UBC Okanagan’s Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies (FCCS) is pleased to share the finalists of the 2020 Okanagan Short Story Contest.

The Okanagan Short Story Contest awards the best new short stories by writers in the Southern Interior of British Columbia: east of Hope, west of the Alberta border, north of the US border and south of Williams Lake. Past winners have gone on to publish with Penguin Random House, Arsenal Pulp Press, and NeWest Press, as well as numerous magazines and journals nationally and internationally.

A total of 87 stories were submitted to the adult category, and 36 stories were submitted from all over the region for the high school category, with six of those shortlisted.

“The high school stories were outstanding and I am so glad I don’t have to decide who is going to take home the prize!” says Creative Writing professor, Nancy Holmes.

Shortlisted authors: adult category

• Michelle Alfaro, All of It
• Faye Arcand, Bird in the Rafters
• Shawn Bird, Dead Man on the Porch
• Harlee Code, The Drowning
• Carlo Da Ros, For You, Annette
• Alexandra Davison, Weekday at the Magic City
• Nils Donnelly, Hotplate
• Heide Rose Garnett, Paul’s Tomb
• MacKenzie Smyth, Artificial Sweetener
• Jorie Soames, One on Each Side
• Carol Zuckerman, Trout

Shortlisted entries: high school category

• Trinity Blacklock, Beneath the Waves
• Carla Deetlefs, A Weed Among Blossoms
• Bethany Pardoe, Rat King (2018 winner)
• Sarah Prentice, World Alone
• Sonia Rosenberger, Girlish
• Chanel Sergeant, Slipcover

FCCS is offering cash prizes to the top three stories—$1,000, $400 and $200; the first prize winner also wins a one-week retreat at The Woodhaven Eco Culture Centre in Kelowna.  For the third year in a row, the top short story by a high-school student in the region receives $200 prize.  Co-sponsors are FCCS, Amber Webb-Bowerman Memorial Foundation, and the Central Okanagan Foundation.

Due to current conditions with the COVID-19 outbreak, we are cancelling this workshop on March 17.

Transnational and Diasporic Asia: Research and Pedagogy

 This project aims to facilitate collaborative research between the Cultural Studies program (UBCO) and the Department of Asian Studies (UBVC). Focusing on transnational and diasporic Asian media and culture, the project will comprise two workshops at UBCO and UBCV.

The first workshop at UBCO (March 17, 2020) will focus on the history, method, and context of transnational Asian media and cultural studies, while the second workshop at UBCV (April 24, 2020) will focus on specific empirical case studies of transnational Asian media and culture, such as the global flows of Japanese animation (anime) and Korean pop music. At the UBCV workshop, researchers from other universities (e.g., SFU, U of Victoria, and Okanagan College) may also join to share their research outcomes.

Each workshop will consist of research presentation sessions and discussions in the morning, which will be followed by a roundtable discussion about Asian Studies pedagogy and curriculum development in the afternoon. In the roundtable discussion at the UBCO workshop, participants will also discuss the potential development of the Asian Studies minor program at UBCO, as well as further research collaboration between two UBC campuses.

The inter-UBC workshops will encourage scholars and students whose research interest concerns Asia to showcase and share their research outcomes, while exploring a long-term research network for Asian media and cultural studies. These workshops will help fuel the development of research and teaching collaboration including the establishment of an Asian media and culture research cluster across the two campuses in near future.

The workshop takes place on Tuesday, March 17, in EME 2202, at UBC Okanagan.

