Engage Edmonton
Engage Edmonton is a program for students who live in residence that offers service learning opportunities and educational social justice events throughout the year through partnership with various initiatives both on campus and in the greater Edmonton community.
The theme for the 2024-2025 academic year is social justice and humanity.
Using a social activism lens, participants will engage in a variety of service learning activities, research, service and reflection exercises that will expose them to diverse social issues. These engagements should equip students with the knowledge and skill to move beyond acts of charity and address the root causes of systemic social inequality.
Participating in Engage Edmonton will allow you to:
- Make friends with residents across various communities.
- Develop personal growth in social and political awareness.
- Form connections with organizations in Edmonton committed to pursuing social justice.
- Gain experiences that instill a greater sense of purpose in learning.
- Stand out amongst your competitors when applying for a job.
What is service learning?
Service learning is an approach to learning that emerges from active engagement with the community, with the ultimate goal of working towards positive social change. Although volunteering and service learning both involve community service, service learning has a stronger focus on the intentional learning outcomes associated with that community service. A key aspect of service learning is reciprocity, which emphasizes that service placements should be mutually beneficial for students and campus/community partners.
Service learning comprises of four components:
- Preparation: Learning about the community partner and the social issue that will be explored.
- Action: Participation in the service event.
- Reflection: Discussing the experience and reflecting on the outcomes to process the impact.
- Celebration: Recognizing the partnership and learning that took place and celebrating the communal success of the team.
Examples include sorting clothing donations, serving meals, packing food hampers, hosting a virtual afterschool program for youth living in poverty and creating holiday cards for houseless seniors.
What is social activism?
Social activism is about making real change in the world by tackling local and global issues through raising awareness, increasing engagement and facilitating education.
Examples include documentary screenings, panel discussions, attending protests and participating in letter-writing campaigns for various social justice causes.
PROGRAM CALENDAR
The Engage Edmonton program is unique because it is a low-commitment program that boasts a high diversity of service learning opportunities. Sign up for as many or few opportunities as you like!
Programs are updated throughout the year, so check back periodically.
If you have any questions or would like to organize a service learning opportunity, please contact the Diversity, Inclusion and Service Learning Intern at slintern@ualberta.ca.
Day of Service
Friday, August 30, 2024 | 1–6 p.m. | Various non-profit organizations across Edmonton
Make your orientation meaningful by giving back to the Edmonton community. Participate in a Day of Service — tour a non-profit organization, understand their impact, and lend a helping hand.
The group will travel together to the organizations.
Engage Edmonton Welcome Mixer
Friday, September 13, 2024 5:30–6:30 p.m. | ECHA 1-420
Meet like-minded people and explore ways to get involved with service learning on campus and in the local community. Refreshments will be provided.
No registration required.
Prairie Urban Farm - Group Farming Session
Thursday, September 19, 2024 | 3:45-7:00 p.m. | Prairie Urban Farm
Meet in ECHA 2-420 at 3:45 p.m. to sign waivers + travel to the farm as a group
Join for an evening of harvesting vegetables and working with compost. This placement is 18+ only. Please bring your ARC card and ONEcard.
Sign up by Wednesday, September 18 at 1 p.m.
Edmonton Food Bank - Group Volunteer Session
Thursday, October 10, 2024 | 1:00-5:00 p.m. | Edmonton’s Food Bank
Meet at 1:00 p.m. in ECHA (room number TBD) | The group will travel together to the food bank.
Take a tour of the facility, learn about the mission of the food bank, and volunteer packing food hampers.
Sign up by Wednesday, October 9, 2024 at 1:00 p.m.
Campus Food Bank - Trick or Treat Session
Check back for updates on date, time and location.
Join us as we go trick or treating to support the Campus Food Bank. We will visit neighbourhoods surrounding the North Campus to collect donations of non-perishable food items. You can even dress in your Halloween costume!
Alternative Reading Week - Fall
Check back for updates on date, time and location.
Alternative Reading Week is a week-long, immersive service-learning opportunity that allows students to participate in service learning opportunities, classroom lessons and reflection activities centered around a different theme each semester.
The theme for this week is Urban Poverty.
By participating in Alternative Reading Week, students will:
- Evaluate their identities, values and roles in relation to social issues and social justice in the Edmonton community
- Analyze stereotypes and stigma as it occurs on both an individual level and a societal level in relation to the theme
- Apply leadership skills such as teamwork and values-based action to connect with their peers and others in the community
- Develop a sense of citizenship and recognize the role that individuals have in creating positive social change in their communities
Schedule
- Tuesday, November 12, 2024 | 9:30-11:30 a.m.
Workshop Session - Tuesday, November 12, 2024 | 11:30 a.m. -12:30 p.m.
Lunch Break - Tuesday, November 12, 2024 | 12:30 p.m. -4:00 p.m.
Volunteer Session - Wednesday, November 13, 2024 | 10 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Volunteer Session - Thursday, November 14, 2024 | 9:30-11:30 a.m.
Workshop session - Thursday, November 14, 2024 | 11:30 a.m. -12:30 p.m.
Lunch Break - Thursday, November 14, 2024 | 12:30 p.m. -4:00 p.m.
Volunteer Session - Friday, November 15, 2024 | 11:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Graduation Lunch
Alternative Reading Week is a competitive program. Only twenty students will be selected. Participants are selected based on the quality of their answers to the application questions. Applications open in late September/early October.
Terra Centre - Group Volunteer Session
Tuesday, December 3, 2024 | 1:00-4:00 p.m. | Check back for the meet up location.
Terra Centre offers support programs for pregnant teens, teen moms, teenage parents and their babies in Edmonton. Join us as we wrap holiday gifts to bring cheer to families in Edmonton.