The Federation provides opportunities for HSS scholars to communicate research findings within and beyond academia, to maximize the impacts of their work. Through its Big Thinking series, annual Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences, and media outreach program, the Federation enables HSS scholars to reach and collaborate with other researchers as well as policy makers, practitioners, and community members.

The Federation also advances the national dialogue on the societal impact of academic research through its ongoing project, The Role of the Humanities and Social Sciences. The project sponsors and undertakes research on complex issues that affect the workplaces, communities, and daily lives of Canadians.

Think Big: How the social sciences and humanities are building a better Canada 

In 2021, the Federation published its report Think Big: How the social sciences and humanities are building a better Canada. With profiles from leaders in a wide range of industries whose studies in HSS disciplines have helped them to innovate, influence, and inspire, the report demonstrates not only the utility of an HSS education for a student’s career prospects, but for the betterment of society as a whole.

Read the report

Submit your own story about how an HSS education has opened up successful career paths for you and/or how your research is helping to address our greatest challenges and build a better future for a chance to be featured on the Federation's communication channels. Contact communications@federationhss.ca for more information.

The Role of the Humanities and Social Sciences during COVID-19

Responding to a global pandemic is much more than a technical challenge. The quality of pandemic response also depends on the contributions of sociologists, economists, political scientists, and historians, among others. The same is true of other complex challenges, from climate change to economic inequality: if it involves people, it involves the humanities and social sciences. To learn more about this campaign, follow the "Pandemic" tag in the Resource hub.

• The Role of the Humanities and Social Sciences, a discussion paper published in 2018 was designed to spark a conversation about the importance of the humanities and social sciences.

The Federation is at the forefront of developing frameworks and resources to assess, communicate, and grow the impacts of HSS scholarship in Canada and internationally.  

• Approaches to Assessing Impacts in the Humanities and Social Sciences. This report provides an overview of the intended benefits of impact assessment, the potential risks of flawed assessment systems, the characteristics of HSS research that affect efforts to assess impact, and the strengths and weaknesses of various assessment approaches.
• The Impacts of Humanities and Social Sciences Research proposes five broad ways that HSS research has impact and draws from international practices in proposing a suite of indicators that can be used to illuminate the impacts of HSS research in Canada.