Contact: Dr. Kyong Yoon (kyong.yoon@ubc.ca)

Program

8:45-9:00 – Reception

9:00-9:10

• • Introduction (Dr. Yoon)
  • Welcome (Dean Bryce Traister)

9:10-9:50 – Keynote Speech

• • Prof. Hyung-Gu Lynn, UBCV
    Seven Flags: Common Issues in Articles in Transnational Media Studies

9:50-10:10

• • Dr. Alwyn Spies, UBCO
    Approaches to Transnational Migration Memoirs

10:10-10:30

• • Dr. Alifa Bandali, UBCO
    Faulty Lines: Tracing Contemporary Women’s Organizations and Feminist Activism in Malaysia

10:30-10:45 – Discussion

10:45-11:00 – Break

11:00-11:20

• • Dr. Ruthann Lee, UBCO
    Divided Nations, Fractured Selves: Reconciling Diasporic Korean-ness in Min Sook Lee’s Tiger Spirit

11:20-11:40

• • Dr. Hussein Keshani, UBCO
    Defining Muslim Asia through Architecture on archnet.org

11:40-12:00

• • Ms. Mehnaz Tabassum, UBCO
    Loving the Brown Body: A Study of the Portrayal of Intimacy in the South Asian Characters in Contemporary Popular North American Sitcom

12:00-12:15 – Discussion

12:15-1:00 – Lunch

1:00-2:20 – Roundtable discussion on Asian Studies pedagogy and curriculum at UBCO
(5-10 min presentation per presenter, followed by an open discussion)

• • Prof Hyung-Gu Lynn
  • Dr. Kyong Yoon
  • Dr. Jordan Stouck
  • Dr. Alwyn Spies
  • Dr. Manfred Elfstrom
  • Ms. Melissa Plisic
  • Mr. Shao Yuan Chong

2:20-2:30 – Closing

Sponsored by UBC Collaborative Research Mobility Awards (Office of the Vice-President Research + Innovation), Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies, and UBCO Equity and Inclusion Office.

Dr. Peña Fernandez (centre) with faculty members at the University of Exeter

Between Feb. 12 and Feb. 19, 2020, Francisco Peña Fernandez, Associate Professor in the Department of Languages and World Literatures at UBC Okanagan, visited the University of Exeter to discuss a collaboration with the Exeter Digital Humanities Lab.

The visit was hosted by the Exeter Digital Humanities Lab and was focused on developing stronger bridges in research and collaboration between the two institutions. The research priorities and synergies between faculty members at both institutions are in the fields of medieval religious cultures, digital humanities and interdisciplinary studies.

Francisco Peña Fernandez is leading a group of scholars working in the SSHRC funded project “Confluence of Religions in Medieval Spanish Historiography’’. One of the main goals of this project is to produce a scholarly, critical, and annotated digital edition of the first volume of the General e Grand Estoria (General Estoria), the most expansive 13th-century book written in Spanish and the largest universal history written in Medieval Europe.

The University of Exeter has a number of scholars whose expertise make them perfect partners to collaborate with the project. Dr. Peña Fernandez will work with scholars and students from Exeter to create the first translation of the GGE into English in print. An accurate first translation into English of the first volume will create innumerable research possibilities for historians, philosophers of history and religion, linguists, traductologists, and specialists in literary studies and the history of narratology.

The visit to Exeter has allowed for further international collaboration and dissemination of research in the area of Digital Humanities, Medieval Studies, Religious Studies and Translation Studies, explains Dr. Peña Fernandez.

“We are creating a new methodology of study, involving digital media, creating new tools for innovative interdisciplinary study of the Middle Ages,” Peña says.

“The idea of people who specialize in different fields communicating and working together is also an important part of the project—it mirrors the way this book was originally written.”

During his visit, Dr. Peña Fernandez was engaged in a number of activities related to his research, and was offered opportunities to connect with others in the field at the University of Exeter. He conducted a workshop that addressed digital humanities; he participated in lectures, meetings with dignitaries and academicians from different fields, as well as meetings with students.

ABOUT THE EXETER UBC PARTNERSHIP

The University of British Columbia, Okanagan, entered into a Statement of Cooperation with the Exeter College of Humanities in the spring of 2018, with the aim to strengthen the relationship between the universities, and nurture a collaborative approach to education, research and academic exchanges.

