I actually entered UBC as a Science undergraduate intending to major in general Biology. While I knew what I did not want to do at this point, I was not provided with the environment, opportunities, and guidance that would have helped me carve out my path. A friend from my high school in FNH encouraged me to transfer to LFS, and I am so glad that I did so at the end of my first year!
What was your favourite class and why?
There are so many favourite classes to choose from, but APBI 214 and APBI 398 are a close tie! In APBI 214 (Animal Sheltering and Companion Animal Support Services), I had so many lightbulb moments during lectures that made me realize my passion and curiosity for the course material. In APBI 398 (Research Methods in Applied Biology), I could apply my newfound knowledge of animal sheltering and One Welfare in a research assistant role, eventually leading to the opportunity to present at two conferences!
Do you recommend students get involved in extra-curriculars? What did you do outside of the classroom?
Absolutely! I have been involved in LFS leadership roles, including the LFS Undergraduate Society (LFS|US) and LFS Orientations, as well as a couple of AMS club executive positions. I am currently the Animal Welfare Program’s (AWP) Communications and Media Assistant as a part of the UBC Work Learn Program, and I have also been helping with research on the side.
What is the next step for you? Do you have plans post-graduation (professional, academic and/or personal)?
In my fifth and final year, I fell in love with research, and I plan to apply for a Master’s degree in animal welfare in the following year. In the meantime, I will be continuing in my Communications and Media Assistant role with the AWP, developing the skills that I hope to apply to a future career in science communications.
What advice do you have for students?
I strongly encourage getting involved in leadership, because it is a great way to develop important skills and also meet fellow students outside of a classroom setting! As an introvert, all of these roles helped me gain more confidence, and it has truly enriched my whole university experience. Exploring research, whether as part of a course or not, can also help you identify your passions.
Class of 2023: Julia Taylor (BSc Global Resource Systems)
Julia Taylor
How did LFS match your personal and/or professional interests?
This Faculty, and my program especially, gave me the chance to develop existing interests as well as discover new ones through the course of my winding journey of exploring courses and changing my mind a million times during my degree–ultimately landing me in a place where I feel well-rounded and as though I’ve gained a wider and deeper understanding of the world at large. I feel lucky to have found deep passions for real-life issues through my studies in LFS, such as biodiversity conservation, agricultural sustainability, and local food systems, that I am excited to continue to pursue in my career.
What was your favourite class and why?
I absolutely loved taking BIOL 343 – Plants and Peoples taught by Dr. Shona Ellis, as this course really gave me a “crash course” in botany and plant taxonomy for groups of plants that were culturally, ecologically, and economically significant. Simultaneously, we learned about how people have interacted with, learned from, and grown alongside plants for millenia—with many hands-on lab opportunities to learn through experience.
Do you recommend students get involved in extra-curriculars? What did you do outside of the classroom?
I highly recommend getting involved outside of your classes! Some of my favorite experiences come from my time working at the UBC Farm, including the incredible opportunity I had to take a Directed Studies course at the xʷc̓ic̓əsəm Garden taught by Dr. Eduardo Jovel, Dr. Alannah Young Leon, and Wilson Mendes. The students got to learn about Indigenous ways of knowing, plants as medicine, and growing food while in a beautiful setting among generous people. I also worked conducting Biodiversity Monitoring Surveys at the UBC Farm and love all the organisms that call that land home, and cherish the fact that I got to do that alongside my regular coursework during my degree, as the lessons are invaluable from these experiences.
What advice do you have for students?
My advice for students is to find a way to connect with the natural areas around campus, whether it be volunteering at the Botanical Gardens, taking a walk around Nitobe Memorial Garden, learning to recognize the not-uncommon sound of a bald eagle call that may be heard by the Rose Garden, or simply taking a moment to pay attention to the changing colours and shapes of the foliage around UBC as the seasons progress. We are so privileged to be guests on this land, with stunning sites around the entire peninsula, and it is our responsibility to be stewards and appreciate the environments around us.
Congratulations to the LFS Young Alumni Council on the success of their first LFS Young Alumni Networking Event on May 11, 2023!
A big shout-out to the hardworking council members for bringing together students and graduates to exchange experiences, insights and industry knowledge. A special thanks to Dean Rickey Yada, Rob Kim and all the LFS students and staff who attended and showed their support. Your presence truly made a difference!
The Faculty of Land and Food Systems at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada (www.landfood.ubc.ca) is seeking an outstanding candidate for a part-time (62%) Lecturer within the Food and Resource Economics Program. This will be an initial two-year position, from July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2025.
Applicants must have a PhD in Agricultural Economics. Additionally, an MBA would be an asset. Previous experience teaching at a post-secondary institution and familiarity with Canvas, or another Learning Management Software an asset.
The successful applicant will be responsible for teaching 15 credits of courses per year as follows: LFS 101.201 (3), FNH 415 (3), FRE 306 (3), FRE 515 (3), and HUNU 515 (3).
