Academic Aunties

Ethel Tungohan
  • 4.8 (24)
  • Society & Culture
  • Updated Biweekly

Academia. It is a site of exclusion. For those of us who are first-generation, who are racialized, who are women, and who inhabit social locations that are traditionally unrepresented in this space, academia is full of landmines. This is why we need academic aunties. This podcast will bring you stories and advice about how to navigate this treacherous world and maybe even plant the seeds for structural transformation. Come listen to Auntie Ethel and her friends. Episodes drop monthly. Message us on Twitter at @AcademicAuntie and visit us online at academicaunties.com.

  1. 1d ago

    DEI Undone

    The disjuncture between the stated goals of equity, diversity, and inclusion policies and their application has long been a theme we've covered on the pod. This week, we continue this conversation with Dr. Sabreena Ghaffar-Siddiqui, co-author of the book, DEI Undone: The Rise, Fall and Rebirth of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion alongside Dr. Ardavan Eizadirad. Sabreena is an anti-imperialist, decolonial scholar, sociologist, and public intellectual who has worked at the centre of Canada's DEI industry and was forced out from her institution after speaking up for Palestine. In our conversation today, we talk about the death of DEI, building community and how doing otherwise is always possible. Get DEI Undone today! Thanks for listening! Get more information, support the show, and read all the transcripts at academicaunties.com. Get in touch with Academic Aunties on BlueSky, Instagram, or by e-mail at podcast@academicaunties.com.

    46 min

  2. Jun 4

    All About Unions

    Higher education is under attack. Programs shut down in response to fascist attacks, faculty being fired for taking political stances, and being forced to do more and more for less and less. These are just a few reminders that academia is not a calling. We are, in fact, academic labourers. And at the forefront of the battles we are increasingly asked to fight are academic labour unions. On this episode, we talk with Dr. Anna Meier, a full-time labour organizer who works with higher education unions in the Boston area. We talk about why unions are important, her journey pivoting away from an academic job to being an organizer, common misconceptions about unions, and why even within our unions, there are battles to be fought. Related Links Anna Meier on Blue Sky Thanks for listening! Get more information, support the show, and read all the transcripts at academicaunties.com. Get in touch with Academic Aunties on BlueSky, Instagram, or by e-mail at podcast@academicaunties.com.

    55 min

  3. May 21

    The Letters

    This week we talk to Academic Aunties producer extraordinaire, Dr. Nisha Nath and her co-authors, Dr. Rita Kaur Dhamoon, Dr. Anita Girvan and Dr. Davina Bhandar about their new book, The Letters: Institutional Lives and EDI. It's an amazing work, going deep on a lot of the themes that you hear about a lot on this podcast. Here's what I said about the book when I was given the honour of providing a review: “Breathtaking, brilliant, creative, enraging, heartfelt, joyful, powerful, and wise, The Letters is testament to the importance of ‘writing our lives’ and ‘right-ing our lives’ within and against the neoliberal, EDI’ university. The authors unflinchingly demonstrate the corrosive damages that universities inflict while also capturing the subversive power of collective witnessing, dissident friendships, and doing otherwise in these spaces. It is a work of profound theoretical heft that I also see as a love letter to its readers: not only does it give us a way to process, metabolize and understand painful encounters in our academic lives that have harmed us, it is also a reminder that amid the many instances of institutional cruelty that we might have witnessed and lived through, other worlds remain possible.” Listeners - go buy this book today! Thanks for listening! Get more information, support the show, and read all the transcripts at academicaunties.com. Get in touch with Academic Aunties on BlueSky, Instagram, or by e-mail at podcast@academicaunties.com.

    1h 9m

  4. May 7

    Writing Retreats

    For this episode of the podcast, we tackle writing, writing retreats, and why writing can be, and probably should be, a community-based practice. Last month I went on a writing intensive workshop and retreat, and I recorded a few voice memos documenting my time. Academic Aunties producer, Dr. Nisha Nath joins us on the podcast and we reflect on the importance of creating space away from everyday life to think, to write, and to reflect. Thanks for listening! Get more information, support the show, and read all the transcripts at academicaunties.com. Get in touch with Academic Aunties on BlueSky, Instagram, or by e-mail at podcast@academicaunties.com.

