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The University of British Columbia
Faculty of Arts
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  • Arts is the largest Faculty at the University of British Columbia with more than 25 departments, schools, institutes and programs, and 550 tenure stream faculty members.

    Arts students have wide options in composing their studies, and many elective credits to build expertise and be world ready upon graduation.

  • The Arts degree builds on traditional Arts studies and is integrating career preparation at all stages.

    We are training students for a long career of successful transitions and new challenges, not just for their first job.

  • Many of our departments and researchers in Arts are ranked among the world’s best.

    Our research scope spans the spectrum in humanities, social sciences, the creative and performing arts and professional schools.

  • Arts offers students effective, diverse and high-impact experiential learning opportunities.

    These include: Arts Undergraduate Research Awards, Community Service Learning courses, Arts Co-op, Arts Internship, International learning, student mobility and destination study.

  • Arts provides high quality teaching and learning to ensure that our students have the best academic learning environment possible.

    Arts has hired 44 new faculty in the professor of teaching track since UBC launched its new educational leadership stream to further support high quality teaching.

ARTS RESEARCH IN THE NEWS VIEW ARCHIVE

Plunging response rates to household surveys worry policymakers

The Economist Thu May 24 2018 By: Leslie Nemo

The Economist cited research on household surveys by Kevin Milligan, a UBC economics professor, and colleagues. Milligan, Garry Barrett of the University of Sydney, and Peter Levell of the Institute for Fiscal Studies studied household data in America, Britain, Canada and Australia.
Two of Canada’s biggest provinces feud over pipeline, Trudeau caught in middle

Washington Post Fri May 25 2018 By: Alan Freeman

The Washington Post interviewed George Hoberg, a professor at UBC’s school of public policy and global affairs, about the pipeline dispute between B.C. and Alberta. He said even if the project is approved by the courts, the opposition will remain.
UBC prof nabs 100k prize for toddler language research

Vancouver Courier Mon May 21 2018 By: Jessica Kerr

Janet Werker, a UBC psychology professor, was awarded the Killam Prize in social sciences for her research on how babies and toddlers come to understand spoken language, Vancouver Courier reported. The story also appeared in Richmond News.
Trading tax info with China will allow Canada to monitor tax evasion among foreign-property owners

Globe and Mail Mon May 21 2018 By: Xiao Xu

David Ley, a UBC geography professor emeritus and expert in immigration and housing markets, was quoted in a Globe and Mail article about China and Canada exchanging tax and financial information. Ley said people who have difficulties with the Chinese government may be more exposed.
2,300-year-old Chinese philosophy shows why we should try to be a mess

Quartz Sun May 20 2018 By: Olivia Goldhill

Edward Slingerland, a professor of Asian studies at UBC, was quoted in a Quartz article about letting go of complete order in our lives. Slingerland explained how Chinese philosopher Zhuangzi wrote about the benefits of releasing the tendency to control everything.
People who live in small towns are happier than everyone else: Researchers

Washington Post Thu May 17 2018 By: Christopher Ingraham

The Washington Post highlighted happiness research from UBC and McGill University. The working paper on the geography of well-being in Canada found an association between population density and happiness. The story also appeared in the Toronto Star.
Baloney Meter: Is voter information card a doorway to electoral fraud?

Canadian Press Thu May 17 2018 By: Jim Bronskill

The Canadian Press interviewed Richard Johnston, Canada Research Chair in public opinion, elections and representation at UBC, after members of the Conservative Party made claims of possible voter fraud in the 2015 election. “The question of electoral fraud just was not an issue,” he said. The CP story appeared on CTV and in the National Post and Times Colonist.
Earliest version of our alphabet possibly discovered

Live Sciencer Wed May 16 2018 By: Owen Jarus

Live Science reported that Thomas Schneider, a UBC professor of Egyptology and Near Eastern studies, found what could be the earliest example of our alphabet on a 3,400-year-old inscribed piece of Egyptian pottery. Schneider said the discovery “would be the first historical attestation of ‘our’ alphabet sequence.”
How income affects the brain

