Brenda Spotton Visano is a distinguished University Professor in Economics and Public Policy. Her widely published interdisciplinary scholarship advances a heterodox perspective on macroeconomics and microfinance. She is a member of the Graduate Programs in Economics, Interdisciplinary Studies, Public Policy Administration & Law, Social & Political Thought, and Sociology. Dr. Spotton Visano routinely consults for agencies of the Canadian Federal Government, First Nations organizations, the not-for-profit sector, and labour organizations. She is a member of the national Consumer Protection Advisory Committee of the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada, a Steering Committee Member of the Progressive Economics Forum, and former President of the Canadian Women Economists Network. Her research, teaching, and university service have been honoured with national, provincial and university level awards recognizing her contributions.

Research Interests

• Status of Women Award of Distinction, Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations - 2012
• University Professor - 2010
• Award for Dedicated Service, Canadian Association of University Teachers - 2004
• Award for Teaching Excellence, Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations - 2000
• University-wide Teaching Award - 2001

Current Research Projects

Approach to Teaching

As a discipline, economics could be a broad intellectual study of our material relations – how we might organize ourselves to produce and distribute goods and services for nurturing our material well-being. Economics as currently practiced is, instead, most often only about how neoclassical economics governs that organization.
In my teaching I look to return authentic pluralism to the economics classroom in a way that encourages students’ appreciation for a richer set of perspectives on our material relations. By opening the door to broader theoretical conceptions of our material relations and the politics of difference, engaged pedagogy animates pluralist economic content. Pluralist content admits, in turn, heterodox variants of economic policy analysis.

Current Courses

Brenda Spotton Visano is a distinguished University Professor in Economics and Public Policy. Her widely published interdisciplinary scholarship advances a heterodox perspective on macroeconomics and microfinance. She is a member of the Graduate Programs in Economics, Interdisciplinary Studies, Public Policy Administration & Law, Social & Political Thought, and Sociology. Dr. Spotton Visano routinely consults for agencies of the Canadian Federal Government, First Nations organizations, the not-for-profit sector, and labour organizations. She is a member of the national Consumer Protection Advisory Committee of the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada, a Steering Committee Member of the Progressive Economics Forum, and former President of the Canadian Women Economists Network. Her research, teaching, and university service have been honoured with national, provincial and university level awards recognizing her contributions.

Dr. Spotton Visano's passion for promoting access and diversity in theories, practices and the professions of economics and finance lies at the core of all her scholarly and professional engagements. She has received over $600K in research funding, including two SSHRC Public Outreach grants for advancing a wider understanding of community-based finance and microcredit success for community economic development. Among her many publications is her recent book co-authored with Jerry Buckland Financial Vulnerability in Canada. Previous books include her co-edited book Payday Lending in Canada in a Global Context (with Jerry Buckland and Chris Robinson, 2018), her 2006 sole-authored book Financial Crises: Socio-economic Causes and Institutional Context examining the susceptibility of financial systems to periodic collapse, and her co-edited book Room to Grow: Celebrating Atkinson’s Living Legacy (with Kristin Taylor), a collection of reflections on the contributions of Atkinson College to advancing higher education for non-traditional students. In addition to publishing numerous scholarly articles in academic journals and books, she is the author of several reports for various government ministries and agencies in Canada, UNESCO and NGOs.

As President of the Canadian Women’s Association Network in 2001, she spearheaded with 4 colleagues the first ever survey of women economists in Canada to raise awareness of the gender imbalance in the economics profession. She is a former Director of the ACCESS Community Capital Fund – now a successful Toronto-wide microcredit fund. She has served as Chair of the University Senate and was for many years the Director of the Transition Year Program at York University – an access program bridging non-traditional students into university. Dr. Spotton Visano was chair and chief spokesperson for a 7-union coalition of more than 4000 active members of the University Pension Plan negotiating changes needed to restore the plan to solvency and has been the union’s chief negotiator for 4 Collective Agreements between the York University Board of Governors and more than 1500 full-time faculty and librarians.

Dr. Spotton Visano is the recipient of many awards including the Canadian Association of University Teachers Award for Dedicated Service, the Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations Status of Women Award of Distinction and its Award for Teaching Excellence.

Degrees

Professional Leadership

Current:
National Steering Committee Member, Progressive Economics Forum
National Consumer Protection Advisory Committee of the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada

Previous:
Council of Ontario Academic colleague
Managing Editor, Journal of Economic Asymmetries
President, Canadian Women Economists Network
Chair/Vice Chair, York University Senate
Chief Negotiator: YUFA/Collective Agreement; York University Pension Group/pension reform

Community Contributions

Member, Black Creek Financial Action Network
Economist, Ontario Special Study/First Nations Chiefs of Ontario
Economist, High-cost Special Education Review/Assembly of First Nations
Economist, ACORN Study of Online High-cost Credit

Research Interests

Awards

• Status of Women Award of Distinction, Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations - 2012
• University Professor - 2010
• Award for Dedicated Service, Canadian Association of University Teachers - 2004
• Award for Teaching Excellence, Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations - 2000
• University-wide Teaching Award - 2001

Approach to Teaching

As a discipline, economics could be a broad intellectual study of our material relations – how we might organize ourselves to produce and distribute goods and services for nurturing our material well-being. Economics as currently practiced is, instead, most often only about how neoclassical economics governs that organization.
In my teaching I look to return authentic pluralism to the economics classroom in a way that encourages students’ appreciation for a richer set of perspectives on our material relations. By opening the door to broader theoretical conceptions of our material relations and the politics of difference, engaged pedagogy animates pluralist economic content. Pluralist content admits, in turn, heterodox variants of economic policy analysis.

Current Courses