UBC This Week 23-Aug-2012


   
 

Upcoming Event Highlights

Aug 23-24 Promoting Mental Health in BC Schools – Summer Institute 2012
Aug 25 UBC BirdQuest
Aug 25 UBC Farm Market
Aug 26 Open House: UBC Certificate in Garden Design
Aug 27 One-Shot Workshop – Net Play and Volleys
Aug 28 Adrenal Imbalance: The Stress Illness Connection
Aug 29 AMS Hiring Fair 2012
Aug 29 New Graduate Student Orientation and BBQ
Aug 30 Wiki Basics I
Aug 30-Nov 12 Wider Symmetries
Aug 31 Cruising Through Your International Grad Student Life
Sep 1-8 AMS First Week
Sep 2 Way Cool Biodiversity Series: Copepods are Way Cool Because…
   
   
  Find out what else is happening at UBC this week. For sports events, visit the UBC Athletics site at http://www.gothunderbirds.ca/calendar.aspx.

 

UBC People


UBC People

University Boulevard re-opening to buses and vehicles

On Aug. 26, TransLink will begin transitioning the current trolley bus bays to their new permanent locations on University Boulevard. As a result, trolley bus and vehicle traffic will return to the roadway and pedestrians should adjust their travel through this area. The new loop opens after a phase of improvements to public spaces in the area and will be operational as of Aug. 28, 2012.

Between Aug. 26 and 28, there will be minor service impacts and changes to the trolley bus stop locations. The current bays by War Memorial Gym will now be located on the south side of University Boulevard stretching from Wesbrook Mall to East Mall. Signs will be clearly posted directing you to the temporary stop locations and trolley bus route service is expected to run without disruption.

To ensure safety, the new bus loop features clearly marked paths for cyclists and pedestrians. Cyclists entering campus via 10th Ave. should use the north side of University Boulevard. Eastbound cyclists should exit on the south side of University Boulevard, guided by ‘sharrows’ (shared-lane markings). Pedestrians should use the sidewalks at all times and cross University Boulevard only at designated cross walks when safe.

The completion of University Boulevard brings improvements in sustainable transportation including bicycle lockers at the D.H. Copp building, bus stops located closer to the heart of campus and the future Student Union Building (currently under construction), and beautiful new bus shelters (to be completed in October). The three new bus bays will serve the #4 Powell, #14 Hastings, # 9 Boundary (peak hours only) and the N17 Downtown NightBus.

Students, faculty, staff and residents will notice that improvements in the area include new lighting, paving, street trees, bicycle parking and landscaping, which are part of UBC’s work to update and improve the campus’s network of outdoor public spaces.

View a map and more information at http://transportation.ubc.ca/2012/08/22/university-boulevard-set-to-re-open-to-busses-and-vehicles/

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UBC prof warns of threat to global water supply in Science

Four of every five people on the planet face a high-level risk to their potable water supply, threatening their health, livelihoods and national security, writes Karen Bakker, a geographer at UBC, in the new issue of Science.

In her paper Water Security: Research Challenges and Opportunities, Bakker cites climate change, population growth, contamination, terrorism and agricultural water demands as issues that pose a threat to water security and water-related biodiversity across the globe.

For more information, visit http://wire.arts.ubc.ca/arts-in-the-news/ubc-prof-warns-of-threats-to-global-water-supply-in-science/

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New director of Institute of Asian Research appointed

Prof. Yves Tiberghien has been appointed as the new director of UBC’s Institute of Asian Research, effective September 1, 2012, for a five-year term.

Tiberghien is one of UBC’s leading scholars on Asia. He is currently working on a SSHRC-funded multi-year project on the battle for global governance with a particular focus on the role of China, Japan, and Korea in the G20 and in global economic and environmental issues. As a senior fellow with the Global Summitry Project at the Munk School of Global Affairs, he regularly attends G20 meetings (including Cannes 2011 and Los Cabos in 2012).

For more information, visit http://faculty.arts.ubc.ca/tiberg/Homepage09/welcome.html.

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Law prof recognized in environmental law

UBC law professor Ben Richardson is the joint recipient of the Senior Scholar Prize awarded annually by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Academy of Environmental Law. The IUCN Academy is a worldwide association of over 150 law schools, and close to 500 scholars, that specialize in environmental law.

The prize is awarded to recognize outstanding publications, research collaboration and global scholarly leadership. The co-recipient of this prize is Antonio Benjamin, Brazil’s most famous environmental law professor and judge.

For more information, visit http://www.law.ubc.ca/news/2012/aug/08_17_12_richardson.html?id=376356&q=481294217&qz=1fb016.

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Engineering prof wins lectureship award

Chemical and Biological Engineering professor Kevin J. Smith has been awarded the Canadian Catalysis Lectureship Award for 2012 by the Catalysis Division of the Chemical Institute of Canada. The award provides funding for Smith to present his research at selected locations across Canada.

For more information, visit http://blogs.apsc.ubc.ca/chbenews/2012/08/15/2012-canadian-catalysis-lectureship-award-kevin-j-smith/.

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Engineering PhD student wins Mensa scholarship

Tanaya Guha, a PhD student specializing in artificial intelligence at UBC, won the Frank and Betty Woodhams Memorial Scholarship from Mensa Canada. She studies automatic understanding of human activities in videos, which has significant real-world applications in surveillance, medicine, sports and entertainment.

For more information, visit:
http://www.ece.ubc.ca/news/201208/tanaya-guha-receives-frank-betty-woodhams-memorial-scholarship.

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Lecture series on public health law and policy in Asia

Beginning in September, Prof. Pitman Potter‘s Asia Pacific Dispute Resolution (APDR) project will begin facilitating the “Public Health Law and Policy in Asia” series of monthly lectures at Green College.

The eight lectures will be delivered by leading specialists on health law and policy in Asia. The first lecture, delivered by Dr. Ashok Kotwal and Dr. Bharat Ramaswami on Sept. 19, will explore food security in India.

For more information, visit http://www.law.ubc.ca/news/2012/aug/08_20_12_potter.html?id=376356&q=481294217&qz=1fb016.

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