Upcoming Events
Healthy Aging Research Seminar | Oct 12
with Dr. Rachel Murphy, Senior Scientist at BC Cancer and Associate Director, School of Population and Public Health at UBC.
A healthy diet is one of the few ubiquitous, modifiable risk factors for chronic disease prevention. However, most Canadians do not have healthy diets. In this presentation, Dr. Murphy will summarize her team’s work using systems biology approaches, epidemiologic and administrative health data to provide novel insight on mechanisms underlying diet and health relationships and identification of novel strategies to prevent chronic disease. Finally, she will highlight forthcoming work in her group that seeks to answer a fundamental challenge in nutrition and public health ‘how can we better support healthy eating among Canadians to improve health?’
This lecture may be viewed in-person at the Rudy North Lecture Theatre in the Centre for Brain Health at UBC or over Zoom.
Thursday, 12 October 2023 - 11:00am
Faculty Women's Club Lecture | Oct 12
Critical Hope in/and the Middle East
The Faculty Women's Club would like to invite the professors emerti to join on Zoom for a lecture from Pheroze Unwalla, PhD, Associate Professor of Teaching, History/Chair, Middle East Studies.
Professor Unwalla completed his PhD from the University of London, in 2014. He is a historian of Turkey and the modern Middle East whose main research interests include memory, trauma, nationalism and space. As Educational Leadership-stream faculty, he is presently focused on the establishment, development and expansion of Middle East Studies (MES) at UBC and developing new pedagogical approaches in MES and Middle East History.
His most significant initiatives include developing and assessing classroom emotionality interventions and emotive writing assignments, critical pedagogies of hope in MES and History curricula, and developing Students as Partners (SaP) approaches and Mentorship Opportunities in MES.
When: Tuesday, Oct 12 at 11:00am
Where: Zoom
Contact Mary Thompson at thompson.nana@gmail.com to register.
Series at Green College | Oct 12
"I Want To Speak About It In My Language." A Case Study of a Group Intervention Conducted in the Ojibway Language
with Alanaise Ferguson, Indigenous Studies, Community, Culture and Global Studies, UBCO
part of the 'Psychological Trauma and Resilience' is a cross departmental collaboration between UBC's Green College and Emeritus College.
Working from a place of cultural reclamation and trauma informed practice presents psychotherapists with a beautiful challenge and opportunity for knowledge exchange. Anishinaabe (Ojibway) peoples are regarded as grand medicine people due to our deep healing knowledge, which is embedded in our ancient practices of ceremony, medicine gathering, and language.
Aim: As a psychotherapy researcher and Anishinaabe, I was interested in accessing cultural concepts of helping and healing embedded in the linguistic structure and embodied communication in personal stories shared in an Anishinaabemowin (Ojibway language) healing intervention.
Methods: I co-created a method with 6 fluent Anishinaabemowin speakers to facilitate a healing intervention that they participated in as a group. Arranged in a circle around a kitchen table, two speakers sat across from one another and generated a counselling dyad where one person released her personal story to another who served as the counsellor in the presence of four other witnesses. After 45 minutes of empathic responding in Anishinaabemowin, the four therapeutic witnesses were invited to share their reflections with the group. It was within these interactions that I was able to articulate the therapeutic power of Anishinaabemowin group counselling and witnessing, and report on the emergence of a culturally agile group intervention. This intervention was video recorded to be viewed later, multiple times, in the presence of an Anishinaabemowin fluent elder who provided cultural oversight during the interpretive stages. This step ensured cultural and linguistic safety for participants and focussed my attention on participants’ embodied communication. Several listening stages preceded the eventual translation into English text. Trustworthiness checks were followed and transcripts returned to the participants. Analysis of the intervention was conducted dialogically in Anishinaabemowin during the reflecting circle portion of the group, and subsequently translated into English.
