University of Toronto's Black Research Network launches with ambitious agenda

A first-of-its-kind network for Black researchers launched this month at the University of Toronto. 

The Black Research Network (BRN) aims to promote Black excellence and enhance the research capacity of Black scholars by creating an interconnected research community and supporting transformational research led by Black investigators. 

“We have really grand challenges that face us, from the environment to housing to the post-pandemic supply chain. There are so many complicated pain points, but also a lot of opportunities for rethinking, innovation and recalculation,” said the BRN’s Inaugural Director, Beth Coleman, an associate professor at the Institute of Communication, Culture, Information and Technology at the University of Toronto's Mississauga campus. “It goes without saying that to do complex, important, timely, interdisciplinary work, we need to help support research teams that reflect that.”

BRN launched earlier this month with a kick-off event that welcomed prominent Black researchers, including Ruha Benjamin, a professor of African American studies at Princeton University who studies the relationship between innovation and equity, and Timnit Gebru, the co-founder of Black in AI and an advocate for diversity in the tech sector.

The network is part of U of T's portfolio of Institutional Strategic Initiatives — large-scale, high-impact interdisciplinary research initiatives focused on addressing major societal problems such as inequality, climate change and infectious diseases. As such, it received $1 million in base funding from the university. Coleman said BRN is currently raising additional funds internally and externally via philanthropic organizations and other partnerships. 

BRN was developed over the past year by Coleman, Rhonda McEwen, the dean of University of Toronto Mississauga; Maydianne Andrade, a professor of evolutionary biology at University of Toronto Scarborough; Alissa Trotz, director of the Women & Gender Studies Institute; and Lisa Robinson, vice-dean, strategy and operations in the Temerty Faculty of Medicine.

The impetus for the network was the events of the summer of 2020, including the murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, which sparked activism on anti-Black racism globally. It is also a response to persistent and pervasive anti-Black racism in post-secondary education in Canada. For example, Black representation lags on all levels within the University of Toronto and at post-secondary institutions across the country. Black researchers are also less likely to succeed in federally funded grant competitions than their non-Black peers.

As the BRN moves forward, it will establish physical spaces on each of the university’s three campuses where Black researchers can meet and collaborate. Coleman said this focus on bringing together Black faculty, librarians, post-doctoral fellow, graduate and undergraduate students is critical. 

“We want to ensure that people who are coming in, particularly to the STEM professions, are not out in the cold on their own, because isolation is this invisible, soft aspect of why people succeed or don’t succeed... It's not just the talent, or even the training, but also the soft skills of connectivity that support success,” she said.

BRN will also be launching two funding competitions this fall. The first, BRN Ignite Grants, will provide funding from $5,000 to $50,000 in research support. The second, the Major Challenge Grant, is designed to support a large, interdisciplinary team addressing a grand research challenge. Details will soon be available on the BRN website. 

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