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At UBC, we deeply value a positive and inclusive workplace where faculty and staff feel engaged and supported.

To that end, I am pleased to invite you to participate in the 2024 Workplace Experiences Survey. Your insights and experiences matter and we want to hear from you.

Keep an eye on your inbox today for an email from survey@talentmap.com, our external survey provider. This email will include your unique survey link – please do not forward it to others. The survey takes about 15 to 20 minutes to complete, and you can either do it in one sitting or save your answers and finish it later. You will have until November 22, 2024, to share your feedback.

In the survey, you will find questions on important topics such as professional growth, inclusion and respect, health and wellbeing, and your work environment. There are also faculty-specific topics such as tenure and promotion.

I strongly encourage you to share your experience of working at UBC. Your feedback is incredibly important and valuable. It not only helps shape decision-making at the university, but also plays a key role in improving engagement in our workplace.

Rest assured that your individual responses will remain fully confidential, and that survey results will only be reported in aggregate.

If you would like to learn more about the Workplace Experiences Survey and how findings from previous surveys have influenced UBC’s strategic people framework, you can learn more at https://hr.ubc.ca/WES

Thank you in advance for taking the time to share your experiences.

Benoit-Antoine Bacon
President and Vice-Chancellor

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Making a positive impact in our local communities is something we deeply value at UBC.

In that spirit, we are pleased to announce that this year’s UBC United Way campaign officially launches on Wednesday, October 9 in Vancouver and the Okanagan.

United Way British Columbia serves over 4 million people by strengthening vital services and connections that support people in need in our local communities.

As part of the UBC community, you can help address the critical issues affecting our neighbours by taking part in the long-standing UBC tradition of supporting this great cause. Funds raised in our annual campaign are so important in supporting health, care and inclusion in the region.

How can you support United Way? Next Wednesday, October 9, you will receive an email from ubc-campaign@uwbc.ca inviting you to make a payroll pledge online. We encourage you to show your support by becoming a donor.

Our goal this year is to inspire 1,000 UBC faculty and staff across both campuses to contribute to the campaign.

To learn more about the UBC United Way campaign, please visit:

• UBC Vancouver: http://unitedway.ubc.ca
• UBC Okanagan: http://unitedway.ok.ubc.ca

Thank you in advance for supporting this year’s United Way campaign. Whether you give your time, energy or financial support, your contribution makes a significant impact and is deeply appreciated.

Benoit-Antoine Bacon
President and Vice-Chancellor

Lesley Cormack
Principal and Deputy Vice-Chancellor, UBC Okanagan

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As announced in July, UBC is launching a process to refresh its strategic plan, to define the university’s priorities and actions for the next three to five years. The existing ten-year plan, Shaping UBC’s Next Century, was launched in 2018 and since that time UBC has made great strides in advancing all aspects of it.

The world has changed a lot since 2018 and we need to continue to adapt. We are calling this process a ‘refresh’ because the intention is not to replace UBC’s strategic plan, but to define a series of priorities and actions focused on our core academic mission of teaching, learning and research. When both higher education and our broader society is faced with so many challenges, the time is right to consider UBC’s priorities as they relate to three broad objectives:

1. Envision what kind of university UBC strives to be over the next 25 years, to 2050.
2. Define shorter-term priorities and actions over the next three to five years, especially with regards to our core academic and research mission.
3. Continue to mobilize and support the achievement of existing institutional plans such as the Indigenous Strategic Plan, Strategic Equity and Anti-Racism (StEAR) Framework, as well as Faculty-level plans.

An integral part of this process is engagement with the entire UBC community. We need your help to define our shared vision for the future. There are a number of ways to get involved over the next few weeks with a program of activity including on-campus ‘pop up’ events, in-person and online workshops, online feedback mechanisms and direct outreach on both campuses. For full details and to register for any of the workshops please go to https://president.ubc.ca/strategic-plan-refresh.

This fall engagement phase is focused on the first objective, with further engagement planned in the new year. A steering committee comprising UBC’s Provosts and the Vice-President, Research & Innovation is guiding the plan refresh, with support from a project team. The aim is to complete it by the end of the 2024-2025 academic year.

I encourage you to take part in an event, or submit feedback and add your voice to this important dialogue. Thank you in advance for engaging in this process. The future is bright for UBC!

