Research and Writing
Mobilizing Knowledge for Impact
Viswali Consulting specializes in research and writing for diverse audiences, and in mobilizing knowledge for impact. We offer services in policy analysis, research, writing, and editing to inform and educate, and to inspire strategic actions within organizations and among practitioners. We draw from our skills in active listening and empathic leadership to research and convey stories that need to be shared. We utilize qualitative research methods and community-engaged research techniques to develop customized reports, targeted policy recommendations, and flexible implementation plans. This page offers a small sample of our research, writing, and publications.
Anti-Racism and Strategic Planning
Viswali Consulting is committed to engaging in anti-racism and equity-focused strategic planning while building community relationships to develop recommendations and clear guidelines for their implementation. Dr. Viswanathan has also written academic articles and book chapters about cross-cultural community relationship building to address racism and exclusion in cities.
Equitable Planning Futures
As a Registered Professional Planner (RPP), Dr. Leela Viswanathan contributes regularly to conversations about the changing state of the planning profession and offers possibilities for taking action to create equitable planning futures, as shown in the following examples:
Indigenous Climate Hub Blog
Viswali Consulting is a regular contributor of 250-and-500-word blogposts to the Indigenous Climate Hub (ICH) and provides plain language editing services. Each blogpost reports on a current issue about climate change and highlights the contributions of Indigenous peoples to climate adaptation. The aim of the blog is to educate and inform a diverse audience of readers.
Planning and Indigenous Peoples
Viswali Consulting is guided by OCAP® principles of ownership, control, access, and possession in research with First Nations. OCAP® is a registered trademark of the First Nations Information Governance Centre (FNIGC); to find out more, visit www.FNIGC.ca/OCAP
From 2011 to 2021, Dr. Viswanathan partnered with community researchers from the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation and Walpole Island First Nation and led a team of academic researchers from three Ontario universities to explore opportunities to decolonize land use planning practices and to formally embed processes of reconciliation into planning legislation. Together they co-created the Planning With Indigenous Peoples (PWIP) Research Group and website hosted at Queen’s University. The PWIP Research Group supported numerous graduate student research projects and produced many research publications, including the following co-authored articles for planning practitioners, policy makers, and academic researchers. This research was funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.
