New UBCO research challenges traditional teen suicide prevention models

December 9, 2025

Wide shot of a group of students and their teacher gathered around a table in a technology classroom.

UBCO researchers are saying we need to rethink current strategies used to prevent youth suicide.

The old proverb “it takes a village to raise a child” also applies to preventing youth suicide, according to UBC Okanagan researchers who found that community support is essential.

In Canada, suicide is the fourth leading cause of death among children under 14 and the second for youth and young adults between 15 and 34 years old. The UBCO Faculty of Health and Social Development researchers say governments, schools and community agencies need to rethink how youth suicide prevention efforts are designed.

And work together on the issue.

“Suicide among young people is a major public health issue and is among the leading causes of death among children and youth around the world,” says Dr. Katrina Plamondon, Associate Professor in the School of Nursing and study co-lead.

The study, led by UBCO’s Equity Science Lab, involved youth, emerging adults, caregivers and service providers through community partnerships. Discussions showed that resilience is not only a personal trait, but also something shaped by supportive communities.

“Most prevention strategies continue to focus on individual behaviours, coping skills or risk profiles,” says Dr. Plamondon. “But this approach overlooks the powerful influence of social, structural, political and environmental conditions on youth wellbeing, and often fails to prevent an incredibly tragic loss of life.”

The study, published recently in Critical Public Health, points to mounting evidence that links suicidality to systemic racism, rural isolation, environmental contamination and inequitable access to basic resources such as clean water and safe housing.

“Despite this,” says study co-author Dr. Shelly Ben-David, “youth voices are rarely included in designing prevention strategies.”

Dr. Ben-David, Associate Professor with UBCO’s School of Social Work, says that many high school students, young adults, caregivers and community service providers all had a voice in this study. The team used collages, stories and metaphors—such as the Japanese art of kintsugi, which repairs broken pottery with gold—to encourage deeper reflection.

“Many participants saw resilience as something repaired and rebuilt ‘with many hands’, showing that young people need care, connection and supportive environments to be resilient,” she adds.

Across all groups, there was a common message: resilience is action taken together. Study participants say resilient communities help youth feel they belong, build strong relationships and feel supported in a positive environment.

“These are key areas to focus on if communities truly hope to reduce youth suicides and promote collective thriving,” adds Dr. Sana Shahram, Assistant Professor with the School of Nursing.

Focusing on community–based strategies and place-based interventions opens the door to more effective suicide prevention, explains Dr. Shahram, who co-directs the Equity Science Lab with Dr. Plamondon.

“In this study, we heard from young people and the supportive adults in their lives, showing that resilient communities are active, engaged places where youth feel not only sheltered from harm, but empowered to contribute, collaborate and express themselves,” she adds.

This approach means addressing the current social and structural determinants of health that shape young people’s lives, instead of putting all the responsibility on the individual to cope and recover.

“There is an urgent need for community-based approaches that invest in youth, not only because adults in their lives want to protect them, but also because everyone’s fate is inherently tied to their thriving,” Dr. Shahram adds. “Together we can create a pathway to reimagining how communities organize around suicide prevention and create environments where our young people can truly thrive.”

Along with faculty in the School of Nursing and the School of Social Work, the study was conducted with support from Melissa Feddersen, manager of UBCO’s Campus Wellness and Education team.

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Posted in Faculty of Health and Social Development, School of Nursing, School of Social Work

From cessation to celebration: nicotine pouches go viral on TikTok

November 27, 2025

A person places a pack of nicotine pouches in their pocket

A UBC Okanagan researcher is raising concerns about how a popular social media platform is making nicotine pouches trendy among young people. Photo by Swenico on Unsplash.

While originally created as a way to help people stop smoking, a UBC Okanagan researcher is raising concerns about oral nicotine pouches being portrayed as trendy and pleasurable, especially among young people.

Dr. Laura Struik, Associate Professor in UBCO’s School of Nursing, recently published a study examining how the social media platform TikTok appears to promote nicotine pouches, particularly the brand Zyn, as a lifestyle rather than a way to quit smoking.

“Oral nicotine pouches have become a popular alternative nicotine product, especially among youth,” she says. “This is concerning, given the substantial health risks associated with nicotine use at an early age. Popular, youth-led social media channels are being used to promote these products as a source of pleasure and indulgence.”