Benoit-Antoine Bacon
President and Vice-Chancellor

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It gives me great pleasure to welcome everyone back to our beautiful campuses for the 2024/25 academic year. I hope you like September as much as I do; there is always something special in the air as we get back to class and welcome new students, faculty and staff into our community.

Its been incredible to discover UBC this past year. We are one the most dynamic universities in the world thanks to the talent and dedication of our students, faculty and staff, and we still have room to grow in impact and reputation. As members of the UBC community, we all play a role in the university’s pursuit of excellence in learning, teaching and research – thank you for everything you do!

New students will find that UBC offers so much to explore both inside and outside the classroom. From extraordinary courses and programs to work-integrated and community-engaged opportunities, along with an amazing range of societies and clubs on campus. I encourage you to make the most of your time at UBC and seek out these opportunities to grow and to shine, both professionally and personally.

We also know that the challenges and complexities facing students today are more pronounced than even a decade ago. This includes the housing and affordability crisis, the effects of climate change, unstable geopolitics and the accelerating pace of technological change. UBC takes these challenges very seriously, with a focus on offering students a safe and inclusive environment and providing a broad array of services to support success.

In the context of the housing crisis, UBC is the largest provider of student housing in Canada, with more than 15,000 below-market-rate student residence spaces. The recently announced $300 million investment from the BC Government, and $260 million contribution from the university, in a new student housing initiative on the Vancouver campus will result in over 1,500 new student beds. This comes on the heels of the recent opening of Brock Commons Phase 2 which offers 600 student beds, and planning also is underway for the next phase of student housing on the Okanagan campus.

Research is how we find solutions to the challenges we are facing. In 2023/24, UBC attracted a record level of $893 million in research funding from government, industry and non-profit partners. In addition, UBC recently received a transformative Federal Government investment of $140 million to support the UBC-led Canada Immuno-Engineering and Biomanufacturing Hub, towards pandemic preparedness. UBC’s world-class research and scholarship is defining our understanding of our world and our place within it, improving health outcomes, spurring innovation across a wide range of industries, and leading high-growth sectors, including artificial intelligence, quantum, the life sciences, as well as clean energy and technology.

UBC is also a leader in sustainability on our campuses. In 2023, our Vancouver campus emitted 35% less greenhouse gas emissions than it did in 2007 – despite a 28% growth in building floor space and a 43% increase in student population. We are aiming to reduce campus operations emissions by 85% by 2030, as part of the Climate Action Plan, and we will seize any opportunity to accelerate this work. UBC Okanagan is installing a next generation heat pump for its district energy system, which will allow the campus to meet Paris Accord targets ahead of schedule.

This year we will also be refreshing the university’s strategic plan. Since the launch of Shaping UBC’s Next Century in 2018, UBC has made great strides, but the world has changed significantly and there are new opportunities to explore. Over the coming months we will be engaging the community to refine our vision for the future and define a series of priorities and objectives for the next three to five years, largely focused on our core academic and research mission. At the same time, we will further advance the implementation of our Indigenous Strategic Plan (ISP) and Strategic Equity and Anti-Racism (StEAR) Framework. More information about how we can all contribute to the strategic plan refresh will be shared shortly.

As we embark on the new academic year, it is important to acknowledge that geopolitical conflicts and humanitarian crises in Gaza, Ukraine, and other parts of the world are of grave concern for many in our community and around the world. If you are personally affected, I encourage you to seek out the supports available to students, faculty and staff. In discussing these issues, I urge everyone to remember that anger only begets more anger and that the only way forward is respectful dialogue and compassion for one another. Discrimination and intimidation of any kind have no place at UBC. At all times, ensuring everyone’s safety and wellbeing is our foremost priority.

I wish everyone a wonderful start to the term and invite you to attend the Create first-year student orientation event at UBC Okanagan and Imagine UBC day at UBC Vancouver, as well as the UBC Homecoming later this fall.

Benoit-Antoine Bacon
President and Vice-Chancellor

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As we welcome the beautiful summer months, I wanted to take a moment to share some good news and highlight some of the remarkable UBC accomplishments over the past year. Congratulations to everyone in our community for these shared successes!

