Updated Jan 2, 2026
This December, UBC Arts faculty and students shared their expertise across major media outlets including The Washington Post, The Economist, The Globe and Mail, NPR, CBC and The Walrus, offering insight on issues ranging from public policy and climate change to language, culture, and wellbeing.
Centre for Migration Studies
Nearly half of immigrants say temporary foreign workers fill the jobs Canadians don’t want: OMNI-Leger poll
Dr. Irene Bloemraad addressed common misconceptions about foreign workers and the Temporary Foreign Worker Program.
CityNews Toronto
Department of English Language & Literatures
Linguistic experts urge Carney government to stop using British spellings
Dr. Stefan Dollinger joined linguistics experts in urging the federal government to use Canadian English rather than British spellings in official documents, arguing that language choices signal national identity and cultural confidence.
The Washington Post; CBC
Department of Geography
Chair of government’s climate advisory group resigns, calls process ‘performative’
Dr. Simon Donner commented on his resignation from the federal government’s Net-Zero Advisory Body and spoke about broader challenges in federal climate policymaking.
iPolitics, Toronto Star, CTV News
UBC students sing on the beach and record music to raise money for ocean protection
UBC honours human geography student Emiko Wijeysundera brought together dozens of students to record a collaborative song for the Ocean Song Project, a student-led ocean stewardship initiative.
Vancouver Sun
Opinion: Proposed changes to DTES plan risk affordable housing for local residents
Research from assistant professor Kuni Kamizaki, an associate member of the Department of Geography, was cited in coverage of Vancouver’s proposed Downtown Eastside rezoning.
Vancouver Sun
Department of History
Historian Coll Thrush researches the dark history of Pacific Northwest shipwrecks in “Wrecked”
Coll Thrush explores nature, power and memory through the stories of the Pacific Northwest’s shipwrecks in his new book.
University of Washington Magazine
International experts urge Japan to apologize for war crimes in China
Professor emerita Diana Larry appeared in a short video alongside international experts calling for Japan to recognize and apologize for war crimes in China in WWII.
China Global Television Network
Department of Philosophy
How humankind’s 10m-year love affair with booze might end
Edward Slingerland’s research on alcohol and the evolution of social cooperation was cited in a feature exploring how intoxication may have shaped the rise of human civilization.
The Economist
Department of Political Science
Oil executives once booed Canada’s prime minister. Now they cheer him.
Kathryn Harrison commented on Prime Minister Mark Carney’s environmental policy shifts.
The Washington Post
At least one part of the U.S. campaign against Venezuela makes sense: taking on the ‘dark fleet’
Michael Byers commented on the recent actions of the US government enacting air strikes against small boats on the Venezuelan coast.
The Globe and Mail
Why Mark Carney’s pipeline deal with Alberta puts the Canadian federation in jeopardy
Stewart Prest wrote about the broader political impact of the memorandum of understanding between the federal government and Alberta.
The Conversation
Carney’s Pipeline Deal Lifts Up Alberta and Demotes BC to Second-Class Status
Dr. Stewart Prest was interviewed on the political consequences of federal-provincial negotiation.
The Walrus
Number of candidates hoping to unseat Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim grows – as does vote splitting fears
Dr. Stewart Prest says it could be risky for Vancouver’s left-wing parties to only coalesce around a candidate close to the election.
CBC
What to know about Venezuela, Maduro and Trump’s possible military plans
Dr. Max Cameron discussed the U.S.’s military strategy against Venezuela and the regime of Nicolas Maduro.
Global News
B.C. has tried and failed to change its voting system. Could this time be different?
Dr. Stewart Prest commented on how many people in B.C. don’t see their political views represented in the current system.
CBRL-FM (Lethbridge, AB)
John Rustad quits as B.C. Conservative leader to avoid ‘civil war’
Dr. Stewart Prest says he can’t see a way for Rustad to regain control of the Opposition.
Toronto Star
Ottawa’s deal with Alberta on pipeline ignites rising BC backlash
Dr. Stewart Prest commented on the Federal government’s role in a dispute between provinces.
Kelowna Now, Waterloo Region Record
Department of Psychology
Could Cyprus be kinder?
Research by Dr. Elizabeth Dunn was cited showing that spending a few dollars on someone else boosts wellbeing more than spending the same amount on yourself.
Cyprus Mail
Department of Sociology
Will Carney’s energy deal with Alberta give him clout against Trump’s tariffs?
David Tindall weighed in on Prime Minister Carney’s proposed energy deal with Alberta
National Post
Letter from COP30 in Belém, Brazil
David Tindall wrote a dispatch for The Tyee from the UN climate summit in Brazil, examining Indigenous-led protests, debates over fossil fuel phase-out, AI’s growing role in climate policy, and Canada’s position as negotiations near their conclusion.
