Call for Membership: The Athena Project Working Group
The Applied Research team at the Atlas Institute is seeking six women who served in the Canadian Armed Forces (Regular or Reserve Force) or in the Royal Canadian Mounted Police to form a working group that will guide and support a research study. The study will investigate experiences during service and the mental health and well-being of women Veterans in Canada. Working group members will be compensated for their time and expertise. Visit our knowledge hub to learn more about women Veterans’ mental health and why we’re doing this work.
We thank everyone for their interest in this Working Group. Please note that while this study will be made available in French, the Working Group will operate in English only due our capacity limitations. Please don’t hesitate to send any follow-up questions or concerns you may have to athenaproject.atlas@theroyal.ca.
Who can join the working group?
Women Veterans of the Canadian Armed Forces or the Royal Canadian Mounted Police are eligible to join the working group.
What will working group members be asked to do?
- Attend virtual meetings
- Provide guidance and input on study planning and approach
- Help to develop specific research objectives/questions
- Contribute to, review and advise on study materials (e.g., interview questions, surveys, recruitment messages)
- Collaborate on the development of resources based on study findings (e.g., printed materials, articles, presentations, webinars)
- Use an online platform to communicate with working group colleagues and the Atlas Institute project team
What is the time commitment?
The working group will be active from May 2023 to May 2024. Members will be expected to attend meetings and will be required to do some work between meetings (e.g., review documents). Time demands will be higher at the beginning of each research phase, with four meetings already planned in May and June 2023 and several more anticipated at the end of the research project in May 2024.
Will working group members be compensated for their time?
Working group members will receive a cash honorarium for time spent in meetings and for two hours of prep work before each meeting. Participants are not expected to do work beyond these hours unless it is mutually agreed upon beforehand.
What skills, experience, and expertise are needed in the working group?
We are looking to bring together women with different and complementary skills, experiences, and expertise to form a diverse and productive group. Along with an interest in research about women Veterans’ mental health and well-being and a commitment to respectful collaboration in a group setting.
We are aiming to create an open and encouraging environment for our work. We are keen to ensure that the working group is supportive, responsive, goal oriented, creative, and fun!
Do I need research experience?
No prior research experience is required. An introduction to the research process will be provided.
How do I apply for the working group?
If you are interested in joining the working group, please complete the expression of interest form.
The expression of interest form will be available until 24 April 2023.
How will working group members be selected?
In early May, we will be hosting meet-and-greets over Zoom with women Veterans whose expression of interest matches the needs of the project. The goal of these meet-and-greets will be to learn more about who you are, what skills you bring to the working group, and to answer your questions about the study. Our objective is to create a working group that has diverse and complementary skills and experiences. Due to limited space on the working group (we need six participants), we will not be able to welcome everyone who expresses an interest in joining. Rest assured, everyone who expresses interest will be notified by email of all decisions about the composition of the working group.
Who, from the Atlas Institute, is leading this study?
The Applied Research team at the Atlas Institute is leading this study and convening this working group. The team members for this project are:
- Sara Rodrigues, PhD, Director, Applied Research (co-Principal Investigator)
- Kate Hill MacEachern, PhD, Senior Research Associate (co-Principal Investigator)
- Adelina McCall, Research Coordinator
- Claire Bertran, Stakeholder and Engagement Lead
- Alex Kollo, Senior Knowledge Mobilization Specialist
Do you have questions?
Contact the Applied Research team: athenaproject.atlas@theroyal.ca
