The COVID-19 Disability Survey captured perspectives from Canadians with different types of disabilities and their family members.

On Friday, December 3,  the United Nations observes the International Day of Persons with Disabilities in a global effort to increase awareness for the rights and wellbeing of persons with disabilities.

Dr. Kathleen Martin Ginis, UBC Okanagan professor and director for the Centre of Chronic Disease Prevention and Management is currently leading the national COVID-19 Disability Survey in partnership with the Ontario-based Abilities Centre.

The latest survey results confirm critical support is needed to prevent further hardships experienced by Canadians living with disabilities.

What are the major issues facing Canadians living with disabilities during COVID-19?

Mental health and social isolation are significant areas of concern. The majority of respondents, some 78 per cent reported the pandemic has negatively impacted their mental health. Among adults, 90 per cent had a worse mental health score than the general population average and 82 per cent reported greater social isolation. For children living with disabilities, almost all respondents, 98 per cent of them, had a worse mental health score compared to the population average.

What increased stressors or barriers are people facing?

About 50 per cent of respondents reported constant worries about finances, future plans, and friends and family. Other stressors included access to vaccines, fear of catching COVID-19, becoming seriously ill, transportation safety and hygiene as well as general anxiety over world issues.

Since the start of the pandemic, 68 per cent have had their work hours reduced, been laid off or furloughed. As Canadians with disabilities are already at greater risk of unemployment, ongoing reductions in work among this group are deeply concerning.

How has the pandemic impacted healthy behaviours?

A large group of adults, almost 60 per cent, reported less physical activity and worse eating habits. Of those who smoke, use cannabis or drink alcohol, roughly half reported increased substance use. On a positive note, the proportion of adults meeting the World Health Organization’s adult physical activity guidelines has increased from the initial survey reporting from 19 to 32 per cent.

Among children with disabilities, 63 per cent are less physically active and 47 per cent have worse eating habits than before the pandemic. The overall level of inactivity in this population is particularly troubling—56 per cent of children with disabilities do not meet the daily recommended 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous activity.

What can be done to better support Canadians living with disabilities?

There is an urgent need for government agencies and community organizations to develop and implement pandemic response strategies to support the needs of people of all abilities.

Increased access to services that can improve mental health and reduce social isolation is crucial to prevent damaging health impacts. A significant boost in funding for emotional counselling, peer support, recreation and leisure programs, as well as attendant care services is required as the pandemic and public health restrictions continue.

The COVID-19 Disability Survey reporting represents data from Canadians who identify as having a disability—such as a physical, cognitive or sensory disability—or having a child or family member living with a disability in their household.

To learn more and read the full report, visit: abilitiescentre.org/our-impact/research-programs/disability-survey

New UBCO research asserts that more neuroscience literacy in the general population will result in health fads that are debunked before people invest their money and time.

With the holiday season fast approaching, many people may already be thinking of new resolutions to live a healthier lifestyle come 2022.

Elijah Haynes is a research assistant at UBC Okanagan’s School of Health and Exercise Sciences. He cautions jumping on the bandwagon of any new health trend or fad diet. Haynes, who researches neuroscience literacy, believes that if more people had access to scientific knowledge, new fads would be debunked before people invest their money and time.

Haynes talks about his recently published article in Advances in Physiology Education that discusses the need to improve neuroscience literacy, and how doing so might save lives.

What led to this particular research subject?

Working as an outreach educator for UBC Okanagan’s iSTAND program, I had many opportunities to teach a range of learners—preschoolers, retirees and everyone in between. While we provided activities for a number of different sciences, the neuroscience activities tended to be the most popular across all age groups. The neuroscience events also produced the most interesting discussions about the potential applications of science. I wrote the article hoping to make other physiologists and neuroscientists aware that there is a demand for neuroscience knowledge, and also highlight ways they can provide it.

How did you become interested in neuroscience, and concerned for neuroscience literacy?

I was training as a high school football player and I noticed how different strength coaches would talk about the neuroscience of getting stronger. I watched YouTube videos to learn more about how the nervous system controls movement and was so fascinated that I opted to pursue undergrad and graduate studies in kinesiology.

My experience as an outreach educator made it apparent that a lot of neuroscience research is misunderstood. Given the implications of neuroscience research, I became concerned that public misunderstanding of neuroscience might lead to its misapplication. Without sufficient public understanding, society won’t be able to effectively use the knowledge gained from neuroscience research.

