Healthy Workplace Initiatives Program funding

Healthy Workplace Initiatives Program funding

Do you have a health-related idea to promote wellbeing in the workplace? The Healthy Workplace Initiatives Program (HWIP) is an annual fund available to UBC departments and units to support grassroots activities that promote wellbeing in the workplace.

The program provides start-up funds and support for health-related, sustainable initiatives, and is open to departments and units at UBC Vancouver and Okanagan, as well as UBC-recognized operational committees representing departments/units. To date, the program has provided more than $800,000 in funding for over 500 initiatives.

Apply by 4 pm on Friday, April 19, 2024 for one of eight funding areas, including creative expression, community gardens, nutrition and fitness, or something completely new.

In Memoriam: Dr. Connie Eaves

The Eaves family will be holding a Celebration of Life for Connie starting at 1:30 pm on Sunday, May 5, 2024 at the Chan Centre at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. More information can be found on the website here. This Celebration of Life is open to all those who would like to attend.

Dr. Connie Eaves

Dr. Connie Eaves passed away on March 7, 2024.

A world-leading cancer and stem cell researcher and a dedicated advocate for women in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and maths), Dr. Eaves was a current professor in the Department of Medical Genetics and the School of Biomedical Engineering, and a distinguished scientist at BC Cancer’s Terry Fox Laboratory.

Through her research career spanning more than five decades, her discoveries advanced knowledge on the origin of leukemia and breast cancer, and her pioneering research methodologies — including developing a technique to separate cancerous from normal stem cells — have become gold standard approaches used by laboratories around the world. Dr. Eaves was also a noted mentor and supervisor, and a passionate advocate for women in science.

Dr. Eaves was recognized at the highest levels within Canada and internationally, including appointment to the Order of Canada, election to the Royal Society (UK) and the US National Academy of Medicine, and induction into the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame.

Read a tribute to Dr. Eaves from BC Cancer Research.

The BC, Musqueam and UBC flags were lowered on Saturday, January 6, 2024 in remembrance.


To learn more about the life and legacy of Dr. Eaves, read her obituary published in The Globe and Mail.

CMHF Induction Ceremony 2024

Canadian Medical Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, April 13, 2024

The 2024 Canadian Medical Hall of Fame (CMHF) Induction Ceremony, hosted in partnership with the UBC Faculty of Medicine, will be held on Saturday, April 13 in Vancouver.

Join an evening of networking and inspiration as six new outstanding health leaders are inducted into the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame, including UBC’s Dr. Pieter Cullis.

  • Location: Hyatt Regency Vancouver (655 Burrard Street)
  • Date: Saturday, April 13
    • Reception: 5:30 pm
    • Evening Program: 6:30 pm
  • Dress code: Formal attire

Tickets may be purchased until Wednesday, April 3. Registered International Congress on Academic Medicine (ICAM) delegates receive an additional promo code in their confirmation email to purchase a ticket.

International Congress on Academic Medicine 2024

The International Congress on Academic Medicine (ICAM) is taking place in Vancouver April 12 to 15.

An initiative of the Association of Faculties of Medicine of Canada (AFMC), ICAM was designed to enhance professional development for all those involved in academic medicine and promote innovation and scholarship in medical education and health research on an international scale.

With a program including more than 500 workshops, a variety of oral and poster presentations as well as plenary sessions on everything from planetary health to team-based care, ICAM 2024 will be the place to come together and discuss the most pressing questions in academic medicine.

Registered ICAM delegates will also receive a promo code in their confirmation email to purchase a ticket for the 2024 Canadian Medical Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, taking place in Vancouver on Saturday, April 13.

ICAM: International Congress on Academic Medicine / CIMU: Le Congrès international de médecine universitaire

Emerging Media Lab projects: Call for proposals

Faculty members at UBC Vancouver are invited to submit a proposal to work with UBC’s Emerging Media Lab to explore how to incorporate technologies such as virtual reality, augmented reality, artificial intelligence and machine learning into your teaching, learning or research projects.

The Emerging Media Lab is an experimental lab space where faculty, staff, and students from all disciplines collaborate to evolve learning by creating tools and techniques using emerging media technologies.

Submit your proposal by March 15, 2024.

Changes to study permits for international students

On January 22, 2024, the Federal Government announced changes to how study permits are issued to international students. This is a temporary measure in place to stabilize the number of new study permits issued for two years.

Most international undergraduate students outside of Canada applying for a new study permit will now also need a Provincial Attestation Letter. As policies will continue to be clarified in the coming weeks, students are encouraged to refer to the below pages for the latest updates.

Celebrate Learning Week: Call for contributions

A stylized image in oranges and blues of a woman against a mirror looking at her reflection, which is blue and covered with lines representing circuitry. Text: Celebrate Learning Week

Celebrate Learning Week is a cross-campus, week-long forum for the UBC teaching and learning community to collaborate, network and engage in knowledge exchange presented by the Provosts and Vice-President Academic from UBCO and UBCV.

This year’s showcase will run from May 6–10 with the theme Remembering the human in the loop, examining the intersection between humans and generative AI in teaching and learning experiences.

