UBC Okanagan proudly recognizes Dr. Mohammad Arjmand, Dr. Brodie Sakakibara and Michael V. Smith as 2025 Researchers of the Year, celebrating their exceptional contributions to research, innovation and creative activity.

This year’s recipients carry on 20 years of scholarly and creative excellence

Three UBC Okanagan faculty members have been recognized for their outstanding research commitment and achievements through the university’s annual Researcher of the Year awards.

Dr. Mohammad Arjmand in the Natural Sciences and Engineering category, Dr. Brodie Sakakibara in Health and Michael V. Smith in Social Sciences and Humanities were announced today as the 2025 Researchers of the Year at a formal celebration of research excellence.

This year marks the 20^th anniversary of the prestigious awards, which recognize faculty members making the world a better place through scholarly and creative pursuits. Award recipients epitomize excellence and are leaders in their respective fields and disciplines.

This year’s three recipients perfectly exemplify the vision and aspirations of UBC Okanagan research, says Dr. Suzie Currie, Vice-Principal and Associate Vice President, Research and Innovation.

“At UBCO our goal is to conduct fundamental and applied research and creative activity that addresses the most pressing issues of our time, and to pursue areas with tangible impact to our region, our country and our world,” she says. “Congratulations to each of our 2025 Researchers of the Year who continue to have significant impact and influence in our community, and in society.

2025 Researchers of the Year were announced Thursday, May 8, at a formal celebration of research excellence.

2025 Researchers of the Year

Dr. Mohammad Arjmand

An Assistant Professor in Engineering, Dr. Arjmand applies his expertise in two fields—polymer engineering and nanotechnology—to real-world problems. In Canada, only nine percent of plastic waste is actually recycled. Dr. Arjmand’s lab is working to take plastics—or polymers—from our daily life and melt, shape and reconstitute them for different purposes, helping save space in landfills while also protecting the environment.

His research also involves creating nanomaterials–extraordinarily small materials–with a variety of functions. His lab is putting these materials into processed polymers, where they not only help reinforce the plastics, but can also give them new properties, like the ability to conduct electricity.

“We’re doing great things. We’ll continue doing great things,” Dr. Arjmand says. “We have a nourishing and thriving environment at UBCO and I hope even more researchers are clamouring to come here, to do this work, to help society and the world.”

Dr. Brodie Sakakibara

Dr. Sakakibara is dedicated to empowering stroke survivors after discharge from hospital and giving them the support they need to help reduce further hospital visits.

An Associate Professor in UBC Okanagan’s Centre for Chronic Disease Prevention and Management, Southern Medical Program, Dr. Sakakibara advocates for viewing stroke as a chronic condition, not just a single acute event. With this mindset, his lab aims to help stroke survivors by providing them with resources and education to better manage this chronic condition and help them avoid and mitigate risk factors that contributed to their stroke. Through remote rehabilitation and self-management support programs, patients can access services inside their homes and work with highly trained health professionals for stroke recovery, prevention and management.

“Very few researchers and labs in the world are taking the approach of stroke as a chronic condition,” says Dr. Sakakibara. “It’s empowerment. It’s putting people back in control, letting them manage on their own and making them a key partner in their care for much better long-term outcomes.”

Michael V. Smith

A Professor of Creative Writing in the Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies, Smith experiments across genres to challenge cultural norms, embody difference and make space for voices often erased.

His creative research practice includes poetry, fiction and non-fiction books, as well as experimental short film and feature documentary filmmaking, collaborative photography projects, live YouTube performance events and stand-up improv comedy. Smith works from his own queer and genderqueer identities and uses a queer, gendered and class-conscious lens in his research practice to push back against dominant narratives and stereotypes.

“It’s not enough to just tell a story—you can hear a story and not care,” says Smith. “What I’m trying to do in art is create feeling, to make people care, to nurture empathy. I want audiences to feel what it’s like to live someone else’s experience and recognize their own humanity in it.”

Dr. Mohammad Arjmand, Researcher of the Year recipient in Natural Sciences and Engineering, is engineering next-gen materials to solve global challenges and build a more sustainable circular economy.

Mohammad Arjmand takes a dual approach to creating a better world

Researchers often choose to specialize in a specific area of study. Mohammad Arjmand, Assistant Professor in UBCO’s School of Engineering, has chosen two.

A former Canada Research Chair in Advanced Materials and Polymer Engineering, Dr. Arjmand is also an Inductee of the Royal Society of Canada, the lead of the Plastic Recycling Research Excellence Cluster and, most recently, the 2025 UBC Okanagan Natural Sciences and Engineering Researcher of the Year.