What needs to be done to improve science literacy in our community?

Canadians are lucky in that we have a vast supply of highly educated people living here—everyone knows something about something. At the same time, people are hungry for knowledge about how the world works. Not only does scientific knowledge need to be accessible, but science-literate people should also be available to ensure that knowledge is appropriately understood.

People should also have opportunities to see science “behind the scenes.” It would be phenomenal if universities and colleges designated spaces on campus for regular community engagement events and exhibits. One of the contributors to misinformation spread is distrust. There is a perception that scientists are simply elites protected from public scrutiny by institutions and government. If citizens felt that research was something they could see for themselves, they might be more receptive to knowledge gained by science.

What role does enhanced science literacy play in contemporary health issues?

Many health disorders in Canada are related to modern lifestyles. People are living longer, residing in increasingly denser communities, have access to more food and fewer physical activity requirements than ever before. While culture and societal norms play a big role in determining how we behave in our current environment, empirical knowledge about the way our bodies, especially our nervous systems, will help people make decisions on how to live healthier lives.

I think most people are aware that health trends and diet fads exist, yet every year new ones rise as soon as the last ones are debunked. Quite frankly, it’s sad seeing people spend hard-earned money on these products and services. It’s my hope that greater science literacy will prevent these fads and trends from gaining popularity.

How can people use science to avoid falling for health fads?

People should know that science is more than just memorized facts and showy demonstrations. Science is a process that generates knowledge. We can apply that process to anything we want to know more about. It starts by asking a question, and proceeds by determining the best way to find an answer. In science, how a question is answered is often more important than the answer itself.

When it comes to health fads, people should consider multiple sources of evidence. Instead of just seeking information that promotes a new lifestyle routine, try looking for information to debunk that lifestyle routine.

So, improving science literacy can lead to healthier lifestyles?

Whether we’re talking about health or any other science-related topic, engaging with others is the best way to broaden our understanding. We’ve seen many examples of science driving people apart over the last few years. By acknowledging that people approach, learning from a diverse array of backgrounds and then working together to improve our collective understanding, science can actually be a means of bringing people closer together. When this happens, science does more than just teach us about the world. Science creates connections between people. And those connections can create a healthy, thriving community.

A new UBCO study finds people are using small doses of psychedelics not for recreational purposes, but to combat anxiety and depression.

An international study led by UBC Okanagan researchers suggests repeated use of small doses of psychedelics such as psilocybin or LSD can be a valuable tool for those struggling with anxiety and depression.

The study, recently published in Nature: Scientific Reports, demonstrated fewer symptoms of anxiety and depression, and greater feelings of wellbeing among individuals who reported consuming psychedelics in small quantities, or microdosing, compared to those who did not.

Microdosing involves regular self-administration of psychedelic substances in amounts small enough to not impair normal cognitive functioning.

Considering this is the largest psychedelic microdosing study published to date, the results are encouraging, says UBCO doctoral student and lead author Joseph Rootman.

“In total, we followed more than 8,500 people from 75 countries using an anonymous self-reporting system—about half were following a microdosing regimen and half were not,” Rootman explains. “In comparing microdosers and non-microdosers, there was a clear association between microdosing and fewer symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress—which is important given the high prevalence of these conditions and the substantial suffering they cause.”

The study is also the first to systematically examine the practice of stacking, or combining microdoses of psychedelics with other substances like niacin, lions mane mushrooms and cacao, which some believe work in conjunction to maximize benefit.

Rootman works with Dr. Zach Walsh, a psychology professor in UBCO’s Irving K. Barber Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dr. Walsh says it’s an exciting time for research in this area.

“These findings highlight adults who are microdosing to treat their mental health conditions and enhance their wellbeing—rather than simply to get high,” says Dr. Walsh. “We have an epidemic of mental health problems, with existing treatments that don’t work for everyone. We need to follow the lead of patients who are taking these initiatives to improve their wellbeing and reduce suffering.”

Study co-author Kalin Harvey is the chief technology officer of Quantified Citizen, a mobile health research platform. He says this study highlights the potential of citizen science.

“The use of citizen science allows us to examine the effects of behaviours that are difficult to study in the lab due to regulatory challenges and stigma associated with the now discredited ‘war on drugs.’”

