Interesting insights into the migrant experience in Canada will be offered by Associate Professor Panayotis Pappas from Simon Fraser University in Canada during a lecture at the Ithacan Philanthropic Society on Tuesday, 16 April.
The lecture, titled “The Immigrec project: Building a virtual museum of the Greek-Canadian immigrant experience“, will give Australian audiences a round-up of his project that aims to document the second wave of Greek immigration to Canada (roughly the period 1945 to 1975) through the collection of oral histories and archival material, such as travel documents, photographs, etc., for the purpose of creating a virtual museum, and for research in history, political science, anthropology, and linguistics. The project has interviewed 453 participants from 12 different communities in Canada, and more than 13 different geographic regions of Greece, yielding an unexpected treasure trove of historical, anthropological, and linguistic data.
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“I will present a general overview of the project, discussing the organisation of our research efforts, our preliminary linguistic results, and showcasing some of the most exciting features of the virtual museum,” Dr Pappas said.
Apart from the presentation, the visit is an opportunity for Dr Pappas to also meet with the faculty of Greek Studies of La Trobe University to share their methodology methods and explore the possibilities of collaboration.
The visit is made possible by the Vassilogiannis Bequest, the generous gift to Greek studies left by the late Anastassios Vassilogiannis.
The lecture takes place at 7pm on 16 April at the Ithacan Philanthropic Society (Level 2, 329 Elizabeth Street, Melbourne).