Faculty members and students from both institutions have had opportunities to travel back and forth over the last year two years. This past year the creation of an Exeter/UBC Humanities Collaboration Fund has increased the opportunities to both build on existing collaborations and to develop new links.

Francis Langevin, professor of French, has organized two film screenings on campus this March, The Body Remembers When the World Broke Open, and Rendez-vous de la Francophonie.

“Most “festival” films presented in Kelowna are in movie theatres. These screenings remove access barriers for students as they are free and presented on campus.” Explains Langevin.

On March 5 2020, we will screen the acclaimed Canadian film The Body Remembers When the World Broke Open, followed by a Q&A by one of its directors, Kathleen Hepburn.

“In an audacious act of heroism and kindness, Áila (Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers) chooses to console a young woman she finds barefoot and sobbing in the streets. She soon discovers that Rosie (Violet Nelson) has just escaped an assault by her boyfriend. Compelled to take action, Áila chooses to bring Rosie into her home and, over the course of the evening, the two women explore the after-effect of this traumatic event.”

Toronto International Film Festival: www.tiff.net/events/the-body-remembers-when-the-world-broke-open

When: Thursday, March 5, from 6 to 9 pm
What: The Body Remembers When the World Broke Open
Where: UNC 106, Student Union Theatre, UBC Okanagan Campus

This film is presented by the Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies, Aboriginal Services and Programs, UBC Okanagan, and Kelowna Film Society.

On March 10, Rendez-vous de la Francophonie will screen three thought-provoking films on language and politics. La sentinelle by Claude Guilmain, 2010; Les terribles vivantes – 1re partie by Louky Bersianik and Dorothy Todd Hénaut, 1986; and Les mots qui dansent by Yves Étienne Massicotte,  2014

The films will be presented in French, with English subtitles.

When: Tuesday, March 10, from 6 to 9 pm
What: Rendez-vous de la Francophonie
Where: UNC 106, Student Union Theatre, UBC Okanagan Campus

The Department of Creative Studies is piloting a new program titled Public Theatre Project, facilitated by theatre instructor, Tracy Ross.

The Public Theatre project (PTP) provides theatre space on the UBC Okanagan campus for community groups to create experimental performances and open rehearsals. The aim of this project is to build a cohesive community and animate campus life by providing a gathering space on campus, and generate an environment for dialogue, sharing, and learning.

After working in the theatre community for a number of years, Tracy Ross explains that she saw a need to have an open space where people can come together to share ideas and resources.

“I created the Public Theatre Project to help create awareness and synergies about and between student projects, community groups, artists, and local programming.” She notes.

“There are a number of theatre and performance groups in the community do not have spaces that are large enough or even in the public to be able to experiment or to share what they are working on. This is a way that we can help facilitate meaningful exchanges between University learners, emerging artists and professionals ‘in the field’.”

Community groups are invited to hold their rehearsals or studio times in the University Theatre (ADM 026) on Sunday from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m., and are required to open up the space for other community members or students on campus to view what they are doing.

Tracy held an open house in early January, and the bookings to use the space came flooding in. Almost every weekend from January to March has been booked with community dance and theatre groups to rehearse as well as organizations that invite the public to participate in open workshops.

Schedule of Events

February 9 | Body Project

• 1 p.m.- 2 p.m. Body Project welcomes participants to a contemporary dance class- open.
• 2 pm.- 4p.m. The public can observe the artists creating work.

Body Project is a Post Secondary Contemporary Dance Education Program that is holistically based. www.thebodyprojectdance.com

February 23, 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. | Miles Kroeker 

Open Workshop- Miles will lead a workshop around getting participants to discover their own true potential through movement and express that helps benefit their overall health and wellness. Miles helps participants tap into their own unique skills and move towards the things that feel intrinsically good/right for each person. Miles Kroeker has always been intrigued by movement and the expressive potential of the human construct. He has spent time investigating dance, contact improv, yoga, tai chi, theatre, and more.