The Atlantic Tue May 15 2018 By: Olga Khazan

The Atlantic quoted Jiaying Zhao, a UBC psychology professor, for an article about a new study from the University of Texas at Dallas connecting lower socioeconomic status to detrimental brain changes. Zhao, who was not involved in the study, explained how research shows “chronic poverty can influence brain anatomy.”
Here’s why these women say B.C. has a lot of work to do on pay equity

Star Vancouver Wed May 9 2018 By: Alex McKeen

Sylvia Fuller, a UBC professor who specializes in work and labour, spoke to the Star Vancouver about the gender pay gap in B.C. Fuller said the province has “a lot of catch up to do” on pay equality. She also spoke to Star Vancouver for similar article.

MEET ARTS



Alix Ohlin, Chair of Creative Writing
Alix Ohlin shares a reading from her short story, A System from the North.
  • Plunging response rates to household surveys worry policymakers
  • Two of Canada’s biggest provinces feud over pipeline, Trudeau caught in middle
  • UBC prof nabs 100k prize for toddler language research
  • Trading tax info with China will allow Canada to monitor tax evasion among foreign-property owners
  • 2,300-year-old Chinese philosophy shows why we should try to be a mess

FACULTY OF ARTS EVENTS

  • UBC Master of Fine Arts Graduate Exhibition 2018
    4 May, 2018 3 Jun, 2018

  • HAPPY HOW-TO: FROM HAPPINESS RESEARCH TO HAPPIER CITIES
    7 Jun, 2018 7 Jun, 2018

VIEW FULL CALENDAR

ARTS SPOTLIGHT

A sociologist responds to the overdose crisis

Sociology Professor Lindsey Richardson has received a $1.2 million grant to address the health impacts of socioeconomic marginalization among people who use illicit drugs.

Wade Davis awarded honorary citizenship in Colombia

Dr. Wade Davis has received honorary citizenship from Colombia in recognition of his work documenting and advocating for the country's Indigenous cultures.

Planning Canada’s Biggest Conference: An interview with Laura Moss

We speak to Prof. Laura Moss, Academic Convenor for Congress 2019, about how she's planning Canada's largest academic gathering, and how UBC scholars can receive funding to participate.

What to know before running for office

UBC Professor Maxwell Cameron, director of the annual Institute for Future Legislators, discusses the knowledge and skills it takes to be a politician in this Q&A.

Meet Alix Ohlin – the new Chair of UBC Creative Writing

Acclaimed author Alix Ohlin discusses her inspirations, writing process, and why taking creative risks is important as she begins her tenure at UBC.

What China’s two-child policy means for women’s rights

A new study by UBC sociologist Yue Qian suggests that China's new universal two-child policy could be negatively affecting women’s status and gender equality.

Monsoon Islam

Wall Scholar Sebastian Prange of the UBC Department of History studies the evolution of Islam across the Indian Ocean.

Bronwyn Bragg explores link between Canadian immigration policy and integration

Geography PhD student and Public Scholar is exploring the gendered and generational dynamics of immigrant integration and belonging in Canadian cities.

Curating Curiosities: UBC History course gives students a hands-on experience with the past

A new collaboration, led by Dr. Tara Mayer, has brought the Department of History and the Museum of Vancouver together on an exciting pedagogical project.

A new alliance aims to close the gender gap in STEM

How can we teach children that girls can be as good at math and science as boys are? How do we encourage more women to study computer science and engineering? These are just a couple of the questions that a team of social scientists, led by Psychology Professor Toni Schmader, are trying to answer.

