The University of British Columbia is a global centre for research and teaching, consistently ranked among the top 20 public universities in the world. Since 1915, UBC’s West Coast spirit has embraced innovation and questioned the status quo. With close to 63,000 students from 160 countries and more than 5,400 faculty on two campuses in Vancouver and the Okanagan, UBC is a place where bold thinking develops into ideas that can change the world. Its entrepreneurial perspective encourages students, staff and faculty to challenge convention, lead discovery and explore new ways of learning.
There are concerns about how health data are used, but research shows support for uses with public benefits by health-care providers, governments, health-system planners and university-based researchers.
A rare photo from an Indian Residential School in Fort Resolution, N.W.T. These systems have been labeled a form of genocide by the Canadian House of Commons.
(Department of Mines and Technical Surveys/Library and Archives Canada)
Canada’s recent resolution to label the Indian Residential School system as genocide (and not cultural genocide) is not a mere alteration of words, it is a significant and consequential change.
At corporations and organizations like universities, policies meant to promote equity, diversity and inclusion are being used to enhance wealth and status.
(Sam Balye, Unsplash)
Equity, diversity and inclusion policies are being used to obtain status and financial benefit. It’s the very antithesis of EDI as a tool for democratic and equitable citizenship.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith appears at a news conference in Edmonton in October 2022.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jason Franson
Danielle Smith’s grasp of Indigenous issues seems rooted not in genuine allyship and justice but in the appropriation of Indigenous experiences to advance white grievance politics.
Provinces like British Columbia have reduced infection rates thanks to successful treatment and prevention measures.
(Shutterstock)
Dec. 1 marks World AIDS Day. Canada has the tools and means to end the epidemic. The question remains, are we up to the task?
Climate conferences provide platforms for collaboration among countries, venues for interaction across levels of governance and critical events to mobilize civil society and media coverage.
(AP Photo/Peter Dejong)
There have been 27 UN COP meetings. Despite these negotiations, the planet is on target to exceed emission thresholds for global warming. Given these failures, why continue with this process?
Offshore oil and gas activities jeopardize coastal environments, human health and local economies.
(AP Photo/Chris Carlson)
Stopping the expansion of offshore oil and gas extraction is a critical but often overlooked step towards achieving global climate targets and protecting our oceans and planet.
Every year, hundreds are held arbitrarily in provincial jails. The Canadian government must take action to end the jailing of migrants.
(Shutterstock)
Migrants and refugee claimants in immigration detention continue to face serious trauma and abuse. The federal government must take action to stop migrant detentions.
Co-author of this article, Chief Ninawa, hereditary Chief of the Huni Kui Indigenous people of the Amazon, holds a sign that says: ‘Amazon is life, petroleum and gas is death’ outside a hotel in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
(AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo)
A different future will not be possible without reverence, respect, reciprocity and responsibility towards the Earth. On this issue, Indigenous Peoples have a lot to share.
COP27 has given countries and organizations yet another chance to push for a managed decline in fossil fuel production. A climate action banner hangs from the Tower bridge in London in April 2022.
(AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali)
A managed fossil fuel phasing-out offers a chance for producers – including governments, corporations and unions – to negotiate the terms of a ‘just transition’ to renewable energy.
Bianca Andreescu was awarded the 2019 Lou Marsh Trophy as Canada’s athlete of the year. The Toronto Star recently decided to remove Lou Marsh’s name from the trophy.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Hans Deryk
Brown carbon refers to a range of pollutants found in smoke from wildfires. They can contribute to global warming before they undergo a process that alters their chemical properties.
Tents line the sidewalk on East Hastings Street in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside. Cities like Vancouver should not clear encampments when people have nowhere else to go.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
Cities are clearing homeless encampments, sometimes violently, without providing those who live there any alternatives. Long-term solutions are needed to help people off the streets.
Bathrooms are common settings for overdose but can be made safer.
(Envirotec)
More than 50 overdoses happen in bathrooms every month in British Columbia. Public bathrooms can be made safer for everyone, including people who use substances.
Blended learning helps students learn to use new technologies so they can critically integrate and construct new knowledge while communicating in an increasingly digital society.
(Jopwell/Pexels)
Teaching approaches should be rooted in learning objectives or students’ experiences, and these considerations aren’t the same as whether course components are online or in-person.
The atmosphere protects life on Earth from the effects of the Sun’s radiation, but space travel is a different matter.
(NASA/SDO)
As the potential for space travel increases, it is necessary to develop methods to protect astronauts from environmental stresses in space. Studying the DNA of baker’s yeast may provide some clues.
Earnings of laid-off workers in southern Europe are 30% lower five years later, while in northern countries the decline is less than 10%. The differences are largely due to the likelihood of finding a new job.
An Indigenous flag flies in front of Parliament during the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, Sept. 30, 2021. To live up to the intentions of UNDRIP, Canada must work with Indigenous communities to change harmful laws.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick
Professor, Department of Educational Studies. CRC in Race, Inequalities and Global Change and David Lam Chair in Multicultural Education, University of British Columbia