Largest spring graduating class in UBC history

In Vancouver and the Okanagan, we recently celebrated the largest spring graduating class in UBC history, with 12,510 students graduating across all programs – 10,526 in Vancouver and 1,984 in the Okanagan. This remarkable achievement reflects not only the hard work and dedication of our students but also unwavering support from our faculty, staff, and the entire UBC community. We are immensely proud of each and every graduate and excited to see the positive impact they will make in the world. Congratulations to all our graduates!

Research funding at historical high in 2023/24

I am thrilled to announce that UBC researchers attracted $893 million in research funding from government, industry and non-profit partners in 2023/24. This is over $100 million more than UBC’s previous high of $774 million in 2021/22. This unprecedented level of research funding will enable UBC researchers to continue to seek new insights and discoveries that will improve lives globally.

In addition, we also recently announced a transformative federal investment of $140 million to support projects for Canada’s Immuno-Engineering and Biomanufacturing Hub, led by UBC. This investment will ensure Canada is ready to respond to future pandemics, and will also generate the talent and industry collaborations needed to foster and sustain a world-class life sciences sector here in BC.

Most successful fundraising and alumni engagement year ever

In March, we concluded UBC’s most successful fundraising and alumni engagement year ever with $354.6 million raised – almost 50% more than last year’s total – and more than 104,000 alumni engaged through 1.9 million interactions, also record highs.

We can already see the impact and the promise of what is possible through the FORWARD campaign and the support of our donor and alumni community. For example, over 6,500 donors have contributed $33.5 million to ‘FORWARD for Students’ for affordability-related programs and services to support students when and where they need it most.

Balanced operating budget for 2024/25

UBC remains in a balanced financial position despite unfavourable economic conditions and other challenges. While the budgetary situation is tighter than in the past, at this time we continue to be able to make investments in our key priority areas of teaching and learning, research and innovation, and providing holistic support for our students. We also remain committed to driving positive social change, including advancing our commitment to Truth and Reconciliation and our equity, diversity and inclusion goals, as well as addressing the challenge of climate change.

New Chancellor, Board Chair and senior leaders

I am so pleased to welcome our new Chancellor, Judy Rogers, and new Board Chair, Miranda Lam. They are two truly outstanding individuals who will serve UBC well as the university moves forward in fulfilling our academic mission. Over the past two weeks, we also appointed Melanie Stewart as Vice-President, External Relations, Jan Hare as Dean of the Faculty of Education, Lalitha Raman-Wilms as Dean of the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Suzie Currie as Vice-Principal, Research and Innovation, at UBC Okanagan. Please learn more about these new appointments here:

• Appointment of Judy Rogers as UBC Chancellor: https://ubctoday.ubc.ca/judy-rogers-appointed-chancellor
• Appointment of Miranda Lam as Board Chair: https://bog.ubc.ca/2024/07/03/board-chair-appointment
• Appointment of Melanie Stewart as Vice-President, External Relations: https://ubctoday.ubc.ca/melanie-stewart-appointed-vice-president-external-relations
• Appointment of Jan Hare as Dean, Faculty of Education: https://ubctoday.ubc.ca/jan-hare-appointed-dean-education
• Appointment of Lalitha Raman-Wilms as Dean, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences: https://ubctoday.ubc.ca/lalitha-raman-wilms-appointed-dean-pharmaceutical-sciences
• Appointment of Suzie Currie as Vice-Principal, Research and Innovation, UBC Okanagan: https://news.ok.ubc.ca/2024/06/27/appointment-of-dr-suzie-currie-as-next-vice-principal-research-and-innovation-ubc-okanagan

Strategic plan refresh

Finally, as announced yesterday (https://broadcastemail.ubc.ca/2024/07/03/refreshing-our-strategic-plan-in-2024-25/), we will soon be launching a process to revisit and refresh the university’s strategic plan.

Since the launch of Shaping UBC’s Next Century in 2018, UBC has made great strides in advancing the plan, but the world has changed a lot since 2018 and there are opportunities to be identified and seized.

By refreshing the plan and defining a series of priorities and actions for the next three to five years, largely focused on our academic and research goals, we can celebrate and build upon our successes in the pursuit of excellence in research, teaching and learning. There will be opportunities for the broader UBC community to feed into the process beginning this fall and throughout the 2024/25 academic year.

