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 APPLIED ETHICS    MEET STEPHEN TOOPE - UBC'S NEW PRESIDENT    ALUMNI NEWS + EVENTS
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The Magazine of The University of British Columbia
FALL 2006
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Published by
The University of British Columbia
Alumni Association
Canadian Publications Mail As
t40063528  Take Note
12  The Right Place at the Right Time
Stephen J. Toope takes the helm at UBC. By Richard Littlemore
16  Life After God
A Douglas Coupland short story comes to life on a UBC stage. By John Vigna
19 What's Good, What's Bad, and Who Decides
How do we make ethical decisions in a world where "right" is a relative judgement? The
Centre for Applied Ethics will be asking you. By David Secko
I And I, mute among racks of English poets
Poetry. By Heather Duff
28 Predicting the Future
Weatherman Mark Madryga uses his time and talent to ensure a bright future for today's
students and tomorrow's leaders. By Claire Morris
33 Traditions: The Day the Ubyssey Died and Rose Again
Annual spoof issues are a tradition at the Ubyssey. One of them nearly killed it.
By Patty Lai
35 2006 Alumni Achievement Awards
Achievement Award recipients are our best and brightest.
40 How Goats Make Learning Possible
The YouLead program provides opportunities for volunteer vacations, combinging
travel, adventure and the chance to make a difference. By Lisa Thomas-Tench
44 Being American at UBC
A state-sider extols the virtues (and the downsides) of being a Yankee in Queen
Elizabeth's dominion. By Alex Burkholder
24 Arts
26 Books
30 Our Volunteers
41 Class Acts
47 Alumni News
51 In Memoriam
Stephen Toope, UBC's 12th President and
Vice Chancellor.
Cover: Good or bad? Who decides? Image
from the film Night of the Hunter.
Trelf*
Editor Christopher Petty, mfa'86
Art Director and Designer Chris Dahl
Assistant Editor Vanessa Clarke
Board of Directors
Chair Martin Ertl, BSc'93, llb
Vice-Chair Doug Robinson, BCOM'71, LLB'72
Treasurer Ian Robertson, bsc'86, ba'88, mba, ma
Members at Large '06 - '09
Aderita Roets, BA'77
Gayle Stewart, BA'76
Members at Large '04 - '07
Don Dalik, bcom, LLB'76
Ron Walsh, BA'70
Members at Large '05 - '08
Raquel Hirsch, ba'8o, MBA'83
Mark Mawhinney, BA'94
Appointments '06 - '07
Louise Tagulao, BA'02
Paul Mitchell, BCOM'78, LLB'79
Senior Administration Representative '06 - '07
Dennis Pavlich, ba, llb, llm
AMS Representative '06 - '07
Kevin Keystone, ams President
Executive Director
Marie Earl, ab, mla(stanford)
Trek Editorial Committee
Vanessa Clarke Scott Macrae, BA'71
Chris Dahl Christopher Petty
Sid Katz
Trek Magazine (formerly the UBC Alumni Chronicle) is
published three times a year by the UBC Alumni
Association and distributed free of charge to UBC alumni
and friends. Opinions expressed in the magazine do not
necessarily reflect the views of the Alumni Association or
the university. Address correspondence to:
The Editor,
UBC Alumni Affairs,
6251 Cecil Green Park Road,
Vancouver, bc, Canada v6t 1Z1
e-mail to chris.petty©ubc.ca
Letters published at the editor's discretion and may be edited
for space. Contact the editor for advertising rates.
Contact Numbers at UBC
Address Changes 604-822-8921
e-mail alumni.association@ubc.ca
Alumni Association 604-822-3313
toll free 800-883-3088
Trek Editor 604-822-8914
UBC Info Line 604-822-463 6
Belkin Gallery 604-822-2759
Bookstore 604-822-2665
Chan Centre 604-822-2697
Frederic Wood Theatre 604-822-2678
Museum of Anthropology 604-822-5087
Volume 61, Number 3   I   Printed in Canada by Mitchell Press
Canadian Publications Mail Agreement # 40063528
Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to:
Records Department
UBC Development Office
Suite 500
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Vancouver, BC v6T 1Z3
Cover: Getty Images; opposite: Martin Dee
Fall 2006    Trek    3 BIG CHANGE, GOOD BUBBLE GUM AND
THE NEW PRESIDENT
Nobody likes big changes.
Changes take your world, throw it in a black bag and give it a good
shake. Sometimes things turn out to be much better than they were in the
first place, but sometimes they don't. And that's the problem with change:
you never know.
My first experience with big change came at age eight, when I dashed
down the street to my corner store, two bits in hand, ready to start
Saturday morning with a pop, a chocolate bar and however many penny
candies and pieces of bubble gum I could buy with the change (this was
some time ago). I skidded to a halt at the front door: "Closed. Opening
soon under new management," said the sign in the window.
I made a lot of great memories in that store in my short life: the time
an angry woman chided me for snapping my gum and blowing bubbles
("filthy little boy," she said); the hot summer day I drank a whole bottle of
ice cold Orange Crush in one, long pull; the time the owner, Mr. Chang,
threw an orange at me because he thought I was stealing (I wasn't). It was
a great store, and probably made me a life-long shopaholic.
The next Saturday I raced down there filled with anxious anticipation, four bits in hand (the quarter from last week unspent), not knowing
what would be there. I found my corner store with a fresh, new coat of
paint, some nice new bins overflowing with penny candies and a smiling new lady at the counter. I sighed with relief and went straight for the
bubble gum, which was now front and centre on the counter. Like all good
change, it took what was good and made it better.
The arrival of a new president at a university is a few magnitudes
greater in consequence than a corner store changing hands (though not to
an eight-year-old), but the sense of anticipation is the same: what's going
to change and what's not?
Professor Stephen Toope (he prefers that title to "Doctor"), is the new
agent of change at UBC. Our profile of him in this issue reveals a deeply
thoughtful and intelligent man with an overriding sense of justice and an
abiding faith in the great potential of humanity. His perspective on our
university is straight-forward: UBC will continue to build on its strengths,
offer a world-class educational experience to its students and play a significant role in setting the educational agenda on the national stage.
It's true that university presidents, like prime ministers or the presidents of large countries, don't have as much power as we think. Too many
other factors enter into the mix - already-established bases of power,
governing bodies, elected officials - for one individual to be able to change
absolutely an institution as tightly structured as a university. But, as Martha Piper showed, it is possible to create a vision that the entire institution
can embrace.
Stephen Toope, with his experience at the Trudeau Foundation and his
abilities as a leader, a thinker and a crusader for social justice, is the right
man at the right time. With Trek 2010 as a solid foundation, he will build
an astonishing university. Beginning with the Spring, 2007 issue, Professor
Toope will have a regular column in Trek Magazine.
It seems the store, er, I mean, the university, is in good hands. I
Chris Petty, mfa'86, Editor
4    Trek    Fall 2006 TAKE NOTE
History Decides UBC's Future
I The department of Campus and Community
Planning is ramping up for a major consultation on the future of UBC's Vancouver campus.
This will be the seventh campus-wide planning
exercise in the university's history.
UBC's planning history began in 1914 when
our first president, Dr. Frank Wesbrook, dreamt
of creating the Cambridge of the Pacific. He held
an architectural competition which was won
by architects Sharp & Thompson. Despite only
partial implementation of this plan - the Main
Mall, University Boulevard, the East and West
Malls, and the development blocks around the
Library - it established a basic structure for the
campus that continues to influence planning to
this day. At no time since has such attention been
given to the overall structure and image of the
Vancouver campus.
After World War 11 UBC went through an ad
hoc expansion primarily south of Main Library.
In 1959, a new campus plan began to evolve
based on industrial efficiency; thus the utilitarian charm of Buchanan Tower. Another master
plan was prepared in 1968 focusing mainly on
land-use circulation and landscape. Its central
theme was UBC as a "great and varied garden."
The partial implementation of this plan left
UBC with its strange patterns of cul-de-sacs and
partial connections.
The 1982 plan emphasized private-public
partnerships, which were characterized by arm's-
length development regulations to deal with
the critical deficiency of the campus planning
legacy and its lack of a cohesive framework.
This period was also defined by proposed further
expansion south to Thunderbird Boulevard.
The current plan, begun in 1992, says that the
campus as a whole is greater than the sum of
its parts. It is less a prescriptive plan than a set
of strategies that allows flexibility to enable the
campus to respond to its own evolution, focused
more on intent than final form.
And now, the 2006 planning begins. For the
next 18 months or so, the campus community
and UBC alumni will be asked to consider where
UBC should be heading in terms of its academic
core and infrastructure. A lot of the action will
take place online and we encourage you to visit
www.campusplan.ubc.ca for more information
and to provide input.
TrekConnect for Students & Alumni
The new social networking site,
TrekConnect, is now open to current UBC students. Like public social networking sites, TrekConnect lets UBC alumni and students share
expertise, network for jobs, catch up with long-
lost classmates and join one of the many interest
groups created by users themselves. Unlike public sites, TrekConnect is a trusted system, and all
registrants must be verified as alumni, students
or staff of UBC. Visit www.alumni.ubc.ca and
follow the links to TrekConnect.
Meet Your Connection: Amanda
Murdock, BA'03 and third-year student
Alex Burkholder check out their connections
on TrekConnect, the new social networking
site from UBC Alumni Affairs.
Time Keeps on Slippin': Architects Sharp
and Thompson produced UBC's first campus
plan in 1914. Some elements of that plan
still remain. UBC's Vancouver campus is
about to undergo its eighth official campus
planning process.
Photographs: top Martin Dee, bottom courtesy UBC Archives
Summer 2006    Trek    5 TAKE NOTE
Focus on Chinese-Canadian History
■ After more than a century of migration, Chinese-Canadians now make up the country's largest visible minority group, with numbers recently
surpassing one million. Future historians will
recognize this period of migration as a crucial
one that profoundly changed Canada.
UBC students are helping to document it by recording the role of their own families in this shift,
creating oral histories and web-based presentations that capture the stories of migrants before
they are lost forever.
The students are participating in the Initiative
for Student Teaching and Research in Chinese
Canadian Studies (instrcc), a program designed
to explore the history and future of Canada's
long ties to Asia and the Pacific region.
Led by UBC History professor Dr. Henry Yu,
instrcc uses student-based learning, where undergraduates work on research projects they have
developed themselves focusing on never-before-
studied aspects of contemporary and historical
Chinese-Canadian migration.
The students are taught digital film-making
and editing techniques along with interviewing
skills so they can record their subjects' stories
and recollections.
Another project is the creation of a website
to provide wide and easy access to the materials produced. The students are also working on
digitization of the Chinese Head Tax registers and are collaborating with the National
Archives and Library of Canada to create a
searchable database. This will be an invaluable
resource to many Chinese-Canadians trying to
trace family histories
One of the most interesting student projects
involves research into Vancouver's vast array of
restaurants. Because so many of the city's restaurants are operated by Asian migrants, they
are a fascinating window on how Vancouver
has been transformed by recent migration. The
students interview those who eat and work at
the restaurants, explore the history of restaurant neighbourhoods at the Vancouver City
Archives, and discover the origins of cooking
techniques.
Eating Global Vancouver is a student film
project that focuses on the Green Lettuce Restaurant run by Vancouverite Peter Chang and
his siblings, whose family ran Chinese restaurants in Calcutta for three generations. You can
download the film Green Lettuce here:
www.faculty.arts.ubc.ca/henryyu/Hist429/
GreenLettuce/
Generously supported by seed donations
from Caleb Chan of Burrard International,
Peter Eng of Allied Holdings, and Terry Hui
of Concord Pacific, UBC plans to build on the
success of this program with additional initiatives focusing on other important trans-Pacific
migrant communities in Canada from Korea,
South Asia, and Japan. Read an essay by Peter
Eng on The Eclecticism of Canada at: www.
alumni.ubc.ca/publications/eclecticism.php.
Pulling Rank
I If newsstand sales are anything to go by, Maclean's Magazine's annual Guide to Canadian
Universities is a popular reference for university
applicants and their parents. The rankings have
been around since 1992, but although influential they aren't without controversy. One of the
criticisms is that the statistics and methodology are not comprehensive enough to be truly
insightful, and moreover can be misleading.
Recently, 10 of Canada's universities (including the uofr and UBC, institutions that
featured regularly in Maclean's top five) have
decided to opt out of the rankings, for which
the universities are expected to supply various
figures deemed by Maclean's to be indicative of
performance and quality.
The presidents of the institutions expressed in
a joint letter to Macleans's why they've chosen
to decline. "In short," it says, "the ranking
methodology used by Macleans's is oversimpli-
BUILDING    LIFELONG    RELATIONSHIPS
"You don't choose your family,"
according to the adage, "but you're
stuck with them for life."
UBC alumni did choose to attend
UBC, however, and most hold their
alma mater in high regard. Yet there
are plenty of graduates who take
this particular lifelong relationship
for granted, much as we might our biological family.
This past summer, a group of
12 brave souls - alumni, students and staff of UBC - sequestered
themselves to re-imagine the relationship between UBC and its
alumni. This Business Process Reengineering project generated a set
of recommendations intended to transform this relationship from
its present state - which could charitably be described as indifferent
- to an enduring one of richly rewarding mutual benefits.
How did the team propose making such a shift? "Think of a
wedding cake," they counselled. "First build your foundation."
• Alumni must be valued all across the institution;
• UBC's offerings to alumni should reflect their life stages;
• Coordination and collaboration across the institution will yield
better results for alumni, including self-service, personalized
relationships, more effective communications and dramatically
better collection and use of alumni data;
• Build an alumni centre as a hub of engagement for the 100,000
alumni who visit the Point Grey campus each year.
This foundation would then support an array of new programs:
milestone celebrations for students and alumni, lifelong learning
opportunities, career and professional development offerings and
significant volunteer engagement.
The end result? UBC alumni will choose to devote an increasing
share of their considerable passion to the institution and UBC will
be much the richer for it.
What do you think? Impossible dream or worthwhile ambition?
Marie Earl, Associate Vice President, Alumni
Executive Director,   UBC Alumni Association
6    Trek    Fall 2006
Photograph: Martin Dee fied and arbitrary. We do find it ironic that universities are being asked to
subsidize and legitimize this flawed methodology, when many faculty, staff
and students at our institutions are dedicated in their research to ensuring
that data are collected rigorously and analyzed meticulously."
They also point out that some indicators for the quality of student life,
such as extra-curricular experience, are harder to quantify and therefore
not properly taken into account by the rankings. The letter can be read
in full here: http://www.publicaffairs.ubc.ca/ubcnews/macleans_let-
ter_aug2006.pdf
Genethics
I A mandatory graduate course in scholarly integrity and research ethics is in the offing for Pharmaceutical Science students, with its authors
hoping for approval by the end of the year. It would cater to students who
have reached a stage in their academic careers when they are gaining more
autonomy over research design.
Because ethical issues can emerge unanticipated and take many forms,
the course seeks to provide grad students with a comprehensive framework on which to base their judgment. It will consider everything - from
how to recognize an ethical issue to specific areas like animal research,
intellectual property, and human genetics research - and will provide
principles on which to base both personal and professional integrity. The
course will also explore conflict resolution using case studies and panel
discussions to make learning as real and applicable as possible.
"Our graduate students come from educational backgrounds ranging
from science and medicine to engineering and economics," says Helen
Burt, the faculty's associate dean of Research and Graduate Studies.
"We want to make sure they have consistent and practical information
about scholarly integrity and ethical issues they are likely to encounter as
researchers."
Lecturers will be appointed once the course is approved, but are likely
to hail from a variety of campus units, such as the department of Philosophy, the faculty of Law, and the university's Industry Liaison Office.
Engineering Health Care Solutions
Multi-disciplinary research has long been lauded as a beneficial way
to maximize existing resources and recognize all the facets of an area of
research by examining it through a number of specialized lenses. With the
growing arsenal of medical machines and equipment and the evolution of
implantable devices, medical researchers and engineers have an ever-expanding area of overlap in their fields of research.
In recognition of this, a new graduate course in Biomedical Engineering
is being initiated at UBC and will be the first of its kind in the province.
The emphasis will be on the research and development of equipment and
treatment devices, but students will also be expected to gain a keen appreciation for the clinical context of their work, and will undertake training
to this end. A poster boy for the new course is its director, Engineering
associate professor Ezra Kwok. Kwok recently completed his md at McMaster University, having taken a leave of absence from his professorial
duties at UBC in 2001.
"What became clear to me during medical school," he says, "is the very
different approaches physicians and engineers take towards solving very
similar problems. That's why we've designed the curriculum to include
working with physicians and experts from chemical, electrical, mechanical and material engineering, so graduates would be equipped to tackle a
NEW    BEGINNINGS
^^^™^^ On September 28, Stephen J. Toope was
jAj B^ installed as UBC's 12th president. It has been
my pleasure, as Chair of the Alumni Association, to welcome him to UBC on behalf
of our 226,995 graduates.
Professor Toope has expressed strong
a support for the work we are doing to renew
^^^■^^P       ^^^        and expand alumni services: improving
IL    ^ I communications, creating opportunities for
^L^EV intellectual connections, and planning for a
new alumni centre on campus.
Our efforts to communicate with you have increased significantly
in the past two years. More than 50,000 alumni now receive our
monthly Grad Gazette via email, and we recently launched TrekConnect, an online social networking tool that links you to the people
you met during your years at UBC. It's a great way to reconnect - interest groups from wine tasting to photography and rock collecting
are popular - and to keep in touch with your classmates.
We have also been very active in the transition from Martha
Piper's presidency to that of Stephen Toope. President Piper travelled to eight cities with us to showcase UBC and help our efforts to
re-invigorate alumni communities world-wide, and we have organized introductions of Professor Toope to small groups of alumni in
Vancouver and the Okanagan as a way to develop relationships with
these grads.
Alumni were a big part of this year's graduation ceremonies in
Vancouver and Kelowna. We are putting much effort into transforming graduation from a time of "farewell" to one of "welcome to the
alumni family." We organized a "wall of welcome" for grads at the
Kelowna campus, held receptions in the weeks leading up to graduation, and manned booths at both campuses to distribute information
after the ceremonies.
We also launched one of our most successful homecoming events,
Alumni Weekend, on the weekend of September 29 to October 1.
Events included "Classes Without Quizzes" put on by some of UBC's
most talented teachers, a pancake breakfast, a one-on-one conversation with the CBC's Kathryn Gretsinger and Professor Toope, and
reunions for dozens of classes.
Our next big opportunity comes with the planned construction of
the Alumni Centre on University Boulevard. This centre will form the
geographic and symbolic heart of the university, and will contribute
significantly to the growing vibrancy of the campus. It will help link
alumni to the rest of the UBC community - students, faculty and staff
- and will connect UBC's past, present and future through displays,
lectures, event space, offices and ongoing projects that will engage
alumni, students and the broader community.
Our "new beginnings" will open up many more opportunities for
you to engage in the life of your university. We welcome your input
- and your participation - in all our programs.
Martin Ertl, BSc'93, Chair, UBC Alumni Association
Photograph: Martin Dee
Fall 2006    Trek    7 TAKE NOTE
problem from various angles and encourage
collaborations with other areas."
With strong biotechnology, medical device
and pharmaceutical industries in BC, Kwok
doesn't think grads of the new program will
experience any problem finding a career
path. In fact, just the opposite. "Engineers are
excellent at processing and analyzing data to
extract useful information. This could lead to
better detection and, ultimately, better treatment. We are also trained to systematically
break up complex problems into manageable
pieces and develop practical solutions. These
are areas to which engineers can make contributions in improving health care."
Putting the Brakes on Drive-By
Research
Although Aboriginal peoples have often
been the subject of healthcare research, they're
not often directly involved in identifying or
guiding such research.
This is perhaps the reason why associate
professor of Education Rod McCormick can
cite anecdotal evidence suggesting that current research might be lacking. "Aboriginal
people often say they have been researched to
death, but it hasn't been relevant research," he
says. "You hear a lot of jokes about drive-by
researchers - the guy with the white van who
comes to take samples - or random acts of
research."
Together with three other Aboriginal professors at UBC, McCormick is at the forefront of
BC's Aboriginal Capacity and Developmental
Research Environment (acadre) Network
that was established four years ago by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research to create
knowledge-based improvements in healthcare
provision.
There are seven others acadre networks
located in other provinces. Their mandate is
to establish collaborative efforts between research institutions like UBC and Aboriginal (as
well as non-Aboriginal) organizations, which
also consult the Aboriginal communities on
which they focus. Information and expertise
are exchanged in areas such as ethical research
practices, traditional knowledge, mental health
and addictions.
Because of past experience, McCormick
didn't expect the initiative to be welcomed
without initial reservation, so trying to assuage
this he and colleagues travelled to native communities to explain the goals of the acadre
networks and encourage participation.
acadre does not provide funding to research
that isn't based on an Aboriginal partnership.
"Effective research listens to the real experts,"
emphasizes McCormick.
Feeding the urgency are the alarming
statistics on Aboriginal health, highlighted by
the large health disparities between their community and the general population, including a 7.5 year difference in life expectancy,
a five-times greater likelihood of becoming
diabetic, and a greater proportion of deaths
Rod McCormick works to create knowledge-
based improvements in Aboriginal healthcare.
involving hiv/aids, alcohol, accidental injury
and suicide.
The other professors involved in the efforts
are associate dean of Indigenous Education Jo-
Ann Archibald; Institute for Aboriginal Health
director Eduardo Jovel; and First Nations
House of Learning director Richard Vedan.
"Research used to be done on us," says McCormick. "But we're making sure that research
is now done by us, for us and with us."
Hands-On Learning
I The J. W McConnell Family Foundation, a
private Montreal-based organization that supports initiatives to build healthy communities,
has recently donated $1 million to UBC for a
student community service learning program.
The university has committed a further
$1.5 million to establish the UBC-Community
Learning Initiative (ubc-cli), which aims to
have 5 per cent of undergraduates experience
community service projects as part of their
education. The initiative builds on existing
community-oriented programs, such as the
university's Reading Week (this year's saw 300
UBC students working with 1,000 inner city
school children on projects ranging from nutrition to justice to fine arts) and the downtown
eastside-based Learning Exchange, which this
year facilitated more than 1,000 opportunities
for students to participate with community
organizations and schools. The Alumni Affairs
office supplies alumni mentors to the program.
Margo Fryer, director of the Exchange, will
also take on directorship ofthe ubc-cli. She
is an assistant professor in the School of Community and Regional Planning and President
of the Canadian Association for Community
Service Learning (csl).
"csl helps students see the connections
between what they are studying and real-life
problems, and also gives them increased clarity
about their career goals and motivates them
to get involved in community issues," she
says. UBC President Stephen Toope agrees.
"It reflects our desire to enhance students'
understanding of the connection between their
education and their social responsibilities," he
says, "and will help us to meet our Trek 2010
strategic plan commitment to serve communities in BC and beyond." A main driver
of the initiative is the desire to see university
resources - people and knowledge - benefit
the community and be used to address some of
its most pressing issues.
Trek    Fall 2006
Photograph: Martin Dee Margo Fryer will head up the Community
Learning Initiative.
Fuelling Research
I The National Research Council of Canada
(nrc) opened its Institute for Fuel Cell Innovation on UBC's Point Grey campus. BC is the hub
of Canada's hydrogen and fuel cell technology
development and the $20 million facility (70,000
square feet) will be a significant factor in driving
research. University researchers will collaborate with nrc scientists and industrial partners.
