ISOW CONFERENCES
ISOW Conferences are a unique opportunity for Laurier faculty and students to come together with the Kitchener Waterloo Community and representatives from other Universities.
Both students in the Management Team and ISOW Scholars are heavily involved in every aspect of these conferences. Students plan the event, invite the guest speakers, help prepare the food, and participate in panel discussions themselves.
Each ISOW conference has had a slightly different focus and this reflects ISOW’s constant effort to be aware of where education is needed. Although ISOW began with a focus on Israel-Palestine and then shifted to Syria, it has never been our mission to focus only on the Middle-East or any one geographic or cultural area. In searching for new partnerships in 2020, ISOW decided to focus on a response to Myanmar.
Education is a right and should be available to anyone who is willing to devote themselves to learning.
ISOW has hosted four conferences since its inception :
2023 ISOW Conference
Student As Partners – Equipping Leaders for Sustainable Humanitarian Action
The International Student Leadership Conference on Humanitarian action invited over 200 delegates from 20 countries in March 2023 at Wilfrid Laurier University. The conference was arranged in collaboration with UN Refugee agency with solemnly focusing on equipping student leaders as partners for sustainable humanitarian action.
Highlights :-
- Keynote Event: Phan Thi Kim Phuc shared her inspiring journey of forgiveness and hope.
- Day 1: Active Learning Workshops explored the role of higher education institutions in humanitarian efforts.
- Day 2: Action Plans had delegates developing initiatives aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals.
- Day 3: Conclusion included panel presentations and gratitude to the Laurier community and supporting organizations.
- Laurier Students and Partnerships: Acknowledgments for the invaluable contributions of faculty, students, and collaborating organizations.
Outcomes :-
The conference highlighted the importance of student-staff partnerships, showcased successful initiatives, and inspired collaborative efforts for positive global impact. Stay tuned for the Special Section in the May 2024 issue of the International Journal for Students as Partners for a detailed exploration of the experiences shared.
2020 ISOW Conference
Educators in Emergencies:
University Responses to Humanitarian Crises
This conference was planned by ISOW interns with the help of several recently graduated ISOW Scholars. It featured guests from Canadian and American Universities and focused on how higher education responds to emergencies.
The panels included :-
- Canadian Universities and the Syrian Refugee Crisis
- American Universities and the Syrian Refugee Crisis
- Syrian Voices: What do Students have to Say?
- Do Students Make a Difference? Opportunities and Challenges for Universities
- Mental Wellness: Supporting Students from Countries in Conflict
- Student Leadership: Experiential Learning and Humanitarian Action
- Facilitated Dialogue: “next steps” for how universities can respond to humanitarian crises
Students spoke on many of these panels alongside experienced academics and people who have lived through the Crises first hand.
- The conference also displayed an exhibit entitled: “Transcending Borders, Transforming Identities?” which featured photographs of ISOW Scholars and was displayed in the Laurier library.
- Two students from Myanmar, Smile and Silver, who are studying in Vietnam at Western Sydney University through a scholarship from IIE PEER came to share their experiences.
- The Honorable Bob Rae gave a keynote address entitled Universities and the Moral Obligation for Humanitarian Action: The Rohingya of Myanmar.
2018 ISOW Conference
Discovering The Human Realities of Conflict
This conference was created by students as part of an ISOW directed studies course. The event was designed to be a single day of workshops on the human realities of conflict and its purpose was to help students engage through active learning with how conflict impacts individual civilian lives.
The symposium focused both on the realities of displacement within Syria and on Palestinian refugees in Lebanon and Syria.
Palestinians living in the Ain Alhilweh refugee camp in Lebanon created a documentary specifically for this symposium which was screened as part of the event.
2015 ISOW Conference
Living in the Midst of Conflict: Creating Responses to Suffering
The first of the ISOW conferences was part of the 2015 Global Engagement Week with Laurier International.
- ISOW hosted a symposium which was a day of film, discussion, and music.
- Israeli filmmaker, Danae Elon, screened her documentary Here and Not There for the first time publicly and discussed its complex themes with the symposium’s participants.
- Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish, the founder of ISOW's first partner, Daughters for Life, talked about his experiences as a Palestinian in Gaza and Canada.
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