Big Thinking Podcast

Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences

34 episodes listed below

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In their own words

The Big Thinking Podcast is the podcast of the Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences, featuring some of the most interesting and innovative people in the humanities and social sciences in conversation about their research on important issues of our time.

As heard by us

Based on 6 episodes we listened to · September 2026

Big Thinking Podcast turns academic research into clear, policy-minded conversations about how institutions and technologies shape Canadian public life.

Big Thinking Podcast starts with a researcher's route into a question, then lets that route open onto public policy. Karine Morin leads several of these interviews, moving from the international-student cap and links between colleges and universities to AI's influence on…

Read our full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

Brighton's Pride floats meet Shanghai's bike rides, and your rainbow-logo certainty gets a respectful challenge.

Press play if you want

  • to hear why corporate Pride can feel limiting in one place and pragmatic in another
  • to look past Canada's international student cap headline and understand the pressure behind study permit applications
Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

Talks about

Best episodes of Big Thinking Podcast

Short reviews from the PlayNext desk, based on the episodes we processed.

Nourishing Black scholarship, nurturing collective joyFeb 27, 2026

Black scholarship, care, and joy are treated as daily practice, not theory.

The episode presents the Centre for Black Studies and Education at OISE as a place where Black scholarship is held together by care, community, and teaching, not just institutionally. It also gives Dr. Andrew B.

What does Canada gain when postsecondary connects?Nov 28, 2025

A focused case for collaboration and easier pathways across post-secondary education.

Canada's postsecondary system is presented as a practical question of collaboration: how universities and colleges can work together more closely, what that makes possible, and how those pathways can broaden choice for learners.

Le nouvel art de se présenter aux électionsApr 30, 2025

A careful look at how campaign messaging moves through media, public attention, and political strategy.

This episode looks at political messaging as a matter of image, attention, and the way parties try to shape public debate through both digital and traditional media.

Digital politics in the age of AIFeb 27, 2025

A careful look at how AI, bots, and political influence blur the line between popularity and persuasion.

Big Thinking Podcast treats AI less as a gadget story than as a question of political power: who sets the rules for visibility online, how bots can warp what seems popular, and why authenticity gets harder to trust when non-human actors are in the mix.

Congrès en Conversation - Partie III avec Aliyah DatooJun 28, 2024

A focused look at francophone organizing online, from public debate to more private community spaces.

Annie Pilote guides this conversation with Alia Datou from her studies at Simon Fraser University into the shifting shape of online community organizing as scale and access change.

Congress in Conversation - Part II with Kshamta Hunter

A patient case for teaching sustainability as a practice, not a slogan.

Congress in Conversation follows Shamta Hunter from cell biogenetics and K-12 biology and science teaching into transformative learning at UBC, using that path to frame sustainability as a values-driven practice rather than a fixed answer.

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Episodes

  1. 1

    As global tensions intensify, can Canada maintain its Women, Peace, and Security commitments?

    Hidden gem

    Canada’s Women, Peace, and Security commitments are set against a tougher security climate.

    ·29m·1 clip
  2. 2

    Desire, disability, and the myths around intimacy

    ·31m
  3. 3

    Navigating Canada's immigration and education nexus

    Hidden gem

    Karine Morin speaks with Lisa Bruner about Canada's cap on international student study permit applications.

    ·37m·2 clips
  4. 4

    L’interdisciplinarité au service des dépendances comportementales

    Hidden gem

    Karine Morin opens the episode by asking why interdisciplinary approaches matter for understanding complex public-health challenges, including issues like gambling disorder and addiction.

    ·32m·1 clip
  5. 5

    Wildfires: charting the path forward

    Hidden gem

    Karine Morey opens a discussion on wildfire research in Canada.

    ·34m·2 clips
  6. 6

    Pride and profit: The politics of corporate allyship

    Hidden gem

    The episode follows Dr.