Projects to be housed at the new facilities include
the Vancouver Fuel Cell Vehicle Program and
BC's Hydrogen Highway.
The new facilities will help assess future needs
as well as current requirements. Features include
a hydrogen fuelling station, hydrogen-safe labs
and building-integrated fuel cell technologies
including ground source heat pumps and photovoltaic hydrogen production technologies.
Unearthing the Poplar
I Seven UBC scientists are involved in an international project that has completed the first sequencing of a tree genome. The achievement was
featured on the September 15 cover of Science.
Black Cottonwood, a type of poplar, is the
third plant to be sequenced after arabidopsis
(part of the mustard family) in 2000 and rice
in 2004. "In tree biology, this is equivalent to
sequencing the first human genome," says associate professor Joerg Bohlman, a co-author of the
paper and joint appointee with the departments
of Botany and Forest Science. The work may
lead to advances in alternative fuels, the quality
of wood and the health of forests.
"By comparing the genome of the poplar tree
to other plants, we hope to identify the genes
for traits of interest, such as adaptation to the
environment, lignin and cellulose content and
longevity. This will lead to ways to breed trees for
uses in ecologically and economically sustainable
forestry," says Bohlman, who works out of UBC's
Michael Smith Laboratories and is also an associate in the Wine Research Centre.
Human agriculture has resulted in thousands
of years of plant breeding, though little of that
has been applied to trees. "The complete genome
will help us fine-tune trees to produce better quality wood products, and open the door to research
in areas such as biologically based substitutes
for gasoline and other fossil fuels," says Botany
professor and co-author Carl Douglas.
The research took four years to complete and
was led by the US department of Energy's Joint
Genome Institute in California and Oak Ridge
National Laboratory in Tennessee. UBC was
one of 34 participating institutions and a major
contributor alongside Genome Canada, Genome
British Columbia, the Michael Smith Genome
Sciences Centre and the universities of Umea and
Ghent in Sweden and Belgium respectively.
Einstein was Absolutely Right
I Two UBC astronomers were part of an international research team that tested Einstein's
theory of relativity against the latest scientific
knowledge, and found it to stand true.
Assistant professor Ingrid Stairs and grad
student Robert Ferdman were the only Canadians contributing to the research, which involved
observing a unique pair of natural stellar clocks
discovered in 2003. The clocks are pulsars
located 2,000 light miles away from Earth and
one million kilometres apart. They are compact
neutron stars that despite measuring only 20km
across weigh more than the sun and move at a
speed of a million kilometres an hour, orbiting
one another every 2.4 hours. They give off radio
waves that researchers have been able to record.
Three of the world's largest radio-telescopes
were used (the Lovell Telescope in Manchester
University's Jodrell Bank Observatory; Australia's
Parkes telescope; and the R.C. Byrd Green Bank
Telescope in West Virginia) and the researchers
measured variations in the arrival time of the
pulses. They found that Einstein's theory correctly
predicted the movement of the stars and is accurate to within 0.05 per cent.
"Einstein's theory predicts that the fabric of
space time around a pulsar should be curved. Our
observations show that this is true," says Stairs.
Her colleague at Jodrell Bank, professor
Michael Kramer, says: "This is the most stringent
test ever made of general relativity in the presence
of very strong gravitational fields. Only black
holes show stronger gravitational effects, but they
are obviously much more difficult to observe."
OUC to UBC Degree Conversion
I  Okanagan University College graduates in
Arts, Education, Fine Arts, Science, Nursing and
Social Work (a total of 2,385 graduates) are now
eligible to convert their degrees to the corresponding UBC degree.
The ruling was passed by the UBC Okanagan
Photograph: Martin Dee
Fall 2006    Trek    9 TAKE NOTE
Senate in September, ouc degree-holders must
apply for the conversion through Enrolment Services and pay a $100 conversion fee. Interested
OUC grads should visit http://okanagan.students.
ubc.ca/senate/conferral.cfm?go=join for more
information.
Country Practice
UBC's Distributed Medical Program is responding to health service gaps in BC areas, often
rural, by having students gain hands-on experience at a variety of learning sites.
Dozens of third-year students, the program's
original intake, are heading for Vancouver Island,
the Fraser Valley and areas in the north of the
province (as well as Vancouver) to undertake
practical placements. Training settings are typically gp offices or community centres, and the
students work closely with clinician-teachers to
learn practical skills and test out their theoretical
knowledge in the real world. This summer, UBC
medical students gained additional experience in
80 family practices around BC.
The distributed program is the first of its kind
in Canada and hopes to encourage more medical
practice in under served areas by providing students with an understanding of these communities' characteristics and requirements at an early
stage in their careers. The hoped-for longer-term
result is that more doctors will spend at least a
portion of their working lives in settings that are
currently under served.
"The expansion and distribution of UBC's
medical program is aimed at educating more doctors for BC," says dean of Medicine Gavin Stuart.
"These local learning opportunities will allow
students to receive an outstanding education with
the enthusiasm and perspective of clinician-teachers across the province. We are extremely grateful
to all of our partners and the communities
involved for their continued commitment to the
success ofthis initiative."
Partners in the program are the provincial
government, the University of Northern British
Columbia, the University of Victoria and provincial regional health authorities.
Trio of Trudeau Scholars
■ In June, the Trudeau Foundation named 15
new scholars, three of them doctoral students at
UBC. Trudeau scholars represent the cream of
Canadian Social Sciences and Humanities students, and recipients receive scholarships of up to
$200,000 to kick-start their academic careers.
The goal of the Trudeau Foundation is to
provide citizens of Canada and the world with
a better understanding of democracy. Although
the scope of research it rewards is broad, this
concept is the main factor informing selection.
"Each year we search for young, influential
minds capable of generating public discussion
on important Canadian and global topics in a
fresh way," says Trudeau Foundation Board chair
Roy L. Heenan. "This new class of extraordinary
Trudeau Scholars is destined for great things, and
we are proud to support them in their diverse
and fascinating pursuits."
UBC's Trudeau scholars are Rajdeep Singh
Gill, who is exploring the social and ethical role
of art and creative processes within indigenous
groups; Kate Hennessy, who is analyzing First
Nations cultures by studying the storytelling
effects of film and digital photography; and
Samuel Spiegel who is working to improve the
environmental impact of global gold mining, while
protecting the well-being of miners and their families. When he was president of the Foundation,
UBC president Stephen Toope said: "Through this
scholarship program, our goal is to encourage
some of the world's most promising future leaders
to contemplate and address the bigger issues affecting our society."
How Now, Brown Cow?
I The welfare of animals in food production is a
growing concern and could be an important component in helping to safeguard human health. An
expansion of UBC research facilities in Agassiz,
BC, will help insure that industry uses the most
beneficial practices. The facilities will also house a
program to protect global avian stocks against the
rampages of new viruses.
The UBC Dairy Education and Research
Centre was established in 1998 as a collaboration
between UBC's faculty of Land and Food Systems
and Agriculture and Agrifood Canada (aafc). Its
research activities have already attracted participants from more than 24 countries. The centre
has recently been expanded to include the Western
Calf Research Facility, Feed Intake Facility and
Heifer Research Facility that together will advance
knowledge and practice in animal welfare, nutrition, and reproduction.
Another new building, the aafc's Avian Genetic
Resources Building, will store genetic variations
of birds like chicken and quail to protect stocks
against new viruses (some genetic strains have
better protection against bacteria and new viruses
than others). It will also focus on poultry welfare
and sustainable production, and aims to take the
lead in advancing industrial practice.
As well as from the partners involved (UBC,
Westgen and the aafc), some of the funding for
the new facilities was generated from UBC dairy
herd milk revenues.
Toil and Hubble
Many astronomers would love to get their
hands on NASA's Hubble Telescope, and the organization receives thousands of requests for access to
it. Only the soundest research proposals will elicit
an invitation, and one of these was submitted by a
UBC team led by Professor Harvey Richer.
The team was allowed access to Hubble for almost five days. The researchers used its telescopic
10    Trek    Fall 2006 power to take hundreds of photographs of stars
in globular star cluster ngc 6397. By comparing the high resolution images pixel by pixel, the
team was able to identify the faintest stars in the
cluster, the faintest stars ever seen in any globular
star cluster.
"The light from these stars is so dim that it is
equivalent to that produced by a birthday candle
on the Moon, as seen from Earth," says Richer.
The team focused on two stellar phenomena
within the cluster: red dwarfs and white dwarfs.
The lowest mass red dwarfs are the least massive
stars still able to burn hydrogen and support stable nuclear reactions. White dwarfs are examples
of stars that once had bigger masses but burned
out. The age of a white dwarf can be estimated
by taking its temperature and this information in
turn can be used to estimate the age of the globular star cluster where the white dwarf is situated.
Cluster 6397 is the second closest cluster to earth
and was formed early on in the history of the
universe.
Further analysis of the white dwarfs within a
cluster can also produce clues as to how many
high mass stars used to exist there. "These stars,
which died long ago, were among the first to
have formed in the universe," says Richer. "Pinning down their age narrows down the age range
of the universe."
In Vino Smellitas
■ Chemistry researchers at UBC Okanagan
are on the scent of wine contaminants - from
unwanted yeasts to smoke from forest fires - and
how they might affect the aroma of wine.
With more than 60 wineries and 98 per cent of
BC's wine grape production (17,000 tonnes), the
Okanagan Valley is an ideal place to study issues
that impact wine production.
"The 2003 Okanagan Mountain Park fire provided ample opportunity for additional 'seasoning' of the grapes," says Nigel Eggers, associate
professor of Chemistry with the Irving K. Barber
School of Arts and Sciences. "Forest fires are
known to produce phenols and guaiacols from
burning trees, and these chemicals can impart a
smokey, burnt smell to nearby fruit."
Eggers and post-doctoral research fellow
Sierra Rayne have synthesized versions of the
compounds known to occur in smoke. They are
using new instruments to help them understand
the sources, distribution and levels of these compounds in local grapes and wines.
Eggers has received nearly $200,000 in funding from the BC Wine Institute, the Investment
Agriculture Foundation of BC and the Western
Diversification Program to conduct extensive field
sampling at small, medium and large wineries
and vineyards in the Okanagan.
A major part of their research is exploring the
impact of Brettanomyces (Brett), an undesirable
yeast that can produce aroma defects in wines.
Brett often exists in wine barrels, but can also be
present in raw grapes. Rayne notes that the yeast
has become a bane to winemakers in many parts
of the world.
Eggers and Rayne are also monitoring dissolved oxygen, temperature, humidity, sulfur dioxide (an anti-bacterial agent used during barrel
aging and in the bottle) and other factors to find
out why Brettanomyces grows in one barrel, but
not in another right beside it.
The research will continue for two years and
cover the 2005 and 2006 vintages, as well as the
2003 and 2004 vintages that have already spent
years in a barrel.
"Together, the two projects are helping to
establish a world-class wine chemistry research
centre at UBC Okanagan," says Eggers. "By
working closely with industry and government,
we are striving to maintain and improve the
quality of our local wines." I
Take Note is edited from material that appears
in other publications, including UBC Reports.
We thank those reporters and Public Affairs for
allowing us to use their material.
QLT Founders: Trek 16 Error
■ In the last issue of Trek Magazine, we made
an error in a report that included reference
to Quadra Logic Technologies (qlt) and the
founders of that company. For the record, qlt
was founded by Anthony Phillips, Jim Miller,
John Brown and Ron MacKenzie. Both David
Dolphin and Julia Levy joined the company
some years later.
Trek Magazine, and the Alumni Association,
regret any misunderstandings that may have
resulted from our perpetuation of this false
information.
ALUMNI AFFAIRS HAS A NEW LOOK ON
THEWEB.  CHECK OUT OUR NEW AND
IMPROVED WEBSITE FEATURING UBC
NEWS, INFO, EVENTS, AND MORE.
Fall 2006    Trek    11 The Right Place
at the Right Time
Stephen J. Toope takes UBC's helm at a challenging time:
the campus is booming, UBC Okanagan is up and running,
the university's reputation is growing world-wide,
and he's following one of the institution's most popular and
productive presidents. Richard Littlemore looks at how
Toope's style, intellect and personal philosophy will shape
the next phase of UBC's growth.
Stephen J. Toope is a surprise. A pleasant, sort
of gentle surprise, but a surprise nevertheless.
He is taller than you'd expect (6-foot-3) and he's
older than he looks. In fact, at the age of 48,
his face is implausibly youthful, unlined by the
years, seemingly unmarked by any of life's hard
lessons.
If you read his resume, however, you can't
help getting the impression of someone who is
driven and perhaps a little impatient. He did his
undergrad at Harvard on full scholarship and
he was such a standout as a McGill law student
that then-Supreme Court of Canada Chief
Justice Brian Dickson picked him up as a clerk.
He moved to Cambridge for his phd and then
returned to Montreal, where at the age of 34, he
became the youngest dean of Law in McGill history. In 2002, he became the founding president
of the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation and in
June, 2006, he became the 12th president ofthe
University of British Columbia.
Nicholas Kasirer, the current dean of Law at
McGill, says that in addition to being a gifted
administrator, Toope is a world-class legal
scholar: "He could have been a chair holder at
Harvard or Oxford."
James McPherson, a Justice on the Ontario
Court of Appeal, says he is proud to call Stephen
Toope a friend and describes him as "one of the
best intellects I have ever seen, in any discipline."
Rosalie Abella, a Justice on the Supreme
Court of Canada, says of his appointment:
"UBC should be electrified."
It's all vaguely intimidating.
But Stephen Toope is not. He is cheerful and
modest. He likes intractable problems and Sylvia Plath poems. Most critically - for all those
who are inclined to obsess on this issue - he
likes UBC. "In my estimation," he wrote, in an
essay to UBC's presidential selection committee, "there are only two universities in Canada
strategically placed to make a real difference on
the global stage: McGill and UBC." In addition
to the implicit slap to that other Eastern Canadian pretender, Toope added this: "The UBC
advantage (my emphasis) is that the university
has worked so hard to craft a coherent vision
and to begin the complex process of fulfilling
that vision in concrete operations. UBC is also
better positioned in terms of resources to make
its vision a reality."
So, apparently, UBC is the right place and this
the right time. And, just as apparently, Stephen J.
Toope is the right man. It's not really a surprise,
after all.
That still leaves a central question: Where
is this new leader going to take UBC? President
Toope has been thinking about the answer.
"I have been reading a lot on university transitions," he says, adding that most people seem
to agree that a new president must quickly and
clearly articulate a vision. In other circumstances
that might be a problem. "It's highly presumptuous (for a newcomer) to say, 'this is where the
university should go.'" But UBC has made the
task easy. The Trek 2010 vision is more than
just an adequate direction that the new president can use until he finds his bearings. It is one
of the main reasons that he was interested in the
presidency in the first place.
As a leading scholar in international law, as
well as in the field of international human rights,
Toope is delighted with UBC's emphasis on glo-
12    Trek    Fall 2006
Photographs: Martin Dee *
X The Right Place
bal citizenship. But he's equally enthused about
the commitment to enhancing the student experience, and especially the undergraduate student
experience. "To use the Trek language," he says,
"that is a fundamental pillar," and one that will
be particularly strengthened by the realities and
potential of UBC Okanagan.
In terms of personal style, it's clear that
Toope intends to maintain the high profile of
his predecessor. Linking UBC to its immediate
communities in Vancouver and in Kelowna is a
high priority, as is extending the excellent work
that past-President Martha Piper did in forging
international relationships. As for the national
scene, he is bilingual and already well-connected
in Ottawa. In fact, he is committed to prodding
his new west coast colleagues inside and outside
of the university to demand more input into
national decisions.
"Martha played a strong national role,"
Toope says of his predecessor, "but it's not clear
that UBC as a whole has always played a leadership role" on the national stage. He'd like to see
that change.
President Toope also promises to be a little
more outspoken on social issues beyond those
that affect the university community directly. "I
think a university president has a moral responsibility to speak to the broader society around
issues that emerge as important." Although
he is "not a preacher or a politician," he adds,
"There is a perception that Canadian university
presidents are reluctant to play the public role
outside the narrow parameters of the direct
interests of the university, whereas south of the
border, university presidents (people like Theodore Hesburgh of Notre Dame, Bart Giamatti
of Yale and Hannah Gray at the University of
Chicago) often play an important quasi-public
role, asking hard questions about where society
is headed."
This, in the new president's mind, is a personal responsibility more than a demand of the
position itself. "I don't think it's my job to try
to articulate a position that reflects the whole
university community. If I speak, it will be in
personal terms, informed by my colleagues at
the university."
It also will honour the tradition laid down
by UBC's first president Frank Wesbrook, who,
Toope says, "was utterly committed to an image
of the peoples' university."
That said, "I don't think that a university
president is a heroic figure, charging off into
an imagined future. Rather, you're the leader
of a team who has to work hard to build up a
collective sense of mission."
In the immediate future, that will mean
working closely with UBC's vice-presidents
to build a set of priorities that will give even
more structure to the Trek goals. Toope is
planning monthly retreats at which senior
administrators will "focus on key transformational changes."
"We have to decide what we are going to
do and we have to decide what we are not going to do. That's harder. It's more interesting,
but it needs fortitude."
"The resources of the university are, inevitably, limited, whether you're talking about
people, ideas, capacity, political support,
money or infrastructure," he says. "And there
are always "a million good things to do. But
if there are a million priorities, there are no
priorities."
If all goes according to plan, one aspect of
this goal-setting process will be an improvement in funding to the arts and social sciences.
"The historical pattern in public investment
has leaned toward research in science and
medicine," he says. "I am totally supportive
of that public investment, but it should be
at least mirrored, if not matched, in research
reflecting on the challenges of the social world
and the apparatus of our cultural life. We
must be investing in the whole range of places
where the university is needed, not just in science and technology."
He hurries to add that this should not be
seen as a threat to any of UBC's established
areas of excellence. "I have no intention of
cutting down the tall tulips to create a false
sense of equity. We must find, uphold and
support excellence wherever it arises. But in
some places, we will not be excellent and we
must recognize that."
This willingness to stride boldly into the
most challenging areas is another, perhaps
foundational part of the Stephen Toope
surprise. For example, in his essay to the UBC
selection committee, he writes, "As the fact
finder for the (Maher) Arar Commission, I
knew that the task was fraught with potential
pitfalls. It was politically charged and I feared
that I might get pulled into exceedingly bitter
disputes. But I also knew that the Commission
was important for the country; we needed to
assess carefully how to balance our need for
security and our fundamental commitment to
civil liberties."
Merely reading his ultimate report (www.
ararcommission.ca/eng/ToopeReport final.
pdf#search=%22toope%2oarar%2Qcommissio
n%22.) could easily leave worry lines on a less
resilient face. And as chair of the UN Human
Rights Commission's Working Group on Disappearances, Toope has heard much worse, stories
of torture and abuse, "terrible circumstances
that were profoundly damaging. You certainly
could come away with a horribly negative view
of people."
But, if you are Stephen Toope, you also come
away marvelling at "the extraordinary resilience
of the human spirit. I have talked to people who
have been through horrors that most people
in Canadian society could not even imagine,
but who still have hope for the future. I can't
- given the great privilege I have had - entertain
anything other than hope."
Those would be inspiring words even from
someone who had never suffered a personal
loss; someone who had never had to rise
above a great tragedy and believe, again, in the
goodness of humankind. Someone other than
Stephen Toope.
On the morning of Dec. 8, 1995, the young
dean of Montreal's premiere law school woke
up to the news that the previous evening, a 13-
year-old, a 14-year-old and a 15-year-old had
broken into the home of his parents and, using
a beer bottle and a baseball bat, had clubbed
them to death in their bed. Frank Toope, a
retired Anglican priest, was 75; his wife Jocelyn,
70.
"It was an expression of evil ... of sheer malice," Stephen Toope says. "But that malice is not
able to destroy what my parents represented, to
the community and to me." Besides, "if you give
in to despair, you can't accomplish anything."
Except - and here comes another of the
Toope surprises - except in the category of
art. "It's the ultimate conundrum: that out
of despair and degradation can come great
art." For example, one of his favourite books
is Under the Volcano, by Malcolm Lowry, "a
total descent into alcoholism and failure, and a
brilliant piece of writing. It's what inspires me
the most, when I read or see something that was
born out of hopelessness or despair, but which,
in its creation, was transformative."
14    Trek    Fall 2006
Photograph: Martin Dee A final, oblique but probably relevant
change in UBC's presidential circumstance
will be the addition, in Norman MacKenzie
House, of children. Stephen Toope and his
wife, Paula Rosen, have three: Hannah, 14,
Alexander, 11, and Rachel, 9. Rosen, a speech
therapist by training, but a musician by avocation plans to spend as much of her time as
possible writing music, expanding her current
repertoire of songs and children's musicals.
And in a house where Boris Yeltsin and
Bill Clinton helped end the Cold War, where
Nobel laureates in everything from chemistry
to peace have broken bread, the Toope children will apply themselves to their separate
pursuits. There will be singing (Hannah and
Alexander) and dancing (Rachel); there will
be cello rehearsals (Hannah again) and
there will be trips to soccer practices and
matches wherever Alexander's new coach
directs.
But as President Toope tells it, the whole
mob will still make time for what they seem
to take as their principal responsibility: keeping Dad's ego in check. "Kids are such a levelling force. They laugh at me; they make fun
of me. They can immediately puncture holes
in any notion of pomposity that you might
have."
And, as he knows from the past, they are
also there - always there - when he needs a
little extra support.
A last anecdote, again from Toope's letter
to the UBC presidential selection committee. He describes having been invited, by the
Canadian ambassador to Cuba, to speak at
the University of Havana. "What a delicate
balancing act! I had to talk about human
freedom and challenge the Cuban regime in
front of students, professors, government
ministers and communist party minders. I
had to do so respectfully, acknowledging the
achievements of the Cuban revolution but
never descending to apology."
At the end of the afternoon, after the
speech, after answering a series of "real
questions with real bite," a young woman
approached and said, "Thank you. You just
might make a difference in our lives."
In Cuba, that's entirely possible. At UBC,
you can count on it. I
Richard Littlemore is a freelance writer living
on Vancouver Island.
cai
■ UBC's newest
has been named Deputy Vice Chancellor at UBC Okanagan
campus - and began his duties in July, 2006.
Owram, born in Aurora, Ontario, received his bachelor's and master's degree from Queen's, and
a PHD from the University of Toronto, all in history. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada,
and has received many awards and honours for his scholarly work during his career as an educator. He is also the author of several books, including Born at the Right Time: A History of the
Baby Boom Generation. He comes to UBC Okanagan from the University of Alberta, where he
served as Vice President Academic and Provost.
In an interview published shortly after his appointment, he said,
"The vision set out for UBC Okanagan is too important to
resist. It combines community and excellence and I
very much wanted to do what I could to assist in
building the institution during a crucial phase. I was
also drawn to UBC Okanagan in part by the fact
that, although it builds on strong foundations, it is
in many ways a brand new venture with incredible
potential."
As UBC Vancouver and UBC Okanagan go
forward - one great university, two great campuses
-the relationship between the two campuses wi
evolve. The relationship is mutually beneficial, says
Owram. "Because of our smaller campus, we are a great
place to test innovations and new approaches that can
then be implemented system-wide." Both campuses are
watching the experiment with interest, he says, and as long
as both recognize the strengths of the other, the partner
ship will create a more dynamic university.
