Power and Knowledge Scientific cycle 2019-2022 - Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation

 
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1                                Power and Knowledge

    Power and Knowledge
    Scientific cycle 2019-2022
Table of Contents
Power and knowledge: understanding in order to change.................... 1
1. The gender of power: questioning and changing the
   gender order............................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 1
               What power, what knowledge? The importance of a
               feminist epistemology to understand....................................................................................................... 3
               Power relations and multiple genders..................................................................................................... 3
               Addressing inequity: How can we attain gender equality?........ 3
2. The centres of power: the place between space and
   resource.................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 3

               Earth as a space: governance and sovereignty............................................................. 4
               Land as a resource: between protection and usage....................................... 5
3. The status of individuals and power relations: the need to
         seek balance............................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 6
               Social classes and working conditions: a national and
               transnational issue.............................................................................................................................................................................................. 6
               Religious and cultural minorities: a fault line between
               integration and assimilation................................................................................................................................................... 7
               Sovereignty in peril: the balance of power between private
               and public actors.................................................................................................................................................................................................... 9
1                                                                  Power and Knowledge

Power and knowledge:
understanding in order
to change
The first cycle of the Institute for Engaged   By immersing scholars in this critical
Leadership, which is to be set up by the       environment, the mission of the Pierre
Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation in 2019,     Elliott Trudeau Foundation is to train
will focus on the dynamic relationship         engaged leaders who are aware of the
between “Power and Knowledge”. Power           impact of their research on different
represents authority and the capacity to       communities, are aware of various forms
impose decisions and define terms.             of non-conventional knowledge, and are
                                               eager to translate their know-how into
Knowledge is understanding who has             sustainable engagement in Canadian
authority and through which mechanisms         society. Furthermore, by sharing the
and structures it manifests itself.            knowledge of the Foundation’s scholars
Power and knowledge are interrelated.          and mentors, the Institute for Engaged
Knowledge is power. Understanding              Leadership may contribute to the
this relationship and the roots of power       democratization of knowledge and to
imbalances allows for critical analysis,       social inclusion.
change, and altering the balance of power.
                                               This document presents all of the issues
The general notion of “knowledge-power”        for research and discussion which will
is addressed according to three secondary      guide undergraduate studies at the
themes that are interconnected: gender,        Institute For Engaged Leadership.
the environment, and the status of
individuals in the social space.

Connected, because these power
                                               1    The gender of power:
                                                    questioning and changing
relationships are intertwined, adding to            the gender order
and amplifying the effects of one another.
                                               Power excludes: there are those who hold
Only by highlighting the issues inherent
                                               authority, and those who are subject to
to these sub-themes can we examine how
                                               it. This exclusion has long existed – and
they intersect.
                                               continues to exist -- based on gender. The
2                                                                    Power and Knowledge

gender of power still dictates the power        For institutions and organizations affected
that is given to gender: equality is still a    by gender norms, the separation of the
thing to negotiate, and authority sets the      political world and homemaking to which
terms for the very discussion. Questioning      women have historically been relegated,
power from the perspective of gender first      must also be reconsidered. The political
means learning to recognize it: How does        presence of women is no longer an
this power wield its authority, and how         exception. Yet, social replication and the
does the hierarchy stemming from it affect      mechanisms that go with it are still deeply
gender identities and social relations?         rooted in gender order: women still bear
                                                the responsibility for the upkeep of private
What power, what knowledge? The                 life, allowing public life to be possible.
importance of a feminist epistemology in        This shows how gender norms dictate the
order to understand. Understanding the          terms of the negotiation that is currently
gender of power, and changing it, assumes       underway: work family balance, instead
that we grasp gender norms, and their           of being discussed as an overall societal
influence in the building of humanities and     issue, continues to be viewed specifically
social sciences. How do our processes,          as a women’s issue. Therefore, how can we
methodologies and modes of knowledge            define the role and place of parenthood
affect the objects of our studies, our          and of mental load, of social replication,
approaches, and our conclusions? How do         given critiques that stem from gender
gender norms affect our understanding           norms? What is the relevance of such a
of the social and political structures that     stark division between private and public
surround us? How is this form of gender-        life? How can we restructure welfare
based authority embodied in our notion          networks that enable true equality when
of knowledge and its production? Is it          it comes to caring for children, the elderly,
possible that we have excluded forms            and others needing care?
of knowledge, deemed unimportant or
erroneous, on the basis of gender-related       How are we to view the persistent social
prejudices?                                     devaluation of occupations that are said
                                                to be typically “women’s work” that
How, in other words, can we conceive            concern care (nurses, teachers, nannies,
and create knowledge that takes into            housewives, etc.? How can we overcome
account this historical exclusion and that      this division that multiplies, rather than
overcomes it? The work of sociologist           abolishing, gender inequalities? Jane
Danielle Juteau, 2003 fellow of the             Jenson, 2004 fellow of the Pierre Elliott
Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation, falls        Trudeau Foundation, addressed these very
particularly within this line of study:         questions. The core of her research focuses
throughout her academy career, Juteau           on the work of mothers and how we
has strived to develop a feminist               collectively assign value to these roles.
epistemology that allows us to remake
categories, to consider this diversity and to
see in it a learning opportunity rather than
a negligible minority.
3                                                                 Power and Knowledge

