Two UBC Students Among 15 Trudeau Scholars

Two UBC graduate students have received 2008 Trudeau scholarships, Canada’s largest social sciences and humanities doctoral award. Since the scholarship program was established in 2003, one-third of Trudeau Scholars have been from UBC.

Winners receive awards worth up to $150,000 over four years from the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation. Recipients are also mentored by prominent national and international leaders in their respective fields.

"We’re excited for these exceptional students," said Don Brooks, UBC Associate Vice President of Research. "The Trudeau Foundation’s support for graduate students’ contribution to research and public debate is invaluable.”

  • Shauna Labman, Faculty of Law, proposes to develop a refugee resettlement policy that takes into account both human rights and state responsibility – an area in which she feels Canada could become an international role model.
  • Lilia Yumagulova, School of Community and Regional Planning, addresses the challenge of increasing communities’ ability to withstand natural disasters, with a special focus on marginalized urban communities.

The Trudeau scholarships are given to Canadian students at home or abroad who are expected to become national and international leaders and whose studies advance four areas: human rights and social justice, responsible citizenship, Canada and the world, and humans and their natural environment.

Other universities to garner 2008 Trudeau scholarships include Harvard, Oxford, the University of Toronto and the University of California, Berkeley.

For bios, photos or to arrange interviews, contact Sheryl So, Environics Communications, at 416.969.2725 or sso@environicspr.com.

The Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation funds outstanding scholars who make meaningful contributions to critical issues of the day. Since 2002, the Foundation has granted nearly 150 major awards to top researchers and highly accomplished individuals. For more information, visit www.trudeaufoundation.ca.

– 30 –