VIU News & Experts: March 15, 2023

Featured in this issue: 

• World Water Day experts
• Planning for more age-friendly communities
• Tuition waiver program for former youth in care expanded
• Indigenous Speakers Series

Reach out to us for experts for your stories! 

Featured experts

World Water Day on March 22 is about accelerating change to solve the water and sanitation crisis. Because water affects us all, it’s a call for everyone to take action. VIU experts available: 

• How is climate change affecting water on Vancouver Island? Dr. Alan Gilchrist, VIU Geography Professor, can explain. He also has ideas about how we can adapt to these changes through better management practices. Watch his talk.
• How much water do we have? Dr. Jerome Lesemann, VIU Earth Sciences Professor, recently completed a community groundwater study on Quadra Island with his hydrogeology students that aimed to answer this simple but very complex question. Listen to this podcast about the project.

VIU in the news

Province expands tuition waiver program

“On a community level, the tuition waiver program sounds to me like a love letter, from the university to potential students. It says, ‘you have been through something impossibly hard, but you are welcome here, no explanation needed.’ It is an example of unconditional love, institutionalized," said VIU student Mallory Woods.

Former youth in care in BC of all ages will now have their tuition waived for post-secondary education, as government takes action to remove age requirements for the Tuition Waiver Program for Former Youth in Care and make it available for a lifetime.

Selina Robinson, Minister of Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills and Mitzi Dean, Minister of Children and Family Development, came to VIU on Tuesday, March 14 to make this important announcement. Read more.

Planning for more age-friendly communities

Canada's senior population is growing, which is why Master of Community Planning student Alicia McLean is researching how communities can be managed to best support older adults. Read more. 

Examining pelvic health histories

Studies on women's health tend to focus on reproduction. VIU researcher Dr. Whitney Wood believes this has led to gaps and inequities in care. She received more than half a million dollars from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research to pursue her study, which aims to inform improvements in current practice. Read more. 

Campus events

Indigenous Speakers Series

Wilson Williams (Sxwíxwtn), a Squamish Nation Councillor and Spokesperson, will share the story of his Nation's fight for the return of traditional lands in downtown Vancouver. Now the Squamish Nation's development plans for the land include more than 6,000 rental homes, of which more than 1,200 will be affordable homes. It is the largest First Nations economic development project in Canadian history. Learn more at VIU's Indigenous Speakers Series event on March 20. Register now. 

Basketball nationals

Both the VIU Mariners women's and men's basketball teams made it to CCAA Nationals this week! The women are playing in Hamilton, Ontario, and the men play in Calgary, Alberta.  Learn more.