Power relations and multiple genders          Addressing inequity: How can we attain
                                              gender equality?
Questioning the impact of gender on
modes of knowledge also involves              Ultimately, the most fundamental question
questioning the binarity it forces onto       is: How do we define gender equality in the
the discussion. Gender order excludes         21st century? Does gender even still have
not only women but all identities that        meaning? How can we address inequity,
are marginalized by structures of             in other words, how can we acknowledge
power. This is the case for transgender       the wrong done to women and to
LGBTQI2+ communities. Power dictates          sexual minorities, and how can we move
the dimension on which authority is built,    beyond this trauma? Or, is it preferable to
while making other dimensions which           transcend gender? How can we represent
nonetheless make up our reality invisible.    the diversity of sexual identities without
What perspectives does gender order           maintaining a kind of hierarchy (quotas,
wipe out? How does the meeting point          positive discrimination, etc.)? How can we
between gender and other factors of           promote diversity without crushing it? And
discrimination influence the making of        finally, how can we rethink the structures
power relations between the dominant          that maintain gender norms within our
and the dominated? How does the               social institutions? Education seems crucial
balance of power itself create a hierarchy    in this process of transformation. But how
of exclusion and oppression based on          exactly are we to go about it?
sexual difference and the social roles
that are assigned therein? What impacts
do race, social class, sexual identity and
                                              2 Centres of power: the
                                                environment between space
orientation, physical or mental capacity,          and resources
culture and religion have on the way we
perceive gender issues? How can we bring      The Earth is a living environment, the
consistency to the specific issues that are   place where human beings do the things
raised by each of these exclusion points?     they do; on Earth we draw boundaries,
Malinda S. Smith, 2018 fellow with the        occupy it, cross it or even leave it. But
Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation, raises     the Earth is also a resource, one that we
the issue of invisibility of Canadian black   need to survive. It is where we find our
women in the historical construction of       food, warmth, shelter and clothing. This
Canada. Smith’s challenge is to give these    existential conflict between space and
excluded women a voice by producing a         resources has made the Earth the centre
more inclusive narrative which represents     of power struggles which are intertwined
the complexities and diversity of             with practices and processes of accession,
experiences.                                  exclusion, and control. Whoever wields
                                              power dictates their view of Earth and
                                              imposes that view on others. When we
                                              understand environmental issues such as
4                                                                  Power and Knowledge

they appear for each community (visions       world, has one fundamental feature:
and mythologies relative to Earth), we can    How have power relations determined
then pinpoint imbalances and transform        the recognition or non-recognition of
them. In other words, we must reformulate     historical treaties negotiated between
the problem from the point of view of         colonial authorities and Indigenous
those who do not have power of authority.     communities, and how access to the land
Only by restoring these often-excluded        of Indigenous communities has been,
perspectives can be truly contest the         and continues to be, transfigured by this
underpinnings of the dominant order.          power dynamic? How are Indigenous
                                              identities and cultures defined by these
Earth as a space: governance and              events, and how are they finding a place
sovereignty                                   in the governance processes? John
                                              Borrows, 2006 fellow with the Pierre
To question the terms of authority, we
                                              Elliott Trudeau Foundation, dedicates his
must first understand the structures of
                                              academic research to the strengthening
governance that regulate the control of
                                              of constitutional and political relations
access to land. Who excludes what, why,
                                              between Canada and Indigenous nations.
and by what means? How does authority,
                                              Jean Leclair, 2013 fellow with the Pierre
through a process of exclusion, define
                                              Elliott Trudeau Foundation, also examines
identities? One example that comes to
                                              the possibility of aligning Indigenous
mind, of course, are migrants, and the
                                              perspectives of the Earth with those
international and domestic rules that
                                              of the federal government. But issues
govern their movement. In these cases,
                                              of collective recognition do not settle
how do we view power relationships
                                              questions raised by the governance of the
between governing bodies within the
                                              territories. These issues also appear at an
broader world order? What sovereignty
                                              individual level. The existence of different
should governments have, within the
                                              cultures within one piece of territory
context of large scale population
                                              that clash raises the matter of how one
movements? These are central questions
                                              individual fits in: How can we respect one
for Catherine Dauvergne, 2012 fellow with
                                              set of beliefs when they conflict with the
the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation. In
                                              beliefs of others? How can we reconcile
her work, Dauvergne seeks to develop a
                                              one person’s freedom of thought with
better understanding of the regulation
                                              the right to equality and integrity of
and mechanisms of governance in matters
                                              others? Daniel Weinstock, 2004 fellow
of immigration on a global scale. But the
                                              with the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation,
structures of governance are not limited
                                              looked at these issues of integration and
to the treatment of immigrants: What
                                              openness to diversity from a philosophical
about recognition of local populations and
                                              perspective. All these issues have a
of their own culture, specifically in cases
                                              common thread, which is the relationship
where it differs from the dominant culture?
                                              to land and its governance: knowing how
The case of Indigenous populations,
                                              power determines borders, but also the
in Canada and elsewhere around the
5                                                                   Power and Knowledge

