News Stories
VIU Receives Funding for new EV Skills Training Program
March 21, 2022
Minister Bruce Ralston visited VIU on March 21 to learn more about the new program. Automotive technicians will soon be able to upgrade their skills to work on electric vehicles (EVs) at Vancouver Island University (VIU), thanks to funding from the provincial government. The EV Maintenance Training program will be offered starting in January 2023, with a pilot in September 2022. The program,... Read more
Griffin Prize-Winning Poet A.F. Moritz to Give VIU Gustafson Lecture and Reading
February 17, 2022
The annual lecture will take place on March 3, 2022, on the Nanaimo campus. A.F. Moritz, one of Canada’s most esteemed and decorated poets, is Vancouver Island University’s (VIU’s) Ralph Gustafson Distinguished Poet for 2021-22. The annual lecture will take place on March 3 in the Ralph Gustafson Lecture Theatre in Building 355 at VIU’s Nanaimo campus. His talk, entitled “Poetry: Future Present... Read more
VIU Media Highlights: November 15-29, 2021
November 29, 2021
A roundup of VIU students and employees in the news. Top-performing Broadcast Story VIU alumnus Wawmeesh Hamilton was the featured guest on the November 23 edition of the Our Native Land podcast on CHEK News. Reach: 42,000 people. Top 10 News Stories Toronto Star (through local journalism initiative): Indigenous journalists essential in amplifying the stories of Indigenous people. See VIU... Read more
VIU Education Student Investigates How Women Experienced Trauma During the First World War
November 5, 2021
Danielle Cossey-Sutton’s project was funded by a Mitacs Research Training Award. A gap in First World War research is how women experienced trauma. Vancouver Island University (VIU) Bachelor of Education student Danielle Cossey-Sutton spent part of the last academic year investigating this aspect of history. “Historical scholars admit it is difficult to explore gender studies during the First... Read more
Giving Tuesday at VIU Raises Funds for Students in Need
November 4, 2021
VIU’s eighth annual Giving Tuesday campaign runs from November 15 to November 30, 2021. Vancouver Island University (VIU) welcomes learners of all different ages and backgrounds. Sometimes learners need a little extra help to make their educational goals a reality, which is why the University has run a Giving Tuesday campaign for the past eight years. Giving Tuesday is a global movement to give... Read more
VIU and Community Partners Remember Local Fallen Soldiers through Video Memorial
November 1, 2021
VIU video project acknowledges Nanaimo soldiers’ contributions to the First and Second World Wars. A video memorial project that aims to tell a piece of the story of the lives of the Nanaimo soldiers who made the ultimate sacrifice during the First and Second World Wars will be displayed across the city November 1 -11, 2021. For the 11 days leading up to Remembrance Day, the Nanaimo Remembers... Read more
VIU’s Engaged Citizens Speaker Series Confronts the Housing Crisis
October 7, 2021
WHAT: VIU’s Engaged Citizens Speaker Series WHEN: Thursday, October 14, 2021, 6 to 7:30 pm WHERE: Zoom webinar, Registration link During the COVID-19 pandemic, housing has quickly become the frontline of defense against the spread of the virus. But for precariously housed or homeless people, the request to “stay home” is an impossibility. Leilani Farha, Global Director of The Shift, an... Read more
VIU’s Malaspina Theatre Hosts Winds of Change Art Exhibit
September 22, 2021
Featuring works by Stz’uminus First Nation artist Daniel R. Elliott, the exhibit explores the impacts of colonization and how healing can be achieved. Indigenous artist Daniel R. Elliott wants to take people on a healing journey. But first, he’s asking people to confront the history and impact of residential schools head on, and not look away. His paintings are on display in the Malaspina... Read more
VIU Professor Studies How Pandemic Affected Recreation Programming in the Yukon
September 14, 2021
Dr. Aggie Weighill is participating in a two-phase research project that aims to develop a more resilient, post-pandemic model of recreation delivery. How people view the role and importance of physical activity in the well-being and social togetherness of their community is a question that Vancouver Island University (VIU) Recreation and Tourism Professor Dr. Aggie Weighill is looking to answer... Read more
BC Government announces support for VIU-developed drug checking technology
August 17, 2021
Vancouver Island University (VIU) is excited to share the news that the provincial government is providing $305,000 for HarmCheck – a cutting-edge drug-checking technology that was developed at VIU. It uses high-throughput paper spray mass spectrometry to provide rapid drug-checking and can be used on-site as a harm reduction method. HarmCheck is a collaboration between VIU and the Victoria-based... Read more