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YorkSpace

YorkSpace is York University's Institutional Repository. It supports York University's Senate Policy on Open Access by providing York community members with a place to preserve their research online in an institutional context.

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Recent Submissions

ItemOpen Access
Reviving Hope and Home (RHH) for High-risk Refugee Mothers Program - Final Report
(2021-09-30) Ohta, Akiko; Minami, Masahiro
This is the final evaluation report of the pilot project the Mothers Matter Centre (MMC) initiated in January 2018 in partnership with Immigrant Services Society of BC (ISSofBC), termed the Reviving Hope and Home for High-risk Refugee Mothers Program (referred to as RHH hereafter). The formative evaluation was conducted for the period between April 2019 and March 2021, and the findings are here presented by an external evaluation team made up of a principal investigator and an evaluation lead from Simon Fraser University (SFU).
ItemOpen Access
Analysis of the Quality of the Green Bonds for Climate Action
(2024-08-31) Sila Basturk Agiroglu; Lina Brand Correa
This research aims to quantify and evaluate the quality of green bonds in terms of transparency and additionality at the issuance level. The study reveals the differences between different countries and industry groupings in their green bond quality assessment and aims to provide a snapshot of the status of the market. For the purpose of this study, 241 green bonds were analyzed. The sample represents 31% of the 774 green bonds disclosed by the International Capital Markets Association (ICMA) as aligned with ICMA Green Bond Principles which covers 2016 – 2022 period as updated on 25 November 2022. For each green bond issuance, the same metrics were collected through an extensive review of the publicly available green bond frameworks and their impact reporting practices. Using the data extracted and coded by the author, each issuance is scored in terms of transparency and additionality. In this study, the disclosure practices concerning the use of proceeds of an issuance feed the transparency score. On the other hand, additionality is assessed based on the presence of refinancing and if any, the share of refinancing in the total use of proceeds. Hence, an issuance may receive a high transparency score with a low additionality score in the final scoring table. Each selected metric, such as disclosure of the excluded activities from financing, affects only transparency or additionality assessment. At the same time there are some interdependencies between iii metrics. For instance, the share of refinancing in total financing is a determinant of additionality. However, to be able to assess this, there should be a disclosure of the refinancing share which feeds the transparency score. There is a growing literature focusing on the greenwashing risk in the financial markets. This research fills a significant gap in the literature in two aspects. First, it creates a green bond database focusing on detailed disclosures. To the best knowledge of the author, there is no similar database publicly available. Secondly, the analysis provides an evidence-based analysis of the quality of issuances. The results of this study indicate that there is significant room for improvement in the transparency practices of the green bonds even if they are aligned with the ICMA Green Bond Principles. Further policy development is needed to enhance the reporting practices of the issuers to limit the risk of greenwashing. Green bonds are not designed as tools to finance greenfield projects only. Any green bond can be fully or partially dedicated to refinancing. The results show that the majority of the issuances are dedicated fully or partially to refinancing. This resulted in lower additionality scores. The additionality scoring helps to distinguish financial capital dedicated to address climate change from green bond issuances structured as “nice to have” labels. In the absence of clear intentions and transparent communication of impact, no kind of label can help us in the middle of a global climate catastrophe. This iv research aims to provide evidence of the urgent improvements required in climate finance market by specifically focusing on its shining star green bonds.
ItemOpen Access
Planning for what nature, in whose city? Climate resilience and ecological imaginaries in the Port Lands Flood Protection Project
(2022-04-30) Alan Trumble; Jennifer Foster
This paper examines the Port Lands Flood Protection Project, a flood mitigation, ecological naturalization, and climate change adaptation project located in Toronto, Canada’s Port Lands area. Previously a site of post-industrial economic decline, ecological dysfunction, and flood risk, the area is being remade into a modern mixed-use neighbourhood with a newly constructed river estuary and a significantly increased area of naturalized habitat and recreational green space. Drawing from research on climate change resilience, urban political ecology, restoration ecology, and public participation theory, this paper investigates how the contemporary ecological imaginaries of the Port Lands emerged, how they have defined and influenced the course of the Port Lands Flood Protection Project, and what actors and interests have directed and been served by these developments. This research finds that the planning and implementation of the Port Lands Flood Protection Project has been defined by a series of compromises made by the project’s proponents between competing imperatives of ecological restoration and economic development, and between demands for public participation and the directives of government and private sector partners. While the project is a remarkable improvement on the state of the Port Lands, the compromises that have defined the project’s direction also threaten to undermine aspects of the project’s democratic legitimacy and its ability to produce long-term resilience in the area.
ItemOpen Access
Parental Agency in Forced Migration
(Mothers Matter Center, 2023)
The Mothers Matter Centre, in partnership with ISSofBC, and with funding from Immigration, Refugee, and Citizenship Canada, developed 'Reviving Hope and Home (RHH),' a program that is designed to ensure the well-being, dignity, and social connections of high-risk , vulnerable GAR mothers. 17 RHH refugee mothers from Syria and Iraq who have lived in Canada between 8 months to 3 years participated in this participatory research prject which explored the potential loss of parental agency in forced migrant mothers. The researched focused on four phases: Before the war, during forced migration, on arrival to Canada, and after joining the HIPPY program. Participants shared their stories through art, writing, and narrative which were recorded using three tools: digial art, audio and video. The session was conducted fully in Arabic and was later transcribed, translated and analyzed by a team that included researchers, staff and Home Visitors.
ItemOpen Access
Examining Housing Insecurity Among Previously Incarcerated Individuals
(2020-04-27) Jabson, Joana; Klassen, Thomas
The purpose of this research aimed to understand the housing barriers among previously incarcerated individuals in Ontario. The research design was based on a qualitative approach, using a total of 9 key informant interviews to analyze the impact of incarceration in securing and maintaining housing. Participants from the study included Directors, Managers, Policy Analysts/Advisors, Probation & Parole Officers, researchers, clinicians, front-line staff at community organizations such as the John Howard Society of Ontario, Elizabeth Fry Society, Centre of Addictions and Mental Health (CAMH), Wellesley Institute, Strategic Initiatives at Strata Health and the Ontario Ministry of the Solicitor General. The findings indicate that the barriers to housing includes: (1) lack of collaboration between the provincial, municipal and local community organizations, (2) inadequate assessments to identify individualized needs, (3) insufficient funding to provide for housing initiatives and services, (4) lack of affordable housing, (5) lack of social housing available and (6) stigma associated being discharged with a “criminal record.” The study findings confirm the intersecting factors such as employment, education, financial assistance, social networks, mental health and substance use needs in attaining housing. This research indicates a required commitment and coordinated response across sectors, levels of government and the community to successfully help individuals reintegrate into society.