Faculty, staff and students, as well as community members, are encouraged to participate in Celebrate Learning Week by coordinating and/or attending events.

If you are interested in hosting a lecture, poster session, or workshop to showcase teaching and learning at UBC, explore the list of suggested topics and formats and submit your ideas by March 28.

VPRI Call for Faculty CRC Proposals for Persons with Disabilities

The Office of the Vice President Research and Innovation (VPRI) has invited all UBC Faculties to propose Tier 2 Canada Research Chairs (CRC) based on their robust plans for recruiting or retaining leading researchers with disabilities.

Faculties may propose CRCs in one of the three tri-agency streams at the Tier 2 level.  Two NSERC chairs, one SSHRC and one CIHR chair will be available through an adjudication process.  The initiative is open to proposals from all Faculties on both UBC campuses.

The Faculty of Medicine can submit up to three proposals for this special call.  Proposals may either be framed for retention or recruitment, and must follow all CRC equity, diversity and inclusion recruitment guidelines, and be further guided by UBC’s equitable hiring practices.

To identify the top three proposals advancing to the VPRI stage of the competition, the Faculty of Medicine will conduct an internal application and adjudication process for both the retention and recruitment streams of the call, detailed in the links below.

Please use one of the following links outlining the appropriate application process:

FoM Application Process for Retention Applications

FoM Application Process for Recruitment Applications

If you have any questions, please contact Corné du Plessis in the Faculty of Medicine’s Office of Research.

Faculty of Medicine Retention Applications

The Faculty of Medicine (FoM) invites applications for Tier 2 Canada Research Chairs (CRC) in any field of research aligned with the FoM Strategic Plan for the retention stream of the call.

Eligibility criteria, application instructions, and further details can be accessed via the following link:

FoM CRC Tier 2 Retention Advertisement

Eligible candidates will submit their applications directly to the Faculty of Medicine’s Office of Research. Finance validation will be facilitated at the Dean’s Office level in consultation with the appropriate Heads/Directors. Faculty level assessment of application materials and the identification of proposals to move forward will be undertaken by a FoM adjudication committee chaired by the Vice-Dean, Research and recommended to the Dean of Medicine.

If successful at the FoM stage, the faculty will work with the applicant and their home unit(s) on a full application to be submitted to the UBC central adjudication committee on May 31, 2024. The UBC central committee will include representation from both campuses from the Office of the Vice-President, Research & Innovation (VPRI), Office of the Provost and Vice-President, Academic (VPA) and Equity & Inclusion Office (EIO), as well as distinguished researchers, including at least two researchers with disabilities.

Successful applicants from University level are expected to submit a nomination application to the CRC Program in the October 2024 or the following CRC national competition.

If you have any questions, please contact Corné du Plessis in the Faculty of Medicine’s Office of Research.

Faculty of Medicine Recruitment Application Process

The Recruitment stream of the call is open to Faculty of Medicine Departments and Schools, with Centres/Institutes as partners.

Please note that to be eligible, interested Departments and Schools must consult their Department/School Finance Manager, who will work with the unit on their financial planner. To ensure that units have sufficient time to complete the proposal, the deadline to consult with the Finance Manager is March 25, 2024, however, units should notify their Finance Managers right way, if they are planning to submit a Recruitment Application.

This consultation is crucial to validate the unit’s financial viability for supporting the prospective recruit’s salary, including any delta during the period of the award and full salary after the CRC concludes. Once validation is prepared, finance will forward the financial planner to Managing Director, FoM to determine if the Departments and Schools can move forward with preparing a full application package.

Upon obtaining approval to proceed from the Managing Director, FoM, Departments/Schools should promptly email Corné du Plessis, the Strategic Programs Officer in the Faculty of Medicine’s Office of Research. The email must include finance validation from the Finance Manager and approval to proceed from the Managing Director, FoM. Following this, Corné will share the proposal template and next steps with the eligible Department/School.

Application packages will only be accepted by the Office of Research from Departments and Schools that have obtained the necessary approval to move forward by the Managing Director, FoM. 

Additionally, Departments/Schools are urged to promptly fill out the 2024 CRC Space Plan template to prevent potential delays in securing space planning approval: 2024 CRC Space Plan Template

Complete applications packages must be submitted via email to Corné du Plessis in the Faculty of Medicine’s Office of Research by no later than 12:00PM on April 6, 2024.

Faculty level assessment of application materials and the identification of proposals to move forward will be undertaken by a FoM adjudication committee chaired by the Vice-Dean, Research and recommended to the Dean of Medicine. If successful at the FoM stage, the faculty will work with the home unit(s) on a full application to be submitted to the UBC central adjudication committee on May 31, 2024. The UBC central committee will include representation from both campuses from the Office of the Vice-President, Research & Innovation (VPRI), Office of the Provost and Vice-President, Academic (VPA) and Equity & Inclusion Office (EIO), as well as distinguished researchers, including at least two researchers with disabilities.

If you have any questions, please contact Corné du Plessis in the Faculty of Medicine’s Office of Research.