The accidental volunteer By Nina Badwal - January 2022 - . You can call Nina Kukoc the “accidental volunteer.” One day while taking a stroll in her neighbourhood, Kukoc encountered the St. James Town Community Corner’s Share and Reuse Hub, The Corner @240 (located at 240 Wellesley Street East). After learning more about [...]
By Dimitrije Martinovic - August 2021 - Blending form with function in design and application is always at the heart of architectural projects. Adding social and inspirational factors to the equation can sometimes become less of a priority. But with a project like a public park in a neighbourhood as diverse as St. [...]
Written by grade 6 students at the Dr. Eric Jackman Institute of Child Study Lab School We will begin with the land acknowledgement, because we will be using the land and need to respect this place where Indigenous people have lived and continue to live. We would like to thank the First Peoples [...]
Yvonne Yorke - July 2021 - . Swimming is to the Canadian summer what skating is to the Canadian winter. It doesn’t matter if you are in a lake or a pool, nothing beats the cool water temperatures on a hot summer day. To ensure that swimming remains cool and refreshing, please [...]
- By Shirley Roberts - Just steps south of St. James Town, Toronto residents and visitors will find an urban gem that is accessible to all, free of charge. Located on the east side of Sherbourne Street, west side of Jarvis, from Carleton to Gerrard – Allan Gardens stands as a legacy to [...]
- By Nea Maaty - In the heart of St. James Town, you will find one of the most multicultural schools in North America – Rose Avenue Junior Public School. The school has a student population of over 650 students. For more than 15 years, they have integrated community gardening into their curriculum [...]
- By Lisa Kowalchuk - An article in our June edition focused on the health benefits of exploring urban nature, and ways in which Park People (the group working to use parks to increase people’s quality of life) works to overcome inequalities in people’s access to green spaces in cities across Canada. In [...]
By Nina Badwal - June 2021 - A group on a bird walk. (Photo: Andrés Jiménez Monge) A recreational activity that was once seen fitting for retired white men is now attracting a diverse group of people. Bird watching – or birding which includes the visually impaired – has reached an all-time high [...]
- By Lisa Kowalchuk - As Toronto leaves behind the long pandemic winter of 2020, birdsong and greenery announce the coming season and its greater opportunities for enjoyment of the outdoors. Being in contact with green spaces and nature is shown in study after study to boost the mental and physical health of [...]
- By Raagave Kanaan - “A lot of places in downtown Toronto are crowded because of buildings and we have limited access to green space. We need more green space because it’s good for the environment and helps people to move around and get connected to other people. Children can use the space [...]
Nalini Pandalangat, Director of Newcomer Health & Specialty Services, Sherbourne Health, is a Registered Social Worker with the Ontario College of Social Workers and Social Service Workers. She completed her PhD at the Institute of Medical Sciences, University of Toronto, and has extensive experience leading projects and programs in the community health, hospital and international development sectors. Her PhD was on cultural influences on help-seeking, treatment and support for mental health problems in the Sri Lankan Tamil community. Her research and program interests are focused on immigrant mental health, gender and health, cultural competence, health care access and health equity. Currently she is part of a core team working on the development and dissemination of a refugee mental health framework.