As a leader in the fields of both polymer engineering (the science of reshaping and repurposing plastics from our daily lives) and nanotechnology (the science of manipulating matter at the atomic and molecular level), he’s combining his unique knowledge of two distinct but complementary fields to help solve global challenges and ultimately build a better future.

Repurposing plastic waste

In Canada, 79 per cent of plastic waste ends up in landfills. Twelve per cent is incinerated when landfills aren’t an option or the waste is difficult to recycle. Only a mere nine per cent is actually recycled.

“What’s happening currently, in terms of plastic waste, is just not sustainable,” says Dr. Arjmand.

His lab is researching ways to fundamentally change polymers—plastics from our daily life— and recreate them in new forms for different applications. The work is called polymer processing and uses various techniques to melt, shape and reconstitute new polymer structures for a variety of desired purposes.

“In many ways, plastics are actually the preferred choice versus other materials, like metal,” he says. “They’re lighter, cheaper, easier to process, and they don’t corrode.”

The challenge in replacing metal with plastic is plastic’s physical properties aren’t as desirable, so Dr. Arjmand looks for ways to improve it. Often, he adds reinforcing agents, making what are called polymer composites.

“We look to advance the physical properties of plastics to make them even more robust, to mimic metal’s properties while maintaining all the benefits of a plastic,” he says.

For a time, the work was done solely with virgin plastic—new polymers that the lab purchased as small beads they would melt and reconstitute into a new form. But now, he’s incorporating plastic waste when possible, processing it into new polymer composites, which serves as a partial solution to a serious problem.

“Canada is behind other countries in plastic recycling,” says Dr. Arjmand. “Municipalities collect it, but it’s many different types of plastic, so we need separation capabilities to sort it into like-kinds for recycling, which is hard on a large scale. This is why so much is sent to the landfill.”

Dr. Arjmand’s research helps save space in the landfill, improves our environment and ultimately ensures a more sustainable future.

“Until we get away from single use plastic, we’ll continue to make waste,” he says. “I’m glad to help find a partial solution.”

But excess waste isn’t the only problem he and his lab are helping solve. That’s where his second specialty comes into play.

Nanotechnology

In the simplest terms, nanotechnology is the science of extraordinarily small things. More specifically, it’s a science that deals with any material with at least one dimension in the range of one to 100 nanometres. How small is a nanometre?

“It’s pretty tiny,” chuckles Dr. Arjmand. “It’s literally one-billionth of a metre.”

Putting it in perspective, a tennis ball is 203 million nanometers in circumference. A human hair is 80,000 nanometres thick. Even a single strand of human DNA, far too small to be seen with the naked eye, is 2.5 nanometres in diameter.

And one nanometre? It’s about as long as your fingernail grows in one second.

Materials at this scale are called nanomaterials, and they provide endless problem-solving possibilities. Dr. Arjmand works with a nanomaterial called graphene. At 0.34 nanometres thick, it’s the thinnest material to ever exist. It’s made from a single chunk of graphite, like you would find in a pencil.

“Imagine a 10,000-page textbook,” says Dr. Arjmand. “If the book is graphite, each page is graphene. If you separate each page and lay them flat, it’s an enormous surface area compared to the complete textbook. Nanomaterials are important because they offer that huge surface area, which provides the opportunity to use them for many applications.”

His lab is working to create nanomaterials with a variety of functions and adding them to the processed polymers, not only to help reinforce the plastics, but to give them a whole new set of properties.

“Plastic is an insulator, but we can add electrically conductive nanomaterial and create plastic that conducts electricity,” says Dr. Arjmand. “The benefits of a plastic, combined with those of a metal—the best of both worlds.”

He’s also added nanotechnology to polymers to make them capable of shielding sensitive equipment from electromagnetic interference.

“On planes, we turn off our phones because they can interfere with communications between the airport and pilot. Hospitals have to protect sensitive, sometimes life-saving equipment. And there are defense applications, where it could protect from an enemy sending electromagnetic waves to jam equipment.”

Sensitive equipment has shielding, but it is commonly metal. While it protects the equipment, the shields are heavy, expensive and hard to process. And there’s another problem.

“Whatever comes to their surface is reflected back,” says Dr. Arjmand. “So the secondary reflection is still in the environment, still capable of causing trouble. If a radar had sent a signal looking to detect a piece of equipment, that signal would also bounce back, and the equipment would easily be found.”

His latest work is endeavouring to develop absorption-based structures.