The study, published recently in JMIR’s Formulative Research, analyzed 250 videos that, according to TikTok’s engagement metrics, generated 16,488,662 likes, more than 114,120 comments and almost two million shares.

“Understanding the ways that people communicate about these products on social media is critical to informing public health efforts aimed at protecting youth from the harms of nicotine,” Dr. Struik adds.

Prolonged use of oral nicotine pouches can lead to serious health problems, she says, including gum recession, tooth decay, harmful mouth bacteria, oral cancer and heart issues. Although about six per cent of videos showed these effects, most portrayed use of oral nicotine pouches as an enjoyable and normalized lifestyle product among youth.

Content creators made videos showing how easy, discreet and shareable the pouches are, as well as the ability to use several pouches at once. Many showed people using the pouches doing everyday activities, such as working or exercising, to highlight how easily they fit into day-to-day life.

“One particular brand was framed as empowering, exclusive and socially desirable, where using the brand meant that you were part of a movement,” says Dr. Struik.

That particular movement used a common hashtag under videos where that brand was mentioned, signalling membership in a shared identity group.

“When a hallmark of brain development during adolescence is identity development, where teens explore who they are and experiment with different behaviours, like the use of nicotine products, it becomes really clear why these pouches would be especially appealing to a young person,” she adds.

The findings not only underscore how these nicotine pouches are being shown in a positive light on youth-led social media platforms, but also explain their growing popularity among young people.

“Social media serves as a powerful tool for the tobacco industry in normalizing the use of their products among youth—a profitable demographic for the industry because of young people’s propensity to become addicted to these products,” she adds. “This is a runaway train that we will be chasing after for years. They are not cessation products; they are nicotine addiction starters.”

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Posted in Faculty of Health and Social Development, Media Release, School of Nursing

Warm footbaths may boost heart health in people with COPD

November 24, 2025

People living with COPD are invited to participate in a new UBC Okanagan study.

What if a warm footbath could reduce the blood pressure of people living with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and help improve the health of their hearts and blood vessels?

Researchers from UBC Okanagan’s Integrative Clinical Cardiopulmonary Laboratory are inviting people with COPD to join a study testing whether regular warm footbaths can improve heart and blood-vessel health and ease pressure on the lungs.

Previous research from the team shows that a single session of the lower legs immersed in water can increase l circulation in the legs and reduce blood pressure—similar to the effects of moderate exercise like walking, explains doctoral student Kyla Coates, a researcher with the lab.

“Prolonged footbath use may have similar health benefits to exercise, such as reduced risk of heart disease or stroke, and better oxygen delivery to the lungs,” she explains. “If effective, this therapy could be used in addition to exercise, or instead of exercise, to improve a patient’s symptoms, health and longevity.”

To test their theories, the research team is looking for people with moderate to severe COPD to take part in a study where they will have 45-minute footbath at home three times a week using hot or warm water. The study runs for six weeks and participants will need to visit the lab three times to have their blood vessels and heart measured using ultrasound. Their blood pressure will be monitored with a 24-hour ambulatory device at the beginning and end of the study.

Coates notes that volunteers will receive detailed blood pressure results that can be shared with their doctor.

The study is expected to continue until summer 2026, but the team is asking people to sign up now to fill spots early in the new year. To volunteer for the study or learn more, contact Kyla Coates at kylac01@student.ubc.ca.

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Posted in Faculty of Health and Social Development, Media Release, School of Health and Exercise Sciences

Masculinity debated in the digital age

October 22, 2025

A five-person panel seated on stage at Kelowna Community Theatre. From left to right: Dr. Luc Cousineau, Dr. Fang Wan, moderator Nathan Skolski, journalist Jonathan Kay and Dr. John Oliffe speaking during the UBC Okanagan Debates: Masculinity in Crisis event.

From left: Dr. Luc Cousineau, Dr. Fang Wan, moderator Nathan Skolski, journalist Jonathan Kay and Dr. John Oliffe discuss whether masculinity is in crisis during the UBC Okanagan Debates event at Kelowna Community Theatre.

A clash over what’s driving modern manhood—biology, culture or accountability—set the tone for UBC Okanagan Debates: Masculinity in Crisis on Tuesday night at Kelowna Community Theatre.