According to the Canadian Mental Health Association, one in five Canadians personally experience a mental health problem or illness each year. This is one of the many reasons Dr. Walsh says conducting innovative psychological research is imperative.

“These cross-sectional findings are promising and highlight the need for further investigation to better determine the impacts of factors like dosage and stacking,” explains Dr. Walsh.

“While the data is growing to support the use of psychedelics like psilocybin in large doses to treat depression and addiction—our data also helps to expand our understanding of how psychedelics may also help in smaller doses.”

A UBC Okanagan study created a demand model for e-scooter use in the City of Kelowna, determining the most popular times and areas for their use. Photo by Vince Jacob on Unsplash.

Depending on your age and where you live, you might think of the emerging electric scooter trend as a fun way to get around. Or an invitation for a quick trip to the emergency room.

The introduction of shared e-scooters in Kelowna has been received by a mixture of enthusiasm and derision over the past few years.

While the City of Kelowna embarked on a provincial e-scooter pilot project in April, a UBC Okanagan study indicates they are as popular as ever. But only in certain parts of the city and at certain times of the day.

“Despite the ongoing popularity of shared e-scooter services globally, there hasn’t been a lot of research into their actual demand—specifically how the demand varies over different times of the day and week across a city,” explains Muntahith Mehadil Orvin, a doctoral student at UBCO’s School of Engineering.

The shared e-scooter service is a comparatively fast and convenient mode for travelling shorter distances. Dockless, the e-scooters can be picked up or dropped off at any location in permitted service areas.

“These shared services have gained huge popularity recently for their convenience, sustainability, affordability and efficiency,” says Orvin.

The study developed a forecasting model by exploring key predictors such as time of day, week, season and weather characteristics, as well as transportation infrastructure, land use and neighbourhood features. Not surprisingly, the researchers found usage was likely to be higher when the weather was nice, with rentals dropping with inclement weather. The study also determined that demand is likely to be higher in e-scooter-friendly areas including those with a higher density, higher ratio of cycle lanes to vehicle lanes and higher mixed-land use.

Users tended to be younger and active in the urban or downtown zones, spending time in areas with a high density of hotels.

Rentable e-scooters were introduced in Kelowna on a trial basis in July 2019. Orvin examined data from July to October that year noting more than 22,700 shared trips were logged during those four months, with most taking place on the weekends in July and August. Scooters were available in several areas of town including Rutland, Capri Landmark and South Pandosy, but more than 90 per cent of the trips took place near Okanagan Lake and the downtown area.

Most trips were in the early afternoon and evenings, especially on weekends, with very few taking place in the early morning.

Mahmudur Fatmi, assistant professor and principal investigator of the Centre for Transportation and Land Use Research at UBC, is not surprised the e-scooters proved popular. He says a smaller-sized city like Kelowna attracts many visitors and is an ideal location for micro-mobility solutions.

“Kelowna’s bike infrastructure—combined with its parks and lake access in the flatter portion of the city—are critical elements to attract e-scooter users,” he says. “Such innovative micro-mobility options could be the affordable, equitable and sustainable way to go for short distance travel.”

The study did not look at the safety of e-scooters, a hot topic in Kelowna earlier this year.  However, Orvin says his findings provide important insights into when and where the demand is higher, which will assist in effective policy-making to support e-scooter use.

“Our data clearly illustrates that there is a call for micro-mobility solutions like e-scooters in Kelowna,” says Orvin. “Other similar-sized municipalities considering these type of transportation solutions could benefit by transferring the developed model to their settings to help predict demand over time and space.”

The research was published in the Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board with data supplied by the City of Kelowna and funding from a Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council Discovery Grant.

Young volcanic rocks, made of fragmental ash deposits, are pounded by the sea along Oahu’s coastline. Photo by Jeremy Bezanger on Unsplash

Everyone knows research takes time. Scientific discoveries generally don’t happen overnight.

UBC Okanagan’s Dr. John Greenough, professor of earth, environmental and geographic sciences in the Irving K. Barber Faculty of Science, is testament to that. Dr. Greenough has spent his career studying the Earth’s mantle—that mysterious layer of solid to semi-molten rock that spans below the crust to the liquid outer core.

Almost 85 per cent of the Earth’s volume is made up of its mantle. Understanding the evolution and functionality of the mantle is key to understanding other important processes, like crust development and plate tectonics.

