Independent Studies | University of Waterloo

Lisa meets fav author and activist, Cory Doctorow ~ Oct 2009

Lisa Campbell Salazar is a jill-of-all-trades and has worked as a community-based researcher, youth facilitator, multi-media designer and digital strategist. She has a wide berth of experience collaborating with various NGOs and agencies including; Gendering Adolescent AIDS Prevention, TakingITGlobal, Youth Action Network, Defense for the Children International, the Latin American Council for Adult Education, Central Toronto Community Health Centres and Access Alliance Multicultural Health and Community Services. Most recently, Lisa’s expertise with social media has led her to serve as the Community Evangelist for GetInvolved.ca.

Lisa has worked for over ten years as an HIV/AIDS peer educator and community based researcher with the Toronto Raver Info Project (TRIP!) providing harm reduction information to youth in the dance music community. As a Universities Without Walls Fellow, she is interested in integrating new media technology, HIV prevention and community-based research. While her experiences in health promotion and HIV research are broad, she is in the final stages of her Master of Environmental Studies with a special focus on Youth, New Media and Social Change.

Lisa has spoken at numerous academic and community conferences such as the Ontario HIV Treatment Network (OHTN) Research Conference, the Urban Youth and the Determinants of Sexual Health Student Symposium, the Fulbright Institute of International Education Conference, the Interactive Technology in Education Symposium and the original MobileTech4SocialChange barcamp in San Francisco. As an academic and community worker her work has been featured in the Canadian Woman Studies Journal, Panorama Magazine, and she has served on the editorial board of the Women & Environments International Magazine and as the Editor-in-Chief of Youth Action Forum Magazine.

Lisa comments about her IS experience:

"I was drawn to the Independent Studies program for it's interdisciplinary nature and it's honoring of experiential learning. At the beginning of my studies, I was intently focused on a myriad of topics, all relating to creating a sustainable, equitable future. For my final thesis, I honed my interests in community activism and combined them with my drive for creative expression to explore different community arts media. The video field research that I conducted in LA is the basis of my thesis.

When I began my IS studies, I was not able to do this kind of undergraduate work at any other post-secondary education institute, although now there are courses and programs popping up in universities across Canada. The IS experience has given me the freedom to be able to work along my career path and to mix different disciplines of study to suit my interests. The academic work of IS students is often on 'the cutting edge,' so avante-garde, that even some of the most progressive universities have yet to consider it.

I would recommend IS to those who are independently minded and think outside the box. The IS program is unique in Canada and I think it reflects greatly on UW's commitment to providing students with quality education."

For more information on what Lisa is up to check out:

http://www.mobilerevolutions.org
http://www.twitter.com/qnp

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Lisa Campbell This page was last reviewed on July 15, 2010