The Tyee
‘Fool’s errand’: Why the Exxon Valdez looms large over northern pipeline debate
David Tindall explained how the lasting cultural and visual legacy of the Exxon Valdez oil spill continues to shape public opinion, Indigenous opposition, and political debate around proposed pipeline and tanker projects on B.C.’s north coast.
The Canadian Press via Times Colonist
Museum of Anthropology
From snowboarder to weaver: Meghann O’Brien’s digital regalia lands at MOA
Dr. Hannah Turner, Associate Professor in the School of Information, co-curated a new MOA exhibit featuring works from snowboarder turned weaver, Meghann O’Brien.
Vancouver Sun
Museum of Anthropology at UBC embraces community-centred curating with Entangled Territories: Tibet Through Images
A new exhibition at MOA, curated by Fuyubi Nakamura (Asian Studies), centres Tibetan voices and community collaboration to re-examine how Tibet has been represented historically and today.
Pancouver
Book paints fascinating and gorgeous picture of Haida master carver 7IDANsuu James Hart
A new book examines the four-decade career of renowned Haida artist 7IDANsuu James Hart, whose works include the Reconciliation Pole at UBC and whose practice was shaped in part through his collaboration with Bill Reid at UBC’s Museum of Anthropology.
Regina Leader Post
School of Creative Writing
He had ‘the worst idea’ for a Hallmark movie — and turned it into a career
Instructor Zac Hug reflects on building a career writing Hallmark holiday films and discusses his new role teaching rom-com and screenwriting courses in UBC’s School of Creative Writing.
CBC
Settle in with one or two of these B.C. books this winter
Associate Professor Billy-Ray Belcourt’s book The Idea of An Entire Life was featured in a winter reading roundup.
CBC
The Opposite of the World
Billy-Ray Belcourt was interviewed about his new poetry collection, The Idea of an Entire Life.
The Los Angeles Review of Books
Here are the winners of the Whiting Foundation’s 2025 Nonfiction Grant
Alex Marzano-Lesnevich, Assistant Professor & Rogers Communications Chair in Creative Non-Fiction, was awarded a nonfiction grant.
Literary Hub
School of Music
Vancouver’s 2025 most streamed songs show listeners seek ‘comfort’ in uncertain times: professor
Prof. David Metzer analyzed Spotify’s 2025 Vancouver charts, noting a strong preference for ballads and downtempo songs as listeners turn to music for emotional comfort amid social and political uncertainty.
CBC
School of Social Work
UBC launches crisis micro-certificate
Instructor and clinician Jack York was interviewed on CBC about a new UBC Social Work program aimed at equipping frontline workers with practical tools to handle mental health and substance use emergencies safely and compassionately.
CBC – The Early Edition with Stephen Quinn
School of Public Policy and Global Affairs
Rachel Maddow and Thomas L. Friedman will talk U.S. foreign policy shift at UBC speaker series
UBC’s 2026 Lind Initiative will examine the global consequences of shifting U.S. foreign policy through a speaker series featuring journalists, policymakers, artists, and commentators, including Thomas L. Friedman and Rachel Maddow.
Vancouver Sun
Trump’s rush to build nuclear reactors across the U.S. raises safety worries
Director Allison Macfarlane comments on the Trump administration’s plans around nuclear power.
NPR
Gasp! A contest on how to fund Vancouver transit improvements was won with three shocking words—sales tax hike
MA students Kiranjot Kaur Nahal, Khadija Rana, and Jasleen Kaur Johal-Takhar won a $1,000 prize from the Vancouver transit advocacy movement.
The Toronto Star
Montreal hosts G7 ministers to talk about artificial intelligence, quantum computing
Heidi Tworek commented on Canada’s opportunity to shape global technology policy
CTV News
Online harassment from outside academia silencing Canadian health experts
Health researchers need protection from harassment, write Heidi Tworek, Chris Tenove and Netheena Neena Mathews.
Otago Daily Times
Climate Study: The World Needs to Change Its Diet by 2050
New research led by professor Navin Ramankutty finds that most of the global population will need to shift toward lower-emission diets—particularly by reducing meat consumption—to meet international climate targets.
Sentient
Vancouver School of Economics
Report suggests Canadians under 30 are less happy than older generations
Professor emeritus John Helliwell commented on the drop in life satisfaction among younger Canadians.
Global News
There’s a happiness gap between young people in Quebec and in the rest of Canada
Professor emeritus John Helliwell discussed francophone social media’s role in the happiness of young people in Quebec.
Waterloo Region Record