Yet, very little is known of the mantle’s history and chemical composition.

Dr. Greenough has made it his lifelong mission to dig into this mystery. Despite numerous setbacks, he has found some answers. Those results, recently published in Communications, Earth and Environment, provide new insight into the mantle’s mysterious past.

Can you explain your area of research?

My research focuses on the Earth’s mantle, its composition and evolution. More specifically, I study the chemical variation seen in volcanic rocks and use it to determine how the rocks formed by melting in the mantle.

You have been working on this research paper for 20 years. —How did this project begin, and how did it progress over the years?

I’ve actually been pursuing this line of research since receiving my doctorate in 1984. A major problem is that we have minimal information about when variations in the composition of the mantle were formed, so we know little about how the mantle evolved.

In 2000, a colleague and I wanted to change that and decided to try and find answers by collecting samples of the mantle and dating them using zircon. Zircon is a common mineral in the Earth’s crust but it is rarely found in mantle rocks.

Zircons contain small amounts of uranium, which is radioactive as it decays it turns into lead. By measuring the amount of lead produced, we can determine an age.

But you faced setbacks. Did you find zircon in the samples collected?

Unfortunately, not at first. We tested our samples, which were chunks of rock brought up by an explosive lava flow from Earth’s mantle beneath Hawaii. But we couldn’t find any zircon in slices through the samples.

However, we knew if they were in there, they were rare. The zircons would be only slightly larger than dust fragments, so we knew our chances of slicing through a rock and intersecting them were low.

What changed?

We knew we needed to grind the rock into tiny pieces to concentrate the zircon—like panning for gold. But we also had to minimize the possibility of contaminant zircon from other sources, because it is a fine dust particle and there are traces of zircons everywhere. There was technology that existed, but we couldn’t access it, so the project stalled.

In 2014, I learned a colleague at another institution had access to this technology and I contacted him. Luckily, he volunteered to essentially blow up our samples, making it more likely to find zircons if they existed.

And eureka! You found the zircon

Finally, yes. We found zircon grains in two of seven samples. They had complicated growth histories and the outer part was 14 million years old—much older than the island of Oahu where the samples came from. Parts inside our zircon grains were 40 to 100 million years old, while age modelling indicated the zircons first formed one to two billion years ago.

What did you learn from these samples?

Our discovery created another mystery for us.

What is so fascinating, is that the ages for the zircons suggested the crystals had come from below the continents. But once zircon is exposed to 1,000 degrees Celsius, it becomes an open chemical system that cannot be dated.

This means, for our zircon grains to have preserved their dates, they must have been at temperatures below 1,000 degrees for all these years. Considering the temperature of the lava flow that brought them up was about 1,300 degrees, and the part of the mantle that convects is also about 1,300 degrees—how could this be possible?

We propose the zircons may have been preserved in a cool part of the mantle called the sub-continental lithospheric mantle. More recently, thick sections of this sub-continental mantle were removed by mantle convection from below a continent.

The thick blocks shielded the zircons from the high temperatures in the partially molten and flowing mantle which delivered the rocks to Oahu. The rocks may have come from below Papa New Guinea where a tectonic plate is plunging back into the mantle and heading toward Hawaii.

Alternatively, they may be fragments of sub-continental lithospheric mantle stranded in the convecting mantle when the supercontinent Pangea broke up. Either way, it provides us with greater insight into the mantle’s age and its origin of chemical variability.

How do your results move this area of research forward?

We need to fully understand how the mantle’s chemical variability has evolved and our results serve as a foundation that future researchers can build on.

The atmosphere, along with our oceans, crust, mantle and core, form interacting parts of the chemical system we call Earth. An understanding of the mantle is essential for unravelling how humans can impact these large geochemical systems. This research will hopefully lead to a fuller understanding of how our planet, our home, evolved.

The Similkameen River is one of eight regions that are part of the Canadian portion of the Columbia River Basin. Photo credit Cindy Boehm.

What: One River, Ethics Matter (OREM) conference
Who: UBCO’s Jeannette Armstrong, ʔaʔsiwɬ Grand Chief Stewart Phillip, traditional knowledge keepers, environmental experts, academic and religious scholars
When: November 17 and 18, from 9:30 am to 12:30 pm both days
Venue: Virtually via Zoom

As the world’s leaders convened at COP26 to discuss actions to address climate change, plans were finalized in the Okanagan for the annual One River, Ethics Matter (OREM) conference taking place later this month.

