Events

Local Food Values Dialogue Series

The UBCO Local Food Values Dialogues are a way for the UBC Okanagan Community to more clearly identify and define the environmental and social values our university uses when purchasing local food from Okanagan food producers. Through these three dialogues, participants will think through what these values are, and how they could be identified on farms in the Okanagan bioregion, that grow some of the food that is eaten on campus.

Dialogue 1: Sustainability of organic/regenerative agriculture, biodiversity conservation, and salmon habitats

• Thur. March 9 @ 2:00 pm – 3:15 pm, virtual and in person – ART 368
• Guest speakers: Eva-Lena Lang, Organic BC, Lia McKinnon, Okanagan Similkameen Stewardship (OSS), Andrea McDonald, Salmon-Safe BC

Dialogue 2: Justice for farm workers, farmers and other food producers, particularly those representing Indigenous and other diverse groups

• Thur. March 16 @ 2:00 pm – 3:15 pm, virtual and in person – ART 368
• Guest speakers: Robyn Bunn, Radical Action with Migrants in Agriculture (RAMA), Anna Westhover, National Farmers Union (NFU), other to be announced.

Dialogue 3: How can we at UBCO begin to confirm these values in our ongoing food value chain relationships? 

• Thur. March 23 @ 2:00 pm – 3:15 pm, virtual and in person – ART 368
• Guest speakers: UBCO Food Services, LFP pilot project farmers, others to be announced.

More Information

Register for our Local Food Values Dialogue Series by clicking here.

UBCO’s 2nd Teach-In on Climate and Justice

Join fellow campus community members at the second UBC Okanagan Teach-In for a dialogue on climate and justice research and an open space on climate action in the UBCO community! Panel discussions will be presented by UBCO faculty and staff and moderated by student hosts.

• Opening: Territorial acknowledgement and welcome
• Session 1: Concurrent panels on climate and justice research
• Break: Enjoy climate-friendly food and a performance by MFA students
• Session 2: Open space on climate action in the UBCO community
• Closing: Wrap up and next steps

For more information and to register, visit HERE.

When: Mon. March 13, 2023 @ 6:00-8:30 pm
Where: ADM 121, Sunroom (through Sunshine Cafe)

Do you have a creative idea to make your lab or research activity more sustainable?

The Green Labs Fund, offered annually by the Green Labs Program, promotes and supports sustainability in labs across our campuses. Faculty, staff and students from UBC Vancouver and UBC Okanagan are invited to apply to receive up to $4,000 to implement an innovative project.

Proposals should:

• Strengthen sustainability at UBC through reduction of environmental impacts of research activities
• Benefit the UBC scientific community
• Be within the range of $250 to $4,000
• Have an immediate or short-term benefit and practical applicability

Funding applications that meet the following additional criteria may be considered more favorably:

• Projects with measurable outcomes
• Projects that are creative and innovative
• Project that are scalable and could be implemented by other researchers/departments at UBC Okanagan and/or Vancouver

LEARN MORE AND APPLY by March 19, 2023 at 11:59pm.

UBC Sustainability Scholars – Call for Applications
Paid Summer Internships

The UBC Sustainability Hub is pleased to offer UBC graduate students the opportunity to work on funded sustainability internship projects.

Applications are currently being accepted for over 64 internships that will commence May 1, 2023. Current UBC graduate students from all academic disciplines are encouraged to confirm the eligibility requirements and apply.

Successful candidates work under the guidance of a mentor at one of our partner organizations and are immersed in real world learning where they can apply their research skills and contribute to advancing sustainability and climate action across the region. Each Scholar receives $25 per hour to complete 250 hours of work.

For more information on the available projects and to apply, visit the Sustainability Scholars Program website.

Applications will be accepted until midnight Sunday January 29.

Sustainability on Screen Film Series: Racing Extinction

Join us on January 26th for the screening of Racing Extinction, the first in the Sustainability on Screen film series. Racing Extinction is a 2015 documentary about the ongoing Anthropogenic mass extinction of species and the efforts from scientists, activists and journalists to document it by Oscar-winning director Louie Psihoyos.

This screening is free and open to all and will be held in the theatre at Okanagan College Kelowna Campus.

Sustainability on Screen is a series of documentary-screenings, panel discussions and Q&As that will be hosted at Okanagan College with the intention to engage the public with climate activism. Panels and audience-wide Q&As will investigate the significance of the humanities and story-telling has in combatting the climate crisis and societal agenda-setting. All times and locations are the same and each event will be offering refreshments.