March 1, 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. | ACTS29 THEATRE 

Open Rehearsal – Production of USERNAME by Brian Hampton

ACTS 29 Theatre is a faith- based drama program for Okanagan Youth in Grades 7-12. They will be preparing for their upcoming tour.

March 8, 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. | Company B- Canadian School of Ballet 

Company B prepares for upcoming competition season. Come and watch large group numbers as well as small group and solos. Company B and Junior B are audition based performance groups under the Artistic Direction of Carley Bailey. Our goal is to provide exceptional pre-professional performances that will enrich our local dance community. Both companies provide committed, deserving dance students with an opportunity to achieve a higher level of education in the performing arts through additional training and expanded performance opportunities.

For more information or to book the space, contact tracy.ross@ubc.ca. Subject title: PTP booking.

How it works

• Public Theatre Project will take place at the UBCO Theatre (Admin 026) space Sundays from 1 p.m.- 4 p.m.
• Organizations and artists book the space with the UBCO project Coordinator, Tracy Ross, by filling in a request form. Bookings are done on a first come- first serve basis and sequential bookings are discouraged.
• The intention of the Public Theatre Project is to create a space for experimentation and open rehearsal. If artists or organizations wish to use this particular space as a performance venue, they would have to book it through campus bookings.
• Your event day will be published throughout campus and on social media.
• You agree to the basic terms of use, you will not be charged for the space, and you cannot charge for your event.
• Your event must be open to the student body and public to observe or participate.

SPACE GUIDELINES

• The space will be open promptly at 1:00 p.m. for entry and close at 4 p.m.
• Nothing can be affixed to the floor, and the space cannot be permanently altered in any way.
• The space must be restored to its original state. Garbage must be collected and properly disposed of.
• Students and public are free to watch the process, with the understanding that they are to be respectful and supportive.

The space will remain inclusive, open, and welcoming. We encourage diverse perspectives and voices.

(Photos: Canadian School of Ballet- Pre-Professional Program)

The Department of Languages and World Literatures is pleased to welcome Visiting Authors Marie-Andrée Gill and Samuel Archibald to UBC Okanagan for a series of public talks from January 22 to 24, 2020. These talks are presented as part of the FCCS Visiting Author series in partnership with the Inspired Word  Café. All events are free and open to the public.

Public Talks

When: Wednesday January 22 2020, 2-3pm
Where: UNC212, UBC Okanagan Campus

A Reading a Conversation with Samuel Archibald and Marie-Andrée Gill. This talk is part of Dr. Francis Langevin’s course Techniques of Oral Expression (FREN345).

When: Thursday January 23 2020, 7-9pm
Where: 702 Bernard Avenue

This event is presented as a collaboration between the IWC Public Reading Series and UBC Okanagan’s Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies. The bilingual event features three writers from out east: Ian Ferrier, Samuel Archibald and Marie-Andrée Gill.

When: Friday January 24 2020, 7-9pm
Where: 702 Bernard Avenue

Hitoires au coin du feu: a storytelling night.

About the authors

Samuel Archibald is a writer and screenwriter original from Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean (QC). He is a professor of creative writing and genre literature (sci-fi, horror, pop culture) at Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM). His first fiction book, the best-seller Arvida (25 000 copies sold in Quebec only), translated by Donald Winkler, was shortlisted for the Giller Prize (2015). The webseries Terreur 404 (2017-2018) he co-wrote with William S. Messier won 2 Gemini Awards and many juried prizes in international Webfests (Germany, South Korea, Russia, Canada).

Marie-Andrée Gill is an Ilnu poet born in Mashteuiatsh (QC). She is the author of three celebrated poetry collections with La Peuplade: Béante (2012), Frayer (2015), and Chauffer le dehors (2019). Her first collection of poetry (Béante) was nominated for a Governor General Award. Her work appears in French and in English in anthologies and magazines such as Estuaire, Le Sabord, Poème Sale, Sirale, Guernica Magazine, and Tupelo Quarterly.