“We want to generate structures that absorb everything sent their way. Nothing is reflected as secondary pollution and nothing gets through to electronics behind the shield.”

It’s how stealth bombers stay invisible to radar, and a technology for which he sees huge potential.

Looking ahead

Dr. Arjmand says he’s happy to be conducting research with relevant applications and pleased to be doing it with the world-class experts on his team. He sees nothing but good things in the future.

“We’re doing great things. We’ll continue doing great things,” he says. “We have a nourishing and thriving environment at UBCO and I hope even more researchers are clamouring to come here, to do this work, to help society and the world.”

Dr. Brodie Sakakibara, Researcher of the Year recipient in Health, is empowering patients for better health and wellness after stroke using tech-powered solutions.

Brodie Sakakibara empowers patients with self-management support and tech-powered solutions

It goes without saying that having a stroke is an incredibly scary and dangerous thing for a person to endure.

Imagine having two.

In Canada, 16 per cent of people who have had a stroke will experience a second one within a year of the first. Thirty-three per cent will experience another one within five years.

Dr. Brodie Sakakibara, Associate Professor in UBC Okanagan’s Centre for Chronic Disease Prevention and Management, Southern Medical Program, and 2025 Health Researcher of the Year, dedicates his research to empowering stroke survivors to take recovery into their own hands, ensuring their chances of a second stroke—and other post-stroke complications—are drastically reduced.

What is a stroke?

A stroke is a loss of blood flow to part of the brain. When brain cells can’t get the oxygen and nutrients they need from blood, they start to die, often within a few minutes.

Strokes happen in one of two ways: the blood supply to part of the brain is blocked or reduced—called an ischemic stroke—or a blood vessel in the brain leaks or bursts and causes bleeding in the brain—called a hemorrhagic stroke.

“Both are very serious medical emergencies,” says Dr. Sakakibara. “They can cause lasting brain damage, long-term disability, even death.”

And yet, despite their serious nature, the survival rate for people suffering their first stroke is higher than 80 per cent.

Strokes tend to occur most often in people over the age of 55. An aging Canadian population combined with a high survival rate means the number of Canadian stroke survivors is expected to reach nearly three quarters of a million people in the next 15 years.

It’s those survivors Dr. Sakakibara is empowering with simple technology-delivered rehabilitation and self-management programs designed to improve their recovery and better manage their long-term health and wellbeing.

An empowering approach

Stroke care in hospital is provided to ensure survivors recover and can return home safely, as soon as possible.

“Our health system is very acute-focused, it’s reactionary—people go into the system because they had a stroke. But there’s little care for people once they’re discharged from that system and minimal focus on prevention of other events. [In our research], we look at stroke as a chronic condition, not acute,” says Dr. Sakakibara.

The issue, he says, is a lack of focus on chronic disease self-management. There’s not enough resources, education or information available to help people with stroke become better self-managers. In many instances, people who have had a stroke don’t receive enough support and continue living with risk factors that contributed to the stroke in the first place.

Once people are discharged, there are very few resources they can access without having to return to the hospital. Some survivors live in small and remote communities. Others have limited mobility and other complications from their strokes. Dr. Sakakibara develops self-management support interventions for people to better handle life after stroke and delivers the support and resources to them online, in their homes and communities.

 Individuals simply need access to the Internet and a computer or mobile device and they can participate in tailored rehabilitation and self-management support programs. Programs are delivered remotely by highly trained health professionals, including occupational therapists and physical therapists, and focus on stroke recovery, prevention and management.

“We use simple, existing technologies to bring these rehab and support services right into people’s homes and make it accessible to as wide a group as possible,” he says.

As Dr. Sakakibara studies the effectiveness of these technology-powered rehabilitation and self-management support solutions, it’s been shown clinically that these types of interventions after stroke reduce the chances of not only a secondary stroke, but other comorbid conditions like heart disease and diabetes, as well.

Saving the system

The work also reduces the strain on Canada’s overburdened health-care system.

By helping prevent stroke survivors from having a secondary event and preventing them from developing other co-morbid conditions, Dr. Sakakibara and his team are working to reduce the number of times survivors re-enter the health-care system to seek additional care.

“Self-management is decision making and problem solving,” says Dr. Sakakibara. “We can teach individuals to recognize signs and symptoms of a developing co-morbid condition, and we can teach them to make the necessary decisions to head it off and manage on their own instead of accessing acute or emergency services. It substantially decreases the health resources being used.”

It’s unique work, born of a desire to help people who would otherwise have no options, says Dr. Sakakibara.