identities that are made possible (or not)     environmental protection. Another is the
through these processes of accession           way that the law considers companies and
and exclusion, is a first step toward          their civil and criminal liabilities, and how
transformation.                                this structure influences the protection
                                               of resources and land. Infrastructure ‒
Land as a resource: between protection         domestic and international ‒ in the energy,
and usage                                      food, transport and safety sectors are
                                               devised on the notion of appropriation
The environment is under pressure. In
                                               regulated by private interests which are
fact, the competition for resources in
                                               essentially cut off from the interests
the context of scarcity exacerbates
                                               of the communities affected. Deborah
the existential tension between space
                                               Cowen, 2016 fellow with the Pierre Elliott
and resource. Consequently, the issue
                                               Trudeau foundation, examines these
of preservation and protection of the
                                               structures, and looks at opportunities for
environment fuels proposals for reform
                                               collaboration between private players
pertaining to management policies and
                                               and social movements, communities and
land-use planning which, themselves,
                                               deliberative processes used to find viable
have the power to reinforce or transform
                                               solutions for the stakeholders involved.
the authority figure which informs the
                                               But these deliberative and cooperative
viewpoints that we hold of the Earth. In
                                               processes between users of resources
fact, whoever dictates the terms for the
                                               raise one specific problem with regards to
protection of lands does so according to
                                               intergenerational justice: How can we take
a preset point of view. In this case, can
                                               into account the needs and challenges that
this vision be reconciled with that of the
                                               future generations will face in matters of
players who do not hold power? In other
                                               food sovereignty, sustainable development,
words, is it possible to rethink the power
                                               access to resources and space, public
associated with control of land in a manner
                                               health, when their interests are all-too-
that would accommodate the various
                                               often underrepresented in the discussions
meanings which may be assigned to the
                                               relative to the current development of
Earth? Can the possibility of ongoing
                                               resources? How do our current practices ‒
resource development coexist with the
                                               both individual and collective ‒ impact the
notion of territory as sacred land? Can the
                                               opportunities of future generations? These
commercialization of resources cohabitate
                                               questions highlight the multiple facets of
with a perception that resources are not
                                               power and its effects on past, present and
a right but rather a responsibility? Karen
                                               future communities. Economist Jennifer
Bakker, 2017 fellow with the Pierre Elliott
                                               Clapp, 2013 fellow with the Pierre Elliott
Trudeau Foundation, heads a participatory
                                               Trudeau Foundation, studies the complex
project that seeks to understand and
                                               mechanisms by which the functioning and
protect the governance of water by
                                               regulation of the world economy influence
Indigenous peoples. But the protection
                                               environmental results, especially with
of traditional land use is only one facet of
                                               regards to sustainability within the scope
6                                                                      Power and Knowledge

of the world’s food system. Her research           Social classes and working conditions: a
opens the door to a reflection of the way          national and transnational issue
that economic mechanisms can support
food self- dependence models that are              Individuals from vulnerable or poor social
viable over the long-term, for present and         classes are usually those most likely to
future generations, particularly in the case       accept mediocre working conditions.
of developing countries.                           Low pay, little or no insurance in the
                                                   event of an accident or an illness; this

