Links to research resources

VIPIRG is committed to accuracy of information. The sites linked from this page were screened prior to their inclusion here; however, websites change frequently, and we cannot guarantee the full content of the following sites. We recommend reading all information with a critical eye.

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How to do research

• Center for Social Research Methods: Explanation of applied social research methods
• DataCenter Research Tools: Activist research planning, campaign research tools, issue-based research resources, and internet tips for organizers and activists
• Greenpeace: Guide to doing environmental research
• Guide to Researching Your Campus: By students at the University of Texas
• Guidelines for Investigative Environmental Research
• How to Research Front Groups: Advice by SourceWatch on researching groups that despite their public face are fronts for business/government/political interests
• Research for Radicals: A how-to manual for activists of all kinds [PDF]
• Society of Community Research and Action – Community Tool Box

Researching corporations

• A Community Guide to Researching Corporations
• Activist Research Manual, Vol. 1: Sources of Information on Corporations
• CorpWatch Research Guide
• Online Research on Canadian and US Corporations: VIPIRG-sponsored online course (part of Researching for Change series)

Research sources

• AFL-CIO Executive PayWatch Database: Find out which CEOs are making big bucks
• BC Budgets: Provincial budget reports
• BC Information & Privacy Commissioner: Apply for access to government or corporate records
• BC Office of the Comptroller General: Government payments to MLAs, cabinet ministers, senior public servants, and others
• BC Online: Colonial land titles and corporate registry; there is a fee for some info
• BC Stats: Government stats on social and economic trends
• Canadian Consumer Information Gateway: Data on consumer trends; database of consumer research, advocacy, and policy; explanation of consumer initiatives
• Canadian Legal Information Institute: Searchable database of Provincial, Territorial and Federal statutes and regulations, and Provincial and Supreme court decisions
• Canadian Criminal Justice Resources: from the Canadian Pardon Service
• Canadian Depositor for Securities: Information about publicly traded companies
• Cooperative Research: Wikipedia-style approach to documentation of events and corporate/government actions
• Department of Foreign Affairs: Canada’s international environmental commitments
• Directory of TransNational Corporations
• Elections BC: Who gave what to who in BC political campaigns
• Elections Canada: Who gave what to who in federal campaigns
• Electronic Law Library: Info on law, courts, government, legislation, and regulations
• Environment Canada: Info on tanker spills, vehicle fuel efficiency, and air pollution
• Hansard: Search transcripts of provincial and federal colonial government debates
• Industry Canada: Data relating to the economy, industry, and trade
• Network Environments for Aboriginal Research BC: an Aboriginal Research Network to improve and enhance the health and well-being of Aboriginal Peoples in BC
• Online Corporate Data: Links from workshop on corporate research
• Port Import Export Reporting Service: Looking for a ship and its cargo? (costs $)
• Poverty and Human Rights Library: Searchable database of human rights treaties, Canadian laws, court decisions, legal briefs, research reports, and articles
• PovertyNet: World Bank data on poverty measurement, monitoring, and analysis
• ScoreCard: Geographic breakdown of pollution in US
• SourceWatch: Media, PR firms, think tanks, and industry-funded “experts” that work to influence the public on behalf of corporations, governments, and special interests
• Statistics Canada: Government data on Canadian social and economic trends
• Textile Trade: Enter the RN (US) or CA (Canadian) number from the tag on the clothes you wear to see where they were made
• They Rule: Animated map of relationships between corporate boards
• UVic Library: Access to online databases for anyone with a UVic library card
• Victoria Public Library: Access to online databases for anyone with a library card

Social/environmental justice researchers

Research Centres

• Aurora Institute
• Caledon Institute of Social Policy
• Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives
• Canadian Council on Social Development
• Canadian Policy Research Network
• Canadian Research Institute for Social Policy
• Canadian Research Institute for the Advancement of Women
• Centre for Integral Economics
• Centre for Research on Mothering
• Centre for Research on Violence Against Women and Children
• Centre for Social Justice
• Childcare Resource and Research Unit
• Community-Based Research Canada
• Community-University Institute for Social Research
• David Suzuki Foundation
• Feminist Research, Education, Development & Action (FREDA)
• Greenpeace
• OISE/University of Toronto – Centre for Integrative Anti-Racism Studies
• Polaris Institute
• Poverty and Human Rights Centre
• Probe International
• Research and Education for Solutions to Violence and Abuse
• University of Toronto – Social Justice Cluster
• University of Ottawa – Human Rights Research and Education Centre
• York University – Centre for Feminist Research

Researcher Databases

• Progressive Researcher Portal: Database of Canadian social justice researchers, searchable by name and area of research, with links to abstracts and papers

Social Planning Councils

• Brant Community Social Planning Council (Ontario)
• Community Development Council of Quinte (Ontario)
• Community Development Halton (Ontario)
• Community Services Council Newfoundland and Labrador (NFLD/Labrador)
• Community Social Planning Council Kingsville-Leamington (Ontario)
• Community Social Planning Council of Greater Victoria (BC)
• Community Social Planning Council of Toronto (Ontario)
• Lakehead Social Planning Council (Ontario)
• Ontario Social Development Council (Ontario)
• Perth County Social Planning Council (Ontario)
• Peterborough Social Planning Council (Ontario)
• Social Planning and Research Council of BC (BC)
• Social Planning and Research Council of Hamilton (Ontario)
• Social Planning Council of Cambridge & North Dumfries (Ontario)
• Social Planning Council of Kingston & Area (Ontario)
• Social Planning Council of Kitchener-Waterloo (Ontario)
• Social Planning Council of Ottawa-Carleton (Ontario)
• Social Planning Council of Peel (Ontario)
• Social Planning Council of Sudbury (Ontario)
• Social Planning Council of Winnipeg (Manitoba)