“I feel it’s helping people. It’s just me—I see people struggle and I want to help,” he says. “Very few researchers and labs in the world are taking the approach of stroke as a chronic condition. It’s empowerment. It’s putting people back in control, letting them manage on their own and making them a key partner in their care for much better long-term outcomes.”

Michael V. Smith, Researcher of the Year recipient in Social Sciences and Humanities, is reshaping narratives through queer storytelling— from verse to video, memoir to media—challenging how we see the world.

Michael V. Smith creates art from a queer, gendered and class-conscious lens

The power of story has the ability to re-shape what we think we know, to bring us together and to make us better people. For Michael V. Smith, there is nothing with greater potential for power than a story.

Smith was named UBC Okanagan’s 2025 Social Sciences and Humanities Researcher of the Year. He is an interdisciplinary artist, working as a writer, filmmaker and performance artist. He is a Professor of Creative Writing, teaching courses in narrative, spoken word, digital media and screenwriting and in editing and publishing.

As a creative practitioner, his research practice spans a variety of creative genres, including authoring seven books, editing two poetry collections, creating experimental short film and feature documentary filmmaking, collaborative photography projects, live YouTube performance events and performing stand-up improv comedy and spoken word.

His entire research practice is deeply involved in EDI work, resulting from his queer and genderqueer identities, as well as his commitment to discussions of social and economic class and power.

Seeking an authentic representation

As a genderqueer kid growing up, Smith rarely saw himself reflected in the world around him. Institutions, media and social dynamics all reinforced that he was an outsider.

“I never saw people like me—queer, gender diverse or poor—represented authentically. What I saw were stereotypes, reductive portrayals and a narrow version of humanity. My work, whether through film, poetry, fiction or performance is about pushing back against these dominant narratives.”

He creates work from a queer, gendered and class-conscious lens to challenge cultural norms, embody difference and make space for voices often erased.

“I want to make the familiar strange and the strange familiar—to help people understand that freedom means true self-determination, not arbitrary rules about gender, class or appearance.”

He says his goal is to disrupt conformity and expose the limits of cultural expectations, while recognizing the shared humanity in honest expression and lived experience.

Recently, Smith along with Dr. Astrida Neimanis and grad student Erin Scott received a major grant for the project, Biodiversities of Gender, which explores how gender diversity can act as a pressure point in addressing the climate crisis. By drawing parallels between biodiversity and gender, the project looks both ways—how each informs and strengthens the other. Monocultures damage ecosystems, just as rigid gender binaries harm social health. Thriving bodies, ecosystems and cultures all rely on complexity, variety and fluidity.

This work challenges the assumption of two fixed genders, pushing back against groupthink and monoculture, and instead argues for a resilient and diverse understanding of identity and environment.

Undoing false narratives

Over the past couple of years, he has had two major projects come out—a feature documentary and a poetry collection.

In his film, The Floating Man, Smith examines the false narratives he’s faced about his body over his lifetime; his students are also featured in the film and share how Smith’s work and teachings in class have helped them through their own gender journeys.

“For the film, I interviewed two students who had transitioned—people I knew—because the film explores the complexity of gender, how it’s a fiction we subscribe to that shifts over time and across cultures.”

Their voices helped map out how gender is inscribed in us, and how we unlearn it to remake ourselves on our own terms. Smith’s work as an artist helps expose those stereotypes and undo those narratives to show a more truthful face of what and who we actually are and how we actually live.

In his latest collection of poetry Queers Like Me, Smith explores growing up queer and working class, then growing into an urban queer life.

Smith received a lot of community feedback for this poetry collection, including from students. “I hosted public readings in Kelowna, and workshopped poems through Inspired Word Café. That’s what I love about being at a university in a smaller city—university and community overlap so much.”

Smith is also very involved with the community as a volunteer for the Inspired Word Café, and creator and host of Pony Cabaret, a celebration of queer culture with performances featuring drag, storytelling, comedy and burlesque.

“There is not a single venue like Pony in all of the Okanagan, where queer performers from a variety of backgrounds can do experimental work.”

Smith says that for him, empathy is everything.

“It’s not enough to just tell a story—you can hear a story and not care. What I’m trying to do in art is create feeling, to make people care, to nurture empathy. I want audiences to feel what it’s like to live someone else’s experience and recognize their own humanity in it.”

Art becomes the vehicle for that translation of humanity—resisting monoculture and deepening our sense of nuance and connection.

UBC Okanagan’s Campus as a Living Lab program is driving innovation with new research projects that strengthen student connections and improve indoor air quality. These initiatives transform the campus into a real-world testing ground for healthier, more sustainable living.