As far as the most pressing challenges ahead,
Owram says, "We are in a period of tremendous
growth and transition. Expanding the student
base, hiring excellent faculty, building the necessary facilities, and getting the UBC Okanagan
story out will keep us all busy."
He's extremely optimistic about the opportunity, and about the university in general. "I
believe that UBC Okanagan will be one of the
finest undergraduate institutions in Canada
and a central part of advanced education for
both the Okanagan and the province," he
says.
Dr. Owram has held dozens of internal
and external appointments during his academic career, including service as president of
the Canadian Federation for Humanities and
Social Sciences from 2002 to 2004, as chair of
the Campus Alberta Quality Council since
2004, and as a National Historical Association board member since 2004.
Owram describes himself as "an academic's academic" and "a fanatic skier
and golfer." He will be quite at home in
the Okanagan. He and his wife Deborah
own a house in Kelowna, and visited
frequently when they lived in Edmonton. "We really like the area and all
the Okanagan has to offer," he says.
He and Deborah have one daughter. 16    Trek    Fall 2006
Photographs: Doug Cooper Life after God
A Douglas Coupland short story comes to life on a UBC stage
by John Vigna
Scout lies naked in a warm pool holding
hands in a circle with six of his closest friends.
They are "pretending to be embryos" in a "life
lived in paradise," one without religion, love
or politics. This poignant scene opens Douglas
Coupland's short story "iooo Years" in Life
After God) and in that rare moment of intimacy
and closenesss, a startling question is posed that
seems to have emerged naturally from Coup-
land's previous two books, Generation X and
Shampoo Planet: Can we find meaning or connection in the madness of the modern world and
in the absence of belief?
This conundrum will be taken off the page
and brought to life on stage in the theatrical
world premiere of Life After God, which opened
November ist at UBC's Telus Studio Theatre.
Adapted by award-winning playwright, Michael
Lewis MacLennan, Life After God is a joint
production between UBC's Theatre Department
and Vancouver's Touchstone Theatre, bringing
together a collaborative wellspring of professional and student talent unprecedented in a
university co-production.
Life After God offers a lively and penetrating
look at a generation raised without religious
belief. Centering on eccentric and sensitive
Scout, the play tells the story of six friends who
went to high school together and how their lives
unravel fifteen years later. Facing the challenges
and disillusionments of adulthood, the friends
grapple with new-found emptiness in a culture
stuck in fast-forward. At turns funny and moving, Life after God is a freewheeling, theatrically
spectacular examination of our quest for transcendence. It also offers a vivid tour of the city
of seismic shifts - Vancouver - and the adaptation takes some of its inspiration from another
Coupland book on that subject, City of Glass.
"I'm a big fan of Douglas Coupland and I
was really moved when I first read Life After
God" Katrina Dunn, Artistic Director of Touchstone Theatre, says. "When Dr. Robert Gardiner,
head of Theatre, Film and Creative Writing,
approached me to develop a Touchstone play in
conjunction with UBC, I jumped at it because I
had been thinking of doing a large scale project
that addressed Vancouver's culture for a long
time."
Dunn immediately sought out Michael Lewis
MacLennan with whom she had previously collaborated and the two of them began their association with UBC by co-teaching and developing
a new course in the Theatre department called,
"New Modes in Play Creation." While Michael
and Katrina worked on the script, the students
had the opportunity of contributing to a play in
progress by writing and workshopping monologues for it, and they gained hands-on experience in various aspects of play production.
"I was really excited that UBC was a co-
producer of the play because it provided us with
more financial support and gave us more time
to rehearse and workshop," MacLennan says
on the phone from Los Angeles, where he has
recently closed two development deals.
"It also gave us the opportunity to work with
Robert Gardiner, as well as offering the support
of a longer first run than would normally be
given."
MacLennan has written more than i o plays
that have been produced across Canada since
1998, two of which, Last Romantics and The
Shooting Stage, were Governor General Award
finalists. Like Dunn, he's a great admirer of
Coupland, having read all of his books as they
were published. "There's no question that
Douglas Coupland is one of Canada's most
important voices." But adapting Life After God
for the stage required thinking about the story in
new ways while maintaining its emotional truth,
particularly since other than informal discussions,
Coupland was not involved in the collaboration.
"I had to look for ways to illuminate Doug's
themes," MacLennan says. "I wanted to be faithful to the story, discovering what the movements
of the characters were. But I also didn't want to
be too faithful to the original text, so I looked for
dramatic moments, ones in which I could keep
the heart of the story."
One of the key challenges, Dunn says, was the
idea of making Vancouver a character in the play
- that is, creating a physical setting that informs
the story as much as the human characters that
inhabit it. Drawing inspiration from Coupland's
book, City of Glass, she and MacLennan worked
together to create a dialogue within the play
around what it means for Vancouverites to have
a sense of cultural legacy. "Vancouverites need to
stop referencing themselves out of Vancouver,"
she says. "Vancouver is a hip city and the world
is very interested in it. It's my hope that we can
export this and have the play tour."
One of the changes MacLennan and Dunn
made to the original story was to include a
number of monologues that celebrated the city
and revealed its character. There were specific
Vancouver locations integral to the story, yet
difficult to construct on stage. Consequently,
MacLennan and Dunn had their students write
monologues that tried to capture the character
of a Vancouver neighbourhood. The monologues
were workshopped and the five strongest, most
representative were chosen for incorporation into
the stage play.
Laurann Brown, ba'o6, was one of the lucky
students whose monologue was selected. She first
encountered Coupland's story Life After God ten
years ago. "I thought it was the most depressing
thing I had ever read," she laughs. "I couldn't
Fall 2006    Trek    17 LIFE AFTER GOD
grasp what was going on. But when I re-read
it for the course, I got it. I could connect with
the crisis of going into your thirties, how your
relationships change along with your view of
yourself."
Brown had only been in Vancouver for four
months when she got the assignment to write
the monologue. She lived in a house near UBC
overlooking the city, so she chose the view from
there. "I identified with Julie's sense of loneliness
and wrote from that emotional place," she says
referring to one of the characters in Life After
God. "Michael served as a mentor and encouraged me to get into the details, challenged us all
to get into the emotional truth of the characters."
Brown was originally interested in taking the
"New Modes in Play Creation" course for the
real-world opportunity of working side-by-side
with professional theatre people like MacLennan and Dunn. Now that the course is over, she's
graduated with a writing credit, been named
assistant director for the play and has established
a pocket full of theatre contacts from working with professional actors, stage managers,
"I thought it was the most depressing thing I had ever read," But when I re-read it for the course, I got it.
I could connect with the crisis of going into your thirties, how your relationships change along with your view of yourself.
playwrights and directors. "Being at UBC gave
me a strong sense of what to expect later when I
graduated," says Brown, who is currently directing a play in the Fringe Festival called Supermarket Scuffle. "Everyone in this business knows it's
not what you know but who you know in order
to get work."
Conversely, teaching people like Laurann
Brown energizes MacLennan. "Teaching is one
of the most gratifying things we can do as writers," he says. "When you have to verbalize what
you know, it's like learning it all over again,
more deeply."
Whether teaching or writing, the task of
adapting Coupland's work remained daunting.
Both Dunn and MacLennan were unsure of how
the play would unfold until they sent the script
to Coupland to read and invited him to attend
a workshop. "It was nerve-wracking to have
him in the audience," Dunn says. "I had to force
myself not to look at him to see how he was
reacting."
And how did Douglas Coupland react? "Ad
aptation is a strange thing, and this is the first
anything somebody's adapted fully," Douglas
Coupland says. "When I went to see the read
through, I tried to manage my expectations to
a very low level. I think I went into the theatre
simply wanting the piece not to suck. And then
it started and it was shocking. Michael kept the
most important bits, invented all the new stuff
in just the right way and made some of the most
genius connective ideas that I never would of
imagined. I came out of there feeling like I'd just
heard the material for the first time."
Dunn and MacLennan were not only relieved
but also thrilled and invigorated. "Psychologically, this was a huge boost for us," Dunn says.
Coupland, whose most recent novel, JPod is
long-listed for the Giller Prize and whose first
film project, "Everything's Gone Green," has
been released, added his appreciation for the
tricky art of adaptation: "It's strange, but when
I heard the play's words, yes, of course I hear
what they mean and what they're saying but
also, more powerfully and more unexpectedly,
hearing each phrase made me remember more
than anything exactly what I was feeling and going through the day I wrote those words. That's
something precious for me, too, and I think that
in the wrong hands, that sense of personal time
travelogue could have been damaging for me, and
possibly frightening."
MacLennan is proud that every idea in the book
is still intact in the play. "The ideas in this play are
things we are really questioning. The idea that we
grew up in a generation that lacked for nothing
and the result is that we didn't develop the spiritual muscle we needed," he says. "By attending the
play, it's like hearing our own inner thoughts. We
hear that we have an okay life, focusing on some
relatively silly aspect of it. But we begin to realize
that we didn't get a grounding in it that enriched
or developed our interior lives." He pauses and the
sound of busy morning rush hour traffic in LA fills
the line. "Or finding a way to connect with one
another."
John Vigna is a Vancouver writer.
18    Trek    Fall 2006 How do we make ethical decisions in a world where "right" is a relative judgment? A new project
at UBC's Centre for Applied Ethics wrestles with such issues, and wants to know what you think.
What's Good,
What's Bad,
and Who Decides
By David Secko
Genome science - the
study of genes and their
functions - provides a rich
environment for the W
Maurice Young Centre for
Applied Ethics. One of its
current projects is GE3LS
arch, which combines
studies in Genomics,
Ethics, Environment,
Economics, Law, and
Society. The acronym is a
mouthful (users pronounce
it "gels"), but it reflects an
emerging multidisciplinary
approach to genome
science that studies the
ethical challenges raised
by humankind's ability to
quantify, and modify, the genetic makeup of living things.
Determining the ethical underpinnings of these issues is not as simple
as it might seem. Biobanks, for instance - large repositories of genetic
information - raise concerns about privacy, ownership and consent, while
research to decode the salmon genome raises concerns about the food
we eat, the food they eat and the environment we all share. Work being
done in the forests and with worms raise issues of intellectual property
rights while the growing use of genetically modified animals in biomedical
research has opened the door to new challenges in animal welfare. And
this is only the beginning.
Neither abstract reasoning nor empirical research make a universally
convincing argument that it's ethical (or unethical) to build a nationally-
funded biobank, to declare private ownership of the genome of a genetically modified mouse, or to decode the genetic makeup of an organism
as culturally iconic as a sockeye salmon. But to the growing number of
faculty and students involved in the GE3LS arch, convincing the public
or researchers to behave in certain ways is not their intent: understanding
ethical decision making is what interests them.
Photograph: Getty Images
Fall 2006    Trek    19 WHO DECIDES
Marshall Nirenberg first cracked the genetic
code in 1961. He may have thought of many
things at that eureka moment: its implications
for future research, the promise of biotechnology, or maybe he was just plain giddy. It is a safe
bet that he did not think about how his work
would change the careers of so many ethicists,
social scientists and philosophers.
Significant parts of all three fields are now
caught up in studying the social effects of
biotech and UBC's Centre for Applied Ethics is
in the forefront of this research, using a diverse
team of researchers and a collection of old and
new tools to understand more clearly the social
norms that Canadians use to make judgements
about genome research and it applications.
the civil rights movement, Vietnam, abortion
and developments in medical technology created
dilemmas not easily solved by applying moral
absolutes. Should we keep loved ones alive artificially? Who has the right to make life or death
decisions about foetuses? Is it ever all right to
invade another country unprovoked? Can civil
rights be denied some members of society and
not others? Philosophers and ethicists, always
part of the debates, were moved to enter the
public arena.
Many moral theories attempt to define what
makes a "good" decision - one that underpins
morality with virtues, duties or the consequences
of actions - but since these theories often contradict each other and are open to interpretation,
using just one opens any judgement or decision
to criticism or derision. While the Enlightenment
introduced the now widely contested idea that
reason could solve all ethical issues, for many,
The survey asks respondents to make decisions about issues that include funding
genetic tests, denying marriage licenses to carriers and allowing abortions for children
conceived by two carriers. Respondents make decisions based on immediate conditions,
not on abstract beliefs.
This fits well with the Centre's purpose.
Created in 1993 as an independent unit in the
faculty of Graduate Studies, the Centre works
to advance research in applied ethics in "science
and technology ethics and policy, organizational
ethics, animal welfare and the environment, and
research ethics."
This is normally played out in large projects, including the multi-year Ethics of Health
Research and policy Training Program and the
recently awarded Centring the Human Subject
in Health Research: Understanding the Meaning
and Experience of Research Participation. The
three year, $1.9 million Canada- and Genome
BC-funded Building a ge3ls Architecture—the
GE3LS arch - brings together four faculty with
backgrounds in health, philosophy, intellectual
property rights, the philosophy of science, computing science, and animal welfare.
Applied ethics - the study of the use of
ethical knowledge - mixes theories of ethics
with scholarly work in the social sciences and
humanities to inform decisions about complex
human problems. The movement from formal to
applied ethics largely began in the 1960s, when
differences of opinion over right and wrong
appear to be a reflection of social circumstances
rather than firm moral truth. As Rick Salutin put
it in a recent Globe and Mail column entitled
Ethics Shmethics. "By its nature, ethics belongs
to each person. All claims to expertise diminish
that broad application."
"Applied ethics does not simply apply
individual ethical theories to real life problems
and produce an answer," says Michael Burgess,
co-principle investigator in the GE3LS arch
and UBC's chair in Biomedical Ethics. Instead,
applied ethics takes a range of approaches to
problems and applies these sometimes-diverse
theories to give a more comprehensive account
of what is a better or a worse decision given a
particular situation. With no one theory accepted
as always true, being practical, clear and rigorous is the next best thing. "We need an approach
to applied ethics that lies between the notion that
all moral convention is arbitrary and the notion
that there exists an absolute moral truth," says
Burgess.
Cultural beliefs, as well as society's laws and
policy, reflect our presumption that some things
are right or wrong, good or bad. If ethics is sim-
20    Trek    Fall 2006 ply the search for ways to justify these beliefs,
then the determination of right and wrong depends, to some extent, on the cultural, political
and social context in which the determinations
are made.
It doesn't follow from this that there is a
set of principles, or an absolute moral truth,
that all people will accept as the basis for ethics. That hasn't stopped people from trying,
or from arguing that they have found a moral
truth to guide our decisions. Many philosophers spend their lives searching for a universal
expression of right and wrong to help provide
clear responses to difficult problems.
GE3LS arch researcher Holly Longstaff - a
Centre-based phd candidate funded through
the Ethics of Health Research and Policy Training Program - says that in spite of the fact
that ethical principles are likely both real and
subjective, in today's world, ethical principles
alone can be inadequate for dealing with some
moral questions.
And biotech provides some prime examples.
Reasonable people often come to opposite conclusions about whether we should genetically
modify our food. While some people foresee a
great benefit (e.g., feeding growing populations)
others see unacceptable risks to our health
and environment. The disagreement, heated
by inconclusive research on possible future
effects, makes it difficult to know the role ethics
should play in setting policy on how or whether
the applications of biotechnology should be
regulated.
Burgess recognizes the conundrum but
argues that ethics, especially applied ethics, has
an important role to play in such decisions.
"We live in a world where judgements about
rights and responsibilities must be made in [the
context ofthe times]. Old style authoritative
ethics would have us collaborate with scientists
to assess what genome research activities or
applications are permissible or wrong," but
Burgess and the other team members have no
interest in being ethics police.
With no absolute moral theory to draw on,
Burgess, his co-principle investigator and Centre director, Peter Danielson, and GE3LS arch
co-applicants and Centre faculty Dan Weary
(nserc Industrial Research Chair in Animal
Welfare), and Ed Levy (Adjunct Professor in
Ethics and Science) are building something
new in their applied ethics teams. Organized to
assess alternative ways that expert and public
perspectives can come together to inform policy
And I, mute among racks
of English poets
BY HEATHER DUFF, MFA'86
And I, mute among racks of English poets
an infant's hollow rage through five floors of books
enters my womb like a poisoned dart
screams hell to all bound knowledge
this reminds me of my sister, pregnant again . . .
I speak to my soul, be still
some crude self-hypnosis
empathetic nausea causes titles to blur;
there is no more sanctity in poetry
than in a twice pregnant sister
I lean on cold metal that freezes my temples
between "Suzanne takes you down"
and "The Hollow Men"
we are the hollow women
we are the stuffed women
bra cups full of straw
we scribble cryptic verse in our imaginations
no hand free to hold a pen
both hands, in tepid dishwater, pots on to boil
barrels full of baby wipes soaking in brine
poems that might have shaped themselves
like slack clothesline in a backyard
we birth metaphor sans shape
narrow volume without title
lucid poem without language
uterus full of mown hay
our hollow bodies, mangers for messianic hope
among crucifixions scheduled for dawn
we feed cattle, errant sheep, and all the children
hunger - the only literature, crying
Heather Duff, mfa'86, is artistic director of the
Vancouver  Youth Theatre
Fall 2006    Trek    21 WHO DECIDES
choices, these teams draw faculty and students
from Science and Arts departments into related
and linked projects. (This is not only appropriate for the Centre's interdisciplinary focus, but
is also mandated by the very nature of research
that can encompass Genomics, Ethics, Environment, Economics, Law, and Society.)
"We're interested in designing approaches
to ethics that help with important, real world
problems," says Burgess. "Many decisions are
still ethical decisions, but the authority for them
must now come from [a wider representation of
the population.] Most challenging ethical issues
are not resolvable with a single clear principled
answer. An alternative is to develop democratic
approaches to assessing the kind of society
we want and the role of biotechnology in that
society."
An example of how the GE3LS arch is
seeking such public input is a technique (and
a research group) called Norm Evolution in
Response to Dilemmas (nerd). Developed by
Danielson and his team (philosophy, computer
modelling, environmental studies, journalism,
medicine, risk communication, anthropology,
applied ethics), nerd uses online surveys to
find out how a person's preferences and beliefs
change in response to dilemmas presented in
imaginary social scenarios. The first survey
(still available at www.yourviews.ubc.ca) was
based on the social, governmental and medical
response to issues around beta thalassemia, a
genetic blood disorder passed on to the children of parents who both have the gene for the
disease. The survey takes respondents through
a series of steps in the evolution of a societal
response to the issue of beta thalassemia, and
asks them to decide issues that include funding genetic tests, denying marriage licenses to
carriers, and allowing abortions for children
conceived by two carriers.
By design, the survey provides information
on varying perspectives on the issues. Respondents can access the comments of a physician,
a bureaucrat, "yes" and "no" activists, even
an ethicist to help clarify the complex issues.
FACULTY OF ARTS
UBC KILLAM TEACHING PRIZES
Once again the University is recognizing excellence in teaching through the awarding of
prizes to faculty members. Up to six (6) prize winners will be selected in the Faculty of
Arts for 2007.
Eligibility: Eligibility is open to faculty who have three or more years of teaching at
UBC. The three years include 2006 - 2007.
Criteria: The awards will recognize distinguished teaching at all levels; introductory,
advanced, graduate courses, graduate supervision, and any combination of levels
Nomination Process: Members of faculty, students, or alumni may suggest candidates
to the Head of the Department, the Director of the School, or Chair of the Program in
which the nominee teaches. These suggestions should be in writing and signed by one
or more students, alumni or faculty, and they should include a very brief statement of the
basis for the nomination. You may write a letter of nomination or pick up a form from
the Office ofthe Dean, Faculty of Arts in Buchanan B130
Deadline: 4:00 p.m. on January 15, 2007. Submit nominations to the Department,
School or Program Office in which the nominee teaches
Winners will be announced in the Spring, and they will be identified during Spring convocation in May
For further information about these awards contact either your Department, School or
Program office, or Dr. J. Evan Kreider, Associate Dean of Arts at (604) 822-6703
In that way, respondents' decisions are based on
immediate conditions, not abstract beliefs.
Danielson argues that understanding how
people's preferences change while being led
through this and other surveys helps reveal how
they make ethical decisions in the real world.
"While ethical decision making has a strong
subjective element, there are also strong objective features," says Danielson. In fact, "Canadian
social norms can be quite objective."
In the Quest case, for example (before the
courts in BC at this writing), about teachers being
involved sexually with students, everyone agrees
that abuse by teachers is a bad thing. But other
aspects of the case, such as applying current laws
to past incidents, are being debated. Hence, a
core set of Canadian beliefs can co-exist with
contested and changing ones.
nerd provides an empirical technique to
understand better how Canadian beliefs evolve.
"nerd brings more quantitative social science to
ethics than do most working applied ethicists,"
says Danielson, who is about to launch a newer
and more dynamic version, nerd v.z. However,
it is not the only tool used by GE3LS arch teams.
Burgess's Face-to-Face group and Weary and
Levy's teams use focus groups, personal interviews and various democratic forums to draw
in even more perspectives. Burgess has used
previous experience working with both multi-disciplinary and public groups, as well as under-
represented groups to move his research toward
studies in democracy and science, technology
and society. Weary is gearing up to survey animal
use in biotech. Levy and his team are already six
months and many interviews into collaborative
work researching alternative intellectual property
regimes.
Pronouncements about what is absolutely
good or absolutely bad aren't likely to go away,
nor are arguments passionately stated from both
sides likely to decrease in volume. But it's becoming increasingly clear that the decisions we make
as a society about the use of genetic information
must reflect the cultural and social context of our
times, and include extensive input from all of us.
Longstaff agrees. "When I say I'm in ethics,
most people jump on me for telling everyone
what is right and wrong. But applied ethics is really just a lens for getting people to talk about the
world we want to live in."
David Secko, PHD'04, Mj'06 is a Vancouver
science writer and a post doctoral fellow at the
Centre for Applied Ethics.
v,-
\
22    Trek    Fall 2006 CHRONICLE THE  UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA ALUMNI NEWS     FALL 2006 arts
The Vancouver Institute
Vancouver Institute lectures are free of charge
and take place in Lecture Hall No. 2 at Woodward Instructional Resources, UBC. Visit the
website: www.psg.com/~ted/vaninst/ for info.
Professor Robert Silverman Lecture
Why I Play Mozart On a Real Piano: In Celebration of Mozart's 250th Anniversary
November 4, 8:15 pm
Professor Silverman has performed internationally with virtually every major orchestra in
Canada. His work has garnered many awards.
He served as director of UBC's School of Music
in the 1990s, and was awarded an honorary
Doctor of Letters in 2004.
Professor Neil Boyd Lecture
Controlling Legal and Illegal Drugs: Challenges
for the 21st Century
November 18, 8:15 pm
Professor Boyd is based at SFU and is the
author of two textbooks and five books, including High Society: Legal and Illegal Drugs in
Canada. He is a frequent media commentator
on crime, especially the origins and consequences of violent crime, the problems of drug
control and drug control policy, and workplace
violence.
Professor Rognvaldur Hannesson Lecture
The World's Fisheries: A Source of Trouble or a
Source of Wealth?
November 25, 8:15 pm
Professor Hannesson is one of the world's leading experts in the economics of both fisheries
and energy production and utilization. He has
contributed to global discussion of preserving
natural fish stocks, and is a recognized authority
on attempts in Norway to manage the endangered cod fishery and to control the growth of
Norway's salmon aquaculture industry. He is
the author of several scholarly books including:
The Privatization of the Oceans, Investing for
Sustainability, and Fisheries Mismanagement:
The Case of the Atlantic Cod.
