About this Event
Date & Time:
Monday, November 23, 2026
1:00-3:00 PM
Location:
Centre for the Study of Learning and Performance (CSLP)
Concordia University
Room GA. 2.221
1211 Saint-Mathieu St.
Montreal, QC
Description:
What is a zine? What is popular education? How are zines popular education tools? How can we use zines in education and research?
Oppression, exploitation, disempowerment, isolation, alienation, and inaccessibility run rampant among the populace in our hyper-capitalist, neoliberal society (Blacker, 2013; Choudry, 2015; hooks, 1994). As injustice and inequality proliferate, marginalized people must have access to as many “tools of resistance” as possible (Valli, 2021, p. 39). In this workshop, I address this research problem by organizing my presentation into the following three themes. I discuss how zines, as accessible popular education tools, can be used by adult learners outside of formal education to 1) empower themselves and others, 2) build communities and facilitate dialogue, and 3) engage in activism and praxis. I present zines as popular education tools that everyday people can use to resist systems of domination, such as neoliberalism and capitalism.
In this workshop, we will:
- Define key concepts like popular education and zines.
- Review and discuss the themes of empowerment, community, dialogue, activism, and praxis as they pertain to zines.
- Develop and share our research questions about zines.
- Engage in activities and discussions about zines, education, and research.
- Discuss our critiques and the limitations of zines.
- Dialogue about using zines in popular education and educational research.
Note: No prior experience with zines or research is required to attend this workshop. Just bring your questions and curiosity!
What is a Zine?
Defined as ‘DIY [do it yourself] publications,’ zines usually come in booklet form (Cooper, 2022, para. 2). They are often personal, political, and creative in nature (Cooper, 2022; Hemphill & Leskowitz, 2012; Rodriguez Castro et al., 2025; Thomas, 2018). Individuals or small groups can make zines by hand or on the computer (Watson et al., 2025). They typically have ‘small print runs’ (Cooper, 2022, para. 14). Zines are amateur, rough, and raw, as opposed to professional, polished magazines (Anderson & Spandler, 2026; Chidgey, 2014). They can contain a mix of handwriting, typed text, drawings, doodles, photos, comics, collages, stories, poetry, personal narratives, manifestos, and more (Comstock, 2001; Watson et al., 2025; Weida, 2020). Zines ‘cover a broad range of topics in approachable ways’ (Pantony, 2025e). They are accessible, low-barrier publications that allow people to make and share creative work without funding, gatekeeping, or institutional support (Armstrong, 2025; Piepmeier, 2009; Watson et al., 2025).
About the Facilitator:
Sage Pantony (they/them) is a writer, educator, workshop facilitator, zinester, and zine researcher. They have been making zines since 2019 that have been featured in bookstores, libraries, fairs, and university curricula. They recently completed an MA in Educational Studies at Concordia University. They wrote their final paper on how zines, as accessible popular education tools, can be used by adult learners outside of formal education to 1) empower themselves and others, 2) build communities and facilitate dialogue, and 3) engage in activism and praxis. Sage currently resides in Tiohtià:ke/Montréal with their partner and cats. You can check out their zines and other work at www.sagepantony.com.
Special thanks to the Centre for the Study of Learning and Performance (CSLP), Fonds de Recherche du Québec, and the Social Science and Humanities Research Council of Canada for their support.
Event venue & nearby stays
1211 Rue St Mathieu, 1211 Rue Saint Mathieu, Montréal, Canada
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