    ·44m·2 clips
  7. 7

    Comprendre les racines de l'extrémisme au Québec

    Hidden gem

    The episode opens with a plain civic question: is the rise of radical groups in Quebec and Canada mostly local, or part of a wider pattern?

    ·36m·2 clips
  8. 8

    Congress in Conversation - Part II with Kshamta Hunter

    Hidden gem

    Nihal Elhadi welcomes Shamta Hunter to Congress in Conversation.

    ·25m·1 clip
  9. 9

    Equity, Diversity and Inclusion in the Post-Secondary Research System

    Hidden gem

    Big Thinking Podcast turns to the Council of Canadian Academies report on equity, diversity and inclusion in the post-secondary research system.

    ·32m·2 clips
  10. 10

    Nourishing Black scholarship, nurturing collective joy

    The host opens on the idea of a space built with care.

    Feb 27, 2026·29m·1 clip
  11. 11

    What does Canada gain when postsecondary connects?

    Kim Honey starts with a simple puzzle: why the Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences has only one college member, even though its bylaws have long allowed both universities and colleges to join.

    Nov 28, 2025·40m
  12. 12

    Génération connectée : les jeunes face aux dilemmes éthiques du numérique

    Martine Turenne talks with professeure Megane Cottenham-Cappell about young people and the ethics of digital life.

    Aug 29, 2025·35m·1 clip
  13. 13

    Le nouvel art de se présenter aux élections

    Karine Morin opens with political image-making.

    Apr 30, 2025·31m·1 clip
  14. 14

    Digital politics in the age of AI

    Karine Morin opens the conversation by framing artificial intelligence as a growing force in digital politics and media.

    Feb 27, 2025·32m·1 clip
  15. 15

    Congrès en Conversation - Partie III avec Aliyah Datoo

    Hidden gem

    Host Annie Pilote interviews graduate researcher Aliyah Datoo about her master's thesis on how British Columbia's Francophone minority community uses online spaces for organizing and dialogue.

    Jun 28, 2024·18m·1 clip
  16. 16

    Congress in Conversation - Part I with Christopher Dietzel

    Jun 15, 2024·27m
  17. 17

    Redefining the Canadian housing paradigm - Part II

    Dec 15, 2023·35m
  18. 18

    Redefining the Canadian housing paradigm - Part I

    Dec 8, 2023·33m
  19. 19

    Droit de l'intelligence artificielle : l'importance d'une régulation juste

    Dec 1, 2023·27m
  20. 20

    Droit de l'intelligence artificielle : l'importance d'une régulation juste

    Dec 1, 2023·27m
  21. 21

    She-cession: unveiling the pandemic's impact on women in the workforce

    Nov 24, 2023·35m
  22. 22

    Reconciliation as an everyday practice

    Nov 17, 2023·30m
  23. 23

    L'avortement au Canada est-il un droit acquis?

    Apr 27, 2023·28m
  24. 24

    How worried should we be about ChatGPT?

    Apr 20, 2023·28m
  25. 25

    What is the future of books?

    Apr 13, 2023·28m
  26. 26

    From the Jheri curl to TikTok: Canada and the global business of Black beauty

    Apr 5, 2023·28m
  27. 27

    Is sport a means for Indigenous self-determination in Canada?

    Mar 29, 2023·30m
  28. 28

    Who cares for the caregivers?

    Mar 22, 2023·26m
  29. 29

    What does care work look like after the pandemic?

    Mar 22, 2023·26m
  30. 30

    What don't we understand about the war in Ukraine?

    Dec 15, 2022·32m
  31. 31

    What will hybrid or online learning look like going forward?

    Dec 8, 2022·34m
  32. 32

    Is bilingualism in peril in Canada?

    Dec 1, 2022·33m
  33. 33

    How does race shape the experiences, education, and achievements of Black youth?

    Nov 22, 2022·30m
  34. 34

    Are pandemic times really unprecedented?

    Nov 16, 2022·33m