< Big Love, by Charles Mee at TELUS Studio Theatre,
January 24 - February 3, 2007
UBC Robson Square
UBC's downtown location has many offerings
for alumni and the public. Most of these events
are free, but many require pre-registration or
have limited seating. Please check the website
for details: www.robsonsquare.ubc.ca/
Talk of the Town series
(Guests in conversation with Hal Wake)
Thomas Homer Dixon
Monday, November 6, 7:30 pm
Thomas Homer Dixon, author of The Ingenuity Gap. His new book is entitled The Upside
of Down: Catastrophe, Creativity and the
Renewal of Civilization.
Bruce Powe
Tuesday, November 21, 7:30 pm
Talk of the Town is going on the road!  Bruce
Powe and Hal Wake will travel to Kelowna the
following evening:
Wednesday, November 22, 7:30 pm
Kelowna Art Gallery, 1315 Water Street
Bruce Powe, author and Professor of Humanities at York University, will discuss his newly
released book Toward a Canada of Light. He
has been called an original, visionary, adventurous, and unclassifiable. He has been praised in
the Globe and Mail and the Montreal Gazette
(called everything from "way cool" to "a
modern day Magellan") and denounced by
Barbara Amiel, in Maclean's, as "an intellectual
terrorist."
A Canada of Light is a philosophical work contemplating the promise of Canada in the new
transnational electronic sphere.
Workshops and Presentations
Transforming Trauma
Thursday, November 9, 5:00-6:15 pm, UBC Robson Square Plaza Level
Traumatic events are the stuff of life. Our first
instinct may be to block them out, but they hold
transformative power. Marcia Jacobs, MSW, has
been a psychotherapist for more than 30 years
with a specialization in trauma repair. Eva Knell,
MD (CCFP, FCFP) is a Clinical Professor in the
UBC department of Family Practice.
Journey of Loss
Thursday, November 16, 5-6:15 pm, UBC Robson
Square Plaza Level
Grieving inevitably takes us on a spiral path, not
unlike walking a labyrinth. What experiences and
challenges might we expect to encounter on this
winding journey from pain and despair towards
reconciliation and healing? Carolyn Main, BEd,
CC, is a former teacher, an experienced grief counsellor and an instructor in the Widowed Journey
program.
Spiritual Questions in a Secular Age
Thursday, November 23, 5-6:15 pm, UBC Robson
Square Plaza Level
Why are issues of spirituality emerging with
greater frequency in our public and private lives?
Explore some of themes and dilemmas of contemporary spirituality.
Catherine Jennings, MA (Theology) specializes in
Spiritual Direction. She has a background in Buddhist, Christian and secular spirituality.
Family Issues Over the Holidays
Thursday, November 3o, 5-6:15 pm, UBC Robson
Square Plaza Level
Home for the holidays can be a tricky proposition.
How can we prepare for the inevitable clashes of
attitudes and behaviours that often intensify over
the holiday season? Clarissa Green, MSN, RN,
is a family therapist and a retired UBC associate
professor of Nursing with a lifelong commitment
to promoting meaningful communication within
families.
24    Trek    Fall 2006 National Day of Remembrance and Action on
Violence Against Women
Wednesday December 6, 7 pm, UBC Robson
Square Bookstore
We are proud to offer an event for the National Day of Remembrance and Action on
Violence Against Women. Authors Pauline
Holdstock and Charlotte Gill remind us that
from the abuses of the past we move forward
to a better future.
Arts Wednesdays at Robson Square
Anxiety and Fear: The Range from Adaptive
to Disabling
November 8, 6:10 pm
With Sheila Woody, UBC Psychology
Be Yourself Again: How Drug Companies
Persuade us to Want Drugs
November 15, 6:10 pm
With Judy Segal, UBC English
The 21st Century Museum
November 22, 6:10 pm
With Anthony Shelton, director of UBC's
Museum of Anthropology
Theatre at UBC
Life After God
by Michael Lewis MacLennan. Directed by
Katrina Dunn. TELUS Studio Theatre, November 1-11
Adapted from the short story by Douglas
Coupland and from his book City of Glass,
Life After God. See feature in this issue of
Trek Magazine or visit www.lifeaftergod.ca
Big Love
By Charles Mee Directed by Joanna Garfinkel
TELUS Studio Theatre, January 24 - February
3, 2007
What do you get when 50 brides are about
to be forced into marriage with 50 cousins?
A wildly exuberant theatrical take on the
timeless war between the sexes! "Fasten your
seat belts" for Obie Award winning playwright Charles Mee's Big Love—an explosive,
uproarious re-imagining of the oldest surviving Greek drama, Aeschylus' The Suppliant
Women.
The Chan Centre
Tickets are available at the Chan Centre Ticket
Office in person (Monday-Saturday noon - 5pm
and show days from noon - intermission), or
through Ticketmaster (www.ticketmaster.ca or
604-280-3311). For more information on upcoming events, please call 604-822-2697 or see
www.chancentre.com
Bronfman / Shaham / M0rk
Sunday October 29, 3 pm
Three of classical music's most dynamic performers make their Vancouver debut as a trio. Pianist
Yefim Bronfman, cellist Truls Mork, and violinist
Gil Shaham.
Juan de Marcos and the Afro-Cuban All Stars
Sunday November 12, 8 pm
Some of Cuba's finest musicians will capture the
exuberant spirit of Cuban music with a potent
combination of musical virtuosity, driving percussion, a powerhouse horn section and incomparable vocals. Led by Juan de Marcos Gonzalez,
the visionary behind the Buena Vista Social Club.
Margaret MacMillan
Monday November 13, 7:30 pm
Margaret MacMillan, a recent recipient of the
Order of Canada and one of Canada's greatest
historians, is a highly respected professor, author
and speaker. Her bestselling book, Paris 1919:
Six Months That Changed the World, was a
landmark work of narrative history that made
her a household name in Canada and abroad
and won major international awards.
Robert Silverman, piano
Sunday November 26, 3 pm
The Bach Cantata Project: Festive Bach Cantatas for Christmas
Tuesday December 19, 8 pm
Some of the finest early music vocal soloists and
musicians from across Canada will join together
under the direction of Marc Destrube for this
magical holiday tradition, featuring a selection
of Bach's best-loved cantatas.
Vancouver Symphony Orchestra: Bach &
Beyond Series
Friday December 22/23, 8 pm
Vivaldi's Four Seasons led by Vancouver's Corey
Cerovsek (violin). The concert also features
Bach's Violin Concerto No. 1 and Mozart's Eine
Kleine Nachtmusik.
Museum of Anthropology
The Museum of Anthropology has extensive and
diverse permanent collections as well as temporary exhibits. Please contact the Museum or visit
the website for more information on current and
ongoing displays: www.moa.ubc.ca/ 604-822-
5087 / info@moa.ubc.ca I
Fall 2006    Trek    2 5 books
Looking Good
Keith Maillard
Brindle & Glass, $22.95
The Summer of Love is already a distant memory; the psychedelic underground has turned
in on itself. John Dupre has deserted life as a
student in Toronto, drawn back to the us by the
need to "make a difference" in the Revolution.
He's living in Boston, under an assumed name
because he's on the fbi's wanted list for draft
evasion.
His best friend is Tom Parker, an ex-Gi turned
righteous drug dealer. When John, Tom, and the
militant feminist Pam Zalman seize control of
an underground newspaper and are put on the
Weatherman hit list, there's really no place to
hide; they're wanted on all sides.
A meticulously reconstructed social history
of the 1960's counterculture and an examination of gender identity, Looking Good is the
climax to the four-volume novel Difficulty at
the Beginning.
Maillard is the author of nine novels and one
book of poetry. Born and raised in Wheeling,
West Virginia, Maillard now lives in West Vancouver and teaches creative writing at UBC.
HOMEFRONT &
BATTLE FRONT
NelM.ii hi   , , V..,.i1J W.11 II
Sylvia Crooks
The Jade Garden: New and Notable Plants
from Asia
Peter Wharton, BCOM'74, Brent Hine and
Douglas Justice, bsca'88, Msc'95  with the UBC
Botanical Garden & Centre for Plant Research
Timber Press, $34.95
Do you want to spice up your garden with some
remarkably beautiful plants from Asia? Then this
authoritative guide to 150 fascinating but little-
known ornamental trees, shrubs and perennials
from the "green mantle" of Asia is for you.
The plants that are featured in
this book were chosen for their
[  superior garden qualities, their
rarity in everyday horticulture
and their commercial availability.
Although the plants included
are from the "cutting edge" of
■ plant exploration and discovery,
I the authors have included only
those selections that have undergone thorough evaluation for hardiness and garden appeal at the UBC
Botanical Gardens. The authors have
I also taken special care to exclude
potentially invasive plants, allowing
readers to be confident that any plant
they select from the book will be an
environmentally responsible one.
Certainty
Madeleine Thien, BFA'97, mfa'oi
I McClelland & Stewart, $32.99
With the story unfolding back and forth
over time, Certainty is a novel of generations that takes readers to Vancouver,
Indonesia, Malaysia, Australia, Hong
Kong and the Netherlands and has at
its centre two memorable love stories.
Gail Lim, a producer of radio documentaries in Vancouver, finds herself haunted
by events in her parents' past in wartorn
Asia, a past which remains a mystery that
fiercely grips her imagination.
A novel about the legacies of loss, the dis
locations of war and the redemptive qualities
of love; Thien's characters are fully formed
and remain in the readers minds well after the
end of the book. This is Thien's anticipated
first novel following her high acclaimed short
story collection.
Thien published her first book of fiction,
Simple Recipes, when she was just 26. The
book won four awards in Canada, was a
finalist for a regional Commonwealth Writers'
Prize for Best First Book, and was named a
notable book by the Kiriyama Pacific Rim
Book Prize. Originally from Vancouver, Thien
currently lives in Quebec City with her husband, Willem.
■ A Mermaid's Tale: A Personal Search for
Love and Lore
Amanda Adams, ma'04
Douglas & Mclntyre, $32.95
Elusive, seductive, otherworldly, the mermaid is one of the most resonant of female
archetypes. In this singular study, Adams uses
poetic language and invokes a wide-range of
representations and disciplines to reclaim this
icon of female power for readers. A Mermaid's
Tale explores the myth and meanings of the
mermaid through time and across cultures and
also takes the reader on a personal journey, as
Adams reflects on her lifelong obsession with
and passion for "mermaidenry."
The book introduces the reader to the
seductive sirens including Melusina, mermaid
par excellence; Sedna, the powerful Arctic
sea goddess; the Selkies; and the long-haired
rusalki of Russian lore, among several other
legendary mermaids.
Grounded in cultural anthropology and
folklore stories, A Memaid's Tale also draws
on literature, poetry and mythology for its
insights. In discovering mermaids and their
stories, Adams presents a striking narrative of
uncovering the unusual, the beautiful, and the
extraordinary in her own life. Mermaid lovers
of all ages will enjoy this enchanting book. ■ Homefront and Battlefront: Nelson BC in
World War II
Sylvia Crooks, BA'58, MLS'83
Granville Island Publishing, $24.95
A nation goes to war, but young men and
women from its cities and towns actually fight
the battles. These communities bear the brunt
of the war's impact in lost and broken lives,
some more than others.
Nelson, BC, a town of 7,000 tucked into
a green, narrow valley on the west arm of
Kootenay Lake, sent 1,300 of its sons and
daughters off to war in the early 1940s.
Seventy of these did not come home. Home-
front and Battlefront looks at the culture, the
context and the times in this small industrial town and how it rallied to support the
national cause. Like many small towns across
the country, Nelson forged its identity during
wwn, and grew into a tightly knit community.
Most importantly, Homefront and Battlefront
tells the stories of the men and women who lost
their lives. Who were they before the war, and
how did the war shape the lives of the families
left behind? One of these, Lieutenant Hampton
Gray, was likely the last combatant killed in the
war before armistice was declared. He was shot
down in his Corsair while attacking a Japanese
destroyer just two hours before the bomb was
dropped on Nagasaki. His daring and courage
in that attack earned him the Victoria Cross.
Historians most often look at war from the
perspective of the combatants on the field.
Homefront and Battlefront looks at it from the
perspective of the folks left at home.
Sylvia Crooks taught in UBC's School of
Library, Archival and Information Studies for
16 years. I
Fall 2006    Trek    27 Predicting the Future
Weatherman Mark Madryga uses his time and talent to ensure a bright future
for today's students and tomorrow's leaders. By Claire Morris
It's a low-cloud morning in Greater
Vancouver, and a film crew in Burnaby wants to
know when the sun's going to shine. They shot a
"sunny" scene two days earlier and need to add
to it. Meanwhile, in Saskatchewan, a contractor
wants to pour concrete, but not if the clouds
overhead are going to drop rain on his job site.
Both film crew and contractor dial a phone
number that's routed to Vancouver's Pacific
Weather Centre, where the guy who answers
their calls is Mark Madryga, bsc'86.
With his degree in Physical Geography,
Mark has been employed as a meteorologist
by Environment Canada for nearly 20 years.
He's perhaps better known as the weekend
weatherman on Global BC television, where he's
worked since 1994.
So what leads someone to become a meteorologist? In Mark's case it was simply following
the career path he'd decided upon as a child.
"When we took weather in grade five, I
thought, this is really cool, I want to be a weather man when I grow up. I would go home after
school and tape the weather off the radio."
Once he got to UBC (after two years at Cariboo College in his hometown of Kamloops), he
realized that he'd have to take a lot of physics,
chemistry and math. "But my keen interest in
the weather kept me going," he says. "Even
when I struggled a little, I thought, I really don't
want to give up this plan."
He admits that it's a little rare for a ten-year-
old's career aspiration to be realized. It's much
more common for university students to remain
unsure about their future.
Laura-Ashley Wright can relate to this. The
4th-year Land and Food Systems student came
to UBC after a year of studying Arts at Simon
Fraser University and a year of exchange at the
University of Nottingham. She decided upon
a Global Resource Systems degree program,
which requires students to focus on an area of
the world. Laura-Ashley has just returned from
Botswana, where she worked in the areas of
problem,' he said, T had to work at it, courses are
tough, but you get through them,'" she says.
She approached Mark after his talk and asked
more about his career. "I was really impressed that
he was so open to talking with students, because he
is busy with two jobs and a family. Even just being
able to talk with someone like Mark for a short
time is enough to focus your thought patterns and
suddenly, you could be on a new career path."
Mark has not only given his time to UBC, but he
has also donated to student awards. "My donations may not be substantial, but if there's any way
I can give something back to the university, I will.
Laura-Ashley Wright got some solid career information and mentoring from Global weatherman, Mark Madryga
AIDS health and soil science. She's developed an
interest in conservation, but is also fascinated by
meteorology. However, like Mark Madryga, she's
finding the physics courses a challenge.
Laura-Ashley met Mark last winter at the
Science Career Expo, an initiative of UBC Career
Services, the faculty of Science, and Alumni Affairs. The goal of the event is to demonstrate the
value of a Science degree in the real world and to
introduce career options. At the Expo, students
hear professionals speak about their work, and
can chat informally with them. When Laura-
Ashley heard Mark talk, she found his advice
extremely helpful.
"Instead of saying, T made it through no
I wouldn't be where I am today if I didn't have
my degree and it was UBC that helped me get it.
And I know what I give goes toward developing
students and helping them into a career, which is
important."
Laura-Ashley has received some of these awards,
and consults with the faculty of Land and Food
Systems on developing programs, such as Tri-men-
toring.
Mark would like to encourage other alumni
to connect with UBC. "It doesn't mean you are
committed to a lot, but it makes a huge difference
to students who are coming through the system. I
know for myself, it's very, very satisfying to help
students along the way." I
28    Trek    Fall 2006 Photograph: Richard Lam
Fall 2006    Trek    29 THE VOLUNTEERS
These are some of the alumni
who have given of their time and
talent to UBC over the past year.
Al Avery BSc'90
Benson Au BScA'01
Jan Aaseth BCom'90
Yuka Asada BSFN'04
Kimi Aimetz BA'98
Gina Aitchison BSGR'04
Mark Allen BSc'94
LeahAllinger BA'02
Natali Altshuler BSc'03
Susan Ames MSc'81, PhD'OO
Dale Wayne Angman BCom'68
Lora Anjos BA'94
Christina Anthony BCom'97
Elisa Armstrong BSFN'04
John Atkinson BCom'55
Kimberly Azyan BA'85, BSW'89,
MSW'91
Paola Baca BA'98
Nancy Baillie BScA'77
Dalbir Bains AG'80
Barry Baldwin BCom'55
Pablo Baranao MASc'03
Douglas Barnett BA'52, MD'56
Jane Battle BHE'60
Sarah Batut BSc'02 LLB'06
Nathan Batt MD'66
Doyle Bauman BCom'87
Ludlow Beamish BA'37
Jenny Bean BCom'OO
Suzan Beattie LLB'78
James Beaton BScA'51, MScA'53
Douglas Bebb MD'56
Anne Bechard BA'92, MLS'94
William Bell BA'49 MD'54
Linda Ben-Hamida BA'57
Chris Bendl BSc'91
Dan Bennett BCom'85, LLB'86
Karen Benson BA'03
Robin Benwick BA'98, BEd'99
Jon Bey BHK'94, BEd'95
Manorma Bhate BHE'78
Andrew Bibby BCom'80
Ana Black BA'93
Larry Blain BA'69, PhD'77
Gordon Blankstein BScA'73, MBA'78
Joost Blom, Q.C. BA'67 LLB'70
Alexander Boggie BA'50, MD'54
Mark Bomford BSAG'04
Liz Bong BCom'01
Basil Boulton MD'63
John Paul Boutin BASc'74
Steven Borcsok MSc'86
David M Bowden BScA'52 MSA 57
Pat Bowen BSCA'80, MSC'83
Judith Bowers BEd'72, LLB'75
David Bradbeer BSAG'04
Chris Brangwin BEd'71, MA'73
Mandy Brar-Kerlann BSc'82, BScP'86
Nancy Breton BSN'72
Carole Bridges BEd'71
Chris Brocklesby BSAG'03
Devon Brooks BA'88
Peter Brown BCom'62 LLB'63
R Andrew Buhler BSc'68, MLS'90
Anica Bulic BSc'04
Lisa Bunton BSc'02
Holger Burke BA'76, MA'83
Caroline Burns MBA'04
Natasha Bush BSGR'05
Bruce Bynoe BCom'73, MScB'75
Kathleen Cadenhead BScA'77, MD'81
Rob Calder BA'98
Maureen Carse BA'77
Janet Carson BA'96
Valerie Casselton BA'77
Sharon Cartmel BA'64, BSW'65
Ngee Cau BCom
Dan Chan BASc'89
Diana Chan BSc'85, BScA'90
Garret Chan BSc'90 LLB'93
Ivan Chan BSAG'04
Gigi Chan BA'02
Myra Chan BSc'04
Ruby Chan LLB'02
Ross Chang BSc'76, MD'79
Subrata Chattopadhyay PhD'86
Preet Cheema BSc'05
Lydia Chen BSc'72 MSc'75, MD'81
Anthony Cheng MD'67
Howard Cheung BCom'OO
Ray Cheung BScA'75
Gagun Chhina BA'03
Hannah Chiew ApSci
Lisa Cho BCom'04
Christine Chou BHE'76
Bonnie Chow BScA'01
Chris Chung DMD'95
Paul Chwelos PhD'OO
Ron Cliff BCom'49
Nana Collett BSc'93
Beth Collins BCom'93
Catherine Comben BA'67
Jennifer Conkie LLB'86
Brian Cooper BCom'55
Michael Cooper BSc'78, MD'82
Maureen Cowin BA'79
Albert Cox BA'50, MD'54
Margaret Cox BA'55, MD'55
Elizabeth Cross BScA'92, MSc'96
Jim Crowe BA'71
Austin Cullen LLB'75
Jim Cupples MD'81
Gina Cuthbert BA'97
Shea Dahl BA'04
Don Dalik LLB'76
Cathy Daminato MBA'82
JohandeRooy BEd'75
Darrin DeCosta BCom'97
Ronald DeMarchi MD'81
Darlene Dean BCom'75, MBA'85
Sabrina Dekker BA'05
Marko Dekovic BA'01
Winton Derby BA'60, LLB'64
Sasko Despotovski BSc'03
Neetu Dhiman, ND BSc'98
Nelson Dinn BScA'93, MSc'96
Jackie Dion BSGR'05
Svjetlana Djordan BA'03
Dave Dmytryshyn BCom'78
Michael Dodds BScA'95
Deborah Donavan BSAG'05
Aseem Dosanjh BA'97
Scott Donaldson BA'92
D. Lynn Doyle MD'78
Lorraine Drdul BA'59
Janice Duivestein BSR'80
Carla Dunkley BSFN'03
Allison Dunnet BA'98
Barbara Duff BSR'80
Bill Earle BCom'65
Cathy Ebbehoj BSN'75 MSN'99
Lois Edwards BEd'83
Robert Edwards BASc'83, MASc'90
David Elliott BCom'69
Robin Elliot, Q.C BSc'69, LLB'73
Robin Elliott BCom'65
Tlell Elviss BSc'02
Bill Emerton BCom'55
Virginia Engel LLB'83
Jan Engemoen BEd'70
Martin Ertl BSC'93
David Eto BScA'85
Jim Evans BCom'65
Bill Everett LLB'71
Diane Falvey BScA'01
Mark Fancourt-Smith LLB'02
Anna Feglerska LLB'97
Ian Fisher BSc'92, BA'96, MAP'98
Barbara Fitzsimmons BSN'84, MSN'01
Bruce Fleming BSc'73, MD'78
