonable expectation of privacy does not necessarily mean that the research would be inappropriate. Rather, it suggests that the researcher has to comply with informed consent protocols and that the REB will have to ensure that these protocols are respected.
It is appreciated that it may not be easy to secure consent from anonymous members of the public. Imagine the example of research involving a study of the users of fertility clinic. The clinic could be located in a public shopping mall but its clients would still have a reasonable expectation of privacy and hence would expect that they would not be recorded without their consent or that such recordings would not be used for research purposes without their consent. The researcher may not feel comfortable in approaching these anonymous members of the public for their consent or it may be impracticable to secure such consent. However, such considerations do not relieve the researcher of the responsibility to ensure that informed consent protocols are properly complied with.
Audel Cunningham, LLB, LLM, LLM
Professor, The Business School
Member- Humber College Research Ethics Board
[1] 2019 SCC 10
The Centre for Teaching and Learning is happy to share the latest issue of Scholars & Co.
See the full issue attached.
After months of hard work and dedication, the Legal and Risk Management team is excited to announce the launch of our brand new website. Our goal with this website is to create a place where members of the College community can go to get trusted, innovative, and professional services, advice and guidance on matters related to contract review, insurance, legal, risk management, privacy, policies and procedures and freedom of information requests. The website also provides information on who to contact if you have questions or need more information.
The new site is live as of April 3, 2019 and can be accessed at humber.ca/legal-and-risk-management.
We hope you enjoy our new website and find the information you are looking for.
Thank you,
Legal and Risk Management Team
In the last two weeks, we have celebrated three major award ceremonies - the Barrett Family Foundation Scholarship, the School of Applied Technology Awards and Scholarships and the CISCO Scholarships of Excellence.
I am privileged to have had the opportunity to see our students recognized by industry/community for their hard work and achievements.
To start us off, The Barrett Family Foundation scholarship awards on March 20 focused on the technology programs in the School of Applied Sciences and Technology.
Recognizing student academic achievement, involvement in extracurricular activities and academic performance, more than 140 entrance scholarships were awarded to students who entered our technology programs in fall 2018 and winter 2019.
Next, our school proudly hosted the School of Applied Technology 2018-2019 student award and scholarship event recognizing the academic achievements of our amazing students and the generous donors who help them pursue their dreams.
The highlights from the awards ceremonies included hearing directly from our students, Alister Lagman (Architectural Technology), Jessica Little (Electromechanical Engineering) and Christina Seeman (Electronics Engineering Technology).
Alister Lagman spoke gratefully of the support and recognition from the many donors who made these scholarships possible; and how he was ‘more confident about being on the right path’ in his career goals. As mature students, both Jessica and Christina spoke of the fulfillment of returning to school to pursue a new career path in engineering, thus increasing the presence of successful females in the industry.
It is with great pride that I take this opportunity to thank all the scholarship recipients for the tremendous effort they’ve put into their academic work. I wish them all the very best in their future endeavors.
Celebratory events like the ones we’ve just had are not possible without the vision of staff who work hard to create a seamless experience for guests, faculty and students alike. I would like to thank Jan Wojcik, Manager, Work Integrated Learning, colleagues from The Advancement and Alumni and photographer Lisa Sakulensky Photography.
In closing, I am reminded again that when students achieve the high level of academic success, it is equally accredited to the faculty and support staff who work hard behind the scenes ensuring our students receive a quality education, preparing them brilliantly for the workforce and giving them the opportunity to do great things for society with their skills and knowledge. To all of you, my heartfelt thanks!
Please take a minute to enjoy some pictures from these celebratory events, please click here.
Farzad Rayegani, Ph.D., P.Eng, FEC.
Senior Dean, Faculty of Applied Sciences and Technology
Please note there will be an external film shoot taking place at Lakeshore Campus on April 5, 2019.
On April 4 there will be a small crew prepping their filming areas at the exterior of F Cottage, G Cottage and H Cottage from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
On April 5 there will be a large crew prepping their filming areas at the exterior of F Cottage, G Cottage, H Cottage as well as Parking Lot 4 from 7 p.m. to 3 p.m.
April 5 filming will take place from 3 p.m. to 3 a.m. (Saturday, April 6) in the following areas:
Please note that Lot 4 will be unavailable all day on April 5, please park in Lot 1.