The 2021 One River Ethics Matter conference is hosted by the Okanagan Nation Alliance and UBC Okanagan. This will be the eighth annual event and it will focus on the Indigenous-led work of the Syilx nation with kł cp̓əlk̓ stim̓—restoring ntytyix (salmon)—to the Okanagan and Upper Columbia Rivers.

The main objective of the two-day conference is to discuss the review process now underway to modernize the 57-year old Columbia River Treaty. Participants include traditional ecological knowledge keepers, environmental experts, along with academic and religious scholars from both sides of the 49^th parallel.

Dr. Jeannette Armstrong, a Syilx knowledge keeper and UBCO associate professor who was recently appointed a Royal Society of Canada Scholar, will be one of several speakers at the event. Other leaders and panel experts include Grand Chief ʔaʔsiwɬ Stewart Phillip, who is president of the Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs, Okanagan Indian Band Chief Byron Louis, University of Idaho Professor Emerita Barbara Cosens, along with Indigenous youth experts, historians, biologists, policy officials and representatives from the Roman Catholic Church.

Pauline Terbasket, executive director of the Okanagan Nation Alliance, has been participating in the OREM conference since the first session in Spokane in 2014.

“These gatherings have been opportunities to feel the reality and impacts of colonization upon Indigenous Nations and the devastating impacts of the Columbia River Treaty. They also provide an opportunity to share stories that are familiar to all tribes along the Columbia River,” says Terbasket. “As the Indigenous people of the Columbia Basin, we are all salmon people, tied to the river for sustenance and to carry our responsibilities to care for all our lands, resources and peoples as we have since time immemorial.”

The OREM conference series is an ethics consultation process for improving the quality of ethical decision-making for the Columbia River.

Lesley Cormack, UBC Okanagan’s deputy vice-chancellor and vice-principal, will provide opening remarks at the event.

“The lasting and far-reaching effects of both colonization and climate change have taken a toll on the Columbia River basin, as with other natural environments around the world,” says Cormack. “Now, more than ever, it is essential that we come together to make thoughtful, ethical decisions that will support healthy and sustainable environments as well as truth and reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples.”

About OREM

Salmon have been blocked from reaching Canada’s Upper Columbia River after the Grand Coulee Dam was built in Washington State some 80 years ago. In 1964, Canada and the United States implemented the Columbia River Treaty to develop the hydroelectric potential of the Columbia River Basin and to manage flood risk.

Grounded in respectful dialogue the conference is a part of the Ethics and Treaty Project, which aims to increase public understanding of the Columbia River Treaty and provide an interdisciplinary forum to discuss shared stewardship of the river in the face of climate change. Alternating between the United States and Canada, the conference is jointly hosted by an Indigenous sovereign nation and an academic institution.

The 2021 OREM conference is free and open to the public. More information can be found at: riverethics.org

People can register for the event at: ubc.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_aKQEqnHxQ3y7L0TIMqb52A

UBC Okanagans researchers have been exploring BC’s wine identity and recently published a paper explaining why identity matters for a wine-producing territory.

It’s wine season in the Okanagan and wineries are busy harvesting crops and producing vintages to be enjoyed in the years to come.

While many people may have an image of what the Okanagan wine region looks like, researchers at UBC’s Wine Research Centre (WRC) say there is a lot more to the identity of a wine region and the wider territory than what many might think.

Working across both campuses, the WRC, which is part of the Social Economic Change Laboratory and headquartered in the Okanagan, conducts research in enology, viticulture, management and social sciences. It engages with industry and communities on the challenges of wine territory development.

Researchers at UBC Okanagan’s Faculty of Management Jacques-Olivier Pesme, Roger Sugden, Malida Mooken, Marcela Valania and Kim Buschert recently published a paper presenting a four-step process to engage a wine territory in reflecting on its identity.

Mooken explains why a wine territory’s identity is important.

Your research talks about a specific identity for a wine-producing region. Does this include all of BC?

Our work emphasizes the value of a shared identity for a wine-producing territory. In this case, we consider BC as a wine-producing territory, comprising several wine regions including the Okanagan Valley, Vancouver Island, Fraser Valley, Gulf Islands, Similkameen Valley, Kootenays, Lillooet, Shuswap and Thompson Valley.