Margaret Fleming BHE'76
Olivia Ford BA'93
Ruth Fraser BED'75
Liv Fredricksen BA'95
Andrew Freeman BA'95
Marvin Friesen DULE'83
Stephanie Fung BSGR'02
William Fung BCom'93
Dan Gardiner PhD'73
ArunGargMD'77
Mary-Margaret Gaye BScA'86
Alfred Gerein BA'50, MD'54
Ina Gershtein BSAG'03
Terri Giacommazzi BSGR'01
David Gibson BScA'80
Raman Gill BScA'02
Suzanne Gill BScA'84
Joan Gish BA'58
Chris Gorman BA'99
Bob Gothong BCom'77
Brian Graham BEd'74, PhD'84
Penelope Gray-Allan BSc'85
Terrence Greenhough BEd'94
Jennifer Grenz BSAG'04
Simrat Grewal BScA'01
Kerry Grieve LLB'90
Sarita Gupta BScP'82
Natalie Gurney BA'02
Kris Gustavson BSN'86, MSN'01
Otto Hack BA'48
Angela Halicki BA'02
Chris Hall LLM'95
Wendy Hall BSN'80
Richard Hallman BScA'74
Gail Hammond MSc'92
Shirley Hammond BHE'55
Adam Blake Hanacek BSGR'03
David Harder MD'59
David Hardwick MD'57
Ruth Hardy BScA'75,MSc'80
Ingrid Hartmann BA'96
Leah Hawirko BScD'90
Byron Hender BCom'65
Justin Henry BScA'95
Ben Heppner BMus'79, LLD'97
Gordon Heydon BA'50, MD'54
Peter Higgins BScA'91
DelcieHillBSN'64,MSN'96
Mary Hill BA'42
Raquel Hirsch BA'80, MBA'83
Anita Ho BSFN'05
Annie Ho BCom
Eugene Ho Bcom'93
Debbie Hoeberg BSc'76, MD'80
Fred Hole BASc'45
Paul Hollands BCom'79
Wendy Holm MSc'74
Bob Holtby BScA'67, MSc'72
Margaret-Ann Hooper BEd'89
Maureen Howe PhD'87
Craig Hudson BCom'OO
Maria Hugi MD'79
Cecilia Hui BSFN'03
Olivia Hui BSAG'04
George Hungerford, OC, BA'65, LLB'f
Jane Hungerford, BEd'67
Jason Hunnisett BA'96
Richard Hunt BA'76
James Hunter BSc'76, MD'85
Don Hutchins MD'56
Julie Huzzey BSAG'03
Christine Hylands BASc'96
Bill Inkster DMD'76
Samantha Ip BA'91, LLB'94
Brenda Irwin MBA'99
Susan Irwin MSW'74
Robyn Isaacs BSc'05
Louise Jackson BScD'88
Zahida Jaffer BA'02, BEDE'03
Meghan Jamieson BA'99
Clifton Jang BCom'OO
David Janssens BScA'81, MBA'83
Gail Jarislowsky BA'58
Kirsten Jenkins BSc'96
James Jiam Bcom'94 MBA'95
Jacob Joh BSc'90
Craig Johnston BScA'90
Lisa Johnson BSc'OO
Richard Johnston BA'70,
Carole Joling BA'67, BLS'69
Craig Jones LLB'98
David W.Jones BSc'67, MD'70
Philip Jones BSc(Agr)'49
JohnJue BSc'76, MD'79
Doug Justice BScA'88, MSc'95
Bianca Kaakinen BA'98
Shezadi Kara BSc'98
Crystal Karakochuk BScD'01
Edward Kardera MD'65
George Kennedy BA'68
Maureen Kent BScA'64, MSc'66, PhD'92
Jake Kerr BA'65
Kevin Keystone
Dean Keyworth MBA'OO
Moe Kia BSc'OO
Michele Kim BCom'OO
Adrian Kimberley BCom'86
Patrick Kinahan MD'55
Kat Kinch LLB'04
Liz King BA'02
Glenn Kishi BHK'79
Katherine Klassen BScA'80
Albert Knudsen BA'50, MD'54
Christine Koch BScA'87
Jan Koepke BEd'65
Lyall Knott BCom'71, LLB'72
Victor Kok BA
Linda Korbin BA'65, BSW'66, MSW'67
Lee Kornder MD'56
Thais Kornder BA'52, MD'56
Vladimir Kravtchenko MSc'99
Maja Krzic PhD'97
Anny Kwok BCom'OO
David Kwan BCom'OO
Geoff Kwan BCom'OO
Derek LaCroix, Q.C BPE'71, LLB'74
Barbara Laird BHE'55
Raymond Lam BSc'78, MD'81
Marilyn Lau BCom
Ricky Lau BCom'92
Tina Lau BSFN'05
Ernest Ledgerwood MD'60
Carol Lee BCom'81
Christine Lee BA'98
Henry Lee BASc'81
V Paul Lee BCom'87
Clayton Lehman BCom'60
Steffen Lehmann BA'04
Bill Lemieux MScB'85
Irene Leonard LLB'79
Kit Meng Leong BASc'95
Angus Leslie BASc'72
Andy Leung BSc
Connie Leung BCom
Ralph Leung BCom'99
Ricky Leung BSc'03
Bill Levine BA'63
Cynthia Leyland BCom'OO
Eunice Li-Chan BScA'75, PhD'81
Perry Lidster BScA'72, MSc'76, PhD'79
Phil Lind BA'66, LLD'02
Bill Lipsin BCom'76
Thomas Lloyd BSc'71, BScP'75
Grace Lo BA'99
Katie Longworth BSc'01
Jon Lotz BCom'98, LLB'01
Tim Louman-Gardiner BA'04
30    Trek    Fall 2006 Gordon Lovegrove BASc'82, MENG'88
Heather Lovelace MSc'02
Sharon Lowe BSN'92
Glen Lucas BScA'83
Robyn Ludwig BA'98
Cynthia Lui BCom'OO
Harvey Lui BSc' 83, MD'86
Terry Lum BA'98
Marty Lund BSW'81, MSW'85
David Lunny LLB'79
Keith MacDonald BScA'47, MD'60
David MacLaren BA'94
The Honorable Roy MacLaren BA'55
Mark Madryga BSc'86
Jay Magee BA
Kevin Mahon BCom'82
David Main MBA'90
Kathleen Mair BHE'55
Michael Mak BCom'97
Sunny Mak BA'99
Dianne Marit Main BSN'74
Justin Marples BHK'81
Denice Marr BScD'88, Bed'95
Carla Martin BSGR'04
Lisa Martz LLB'92
Barbara Massey MD'67
John Masuhara BSc'87, MSc'93
Allan Matheson BA'98
Mark Mawhinney BA'94
David McArthur BScA'83, MSc'87
John McArthur BA'96
Barbara McBride BEd'72, MEd'82
Bertie McClean LLB
Heather McColl BScD'99
Rob McDiarmid BA'72, LLB'75
Ritch McDonald BASc'73
Allan McEachern BA'49, LLB'50,
LLD'90
Jack McGregor MD'56
John McKay BA'90
Michael McLenaghan BA'03
Andrew McLeod BA'91
D.C. McPhail MSc'85
Steve McSherryM BA'04
Tracey McVicar BCom'90
Jim Meekison BA'61, MA'62
Naz Merali MD'83
Shelly Messenger BScD'99
David Miles BA'OO, LLB'03
Myrtle Miller BEd'87
Brian Mills BA'86
Linda Mint BHE'70
Michelle Minty PH'95
Doug Mitchell LLB'62
Greg Mitchell BA'OO
Keith Mitchell BA'67, LLB'71
Kyle Mitchell BCom'65
Paul Mitchell BCom'78, LLB'79
Grace Mok BA'02, DACC'03
John Montalbano BCom'88
Kwang Soon Moon MASc'76
Dawn Mooney BA'03
Helen Moore BA'64, BLS'68
Gillian Moran BA'02
Sarah Morgan-Silvester BCom'82
Michael Mortensen MA'97
Roy Morton MD'82
David Mowat BCom'78
Ted Mui BCom
Adam Munnings LLB'05
Amanda Murdoch BA'03
Jason Murray BA'98
Trevor Murrie BA'75, MSc'87
Phil Narod MD'55
Tom Nash BScA'76, MSc'78
Tina Neale BSc'99
Marna Nelson BSc'76, MD'80
Rodger Nelson MD'56
Steve Ng BSc'OO, MSc'02
Peter Ngan BA'02
Cathleen Nichols BSc'83 MScA'91
Craig Nistor BSC'90, MSC'96
Daniel Nocente BA'76
Natasha Norbjerg BA'04
David Norton BCom'65
Mike Nugent BSAG'03
Michael O'Keefe BCom'64, LLB'65
John O'Neill BCom'85
Alison Ogden BA'97, BEDE'99
Julie Orban BSC'92, MSC'01
Fofi Orfanou BA'97
Penelope Osborne BSc'77, MD' 81
Andrea Ottem BScD'91
Jonathan Pagtakhan BA'98
Claire Pallard Belanger MSc'92
Kassandra Palmer BSc'05
Lara Panio BScD'98
Jina Park BCom
Joon Park BCom
Pat Parker BCom'68, MBA'69
Russell Patrick BA'67
Ahbishek Paul DULE'05
Stewart Paulson BScA'68, MSc'70
Ali Pejman BCom'94
Mike Peplinski MBA'92
Colin Pereira BA'96
Thu Pham BSFN'03
Gerald Philippson BA'52, MD'56
Margot Pittaway BSAG'03
Deirdre Pothecary BA'71, LLB'75
Gary Powroznik BCom'74
Judy Pozsgay LLB'93
Nicki Pozos BASc'96
Peter Prasloski BA'52, MD'56
Marina Pratchett LLB'81
Johanna Price LLB'98
Stephen Price BA'03
Rinford Pritchard MD'56
Ajay Puri BSc'03, MHA'05
Vincent Quan BSAG'03
Noel Quenville MD'56
Paige Raibmon BA'94
Jim Rainer BCom'55
Nancy Ramsden BA'74
ParimalRana BSc'91, BScA'94
Roy Rauser BCom'65
rfhan Rawji BCom'OO
Mark Reder BA'86
Bob Reid LLB'74
Jane Reitsma BEd'04
Jacqueline Relova BSc'98
Ann Remedios BA'86
Geoff Rempel BA'96, BEd'97, MA'01
Alec Robertson Bcom'56, LLB'57
Ian Robertson BSc'86, BA'88
Doug Robinson BCom'71, LLB'72
Elizabeth Robinson BA'72, BSW'79,
MSW'80
Julie Robinson BA'02
Noel Roddick BScA'62
Jim Rogers BA'67
Jill Romanchuk BA'93
Wendy Rondeau DMD'79
Lars Ronning BASc'97
Todd Rooker BCom'90
Marjorie Ross BSR'80
Michael Ross BA'02
Mary Russell BA'64, BSW'65, MSW'67
Michael Ryan BCom'53
Kozue Saito MEd'03
Jennifer Salyn BHE'95
Dale Sanderson BCom'75, LLB'75
Satinder Sanghera BScA'90
Gregg Saretsky BSc'82, MBA'84
Christine Saulnier BA'94
Erin Sawyer BSGR'01
Johanna Scott BSc'88
Jean Schwartz BScA'90
Olga Schwartzkopf BScA'78
Robert Searle MEd'81
Satnam Sekhon BHE'85
Jim Severs DMD'76
Darshnee Shah BCom'OO
Kavita Sharma LLM'86
Lana Shipley BASc'99 LLB'05
Justice Jon Sigurdson BA'69, LLB'73
Sean Simpson BA'96
Jesse Sims BCom'OO
Janet Sinclair MA'02
Gordon Mark Sladen BMus'93
Arnold Smith BPE'62, MEd'82
Jason Smith BCom'94
Jim Smerdon BA'96
Robin Smith BScA'65
Warren Smith LLB'03
Leslie So BSc'05
Marilyn Somers BA'57, BSW'60,
MSW'63
Andrea Southcott BCom'82
Barry Sparks BCom'73
Amelia Spinelli BA'02
Susan Stacey BSR'80
Graeme Stamp BCom'74
Gregory Stearns DMD'88
Jayn Steele BA'05
Shannon Sterling BA'01, BEd'03
Shirley Sterlinger BSN'75
Valerie Stevens BScA'71, MSc'73
Anne Stewart BSc'72, LLB'75
Irwin Stewart BA'52, MD'56
Gayle Stewart BA'76
Elaine Stolar BSW59, MA'60, MSW'63
Alyssa Stoneman BScA'96
Robin Stoodley BSc'OO
Allan Suh BSc'79, MBA'81
Jimmy Sunaryo BASc'05
Steve Sung BSc'02
Sandy Sveinson BA'91, BASc'97,
MASc'99
Mark Sweeney BScA'77
Phil Swift MBA'75
Louise Tagulao BA'02
Jenny Tai BMLS'97
BeverleyTamboline BA'53, MD'60
Karen Tang MSc'OO
George Taylor BCom'55
Heidi Taylor LLB'03
Jim Taylor LLB'68
Terry Taylor BCom'76
Bruce Terry MBA'80
PatThom BScA'84, BScD'94, MA'01
Greg Thomas BPE'72, MPE'77
Lisa Thomas-Tench BA'93, MBA'99
Jim Thompson BScA'64, MSA'66
Jed Thorp MA'02
JoanitaTjandrawinata BA'04
Karol Traviss BHE'79, MSc'98
Shayne Tryon BA'OO
Jessie Touzel BASc'86
Chris Tumpach BASc'01
Eric Tung BA'OO, MA'04
John Turner BA'49, LLD'94
Louanne Twaites BScP'53
Rod Urquhart BEd'82, LLB'85
Geoff Urton BScA'OO, MSc'05
Wendy Valdes BA'79
ZamanValli-Hasham BSc'03
Diana Van Beest BPE'79
Jack Van der Star BASc'77, M ASc'82
Kathy Van der Star BSR'77
Margaret van Soest BScA'83
Eric Vance BA'75, MA'81
Praveen Varshney BCom'87
David Velan BASc'02
Chantille Viaud BA'03
Marina von Kyserlingk BScA'87,
PhD'95
Melissa Waddell BSc'03
Julia Wagner BScA'01, MSc'05
Kathrin Wallace BScA'90
Ron Walsh BA'70
Una Walsh BA'82 MA'84
FayWanBScA'99
JudiWannamaker BASc'96
Ron Warneboldt BSc'71, MD'75
Louise Watson BA'86
William Webber MD'58 (deceased)
KentWesterberg BA'84, LLB'87
Nicole Westerlund BScA'99
SueWestrupBHE'77
Nilmini Wijewickreme MSc'90, PhD'97
CarlWithlerBScA'89
Fred Withers BCom'77
Anne Willams BA'90
Justice James Williams LLB'84
Charles Wills BArc'60
J Gait Wilson MD'79
Stephen Wilson BCom'68
Warren Wilson BA'62, LLB'67
Eveline Wolterson BSc'73, MSc'90
Edwina Wong BSC'92
Glenn Wong BCom'80
Jimmy Wong BASc'OO
Randal Wong BA'96
Theresa Wong DMD'76
VincentWong BA'92
Wilson Wong BPharm
Sheri Wood BSN'67
John Woodworth BArc'52
MordehaiWosk BA'72
Frances Wu Bcom'98
TobyWuBCom'99
Chris WyattDMD'86
Marianne Wyne MSc'01
Paul Yanko BSc'76, MD'80
Doreen Yasui BHE'66
Darryl Yea BCom'81
Ernest Yee BA 83, MA'87
Amy Yeung BCom'OO
Andrew Young MD'59
Bob Young BA'52, MD'56
Darian Yip BCom'OO
Amy Yiu BSFN'05
Albert Yu MScB'85
Anthony Yurkovich BScA'51, MD'55
Elisa Yue BScA'89, MSc'96
Carol Zachs BA'96
Carl Zanon BASc'59
Carol Zanon MSc'61
Andrew Zhong BSFN'05
Glennis Zilm BSN'58
Amber Zirnhelt BA'04
Scott Zuyderduyn BSc'99
We have taken every effort to include the names of
all alumni who have given their time and talent over
the past year. We apologize in advance if we have left
you out and please let us know of our omission.
If you would like to share some of your time and talent with UBC, please contact us. Give a thought to how
much time you have to spare and what passion you
wish to pursue. We will be happy to help you engage.
Contact Barney Ellis-Perry (barney.ellis-perry@ubc.ca)
at 604.822.1922.
We publish the names of our volunteers as a way of
recognizing them for their selflessness and their dedication. If you do not wish your name to be published in
the future, please notify us.
Fall 2006    Trek    31 Exams in the Armouries, April 1990
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ALUMNI
UBC
www.alumni.ubc.ca TRADITIONS
The Day The Ubyssey Died
and Rose Again
EASTER IS A TIME of spring festivals, a time
to welcome back the tulips, the crocuses and the
daffodils. It is a time for Dad to buy a new suit,
Mom to buy a new dress and little Suzy to get
brand new patent leather shoes. It is also a time
for Christians to celebrate the life and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Moreover, it is a time
of chocolate bunnies, painted eggs and sugary
jellybeans. And, in 1959, it was also a time to
release another spoof edition of The Ubyssey at
UBC.
A "goon" edition was what The Ubyssey
veterans called it: an annual issue that poked
fun at campus personalities and institutions and
the politicians of the day. When the 1959 issue
circulated in late March, it caused quite a stir.
As expected on the cover, the The Ubyssey
lampooned the university's fee increase. "FEE
ON YOU," the headline screamed. Students
blamed the Social Credit government led by
W.A.C. Bennett for this increase. A cartoon
showed leading cabinet members burying a
coffin labelled "UBC"; the lead story quoted
Bennett as saying: "The pot is empty and only
Fee can fill it." This type of satire was biting but
certainly expected.
But when the readers turned to page six, it
was something else. "The special Easter page"
was said to contain "features, pictures, and news
stories for the whole family ... as a special treat
by those who don't care for those who do."
Two pictures jumped out from the page. "Look
at those holes in His hands," read the caption
beneath a photo of three cheerleaders, one with
arms outstretched in front of a totem pole. "The
tomb is empty!" another caption read, referring
by Patty Lai
"Look at those holes in His hands!"
screamed the caption in the Easter goon
edition of The Ubyssey, March 30,1959.
Fall 2006    Trek    33 AND ROSE AGAIN
to a photo of a student and a workman standing beside a crane and a large hole.
Page seven continued the train wreck with a
photo of a woman in front of a cave with the
caption, "What have you done with Him?" and
an article about a small boy who ventures into
an empty tomb looking for Easter eggs, saying,
"By gum, I knew if I followed that star long
enough I'd find something!"
While this incident may seem tame today, 47
years ago it stirred up strong feelings from the
university and the community. Not only did
this scandalous spoof make it to the front page
of the Vancouver Province and the Vancouver
Sun, it was the hot topic on multiple radio stations in Greater Vancouver.
Without delay, the ams executive council suspended The Ubyssey editorial board and staff
from working on the paper. A week later, the
ams urgently published a "special edition" of
Page seven continued the train wreck with a photo of a woman in front of a cave with the caption,
"What have you done with Him?" and an article about a small boy who ventures into an empty tomb
looking for Easter eggs, saying, "By gum, I knew if I followed that star long enough I'd find something!'
the Ubyssey attempting to explain and rectify
the situation. UBC's president at the time, Larry
MacKenzie, expressed satisfaction that the
students' council had taken the matter in hand.
It certainly saved him the trouble of doing so.
MacKenzie was angered by the "vulgar, tasteless lampoon" and was more than embarrassed
by the extremely critical media and letters that
complained about money wasted on higher
education. What seemed very much like a tempest in teapot in today's society wasn't so in the
late 1950s. Although the University of British
Columbia was non-sectarian, people did not
view it as irreligious, or worse - blasphemous.
Residents of British Columbia took religion
seriously and were none too thrilled about this
blatant mockery.
It was a shock to some that most of the
editorial staff was fired and there was a
looming fear that this would be the demise of
The Ubyssey. However, this was not the case.
Former Ubyssey editor Allan Chernov recalls,
"I think there was a real fear that The Ubyssey
would collapse as a campus institution because
after the 'editorial massacre' there was very
little actual newspaper experience among the
survivors. But, as it turned out The Ubyssey'_s
obituary was premature. We not only survived,
we thrived. The Vancouver Sun lent us an
experienced newspaperman to advise and mentor us..."
Remarkably, the misfortune of the senior
editorial staff was the serendipity of junior staff
members like Chernov.
"I became the senior editor," Chernov recollects. "It continually amazed me that just a few
short months ago I had been a rank novice and
now I was responsible for putting out an eight
to twelve page newspaper three times a week. It
was an amazing learning experience in journalism and putting out a newspaper."
The story of The Ubyssey's scandalous edition eventually faded away. The student paper
merrily resumed its twice weekly routine, although the "goon" editions for the subsequent
years were relatively subdued.
"In retrospect it seems obvious that the 1959
Easter edition was so outrageous that there
would be severe consequences", says Cernov,
"but I don't think the editorial staff had a clue
that it would turn out that way. I think they
saw themselves as a merry band of pranksters
poking fun at hallowed institutions, that is, doing what irreverent college students always do.
Unfortunately, they crossed way over the line
and paid the price."
Allan Chernov was offered summer internships at The Vancouver Sun in i960 and 1961
and covered the City Desk on Friday nights
during his academic years. He is currently
Medical Director, Health Care Quality &
Policy for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas,
located in Richardson, Texas.
The Ubyssey's tradition of the "goon" edition
continues today with the end of-the-year April
issue. "Martha Magazine," a spoof of Martha
Piper based on Martha Stewart's magazine, and
"UBC Purports," a spoof on UBC Reports - are
two recent examples. I
Patty Lai, BA'04, works at the Alumni Affairs
office.
34    Trek    Fall 2006 2006
Alumni Achievement Awards
On November 2, 2006, the UBC community recognized five members of the UBC community
for exceptional achievement in their respective fields and for exemplary behaviour as contributing
members of society.    We received many worthy nominees deserving of recognition and this year's
recipients reflect that high standard.    The Alumni Achievement Dinner featured remarks and
videos of the award recipients, presentation of awards, a silent auction and great food
in the magnificent surroundings of the atrium of UBC's Life Sciences Building.    More
information about this year's awards (and how to nominate for next year) can be
found on our website at www.alumni.ubc.ca/awards.
Frank lacobucci, bcom'6i, llb'62, LLD'69
Lifetime Achievement Award
A Justice of the Supreme Court until his retirement in 2004, Frank lacobucci has shared his
professional insight broadly. More specifically,
he has used his breadth of legal knowledge to
provide guidance to private practice, academia
and government as well as the judiciary. He has
said that the noblest attribute of membership
in a profession is service to both clients and the
public, and in this he has been exemplary.
Mr. Iacobucci's career began in New York,
where he worked as a corporate lawyer. He returned to Canada in 1967 and joined the faculty
of Law of the University ofToronto. There, he
contributed to both the academic and administrative side of university life, holding senior
positions in both spheres. He was professor and
dean of the university's Law faculty, then moved
up an administrative notch to become Vice-
President and Provost.
Mr. Iacobucci's high-ranking legal appointments include his time as Deputy Minister of
Justice and Deputy Attorney General of Canada
during the 1980s. He was Chief Justice of the
Federal Court of Canada from 1988 until 1991,
when he was appointed to the Supreme Court.
After his retirement he returned to Toronto to
take on the interim presidency of the University
of Toronto, at the same time returning to his
professorial duties. At UBC, he is current holder
of the Walter S. Owen (visiting) Chair, the first
endowed chair in the Faculty of Law at UBC.
The list of his past and current directorships
and advisory roles - most of them in a voluntary
capacity - is extensive. Present involvements
include the Canada Pension Plan Investment
Board, Tim Horton's, the Trudeau Foundation
(as a mentor) and Torstar, owners of the Toronto
Star and numerous other publications. On July
1, 2005, he became counsel with Torys LLP,
advising government, business and colleagues
on all things legal and policy-related. In 2006,
Mr. lacobucci was appointed chair of the Higher
Education Quality Council of Ontario.
He has often acted in an advisory capacity to government and during the 1980s was a
member of the Ontario Securities Commission.
He was counsel to the 1974 Estey Commission's
inquiry into the steel industry, and in 2005 represented the federal government in spearheading
moves to resolve the legacy of Indian Residential
Schools. His professional knowledge can also be
gleaned from the many articles and books he has
authored or edited.
Mr. Iaccobucci is the son of Italian immigrants, who instilled in their son a strong pride
in his heritage. Among the many tokens of
esteem he has received, the honorary citizenships
bestowed on him by the Italian towns of Man-
gone and Cepegatti - his parents' birthplaces -
are accolades he holds particularly dear. He has
been a strong supporter of the Italian-Canadian
community for many years, having been vp of
the National Congress of Italian Canadians and
active as a board member in its Toronto branch.
