Community Engagement

News Stories

Ashley Sandhu is a VIU Student Wellness Promoter

VIU Focuses Fundraising Campaign on Helping Students Impacted by Pandemic

November 13, 2020

The University’s seventh annual Giving Tuesday campaign, which runs from November 16 to December 1, will target supports for students impacted financially and mentally by COVID-19. Vancouver Island University (VIU) students, employees and community friends are teaming up to support our most vulnerable students on Giving Tuesday. Giving Tuesday is a global movement for giving that falls on the... Read more


Jesse Wente, VIU's 2020 Indigenous speaker

VIU Indigenous Speaker Shares a Story of Joy

November 12, 2020

Jesse Wente, an Anishinaabe writer, broadcaster, speaker and arts leader, shares his perspective on Canada’s truth and reconciliation process during VIU’s sixth annual Indigenous Speakers Series on Wednesday, November 25. Jesse Wente is taking a harm reduction approach to the truth and reconciliation process by amplifying the voices of Indigenous peoples. The Anishinaabe writer, broadcaster,... Read more


A Different Kind of University draft strategic plan

VIU Seeking Feedback on Draft Strategic Plan

November 9, 2020

The University’s draft strategic plan, called A Different Kind of University, outlines a five-year vision and direction for VIU that builds on community input heard last spring and summer. ­­ Vancouver Island University (VIU) has developed a vision for the future it would like to see and is ready to hear if the vision resonates with community. A Different Kind of University is the name of VIU’s... Read more


Beyond 2020

Island Institutions Team Up to Host Virtual Career Fair

November 4, 2020

Beyond 2020 seeks to match employers with qualified students in an all-day event on November 19, 2020. ­­ Registration is now open for the first-ever multi-institutional virtual career fair on Vancouver Island. Beyond 2020 – Vancouver Island Career and Connections Fair aims to bridge the gap between employers and students at a time when student talent is needed more than ever to help with... Read more


Be Ready for What's Next fall recruitment campaign

VIU Helps Future Students Prepare for What's Next

November 3, 2020

Campaign shows how post-secondary can help people take that first step toward their career aspirations. ­­ The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically changed how we learn, work and spend time together, and Vancouver Island University (VIU) wants people to know the University is here to help future students start down a new path. VIU’s Be Ready for What’s Next fall recruitment campaign aims to get... Read more


Nanaimo Remembers

VIU Partners with Community to Remember Fallen Soldiers

October 29, 2020

VIU video memorial that honours Nanaimo soldiers’ contributions to the First and Second World Wars to be displayed across the city. A unique 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. For 11 days leading up to Remembrance Day, the ... Read more


Vancouver Island Work-integrated Learning

VIU and NIC Launch Work-Integrated Learning Hub

October 26, 2020

The new hub, which aims to create new, mutually beneficial opportunities for students and employers north of the Malahat, includes a partnership with Mitacs and RBC Foundation to focus on rural employer needs. Vancouver Island University (VIU) and North Island College (NIC) are working together to boost work experience opportunities for students and support employer access to the workforce of the... Read more


VIU Launches Two New Information Technology Diploma Programs

VIU Launches Two New Information Technology Diploma Programs

September 29, 2020

VIU answers industry appeal for specialized Information Technology and Applied Systems program offerings in the mid-Island area. Two new information technology diploma programs are being offered at Vancouver Island University (VIU) to meet growing demand for skilled web and mobile developers and systems and networking administrators. The Systems Administration and Networking diploma and the Web... Read more


Food security in the age of COVID-19

VIU Speaker Series Addresses Food Security in the Age of COVID-19

September 28, 2020

WHAT: VIU’s Engaged Citizens Speaker Series presents Food Security in the Age of COVID-19: Toward More Resilient Regional Food Systems WHEN: Thursday, October 8, 2020, 6:30 – 8 pm WHERE: Hosted by Zoom webinar   Earlier this year, COVID-19 curtailed travel on and off Vancouver Island, grocery stores began running out of select products and there were interruptions in food supply chains as virus... Read more


Joseph Monaghan in Applied Environmental Research Laboratories

VIU Exceeds Fundraising Goal for Imagine VIU Campaign

September 23, 2020

The campaign raised $7.3 million to complete three new buildings on campus, create new scholarships, awards and bursaries, and acquire cutting-edge equipment. From new equipment to learn on, to increased research opportunities, to dozens of new student scholarships, awards and bursaries – the impact of the Imagine VIU campaign has expanded beyond its initial goal of equipping and completing three... Read more