Ian Ferrier is one of the core writer/performers in the North American performance literature scene. His work is well-known across Canada, New York and Europe. Rooted in poetry, his live performances are a haunting blend of acoustic guitar, choir; whispered voice, and the trancelike music of a band called Pharmakon. His signature is the quiet, compelling voice at the centre of every piece.

These events are sponsored by the City of Kelowna, Secrétariat du Québec aux relations canadiennes (Bureau du Québec à Toronto, l’Union des écrivaines et des écrivains du Québec (UNEQ), le Centre culturel francophone de l’Okanagan, The League of Canadian Poets, Social Science and Humanities Research Council of Canada, and UBC Okanagan’s Faculty of Creative and Critical Studies.

Francis Langevin, photo credit: Emilie Hautier

Francis Langevin is an educator, cultural activist and event organizer, and film buff. He has been a faculty member at UBC Okanagan since 2015 teaching French language and literature in the Educational Leadership Stream in the Department of Languages and World Literatures.

Francis shared some insights on his teaching and research practices here at UBC Okanagan.

Give us some insight on your teaching and research.

My best friend Nadia, who has always been a role-model for my teaching, calls me Docteur Lecteur. She implies that I teach people how to read (a lecteur is a reader, in French). It’s true that I do that when I teach Literature and Film, and Culture: that’s also what my graduate degrees and research publications are about.

Those research baby steps are not meant to “improve quality of life” as ostensibly as, say, pasteurization or vaccines do, but they leave traces and they make visible and legible the work of humans who we are talking about, recording, reading, translating what it means to live in our times (or in their times). Those reading skills come in handy to understand the world we live in, and it can orient the decisions and the actions we make as citizens. Reading other people’s stories is a great way to develop empathy, which I think we all need more of.

What most excites and challenges you about your field of work?

I get to teach students who are learning a language almost from scratch and I sometimes see them only a few year later majoring in French, speaking to me in the language I grew up hearing. That’s exciting! But also, I get to hang out with multilingual individuals: other profs in my department (Languages & World Literature), and of course students who come from everywhere. In a group of 35 students, I can usually count as many as twelve other languages spoken! I’ve lived in a linguistic minority for ten years now, not always being able to express myself in French as often as I would like. It’s a challenge that I share with a lot of students. So I am thrilled to be given so many hours a week to speak it! Teaching languages and literature allows me to read texts and watch movies as a group, which really feels like a treat.

What kind of learning experiences do you lead outside of the classroom?

I’m really interested in facilitating connections between communities. I do that in my personal life a lot, as a citizen, a volunteer or an activist I guess. I make it a point to bring that to the university, and I invite students to do so too! This can mean organizing events, such as film screenings (Petit French Film Festival) or cabarets (Pony, with Michael V. Smith), or meetings with artists. But more generally, it means breaking the walls of the classroom to make the learning experience as meaningful for students as for their communities. They take something to my classroom; they take something back to where they continue on their journey.

I program or help organize cultural events. Mostly films and literary events. I work with the Kelowna Film Society and the Centre culturel francophone de l’Okanagan, and together I’d say we program about 45 films per year. When I moved here from Toronto, people were worried that I would miss the cultural offer of the metropolis. That is sometimes true, but that just means you have to make the effort of creating those opportunities.

As a teacher, I try to integrate what is happening in town and within FCCS, such as the Living Things Festival, the reading series, and visiting speakers, to classroom as much as possible. I think that making room for those events to my students in assignments or lectures really helps to break the walls of the classroom, and in return, it makes those events open to new people. It all comes down to community building, really.

How did you know you wanted to be a professor?

