Dr. Jennifer Hedges, an assistant professor in the University of Manitoba’s faculty of social work, said while it’s not ideal for kids to spend long periods of time in emergency placements, she wonders what kind of outcomes the “one and done” policy the province is enacting will achieve without examining the root issues that lead to kids ending up in those placements long-term.
Faculty of Social Work
In Winnipeg’s public spaces like libraries, hospitals, shelters, and government service buildings, safety has often meant exclusion: watching, pushing aside, or banning those already marginalized by poverty, mental health struggles, and discrimination.
Eden Middleton, recipient of the Social Science and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) 2025 Canada Graduate Scholarships-Master’s (CGS-M) award, shares more about their research and vision for the future. Can you tell me a little bit about yourself? My name is Eden Middleton (they/she) and I am a Settler Canadian from Treaty 7, Moh’kins’tsis. I come from a farming family, grew up camping in the Rockies, and studied English and Drama at the University of Calgary. This sparked a love for critical theory and the arts-based research that I’m translating into my Master in Social Work program here at the University of Manitoba. I’m also a practicing theatre artist, working as a playwright, dramaturg, producer and theatre-maker.