Acknowledging ongoing challenges

There have been challenges, of course. I am thinking of the federal government’s announced cap on international students and the uncertainty and concern it created for students. We worked closely with the provincial government and were able to ensure that all new international undergraduate students enrolling at UBC have access to a federal student permit.

The conflict in Israel and Palestine continues to evoke complex and difficult emotions on our campuses. These issues have affected universities across the country and we are continuing to prioritize everyone’s safety and to seek a path forward in the spirit of respectful dialogue.

I also want to acknowledge that we are still in a post-pandemic world and that many in our community are facing personal challenges. I take this opportunity to remind everyone that UBC has extensive support services for students, faculty and staff and encourage anyone in need to reach out.

In closing, I would like to encourage everyone to take and enjoy some time off this summer. I will certainly take my own advice and recharge for a few weeks. Again, my sincere thanks and all the best for a wonderful summer.

Benoit-Antoine Bacon
President and Vice-Chancellor

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As UBC passes the halfway point on its strategic plan, Shaping UBC’s Next Century, the time is right for us to revisit it and define the university’s priorities for the next three to five years. A process involving broad community consultations will be announced in the fall.

The ten-year plan entitled Shaping UBC’s Next Century was launched in 2018. Since then, UBC has made great strides in advancing all aspects of the plan. At the same time, the last five years have seen substantial change in the world, including a global pandemic, increased geo-political tensions, and the rise of AI, to name just a few.

By revisiting and refreshing our strategic plan, we can now celebrate and build upon our successes, apply lessons learned, adapt to a changing higher education landscape, and continue our trajectory of transformation, propelling UBC to even greater heights. Notwithstanding challenges, there is no question that the future is bright for UBC.

To be clear, the intention is not to replace our strategic plan, but to define a series of priorities and actions for the next three to five years, largely focused on UBC’s academic and research goals – at a time when both higher education and our broader society is faced with so many challenges.

We propose to focus on three broad interrelated objectives:

• Envision what kind of university UBC strives to be over the next 25 years, to 2050.
• Define shorter-term priorities and objectives over the next three to five years, especially with regards to our core academic and research mission.
• Continue to mobilize and support the achievement of existing institutional plans such as the Indigenous Strategic Plan, Strategic Equity and Anti-Racism (StEAR) Framework, as well as Faculty-level plans.

A steering committee comprising UBC’s two Provosts (in Vancouver and the Okanagan) and the Vice-President, Research & Innovation will be guiding the process, with support from a project team. The aim is to have a refreshed plan by the end of the 2024/25 academic year.

Again, there will be opportunities for the broader UBC community to feed into the process throughout the year. More details will be shared when we are back for the new academic year.

In the meantime, I hope you all have a restful and wonderful summer.

Benoit-Antoine Bacon
President and Vice-Chancellor

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I am pleased to announce that the UBC Board of Governors has appointed Judy Rogers to be the university’s 20th Chancellor, following her nomination by the alumni UBC Board of Directors.

Ms. Rogers brings a wealth of experience to the role, with an extensive background in governance, public administration, and community development.

A UBC alum, her extensive career is marked by significant leadership roles and contributions to public administration, community development, and governance. She held the role of City Manager of the City of Vancouver from 1999 to 2008, and served on the board for the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. She was also a member of the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority’s Board of Directors from 2017 to 2023, and was named chair in 2018.

Ms. Rogers’ contributions have been recognized with numerous awards and honours. She received the Order of Canada in 2017, and has won two United Nations public service awards for her leadership role in the Downtown Eastside Community Development Project.

As UBC’s Chancellor, Ms. Rogers will act as the ceremonial head of the university and preside over all major ceremonies and convocations. She will also represent UBC in a wide range of events and activities. She assumes her role on September 1, 2024.

As we welcome Ms. Rogers, I would like to thank the Honourable Steven Point, who is stepping down after four years of exemplary service. The first Indigenous person to hold the position of Chancellor, Mr. Point has been an exceptional leader and ambassador for UBC.

Please join me in congratulating Ms. Rogers on her new role and welcoming her back to the UBC community.

Bill Sundhu
Interim Chair
UBC Board of Governors

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Dear members of the UBC community,

The violence unfolding in Israel and Palestine continues to evoke complex emotions around the world, and many in our diverse community are deeply affected. The grief and suffering we all witness and feel is heartbreaking.