ARTS INSTAGRAM

  • "Graduated! I’m now a Master of Music 😱 Standing next to an actual master of this craft, an exceptional educator and my biggest motivator, Prof. Nancy Hermiston 💐"⠀ ⠀ Photo & caption: @ireminceopera ⠀ ⠀ Congratulations Irem!"Graduated! I’m now a Master of Music 😱 Standing next to an actual master of this craft, an exceptional educator and my biggest motivator, Prof. Nancy Hermiston 💐"⠀ ⠀ Photo & caption: @ireminceopera ⠀ ⠀ Congratulations Irem!
  • Where does morality come from? The answer used to be obvious: morality is the result of learning. Through teaching from parents, interactions with peers and observations of how others act, we learn which actions are right and which are wrong, who is good and who is bad, who deserves praise and who should be punished. ⠀ ⠀ But while there is no doubt that experience plays a large role in moral development, the work of Dr. Kiley Hamlin, Canada Research Chair in Developmental Psychology, is showing that some aspects of morality, such as liking good guys and disliking bad guys, may be innate. ⠀ ⠀ Hamlin is studying very young infants who arguably lack many of the experiences we may think are required for moral judgments. She presents infants with brief puppet interactions in which a character gets helped by a nice puppet and harmed by a mean puppet. After the show, infants choose between the nice and mean puppets and an overwhelming majority of them choose the good guy. ⠀ ⠀ Through this and many other studies, Hamlin is exploring the earliest developmental emergence of human social and moral judgment. Her research may completely change the way we think about morality, both developmentally and in its adult form.⠀ ⠀ -⠀⠀ This is part of a series showcasing the Canada Research Chairs in the Faculty of Arts. ⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀ #facesofresearch #ubcarts #canadaresearchchair @ubcpsychWhere does morality come from? The answer used to be obvious: morality is the result of learning. Through teaching from parents, interactions with peers and observations of how others act, we learn which actions are right and which are wrong, who is good and who is bad, who deserves praise and who should be punished. ⠀ ⠀ But while there is no doubt that experience plays a large role in moral development, the work of Dr. Kiley Hamlin, Canada Research Chair in Developmental Psychology, is showing that some aspects of morality, such as liking good guys and disliking bad guys, may be innate. ⠀ ⠀ Hamlin is studying very young infants who arguably lack many of the experiences we may think are required for moral judgments. She presents infants with brief puppet interactions in which a character gets helped by a nice puppet and harmed by a mean puppet. After the show, infants choose between the nice and mean puppets and an overwhelming majority of them choose the good guy. ⠀ ⠀ Through this and many other studies, Hamlin is exploring the earliest developmental emergence of human social and moral judgment. Her research may completely change the way we think about morality, both developmentally and in its adult form.⠀ ⠀ -⠀⠀ This is part of a series showcasing the Canada Research Chairs in the Faculty of Arts. ⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀ #facesofresearch #ubcarts #canadaresearchchair @ubcpsych
  • Passage of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in 2007 signalled an important shift in global Indigenous politics and the declaration's Indigenous peoples’ rights. Since passage, Indigenous rights advocates and movements have become squarely focused on the implementation of Indigenous rights.⠀ ⠀ The declaration provides international recognition of the inherent human rights of indigenous peoples, both as individuals and as collectives, with Indigenous self-determination serving as the core element. It also offers protections for state sovereignty, precluding Indigenous peoples’ secession or state-making efforts. The end result of this internal tension is that implementation of Indigenous rights involves a complex and ongoing set of politics in which the competing claims of Indigenous peoples and states, particularly in the realm of self-determination, must be navigated.⠀ ⠀ Dr. Sheryl Lightfoot, Canada Research Chair in Global Indigenous Rights and Politics, is investigating how Indigenous political actors are navigating the international system and are negotiating rights claims with individual states. ⠀ ⠀ She aims to answer such questions as: What are the implications of global Indigenous rights for Indigenous peoples, states and the international system? What does implementation of Indigenous peoples’ rights mean in theory and in practice? How are these rights claims being negotiated? ⠀ ⠀ Lightfoot’s research will help clarify how global Indigenous politics are shifting elements of the international order, and what impacts this shift will have on the politics of indigenous-state relationships.