Two new projects funded by UBC Okanagan’s Campus as a Living Lab (CLL) program are helping tackle real-world challenges—strengthening first-year student connections and investigating indoor air quality  to improve environmental health.

CLL transforms the campus into a testing ground where researchers partner with campus operations staff to develop innovative solutions to identified on-campus challenges. This year’s projects were selected from a number of impressive submissions, and highlight UBC Okanagan’s commitment to fostering both student well-being and a healthier campus environment.

Helping students build connections

Starting university can be overwhelming, and many first-year students struggle with loneliness and social isolation.

To help ease this transition, Dr. Lauren Human (Associate Professor of Psychology, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences), Steve Brodrick (Associate Director, Residence Life) and Melissa Feddersen (Manager, Campus Wellness and Education) are launching a research-driven initiative to examine how students can build meaningful relationships early in their university experience.

“Strong social connections are vital for health, well-being and overall success,” says Dr. Human, Faculty Lead for the project. “With this initiative, we aim to foster a greater sense of belonging among first-year students on campus while deepening our understanding of how social and psychological well-being influence a more positive transition into university, higher achievement and greater student retention.”

While initiatives to enhance social connection are already popular on campus, this project will be the first to study their effectiveness in fostering friendships and enhancing student well-being. The findings could help shape future programming to strengthen social connections and student success at UBCO.

Tracking airborne microplastics to improve indoor air quality

How much plastic is in the air we breathe?

That’s the question Dr. Michael Noonan (Assistant Professor of Biology, Faculty of Science), Dr. Daniel Rosa (Lab Technician and Health and Safety Associate) and Dr. Laura Grieneisen (Assistant Professor of Biology, Faculty of Science) are working to answer.

Microplastics—tiny plastic particles less than 5 mm in size—are a growing environmental concern. These particles come from sources such as degraded plastic waste, synthetic textiles and microbeads in personal care products. Once airborne, they can circulate in indoor spaces, raising potential health risks.

“Our goal is to better understand how airborne microplastics move through indoor spaces on campus,” says Dr. Noonan, the project’s Faculty Lead. “By measuring microplastic concentrations in air vents across classrooms, offices and labs, we can identify baseline levels and potential hotspots of exposure.”

In addition, the research team will analyze the microbial communities that attach to these microplastic particles, a phenomenon known as the Trojan horse effect. To do this, the team will use metagenomic sequencing, a method that sequences and analyzes all genetic material in a sample containing diverse microorganisms. By sampling a variety of campus environments, from high-traffic areas to specialized spaces like wet labs, they hope to gain insights into both microplastic exposure and associated health risks.

This project seeks to improve campus sustainability and health by generating data to inform policy, enhance air quality, and reduce plastic pollution, with potential to influence broader environmental initiatives.

Funded by UBCO’s Office of Research and Innovation, the Campus as a Living Lab program is now in its third year. While the research projects the program supports help to address on-campus challenges, they are also designed to be applicable to the broader region and world.

“I’m once again thrilled to see our researchers and staff partnering on such innovative work,” says CLL project lead, Dr. Miranda Hart. “The results from these efforts will almost immediately have positive effects on our campus and can be used to help improve lives, and the environments, in our wider community.”

Stay tuned for updates as these exciting CLL projects progress and begin to shape a stronger and more sustainable future at UBC Okanagan.

About Campus as a Living Lab

UBC Okanagan’s Campus as a Living Lab (CLL) transforms the university into a dynamic testing ground where bold ideas become real-world solutions. By uniting world-class researchers with campus operations staff, CLL drives innovative research projects that have impact in one of four priority areas—climate action, resilient systems, sustainable places and communities, and health and wellbeing. Through collaboration, knowledge exchange and hands-on experimentation, CLL turns ambition into action, creating scalable solutions that enhance UBC’s campus and  inspire change beyond its borders.

UBC Okanagan researchers Dr. Leanne ten Brinke, Dr. Emily Murphy, Dr. Shahria Alam and Dr. Mohammad Arjmand have been recognized with prestigious Killam Awards for their groundbreaking contributions to psychology, digital humanities and engineering. Their research is shaping the future of trust, cultural memory, sustainable materials and nanotechnology.

Four UBC Okanagan researchers have been recognized for their outstanding contributions to research as part of UBC’s 2024 Faculty Research Awards. Announced today, the annual awards highlight research excellence across disciplines and include prestigious Killam Awards and Fellowships. UBC’s Faculty Research Awards Committee selected a total of 25 faculty members from UBC this year, with the four UBCO scholars earning recognition for their groundbreaking work in psychology, digital humanities and engineering.

