Abandoned Nanaimo coal mine finds second life as heat source for university buildings
February 20, 2018
By Deborah Wilson, CBC News Posted: Jan 21, 2018 11:00 AM PT Last Updated: Jan 21, 2018 11:00 AM PT University officials and Falcon Engineering geo-exchange engineer Jeff Quibell, right, view progress on the project, which has attracted interest from as far as Scotland. (VIU) In Nanaimo, B.C. — a city built on coal — a long-abandoned mine will soon become the heat source for a new ... Read more
Global Citizens Week Weaves Local and International Issues Together
January 29, 2018
Annual week of events celebrates change-makers and allies in struggles for social justice Every year, Vancouver Island University (VIU) hosts Global Citizens Week – a week filled with visiting speakers, films and campus events, including live music and classroom dialogues that explore issues of global development at home and abroad. This year VIU is inviting students, staff and Nanaimo-area... Read more
Fighting for Justice Exhibit Brings to Light Lesser Told Stories
January 26, 2018
Travelling display a collaborative effort between VIU, UVic and community partners Wing Hay Young, a popular Port Alberni-born boxer, decided to enlist in the Canadian Army in 1940 during the Second World War. He was denied entry based on his ethnicity, prompting his white boxing friends to descend on the enlistment office, refusing to sign up until their friend was accepted. Young, who became... Read more
Syrian Refugees Find Welcoming Community at VIU Cowichan
January 19, 2018
Baraa Mohammed and Fanar Sheikh Zein are taking adult upgrading courses at the campus A Syrian couple who spent four years living at a residential complex for refugees in northern Iraq are finding a welcoming new community at Vancouver Island University’s (VIU’s) Cowichan Campus. Baraa Mohammed and Fanar Sheikh Zein, Kurdish Syrians from Qamishli, in the northern part of the country, came to... Read more
VIU Community Members Gather To Make Placards for Women's March
January 19, 2018
VIU is honoured to be a sponsor of Nanaimo Women March On Members of the Vancouver Island University (VIU) community gathered Thursday, January 18 to make placards for the approaching Nanaimo Women March On event. The March is Saturday, January 20 from 10 am to noon. Participants are asked to meet at Diana Krall Plaza at 10 am and then march to Maffeo Sutton Park. People are also welcome to head... Read more
Mental Health Awareness Initiative Launched at VIU Cowichan
January 17, 2018
The Friendship Bench aims to stimulate conversations and encourage student-to-student connections An educational experience at Vancouver Island University (VIU) changed Adaline Russell’s outlook on life. In 2008, Russell was severely depressed when she joined a handful of other students at the first Clemente Course offered at VIU – a rigorous, university-level course that offers a doorway into... Read more
Project Between VIU and Snaw-Naw-As Preserves Traditional Plant Knowledge
January 16, 2018
Garden of Spiritual Healing connects Snaw-Naw-As Community Members A Garden of Spiritual Healing is taking root at the Snaw-Naw-As Community Health Centre thanks to a partnership between the First Nation and Vancouver Island University (VIU). VIU’s Mount Arrowsmith Biosphere Region Research Institute (MABRRI) representatives met with the Snaw-Naw-As Community Garden Committee to develop a vision... Read more
VIU Community Honours 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence
December 19, 2017
Vancouver Island University Faculty Association, VIUSU and ResTide spearheaded events on Nanaimo campus Hanging a shirt with an anti-violence message, donating a warm coat or lighting a candle to remember a victim of gender-based violence may be small gestures, but these actions can cause powerful ripple effects in communities. These gestures can lead someone to step up and become involved in a... Read more
World VIU Days Celebrates What Connects Us
October 31, 2017
Week of activities showcases global citizenship through discussion, film, music and food NANAIMO, BC: Each year, Vancouver Island University (VIU) benefits from a strong and growing international student body, and this year is no exception – 2,300 students are currently enrolled from more than 90 countries. International students enrich campus life by sharing their culture and values with each... Read more
Open Hearts and a New Home: From Syria and Somalia to Nanaimo
October 17, 2017
VIU students help two refugees achieve education dreams VIU NEWS RELEASE: 2017/316 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Tuesday, October 17, 2017 NANAIMO, BC: The first time Rahma Hussein and Hassan Al Nabilsi heard of Nanaimo, British Columbia, was when they were informed that they would be going to Vancouver Island University (VIU). Both students are refugees, who were living a world away when they were... Read more