I had the chance to teach two lectures on Quebec Culture for students of University in the Community, a “humanities-based program for low-income residents in the city of Toronto” hosted at Innis College, University of Toronto. After one hour during the first lecture, we took a break and I was overwhelmed by the joy of teaching without a curriculum. I went outside and wept for the whole break. It has transformed my approach to teaching completely: I was awarded the privilege to teach personally; it had not occurred to me before that I could decide what mattered for a course, and adapt it for different audiences or purposes. That’s a great gift. That is a responsibility, of course, but also that is a wonderful freedom to share your passion, your knowledge – and also to witness students figure out what is making them vibrate with enthusiasm.

What do you enjoy about living in the Okanagan?

People. Apricots in my yard. Peaches. Openness. Lake down the street. My friends. Powder snow. Four seasons. Kindness. Okanagan nations. “Let’s make it happen” attitude. My husband. Clothes that dry in a day inside. Views. Opportunity. Artists and crafters. Cherries. Newcomers and expats.

Denise Kenney working on a film project

Denise Kenney is an educator, filmmaker, eco-artist, and performer. She has been a faculty member at UBC Okanagan since 2007 teaching Interdisciplinary Performance in the BFA and Bachelor of Arts programs, and is currently the Department head for Creative Studies.

Denise shared some insights on her teaching and research practices here at UBC Okanagan.

How did you know you wanted to be a professor?

I have always taught people in tandem with my career as an artist. I love teaching. When the opportunity came up to take on a full position within the Department of Creative Studies, I knew I had found a home for my interdisciplinary practice and teaching.

What most excites and challenges you about your field of work?

My work excites me because I believe it is vital. I always ask my students, “If art and artists are the after-the-serious-stuff “fluff”, then why do so many oppressive regimes target artists? The way we converse with our communities is through our art. We matter. Our students matter.

I work in a challenging field because my research focuses on live performance and community engagement that asks people to connect beyond the printed page or digital screen. In the face of social media and digital communication, the live body and getting people together in the same place and the same time is inconvenient and challenging. I am always fighting for opportunities for intimate, embodied and creative exchanges in my teaching and in my research.

Explain what your research is about.

My work is based on the understanding that climate change and sustainability are cultural issues and that scientific narratives alone will not enact the kind of change we need to mitigate climate change and to make ourselves resilient in the face of what is to come.

We are no longer simply trying to avert a crisis, which suggests that the crisis will pass, but rather trying to build resiliency in our communities and our institutions. Scientists have done their job. Now the story tellers, artists, critics, creative thinkers, provocateurs and visionaries in the humanities and fine arts are uniquely well-situated to participate in shaping our response to this overwhelming data.

We can help our students and our communities shift our cultural coordinates and re-imagine ways of belonging and surviving as we navigate our uncertain future. This is why we are relevant. The good news is that we already know how to do this and our students are taking up the torch.

What kind of learning experiences do you lead outside of the classroom?

I do a lot of work out in the community in my teaching and in my research. My students have performed or facilitated projects in Europe, the U.S., and Canada and have likewise presented at conferences in all of these places.

My goal as an educator is to involve my students as much as I can in my own research projects, to support them in theirs, and to provide for them opportunities for real-world experience. Over the years, my students and I have worked with the City of Kelowna, Westbank First Nations, the Living Positive Resource Centre, Inspired Word Cafe, the Kelowna Art Gallery, the Okanagan Regional District, School District 23, the Woodhaven Nature Conservancy, and a number of artists and scholars locally, nationally and internationally.

What do you enjoy about living here and working at UBC Okanagan?

Because UBCO has a small campus but is still a highly regarded university in terms of research and teaching, it has the best of both worlds. This is what I love about working here. I am always being challenged in my research and teaching, but I also have close contact with my students and faculty, not only in my department, but across the whole campus.

The Okanagan valley is a landscape of lakes, sagebrush, saskatoon berries, and suburbias crowding out ponderosa pines. Even though much of my education and professional work was done in larger urban centers like Paris or Vancouver, I have come to love the smaller community for its intimacy, proximity to nature, and enthusiasm. Kelowna city council has viewed films made by my students; the parks have welcomed our art projects; the international airport is ten minutes away, and my bike ride to work is gorgeous. Kelowna is growing, and I hope that our students will graduate from UBCO and help it grow for the better.