⠀ ⠀ -⠀⠀ This is part of a series showcasing the Canada Research Chairs in the Faculty of Arts. ⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀ #facesofresearch #ubcarts #canadaresearchchairPassage of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in 2007 signalled an important shift in global Indigenous politics and the declaration's Indigenous peoples’ rights. Since passage, Indigenous rights advocates and movements have become squarely focused on the implementation of Indigenous rights.⠀ ⠀ The declaration provides international recognition of the inherent human rights of indigenous peoples, both as individuals and as collectives, with Indigenous self-determination serving as the core element. It also offers protections for state sovereignty, precluding Indigenous peoples’ secession or state-making efforts. The end result of this internal tension is that implementation of Indigenous rights involves a complex and ongoing set of politics in which the competing claims of Indigenous peoples and states, particularly in the realm of self-determination, must be navigated.⠀ ⠀ Dr. Sheryl Lightfoot, Canada Research Chair in Global Indigenous Rights and Politics, is investigating how Indigenous political actors are navigating the international system and are negotiating rights claims with individual states. ⠀ ⠀ She aims to answer such questions as: What are the implications of global Indigenous rights for Indigenous peoples, states and the international system? What does implementation of Indigenous peoples’ rights mean in theory and in practice? How are these rights claims being negotiated? ⠀ ⠀ Lightfoot’s research will help clarify how global Indigenous politics are shifting elements of the international order, and what impacts this shift will have on the politics of indigenous-state relationships.⠀ ⠀ -⠀⠀ This is part of a series showcasing the Canada Research Chairs in the Faculty of Arts. ⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀ #facesofresearch #ubcarts #canadaresearchchair
  • The average three-year-old cannot tie their shoes, read or do basic math. Yet she can easily learn a new language—something few adults can achieve without great effort.⠀ Why are children so good at learning languages? And why can’t adults learn new languages with the same ease? As Canada Research Chair in Language Acquisition, Dr. Carla Hudson Kam is trying to answer these questions.⠀ ⠀ Over the past decade, Hudson Kam has been investigating these issues by teaching people miniature artificial languages that are designed to mimic real languages. By manipulating what learners see and hear, she and her research team are able to figure out what kinds of patterns are easy or hard to learn. They can also determine whether our ability to learn harder patterns changes with age, and if so, why.⠀ ⠀ Although children have limitations when it comes to memory, Hudson Kam’s findings suggest that these limitations may actually offer an advantage when it comes to learning languages. Ultimately, her work will improve our understanding of how language is learned, and may change the way second languages are taught, particularly to adults.⠀ ⠀ -⠀⠀ This is part of a series showcasing the Canada Research Chairs in the Faculty of Arts. ⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀ #facesofresearch #ubcarts #canadaresearchchairThe average three-year-old cannot tie their shoes, read or do basic math. Yet she can easily learn a new language—something few adults can achieve without great effort.⠀ Why are children so good at learning languages? And why can’t adults learn new languages with the same ease? As Canada Research Chair in Language Acquisition, Dr. Carla Hudson Kam is trying to answer these questions.⠀ ⠀ Over the past decade, Hudson Kam has been investigating these issues by teaching people miniature artificial languages that are designed to mimic real languages. By manipulating what learners see and hear, she and her research team are able to figure out what kinds of patterns are easy or hard to learn. They can also determine whether our ability to learn harder patterns changes with age, and if so, why.⠀ ⠀ Although children have limitations when it comes to memory, Hudson Kam’s findings suggest that these limitations may actually offer an advantage when it comes to learning languages. Ultimately, her work will improve our understanding of how language is learned, and may change the way second languages are taught, particularly to adults.⠀ ⠀ -⠀⠀ This is part of a series showcasing the Canada Research Chairs in the Faculty of Arts. ⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀ #facesofresearch #ubcarts #canadaresearchchair