Toronto journalist Jonathan Kay and Dalhousie University researcher Dr. Luc Cousineau drew laughs and gasps as Kay argued that men today “aren’t getting away with the same bad behaviour they did in the 1970s and ’80s,” with Dr. Cousineau snapping back, “It’s not a crisis of masculinity—it’s these guys being jerks.”

The 90-minute public debate attracted a capacity crowd to hear four experts—Kay and Dr. John Oliffe from UBC Vancouver’s School of Nursing argued there is a crisis, while Dr. Fang Wan from UBC Okanagan’s Faculty of Management and Dr. Cousineau argued there is not.

Together, they explored whether masculinity is collapsing or evolving amid shifting gender roles, online pressures and growing mental-health challenges.

The case for crisis

Dr. Oliffe, founder of UBC’s Men’s Health Research Program, presented sobering evidence that men’s health outcomes are worsening.

“Forty-four per cent of Canadian men who die before age 75 die from preventable causes,” he said. “Cancers, cardiovascular disease, overdose and suicide are robbing us of years of life.”

Dr. Oliffe argued that traditional masculine norms—stoicism, control and self-reliance—can stop men from seeking help. “We’ve reduced masculinity to a handful of traits and forgotten it’s plural,” he said.

Jonathan Kay, editor and podcaster with Quillette, described the crisis as psychological and cultural, driven by status anxiety and online comparisons.

“We live in an era of plenty, where you can order anything on Amazon,” he said. “But there are two things they’re not making more of—real estate and status. When you were a kid, there was a vacation from the status hierarchy. When I see kids now, because of social media, there’s no vacation. You’re comparing yourself to kids all over the world … you’re counting likes. It’s all quantified.”

Kay said the constant comparisons are causing boys and young men, to withdraw instead of reaching out.

“Girls and women identify tribally with the anxieties they experience—‘I have ADHD or anxiety,’ and they reach out to others,” he said. “Men and boys, it’s the opposite. They retreat. They retreat into video games; they retreat into silence.”

Men aren’t in crisis

Dr. Cousineau countered that masculinity has never been fixed, and saying it is “in crisis” misunderstands its fluid nature.

“To claim that masculinity is in crisis implies there’s one right way to be a man,” he said. “Masculinity has always been plural. What it means to be a man in Kelowna in 2025 is not what it meant in 1985.”

He argued that the traditional ideal of the male provider is “so far outdated that we’ve lost the thread,” adding that today’s confusion reflects a crisis of understanding, not a collapse of identity.

Dr. Wan shifted the discussion beyond North America, arguing that the idea of a crisis is far from universal.

“In many parts of the world—Africa, the Middle East, Southeast Asia—men still dominate the social, political and corporate hierarchy,” she noted. “There’s no crisis. It’s continuity.”

She linked gender and power to the online world. Citing recent research and Australia’s move to restrict children’s social media use, Dr. Wan warned that platforms designed for engagement amplify division.

“Social media rewards sensationalism and polarization,” she said. “If it’s not extreme, it doesn’t get attention—and that hurts everyone’s wellbeing.”

Collision and consensus

Despite heated moments, the four speakers agreed on one point: men’s wellbeing is a public issue that requires empathy, not caricature.

Dr. Oliffe urged that conversations about masculinity must move beyond blame or labels.

“We cannot simultaneously espouse our commitment to inclusion with a singular, deficit-driven masculinity in 2025,” he said. “Never use the (toxic) word again. Instead, employ ALEC—Ask, Listen, Prompt for Elaboration, and Check back in—as a means of not perpetuating the decade-long crisis that has been the misrepresentation of masculinity in its singular, deficit form.”

Dr. Cousineau’s closing remarks echoed the same spirit of reflection: “We’re not in crisis—we’re just not keeping up,” he said. “We need to build a better world where more people can live the best lives they can.”

By evening’s end, confrontation had turned to conversation. The debate ended without consensus, but there was a shared recognition that masculinity, in all its forms, is still evolving—and worth debating.

UBC Okanagan: Debates is a signature series showcasing civil discourse in an era of polarization, bringing diverse perspectives together to demonstrate that disagreement can be both respectful and enlightening.

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Posted in Community Engagement Office, Faculty of Management, Media Release, School of Nursing, University Relations

Dr. Heather Gainforth named UBC Okanagan’s newest Canada Research Chair

October 22, 2025

Position enables more dedicated time to community-engaged research

Associate Professor Dr. Heather Gainforth is the SSHRC Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Research Coproduction and Implementation Science.