Can you explain the concept of identity?

One can start exploring the concept of identity through three simple questions: Who are we? What do we aspire to do and become? How do others perceive us? However, a reflective process is necessary to get to meaningful answers.

When applied at a territorial level, the concept of identity is collective, shaped by natural and human attributes. Relationships between people and the environment, history, culture and associated social, economic and political factors all play a part in what and how identity is formed, by whom and for which purposes.

Why does identity matter for a wine-producing territory, and what are your observations with regard to BC?

Consciously reflecting on, shaping and communicating its identity are fundamental steps for any wine territory to differentiate itself, and operate in the highly competitive world of wine.

An industry-commissioned report estimates the overall economic impact of the BC wine industry in 2015 at more than $2.5 billion, with direct and indirect employment exceeding 10,000. Despite its recent growth, BC is still not a globally recognized wine territory.

With growing competition on the Canadian wine market, a collective approach with an authentic identity would limit the effect of dispersed action across the territory and strengthen BC’s position vis- à-vis other wine territories at provincial, national and international levels.

Some studies have reported a lack of territorial cohesion across BC wine regions. A shared identity contributes to that cohesion. For example, it has been argued that the process of developing a shared identity can support initiatives such as collective quality enhancement, which is crucial for relatively young wine regions. Such developments provide a strong foundation for communication strategies that enhance territorial reputation, recognition by audiences and government support.

What challenges are faced when an emerging wine-producing territory like BC tries pinning down its own identity?

Identity is not static and it would defeat the purpose to try and pin it down. It evolves continuously, shaped by the choice, behaviour and action of individuals or groups.

For an emerging wine-producing territory like BC, with significant geographical distance between wine regions and diverse industry actors—each with its own values, ambitions and strategies—shared attributes may be hard to define. The lack of proximity might impede the development of strong relations and collective efforts. There is also a potential gap between the image built around an idyllic development that some people may aspire to and the need for a consistent story that reflects the true nature of the territory, with its own local ecological and economic realities.

What sort of work have you been doing with the wine industry, specifically on the topic of identity?

Our group at UBC has been engaging with the wine industry since 2012 in the context of territorial development. Creating independent, safe learning environments to facilitate collective knowledge on a number of issues is a prominent feature of our work.

Most recently, we developed a four-step iterative process to explore BC’s identity as a wine-producing territory. Those are understanding identity, identifying commonalities and differences, developing a shared narrative and sharing best practices. More than 50 wineries across BC participated through workshops, interviews and other conversations.

Discussions included themes such as terroir, authenticity, expression and narrative. Participants realized that there were commonalities to build on and differences to value. For example, a commonality stressed was the presence and importance of small family wineries and farms within as well as beyond the wine industry.

The interaction with industry has shown that there is significant interest in exploring identity, but more time and understanding are required for it to develop a shared narrative. We are also aware that more voices need to be included in the process; for example, grape growers and other communities.

In 2015, UBC received funding from Western Economic Diversification Canada for a three-year period, for work on the international positioning of the BC wine industry. This research, published earlier this summer in the International Journal of Wine Business Research is associated with that project.

UBC Okanagan’s Small Steps for Big Changes diabetes prevention program helps people at risk of developing Type 2 diabetes learn how to make healthy diet and exercise changes.

What: A week of activities and lessons to mark World Diabetes Day
Who: Community partners including the YMCA, Okanagan College and the Okanagan Regional Library
When: November 8 to 14
Where: Various virtual and in-person events throughout the week

As Word Diabetes Day approaches, a group of students and faculty in UBC Okanagan’s Diabetes Prevention Research Group are making plans for a week of healthy and fun-filled activities.

Dr. Mary Jung, an associate professor in the School of Health and Exercise Sciences, is principal researcher of the lab, which strives to help people lower their risk of developing Type 2 diabetes by empowering them to make diet and exercise changes.

World Diabetes Day takes place on November 14 and Dr. Jung says the goal of the day is to increase the community’s awareness about diabetes.

“There are many people who may be at risk of developing Type 2 diabetes and don’t know it,” says Dr. Jung. “We have a week full of scheduled events where people can learn more about their likelihood of developing diabetes, and discover what resources are available to the community while they enjoy fun activities.”