3 The status of individuals and
  power relations: the need to
                                                   workforce is treated as if it were just one
                                                   commodity like any other. It gets replaced
                                                   as supply and demand fluctuate, with
     strike a balance
                                                   no regard for humaneness. In this era of
Power divides. It groups some people               globalization and fast- paced growth, the
together while engendering the exclusion           working conditions that are imposed on
of others, all on terms that are imposed.          certain workers can unquestionably be
Concealed behind closed doors, power               characterized as exploitation. Considering
feeds into itself. To understand power,            the intricacies of work contracts in
and the way it informs and structures              transnational treaties signed between
our institutions, we must determine                governments, how can we ensure the
what groups dictate what norms, and                protection of workers, in Canada as well
to whom. Power is not static but rather            as elsewhere else? If we could be even
represents a dynamic force: there is no            more bold, would it even be possible to
master without a subordinate, and one              eliminate the notion that work is a mere
cannot be understood without the other.            commodity among other commodities?
To understand power, it is necessary               How can we ensure decent conditions for
to observe each of the parties in the              those jobs that only the most vulnerable
relationship.                                      and the disadvantaged end up taking?
                                                   Consider cases such as: workers who put
Each relation being distinct, one will then        their health at risk in mines or otherwise
be able to question the bases of this              toxic environments; migrant farm workers
power, and on the rhetoric of the tension          who fear deportation and keep quiet about
which places in opposition he or she who           substandard health conditions; clandestine
sets the terms and the person who is               workers, nannies, and housekeepers who
subject to those terms.                            tolerate abusive situations, fearing that
                                                   their irregular status will be called out;
Social class, cultural or religious affiliation,
                                                   or even people working for minimum
and even sovereignty all raise discourses
                                                   wage who cannot make enough to meet
on power: each one offers insights into the
                                                   their own basic needs. In these cases, the
specific aspects of authority, but also on its
                                                   employer, corporation, government dictate
universality. And each of these occurrences
                                                   the working conditions, knowing that the
enable us to perceive the power relation,
                                                   worker cannot refuse. Here, the balance of
and the possibility of moving beyond it.
                                                   power is tipped against the worker’s ability
7                                                                    Power and Knowledge

to negotiate. How can this imbalance            measures in this regard, by categorically
be resolved? And how can we ensure              banning immigration from Muslim-majority
that workers have access to conditions          countries such as Iran, Libya, Somalia, Syria
which offer a minimum of dignity and            and Yemen. Although few governments
autonomy? How can we rethink domestic           have adopted such a practice, the
and international laws that regulate the        integration of certain cultural or religious
labour market to ensure that the most           groups is nonetheless presented like a
vulnerable enjoy basic protections? Adelle      real socio- political problem. In Québec,
Blackett, 2017 fellow with the Pierre Elliott   for example, there was a proposal which
Trudeau Foundation, works on the rights         came from the Parti Québécois to adopt
of domestic and migrant workers within          a Charter of Values meant to provide
the scope of laws that reach beyond nation      guidelines for cultural accommodations,
borders: How could organizations, such          as well as legislation aimed at prohibiting
as the International Labour Organization,       the wearing or displaying of conspicuous
place enough pressure on corporations           religious symbols by public sector
and governments so that workers would           employers. The PQ also moved to
have access to decent living conditions?        require anyone providing or receiving a
The relationship between workers and            government service to have their face
employers is affected by an interconnected      uncovered. Québec is in line with other
world order, and by governments that            European countries such as France, whose
too often have difficulty regulating            discourse for several decades has been
the behaviour of the corporations.              built around the need to ensure religious
Transforming working conditions involves        neutrality in the public spaces and in
calling into question the very relationship     the exercise of democracy. Although
which is sustained by this trifecta of          debatable, there are laws, such as the ban
factors.                                        on wearing the niqab in France (2011),
                                                that have in fact been upheld by the
Religious and cultural minorities: fault        European Court of Human Rights (2014).
line between integration and assimilation       The integration of cultural and religious
                                                groups is a delicate issue: on the one hand
Cultural, religious or political affiliation
                                                it contributes to misperceptions about
can engender power relations, especially
                                                religious symbols and their meaning. On
between majority groups and minority
                                                the other hand, in certain cases, these
groups. For example, consider cultural
                                                accommodations lead to a genuine
groups stemming from immigration
                                                conflict between respecting freedom of
whose culture or religion may clash
                                                religion and conscience and the will of the
with the fundamental values of the
                                                government to ensure certain values, such
host country. This is a situation which is
                                                as gender equality. How are we to juggle
playing out in several western countries
                                                these divergent individual and collective
today, following waves of immigration
                                                interests? How can we overcome this fear
from non-western countries. The United
                                                of the other, and by what means could
States has adopted one the most drastic
8                                                                     Power and Knowledge