Dr. Heather Gainforth has a singular principle that drives her research and her career.

“At the end of the day, everything I do is in service to the communities that benefit from my work.”

That work—seeking to inject meaningful community engagement into all aspects of university research projects—received national recognition today when Dr. Gainforth, Associate Professor in the Faculty of Health and Social Development, was named the SSHRC Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Research Coproduction and Implementation Science.

“It’s huge,” she says. “Being a CRC is not only an honour, but it helps protect my time to better conduct my research and better service communities—I can show up so much more in the ways I want to.”

The CRC program is designed to attract and retain some of the world’s most accomplished and promising minds in engineering, natural sciences, health sciences, humanities and social sciences. Dr. Gainforth’s appointment, announced October 22 by the Honourable Mélanie Joly, Minister of Industry and Minister responsible for Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions, brings the total number of CRCs at UBC Okanagan to 10.

Her work involves ensuring people with lived experience are engaged throughout the research process. Her field of research most often involves supporting people living with a spinal cord injury to thrive after their injury.

“So, in my work, for example, it’s not about doing research for people with spinal cord injuries, but doing research with them to ensure our research is relevant, useful and impactful.”

As a behavioural scientist, she’s seeking to change the behaviour of researchers themselves—to have them reevaluate the ways in which they conduct research to ensure their projects fully engage the communities for whom they conduct their research.

She leads a team that has developed guiding principles that help researchers working on partner-based research—often with communities experiencing chronic conditions like spinal cord injury—to conduct quality, ethical research that is relevant, useful and avoids tokenism. The principles are meant to be used by all partners throughout the research process and are starting to be adopted by researchers across Canada, fundamentally changing the national research environment for the better.

Some funding bodies are now even recommending researchers use the principles in funding applications, and some community agencies require their use in order for researchers to partner with them.

“I’m tremendously proud to see Dr. Gainforth’s work and expertise acknowledged with this prestigious honour,” says Dr. Suzie Currie, Vice-Principal and Associate Vice-President, Research and Innovation. “Her commitment to building meaningful, equitable partnerships in research exemplifies the best of what research can achieve—impact that extends deep into communities, far beyond campus, to create lasting change.”

Dr. Gainforth’s CRC appointment recognizes her as an emerging leader in her field and helps her dedicate more time specifically to conducting research. She hopes to use the increased time to continue to support transformational change in spinal cord injury research, evaluate the systems she and her team are changing and support other groups interested in engagement.

“Ten years ago, when I started looking at how to transform our research systems to meaningfully engage the communities who use our research, it felt risky. I was critiquing the very system in which I worked,” she says. “With this appointment, it’s wonderful to know the Canada Research Chairs Program, and UBCO, see the value in this work. I’m grateful for their support.”

Fourteen UBC researchers were announced as new and renewed Canada Research Chairs in this latest round of appointments, representing an investment of $11.1 million.

Posted in Faculty of Health and Social Development, School of Health and Exercise Sciences

UBCO celebrates BC’s first nursing students to complete their master’s with an Indigenous focus

October 16, 2025

A group of nursing students and scholars celebrate in a garden.

UBCO School of Nursing faculty Rishma Chooniedass, Nelly Oelke and Dennis Jasper, far right, celebrate Schynel Howe and Sheila Marentette, both centre, as they complete the Indigenous Health and Wellbeing Stream in the Master of Science in Nursing program.

Two years ago, UBC Okanagan launched a unique pathway to support Indigenous nurses with a new Indigenous Health and Wellbeing Concentration.

The Master of Science in Nursing Indigenous Health and Wellbeing Pathway has clear goals, explains Dr. Kathy Rush, Graduate Program Coordinator in UBC Okanagan’s School of Nursing. It aims to address racism in health care, support Indigenous nurses and those working with Indigenous peoples, organizations and agencies, and bring Indigenous knowledge into mainstream nursing education and practice.

“Nurses are often seen as the backbone of the health-care system because they make a difference at every level,” says Dr. Rush. “Indigenous nurses are especially critical—transitioning between patient care and policy, and working with communities to support mental wellness, promote health and prevent illness.”

To complete this pathway in the Master of Nursing program, students must complete 12 credit hours of related Indigenous Wellness Concentration coursework and either a thesis or capstone project, as well as finish 18 additional course credits.