The closing date for applications June 28, 2023. Please send applications including CV with cover letter, evidence of teaching excellence, and names of 3 references to the attention of:
The Faculty of Land and Food Systems uses student-centered learning to educate new generations of learners equipped to solve the most fundamental issues faced by society — those focused around human health, a sustainable food supply and the responsible use of finite land and water resources.
Equity and diversity are essential to academic excellence. An open and diverse community fosters the inclusion of voices that have been underrepresented or discouraged. We encourage applications from members of groups that have been marginalized on any grounds enumerated under the B.C. Human Rights Code, including sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, racialization, disability, political belief, religion, marital or family status, age, and/or status as a First Nation, Metis, Inuit, or Indigenous person. All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadians and permanent residents of Canada will be given priority.
Imagine a future where animals – like many humans – wear Fitbit-like devices.
Varinia Cabrera has tested 30 different prototypes of sheep monitors in Uruguay for her master’s thesis at Universidad de la República. As an electrical engineering student, she hopes to reduce lamb mortality with wearable electronics that, in the future, will be able to track the exact time a sheep has given birth.
She arrived at UBC in January 2023 through the competitive Emerging Leaders in the Americas Program. The short-term student exchange program allows her to spend six months at UBC where she will study at both the Vancouver campus and the Agassiz Dairy Education and Research Centre.
She was drawn to UBC’s Animal Welfare Program for its transdisciplinary research that uses technology and data analysis to improve the health and wellbeing of animals.
“Transdisciplinary work is essential because it gives purpose to the technology that engineers develop,” says Cabrera.
Although agricultural and animal industries are key sectors in Uruguay, finding transdisciplinary research centres that develop technologies to improve animal welfare is complex. In Canada, this specific line of research is found at the Animal Welfare Program at UBC.”
Wearable devices are a growing trend in industrial agriculture worldwide. The data collected from each individual animal can more accurately pinpoint health information that can be used, for example, to predict and prevent illnesses.
“I’m learning how to approach and interact with animals in a safe way that doesn’t negatively impact their wellbeing,” she says. “The UBC dairy centre is running many projects using technology, such as the use of automated feeders to track when and how much cattle eat, and sensors that monitor the body temperature of animals.”
Under the supervision of Dr. Dan Weary and PhD student Sky Sheng, one of Cabrera’s projects involves using technology to better detect lameness in dairy cows. Lameness is painful to cows and is a major problem for dairy farmers. Sometimes a lame cow can be hard to identify, but Cabrera is using technology to splice videos of cows in such a way that two cows can be viewed side by side, allowing for much easier evaluation of which cow is more lame. Cabrera is now using data from these pairwise comparisions to develop rankings for the herd, and in this way allow for rapid (and automated) assessments of which cows need treatment.
Back at home in Uruguay, Cabrera works under the supervision of Dr. Julián Oreggioni and Dr. R. Ungerfeld at the Universidad de la República. Uruguay is a major exporter of animal products (there are 3.5 cows to every person, according to Cabrera), and she hopes her work (and the lessons she is learning at UBC) will help improve the lives of farm animals in her home country.
“Sheep roam free in Uruguay and could be kilometres away from a farmer so if a lamb is abandoned, it may not be known. If we know this, we could take steps to have the lamb mothered by another sheep. My dream is to do long-term studies of sheep from a distance.”
Dr. Weary hopes this connection to Cabrera and her supervisors will lead to further collaborations, building on the learnings from both countries. “Our research is heavily dependent on engineering and data science as applicable to agricultural research. Dr. Oreggioni and Dr. Ungerfeld’s research expertise on farm-monitoring systems presents an excellent opportunity to integrate our research.”
The Faculty of Land and Food Systems is piloting its first Young Alumni Council (YAC) – a team of volunteer alumni members dedicated to sharing their talent and skills with recent UBC graduates through networking, professional development, entrepreneurship, and community engagement opportunities.
Following his involvement with the launch of the YAC at the University of Alberta’s Faculty of Engineering, Development Officer James Wang aims to replicate the success of the self-sustaining program at LFS with support from Dean Rickey Yada and Alumni Relations Manager Niki Glenning.
In late 2022, Wang and Glenning set out to recruit volunteers to fill the leadership roles on the YAC and nearly 80 applicants responded. The 16-member council is led by President Kimia Nozadi (BSc Food, Nutrition and Health 2020), VP Professional Development Misa Gillis (BSc Global Resource Systems 2020), VP Networking Akshaya Jayaseelan (MSc Food Science 2018), and VP Entrepreneurship Bhavana Rao (MSc Food Science 2018).
LFS has more than 3,000 alumni who have graduated within the past 10 years (2012-2022). The new council has the vision of empowering these alumni by leading the creation of a Young Alumni Program that will build lifelong relationships between alumni, students, community members, and industry partners through programming and events.