we initiate a dialogue between various           Of course, immigration is not the only
cultural and religious groups? How can           context where the question of how
we integrate, in a spirit of harmonious          majorities treat minority groups is
fellowship, people from different cultural       raised. In Canada, we have the case of
and religious groups, and how can we             francophone Canadians, who were long
ensure the preservation of their heritage        denied recognition of their rights as a
and distinct cultural baggage without            linguistic minority in a primarily English-
losing the notion of Canadian values? For        speaking society. And an even greater
example, Audrey Macklin, 2017 Fellow             issue is the tragic treatment of First
with the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation,      Nations by the federal and provincial
begins by raising these questions from the       governments and how a balance of power
perspective of integration.                      forged, and in certain cases annihilated,
                                                 their identity. Canada is only just starting
She studies specifically how private             to acknowledge its responsibility in the
sponsorship of refugees has an influence         impact that the residential schools had on
on the sponsors themselves as citizens,          the conservation of culture and distinct
and she examines their motivations and           character. In the wake of the Truth and
communal experiences with new arrivals.          Reconciliation Report, will the Canadian
Ayesha Chaudhry, 2018 fellow with                government be able to right the wrongs
the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation,           caused by years of cultural genocide
undertakes a deep reflection into what it        against First Nations? Even then, do the
means to be a Muslim Canadian citizen            terms of reparation and reconciliation
by sparking a conversation on the legal          make sense for Indigenous nations which
reform of Islam. Others, such as Simon           are each distinct from one another? Or,
Harel, 2009 fellow with the Pierre Elliott       are they contested? How can we define
Trudeau Foundation, have developed               the place of Indigenous communities in
hybrid models ‒ between theory and               the current political context, and how
practice ‒ that aim to identify unstable,        can we encourage the emergence of
often conflicting, forms of cultural mobility.   Indigenous identities? Kent Roach, 2013
These approaches emphasize the fact that         fellow with the Pierre Elliott Trudeau
rethinking integration begins with gaining       Foundation, is particularly interested in
a better understanding of each other.            the role of judicial review in democracy,
Haideh Moghissi, 2011 fellow with the Pierre     the recourses prescribed by the courts
Elliott Trudeau Foundation, demonstrates         or other institutions, the effect of the
this perfectly in his research. An analyst       criminal justice system on Indigenous
of issues concerning women in Muslim             people in Canada as well as the reparation
societies, Moghissi is particularly interested   of the abuses in the residential schools.
in the interrelated elements that define the     Jason Edward Lewis, 2014 fellow with the
growing tensions between immigrants who          Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation, initiated
identify themselves as Muslim and their          identity reconstruction with Indigenous
new countries.                                   youth. Both are from the Kahnawake
                                                 Mohawk community and participated
                                                 through visual arts and media to imagine
9                                                                  Power and Knowledge

a new Indigenous future. Defining the          scholars to take the time to understand
balance of power highlights the crucial        and listen, as a necessary step before
importance of developing the future.           being able to take effective action.

Sovereignty in peril: the balance of power
between private and public players

The capacity of governments to implement
legitimate and democratic decisions is
also contradicted by the influence and
power of private players. The growth in
number and in importance of free trade
treaties can tie the hands of governments
on fundamental issues, such as how to
regulate the conduct and decisions of
multinational companies, especially in
matters such as liability, taxation, or even
competition law. In a globalized world,
how can we develop the autonomy and
sovereignty of governments when the
latter have little or no power against the
choices of private corporations? Do these
agreements represent progress, or are they
a threat to western democracies and to
the advancement of developing countries?
How can we raise the accountability of
corporations, when they are not subject
to the laws of host countries? Poonam
Puri, 2016 fellow with the Pierre Elliott
Trudeau Foundation, places a focus on
managerial responsibility within the
framework of multinationals, and on ways
to overcome obstacles that governments
and individuals encounter in order to force
international or domestic businesses to
provide compensation or reparations for
any damage they may cause.

In conclusion, the Institute for Engaged
Leadership invites researchers to challenge
the evidence and dissect the relationships
between knowledge and power. The
primary aim is to train and encourage
10                                               About the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation

The Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation is an independent and non-partisan charity
established in 2001 as a living memorial to the former prime minister. In 2002, with the
support of the House of Commons, the Government of Canada endowed the Foundation
with the Advanced Research in the Humanities and Human Sciences Fund. The Foundation
also benefits from private donations. By granting doctoral Scholarships, awarding
Fellowships, appointing Mentors, and holding public events, the Foundation encourages
critical reflection and action in four areas important to Canadians: human rights and dignity,
responsible citizenship, Canada and the world, and people and their natural environment.
www.trudeaufoundation.ca
11                         Power and Knowledge

     www.trudeaufoundation.ca
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