Dr. Andrew Baron is the founder and Director of the Living Lab at Science World in Vancouver (which is also a partner of the consortium). The Living Lab was founded in 2010 with support from the Canada Foundation for Innovation and constitutes a formal partnership between UBC and Science World.  The Living Lab provides an innovative platform for researchers from UBC to conduct research on cognitive development and to engage visitors (children and adults alike) in conversations about the science of child development. As the Director of the Living Lab, Dr. Baron oversees the mentorship of dozens of undergraduate students and graduate and postdoctoral students conducting research in this community setting as well as the additional outreach programming supported by the Living Lab. Dr. Baron’s research expertise focuses on the cognitive and cultural origins of intergroup bias including implicit (automatic) race and gender bias. This work aims to identify optimal strategies and developmental periods to reduce the impact of implicit bias on children’s self-concept, goals and behaviour. His expertise in this area will be particularly valuable for the consortium’s efforts to change implicit gender biases. Research in the Living Lab focuses on children from 6 months of age through late adolescence.

To learn more about the Living Lab, please visit www.scienceworld.ca/lab