(Sept 16) - [Closed] - Encounter will present on religious literacy for library staff and its relevance to workplace culture and serving the public. We will explore how understanding religious diversity, including key Jewish holidays can foster inclusion, support equitable scheduling practices, and strengthen relationships with colleagues and community members.

(Sept 18 - Nov 27) - [Open] - Encounter will present on religious literacy for library staff and its relevance to workplace culture and serving the public. We will explore how understanding religious diversity, including key Jewish holidays can foster inclusion, support equitable scheduling practices, and strengthen relationships with colleagues and community members.

(Sept 22) - [Closed] - We will be speaking with senior leaders at the TVDSB (superintendents, managers and system principals) about how religious literacy can inform the classroom, the workplace, and foster better community relations. The schoolboard has schools with quite varied demographics and we will explore how to create a better environment and more cohesion between staff, students and the broader community.

(Sept 24) - [Closed] - We will visit a university world religions class to discuss how the very understanding of "religion" in the west has been shaped so profoundly by Biblical religion that it inhibits the ability to understand other religions clearly. The talk also uses religious objects to explore "lived religion."

(Oct 8) - [Open] - The USA has often been considered an "exceptional" country by religion scholars as it has maintained very high religiosity unlike any other Western developed country. In this talk, we will explore why the United States has been such an outlier and how this ties to the unique relationship between religion and politics in the world's oldest democracy. This talk will focus on the long term forces in America that will help you understand both its history and cu

(Oct 13) - [Closed] - Religious holidays are an enjoyable and relatable way to foster openness on religious identities in the workplace. In this talk, we will explore some key holidays in the last months of the year such as Diwali, the Jewish High Holidays, Christmas, and more.

(Oct 20) - [Closed] - A recent poll showed many Canadians have a negative impression of Islam. In this talk, we aim to shed some light on a tradition that is often stereotyped and misunderstood. This session will feature a conversation between Brian and a friend of Encounter, Sarah Mushtaq, to give some insight into the Muslim experience in Canada.

(Oct 24) - [Closed] - We will be taking graduate students studying religion to three houses of worship to meet leaders, observe ritual and share a meal, providing lived exposure to these communities these students study.

[Oct 26] - (Open and Free) In this free talk, we will explore two aspects of Mexican religiosity, namely devotion to the figure of Santa Muerte (Holy Death) and the annual celebration of Dia De Los Muertos (the Day of the Dead). Santa Muerte is one of the newest and fastest growing religions in the Americas while the Day of the Dead is a fascinating example of the unique approach to death in Mexican culture. We hope you can join us.

(Oct 28) - [Closed] - We will explore key holidays in the fall and early winter months. Learning about key dates on colleagues' calendars and yearly schedules makes us more aware of the richness of our colleagues' lives and it gives us a chance to recognize important moments in their families and communities.