Public Safety Security has been arranged to be with this film crew at all times while they are on Humber property.
If you have any questions or concerns please contact sonia.rodrigues@humber.ca.
Thank you,
Humber Conference Services
On behalf of the Department of Public Safety, we would like to offer congratulations to our very own Michael Freitas, Access Control Coordinator, for achieving a very high level professional certification. Michael recently received board certification as a Physical Security Professional (PSP) as conferred on him by the ASIS Professional Certification Board after having passed the required examination and meeting all of the certification requirements. He can now proudly display the PSP credential in his signature.
Michael we are very proud of your achievement, we know how hard you worked. Well done!
Sincerely,
Rob Kilfoyle, CPP, CMM III Security Executive
Director, Public Safety and Emergency Management
Part-time staff summer semester parking permits go on sale through your MyHumber login effective Monday, April 15.
Summer semester permits are valid Monday, April 29 through Friday, August 30. Please note that during the summer semester there is no requirement to pay the upgraded cost in order to park in Lot 1 or Lot 13 at North Campus. Permits do not sell out.
Thank you,
Humber Parking
parking.sales@humber.ca
The (re)Making of a Movement: New Perspectives on the 1960s Counterculture
Submission Deadline: May 30, 2019
Conference Date: October 26-27, 2019
Location: Harbourfront Centre, 235 Queens Quay West, Toronto, Canada.
Keynote speaker: Angela Davis – activist, author, educator, and scholar
It’s been 50 years since 400,000 people descended on Bethel, New York, for an event that became one of the most important cultural touchstones for a generation: Woodstock. As participants in an amorphous social movement the Woodstock Generation came to be defined in opposition to previous generations. Despite growing up in an era of incredible privilege, widespread government social programs, post-war housing and education, and increasing affluence, they rejected, or attempted to redefine traditional values. In theory, supporters of the counterculture rejected individualism, competition, and capitalism. Rejection of monogamy and the traditional nuclear family gave way to a communal ideal—disavowing individualism and private property in favour of shared food, work, sex. As historian Michael Doyle points out, the myth of Woodstock holds that “in a time of military conflict abroad, racial and ethnic strife at home, when a deep social division known as the ‘generation gap’ separated parents from children, nearly half a million young people removed themselves from proximity to these conflicts and went ‘back to the garden’ to try to ‘set their souls free’.” As such, Woodstock carries a certain symbolic weight for participants in the 1960s and 1970s counterculture movement and for anyone who looks back on the past fifty years with a critical eye.The counterculture movement encompassed: the Civil Rights Movement, Free Speech, the New Left, Anti-war, Anti-nuclear, Feminism, Free school movement, Drug Culture, Environmentalism, Student Activism, Producerism, Gay liberation, the Sexual Revolution, and the rise of Hippies to innovations in fashion, music, film, and literature. The American poet John Perry Barlow once said: “I started out as a teenage beatnik and then became a hippie and then became a cyberpunk. And now I’m still a member of the counterculture, but I don’t know what to call that.” How have the various movements within the counterculture evolved over the past 50 years? What did hippies become? Who was the Sexual Revolution scripted for? How did the Civil Rights movement evolve? How did a generation that “dropped out” re-engage? How was this fringe culture appropriated by marketers? How challenging was it to live an ideal especially in light of the Cold War and rise of Reaganism?
Our conference committee welcomes individual presentation proposals of 300 words, and panel proposals (3 people max) of 900 words, based on any of the above themes.
This will be the sixth annual interdisciplinary conference held by Humber College’s School of Liberal Arts and Sciences of Toronto in association with the Toronto International Festival of Authors (TIFA), one of the most celebrated literary festivals in the world. It is located at the Harbourfront Centre, one of downtown Toronto’s major cultural and artistic venues.
The Human Resource Management System (HRMS) will be going live in June 2019.
This project was initiated to replace and improve legacy HR processes and systems, with a fully-integrated cloud-based system, that can capably manage the entire employee lifecycle – from hire to retire.
Humber has pursued the implementation of the HRMS so that we may:
Over the coming weeks we will be reaching out with more details about our “Go Live” date, including information on training.
Stay Tuned!