As you are aware, about a week ago a protest began at MacInnes Field on the Vancouver campus and is ongoing. There are currently about 75 tents and 100 people at the site. This protest is part of a broader movement that started in the United States and has now spread to Canada. Students are looking at a world in crisis and at their core, the campus protests are seeking the end of violence in Israel and Palestine.

UBC deeply values freedom of expression and respects its corollary of peaceful protest. We are actively monitoring the situation and prioritizing the safety of all our community members and visitors to campus. We have made clear the university’s expectations of the protestors at MacInnes Field. I want to stress again that protest actions must be conducted with respect for others and within the boundaries of UBC policy and the law and any action that contravenes this will be taken very seriously.

At this time of heightened tensions, we ask that anyone engaging in expressing views about the conflict be exceptionally careful in the way in which their views are articulated. We encourage everyone to maintain respectful dialogue when discussing these complex issues. It is absolutely essential that the university remains a place of reasoned debate where conflicting views can peacefully co-exist. Our academic and social mission depends on it.

One issue that has been raised across North America is the call for divestments. At UBC, the Endowment Fund does not directly own any stocks in the companies identified by the movement. Capital is held in pooled funds and managed by external investment managers, with the identified companies accounting for about 0.28% of the Endowment Fund.

As signatories to the United Nations-supported Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI), the university’s investment managers are continuously adjusting their strategies based on the integration of environmental, social and governance (ESG) considerations. We would welcome a respectful and robust discussion with student representatives from UBC on this issue.

Benoit-Antoine Bacon
President and Vice-Chancellor

Below you can read earlier messages related to the protest:

https://security.ubc.ca/2024/05/07/protest-at-the-vancouver-campus/
https://security.ubc.ca/2024/04/30/update-on-campus-protest/
https://security.ubc.ca/2024/04/29/protest-at-ubcs-macinnes-field/

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Faculty and staff are invited to participate in the Canadian Campus Wellbeing Survey (CCWS) 2024 to help us understand your lived experience at UBC, as we prepare to refresh our existing wellbeing strategy. Your insights will have a direct impact on how our community members work, learn, and enjoy our campuses for years to come.

The CCWS is a comprehensive, voluntary, and confidential online survey that assesses the health and wellbeing status of students, faculty, and staff in the post-secondary sector. The survey consists of validated measures used in existing Canadian health surveys and it will take 15-20 minutes to complete. All responses will be anonymous and confidential. Results of the survey will be reported in statistically aggregated form only; it is not possible for UBC or CCWS to identify individual faculty and staff.

The survey deadline is May 17. You can access the survey at https://pair.ubc.ca/surveys/ccws-staff-faculty/

Please note student employees are asked not to take this survey as they received the separate CCWS for students in March.

Why should faculty and staff participate?

This survey will help determine where our wellbeing efforts are working and where we still have work to do. It will also allow us to compare the experience of UBC faculty and staff with other major universities across Canada, giving us a shared framework to inform larger, system-wide changes across higher education.

Our adoption of the Okanagan Charter, almost 10 years ago, strengthened our commitment to embedding the health and wellbeing of people, places, and the planet into the fabric of our institution. By understanding the experience of the people who teach, research, and work at UBC, we can ensure we continue to meet and improve on those commitments.

Thank you in advance for taking the time to provide valuable feedback.

Additional data security information

Your data will be collected anonymously, encrypted, password-protected, and stored on a computer in a secure UBC location. If you have any questions about this research project or how we plan to use the results, please contact the local principal investigator Dr. Stephanie McKeown, Chief Institutional Research Officer at stephanie.mckeown@ubc.ca

More information about the CCWS is available at https://www.ccws-becc.ca/

Adam Charania
Interim Vice-President, Human Resources

Alexandra Bayne
Managing Director, Human Resources, UBC Okanagan

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Unbelievably, this week already marks the end of winter session and the academic year. Let me congratulate everyone on the semester and wish all students the very best as we head into exam season. I look forward to seeing many of you on stage at convocation, and to seeing you go forth towards successful and self-determined lives.

For faculty and staff, this is also an important time as we support our students during the exam period. Thank you to all those who play a key role throughout this process.