Dr. Jung leads the Small Steps for Big Changes diabetes prevention program. Her team has organized a number of virtual and in-person events during the week of November 8 to 14. People can try pickleball, listen to expert speakers, try a virtual Zumba lesson or head to a local YMCA for an exercise class. All events are free and open to everyone.

The featured event is a cooking class with Okanagan College’s Kelsey Oudendag, a red seal chef and culinary arts instructor. Participants will learn, in person or virtually, how to make delicious and healthy meals on a budget. Free registration for this class has been made possible by generous partnerships with the Central Okanagan Food Bank, Okanagan College (OC) and Dr. Jung’s lab.

“I am so excited to welcome people into the kitchens at OC to learn how to cook delicious and healthy meals on a budget,” says Oudendag. “I hope people come away inspired and empowered with some new culinary skills and knowledge they can apply at home in their daily lives.”

The week culminates with an outdoor drop-in day of play and activities on Sunday, November 14. People are encouraged to visit Jung’s Small Steps team at Rowcliffe Park in downtown Kelowna, between 11 am and 3 pm to join in free beginner exercise classes and earn prizes.

For more information about the week and to register for activities, visit: smallsteps.ok.ubc.ca

UBCO’s Dr. Jenn Jakobi new role as the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada Chair for Women in Science and Engineering for the BC/Yukon region will help her provide leadership and empower change for underrepresented people in science, technology, engineering and math.

Dr. Jenn Jakobi is a scientist, a teacher and a mentor. Her work focuses on neuromuscular and exercise physiology with the long-term objective of keeping our aging population healthy and independent.

Part of her passion and commitment to research is sharing knowledge and creating opportunities for everyone to learn. She and her team of students and staff produce written articles and guides, as well as videos and podcasts, making sure the science conducted in university labs gets into the living rooms of everyday Canadians.

Beyond science translation, Dr. Jakobi has another passion. She is committed to increasing diversity across science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) programs. She coordinates and hosts youth outreach camps and activities, and conducts professional development workshops to enable organizational change that will build equity, diversity and inclusion changes in STEM enterprises.

This month, Dr. Jakobi takes on a new role as the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada Chair for Women in Science and Engineering for the British Columbia/Yukon region. This Westcoast Women in Engineering Science and Technology (WWEST) program mobilizes her leadership to roles that encourage, explore, understand and empower change for underrepresented people in STEM.

Your initiative, the integrative STEM Team Advancing Networks of Diversity (iSTAND) Program, continues to grow at UBCO. Can you tell us about this program and how it relates to your new role?

iSTAND developed as a project I started in 2014. I saw a need to engage youth in hands-on science activities and I saw resources here at UBCO that would allow for this to happen, particularly for girls. The goal was to ensure they understand how science is a part of bettering our world.

Research shows that young girls are interested in science. We just need to make a connection with them as early as possible.

I started small, by visiting classrooms and explaining how science can create a meaningful and positive difference in all our lives. This initiative grew to busloads of kids visiting campus to actively engage with classmates in neuroscience experiments. We made it relevant to real-life. The next step was summer camps and after-school programs.

These extracurricular iSTAND programs will continue. The WWEST program will use our multitude of kid-friendly experiments to produce learning modules that align with the BC curriculum to assist teachers in bringing hands-on science activities into the classroom. We are also partnering with UBCO’s Indigenous Program Services and First Nation populations across BC to assist university students to bring activities into their home communities. We will work with elders and cultural stewards to incorporate Indigenous ways of knowing and learning into the activities.

Are the programs focused only on youth?

Not at all. As a female scientist, I have always been a minority and this has led to some less than great experiences in my career. In part, the youth programs were not just about sharing the beauty and joy in science, it was about engaging more girls in science so future female scientists are not alone.

Being alone is not easy. So you build a protective shell, and loneliness hardens your shell. That is what the WWEST program works to change. Through actively partnering with like-minded organizations, we will expand our workshops and activities to build a network, so even when someone feels alone in an organization there is no loneliness. The aim is not to just increase the number of women and under-represented persons, it is to create positive cultures where participation is not an act of bravery. Rather, we aim to create a culture of inclusion for all people and perspectives.

How will you do this?

Using my training and experiences as a scientist, I will conduct research, share it and also apply it to WWEST programs. The focus of research and activities will be the positive elements that engage and keep women and under-represented persons in STEM. For example, we know family is important in encouraging and supporting career development so we developed intergenerational GRAND-STEM programs. Here we encourage parents and notably grandparents to participate with kids in STEM activities. This initiative is especially dear to me, as it aligns with my research passion and collaborative drive.