The initiative is offered at UBC’s two campuses, Thompson Rivers University, the University of Victoria and Trinity Western University. Before it launched, a home circle consisting of Elders, Knowledge Keepers, nurses and UBCO students, faculty and staff was established to help create essential sections of the concentration.

“The home circle focused on the needs of our community, and we are grateful for the wisdom and knowledge that guided us in developing this program,” explains Dr. Rush. “The success of this program is theirs, along with our students.”

And just recently, the Okanagan campus celebrated the province’s first two graduates to complete the pathway.

Sheila Marentette was working with the First Nations Health Authority when she learned about the new concentration. Even though she questioned whether she could return to university after an established nursing career, she applied and was thrilled to be accepted.

“I was working with communities across BC to explore how health and wellness services could be redesigned to honour Indigenous values, culture and strengths,” she says. “It was incredibly meaningful work that deepened my understanding of relational care, but I wanted a more formal way to build on that knowledge. This course came at exactly the right time.”

At the same time, Marentette was reconnecting with her family roots. While she had a Métis card as a young adult, she only recently began to explore what that truly meant. She also learned her memère was Cree-Métis, and her husband is Huron-Algonquin.

“This course felt like an invitation to walk more deeply into both my personal and professional path. But it isn’t just about learning—it was also about unlearning, reconnecting and remembering,” she adds. “I gained a deeper understanding of Indigenous approaches to research and care, and a clearer sense of who I am, where I come from, and what kind of nursing leadership I want to embody.”

Schynel Howe also completed the program this year., She was working as a home-care nurse in an Indigenous community when she started classes at UBCO. Although she had already begun her master’s program, she was invited to take a pilot course for the new concentration and knew it was the right fit at the right time.

“I had already wanted to focus on an Indigenous topic, so this pathway made sense to me,” she says. “I found the courses impactful and transformative, and I wanted to continue learning more. This was the perfect opportunity.”

When the program was introduced in 2023, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research contributed almost $700,000 to support its development and UBC’s Indigenous Strategic Initiatives Fund provided $99,900 to establish the Okanagan Home Circle as part of the provincial collective.

“There is no other collaboration or program like this in Canada,” says Dr. Rush. “The goal is to increase the number of Indigenous nurses, improve Indigenous health, and support students, faculty and nurses in learning about anti-racism and health equity through respectful long-term collaboration.”

While both Howe and Marentette have finished the program, they won’t officially cross the stage until next spring’s graduation. Howe now works in the field of mental health and substance use, using what she learned in the program in her daily work.

Marentette says the program was one of the most enlightening experiences she’s had.

“This pathway is a gift. It is an approach to health and healing with humility, curiosity and heart. And it challenges you in the best ways,” she says. “It’s also a step towards reconciliation that acknowledges the wisdom and ways of the first people of this land. The strength of the program lies not only in its academic content, but in its ability to shift how you see the world, your work and yourself.”

The Indigenous Health and Wellbeing Stream in the Master of Science in Nursing program is partially funded by the BC Ministry of Postsecondary Education and Future Skills. To find out more, visit: nursing.ok.ubc.ca/indigenous-initiatives.

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Posted in Faculty of Health and Social Development, Media Release, School of Nursing

New CFI funding to help UBCO researchers develop treatment for deadly brain injuries

October 15, 2025

UBC Okanagan faculty receive nearly $1.5 million in Canada Foundation for Innovation funding across multiple projects

UBCO researchers received funding for projects ranging from nanogeology, crop resilience and robotic construction fabrication to control technology, chronic disease and acute brain injury.

UBC Okanagan researchers will be able to explore new therapies for devastating brain injuries, thanks to funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI).

A total of six researchers from across UBC Okanagan were awarded $1.49 million for research infrastructure on campus through CFI’s John R. Evans Leaders Fund (JELF), as announced by the Government of Canada on Friday, October 10. The fund helps universities recruit and retain incredible faculty members and acquire the tools to support their leading and innovative research.

Dr. Ryan Hoiland, Assistant Professor in the Southern Medical Program, is one of the six UBC Okanagan recipients. An Investigator with the Centre for Chronic Disease Prevention and Management (CCDPM), Dr. Hoiland’s research program focuses on brain injury resulting from cardiac arrest.

