Janet Newbury

About: Janet Newbury

Janet lives on Canada's Sunshine Coast, where she is currently completing her PhD in Child and Youth Care. Exploring alternatives to what she sees as the widespread individualization of social problems has enabled Janet to study within a broad range of subject areas such as: loss, substance use, research methodologies, the bureaucratization of human service practices, and social justice. Her work experiences are also varied, but she is particularly interested in community initiatives that focus on strengths and acknowledge the systemic nature of many social problems (rather than locating the onus for change within individuals who experience them). Because of her belief in the power of citizen engagement, she is involved in several exciting community initiatives, including the Powell River Diversity Initiative and the Sunshine Musicfest.

Resetting, not offsetting, for post growth futures

By Janet Newbury | Posted in: Alternatives in development, CSR, Environment | March 28, 2012 | No comments yet.

In a world of increasing consumption, carbon offsetting seems like the perfect solution to solve our problems. Yet, in this mythbusting post, the folks from Post Grown Institute show us why resetting carbon, rather than offsetting, is the only way to reduce negative impacts on the environment....

Child poverty in context: more than one way forward

By Janet Newbury | Posted in: Poverty | July 21, 2011 | 3 comments so far.

CIDA, AusAID and USAID have prioritised poverty alleviation as a primary objective of their respective aid programs. Economic growth is also among the primary commitments of these governmental organisations. Janet Newbury argues that insisting on prioritising growth in efforts to alleviate poverty (at home or abroad) is not only misleading,...

Believing is seeing

By Janet Newbury | Posted in: Politics | February 11, 2011 | 6 comments so far.

Recent discussions of the international response to the 2010 earthquake in Haiti provoke consideration of multiple perspectives as to what is really going on in order to determine the best course of future action. But do such conversations prepare us to effectively respond amidst inevitable uncertainties? This article...

Hope for sale

By Janet Newbury | Posted in: Youth | October 22, 2010 | 5 comments so far.

Guest contributor Janet Newbury observes the growing power of corporations in the social realm. Of central concern are the messages strategically presented to young people suggesting positive social change is inherently linked to the social responsibility of multinational corporations. ...

Politics, the arts, and nature

By Janet Newbury | Posted in: Politics | September 8, 2010 | 2 comments so far.

Guest contributor Janet Newbury considers how to retain hope in the midst of despairing political realities. Drawing from artistic endeavours and encounters with nature, she reconceptualises political engagement in order to extend beyond the current state of affairs towards more constructive possibilities....

An open letter to Dambisa Moyo

By Janet Newbury | Posted in: Foreign Aid | June 17, 2010 | 5 comments so far.

Guest contributor, Janet Newbury, is currently completing her PhD in Child and Youth Care in the department of Human and Social Development at University of Victoria. In an open letter to Dambisa Moyo, Janet questions the solutions/alternatives of large-scale foreign direct investment and trade offered by Moyo in 'Dead Aid',...