About this Event
The DREAM Lab (Defence Resources Exploring Alternatives to Militarism) at Simon Fraser University brings students together to rethink conventional approaches to defence, security, and public spending. Through an intensive, collaborative program, students examine how governments define security, explore the human and social challenges that make people insecure, and ask what alternative investments in security might look like.
In this Consular Conversations event, Professor Megan MacKenzie will introduce the DREAM Lab, its origins and goals, and what the project has learned from putting students at the centre of conversations about defence and security policy. She will discuss the Lab’s work developing alternative approaches to defence spending, including its Shadow Defence Budget, and the broader aim of equipping students with practical skills in policy analysis, research, writing, and public communication.
Two DREAM Lab students, Jessica Tsigaros and Misha Sidhu, will then share their own contributions to the project, demonstrating how students have translated big questions about security into concrete policy ideas. Together, the discussion will consider what happens when we invite students not simply to study existing security policy, but to imagine—and rigorously develop—alternatives.
The SFU School for International Studies’ Consular Conversations series is a monthly public forum featuring discussions with members of the Consular Corps in Vancouver. These conversations are moderated by , an IS Adjunct Professor and Consul General of Argentina. The goal is to bring together the Consular Corps of British Columbia for public lectures that encourage dialogue on issues that transcend borders, explore inspiring topics, and cultivate connections. We invite members of the consular corps of British Columbia and the Simon Fraser University community to join us.
Event venue & nearby stays
SFU Harbour Centre - Room 2270, 515 West Hastings Street, Vancouver, Canada
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