    1h 2m

  5. Apr 23

    Running for Office with Veronica Javier

    With how abysmal the world is right now, we have probably all felt frustration that our political leaders are, at best, oblivious to our everyday concerns, and at worse, are actively trying to make our lives worse. But how many of us, when looking at all of the problems our world is facing right now, would choose to throw our hats in the ring and run for office? This week, we talk about one of those remarkable community and civically-minded leaders who isn't afraid of this challenge. Veronica Javier, who I've known for almost 20 years now, is a community organizer and an adjunct faculty member at York University School of Social Work. Veronica is one of those tireless people who uses her voice to speak truth to power, to advocate for communities, and to strategize on ways to change systems to support underserved folks. We talk about what made her decide to take the leap and run for office and how she's truly trying to center care and community in in her forays into this world. Related Links Veronica Javier for Scarborough Southwest Thanks for listening! Get more information, support the show, and read all the transcripts at academicaunties.com. Get in touch with Academic Aunties on BlueSky, Instagram, or by e-mail at podcast@academicaunties.com.

    38 min

  6. Apr 8

    Moonlight Murder with Uzma Jalaluddin

    This week, we are SO excited to talk to Uzma Jalaluddin about her new book, Moonlight Murder! This is the latest instalment in her amazing Detective Aunty series. In our conversation we talk about her love for Agatha Christie, writing, why Scarborough is a hotbed of amazing writers and artists and why Kausar Khan is the anti-heroine we have all been waiting for. After you listen to this episode, make sure you buy Moonlight Murder from a bookstore near you! Thanks for listening! Get more information, support the show, and read all the transcripts at academicaunties.com. Get in touch with Academic Aunties on BlueSky, Instagram, or by e-mail at podcast@academicaunties.com.

    39 min

  7. Mar 26

    Perimenopause and Menopause

    This episode is a long time coming for us. We're tackling perimenopause and menopause. On this episode we talk about the reality of going through perimenopause and menopause in the context of capitalism, a culture of celebrity, the continual erosion of robust public healthcare and medical racism. We talk to Dr. Robin Turner, Associate Professor of Political Science at Butler University and Academic Aunties producer, Dr. Nisha Nath, Associate Professor of Equity Studies at Athabasca University. Related Links The Black Girl's Guide to Surviving MenopauseA Letter to My Future Self in a Time of Undoing by Omisade Burney-ScottWhat Fresh Hell Is This? Perimenopause, Menopause, Other Indignities, and You by Heather CorinnaHeat Is Not a Metaphor by Alexis Pauline Gumbs Thanks for listening! Get more information, support the show, and read all the transcripts at academicaunties.com. Get in touch with Academic Aunties on BlueSky, Instagram, or by e-mail at podcast@academicaunties.com.

    53 min

  8. Mar 12

    Good Supervision, Bad Supervision

    The most important decision that grad students have to make is who to work with as their supervisor. A common joke in grad school is that graduate student-supervisor relationships outlast many marriages. Your choice of supervisor helps determine the trajectory of your graduate and postgraduate careers with supervisors. So on this episode we talk about what its like to be a supervisor. What to expect, how to be ethical, and what its like to be supervisors as racialized faculty. Joining us is Dr. Nhung Tran, Associate Professor of History at the University of Toronto. Related Links Nature article on "shadow supervision" Thanks for listening! Get more information, support the show, and read all the transcripts at academicaunties.com. Get in touch with Academic Aunties on BlueSky, Instagram, or by e-mail at podcast@academicaunties.com.

    52 min
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Trailer

4.8
out of 5
24 Ratings

About

Academia. It is a site of exclusion. For those of us who are first-generation, who are racialized, who are women, and who inhabit social locations that are traditionally unrepresented in this space, academia is full of landmines. This is why we need academic aunties. This podcast will bring you stories and advice about how to navigate this treacherous world and maybe even plant the seeds for structural transformation. Come listen to Auntie Ethel and her friends. Episodes drop monthly. Message us on Twitter at @AcademicAuntie and visit us online at academicaunties.com.

Information

  • Creator
    Ethel Tungohan
  • Years Active
    2020 - 2026
  • Episodes
    94
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Ethel Tungohan
  • Show Website
    Academic Aunties

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