Cecile Kotyk
Assistant Professor
Dr. Marie (Cecile) Kotyk has over 15 years of experience as a Social Planner in the housing and homelessness sector. She is recognized for her expertise in promoting spatial equity and social justice. Throughout her career, she has effectively collaborated with stakeholders including governments, private and public organizations, non-profit organizations, academic institutions, Indigenous groups, Black communities, and individuals with lived and living experiences. She has progressed from providing direct service to clients to taking on leadership roles, influencing systems by making policy and service recommendations, aligning community and government strategic plans, and enhancing the professional capacity of community agencies to end homelessness and increase the supply of affordable housing.
Kotyk spearheaded a pioneering national research demonstration project in Winnipeg, which was the catalyst for the housing-first model in Canada. She has also collaborated with on-reserve Indigenous communities to develop comprehensive plans to address their housing needs and advance self-determination. Recognizing the lack of research on the housing challenges faced by Black and other racialized communities, she founded Kotyk Consulting, a consulting practice to help governmental and non-profit organizations design and conduct community research initiatives to understand the housing and systemic challenges confronting Black, Indigenous, and other racialized groups. In her practice, she prioritizes lived and living experiences and approaches her work from the standpoint of equity, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility to address structural inequities.
As a student in SAPL’s Doctor of Design program, she developed the Black Housing Equity Framework (BHEF) to combat anti-Black racism and advance Black inclusion in the housing and homelessness sector. This work has been presented internationally and earned the Alberta Human Rights and Multiculturalism scholarship for 2022/2023.
Contact Info
Research Interests
- Housing and Homelessness
- Design Justice
- Social and Racial Justice
- Anti-Black Racism
- Social Policy
- Spatial Justice
- Racialized Communities and Housing Needs
- Indigenous Planning
- Indigenous Homelessness
- Black History and Urban Planning
- Community Engagement