Episode 42: Ardavan Eizadirad

In Episode 42 Dr. Nicholas Ng-A-Fook interviews Dr. Ardavan Eizadirad an Assistant Professor within the Faculty of Education at Wilfrid Laurier University. He is also the Chair of the Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Indigenization (EDI&I) Coalition. He is a community activist with the Youth Association for Academics, Athletics, and Character Education (YAAACE). Dr. Ardavan Eizadirad shares his insights about equity, diversity, and inclusion particularly standardized testing, community engagement, anti-oppressive practices, resistance, subversion, and decolonization. We discussed some of the following issues: Canadian Union of Public Employees political resistance, Ontario government’s (mis)use of “Notwithstanding Clause,” a livable wage, research as advocacy and awareness, centering voices of equity deserving groups, disrupting cultural capital of whiteness, decolonizing assessment, tattoos, immigration, civic protests in Iran, and so much more.