  • Scarcity is an urgent and pervasive problem in the world: globally, some 1.4 billion people live in extreme poverty; 1.2 billion live without electricity; and more than 780 million lack access to clean water. Even in developed countries, there is scarcity. For example, many communities in Canada face water or food shortages, and one in four children in the United States lives in poverty. More generally, almost everyone has experienced a lack of time at some point.⠀ ⠀ According to research by Dr. Jiaying Zhao, Canada Research Chair in Behavioural Sustainability, scarcity does not only signify a lack of resources—it also presents challenging psychological demands on a person. Zhao’s research has shown that scarcity can hinder cognitive function, which in itself may worsen the condition of scarcity.⠀ ⠀ Zhao and her research team are identifying how scarcity leads to neglect; what consequences arise from scarcity of environmental resources, such as food or water; how scarcity can result in failure to engage in environmental action; and how resource inequality induces the experience of scarcity.⠀ ⠀ This research will lay new theoretical, empirical and methodological ground for a science of scarcity. It will not only further our understanding of scarcity and its resulting cognitive and behavioural consequences, but also provide fundamental insights on human behaviour and decision-making that emerge from the psychology of scarcity.⠀ More importantly, Zhao’s research could lead to policy changes on social issues like poverty, sustainability and inequality. ⠀ ⠀ -⠀⠀ This is part of a series showcasing the Canada Research Chairs in the Faculty of Arts. ⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀ #facesofresearch #ubcarts #canadaresearchchair @ubcpsych ⠀Scarcity is an urgent and pervasive problem in the world: globally, some 1.4 billion people live in extreme poverty; 1.2 billion live without electricity; and more than 780 million lack access to clean water. Even in developed countries, there is scarcity. For example, many communities in Canada face water or food shortages, and one in four children in the United States lives in poverty. More generally, almost everyone has experienced a lack of time at some point.⠀ ⠀ According to research by Dr. Jiaying Zhao, Canada Research Chair in Behavioural Sustainability, scarcity does not only signify a lack of resources—it also presents challenging psychological demands on a person. Zhao’s research has shown that scarcity can hinder cognitive function, which in itself may worsen the condition of scarcity.⠀ ⠀ Zhao and her research team are identifying how scarcity leads to neglect; what consequences arise from scarcity of environmental resources, such as food or water; how scarcity can result in failure to engage in environmental action; and how resource inequality induces the experience of scarcity.⠀ ⠀ This research will lay new theoretical, empirical and methodological ground for a science of scarcity. It will not only further our understanding of scarcity and its resulting cognitive and behavioural consequences, but also provide fundamental insights on human behaviour and decision-making that emerge from the psychology of scarcity.⠀ More importantly, Zhao’s research could lead to policy changes on social issues like poverty, sustainability and inequality. ⠀ ⠀ -⠀⠀ This is part of a series showcasing the Canada Research Chairs in the Faculty of Arts. ⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀ #facesofresearch #ubcarts #canadaresearchchair @ubcpsych ⠀
  • Is it ethical for families in the global north to import workers from the south to care for their children if these workers must leave their own children? How might someone from the Philippines answer that question? Is it appropriate for families in the global north to export their elderly parents (who may have dementia) to facilities in Thailand or the Philippines for round-the-clock care? What failures in the global north’s care systems lead families to make such decisions? Informed public discussion on issues like these means considering perspectives from multiple, transnational angles because the issue often looks quite different depending on where we stand.⠀ ⠀ Dr. Geraldine Pratt, Canada Research Chair in Transnationalism, Precarity and Performance, explores these and other questions, with a particular focus on the migration of low-skilled temporary workers. Her research involves talking to government policy-makers, working with migrant organizations, analyzing government statistics and policies, and gathering in-depth life histories and testimonies from both migrants and those in need of their services.⠀ ⠀ Working with professional and community-based theatre artists in Canada, the Philippines and Germany, Pratt and her research team are also transforming their research—conducted mostly in Canada and the Philippines—into theatrical performances to share multiple perspectives and stimulate informed and nuanced transnational dialogue and debate.⠀ ⠀ By turning social science research into theatre (and vice versa), they are bringing evidence-based research to diverse audiences. Their aim is to change the nature of public debate on temporary foreign migration and emerging global geographies of care.⠀ ⠀ -⠀ This is part of a series showcasing the Canada Research Chairs in the Faculty of Arts. ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ #facesofresearch #ubcarts #canadaresearchchairIs it ethical for families in the global north to import workers from the south to care for their children if these workers must leave their own children? How might someone from the Philippines answer that question? Is it appropriate for families in the global north to export their elderly parents (who may have dementia) to facilities in Thailand or the Philippines for round-the-clock care? What failures in the global north’s care systems lead families to make such decisions? Informed public discussion on issues like these means considering perspectives from multiple, transnational angles because the issue often looks quite different depending on where we stand.⠀ ⠀ Dr. Geraldine Pratt, Canada Research Chair in Transnationalism, Precarity and Performance, explores these and other questions, with a particular focus on the migration of low-skilled temporary workers. Her research involves talking to government policy-makers, working with migrant organizations, analyzing government statistics and policies, and gathering in-depth life histories and testimonies from both migrants and those in need of their services.⠀ ⠀ Working with professional and community-based theatre artists in Canada, the Philippines and Germany, Pratt and her research team are also transforming their research—conducted mostly in Canada and the Philippines—into theatrical performances to share multiple perspectives and stimulate informed and nuanced transnational dialogue and debate.⠀ ⠀ By turning social science research into theatre (and vice versa), they are bringing evidence-based research to diverse audiences. Their aim is to change the nature of public debate on temporary foreign migration and emerging global geographies of care.⠀ ⠀ -⠀ This is part of a series showcasing the Canada Research Chairs in the Faculty of Arts. ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ #facesofresearch #ubcarts #canadaresearchchair
  • Environmental disputes over water often involve not only struggles over natural resources but other ideological and political conflicts as well. ⠀ ⠀ Dr. Shaylih Muehlmann, Canada Research Chair in Language, Culture and the Environment, is analyzing how such conflicts are often as much about who gets access and rights to water as they are about struggles over class hierarchy, language politics and the definition of particular identity categories.⠀ ⠀ Muehlmann is examining water disputes in the region around the Colorado River in northern Mexico, which has historically been dominated by agriculture and fishing. The river used to run from the US Rocky Mountains to the Gulf of California, but in recent decades has rarely made it past the international border because of extensive overdevelopment upstream. Muehlmann is exploring distinct yet interrelated strategies that locals in the Colorado River Delta have used to respond to environmental displacement and state restrictions on their use of the river. ⠀ ⠀ Environmental marginalization often obscures and reinforces other kinds of inequalities, such as gender, language and class hierarchies. At the same time, environmental conflict can become the catalyst by which these inequalities become visible and contested. ⠀ ⠀ Muehlmann’s empirical analysis of environmental marginalization and structural violence on the United States-Mexico border will help shape a theoretical approach to the analysis of identity formation amid conflicts over such natural resources as water.⠀ ⠀ -⠀ This is part of a series showcasing the Canada Research Chairs in the Faculty of Arts. ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ #facesofresearch #ubcarts #canadaresearchchair⠀Environmental disputes over water often involve not only struggles over natural resources but other ideological and political conflicts as well. ⠀ ⠀ Dr. Shaylih Muehlmann, Canada Research Chair in Language, Culture and the Environment, is analyzing how such conflicts are often as much about who gets access and rights to water as they are about struggles over class hierarchy, language politics and the definition of particular identity categories.⠀ ⠀ Muehlmann is examining water disputes in the region around the Colorado River in northern Mexico, which has historically been dominated by agriculture and fishing. The river used to run from the US Rocky Mountains to the Gulf of California, but in recent decades has rarely made it past the international border because of extensive overdevelopment upstream. Muehlmann is exploring distinct yet interrelated strategies that locals in the Colorado River Delta have used to respond to environmental displacement and state restrictions on their use of the river. ⠀ ⠀ Environmental marginalization often obscures and reinforces other kinds of inequalities, such as gender, language and class hierarchies. At the same time, environmental conflict can become the catalyst by which these inequalities become visible and contested. ⠀ ⠀ Muehlmann’s empirical analysis of environmental marginalization and structural violence on the United States-Mexico border will help shape a theoretical approach to the analysis of identity formation amid conflicts over such natural resources as water.⠀ ⠀ -⠀ This is part of a series showcasing the Canada Research Chairs in the Faculty of Arts. ⠀⠀ ⠀⠀ #facesofresearch #ubcarts #canadaresearchchair⠀
