Rodriguez looks to steer the university’s newest building by focusing on relationships, collaboration and trust
Natalie Rodriguez, Director, Interdisciplinarity and Operations x̌əl sic snpax̌nwixʷtn.
Described by her peers as a research rebel, Natalie Rodriguez has an extensive background leading interdisciplinary programs and large-scale research initiatives. It’s a skillset that is integral to her position as Director of Interdisciplinarity and Operations x̌əl sic snpax̌nwixʷtn.
As UBC Okanagan’s newest building, set to open in 2026, x̌əl sic snpax̌nwixʷtn will become an interdisciplinary hub for students, faculty and staff to collaborate and innovate across the boundaries of social sciences, natural sciences, humanities and creative and professional disciplines. In her role, Rodriguez is responsible for fostering the building’s interdisciplinary culture. Working with x̌əl sic snpax̌nwixʷtn Academic Co-leads, Dr. Karis Shearer and Dr. Peter Simpson, she oversees the implementation of the project’s priorities, goals and objectives, manages the building’s occupancy and space usage, facilitates research support mechanisms and promotes interdisciplinary research activities to ensure transformative results.
Rodriguez believes that creating a collaborative working environment built on trust is key to the project’s success.
“True interdisciplinarity extends beyond adding people with diverse expertise to the building. It requires intentionality in building relationships and fostering a sense of community which can only be accomplished by moving at the speed of trust. As we move towards the opening of the building, I’ll be focusing on co-designing programming that will center on building these relationships, along with encouraging sharing of ideas and diverse perspectives in crafting the vision for x̌əl sic snpax̌nwixʷtn.”
Rodriguez was a CBC Future 40 Award winner in 2020, nominated to WXN Top 100 Most Powerful Women in Canada in 2021 and awarded the Allergen NCE Michelle Harkness Mentorship Excellence Award in 2023.
Her work has been supported by a diverse portfolio of funders including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, National Institutes of Health (NIH), Wellcome Open Trust, Health Data Research UK, Open Philanthropy, Canadian Foundation for Innovation (CFI), Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR).
Prior to UBC, Rodriguez held positions as the Director of Operations, Diversity & Inclusion of THRiVE Discovery Lab, Operations Director of the Manitoba Interdisciplinary Lactation Centre (MILC), and Co-Director of the International Milk Composition (IMiC) Consortium.
Her impressive academic background includes both a BEd and BMus from the University of Winnipeg, an MBA from the University of Manitoba, and multiple professional certifications from both Harvard and Cornell including operations management, change leadership, and diversity, equity and inclusion. She is a certified EDI specialist.
Dr. Shearer and Dr. Simpson are excited about what’s to come for x̌əl sic snpax̌nwixʷtn and the impact Rodriguez will make in her role.
“We could not be luckier to have Natalie directing operations and interdisciplinarity in x̌əl sic snpax̌nwixʷtn,” says Dr. Shearer. “The kind of interdisciplinary training she brings in the fine arts, education, and business, along with her leadership experience in health research is outstanding. She embodies both the technical and creative background needed to lead this unique strategic initiative.”
Please reach out to Natalie Rodriguez to learn more about x̌əl sic snpax̌nwixʷtn goals and initiatives.
About x̌əl sic snpax̌nwixʷtn:
x̌əl sic snpax̌nwixʷtn is designed bring together scholars and students in a new and innovative way. x̌əl sic snpax̌nwixʷtn will be uniquely organized into neighbourhoods shared by teams of interdisciplinary researchers from across UBC Okanagan’s entire research spectrum. The building will support these teams as they research and help solve complex societal challenges from multiple perspectives, leveraging the expertise already assembled on campus and helping recruit new talent to meet the promise of an engaged university.