Conflict of Interest Policy (SC3) proposed amendments
The UBC community is invited to comment on proposed amendments to the Conflict of Interest Policy (SC3).
The proposed amendments include broadening the Policy to include more information about scenarios applicable to staff, streamlining the process for addressing and investigating Conflict of Interest complaints, and improving readability.
All members of the UBC community are encouraged to provide their comments by January 21, 2024.
14 Not Forgotten ceremony 2023
It has been 34 years since the murder of 14 young women in an engineering class at Polytechnique Montréal (December 6, 1989).
Each year a ‘14 Not Forgotten’ ceremony is led by the Engineering Undergraduate Society with support from the Faculty of Applied Science Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Indigeneity department. UBC faculty, staff and students are invited to join the ceremony on December 6 to remember the 14 women who lost their lives and stand against violence towards women.
- Date: December 6, 2023 from 11 am—12:30 pm
- Location: Fred Kaiser (KAIS), Atrium, UBC Vancouver
CTLT Winter Institute teaching & learning workshops
The CTLT Winter Institute is a time for UBC educators to to come together during the mid-academic year to reflect on the impact of their teaching practices on student learning and experiences.
Hosted by the Centre for Teaching, Learning & Technology (CTLT), UBC faculty, staff and graduate students are invited to join a range of in-person, multi-access and online workshops running between December 11–15, 2023.
Following the theme Sustainable, Inclusive and Thriving Communities, sessions will focus on cultivating a diverse community that sustains connected, equitable and inclusive learning, reflect on the practical applications of teaching techniques and review practices that have been successful.
Featured events
December 11 | Integrating Climate and Wellbeing into Your Teaching
The need to highlight health and wellbeing in teaching and learning about climate change has been identified by UBC faculty, support units, and the Climate Emergency Task Force Report. Hear a panel of faculty members actively participating in the Climate and Wellbeing Education cohort, including the Undergraduate Medical Education Program’s Dr. Adrian Yee, share their experiences exploring innovative methods for infusing wellbeing and climate-related content into their courses, all while nurturing the wellbeing of both students and faculty.
December 12 | Navigating the GenAI Landscape: A Focus on Student Learning and Prompt Design
The rapid growth of Generative AI is impacting higher education and may change the process of teaching. Through this interactive online workshop, reflect on your teaching approach and discuss how to navigate this growing field of AI to positively impact student learning.
December 13 | The Trauma Aware Classroom: 5 Considerations That Will Have a Positive Impact on Your Students and Yourself
In this in-person workshop, explore how to foster a supportive classroom environment for both students and instructors by acknowledging that everyone can experience and can be impacted by trauma. You will have the opportunity to reflect on your role as a facilitator of learning as it relates to the impact of trauma on you and your students’ executive functioning, as well as the boundaries of our role as it relates to trauma and self-care strategies.
December 14 | Building Community Across Campuses: Preparing to Teach a Multi-Campus (Distributed Learning) Course
In this online workshop, UBC faculty including Occupational Science & Occupational Therapy’s Dr. Elly Park provide an introduction to planning and administering multi-campus instruction (MCI) courses. Also known as distributed learning, MCI courses create educational possibilities to students in remote communities without requiring those students to relocate, but delivering a course in this format for the first time can be daunting.
December 15 | Incorporating the Principle of Community Accountability into Our Classrooms
Community accountability is a grassroots approach to addressing sexualized and gender-based violence in marginalized communities by turning to creative and collective interventions at both the interpersonal and community levels. The insights and principles drawn from models of community accountability have the potential to go far beyond interventions that respond to past violence, they can also assist us in creating and maintaining safer and more inclusive communities — including communities of learning.
Preparing for winter weather at UBC
As weather patterns shift towards snow, please note that information is available to help you prepare for extreme weather on your campus.
A UBC Bulletin and UBCO Admin News were issued for the Vancouver and the Okanagan campuses respectively last week, with information on how to be prepared during extreme weather, steps being taken to keep the campus safe, and how faculty members can support students.
Japan Prize 2025: Call for nominations
Nominations are now open for the 2025 Japan Prize.
The Japan Prize honours scientists and researchers worldwide who are recognized for having contributed significantly to the peace and prosperity of humankind through their original and outstanding achievements that have greatly advanced the progress of science and technology.
Prize fields
For 2025, prizes will be awarded in two fields: Biological Production, Ecology/Environment; and Materials Science and Production.
The field of Biological Production, Ecology/Environment recognizes achievements that have created, extended, or propagated major steps forward in scientific technology and, by advancing basic science related to ecology and environmental science and biological-production-related science and technology, have made or have the potential to make major contributions to sustainable development of human society in harmony with our ecosystem.
The field of Materials Science and Production recognizes the discovery or development of materials that lead to breakthrough advances in science and technology, or for dramatic advancements in manufacturing technology that result in new products, services or industries.
Nomination process
We invite you to consider colleagues who could be eligible for this distinction. Email fom.recognition@ubc.ca for the next steps in the nomination process, or with any questions.
The internal submission deadline of the full nomination package is Friday, January 12, 2024.
UBC Coaching Internship program
Are you a UBC employee seeking certification as a professional coach and want to apply your new coaching skills and knowledge working with UBC faculty and staff? Applications are now open for the fall intake of the UBC Coaching Internship program.
Through the Coaching Internship program, you will gain valuable experience coaching faculty and staff in addition to professional development, mentorship, and $1,500 towards the tuition cost of the accredited coach training program of your choice.
Applications for the fall intake are due Sunday, December 10.
Join the information session on Dec. 1 to learn about coaching as well as the internship program details and timelines, followed by a Q&A.
Disability inclusion webinar series
In recognition of the UN International Day of Persons with Disabilities (December 3), take part in a series of webinars running November 27 to December 1 and enhance your disability inclusion literacy.
The series is offered by the Centre for Workplace Accessibility, a central hub for resources, tools, and programs that help remove barriers for UBC faculty and staff with disabilities or ongoing medical conditions.
Topics include inclusion in hiring, teaching and learning, and deaf culture in the workplace.