UBC’s campus and neighbourhood environments play a vital role in the physical, mental, and social wellbeing of students, staff, and faculty – so how can green building design enhance this?
Plans are underway to install a significant new artwork by local Musqueam artist, Brent Sparrow, at UBC Vancouver.
Sparrow will create two different wood carvings featuring images of eagles, thunderbirds and salmon. These carvings will be cast in bronze and installed on concrete pillars that will be part of a weather protected walkway separating the UBC Bus Exchange from the east side of the future MacInnes Field.
UBC is taking big steps towards achieving a more sustainable campus and neighbourhood buildings with the introduction of the Green Building Action Plan.
Student housing at UBC is growing fast. So is demand—because students who live on campus are happier, healthier and more engaged.
In the last seven years, UBC has created more than 3,500 new student beds on campus, in five major new developments. Given Vancouver’s housing crisis, this is great for students, more and more of whom are now living and studying on campus instead of commuting. What may be less obvious is how the addition of year-round, centrally located accommodation, is transforming the campus and benefitting the entire UBC community.
Along with a handful of leading higher education institutions, UBC was recently recognized at the International Institute for Sustainable Laboratories last month for leadership in promotion of the new ACT label and taking action on sustainability.
2018 drew to a close with nearly 40 departments participating in Seasonal Shutdown, an annual campus-wide campaign at UBC to reduce energy consumption during the winter holiday break.
Staff and faculty joined together to complete energy saving actions and shutdown checklists for their respective departments.
In total, 34 buildings and over 1,200 people participated in the engagement campaign. Three lucky teams won prizes for participating: Centre for Teaching, Learning and Technology, UBC Botanical Garden, and the Pulp and Paper Centre.
It’s not every day that kids get the chance to work behind the scenes at UBC, but you will see them do just that at Kids Take Over UBC on the Family Day weekend.
On February 17, young volunteers from the UBC community will take on adult-sized roles, working alongside staff and volunteers to host a day of arts and culture activities on campus. This is the second year for Kids Take Over UBC which is produced by Campus and Community Planning’s Community Development unit in partnership with UBC’s Arts and Culture District.
For 18 years, SEEDS Sustainability Program has been creating unique partnerships between UBC students, faculty, staff and community partners. By using the campus as a giant research lab, the ground-breaking program has advanced UBC’s sustainability goals — and won multiple awards and been recognized and replicated across the world.
“How do we move the dial on the climate crisis?” asks Liska Richer, Manager of SEEDS Sustainability Program. “How do we address the collapse in biodiversity or plastics in the ocean? Or strengthen people’s connections to this place?”
After 28 years as Director of UBC Child Care, Darcelle Cottons is retiring at the end of this year. She looks back on the university’s five decades of pioneering work, and ahead to new innovations such as modular and $10-a-day childcare
“Hi Corey!” says Darcelle Cottons with a wave. The Director of UBC Child Care is checking in with six educators taking a group of boisterous kids outside to play. The April morning is sunny but chilly, so the children need help with coats and hats.
UBC is the ninth most popular filming location on earth. This brings great benefits to the UBC Theatre and Film — and the whole University.
Cam Cronin, an administrator in UBC Theatre and Film, had just left his office one summer afternoon two years ago when he came upon a strange sight in the Rose Garden: an army of life-size ancient Chinese terracotta soldiers standing among the bushes, staring blankly out towards Howe Sound. A group of tourists taking photos added to the surreal scene.