Fall 2006    Trek    35 2006 Achievement Awards
He has received a number of related awards
from Italian-Canadian communities in Canada,
including the Canadian-Italian National Award
in 2000 that acknowledged his positive influence on Canada's society, culture and economy,
and the Valigia d'Oro Award in 2002, which
recognizes the contributions and sacrifices made
by Italian Immigrants to Canada. And one of
his legacies at Toronto University is The Frank
lacobucci Centre for Italian-Canadian Studies.
He is appreciated in other countries, too.
In 1993, he was appointed Commendatore
dell'Ordine Al Merito by the Republic of Italy.
In 1999 he became an Honorary Fellow of St.
John's College, Cambridge University (where he
completed his Masters and a diploma in International Law), and also of the American College of Trial Lawyers. He has received eleven
honorary doctorates, including one from UBC,
and received the UBC Law Alumni Association's Lifetime Achievement Award in 2005.
Roger Jackson, MPE'67
Alumni Award of Distinction
Roger Jackson, who won an Olympic gold
medal in rowing for Canada in 1964, is now a
respected national and international leader in
sports. His seasoned input has raised the profile
of excellence in sport, and he is the orchestra-
tor of many programs designed to help athletes
realize their full potential. The respect accorded
him as a long-time sports consultant is rooted
in his own sporting pedigree and his long years
of service.
As a young man, Dr. Jackson chose to participate in the UBC Rowing program because
of its gruelling training schedule and high
expectations, which came close to meeting his
own. Waking every day at 4:30 am for the first
of two training sessions paid off. At the Tokyo
Olympics in 1964 he won gold in the coxless
pairs rowing event with fellow alumnus George
Hungerford, and went on to compete at the
next two games (bearing the Canadian flag for
his team at the 1968 Mexico Olympic Games).
When he was no longer at his athletic peak,
he began helping younger athletes carve out
their own athletic careers. As manager of
Technical Programs for Sport Canada in the
department of National Health and Welfare,
he developed programs to prepare athletes for
the 1976 Olympics and established national
policies and more federal support for national
sports organizations. The department also
consulted him on sports research and setting up
a national coaching association.
As director of Sports Canada between 1976
and 1978 he led the federal government's
sport program, negotiating sports agreements
with other countries and allocating funding to
national organizations. Until recently, he was
regularly committing up to 25 voluntary hours
per week to various sports-related activities and
initiatives.
He joined the University of Calgary in the
1970s, and was dean of the faculty of Physical
Education from 1978 to 1988. During his tenure, he attracted key faculty members, initiated
graduate programs and raised $80 million for
new facilities that included the Sport Medicine
Centre in 1988, of which he became director
until 2003 (he holds a doctorate in Biodynamics
from the University of Wisconsin). He shaped
new research and education programs and
established a multi-million dollar endowment
for their ongoing finance. He was also heavily involved in other aspects of university life,
serving as Special Advisor to Presidents among
other leadership roles. After his retirement in
2004, a new campus building was named the
Roger Jackson Centre for Health and Wellness
Research.
Soon after retiring from the University of Calgary, he set up a private consultancy business,
Roger Jackson and Associates Ltd. The company has provided guidance to Olympic host
cities and various Olympic bid attempts. He
was a consultant and strategist behind the successful London 2012 Summer Olympic bid, He
was recently appointed ceo of Own the Podium
2010, a program to help Canadian Olympic
and Paralympic athletes secure more medals at
the Vancouver games. Own the Podium aims to
raise $110 million and initiate several new high
performance programs to support Canada's
Olympic hopefuls.
Dr. Jackson is enthusiastic about the program
because it takes a holistic approach to promoting sporting excellence in this country, considering all aspects affecting performance from
quality of coaching to the latest insights from
sports science. He believes that the program will
establish a solid and sustainable infrastructure
to provide Canada's athletes with the opportunities they deserve.
Dr. Jackson has been president of the Canadian Olympic Committee for eight years and
36    Trek    Fall 2006 is a generous volunteer with the International
Olympic Committee and Pan American Sports
organization among many others. He spent io
years as a key leader ofthe 1988 Calgary Olympic Winter Games. He is current chair of the
Canadian Centre for Ethics in Sports, helping
to ensure that the proper values underpin the
Canadian approach to sport.
Besides his demanding sports-related commitments, Dr. Jackson has also found time to
chair the Calgary International Organ Festival,
the Cantos Music Foundation and serve the
executive committee for Operation Eyesight
Universal. He has more than 30 publications
to his name, is a recipient of the 10c Olympic
Order and was named an officer of the Order
of Canada in 1983.
Andrew Saxton
Honorary Alumnus Award
Since arriving in Canada as an 18-year-old
orphan from Hungary in 1947 and becoming
a Canadian citizen in 1953, Andrew Saxton
has quietly joined the ranks of that outstanding
group of new Canadians from all parts of the
world who are noted for hard work, a strong
sense of place in the Canadian community, and
a desire to share their successes with others.
In Mr. Saxton's case, an inherent ability in
the field of financial management took him
from his first job as an accountant with Canada
Packers Ltd. in Vancouver to the boardroom
of Laurentide Financial Corporation, which
became a major economic generator with more
than 2,000 employees and 220 branch offices.
He also has served as president of Elite Insurance Company, as chair of Grouse Mountain
Resorts Ltd., director of BC Television Broadcasting System Ltd., president of The Granville
Island Hotel and Marina Ltd. and chair of King
George Development Corporation. He was a
founding member of all these companies.
His business endeavours have played and
continue to play a significant role in the social,
cultural and economic lives of Canadians.
Early examples include his visionary leadership
of Grouse Mountain Resorts in undertaking
the construction of the Skyride (1966), which
resulted in Grouse Mountain's skiing, hiking
and restaurant facilities becoming one of BC's
largest private tourist attractions with in excess
of 1.1 million visitors annually.
On the cultural side, he was a member of the
syndicate that won the first license for a private
television station in Canada in i960. The group
was formed as VanTel Broadcasting, later bctv,
which is acknowledged as one of the province's
most influential news organizations.
As chairman of King George Development
Corporation, he was instrumental in having
the Sky Train extended to Surrey's King George
Station in 1994 with his company donating both
cash and land to the project. As chairman of
King George Financial Corporation and deputy
chairman of Allied Hotel Properties Inc., he has
been actively involved in a number of commercial real estate projects in Canada.
His business accomplishments have singled
him out for appointments to the boards of
federal and provincial Crown corporations and
agencies including Canadian Commercial Corporation (Ottawa), the Canadian Forces Liaison
Council (bc) and the Insurance Corporation of
bc, where he was a director and chairman of the
Investment committee. He was also a member
of the bc government's Reference Drug Program
Consultation panel and of the President's Community Advisory Council at UBC. Other federal
assignments included acting as special advisor
to the Speaker of the House of Commons on
official visits to Europe, Hong Kong and China,
and membership on the Advisory Committee,
National Capital Development Program, National Capital Commission.
His current corporate appointments include chairmanship of King George Financial
Corporation and board membership of Imperial
Parking Canada Corporation, Earthworks
Industries Inc. and the UBC Investment Management Trust. He is also a partner in the Chiefs
Development Group, owners of the Chilliwack
Coliseum.
Mr. Saxton is a former member of the advisory boards for HSBC Capital Canada (Private
Equity Fund) and the bc Life Sciences Fund.
Past directorships include vsm MEDTech Ltd.,
Pheromone Sciences Corporation, the Commonwealth Bank (Nassau), Laurentide Financial
Trust (London, England), Societe d'Entresprise
du Canada, Societe Francaise de Financement de
Ventes A Credit (Paris), Ultratech Corporation
(Sunnyvale, California) and Morlan Pacific (San
Francisco).
Parallel to his business career, he has been
actively involved in health and charitable organizations, primarily with the Heart and Stroke
Foundation of bc & Yukon, of which he became
president at the age of 34. He played a critical
role in raising nearly $4 million for an endowment fund for the bc Heart Foundation chair in
Fall 2006    Trek    37 SUBSCRIBE TO TREK MAGAZINE
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2006 Achievement Awards
Cardiology at UBC and St. Paul's Hospital. He
received the Canadian Heart Foundation's Distinguished Service Award in 1998 and in 2004
received the Heart and Stroke Foundation of bc
& Yukon Lifetime Achievement Award, only the
fourth such award to be presented in the foundation's 50-year history. He has represented the
Canadian Heart Foundation at the International
Society and Federation of Cardiology in Geneva
and served as chairman of its Financial Support
committee.
Mr. Saxton was also one of the founders and
president of the charitable auction endeavour,
chaired the Special Names and Trusts campaign
for the United Way of Vancouver, served as first
vice president of the Vancouver Opera Association and is a former shareholder and director of
Northwest Sports Enterprises, then owners of
the Vancouver Canucks of the National Hockey
League.
He is married to Sophie and has two sons,
Richard and Andrew, Jr., and two daughters,
Shelley and Anne-Marie. He was always appreciative of what his adopted country afforded
him and remains eternally grateful to his Uncle
Leslie Schaffer and wife Kato, who sponsored
his coming to Canada.
David Granville, phd'oi
Outstanding Young Alumnus
Assistant professor Dr. David Granville is one of
Canada's rising stars in cardiovascular research.
He specializes in fathoming the mechanisms of
cell injury and death in cardiovascular diseases
from atherosclerosis to heart transplant rejection. He holds a Canada Research Chair in Cardiovascular Biochemistry in UBC's department
of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine and in
fewer than 10 years has published 50 articles,
four book chapters and has two patents pending
to accompany the four he already holds.
His academic potential has been recognized
and fostered through a number of financial
awards along the way and he is grateful for the
backing.
While completing his doctorate at UBC, he
was funded by a research traineeship from the
Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada. He
then attended the renowned Scripps Institute in
San Diego supported by a fellowship from the
Canadian Institutes of Health Research. It became apparent just how deserving a recipient he
was when he made a discovery that attracted the
attention of research peers and the public alike.
Hardened arteries can restrict blood flow to
the heart, heighten blood pressure and cause
heart attacks. Compounding the problem are
immune cells, which trigger cell death in the
wall of a hardened artery and create a bigger
risk. Dr. Granville's research team discovered
that a certain enzyme plays a key role in the
cell death process and learned that its suppression could reduce damage to the heart when
the organ is subjected to cardiac ischema and
reperfusion injury. This was a major discovery
that drew much attention from the media and
one which has potential for reducing the size of
a heart attack by up to 60 per cent. The findings
were prominently featured in respected journals
and Dr. Granville is often approached by the
local and national media for interviews. A more
recent discovery is that suppression of a protein
in mice inhibits atherosclerosis. This research
also exposed some unexpected connections with
hair loss and longevity and patents are pending.
Dr. Granville is driven by a desire to see rapid
progress from bench to bed, from discovery
to application. He is an inspiring mentor and
engaging speaker with a reputation that attracts
talented graduate students and post-doctoral
fellows to bolster UBC's research efforts. Partly
because of what he inspires, he was asked to
head the strategic planning committee at UBC's
James Hogg icAPTURE Centre for Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Research, St. Paul's Hospital
(of which he is an executive member) to attract
other talented researchers to UBC. He is respected for his level of involvement, effectiveness,
and generous collaboration with colleagues. He
has been invited to act as reviewer for several
academic journals and granting bodies, thereby
helping to maintain the quality and standard of
scientific research in this country and abroad.
Last year, Dr. Granville was named by The
Caldwell Partners and the Globe and Mail as
one of Canada's Top 40 under 40. He also won
a Young Investigator Award from the Canadian
Society of Transplantation in 2004.
More evidence of the confidence in his ability
is provided by the number of scholarships and
grants he continues to receive. As well as funding from cihr, BC Transplant Society, St. Paul's
Foundation and the Heart and Stroke Foundation, he is also the recipient of a Michael Smith
Foundation for Heart Research Scholar Award.
He has memberships to several scholarly societies connected with his work including the Canadian Society of Atherosclerosis, Thrombosis
38    Trek    Fall 2006 2006 Achievement Awards
and Vascular Biology and the North American
Vascular Biology Organization.
Mike Quinn, BASc'03
Global Citizenship Award
When Mike Quinn was nearing the end of his
degree in Mechanical Engineering, he began to
doubt whether he could find complete satisfaction from a career in the field. Then he learned
about Engineers Without Borders (ewb), an
organization of students and young professionals who volunteer their skills at home and
abroad on projects designed to tackle poverty
and improve quality of life, ewb provided the
missing elements and demonstrated to him the
true potential of his education.
Mr. Quinn's humanitarian leanings have long
been apparent. As a final project for his degree
he worked on a device for shielding people who
remove landmines and soon decided to continue
applying what he had learned at university
where it would do the most good.
His experience during two placements in
Africa through ewb has only fuelled this commitment. He has gained a deeper understanding
of the complexity of poverty and believes that
significant contributions to tackling it demand
long-term involvement. He is aware of the variety of challenges, but instead of being cowed
by them he is only more convinced that with the
right approach and enough effort, individuals
can make a difference.
In Ghana he joined a program to improve
food processing and prevent wastage. In collaboration with rural farmers, he worked on a
diesel-powered machine able to power several
different food processing machines, allowing the
farmers' work to be carried out faster and more
efficiently and saving vital food supplies from
spoiling. Used in villages with no electricity supply, the adaptable machine could also be used
to power water pumps and charge batteries for
lighting and telecommunications.
His recently completed second placement was
in Livingstone, Zambia, where he worked with
care International on a food security program
involving the reinstatement of sorghum as a
hardier staple crop to replace maize (see Mike's
article in the Fall, 2005 issue of Trek Magazine).
Maize took over as the crop of choice a few
decades ago but is unable to thrive in drought
conditions. It was a cross-sector project involving a local brewery, which agreed to buy the
sorghum to make beer. This experience led him
to view cross-sector projects as an effective way
of achieving mutually beneficial ends.
This September he starts his master's degree
at the London School of Economics, aiming to
balance the practicality of his first degree with
a solid theoretical understanding of the context
in which he may be applying it. He is also considering an mba in social entrepreneurship.
In the future, Mr. Quinn sees himself working in private sector management for companies prepared to be involved in cross-sector
development projects. A pragmatist, he believes
a cooperative approach to be the most effective.
He wants to encourage management practices
and corporate policies that speak to more than
just the financial stakeholders, based on the
principle that private sector projects in the developing world should always result in benefits
that spill over into the local communities.
Mr. Quinn isn't only an engineer. He's also a
writer. In his final year at UBC, he was named
the 2003 Mechanical Engineering Coop student
of the year. This was largely in recognition of
the excellence of a report he wrote during a work
term with a large oil company to help them meet
Kyoto Protocol requirements. He also bagged an
award for technical writing. But it's his writing
about Africa that has gained the most attention.
Working alongside the locals to understand the
context they live in and find solutions that will
work on a practical level, Mr. Quinn has gained
an empathy that is communicated through his
writing. His articles have been published in the
national and local press, including a regular Letters from the Field column on the CBC website.
One of his articles was noticed by singer Sarah
McLachlan, who used it as inspiration for her
latest music video. The bare-bones video that
illustrates the song World on Fire compares the
cost of producing the typical pop-music video
with what it would cost to support a development initiative, build a schoolhouse, or provide
medication.
Mr. Quinn wants to live in a more equitable
world. His attitude and combination of skills
make him an extremely effective advocate for
change. I
12TH ANNUAL ALUMNI ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS DINNER
Congratulations Award Recipients and thanks to our partners
< Presenting
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< Bronze
Fall 2006    Trek    39 Students at
the Kanyawegi
school hold
up condoms
Education is
one of the
main weapons
being used in
Africa to fight
the devastation
of hiv/aids.
How Goats Make Learning Possible
The You Lead program provides opportunities for "Volunteer Vacations,"
where travel combines with adventure and the chance to make a difference.
In 2004, John Agar, Msc'03, asked then-
president Martha Piper for 40 goats to help
his home community in Kenya develop a new
vision for self-reliance and sustainability.
Kanyawegi, a small village in the far west of
Kenya and neighbour to the expansive Masai
Mara game reserve, is situated in the lush tropical rainforest along the African equator. John
grew up in the village, and was one of a very
few young people from his poverty-stricken
community able to pursue a university education.
His goal was clear: to give Kanyawegi
children orphaned by the hiv/aids pandemic
the same kind of educational opportunities he
received. "The devastation and poverty that this
disease has brought to this community cannot
be overemphasized," John says. "Kids from
poor homes are bright, concentrate in school
and have the will and passion to go as far as
they can. The only drawback is the financial
support that they desperately need to fulfill their
dreams."
After receiving a grant for the goats, John
donated the livestock to eight women's small
business groups. His idea: provide the community with a means to generate cashflow so they
could pass on any surplus revenues (or goat
offspring) to other small businesses to create
new opportunities. Microfinance, only using
goats as currency.
by Lisa Thomas-Tench
The idea worked. Within a year, the women's
groups were making a profit and started a bank
account to finance other projects, such as a granary built to maximise revenues from the sales
of ample corn crops, a school reconstruction
project and a clothing manufacturing business.
As John notes, "investing in women makes a
profound difference in the community," not just
for the women, but for their children. They can
now afford to send their kids to school.
In the spirit of global citizenship, John has
now opened Kanyawegi to the world. Through a
partnership with YouLead, UBC's global service
learning unit, students are able to visit, learn and
assist with projects in rural Kenya. In a new program that starts in the spring, UBC alumni will
be able to visit the village to share business skills
and agriculture techniques, and provide input on
education projects.
John's ongoing partnership with UBC will
not end in Kenya. Goat microfinancing has been
translated into a pig project in Uganda, and
will continue to inspire new YouLead programs
in Indonesia and Colombia. John Agak and
Kanyawegi have created a unique legacy that the
university will share with students and communities worldwide for years to come. I
To learn more, or to explore a volunteer
vacation in Kenya, please contact YouLead at
604.822.6110 or visit www.youlead.org.
40    Trek    Fall 2006 claSSACTS
We depend on our readers to send us notices
for Class Acts and In Memoriam. Please
direct your information to vanessa.clarke®
ubc.ca, or to our mailing address (see page 3).
Digital photos must be 1 50 dpi or better to
be included in the magazine. Please note that
Trek Magazine is also posted on our website.
50S
Louanne Twaites bsc(pharm)'53 was honoured by the faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences
this summer, and attended the opening of the
Louanne Twaites Learning Room, named in recognition of her extensive volunteerism with the
faculty. Until her retirement in 1966, Louanne
worked as a clinical assistant professor at UBC
and has been active with the Alumni Association, particularly in the Pharmacy division, for
many years - a regular attendee at reunions and
other events. Ten years ago, she co-authored a
book documenting the faculty's then 50-year
history and tends to its display cases of artifacts
to this day.
60S
Igor Grant md'66 was selected to receive the
2005 Annual Faculty Award for Excellence
in Teaching by the School of Medicine at the
University of California at San Diego, where he
serves as Distinguished Professor of Psychiatry and director of the hiv Neurobehavioral
Research Center. Dr. Grant's award recognizes
his career as an educator spanning more than
30 years at ucsd and notes his contributions
in developing and teaching core courses to
medical students and spearheading development of a new graduate program in clinical
psychology. His research concerns neurological
and behavioural complications of hiv/aids.
As hnrc director he heads a program that
receives approximately $15 million annually in
extramural research grant support. The research
is translational in nature, seeking to connect
insights into the molecular mechanisms of
Louise and Jonathan Tagulao,
after they tied the knot in September, 2005.
neuroAiDS to their clinical manifestations and
treatment. Dr. Grant authored or co-authored
400 publications ... Dr. Lois E. H. Smith
bsc'68 has won the 2006 Alfred W. Bressler
Prize in Vision Science, awarded by the Jewish
Guild for the Blind. Dr. Smith is based at the
Children's Hospital Boston's Department of
Opthalmology ... George Hungerford BA'65,
lld'68 and wife Jane Hungerford BED'67
received the Lions Club International's Medal
of Merit, the organization's highest award, at
a recent Vancouver Chinatown Lions Club
dinner, at which $100,001 was raised for the
BC Cancer Foundation ... Gail Mclntyre BA'67,
now retired, lives part time in Vancouver's
West End. She also lives in Aurora, Ontario.
Highlights of her career include conducting
sociological work in the nwt in the late 1960s,
penning a 1972 City ofToronto Report on
Refuse and Recycling, introducing (as a councillor) the first soil preservation by-law and a
tree by-law, and holding a political appointment to the Ontario Heritage Foundation for
six years. In the almost 50 years since school,
she's found herself at the forefront of major
movements: hippiedom, women to the work
force, feminism, New Age, and environmental
causes ... Murray Newman phd'6o (Zoology), oc, founding director and now director
emeritus of the Vancouver Aquarium, enjoyed
celebrations for the aquarium's 50th anniversary this summer. He remembers that the
aquarium was established at a time when the
province had just one university - UBC - and
that then-UBC president Norman MacKenzie
and a number of key faculty members were
quite influential in securing high-level support
for the project. Fifty years later, the aquarium
has welcomed more than 34 million visitors.
"And," says Dr. Murray, "has succeeded in its
mandate of being a self-supporting, non-profit, educational and scientific institution." Dr.
Murray was recently awarded the Order of
BC. His new book People, Fish and Whales:
The Vancouver Aquarium Story was recently
released by Harbour Publishing.
70S
Zulkifli Ali bsc(hon)'73, MSC'75 has been
appointed to the Board of Commissioners
of LippoBank in Indonesia representing Khaz-
anah Holdings Berhad, an investment arm
of the government of Malaysia. Prior to this
appointment, he was with the publicly listed
Public Bank Berhad in Malaysia for 12 years,
responsible for the merger and acquisition
activities of the bank. He can be contacted
at Zulkifli.ali@lippobank.co.id ... W.R. (Bill)
Braidwood basc(mech)'7i, peng has a son,
Adam Braidwood, who was drafted by the
Edmonton Eskimos as the first overall 2006
draft pick in the cfl draft this year ... Valerie
"Valley" Hennell BA'70, MA'72 (creative
writing) has enjoyed a successful career as
a songwriter and record producer. She co-
wrote and produced Rick Scott's new CD of
dulcimer lullabies Snooze Music, which won
2006 nappa Gold and Parents' Choice Silver
Honour awards in the us. She is currently
producing Pied Pumkids, a children's CD and
Canadian tour for legendary bc folk trio Pied
Pumpkin. In March 2007 her poetry, text
and soundtrack will be featured in the Asian
premiere of YuYu MiMi - A Love Story at the
Hong Kong Arts Festival ... UBC's director
of Biomedical Engineering, Ken Yip BASc'72,
was recently named the Outstanding Canadian Biomedical Engineer for 2006 by the
Canadian Medical and Biological Engineering Society. He was recognized for helping
develop a biomedical engineering program at
Vancouver Coastal Health that ensures safe,
Fall 2006    Trek    41 class ACTS
effective and economical healthcare technologies for patients. It does this in part via a
web-based healthcare technology management system, now being adopted elsewhere
in the province. "I've been able to take what I
learned in the UBC Engineering Program and
apply it to healthcare technology to allow
doctors and nurses to treat patients safely
and effectively," says Dr. Yip. "Being part of
a patient care team has made my career very
satisfying."