It has been a wonderful adventure to discover UBC; to meet with students, faculty and staff, and learn more about this remarkable university. In recent months, I have visited many different areas of the university and will continue to do this, to experience first hand the exceptional work that is being carried out at UBC.

I would like to update you on issues that are important to our community. While there is much to celebrate at UBC, it is important to recognize that broader economic conditions, geopolitical issues, and policy changes specific to higher education are creating a measure of instability for the post-secondary sector as a whole.

Cap on international student permits

In January, the federal government announced a two-year temporary cap on study permits for international students. The cap does not impact international students already in Canada, and it does not include graduate students. However, it did cause concern for new undergraduate international students thinking about enrolling in Canadian post-secondary institutions this fall.

We have been working closely with the provincial government to ensure that all new international undergraduate students who are accepted and choose to enrol at UBC will have access to a federal study permit. We have emphasized the importance of welcoming outstanding international students to BC, while also reinforcing the important and diverse contributions international students bring to campus communities.

We are pleased that the cap that has been allocated to UBC is sufficient to move forward as planned with international enrolment for the coming year. As we speak, the Province is also issuing the letters of attestation that new international undergraduate students will need to receive their study permit. This is a good outcome for UBC and for British Columbia.

Operating Budget for 2024/25

I am also pleased to confirm that, at its meeting of March 27, the UBC Board of Governors approved the university’s 2024/25 operating budget. Despite unfavourable economic conditions and other challenges, UBC remains in a healthy financial position and will continue to prioritize investments in our key priority areas: teaching and learning excellence, research and innovation, and providing holistic support for our students. We also remain committed to driving positive social change, including advancing our Truth and Reconciliation and Equity, Diversity and Inclusion goals, as well as addressing the challenge of climate change.

Research Security

At the beginning of 2024, the federal government announced its new Policy on Sensitive Technology Research and Affiliations of Concern intended to safeguard Canada’s research outputs in sensitive technology areas, such as AI.

I appreciate this new policy might be creating some uncertainty for researchers who are applying for funding through federal granting agencies. You may be wondering what these new requirements and responsibilities mean for you. The research security team in the Office of the Vice-President, Research and Innovation, is there to provide guidance to researchers around this new federal government policy, as well as training on research security. Please reach out as needed.

UBC remains fundamentally committed to enabling an open and collaborative research environment, while at the same time providing support to our research community to effectively safeguard research and sensitive information.

Ongoing violence in Israel and Palestine

As the term ends, the conflict in the Middle East continues to put a strain on our community. I know many of you are personally affected and deeply concerned by these events. My thoughts are with everyone who is suffering and grieving.

During my first week at UBC, on November 6, I wrote to acknowledge the many different and difficult emotions that the conflict naturally and legitimately evoked. My request to everyone was to take great care to remain respectful and compassionate towards each other and to uphold our shared commitment to fostering inclusion, dignity, and human rights at UBC. I want to thank our community for the calm, respect, and compassion that has been displayed by the overwhelming majority of students, faculty, and staff.

I also want to acknowledge that tensions emerging from the conflict continue and, as a result, some people may not feel completely safe or welcome at the university. In line with this, let me reiterate that violence, harassment, and discrimination of any kind have no place at UBC and will not be tolerated.

Maintaining a safe and welcoming environment is our priority and should be everyone’s priority. By our words and actions, we all have a direct and immediate impact on the university environment. By definition, there will be conflicting perspectives and disagreements, but it is essential to both our academic mission and our sense of community that these different viewpoints and opinions peacefully co-exist and are discussed in a respectful manner.

Respect, collegiality, and compassion for one another must not be selective to those who agree with us, but must also be extended to those with whom we disagree. Again, respect and compassion in no way curtail our ability to express our views. In fact, they protect and sustain that right by providing a safe forum for these exchanges and debates.

In closing, I would like to thank all our students, faculty, and staff for everything you do for UBC. Despite uncertainties in the higher education sector, UBC is well positioned to continue to deliver excellence in research, teaching and learning in the next academic year and beyond. Collectively, we have many opportunities to realize and much to look forward to.

Again, many thanks and congratulations for another strong year!

Benoit-Antoine Bacon
President and Vice-Chancellor

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