Pursuing the Truth: Dr. Leanne ten Brinke

As a recipient of the Killam Accelerator Research Fellowship, an award designed to support and recognize exceptional early career researchers, Dr. Leanne ten Brinke, a psychologist in the Irving K. Barber Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, is focused on one of the most fundamental aspects of human interaction—trust. Her research delves into the paradox of trust, exploring why people often struggle to accurately determine whom to trust. By studying deception, nonverbal behaviour, psychopathy and the influence of power and leadership, her work has implications for everything from law enforcement to corporate leadership.

Preserving Cultural Memory: Dr. Emily Murphy

Dr. Emily Murphy, from the Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies, has been awarded the Killam Research Fellowship, which supports scholars of exceptional ability working on projects of broad significance and widespread interest. Dr. Murphy’s work explores how cultural memory is shaped through literature, digital media and the arts. Specializing in early 20th-century women’s literature and digital humanities, she examines the evolving relationship between historical and contemporary storytelling as well as the impact of digital platforms on modern reading habits.

Engineering a Sustainable Future: Dr. Shahria Alam and Dr. Mohammad Arjmand

Two UBC Okanagan engineering professors whose work is shaping the future of sustainable materials and advanced nanotechnology were awarded prizes, as well.

Dr. Shahria Alam, whose research focuses on reusing construction waste and understanding the environmental and health impacts of microplastics, received the Killam Research Prize, which recognizes outstanding research making a significant impact. His work aims to develop innovative engineering solutions that reduce environmental harm while improving the durability and resilience of infrastructure materials in the pursuit of more sustainable construction practices.

Dr. Mohammad Arjmand, an expert in nanomaterials, was awarded the Charles A. McDowell Award for Excellence in Research, one of UBC’s most prestigious research prizes. Named in honour of Professor Emeritus Charles A. McDowell, the award recognizes demonstrated excellence in pure or applied scientific research by a young faculty member. Dr. Arjmand works at the forefront of polymer nanocomposites—developing materials with enhanced electrical, magnetic and thermal properties—and also explores solutions to reduce plastic waste. His research has applications in electromagnetic shielding, wastewater treatment and corrosion resistance—key areas in the advancement of smart materials and sustainable engineering.

Each year the Faculty Research Awards help highlight the depth and breadth of research taking place at UBC. The four Okanagan researchers recognized today are making lasting impacts in their fields, pushing boundaries and reaffirming UBCO’s role in shaping the future of knowledge and innovation.

Congratulations to all the 2024 Faculty Research Award recipients for their achievements and contributions to research excellence.

See all 2024 Faculty Research Award recipients

UBC Okanagan launching Western Canada’s first airborne sensing lab with $1.35M in PacifiCan funding.

UBC Okanagan is set to establish an advanced airborne sensing lab thanks to $1.35 million in funding from the Pacific Economic Development Agency of Canada (PacifiCan). Led by the UBC STAR (Survive and Thrive Applied Research) initiative, the future lab in the sky will provide B.C. businesses with access to advanced remote sensing capabilities for diverse applications, from environmental monitoring to technological development and more.  

With this investment, UBC STAR is equipping a small aircraft with infrared, radar and hyperspectral imaging technology. The airborne lab will gather high-resolution data about the earth’s surface without direct contact, helping local companies test and refine new technologies, accelerate existing projects and gain a competitive edge in the global sensor data market. 

Empowering local businesses and innovation 

UBC STAR’s Airborne Sensing Lab is projected to contribute significantly to the region’s economic growth, creating high-value job opportunities and supporting more than 10 small and medium-sized businesses. Additionally, the lab will serve as a hub for collaboration between academic researchers and industry professionals, driving new advancements in sensor technology and data analytics. 

“This is a very exciting partnership between UBC research capabilities and leading Okanagan companies,” said Dr. Keith Culver, Director of UBC STAR. “We are delighted to bring the world real innovation from the Okanagan, solving problems here at home while creating export opportunities contributing to the region’s economic growth and resilience.” 

Building on UBC STAR’s success, this initiative will help expand UBC Okanagan’s research in fields such as precision agriculture and forestry. It also aligns with efforts to provide Indigenous communities with enhanced environmental monitoring tools to help support sustainable land and marine resource management. 