80S
Vicki Howard BA'87 now lives with her
husband and daughter Kathleen in Oneonta,
ny, where she is an assistant professor of
History at Hartwick College Brides, Inc. She
has recently published Brides, Inc., which
explores the history of the wedding industry.
Weddings today are a $70-billion business,
yet no one has explained how the industry
has become such a significant component of
the American economy. Vicki goes behind the
scenes of the various firms involved - from
jewelers to caterers - to explore the origins of
the lavish American wedding, demonstrating
the important role commercial interests have
played in shaping traditions most of us take
for granted ... Jason Farris bsc(physics)'89
was recently appointed president and ceo of
Citizens Bank of Canada. Based in Vancouver,
Citizens Bank is branchless and claims to be
"the only Canadian bank with a clear ethical
policy on social and environmental issues."
Learn more at www.citizensbank.ca.
90S
Three of UBC's Geological Engineering and
Geological Sciences alumni are contributing
to sustainability improvements at their alma
mater. Reg North (BASC'82, peng, pgeo),
Stephen Munzar (Bsc'98, msc'oi, pgeo),
and Ruben Arellano (BASC'98, peng) all
work with Vancouver-based consulting firm
Hemmera (www.hemmera.com ) and are
retrofitting a portion of the UBC's Earth and
Ocean Science building's heating and cooling
system to a geoexchange (or ground-source
Nicole Barber,
starring in Peer Gynt at UBC.
heat pump) based system. A geoexchange
heating and cooling system is the most energy
efficient, greenhouse gas emission-free, and
cost-effective type available today, and their
popularity is growing at an exponential rate
across BC and Canada. What makes the project unique is that it will utilize a 100-metre
deep groundwater supply well as the energy
source. The well is located on the south-side
of the building. Due to the depth and unique
nature of the relatively unexplored aquifer,
careful exploratory drilling, well design,
and installation methods were required to
ensure the maximum yield of groundwater
in the most efficient and sustainable manner
possible. "It's really great to be working as
professionals at our old stomping grounds,
contributing in such an environmentally-beneficial way," says Ruben Arellano. Stephen
Munzar agrees. "Being able to apply detailed
hydrogeologic methods and principles, at
the place that taught me my fundamentals, is
something I never imagined when I graduated." Now that the well is installed and tested,
detailed design of the mechanical components
is underway, and the system should be up and
running in the near future ... Danielle Bretton
BA'90, LLB'94 recently left the firm in down
town Vancouver where she had worked for
seven years in to go to Africa. While there
she climbed Kilimanjaro, was surrounded
by 12 lions, attended the International War
Crimes Tribunal for Rwanda, and met her
World Vision sponsored child in Shinyanga,
Tanzania. She is now practicing at Somers
& Company part-time while spending the
rest of her time running after her two-year
old, Rachel ... Gina Buonaguro MA'98 has
published a novel The Sidewalk Artist (St.
Martin's Press), co-authored with Janice
Kirk. The Sidewalk Artist interweaves two
stories, one of a young woman writer and
a European sidewalk artist, the other of the
historical painter Raphael and his secret
beloved. More information about the novel,
which is being published in the United States
and Canada and soon Germany and Serbia,
can be found at www.thesidewalkartist.
com. Gina currently resides in Toronto with
her husband, fellow UBC alumnus Ajay
Agrawal BASc'93, MENG'95, PHD'02 and
their young daughter Amelia ... Artistic
director, actor and director Camyar Chai
BFA'93 wrote a libretto for a children's opera
entitled Elijah's Kite. The opera is a morality
tale that addresses violence and schoolyard
bullying and explores friendship, loneliness,
and self-image. The opera premiered in New
York in April and will be performed at the
Governor General's residence in Ottawa on
October 30 to mark the start of "Bullying
Awareness Week." Camyar is the founding artistic director of NeWorld Theatre,
and has received a number of significant
awards over the past decade for his work ...
Barbara Nickel MFA'94 has been awarded
the 2006 Sheila Egoff children's Prize, one
of the Lieutenant Governor's Annual BC
Book Prizes, for Hannah Waters and the
Daughter of Johann Sebastian Bach ...
City of Saskatoon Archivist, Jeff O'Brien
MASc'95, is co-author of the recently
published Saskatoon: A History in Photographs (Coteau Books, 2006), written in
celebration ofthe City of Saskatoon's 2006
centennial ... Since her graduation, Natalie
Rock BSN'92 has contributed tremendously
to the field of Hepatology, not only in BC
but across Canada and internationally. Her
commitment to her work is being recognized
by the Canadian Liver Foundation at its
annual Tribute Dinner, at which she will be
the honorary guest. This is the first time in
'
42    Trek    Fall 2006 Outstanding Canadian Biomedical Engineer
for 2006, UBC's Ken Yip.
Canadian history a nurse has been selected
for this recognition. The dinner will be held
on November 18 at the Four Seasons Hotel
in Vancouver. Natalie is the Clinic Director
at the Liver and Intestinal Research Centre
and is one of Canada's leading Hepatology
Clinical Research Nurses ... After providing
consultation on a number of management
projects for Gray Line West's Vancouver
operations this summer, Mark Mawhinney
BA'94 nas joined the company as Manager,
Corporate Development. His primary function is to analyse operations and identify
opportunities for additional revenue generation and cost management. He will continue
his duties as board member of the UBC
Alumni Association and of Affinity Engines
(Canada), Inc., and advisory board member
of MultiTrends ITNet Services Inc.
* -   ■ * *
1                  1 a 1
I   1   -
^B
L  >
oos
Nicole Braber bfa'oi starred in a Peer Gynt adaptation by UBC Theatre faculty Errol Durbach that
co-starred several current UBC Theatre students
(Spencer Atkinson, Maura Halloran and Kimberley
Harvey). The production ran at the Vancouver East
Cultural Centre in September ...  Charlotte Gill
mfa'oo has been awarded the Ethel Wilson Fiction
Prize, one of the Lieutenant Governor's Annual
BC Book Prizes, for Lady killer ... Louise S. Foster
BA'02 married Jonathan Tagulao BA'98, BED'99 on
Saturday, September 24, 2005 ... Lisa Kwan BA'96,
march'o2 is a new council member of the Architectural Institute of British Columbia. She has been
an aibc intern architect in good standing for two
years and is currently employed at Soren Rasmus-
sen Architects ... Jessey Minhas bsc'oi, DMD'05
and Kiran Kaila bsc(pharm)'oo would like to announce the birth of their son, Sean, who was born
on February 11, 2006, in Prince George, weighing
7LBS. noz. ■
ALUMNI
UBC
EDUCATION. EXPLORATH
3^ adventure
ivlore than 1500 alumni and friends have travelled with the UBC Alumni Travel
Program. Our travel partners, Intrav/Clipper, Alumni Holidays International,
Gohagan & Company, and Adventures Abroad Active Adventures provide the
highest quality service in luxurious, educational travel. Our 2007 upcoming
adventures include:
INTRAV/CLIPPER
Antarctica
February
Wings Over the Nile
February
Great Rivers and Waterways of Europe
June
Journey ofthe Czars
August
Greek Isles, Libya, Tunisia
September
Journey into India
November
Patagonia
January, 2008
ALUMNI HOLIDAYS INTERNATIONAL
Tuscany
April
Berlin, Dresden, Prague
May
Ukraine
July
China/Yangtze Discovery
October
GOHAGAN & COMPANY
The Danube & The Habsburg Empire
June
Village Life in the Dordogne
September
ADVENTURES ABROAD ACTIVE ADVENTURES
Mexico - Copper Canyon by Rail
March
Spain -The Way of Saint James Hike
May
Peru - Inca Trail Hike
July
nformation on trips, please call (604) 822-9629, 1-800-883-3088
on the web at www.alumni.ubc.ca Being American at UBC
A state-sider extols the virtues (and the downsides) of being a Yankee in Queen Elizabeth's dominion.
by Alex Burkholder
When I first arrived in Canada two years
ago, my thoughts were not in the vein of the
tired, the poor and the huddled masses, but the
rather more plebeian pleas for a bathroom and
a Taco Bell (not that the huddled masses probably couldn't have used both). As an arriving
first year US student in Canada, culture shock
wasn't on my mind, nor homesickness.
It helps that I arrived by Honda rather than
steamship, but as I crossed the border and
caught the first glimpse of beautiful Surrey, I
was preoccupied with thoughts of textbooks,
cafeteria food, and classes - the same things
that worry any international university student.
The kilometers-an-hour signs whizzing by
added to my excitement, rather than detracted;
new was interesting, and I alone among my
friends had chosen to take the new and interesting trip north of the border.
Coming from northwest Washington state
and having Canadian relatives, I'd been up to
Vancouver and through BC a few times in my
life. A cousin at UBC meant that I'd visited
the campus twice, once to Koerner's pub (and
a somewhat lax I.D. policy; I was 15 at the
time), and it convinced me that UBC was high
on my shortlist of places to spend four years.
Unfortunately, information was hard to come
by. UBC wasn't at the college fair to which our
grade 12 class was bussed; the guidance counsellors had no knowledge of Canadian institutions. No one from my hometown had ever
graduated from UBC, so my application was
purely a matter of having the right family in the
right place at the right time.
Luckily, I persevered, and was accepted. My
roommate first year, and one of my best friends
to this day, is an American. Due perhaps to the
high ratio of international students in residence,
or a natural gravitation, approximately half
of my friends at UBC are American. Through
my own trials and tribulations over the past
two years, and through theirs, I've compiled a
list of the many reasons for transfers back to
state schools (which several of my friends have
undertaken). Having a well-known degree is
probably the most practical concern; the fact
of the matter is that Canadian institutions, no
matter how highly regarded, are not that well
known in the States.
If a prestigious degree is the most practical
concern, anti-American sentiment is the most
obvious. Cultural difference is the most subversive concern, and the usual reasons that affect
any university student - money, grades, homesickness - round out the bottom of the list. At
the end of first year, I had several transfer applications lined up in front of me, waiting only for
an international stamp and a Canada Post box.
Thankfully, I told myself to give it another year
before I made my final decision; it was the right
decision, and as I sit here writing this I can't
think of another place I'd rather be.
The differences in culture between Canada
and the United States are transparent enough
to lull someone into a false sense of similarity.
We might drink AGD instead of Pabst, or watch
Trailer Park Boys instead of Roseanne, but
culture is culture, right? There are, of course,
some reminders that the flag is red, white, and
maple leaf. Sometimes it's the little things like
the lack of hole-in-the-wall Mexican restaurants
on every corner. But mostly, it's the big events
that serve to remind. I spent my first 4th of July
away from home this year. Come Canada Day,
I had to wonder, where are the great fireworks?
44    Trek    Fall 2006
Photograph: Chris Dah Where's the excitement? Why aren't people
wearing the red and white on their shirts?
Parades? Terrible country songs? The day the
Tragically Hip sing "Proud to be a Canadian" is
the day Lee Greenwood moves to Kabul.
The 2004 US election served as a reminder,
as well. Ten Americans, two laptops, and cnn
crowded into our tiny Totem Park residence
lounge, everyone hoping against the inevitable. We walked around like characters from
a George Romero flick on November 3rd,
wondering how people could be talking about
classes, worrying about homework, when our
world had ground to a halt the night before. It
was frustrating to not have a nation with whom
we could share our pain.
America's relationship with the rest of the
world is a delicate topic, but it often isn't an
issue with Canadians. Indeed, sometimes it's
fellow Americans who are alienating; many at
UBC came to Canada for a reason and aren't
afraid to share it. There are US professors who
came to Canada and act like they escaped
Stalin, and there are fellow American students
who don't understand the difference between
disagreeing with a government and hating an
entire country.
One-size-fits-all opinions are much harder
to stomach than the gentle ribbing and rivalry
of friendly Canadian-American banter, which
is usually no worse than that at a Canucks-
Flames game ("go Canucks," of course). I've
been fortunate that the only anti-American
sentiment I've encountered personally has been
of the academic variety. Whether the arguments
presented are intelligent or not (and it usually
runs about half-and-half), classroom discussions
are not direct personal attacks. Not everyone on campus has been as lucky, however. A
friend got thrown out of a pub, along with two
Canadians, for complaining about a bartender's
shirt. The shirt was a riff on the seminal "I
heart NY" logo, but slightly different: instead of
a heart, the bartender's chest displayed a plane
crashing into the "NY." None of us will go back
to the Cambie again.
This is an isolated incident, of course; my
general experience here has been overwhelmingly positive. Friends and friends' parents alike
have taken me in on holidays, making sure I
have something to eat when I can't make the
time or money for a Greyhound trip home.
Vancouverites as a whole are laid-back, easygoing, and as west coast as the stunning scenery
that surrounds the city. Canadians and Staters
alike enjoy moaning about the prices of tuition,
alcohol, and gas. The Vancouver experience is
much the same as the Seattle experience, except
that the hockey is better.
If I could give one piece of advice to an
incoming international student, I would use
words more succinct and more eloquent than
my own: walk the line. As in any new place,
things are different. It will take some adjusting.
It took me nearly a year to find a good rhythm,
to find an identity that was my own and not a
reaction to my situation or my surroundings.
Go with the flow. Take a year to experience all
the amazing things Vancouver and UBC have
to offer before making the decision to return
home. Be sure that you've had enough time
to really make your decision without cheating
yourself out of a great opportunity. If I had
gone home at the end of first year when I wanted to, I would have missed some of the most
amazing adventures of my life. I would have
lost out on an international aspect to my education and on a chance to explore and experience
a vibrant city and one of the top rated universities in the world.
Why leave Canada? I've listed the reasons,
and many people feel strongly enough about
them to pack their bags. Why stay in Canada?
Stay in Canada because once you've faced and
overcome those obstacles, your education, your
point-of-view, and life itself will be sweeter for
it. When you're sitting on Wreck Beach with
a group of friends and a guitar, watching the
sun set over Vancouver Island, you'll know you
made the right choice. I
Alex Burkholder is a third-year student at UBC.
1
TrekConnect is our new online
networking tool that lets you
create your own specialized groups
of UBC classmates. Build networks,
join existing ones, post jobs or just
get in touch with old classmates.
Go to www.alumni.ubc.ca and
click TrekConnect to signup. Use
your student number to sign in.
THE   NEW
Career
Services
tor Alumni
www.careers.ubc.ca
Turn your UBC degree into a
rewarding career.
UBC alumni now have access to
FREE job postings, labour market
nformation and online career
workshops. All you need is your
student number to register
Alumni employers: Post a job ($50 or
$15 for non-profits), recruit qualified
grads, hire a summer student and
maintain a visible presence at UBC
For more information, call the Alumn
Affairs office at 604-822-3313
UBC
UBC Career Services
Email: career.services@ubc.ca
12.06-1874 East Mall
Vancouver, bc v6t izi
604-82.2-4011
Call For Nominations
UBC Alumni
Association
Board of Directors
• 1 Vice Chair (2 year term)
• 2 Members-at-Large (3 year term)
Deadline for nominations is
4:30 pm, January 25, 2007
Call 604.822.3313 for more
information or check the website
www.alumni.ubc.ca
Fall 2006    Trek    45 An affinity for service
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to win, each entrant, selected at random, must correctly answer a mathematical skill-testing question. For more details on the
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alumninews
REGIONAL NETWORK NEWS
The start of the school year heralds a flurry
of activity and many nervous but curious
new students. This summer, alumni played
a part in welcoming to the UBC community
more than 450 new students and parents at
a series of send-off events. No matter how
far you are from your alma mater, you can
stay in contact and be part of the excitement a new year brings. Over the past few
months, a number of new alumni networks
have formed across the globe, and volunteers
are busy planning more activities for their
fellow alumni. There's bound to be something going on in your area!
New Regional Contacts
Canada
Halifax
Steve Cawood, BA'98
cawood@canada.com
USA
Seattle
Catherine Kalke, MBA'93
ckalke@comcast.net
International
(Argentina) Buenos Aires
Hugo Passarello, BA'05
hugo.passarello@gmail.com
(China) Shanghai
Nicole Qian, BCOM'03
shanghai@alumni.ubc.ca
(Poland) Poznan
Darah Dilmaghani-Tabriz, BSc'04
Darah.Dilmaghani@gmx.de
(UK) London
Whitney Greenwood, BCOM'97
whitney_greenwood@mckinsey.com
Check out the full list of regional networks
and contacts at: http://www.alumni.ubc.
ca/connect/networks/index.php.
UBC alumni based in the UK enjoyed a walking tour of London's Arcadia in September.
Ken MacKenzie BA'90, BA(ARCH)'94 organized the outing
Upcoming Events
Visit www.alumni.ubc.ca/events for up-to-
date information.
UBC Okanagan
November 15, 5:30-7:30 pm
Sun Room, Student Services Centre, Kelowna
campus. Hear Doug Owram, Deputy Vice
Chancellor of UBC Okanagan in conversation with the cbc's Marion Barschel about
UBC Okanagan. rsvp at www.alumni.ubc.
ca/rsvp by Nov. 10. Wine and hors d'oeuvres
will be served.
Toronto
November 16, 5:30-7:30 pm
Intercontinental Toronto, 220 Bloor Street W
Alumni and friends reception hosted by the
faculty of Arts. Registration and reception
begins at 5:30 pm. At 6:30 pm Anthony Shel-
ton, director of UBC's MOA will speak about
The 21st Century Museum.
Portland, Oregon
November 11, 6:30 pm
The 2006 Curling Bonspiel! No experience/
talent/knowledge necessary. Lessons and
equipment included. Bring comfortable clothing. After throwing a few rocks, the group
will meet nearby for snacks and drinks. $15
for curling. For info and rsvp, contact Nicki
Pozos, BASc'96 at nicki@morelifeworks.com.
London, UK
November 29, 7 pm
London grads from UBC, SFU and UVic meet
for a pub evening at The Maple Leaf, 41
Maiden Lane, Covent Garden. Look for your
UBC host, who will be wearing a UBC t-shirt.
Prince George
January 7, 8 pm
Tenor Ben Heppner, BMus'79, LLD'97 performs at Vanier Hall. We've block booked
tickets for alumni at a 10 per cent discount.
Stay tuned for a possible reception. Get your
tickets soon!
Kamloops
January 10, 8 pm
Ben Heppner at the Sagebrush Theatre.
We've block booked tickets at a 10 per cent
discount for UBC alumni. Tickets are going
quickly. Stay tuned for a possible reception.
Ottawa
January 18, 7:30 pm
Ottawa Senators vs. Vancouver Canucks!
Contact Heather Cole hcole@rogers.com or
Ryan Flewelling rflewelling5493@rogers.com.
if you want to get a group together.
Fall 2006    Trek    47 alumninews
Atlanta, Georgia
February 8, 6:30 pm
The Canadian Consulate is organizing its 3rd
Annual Pan Canadian Alumni Gala. Join fellow alumni from Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, North and South Carolina and Mississippi and network with graduates from other
Canadian universities. Invitations to follow.
Be Part of the Excitement!
Do you have a flair for event planning?
Writing web content? Organizing book clubs?
Fielding questions from and sharing experiences with new students or relocating alumni?
If so, why not contact the rep for your region
and share your talent. If you don't see a
network for your area on our website listings,
contact your alumni relations manager:
• Shawn at UBC O: shawn.swallow@ubc.ca
• Valerie at the Asia Pacific Regional Office:
Valerie.tse@apro. ubc.ca
• Tanya at UBC Vancouver tanya.walker®
ubc.ca
Visit TrekConnect at www.alumni.ubc.ca!
New regional groups form every day. This is a
great way to stay in touch, connect with other
alumni and maximize your network.
Young Alumni Events
Olympic Fundraiser Everyone welcome
Thursday, November 23, 5:30-8 pm
Figmint Restaurant and Lounge,
500 West 12th Ave @ Cambie Street
www.figmintrestaurant.com
This event will raise funds for swimmer
Scott Dickens to compete in the 2008 Beijing
Olympics. Dickens is a 2004 Olympian and
is currently ranked 20th in the world in the
breaststroke. He is also reigning cis champion
in the 50, 100, and 200-metre breaststroke.
Come out and help support Scott's bid to
reach the podium in Beijing. As part of the
fundraising, there will be a silent auction.
Make a bid, sip your drink, chat with fellow
alumni, and enjoy the panoramic view of
downtown Vancouver that Figmint has to offer. Appetizers are on us and you might win a
door prize. All you have to do is show up.
Alumni Weekend 2006
Alumni have repeatedly told us what they
want from UBC:
• More information about what's going on at
UBC today
• Opportunities to maintain an intellectual
connection with UBC
• Help connecting with other alumni
• Opportunity to hear student perspectives
Alumni Weekend Sept. 29 - Oct. 1 went a
long way toward fulfilling these objectives.
Nearly 1,600 people of all ages and stages
of life braved the rain to gather on the Point
Grey campus. And not just to attend reunions.
With more than 50 activities to choose from,
alumni had a hard time deciding where to go
and what to see:
As well as 15 reunions to celebrate key anniversaries, alumni and friends of UBC could
choose from:
• Classes without Quizzes (presentations by
some of UBC's best teachers)
• Alumni author readings at the Bookstore
• Student panels
• Wine tasting
• Guided tours: UBC Farm, Botanical Gardens, Museum of Anthropology
• 'Birds football game vs. Regina
• Theatre production: Beautiful Thing
• Concerts at the Chan Centre
• UBC Boathouse Opening
• Day of the Longboat (2km canoe race from
the Jericho Sailing Centre)
On Saturday morning, alumni gathered
in a tent at the Flagpole Plaza for an early
morning pancake breakfast with new UBC
president, Stephen Toope. They listened to
him in conversation with Kathryn Gretsinger,
cbc Radio host and a Journalism masters
candidate at UBC. The previous day, Professor
Toope was officially installed as 12th President and Vice-Chancellor of UBC.
For the rest of the day, alumni travelled
from activity to activity on foot, by golf
cart or by bus. The golf carts seemed to be a
favourite mode of transportation!
One hundred students, staff, alumni and
faculty members generously volunteered their
time. Thank you to all! If you were unable to
attend, visit our website at www.alumni.ubc.
ca/connect/podcasts to hear these:
• Crime Scene Investigation @ UBC: Is What
You See on TV Actually Possible? with
Professor David Sweet
• Older Adults with Dementia: Families and
Nurses Giving Care
with Nursing Assoc. Prof. JoAnn Perry
• On Thinning Ice - Challenges to Canadian
Sovereignty in the Northwest Passage with
Professor Michael Byers.
48    Trek    Fall 2006 Reunions 2006-2007
Unless otherwise stated, please contact Marguerite Collins at marguerite.collins@ubc.ca or
604.827.3294 for more info. We're organizing
reunions for the 10, 25, 50 and 60 year anniversary classes. Contact Marguerite for more
information.
Class of '46 60lh Anniversary Reunion
Special celebration on Thursday Nov. 23.
Brunch at Cecil Green Park followed by convocation at the Chan where you will receive your
60th anniversary pin from president Stephen
Toope. Join us after for tea at Cecil Green Park.
Contact Marguerite for more info.
The Class of 1946 established a scholarship
at our 50th reunion for an outstanding student
entering UBC from high school. We continue to
raise funds for this scholarship. If you are interested in making a donation, contact Michelle
Orr at 604-822-8904 or via e-mail at michelle.
orr@ubc.ca <mailto:michelle.orr@ubc.ca.
Residence Advisor Reunion - details tbc.
