University of Toronto Institute of Islamic Studies

The Institute of Islamic Studies (IIS) at the University of Toronto develops research projects that improve society’s understanding of Islam and Muslims.

By centering Islam and Muslims, the IIS offers a critical viewpoint from which we can better understand our world.

The IIS has a proven history of developing high-quality research projects that are calibrated to the issues facing Muslims in Canada.

• The IIS' publication "Under Layered Suspicion" examined potential biases and prejudicial practices of CRA audits of Muslim-led charities. This work led to a series of of examinations to better improve relations and understanding between Muslim-led charity sector and the Charities Directorate.
  
  
• The IIS hosts the "Muslims in Canada Archives (MiCA)" which is a community-calibrated, professional quality archive service to uniquely document the rich heritage of Muslims in Canada. MiCA fills in a gap of Muslim history amongst Canada's memory institutions.
  
  
• The IIS' "Structural Islamophobia Research Lab (SiRL)" sponsors scholarship examining the formation and operation of Islamophobia in the form of institutional policy or bureaucratic practice, and explore them using creative research methodologies. It's current project examines Muslim families' experiences with child welfare services in Ontario.
  
  
• The IIS also hosts the Muslim in Canada Data Initiative (MiCDI) which aims to improve the visibility of Muslims across Canada through the development and examination of large-scale data sets. The results from its first survey (to be published Spring/Summer 2024) will showcase survey results from varying dimensions of the lives of Muslims in Canada based on survey and census data.
  
  
• It also hosts the "Islamic Art & Material Culture Collaborative (IAMCC)" which fosters advanced research in the study of Islamic art and material culture. The IAMCC harnesses the institutional capacities available in Toronto, to make the city a leading centre for the study and exhibition of Islamic art and material culture on the global stage.