  • "Sexuality" is a word that is pervasive in conversations and in modern culture. Despite this, there is no real consensus in society on what the word means.⠀ ⠀ Amin Ghaziani, Canada Research Chair in Sexuality and Urban Studies, is examining how our preoccupations with biology (sexuality that stems from our chromosomes, hormones, and reproductive functions) and individuated privacy (sexuality as a deeply personal matter related to our need for intimacy) have left us ill-equipped to understand the social, cultural, and spatial expressions of human sexuality.⠀ ⠀ Sexuality is not just a phenomenon of nature nor is it just personal—it is also profoundly public. Social institutions like churches, families, the mass media, the military and schools all assign a particular set of cultural meanings to sex.⠀ ⠀ These meanings influence what we do, with whom, and whether we associate any symbolism or significance to those acts and interactions. This is why sex has an orientation; why it is legible in the eyes of the law; why it inspires political struggles for equality and social justice; and why we as a society at once celebrate and regulate it. Sexuality, in other words, is what happens to sex when it comes into contact with culture.⠀ ⠀ Ghaziani’s research will elevate the status of sexuality as a centrepoint for thought, transforming how future generations think about the meanings of human sexuality.⠀ ⠀ - This is part of a series showcasing the Canada Research Chairs in the Faculty of Arts. ⠀ ⠀ #facesofresearch #ubcarts #canadaresearchchair⠀"Sexuality" is a word that is pervasive in conversations and in modern culture. Despite this, there is no real consensus in society on what the word means.⠀ ⠀ Amin Ghaziani, Canada Research Chair in Sexuality and Urban Studies, is examining how our preoccupations with biology (sexuality that stems from our chromosomes, hormones, and reproductive functions) and individuated privacy (sexuality as a deeply personal matter related to our need for intimacy) have left us ill-equipped to understand the social, cultural, and spatial expressions of human sexuality.⠀ ⠀ Sexuality is not just a phenomenon of nature nor is it just personal—it is also profoundly public. Social institutions like churches, families, the mass media, the military and schools all assign a particular set of cultural meanings to sex.⠀ ⠀ These meanings influence what we do, with whom, and whether we associate any symbolism or significance to those acts and interactions. This is why sex has an orientation; why it is legible in the eyes of the law; why it inspires political struggles for equality and social justice; and why we as a society at once celebrate and regulate it. Sexuality, in other words, is what happens to sex when it comes into contact with culture.⠀ ⠀ Ghaziani’s research will elevate the status of sexuality as a centrepoint for thought, transforming how future generations think about the meanings of human sexuality.⠀ ⠀ - This is part of a series showcasing the Canada Research Chairs in the Faculty of Arts. ⠀ ⠀ #facesofresearch #ubcarts #canadaresearchchair⠀
  • Canada is an aging society, with the number of Canadians aged 65 years and older expected to reach more than 10 million by 2036. Given this demographic shift, more research is needed to help older adults age in better health. ⠀ ⠀ Dr. Christiane Hoppmann, Canada Research Chair in Adult Development and Health, is conducting cutting-edge research targeting key psychological factors regarding social resources and motivations to explain why some older adults age relatively well while others have significant health problems. She is conducting in-depth assessments of activities of daily life to provide insights into the behaviours and feelings of older adults, which can shape long-term aging outcomes. ⠀ ⠀ Hoppmann is also examining how older adults can work together with their spouses to better overcome barriers to daily physical activity and bridge the gap between physical activity goals and actual physical activity. ⠀ ⠀ She aims to develop interventions that will capitalize on older adults’ strengths and resources to foster healthy aging. ⠀ ⠀ Hoppman’s research will provide much-needed information about how older adults can contribute to improved healthy aging.