Results: Several healing concepts emerged in the counselling and circle work interactions and are considered unique features of Anishinaabemowin patterns and embodied cultural communication. Implications for cross-cultural group psychotherapy include: (a) identifying the linguistic limitations, challenges, and advantages of counselling in Indigenous languages, (b) expansion of current therapy models to principally include Indigenous language and culture in trauma informed practices.
Speaker Biography
I am an Anishinaabe psychologist and Indigenous language learner living in Syilx Territory, UBC Okanagan. I have been practicing psychotherapy for over 20 years, and received my training at the University of British Columbia Counselling Psychology program. I am happy to return to my alma mater and discuss my work in Anishinaabe language psychotherapy and share a case study in healing from family violence and colonial trauma. As a Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Health and Healing – Indigenous Approaches to Healing from Intergenerational Trauma and Loss, I am interested in producing knowledge at the intersections of ancient healing practices and cutting edge trauma-informed practice.
'Psychological Trauma and Resilience' is a cross departmental collaboration between UBC's Green College and Emeritus College.
Presentations in the Emeritus College Series at Green College Intergenerational Effects of Psychological Trauma (2021-22) revealed an interest, appetite and need for further conversations related to the development of resiliency among individuals and groups, and how they can cope more effectively and recover from the impact of various traumas. Building on this foundation, the six-part series Psychological Trauma and Resilience will embark on a journey to consider the many ways in which individuals and groups respond to trauma, possible approaches to coping with trauma and specific strategies for recovery.
Series Conveners: Marv Westwood, Counseling Psychology, with Judith Hall, Pediatrics and Medical Genetics; and Richard Vedan, Social Work
Event Dates: Oct 12, Nov 9, Jan 11, Feb 8, Mar 14, Apr 16
In-person with livestream option
Join us in-person at Green College on the UBC Vancouver Campus or virtually. The session will be followed by a reception.
Thursday, 12 October 2023 - 5:00pm
Wine Appreciation Group | Oct 12
WINE & MUSIC – DOES MUSIC ALTER THE SENSORY EXPERIENCE OF WINE?
Expertise level: all levels.
A welcome to returning/new members, briefly discuss wine explorations since last term, tentative plans, pick up ISO wine glasses where needed. Wine tasting theme: WINE & MUSIC – DOES MUSIC ALTER THE SENSORY EXPERIENCE OF WINE? These 4 wines will be those that would be suitable for pairing with Thanksgiving dinner (varieties TBA: Pinot Gris, Chardonnay, Riesling, Gewurztraminer, Gamay Noir, Pinot Noir, Merlot+Cab blend, Syrah).
The Wine Appreciation Group has a limited number of spaces available in this year's group. Please reach out to David MacArthur at david.mcarthur@ubc.ca to register.
Thursday, 12 October 2023 - 6:30pm
Vancouver Institute Lecture | Oct 14
Naval Conflict and the First Punic War: Discoveries from the Debris Field
with Dr. William (Bill) Murray, Mary and Gus Stathis Professor of Greek History, University of South Florida
Dr. Murray’s interests include all aspects of ancient seafaring from ships and their designs to trade, ancient harbours, naval warfare and weaponry. His research has been featured on the History and National Geographic channels. Over the past 40 years, he has worked at a number of archaeological sites, both under water and on land, in Greece, Israel, Turkey, France and Italy. Dr. Murray is currently a member of the Egadi Island Survey Project recovering ancient warship rams and other battle debris from the last naval battle of the First Punic War. He is also preparing with others the final publication of excavations conducted at Augustus’ Victory Monument near Actium. He is author of The Age of Titans: The Rise and Fall of the Great Hellenistic Navies (2012), a volume in the Onassis Series in Hellenic Culture.
Saturday, 14 October 2023 - 8:15pm
Groves of Academe | Oct 16
READING: Janet S. Charles, The Paris Library
If you would like to join the group please contact convenor, Graeme Wynn (wynn@geog.ubc.ca).
* Please contact the convenor for more information or to be added to the group. By nature of the intimate sharing format of the group, membership size is limited.*
Monday, 16 October 2023 - 3:30pm