Please contact Kim Davidson for more information at kim.davidson@ubc.ca or 604.827.3569.
Sauder School of Business
MBA'97, BCOM'97, MBA'82, BCOM'82, 1957 - details tbc. Please contact alumni@sauder.ubc.ca
or 604.822.6027 for more information.
School of Nursing
Nursing All Years 2007 at Cecil Green Park
- details to be confirmed. Contact Marguerite.
Nursing 1974 - details tbc. Contact Arlene
Ford at 250.384.5403 or make@pacificcoast.
net. Alternatively, contact Marguerite.
Faculty of Medicine
MED'58 - details tbc. Contact Peggy Ross at
peggyleross@shaw.ca or 604.263.5147 for info.
MED'67 ~~ Summer of 2007, details tbc. Contact
Patrick MacLeod for more details at patrick.
macleod@viha.ca.
MED'02 - details tbc. Contact Marguerite.
Faculty of Applied Science
For more details on Applied Science Reunion,
please contact May Cordeiro, Alumni Relations
Officer for Applied Science, at mcordeiro@apsc.
ubc.ca or 604.822.9454.
Look for more information on our website:
www.alumni.ubc.ca/events. I
Alumni Weekend images
(Clockwise from top) Prof. Stephen
Toope and Kathryn Gretsinger in
conversation about UBC; David Sweet
unlocks the mysteries of forensic
dentistry and how it is used to solve
crimes; alumni check to see if they
have a nose for wine at the wine tasting event; alumni tour the Botanica
Gardens; Class of '56 grads have lunch
with deans Nancy Gallini and Simon
Peacock at Green College; a grad sits
rapt during a Class without Quizzes
Photos: Terry Davis, Elisa Cachero
Fall 2006    Trek    49 UNIVERSITY  OF   BRITISH   COLUMBIA ALUMNI   ASSOCIATION
THE BENEFITS OF MEMBERSHIP
THE UBC ALUMNI ASSOCIATION WAS ESTABLISHED IN 1917 AS AWAY FOR UBC GRADUATES TO STAY IN TOUCH WITH FRIENDS
and with the university. Over the years we have developed programs and services to help this process as well as benefit our members. With
more than 200,000 members, we are able to offer preferred group rates on special services that will help you save money and support the
activities of the Association. These include networking and educational events; student/alumni athletics and arts programs; alumni
achievement awards; volunteer programs; and more. To learn more about these great offers, call us at (604) 822.3313 or toll-free at
1.800.883.3088, or send an email to alumni.association@ubcca.
CLEARS!!
LTH MANAGEM
3ur newest affinity partner offers full-service retirement planning
with exceptional benefits: lower fees, professional advice and a
Term Life, Extended Health and Dental, and the new Critical Illness
Plan. Manulife has served alumni for more than 20 years.
More than 12,000 alumni and students are supporting alumni
activities by using their UBC Alumni Mastercard. The card gives
you low introductory rates, 24-hour customer support and no
annual fees.
MELOCHE MONNEX
Home and auto insurance with preferred group rates and features
designed for our grads. Travel and micro-enterprise insurance also
available.
The Alumni Acard costs $30 per year (plus GST) and will entitle you
to these UBC Alumni deals:
• UBC Community borrower library card, a $100 value
• Receive a 25% discount on regular room rental rates at UBC
Robson Square
• Special rates at the University Golf Club
• Receive 4-6% off select vacation packages at Jubilee Travel
• 2-for-1 admission at the Museum of Anthropology
• First-time Acard holders receive a 20% discount on selected
merchandise at the UBC Bookstore
• Save on regular adult tickets for staged productions on
Theatre at UBC
• UBC Botanical and Nitobe Gardens 2-for-1 admission
• Deals on UBC Athletics events and Aquatic Centre
• Business In Vancouver subscription savings
Working downtown? The Acard is available at the library at Robson
Square.
www.alumni.ubc.ca/rewards
iex
Wealth Management
50    Trek    Fall 2006 IN MEMORIAM
We publish obituaries of UBC alumni, faculty
and friends. We depend on relatives and
friends to pass information on to us, and we
try to print all the material we receive. Send
notices to vanessa.clarke@ubc.ca.
Dr. Michael P. Beddoes, professor emeritus of
Electrical Engineering, on July 5, 2006. Dr.
Beddoes came to Canada from London, England, in 1956 and taught at UBC until very recently ... William Braidwood basc(mech)'4I,
peng on May 15, 2006 ... Dr. Helson Chew,
frcsc clinical professor emeritus with UBC's
department of Ophthalmology, on July 2,
2006. Memorial donations may be made to
the Canadian Cancer Society ... Dr. Harry
Hawthorn LLD'76, oc on July 28, 2006. Dr.
Hawthorn came to UBC in 1947. He was a
member of the Anthropology department and
founding director of the Museum of Anthropology. He retired from UBC in 1976 ... Alfred H. W. Moxon bsc(agr)'36 in April 2006
... Dr. Elizabeth Vizsolyi on August 10, 2006.
Dr. Vizsolyi taught for 30 years in Zoology
and retired in 1998.
Gordon W. Ames, PENG'47
Gordon was born on April 14, 1925 and died
June 9, 2006, of cancer.
Beloved husband of Gwenyth (Morris)
for 52 years; father of David of Newmarket,
Ontario, Catherine (McGuinty) of North Vancouver, Michael of Calgary, Jillian (Carson) of
Bretwood Bay, BC, Brian of Richterswill, Switzerland and Peter of Dundas, Ontario. Gordon
was grandfather to 19 grandchildren.
He was born to the late Cyril and Helen
Ames of North Vancouver, where he was
raised. After graduation, he spent 40 years in
Sarnia, Ontario working at Polysar and Petrosal He met Gwen in Sarnia and raised his
family where they share many great memories
of skiing, camping and boating. Always active,
he was an avid gardener and woodworker, and
enjoyed playing golf and bridge.
He never lost his love  of the West Coast,
and retired to North Saanich in 1987. With
Gwen, he designed and build their dream
retirement home and a magnificent garden
where they enjoyed their retirement years with
family and friends. He will be remembered
fc.
:-illissssE&jls
■
,'.'-..•■•
William Braidwood
as the gentleman he always was, with a keen
mind, a dry wit and a generous heart.
Ruth Evelyn Barnett (Pidcock) BA'62
Ruth died peacefully on February 23, 2006,
at Sunshine Lodge in Campbell River. She was
born in Victoria on November 30, 1913. She
is survived by daughter Nancy Bosomworth
and grandsons Allan and Shane of Vancouver,
son Paul and his partner Shelly Hollingshead
of Black Creek, and sister Bernice Milligan
(Frank) of Victoria. Ruth was predeceased in
2003 by her husband, Lorn Barnett, former MP
for Comox-Alberni and mayor of Campbell
River.
A member of the pioneering Pidcock family who settled in the Comox valley and on
Quadra Island in the 1860s, Ruth was the
eldest of three daughters of magistrate George
Pidcock and wife Eleanor. She was raised in
the Comox Valley and educated at Victoria
Normal School. For her UBC degree she
majored in History. One of Ruth's proudest
accomplishments was researching and writing
The Pidcock Family History. Ruth taught for
a number of years in the Comox Valley, Prince
George, Wells and Port Alberni.
An activist for political, social and environmental causes, Ruth devoted her skills, time
and energy to the communities she lived in.
She was an honorary life member of the ndp
of bc and worked tirelessly for both the
CCF and ndp over a 50-year period. Ruth
served as president of the Alberni Valley
Soroptomist Club, the Parliamentary Wives
Association in Ottawa, the Campbell River
Historical Society and the BC Historical Association. She was a founding member and
president of the Mitlenatch Field Naturalist
Society and was honoured with a club service award by the Federation of BC naturalists in 1982. In 1990 she was given the
Campbell River University Women's Clubs
Woman of the Year award. Ruth lobbied on
behalf of seniors for the Committee for the
Promotion of Healthy Ageing and wrote a
regular column in the Campbell River Courier called The Third Age.
One of Ruth and Lom's retirement
projects was the creation of a beautiful garden at their home on Pinecrest Road. Ruth's
background in research and Latin allowed
for interesting and informative conversations on plants, especially native plants, that
were incorporated into their garden. Her
knowledge was as bountiful as the plants
that she grew. She generously shared both
with all who cared to ask or express interest.
Ruth, described as "a woman of consequence" by a reporter enumerating her
many accomplishments, committed herself
to causes that strived to make the world a
better place for people, plants, birds and
animals. Her efforts were indefatigable, the
results benefiting many.
Ruth's family would like to thank the staff
of Sunshine Lodge, "We Care," and Drs.
Smit and Wood for their compassionate care
of Ruth. Memorial donations may be made
to the Campbell River Museum.
James Walter Bourdon BA'49, BED'50,
MED'65
Jim passed away peacefully on July 31,
2006, surrounded by his loving family. He is
survived by his wife, Christine; sons Bruce
(Beth) and Donald (Margery); grandchildren
Sarah, Caley and Kate; brother-in-law Ben;
and step-daughters Sheila and Lisa and their
families.
Jim was born on October 30, 1921, in
Pouce Coupe, bc, into a boisterous family
of eight siblings. He grew up in Creston,
spending bare-foot summers fishing and
exploring to his heart's content. As a kid,
he shot baskets and pool, fought forest fires
and read incessantly.
Jim taught in a two-room school on
Fall 2006    Trek    51 IN MEMORIAM
the Creston Flats before enlisting in the Royal
Canadian Air Force in 1941. Recognized as
a natural teacher, he instructed in the British
Commonwealth Air Lraining Plan. After the
war, Jim excelled in his studies at UBC, where
he obtained his Bachelor of Education and later,
his Masters of Education. He taught in Port
Alberni and Squamish before embarking in 1950
on a 3 2-year career as a teacher, principal and
administrator in the North Vancouver School
District. Lhat year, Jim and June Mary Smith
(1919-1974) met at Sutherland Junior Secondary and fell in love. Lhey were married in 1952.
Sons Bruce and Donald were the beneficiaries of
their parents' love and care. Jim was a devoted
husband, father, friend and teacher. Lhousands
of students enjoyed his enthusiasm, keen sense
of humour and love of learning.
In 1980, Jim's long years as a widower ended
when he married Christine Nygard. Lhey had
happy years together in North Vancouver, White
Rock and Mesa, Arizona, and enjoyed dancing,
travelling, gardening, hiking and spending time
with friends and family. Jim was a wonderful
grandfather to his grandchildren and a caring
step-father for Christine's daughters. Sadly, Jim
was diagnosed with Alzheimer Disease in the
late 1980s. Christine was his loving caregiver
and devoted advocate throughout his long illness. Jim fought with determination to the end.
He will be remembered as an artful fisherman,
deadly underhand shot on the basketball court,
consummate pool-shark, talented cook and true
gentleman. Lhe family offers sincere thanks
to Jim's many caregivers at Northcrest Care
Centre, memorial donations may be made to the
Alzheimer Society of bc, 1-800-667-3742.
Susan Demaine
Susan Demaine passed away on August n,
2006, after a courageous battle with cancer. She
worked at UBC as administrator of the Intramural Sports Program, a position she held for 16
years until retiring in 2003.
Sue was born in Norfolk, Virginia, on May
9, 1943, and grew up in Lynn and Swampscott,
Massachusetts. She earned a BA in English Literature at Lufts University and earned her Masters
in Library Science from Simmons College. Her
choice of subject was likely influenced by her
relationship with Edith Snow, librarian in her
home town. Sue worked at the library during
high school and college years, and after gaining
her Masters worked at the Harvard Business
School Library. She also tried her hand at candle making, and later ran a weaving studio.
After moving to bc in 1983, Sue joined UBC
in 1987 as an administrator of the Intramural
Sports Program. She was a behind-the-scenes
organizer, with a hand in almost everything,
her huge contributions making the program
run smoothly and successfully. Unafraid of
technology, Sue embraced it and put it to work
for the benefit of the program and its staff. (She
and colleagues installed one of the campus'
first Local Area Networks in 1988.) Being
good at a lot of things inevitably meant that
Sue took a lot on and soon became a highly respected multi-tasker, from web development to
budget management. She was indispensable to
Legacy Games coordinator Nestor Korchinsky,
and together they made a dynamic and highly
effective team.
Retiring in 2003, she and husband Peter
Alan moved to McBride where they enjoyed
living in small, rural community. Susan's
interests included gardening, herbs, hunting,
trapping, fishing, weaving and community
development.
She was predeceased by her father Frederick
Russell and leaves Peter, her mother, Marjorie
Russell, sister Cynthia and husband Hugo,
step-daughter Dannielle, step-grandchildren
Alfred Moxon
Cassidy and Robin, nieces Dawn and Erica, and
several aunts, uncles and cousins. Memorial
donations may be made to the McBride Public
Library Building Fund, Box 489, McBride, bc
VOJ 2EO.
Beverley Ann Elliott BHE'82 (Dietetics)
Beverley passed away June 14, 2005. Her
adventuresome spirit led her to work in Los
Angeles, Kingston, Vancouver, Malaysia, New
York, Halifax, Loronto, and most recently at the
King Khaled Eye Specialist Hospital in Riyadh,
Saudi Arabia for 10 years as a Medical Editor in
the Research Department. She retired to Ottawa
in 2003. Over the years, she touched many lives
and formed lasting friendships around the world.
She will be greatly missed but has left everlasting memories of her smile and positive attitude
toward life.
William (Bill) Stewart Hoar
Professor Emeritus of Zoology William Hoar
died aged 92 in Vancouver General Hospital on
June 13, 2006, following an infection. Bill was a
mentor for a generation of Zoologists, particularly fish physiologists, around the globe.
Born August 31, 1913, Bill grew up in the
warmth of an extended family on Hoar's Dairy
Farm, Moncton, nb. He contracted polio when
he was one, which left him with a lame leg. Lhe
withered leg changed prospects for this first-born
son, who should have managed and inherited
the family farm. His parents encouraged him to
look to a teaching career. Lhe leg prevented his
starting school until his younger brother was
big enough to drive the horse and cart. Bill soon
caught up and excelled in the one room school,
winning a Beaverbrook scholarship to study at
the University of New Brunswick.
After graduating in 1934, he was offered the
post of demonstrator / research assistant at the
University of Western Ontario. Lhis led him to
the love of his life, Myra, who was head demonstrator. She became his good friend and eventually his wife, after he completed a phd at Boston
University and accepted a teaching post back at
his alma mater.
Unable to serve in the traditional fashion during wwn, Bill was sent to the Loronto Medical
School to learn how to set up blood clinics for
UNB. He overcame his fear of hurting someone
with the hand-sharpened needles only after Dr.
Charlie Best (of Insulin fame) told him, "Young
man, you will never get anywhere if you are
afraid to make a mistake. Lhat's how you learn."
In 1942, Bill's summer research on dog blood
involved heparin as an anti-coagulant. When this
52    Trek    Fall 2006 appeared the only answer for Myra's troubles
after their first child's birth, his boss sent him
to save her with pockets full of the medication
(unregulated and, we believe, the first use in
humans).
Also during wwn, a colleague discovered
Bill's red-green colour blindness and he became
involved in vision experiments detecting camouflage for the military. His colour challenges
amused his children and when asked "what colour is that?" his sense of fun prompted the usual
replies of "sky-blue-pink" or "tartan." Despite
this challenge, he loved flowers of all colours
and his garden was a source of relaxation until
his leg would no longer hold him up.
After the war Myra's dedication catapulted
his career forward. She encouraged his move
west to become professor of Zoology and
Fisheries at UBC. His own mother was sure
she would never see him again if he went so
far away. In 1945 they moved into a tar paper
shack in what was Acadia Camp. UBC was
growing fast with the returning service men and
women. Over their years at UBC, Myra regularly entertained faculty and students, proofread
miles of manuscripts for Bill's text books and
raised their four children: sons, Stewart and
David, born in the east, and daughters, Kenzie
and Melanie, born in the west.
Bill had a remarkable ability to seek out and
see the best in others. In difficult situations he
would always counsel, "sleep on it before you
react." As head of UBC Zoology and "father"
to many "academic children" he is remembered
by students, faculty and staff for his ability to
encourage excellence through a friendly, casual
and genuinely supportive approach. His diaries
show humanity, generosity and determination.
Bill was an avid letter writer, journalist and
author who left a record of productivity that did
not stop at retirement. He represented Canada
on NATO scientific boards and other scientific
committees around the world. He completed a
third edition of his comparative physiology textbook, worked on joint authored publications
and published four family history books.
Bill received the Order of Canada and seven
honorary degrees but, despite international
recognition for his contributions to science,
it was family that really mattered. His seven
grandchildren enjoyed time with him at home,
travelling, and at his summer retreat. His seven
great grandchildren share memories of their
gentle Great-grampie at home.
Lhe deaths of Bill's beloved Myra, whom he
nursed through a long illness, and his daughter,
Kenzie, who lost an even longer battle to multi
ple sclerosis, didn't defeat him. Quoting poetry
was a favourite pastime and the family could
always count on something appropriate. In the
last years, it was often "Do not go gentle into
that good night" (Dylan Lhomas). In the end,
gentle was what he did best.
Neville Mayers BSA'31, MSA'32
Neville Mayers was a bc boy, born in Vancouver in 1908 to Francis and Nina Mayers. Due
to illness, he started school at the age of eight
but graduated from Magee High School at the
age of 15. He attended UBC and graduated in
1931 with a BSA degree (majoring in Crop Husbandry) and continued with a Masters degree in
Plant Pathology.
Neville was an avid outdoorsman. He loved
to fish and hunt. He was always happiest with
a rod in his hand and the sun overhead. In
1938, he met and married Myrtle Dickson who
was a graduate nurse at vgh. Lhey spent many
happy vacations tenting around the province. In
time they had three children: Janette, Dorothy
and Jim. Holidays were spent camping and
fishing from the Island to the Okanagan to the
Cariboo. Dorothy has memories of many happy
times camping, boating and picnicking.
After he graduated, Neville worked with
the department of Agriculture at the Dominion
Laboratory of Plant Pathology in Saanichton,
bc. During that time, he carried out seed potato
certification in several areas of the province and
a plant disease survey of Vancouver Island and
the lower mainland. He also published several
papers on plant biology.
In 1935, Neville inaugurated and managed
the insecticide, fungicide and herbicide department for Buckerfields. During the war years, he
was a member of the Home Guard and lived
on Mayne Island growing tomatoes commercially. By this time his children were getting
close to school age, so he brought his family
Bill Burge thinks so. By
establishing the Alice Maud
Burge Endowment Fund for
Innovative Student Research,
he is helping UBC history
students enhance their research
by attending conferences and
bringing in speakers. Bill was
recently able to contribute a
further sum to the fund, thanks
to federal legislation that has
eliminated capital gains tax on
direct donations of publicly
traded securities. His goal is
to continue to build the fund's
capital, so it will support even
more annual initiatives.
In our present world,
innovative and creative research by history students has never been more
important," says Dr. David Breen, Professor and former Head of UBC's
Department of History.
To create a legacy at UBC, please contact UBC Gift & Estate Planning at
604.822.5373 or heritage.circle@ubc.ca.
Ubc
THE  UNIVERSITY OF      S55S      BRITISH   COLUMBIA
www.supporting.ubc.ca IN MEMORIAM
back to Vancouver and was employed by the
department of Agriculture (Plant protection
Division), where he carried out seed potato
certification.
In 1955, He was appointed Officer in
Charge of seed potato production in bc. In
1957, he travelled to Holland to inspect tulip
bulbs for disease prior to their shipment to
Canada. In 1965, he was appointed program
manager for the containment and eradication
of the Golden Nematode in Saanichton. He
returned to the Vancouver office in 1966 as
Officer in Charge of the Plant Protection Division and was responsible for the inspection of
imported plants for disease and insect pests
and the inspection of ships for the presence
of insects, which could contaminate or infect
Canadian grain shipments and seed potato
certification for bc.
In 1967, Neville was honoured to be one of
seven bc agrologists to receive the Centennial
Medal for Service. In 1970, retirement loomed
on the horizon and he could concentrate on
small research projects and pursue his love of
fishing. Of utmost importance to him was his
home and family. He loved his children and
grandchildren and was always very supportive
of their activities. He helped the Cub Scouts
sell Christmas trees and lined the football fields
prior to games so his son's team could play. He
encouraged education and wanted his children
to continue their studies after high school. He
was always able to help the kids out with a
few bucks here and there.
In 1979, Neville and Myrtle moved from
their lovely home in North Vancouver to
Qualicum Beach. They started over with a new
home, landscaping it by putting in gardens and
fruit trees. They loved the Island life and spent
many hours camping with their trailer, fishing
the local streams, gardening, participating
in Natural History Society activities, playing
cards with friends and enjoying their grandchildren, now numbering four. Grandpa was
always there for the grandkids and encouraged
them in their schooling and activities. He loved
to hear stories of their progress in school and
successes in sports and music. He was there
for special times, graduations, weddings, and
new babies. He still maintained an interest
in the world around him and was concerned
about environmental issues such as overgrazing, stream pollution, clear cut logging, over
fishing, etc. The state of the world, and how
overpopulation was affecting the food supply,
James Bourdon
David Verkerk
:.-.-.-.■.:-.-.-.-
was a real concern for him. He got involved
with politics and wrote many a letter to his MP
with suggestions for cleaning up the environment. Neville always had an inquiring mind and
an active interest in everything around him. His
family will sorely miss him, as he has always
been such a large part of their lives. Tight Lines
Dad -We have our memories.
Robert N. McRae BSc'70, MSc'72, PHD'77
Dr. Bob McRae passed away on April 22,
2006. Born on August 31, 1948, he grew up in
Vancouver and earned his phd in Economics at
UBC. His dissertation, A Quantitative analysis
of Politics affecting Canadian Trade in Crude
Oil and Natural Gas, was completed under
the supervision of John Helliwell. He joined
the Economics department at the University of
Calgary in 1977, becoming its head in 1991 and
remaining in that position until 1996. His area
of specialization was energy economics with a
focus on estimating systems of fuel consumption
equations and analyzing the implications of energy policy initiatives. He was co-author of one
of the first PC econometric programs, shazhm.
Over the years, Bob travelled widely making
formal presentations at numerous conferences,
universities and business organizations, both
nationally and internationally.
Bob loved his family: Ann Wallace BA'72, Scott
ba(hons)'o2, and Kate BA psych, UVic. He also
loved his work, travelling, jogging and cycling.
He will be remembered for his sense of humour
and imagination, as well as for being an
enthusiastic, knowledgeable, sympathetic
instructor, both at the graduate and undergraduate levels.
J. David Verkerk BA'49
J. David Verkerk died suddenly but peacefully on May 24, 2006, at Creekside Manor in
Maple Ridge, bc. He is survived by his wife of
55 years, Elinor (Dearing), his three children:
Jim (SFu'76), Ruth (uvic'8o), and Anne BA'82,
MLSc'85, BED'98, and seven grandchildren.
After receiving his degree, David completed
three years at Union College and was ordained
in 1952. He served the United Church in three
pastoral charges: Burns Lake, Port Alberni and
Port Moody (Glenayre). A change of career
found him undertaking teacher training at sfu
in 1969, followed by five years teaching. In
1968, another year's training for teaching in
industrial arts enabled him to teach ten years at
Woodlands School teaching special needs children. David was challenged in his retirement by
having to cope with Parkinson's disease. I
«
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