⠀ - This is part of a series showcasing the Canada Research Chairs in the Faculty of Arts. ⠀ #facesofresearch #ubcarts #canadaresearchchair @ubcpsychCanada is an aging society, with the number of Canadians aged 65 years and older expected to reach more than 10 million by 2036. Given this demographic shift, more research is needed to help older adults age in better health. ⠀ ⠀ Dr. Christiane Hoppmann, Canada Research Chair in Adult Development and Health, is conducting cutting-edge research targeting key psychological factors regarding social resources and motivations to explain why some older adults age relatively well while others have significant health problems. She is conducting in-depth assessments of activities of daily life to provide insights into the behaviours and feelings of older adults, which can shape long-term aging outcomes. ⠀ ⠀ Hoppmann is also examining how older adults can work together with their spouses to better overcome barriers to daily physical activity and bridge the gap between physical activity goals and actual physical activity. ⠀ ⠀ She aims to develop interventions that will capitalize on older adults’ strengths and resources to foster healthy aging. ⠀ ⠀ Hoppman’s research will provide much-needed information about how older adults can contribute to improved healthy aging.⠀ - This is part of a series showcasing the Canada Research Chairs in the Faculty of Arts. ⠀ #facesofresearch #ubcarts #canadaresearchchair @ubcpsych
  • What does kinship have to do with Indigenous literary expression? What questions do Indigenous writers and other artists ask about belonging and its relationship to contemporary issues? How do their works extend, complicate, and challenge conventional notions of Indigenous community, especially across the species divide? And what might be the value of applying kinship as a critical category to different Indigenous relationships, exchanges, and experiences?⠀ ⠀ “Critical Kinship in Indigenous Literature and Creative Expression” is a project of Daniel Justice, Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Literature and Expressive Culture. It focuses on Indigenous literary arts and the ways they pose complex questions about lived (and imagined) relations, while offering alternatives for how we might recognize, enhance, and strengthen those connections. Justice suggests the notion of “critical kinship” is a productive framework for understanding these questions. He argues that inclusive, context-specific ways of belonging are essential to the realization of justice-oriented decolonial possibilities for Indigenous peoples.⠀ ⠀ This project applies critical kinship to both human and other-than-human relations through creative practice. This allows Justice to consider the ways that diverse artists address existing understanding of kinship, and imagine new formations in order to address current intellectual, cultural and political priorities and concerns.⠀ ⠀ Ultimately, this work places creative expression alongside language, politics, history and ceremony as a necessary component of healthy and sustainable Indigenous peoplehood today.⠀ ⠀ Photo credit: Melvin Yap - This is part of a series showcasing the Canada Research Chairs in the Faculty of Arts. ⠀ #facesofresearch #ubcarts #canadaresearchchair #indigenousliteratureWhat does kinship have to do with Indigenous literary expression? What questions do Indigenous writers and other artists ask about belonging and its relationship to contemporary issues? How do their works extend, complicate, and challenge conventional notions of Indigenous community, especially across the species divide? And what might be the value of applying kinship as a critical category to different Indigenous relationships, exchanges, and experiences?⠀ ⠀ “Critical Kinship in Indigenous Literature and Creative Expression” is a project of Daniel Justice, Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Literature and Expressive Culture. It focuses on Indigenous literary arts and the ways they pose complex questions about lived (and imagined) relations, while offering alternatives for how we might recognize, enhance, and strengthen those connections. Justice suggests the notion of “critical kinship” is a productive framework for understanding these questions. He argues that inclusive, context-specific ways of belonging are essential to the realization of justice-oriented decolonial possibilities for Indigenous peoples.⠀ ⠀ This project applies critical kinship to both human and other-than-human relations through creative practice. This allows Justice to consider the ways that diverse artists address existing understanding of kinship, and imagine new formations in order to address current intellectual, cultural and political priorities and concerns.⠀ ⠀ Ultimately, this work places creative expression alongside language, politics, history and ceremony as a necessary component of healthy and sustainable Indigenous peoplehood today.⠀ ⠀ Photo credit: Melvin Yap - This is part of a series showcasing the Canada Research Chairs in the Faculty of Arts. ⠀ #facesofresearch #ubcarts #canadaresearchchair #indigenousliterature

ARTS ACKNOWLEDGES

Congratulations Kenneth Lum

Congratulations Anne Martin-Matthews

Congratulations Michael Anthony Church

Congratulations Janet Werker

Congratulations Karen Bakker & Team

Congratulations Karen Bakker

Congratulations Margery Fee

Congratulations Dominic Lopes

Congratulations Michael Devereux

Congratulations Ryan Schroeder



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