Denise Kenney & Nancy Holmes at Cyprus Sites Embodied, 2017

Denise Kenney & Nancy Holmes in Cyprus, 2017

Denise Kenney working with a Cypriot dancer in Androlikou

Lindsay Kirker (centre), wtih Kim Spencer-Nairm trustee from the Audain Art Museum (left) and FCCS Dean, Bryce Traister (right)

Lindsay Kirker, a second year Masters of Fine Arts student, was recently awarded the Audain Foundation Travel Award. The Audain Foundation supports the visual arts in British Columbia, offering awards to arts organizations, galleries and to individual artists.

The travel award was established this past year for BFA or MFA students at five major institutions in the province, University of British Columbia Okanagan, University of British Columbia Vancouver, Emily Carr University or Art and Design, Simon Franser University, and the University of Victoria.

The award is for $7500 to one student per university to allow them to travel to destinations of their choice to view artworks and projects that will foster their practice and research.

Lindsay was nominated by faculty members in the Visual Arts program at UBC Okanagan, noting that she is both an outstanding artist and scholar.

Lindsay intends to travel to Fort St. John, BC to meet with stakeholders connected with the Site C dam project in order to learn about the social, economic and ecological management of the project in order to develop a greater understanding of the complexity of our relationship with the land.

Find out more about Lindsay

Dr. Jodey Castricano (centre) with faculty members and graduate students at the University of Exeter

Between Sept. 23 and Oct. 4, Jodey Castricano, professor in the Department of English and Cultural Studies at UBC Okanagan, visited the University of Exeter under the auspices of the University’s Visiting International Fellowship Scheme.

The visit, hosted by Paul Young, Associate Professor of Victorian Literature and Culture, focused on developing research and teaching priorities and synergies in the fields of Critical Animal Studies and Eco-Cultures. These two related fields draw together Castricano and Young’s expertise, and also engage a great deal of ongoing and emerging ecological and sustainability research and teaching activity in the respective colleges and institutions involved.

The visit to Exeter has allowed for further international collaboration and dissemination of research in the area of Environmental Humanities, especially where this field is inclusive of the interconnectedness of climate change, factory farming and human health, explains Dr. Castricano.

“The visit also enabled me to forge relationships with faculty who are working in these areas inclusive of literary studies and to discuss potential for research partnerships and publications, such as a jointly-authored monograph and/or collection of essays on the research areas we work in.” She says.

During her visit, professor Castricano was engaged in a number of activities related to her research, and was offered opportunities to connect with others in the field at the University of Exeter. She attended a workshop that addressed human and non-human animal health and welfare, as well as environmental sustainability; she participated in an Animal Studies reading group that brings together lecturers, postdoctoral researchers and postgraduate research students from across the colleges of Humanities and Social Sciences; and she held a public lecture to welcome Exeter’s new and returning postgraduate research students, ‘Welcome to the Anthropocene: Now What?’.

Paul Young will be visiting the UBC Okanagan campus in the spring of 2020 during the ‘Critical Animal Studies in an Age of Mass Extinction,’ the inaugural conference of the North American Association for Critical Animal Studies of which Castricano is a co-organizer, to be held at the UBC Okanagan campus.

About the Exeter UBC Partnership

The University of British Columbia, Okanagan, entered into a Statement of Cooperation with the Exeter College of Humanities in the spring of 2018, with the aim to strengthen the relationship between the universities, and nurture a collaborative approach to education, research and academic exchanges.

Faculty members and students from both institutions have had opportunities to travel back and forth over the last year and a half. UBCO team members from the AMP Lab and the Centre for Culture and Technology from FCCS visited the Exeter Digital Humanities Lab in the College of Humanities last winter, with members from Exeter coming to UBC Okanagan last spring.