Research Centres
Population Research Laboratory
Established in 1966, the Population Research Laboratory (PRL) is a centre for social science research at the University of Alberta in Edmonton. It has extensive experience in conducting research in the areas of social policy, health, population, education and public opinion. Clients and partners include academic researchers, university administrators, government departments and agencies, regional health authorities, professional associations and non-government organizations. Dr. Gillian Stevens is the current Executive Director.
Intermedia Research Studio
Intermedia Research Studio
HM Tory Bldg. 1-80/81
Hosted by the Department of Sociology since 2002.
Director: Dr. Ronjon Paul Datta, Assistant Professor of Social Theory and Cultural Studies
Social Research Through Intermedia
The Intermedia Research Studio (IRS) is a research facility for the production and dissemination of work in and on visual culture, photographs, film, video, advertising, TV, internet, mobilities, modeling, design, diagrammatics and built environments. It is a unique facility amongst Canadian sociology departments.
The studio offers students and faculty the opportunity to advance research through technical and creative means. Intermedia is about documenting and bearing witness to transformations of material and virtual culture, for example, going from analogue to digital and back again. The IRS provides a technical infrastructure (computer hardware and software, still, digital, and video cameras, video and data projectors) for accessing, producing, manipulating, and employing visual imageries and aural textures in social research. The IRS supports collaborative projects and is rooted in self-directed learning that offers space to create and disseminate new forms of social research through intermedia.
Faculty and graduate students who wish to use IRS Resources, please contact Chief Operator Andriko Lozowy at:
alozowy@ualberta.ca or Dr. Ronjon Paul Datta at:
rpaul.datta@ualberta.ca
Parkland Institute
The Parkland Institute is an Alberta-wide, non-partisan research centre situated within the Faculty of Arts at the University of Alberta, directed by Dr. Gordon Laxer. The Parkland Institute studies economic, social, cultural and political issues facing Albertans and Canadians, using the perspective of political economy. The Institute shares the results of its research widely and promotes discussion of the issues its research raises. Within post-secondary institutions, Parkland Institute includes those who are involved in interdisciplinary and socially-engaged thinking. In the broader Alberta community, the Parkland Institute works with religious organizations, professionals, trade unionists, the arts community, non-profit organizations, environmentalists, feminists, social movement activists, private sector individuals and other interested individuals.
Prairie Metropolis Centre
The Prairie Metropolis Centre: A Centre for Research on Immigration, Integration, and Diversity is one of four research centres involved in immigration and integration research. It was established in the spring of 1996 under a grant from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) and Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC).
The Prairie Centre is a consortium representing six prairie universities including the University of Alberta; University of Calgary; University of Manitoba; University of Regina; University of Saskatchewan and the University of Winnipeg. The Centre is based at the University of Alberta, in Edmonton, with research nodes at each of the other five universities.
Kent and Drever Collection on Alternative Religions
This archival collection contains extensive primary and secondary material on alternative religions, non-traditional religious traditions, and other social movements. For security and confidentiality reasons, the collection is not open to the public. Graduate students and university faculty members interested in using this collection for research purposes should contact Professor Steve Kent (steve.kent@ualberta.ca) for information about the collection and access guidelines.