According to the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada, about 60,000 Canadians suffer a cardiac arrest every year, with only five to 15 per cent of patients surviving. When someone’s heart stops beating, blood flow and oxygen delivery to the brain stops too, and oxygen levels in the brain remain low after resuscitation. The resulting hypoxic-ischemic brain injury (HIBI) is the main cause of death in post-cardiac arrest patients.

“The overall aim of our research program is to improve our understanding of the disease processes that occur with hypoxic-ischemic brain injury following cardiac arrest so that we can develop new treatments,” says Dr. Hoiland.

Currently, there are no effective treatments for HIBI, and progress for developing therapeutic interventions for HIBI has been stagnant for decades. By using the equipment and infrastructure acquired with this funding to address key gaps in HIBI research, Dr. Hoiland’s lab will be uniquely positioned to accelerate progress and generate desperately needed knowledge to advance clinical care for HIBI patients.

One aspect of the research that Dr. Hoiland is most excited about is using the NovaGuide 2® Intelligent Ultrasound, funded through this CFI JELF. This one-of-a-kind transcranial Doppler ultrasound uses an artificial intelligence algorithm and robotics to automate the measurement of blood flow to the brain.

“As we learn more about the regulation of blood flow and oxygen delivery to the brain following hypoxic-ischemic brain injury, the automation of the NovaGuide 2 reduces a major barrier for wider implementation in research within additional health care settings such as more rural communities,” says Dr. Hoiland.

This ultrasound will be housed at Kelowna General Hospital. Dr. Hoiland is working in partnership with physicians, nurses and respiratory therapists for this patient-based neuromonitoring research.

“We hope that the research enabled by this CFI award will allow us to better serve all British Columbians, irrespective of where they live.”

Across both campuses, UBC researchers received more than $5.7 million for 31 successful projects in this latest round of funding.

UBCO CFI JELF recipients

Chen, Qian (School of Engineering)
Digital Integration for Robotic Fabrication in Construction (DIRFIC) to facilitate rapid affordable housing in Canada

Dr. Qian Chen’s research is working to address Canada’s housing crisis, safeguard construction workers during construction projects and position Canada as a leader in manufacturing and construction innovations. By developing a scalable and digitally integrated technology framework for robotic fabrication in construction, her lab aims to address the need for rapid, sustainable and affordable housing across the country. Part of her CFI JELF includes an industrial-sized robotic arm to help model the complex constraints of robotic assembly and test the integration algorithm in real-world case studies.

Dubosq, Renelle (Irving K. Barber Faculty of Science)
From nano to tectonic: A centre for nanogeology research

Dr. Renelle Dubosq’s funding will develop a Centre for Nanogeology Research within UBCO’s existing FiLTER laboratory and enhance existing electron-beam facilities. These upgrades will allow for nanoscale analysis of geomaterials. Dr. Dubosq’s research will study the feedbacks between element mobility, fluids and structural defects at the nanoscale to assess their role in deformation of minerals and apply these processes to a tectonic scale. By improving the baseline knowledge of Canada’s natural mineral resources, this project could help address the demand for critical minerals crucial for green energy transitions and contribute to a better understanding of seismic rupture, which is essential for seismic hazard assessment in earthquake-prone regions.

van Heusden, Klaske (School of Engineering)
Data-driven control for safety-critical applications

Control technology, used in everything from cell phones to aircraft, buildings to manufacturing, is becoming more complex with increased levels of autonomy. Dr. Klaske van Heusden’s research focuses on the algorithms required to make the next generation of automated systems safe. Her program works to overcome the shortcomings of current methodology and develop data-driven methods for safe control. This CFI JELF will provide the necessary equipment to develop and evaluate safe control methods compatible with learning control algorithms needed to empower autonomous systems. Her research aims to bridge the gap between current methods and real-world safety-critical control.

Hoiland, Ryan (Southern Medical Program)
The translational acute brain injury laboratory

See above for details.

Islam, Muhammad Hashim (Faculty of Health and Social Development)
Real time assessment of metabolism in distinct human cell types across the health-disease continuum

Most chronic diseases affecting Canadians, such as heart disease and diabetes, involve disordered metabolism. However, how metabolism within different human cells and tissues is impacted with these diseases is poorly understood. Dr. Muhammad Hashim Islam’s research aims to advance this understanding and apply the information towards optimizing lifestyle interventions that are aimed at improving disease-related metabolic defects. This CFI JELF will help acquire an analyzer to enable real-time measurement of major metabolic pathways in various human cells and tissues. This technology will help Dr. Islam in developing new approaches for combatting chronic disease by targeting metabolic pathways, with the overall goal to improve the lives of millions of Canadians impacted by chronic disease.