Strengthening B.C.’s tech and innovation ecosystem 

“British Columbia is home to incredible talent and innovation, and this investment will help local businesses take their technologies to the next level,” said the Honourable Harjit S. Sajjan, Minister of Emergency Preparedness and Minister responsible for PacifiCan. “By supporting the development of the first airborne sensing lab in Western Canada, we’re giving B.C. companies the tools they need to expand into global markets, strengthen the local tech sector, and create new opportunities for collaboration with Indigenous communities. This is a great example of how industry and academia can work together to drive economic growth and sustainability.” 

Funded through PacifiCan’s Regional Innovation Ecosystems program, this venture reinforces UBC Okanagan’s role as a leader in applied research and industry partnerships, advancing sustainable growth and technological innovation in B.C. 

Co-directors of the Canadian Institute for Inclusion and Citizenship (CIIC), Tim Stainton (left) and Rachelle Hole (right), along with Jo-Anne Gauthier (centre), a member of the CIIC Provincial Advisory Board, proudly accept the Renata Shearer Award on behalf of the institute.

The Canadian Institute for Inclusion and Citizenship (CIIC)—UBCO’s research institute focused on promoting social justice, equality and wellbeing of all citizens—has received the esteemed Renata Shearer Award.

Presented by the Vancouver Branch of the United Nations Association at an in-person event December 6, the annual award celebrates individuals and organizations making significant contributions to advancing human rights, dignity and justice in British Columbia. In announcing the award, the United Nations Association in Canada, Vancouver Branch, commended CIIC for their exceptional work.

“This well-deserved recognition is a testament to [CIIC’s] unwavering dedication to advocating for, and advancing the rights and inclusion of, persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The tireless efforts have not only set a standard of excellence but also align seamlessly with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 10, which emphasizes reducing inequalities and promoting social, economic and political inclusion for all.”

As Canada’s only university-based research centre focused exclusively on social policy and full inclusion for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, CIIC has long been at the forefront of advocacy and research. Its work not only advances the rights of marginalized communities but also services as a powerful catalyst for societal change.

“The transformative impact of CIIC’s work resonates deeply, inspiring others to champion the values of equity, dignity and respect,” said UN person.  “This commitment strengthens the foundation of a society that values the contributions of all individuals, regardless of ability, and moves us closer to achieving a more inclusive and equitable world.”

For CIIC co-director Tim Stainton, the recognition carries profound significance.

“The CIIC grounds much of its work in the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities,” he says. “To be recognized by the United Nations Association of Canada is a wonderful confirmation of our work and focus. More importantly, it helps the issue come to a broader public.”

Distinguished by its collaborative approach, CIIC prioritizes partnerships with individuals with disabilities, their families, advocacy organizations and policymakers, says Stainton.

“We work in partnership to ensure our work has direct and meaningful real-world impact. We strive to take our research ideas from the community and, as much as possible, let them set our agenda and co-create with them to help ensure our work is meaningful and relevant to those with lived experience.”

Renata Shearer was a tireless advocate for equality and human rights. The award that bears her name serves as a lasting tribute to her legacy of promoting dignity and social justice for all. In addition to honouring its recipients, it helps celebrate International Human Rights Day, which takes place each year on December 10 and commemorates the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948.

UBCO-led teams investigating everything from diabetes prevention and remission to better sleep health, pregnancy loss and digital health literacy were awarded funding through Michael Smith Health Research BC’s Convening and Collaborating (C2) and Reach competitions.

The C2 program promotes knowledge exchange and meaningful collaboration by supporting researchers, trainees and research users in co-developing research that can have direct impacts on people, including patients, health practitioners and policy makers. The Reach program supports teams of researchers and research users to disseminate research evidence with those who can directly benefit from it in order to impact health and care in BC.

Across both university campuses, a total of twenty-six teams led by UBC researchers received funding through the Convening & Collaborating (C2) program and 17 teams led by UBC researchers received funding through the Reach program.

Designed to help bridge the gap between evidence and impact, the competitions funded ninety-one health research teams across BC who are working on solutions to pressing health challenges.

2024 CONVENING AND COLLABORATING PROGRAM – UBC Okanagan-led teams

A path to success: Convening service providers and patients to understand diabetes prevention care referral pathways and co-develop a research agenda for the interior of BC
Recipient: Mary Jung (School of Health and Exercise Sciences, UBCO)
Co-Lead: Renee Young (Interior Health Authority)
Research Location: University of British Columbia – Okanagan Campus

Promoting sleep health for families in British Columbia foster and kinship care
Recipient: Elizabeth Keys (School of Nursing, UBCO)
Co-Lead: Jelena Komanchuk (University of British Columbia)
Research Location: University of British Columbia – Okanagan Campus

