Dr. Leslie Brown

Biography

I teach a number of different undergraduate courses, including: Questioning Society, Introduction to Social Theory, Sustainable Communities and Social Change, Civil Society Engagement and Activism, and Canadian Social Policy. I enjoy working with honours students, and occasionally serve on graduate thesis committees at sister universities. Examples of my work can be found in Co-operatives for Sustainable Communities: tools to measure co-operative impact and performance (2015, Saskatoon: University of Saskatchewan), Co-operative Canada: Empowering communities and sustainable businesses (2014, Vancouver: UBC Press), Atlantic Canada’s Social Economy: Communities, economy and solidarity (2012, Sydney: Cape Breton University Press), Community-University Research Partnerships: reflections on the Canadian Social Economy Experience (2012, Victoria: University of Victoria).

Research Interest

My research reflects my longstanding interest in organizational democracy, co-operatives, social economy, and community development, and I have written and presented extensively in these areas. As co-applicant or principle investigator on a number of SSHRC grants I have studied co-operatives in relation to, for example: social cohesion, community development, social reporting, strategic planning, social economy, and engagement and democracy. In much of my research I have worked in close collaboration with community partners both within Canada and abroad.