My research aims to support functional independence with increased age, and social engagement and learning for older adults are equally important for them. This initiative is also an example of the collaboration taking place on our campus. In 2019 the various groups at UBCO that engage in STEM outreach activities began working to develop a cohesive and comprehensive framework to engage with our community.

Overall WWEST will generate research and use this knowledge to create innovative programs to grow diverse and inclusive academic, industry and corporate environments.

The objective of increasing women in STEM careers is not new. How is your program different?

For decades the conversation has centred around removing barriers and obstacles, as well as developing policies and processes to support women in STEM. These were necessary and have evolved. For example, maternity leave and now parental leave have supported females in their career pursuits. This has assisted in retaining women in STEM but it hasn’t been enough.

We need to change the culture. I hope to go beyond the barriers and understand what are the good things that keep under-represented persons in STEM. Then apply these positive factors to build a rich and diverse landscape, and this positive culture includes men. We need to engage the majority to move the minority dial. There are many people who want to see more women and under-represented persons in STEM. This program will promote and celebrate the women, as well as the men who are contributing to positive change. WWEST is a comprehensive program to build a diverse and inclusive STEM landscape.

A droplet of fuel mixed with nanomaterials is ignited during an experiment in UBCO’s Combustion for Propulsion and Power Lab.

The goal of creating a cleaner fuel for aircraft engines is creating a spark at UBC Okanagan.

A team of researchers studying the burning rate of nanomaterials in liquid fuels believe they have created a recipe for clean-burning, power-boosting aircraft fuel. The project is a collaboration between the School of Engineering’s Combustion for Propulsion and Power Laboratory (CPPL) and its Nanomaterials and Polymer Nanocomposites Laboratory.

Inside the CPPL, researchers watch a bright consistent flame as it dances over wires containing droplets of liquid fuel enriched with nanomaterials. The team is investigating the combustion characteristics of microscopic graphene oxide inside fuel.

Their experiment measures the ignition delay, burn rate and speed by which the graphene particles and fuel separate into smaller particles.

“Working with our industry partner, ZEN Graphene Solutions, we are assessing how the burn rate of this mixture can potentially improve its combustion properties,” explains lead author and doctoral student Sepehr Mosadegh.

Mosadegh and his supervisor, Assistant Professor Dr. Sina Kheirkhah, develop technology, tools and knowledge for next-generation energy and aerospace-related applications. In this case, they hope their results will lead to a future of cleaner and more powerful aircraft.

“When it comes to fuel, we are always searching for a consistent response of the fuel within key parameters as they relate to how it ignites, burns and maintains strength,” says Mosadegh. “Most people have a general understanding of the composition of gasoline and jet fuel, and that it is a mixture of many hydrocarbons. But they may not think about how combining these with nanomaterials and burning them can result in dramatically more powerful and cleaner engines.”

Using ultrafast and intensified cameras and microscopy analysis, the researchers were able to study the combustion rate of the doped fuel. They found that the addition of graphene oxide nanomaterials into ethanol improved the burn rate by about eight per cent. This improvement in combustion, the researchers explain, can help reduce the carbon footprint of aircraft. And at the same time, make aircraft more powerful.

“The recipe for cooking the nanomaterials was developed by the co-author of this study Ahmad Ghaffarkhah, who works in our partner lab,” says Dr. Kheirkhah. “We have published the results for doped ethanol, and we have promising results for other liquid fuels such as jet A and diesel.”

The addition of nanomaterials to liquid fuels alters the heat transfer and the fuel’s evaporation rate, impacting the overall burning rate.

“However, getting just the right mixture of nanomaterials and liquid fuel is key to improving combustion. Particularly in aircraft engines,” Dr. Kheirkhah adds.

The research appears in Combustion and Flame and is funded by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council Canada through a Collaborative Research and Development Grant awarded to Dr. Kheirkhah and Dr. Mohammad Arjmand, Canada Research Chair (Tier 2) in Advanced Materials and Polymer Engineering.

UBCO researcher Sepehr Mosadegh tests the ignition delay and burn rate of fuel mixed with graphene oxide with the hopes of creating a greener, but more powerful, aircraft fuel.