The series is moderated by Dr. Jodey Castricano (UBCO) and Dr. Shona Harrison (UBCO, OC) and is part of a collaborative project between the University of British Columbia, Okanagan and the University of Exeter (UK). Sustainability on Screen is organized by the Post-Anthropocentrism and Critical Animal Studies Research Group [PACAS] and is supported by a UBC Okanagan-Exeter Excellence Catalyst Grant and the Faculty of Critical and Creative Studies.

When: Thu. Jan. 26 @ 6:30 – 9:00 pm
Where: Okanagan College (Kelowna) 1000 KLO Road, Kelowna

(BE) LONGING: Tiny Stories for Radical Futures

Join UBCO students, staff, faculty and extended community to celebrate the launch of “(BE)LONGING: Tiny Stories for Radical Futures,” edited by Chantal Bilodeau and written by the CRWR 473 students: Makena Bennett, Marcey Costello, Miriam Cummings, Ricarro Duhaney, Annie Furman, Hope Kircher, Rhea Kjargaard and Calise Stankoven. There will be readings and a conversation on how we can creatively engage with the climate crisis.

When: Wed. Dec. 7 @ 7:00 pm
Where: Third Space Cafe 103-1708 Dolphin Avenue, Kelowna

UBC Reads Sustainability with Geoff Dembicki

Featuring The Petroleum Papers: Inside the Far-Right Conspiracy to Cover Up Climate Change

Join climate investigative journalist and award-winning author Geoff Dembicki live from Brooklyn for a conversation on his latest work, which draws from confidential oil industry documents to uncover how companies like Exxon, Koch Industries, and Shell built a global right-wing echo chamber to protect oil sands profits.

When: Thu. Nov. 10 @ 12:00 pm – 1:30 pm
Where: Free Webinar

COP27 LIVE!

Join UBC students, staff, and faculty on-the-ground at COP27 in conversation with CBC News climate journalist Lisa Johnson for an inside view of the negotiations, discussions, and emotions of the conference.

With Gideon Berry, Rudri Bhatt, Simon Donner, Abul Bashar Rahman, Veronica Relano, Pasang Yangjee Sherpa, and Rynn Zhang.

When: Tue. Nov. 15 @ 12:00 pm – 1:30 pm
Where: Free Webinar

SORT IT OUT: Choose to Reuse Event

Use a reusable mug and you’ll reduce waste

At UBC’s Okanagan campus, single-use coffee cups account for the second highest amount of accepted recyclable material found in the waste and recycling streams*.

Learn about what goes where and why with your colleagues and classmates at this fun, educational Sort It Out event where you will actively participate in advancing the Okanagan campus’ Climate Action Plan 2030 commitments by:

• Learning about UBC Okanagan’s waste diversion programs
• Testing your recycling knowledge
• Don’t forget your travel mug for coffee or cocoa!

When: Tue. Oct 25 @ 11:00 am – 1:30 pm
Where: Central Courtyard

Visit www.sustain.ok.ubc.ca/waste for more information on how to Sort It Out at UBCO.

Download event poster.

*The 2022 Waste Audit, commissioned by UBC Okanagan’s Facilities Management department, reported that of the 88% of the divertible material found in the waste stream, 19% was made up of disposable cups. Similar statistics appeared within the recycling audit, which reported that paper coffee cups were listed as the top material recycled at 20%. Improvements to these audit figures can be easily achieved through proper sorting measures applied at the recycling stations found around campus.

Mode-Shift: A Campus Commuting Event

Promoting sustainable, active transportation

Join UBCO faculty, staff and students at a sustainable commuting showcase for a chance to win prizes and learn about:

• Faculty & Staff ProPASS
• Student UPASS
• UBCycles services
• E-bike rentals from SPIN and LIME

Visit www.transportation.ok.ubc.ca for more information on ways to get to, from, and around UBCO.

Download poster HERE.

When: Tue. Aug 23 @ 10:30 am – 1:30 pm
Where: Arrival Plaza – bottom ADM Stairs

UBC Okanagan Teach-In on Climate/Justice

Join fellow campus community members at the first UBC Okanagan Teach-In on Climate/Justice. Panel discussions will be presented by UBCO faculty and staff and moderated by student hosts.

• Opening
• Session 1: Faculty panels and discussion groups
• Session 2: Intro to the UBCO Climate Action Plan 2030
• Closing

More information can be found HERE.

When: Mon. March 29, 2022 @ 6:00-8:00 pm
Where: Virtual Event