Setting Direction for Advancing Digital Health Literacy Training Support to Optimize Older Adults’ Technology Use in Chronic Cardiovascular Disease Self-Care
Recipient: Kathy Rush (School of Nursing, UBCO)
Co-Lead: Linda Fawcus (Gluu Society)
Research Location: University of British Columbia – Okanagan Campus

Reproductive Aging and Recurrent Pregnancy Loss: Establishing A Research Advisory Board
Recipient: Mohamed Mohamed (Irving K. Barber Faculty of Science, UBCO)
Co-Lead: Emma Gardner (Butterfly Run Vancouver)
Research Location: BC Women’s Hospital & Health Centre Women’s Health Research Institute

Setting Direction for Advancing Digital Health Literacy Training Support to Optimize Older Adults’ Technology Use in Chronic Cardiovascular Disease Self-Care
Recipient: Kathy Rush (School of Nursing, UBCO)
Co-Lead: Linda Fawcus (Gluu Society)
Research Location: University of British Columbia – Okanagan Campus

2024 REACH PROGRAM – UBC Okanagan-led team

From Social Media Advertisement to Type 2 Diabetes Remission: Harnessing Innovative Social Media Strategies to Make Remission Possible in British Columbia
Recipient: Jonathan Little (School of Health and Exercise Sciences, UBCO)
Co-Lead: Damien Gillis (Slingshot Communications)
Research Location: University of British Columbia – Okanagan Campus
Partner(s): Pacific Public Health Foundation

READ THE FULL MSHRBC ANNOUNCEMENT

CFI funding supported creation of new interdisciplinary space

The Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies (FCCS) officially opened a new, state-of-the-art research space today.  Housed in the Innovation Annex, part of UBC Okanagan’s Innovation Precinct, the new facility is the result of three separate Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) awards to FCCS researchers Dr. Emily Christina Murphy, Dr. Miles Thorogood and Dr. Megan Smith.

Aimed at fostering cutting-edge interdisciplinary work, the research hub combines three separate creative labs and studios—ReMedia Infrastructure for Research and Creation, the Sonic Production, Intelligence, Research, and Applications Lab (SPIRAL), and the Critical Future Studio/Lab—making it a unique space for creativity and collaboration.

The hub, which the faculty describes as unique in Canada, was made possible through the three researchers combining their individual CFI awards, each of which included funding for a performance space, in order to enable the creation of the shared facility that features three studios, an audio control room and a larger performance space.

Dr. Emily Christina Murphy, Director of ReMedia Infrastructure for Research and Creation, highlighted the collaborative vision behind the project. “It became clear that we had some interesting overlapping research needs and could come together to create a single state-of-the-art facility,” she said.

The CFI awards, which support universities in acquiring advanced research infrastructure, were further bolstered by matching funds from the provincial government through the BC Knowledge Development Fund.

“This space has really opened up everything,” says Dr. Thorogood, who leads the Sonic Production, Intelligence, Research, and Applications Lab (SPIRAL). His lab now boasts top-tier audio production equipment, including 36 speakers for experimenting with immersive sound experiences. Dr. Thorogood’s Creative AI research focuses on developing tools to automate tasks in sound design, potentially transforming the audio landscape of large-scale multiplayer video games by generating dynamic soundscapes in real time.

Meanwhile, Dr. Murphy’s ReMedia delves into cultural memory and the ways technology shapes our understanding of the past and present. Her research, which will now include recreating historical performances in the new shared space, has been further enhanced by the CFI funding, enabling her to acquire wearables and advanced computing tools to analyze data from social media and other sources.

Dr. Smith, the third researcher in the collaboration and Director of the new Master of Design program, leads the Critical Future Studio/Lab. Her work integrates art, computer science and engineering to create immersive AR and VR environments. In collaboration with the RCMP, she has developed VR controllers for cadet training that mirror the weight and feel of real-world equipment, enhancing the realism of training exercises. Another project, “Walking in the Cold,” explores climate change through VR, using CFI-funded infrared heaters and blowers to simulate environmental shifts.

With the facility now operational, all three researchers are excited about the potential for new collaborative opportunities.

“I’m most excited about seeing how new synergies can occur in the space, and with this new community,” says Dr. Smith. “I think the space itself is going to yield some incredible work.”

The shared research hub is set to be a major driver of innovation, advancing creative research and opening new doors for interdisciplinary collaboration at UBC Okanagan.

UBC Okanagan has a track record of securing CFI funding for both large-scale research infrastructure and individual research spaces. The new facility follows in the footsteps of successful projects like the Centre for Health Behaviour Change and the Reading, Language, and Mathematics (ReaLM) Lab.