Date & time
Tuesday, March 10, 2026
12 p.m. – 2 p.m.
12 p.m. – 2 p.m.
Community events
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All aboard: Toward fare-free transit through research and advocacy
Speaker(s)
Nicolas Chevalier, Hope Moon & Craig Townsend
Cost
This event is free.
Organization
Contact
SHIFT Centre for Social Transformation
Where
Pavillon J.‐W.‐McConnell
1400 De Maisonneuve Blvd. W.
SHIFT Centre for Social Transformation
Room LB 145
Accessible location
Yes - See details
Please note that this event will be hybrid. A Zoom link will be sent to you upon registration. If you are still able to join us in person, however, we look forward to enjoying the food and this insightful conversation with you.
While grassroots organizations—expected to do everything from fundraising to policy research, to coalition-building, to political advocacy and beyond—have clear visions for how systems could change, they often lack the capacity to see those visions come to life. SHIFT’s Research and Advocacy Program (RAP) is designed to place Concordia graduate students in year-long research collaborations with community organizations designed to resource them and serve their systems-change goals.
Through power structure mapping, policy analysis, and case studies, this program has been playing a pivotal role in turning existing popular support for Climate Justice Montreal’s free, expanded, and accessible transit campaign into concrete wins. Join us for a panel with Nicolas Chevalier of Climate Justice Montreal (CJM), RAP Fellow Hope Moon, and Dr. Craig Townsend as we examine the policy steps involved in achieving the campaign's long-term goals of a free, expanded, and accessible transit network in Montreal.
Register here or drop by if you are on campus.
Hope Moon is pursuing her Master’s in Geography, Urban, and Environmental Studies (MSc) at Concordia University. Interested in the intersections between climate change and social systems, her research focuses on Québec housing security in the context of flood risk and adaptation. Hope received a combined honours degree of Environmental Science and Contemporary Studies from the University of King’s College in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Hope has worked for environmental non-profits training citizens on municipal climate action and resilience, as well as various food justice collectives and student unions advocating for a liveable future for all.
Craig Townsend is Associate Professor and Chair in the Department of Geography, Planning and Environment. His current research is on changes to the form of suburbs in Canada’s large metropolitan areas and the impacts of legislated protection of non-urban land on urban growth. He is particularly interested in public transportation infrastructure and its links to the form of cities. He has carried out studies on urban transport infrastructure in Australia, Canada, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand, and is currently part of a project investigating urban mobility in India.
Nicolas Chevalier is a white, Quebecois, queer and non-binary person based in Montreal/Tio'tia:ke. They are an active member of Climate Justice Montreal, advancing a campaign for free, accessible and expanded public transit. Nicolas is interested in linking the ecological economy and degrowth movements with the resurgence of Indigenous nations, queer perspectives and anarchism.
Please note - this event is held in person, at the SHIFT space. If, for accessibility reasons, you are not able to join in person but would like to attend the event, please contact shift.calendar@concordia.ca and we can work together to see if an alternative solution is possible. A week’s notice will give us the best chance of making something work.
Community Learning Event Series On the first Tuesday of the month, come meet members of SHIFT’s Learning Community and learn more about the socially transformative work happening in Montreal.