Mason, Chase (Irving K. Barber Faculty of Science)
Applying Plant Evolutionary Physiology for Next-Generation Crop Resilience: Establishing the SARC and CBIL at UBCO

Climate change and other challenges are applying pressure to the resilience of Canada’s agri-food system. Using this CFI JELF, Dr. Chase Mason will establish the Sustainable Agriculture Research Complex in UBCO’s West Campus Lands, the area within the Agricultural Land Reserve area located near John Hindle Drive. The complex will consist of two acres enclosed with deer fencing, containing field plots, an experimental trial garden and hoophouses. In his fundamental and applied agricultural research, Dr. Mason aims to create more stress-tolerant and pest-resistant versions of existing crops and explore new and underutilized crops that could thrive in Canada through the next decades of climate change.

Posted in Faculty of Health and Social Development, School of Health and Exercise Sciences

The White Cart Memorial tells stories of love, loss and resilience

October 7, 2025

A white shopping cart with memorial messages has the sun setting behind it.

The White Cart Memorial is a mobile tribute to unhoused lives lost. UBCO researchers have teamed up with BC Centre for Palliative Care to create a documentary that looks at the challenges of grieving for the unhoused in public spaces.

A documentary exploring how unhoused people experience the loss of someone in their community will premiere in Kelowna next week.

Filmed in Kelowna, No Fixed Address: The White Cart Memorial was co-produced and co-directed by doctoral student Stephanie Laing, Director of Operations with UBC Okanagan’s Kelowna Homelessness Research Centre.

She says it’s important for everyone’s grief to be honoured after a loss, but not all loss is treated equally.

“People who are unhoused are often not recognized as grievers and are not adequately supported in their grief,” adds Laing. “This makes it difficult for them to explore and express their grief, which affects how they cope.”

The film focuses on the creation and meaning of the White Cart Memorial—a grassroots, mobile tribute to unhoused lives lost—and brings together research, personal stories, community perspectives and future action plans for Kelowna.

The Kelowna Homelessness Research Centre and the BC Centre for Palliative Care created the documentary, which will be shown twice in Kelowna before travelling to Port Alberni, Nanaimo and Vancouver later this year, with more screenings planned for 2026.

The film captures the emotional and practical challenges of grieving in public spaces, explains Dr. Joshua Black, co-director, co-producer and Bereavement Initiative Manager with the BC Centre for Palliative Care.

“Through the voices and stories of people living with unstable housing in Kelowna, the film shows what it means to grieve without a home, and how loss echoes through a community already struggling to survive,” he adds.

The film premieres at the Mary Irwin Theatre on Wednesday, October 15, at 1:30 pm, with another screening on Friday, November 7, at 6 pm. Both events will feature a panel discussion led by the film’s directors and producers.

“No Fixed Address: The White Cart Memorial is a powerful and personal documentary that highlights an often-overlooked part of the homelessness crisis: how people grieve the loss of someone they care about,” adds Dr. John Graham, Professor in the UBCO School of Social Work and Principal Investigator with the Kelowna Homelessness Research Centre.

The documentary is dedicated to the memories of all unhoused lives lost—and those who carry their grief, says Dr. Eman Hassan, Executive Director of the BC Centre for Palliative Care and adjunct professor in the UBC Faculty of Medicine.

“The film urges us to rethink how we hold space for public mourning, and how we can build more compassionate, inclusive systems of care,” she says. “Because only through community can we create safer places to grieve, heal and remember.”

Both events are free and open to everyone. For more information and to register for either date, visit: events.ok.ubc.ca/event/no-fixed-address-the-white-cart-memorial/2025-10-15.

To watch the trailer, visit: vimeo.com/1115956034.

The post The White Cart Memorial tells stories of love, loss and resilience appeared first on UBC's Okanagan News.

Posted in Faculty of Health and Social Development, School of Social Work

New UBCO research challenges traditional teen suicide prevention models

Masculinity debated in the digital age

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Men aren’t in crisis

Collision and consensus

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