About: Digital Humanities Innovation Lab (DHIL)

About the Lab

The DHIL assists SFU researchers with the development of digital scholarship by providing consultations, training, mentoring, research software development, and technical support. We foster collaboration and interdisciplinarity across faculty and promote the development and dissemination of high-quality research that positions SFU as a world leader in digital scholarship.  

Located in the W.A.C. Bennett Library at SFU Burnaby and utilizing meeting space at the Vancouver and Surrey Campuses, the DHIL leverages the Library’s expertise in digital initiatives, unique special collections, and research skill-development programming.

See Contact the DHIL for ways to reach the Lab.

Our work in the lab is guided by a collaboratively written Charter and Code of Conduct.

Lab team

Rebecca Dowson is the Digital Scholarship Librarian and Library Collaborator at the DHIL. In her role, Rebecca supports researchers at all levels who are engaged with digital humanities through project consultations, digital skill development workshops, and coordinating the Library's resources in digitization and project hosting. Her research interests include the intersection of libraries and digital humanities, with a particular interest in digital cultural heritage projects, digital skill building, and new forms of scholarly publishing.

Andrew Gardener is a Developer in the DHIL. Andrew has more than a decade of experience as a full stack developer in post-secondary teaching and learning, having previously worked as a Programmer at the UBC Centre for Teaching, Learning and Technology, as a Software Developer at the Concordia University Centre for the Study of Learning and Performance, and as a Web Developer at Vanier College. Andrew has a Bachelor of Computing Science from Concordia University.

Joey Takeda is a Developer in the DHIL, specializing in text encoding and digital editions, digital project preservation and sustainability, minimal computing, and digital exhibits. He holds an MA in English Literature from the University of British Columbia and is currently an MLIS student at the University of Alberta. He is an elected member of the Text Encoding Initiative (TEI) Technical Council (2023–2026) and sits on the TEI By Example International Advisory Committee and the Public Knowledge Project (PKP) Technical Advisory Committee. 

Past team members

Saba Akhyani Digital Fellow (2020–2022)

Sophie Ashton Digital Fellow (2023)

Rémi Castonguay Digital Scholarship Librarian (2019–2021)

Kenny Chakola Digital Fellow (2020)

Colette Colligan Founder & Faculty Co-Director (2016–2020)

Dogan Erisen Digital Fellow (2017–2018)

Deanna Fong Digital Fellow (2016–2017)

Sophia Han Digital Fellow (2020–2022)

Erik Hanson Digital Fellow (2017–2019)

Hannah Holtzclaw Digital Fellow (2018–2020)

Julie Jones Digital Scholarship Librarian (2021)

Michael Joyce Developer (2016–2022)

Michelle Levy Founder & Faculty Co-Director (2016–2020)

B. Luies Digital Fellow (2022–2023)

Alison Moore Digital Scholarship Librarian (2021–2023)

Kimberly O’Donnell Digital Fellow (2017–2019)

Sulan R. Digital Fellow (2022–2023)

Kandice Sharren Digital Fellow (2018–2019)

Julianna Wagar Digital Fellow (2022–2024)

Catherine Winters Web Developer (2018–2019)

Alex Xanthoudakis Digital Fellow (2019–2020)

Abdul Zahir Digital Fellow (2017)