In early May, the YAC hosted its inaugural reception to introduce their initiatives. The LFS-led pilot has captured the interest of alumni engagement teams across UBC and should it prove to be successful, the model may be adopted by other Faculties.
Dr. Tabitha Robin Martens received a UBC Hampton Research Endowment fund, which helps faculty members in the early stages of their careers establish their research programs. Dr. Martens joined UBC’s Applied Biology program in Sept. 2021, and her research involves learning how the practices of seed savers and seed knowledge holders impact Indigenous food sovereignty, as well as rebuilding traditional food systems by considering Indigenous knowledge and land-based education.
Dr. Sean Smukler became the new Director of the Centre for Sustainable Food Systems (CSFS) at UBC Farm on Jan. 1, 2023. Dr. Smukler recently served as the Associate Dean, Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies. He holds the Chair, Agriculture andthe Environment, and he’s currently leading the development of a new strategic plan for the CSFS.
Dr. Jennifer Black received two grants to support her research on food insecurity. UBC Health After 2020 funded a project titled Hungry for Stories: Building collaboration among dietitians, health scholars, policy makers and artists to spark public action on food insecurity. In addition, the SSHRC Connection program has funded a project involving stakeholders developing new tools that engage children with evidence about food insecurity.
Dr. Gurcharn Singh Brar has received more than $1M in funding through four grants to study wheat and barley. These various genomic studies are aimed at developing a biovigilance strategy against cereal pathogens and diseases, and a functional genomic characterization of the gene controlling spikelet number and floret fertility in wheat. Granting agencies include Saskatchewan Wheat Development Commission, Manitoba Crop Alliance, Alberta Wheat Commission, Western Grains Research Foundation, Saskatchewan Barley Development Commission, and Genome BC and Investment Agriculture Foundation.
Dr. Jerzy Zawistowski, Academic Director, Master of Food Science Program, received a Merit Award from the International Society for Nutraceuticals and Functional Foods (ISNFF) for outstanding contributions and service to the discipline. The award was presented at their 14th International Conference and Exhibition in Turkey.
Dr. Mahesh Upadhyaya, Professor Emeritus in Plant Science, was recognized at the International Weed Conference of the Indian Society of Weed Science in Gujarat, India in Dec. 2022. He received the Gold Medal (2020) in recognition of his outstanding contributions to weed science, and the Best Book Award (2021) for “Global Plant Invasions”. The society meets biennially to present awards for the previous two years.
Dr. Kristen Walker won a 2023 Clements Award for Outstanding Research and Education. The Clements Awards was created to highlight the outstanding work of the many wildlife advocates and animal lovers in Canada.
News & Notes
Nisa Chavez
Nisa Chavez, an undergraduate student in Applied Animal Biology, won first place at the Multidisciplinary Undergraduate Research Conference (MURC) held for UBC students, in the Virtual Presentation category. Chavez worked as a researcher in the Plant-Insect Ecology and Evolution Lab and presented her project, a data analysis of “Spatiotemporal prevalence of two Agriotes pest species at the UBC Farm”. Her research supported a long-term project at the UBC Farm that is monitoring two important click beetle species, which are agricultural pests of economic concern. Chavez competed against 22 other virtual presenters. In total, more than 350 presentations were part of MURC, including in-person presentation and poster sessions.
Musqueam Garden at UBC Farm
Eduardo Jovel
Musqueam Garden will be creating more food security, health and wellness programs aided by recent funding from UBC’s Community-University Engagement Support (CUES) Fund.
Leading the initiatives are Patricia Isaak, Health Services Coordinator, Musqueam Indian Band, and Dr. Eduardo Jovel, LFS Applied Biology program and xʷcicəsəm Garden.
This year marks the fourth growing season at Musqueam garden, where Isaak and Dr. Jovel endeavour to grow healthy, local, and culturally appropriate foods to unite the community and enhance food security. During the growing season, they will increase food production and distribution. In addition, they will deliver health and wellness workshops and provide opportunities to learn about traditional medicines, food preparation, and nutritional literacy.
They also hope to use the CUES Fund to increase participation in the garden among both community members and UBC students, and increase food security capacity at Musqueam, such as through grassroots programs.
New awards for top graduate student researchers
To recognize the contribution to research made by LFS graduate students, the Faculty has created two new annual awards. These run in conjunction with the annual Governor General Gold Medal and CAGS-ProQuest Distinguished Dissertation Award competitions; the students selected as the GG Gold Medal nominees are named winners in the newly created top LFS thesis and dissertation awards. Huiying (Amelie) Zhang (MSc Food Science 2022), won the LFS Top Thesis Award, which is presented to the master’s student with the top-ranked thesis.
Zhang’s thesis was Identification of circuminoids in nutraceuticals and assessment of stability and bioactivity following pulsed light treatment. Dr. Ronit Mandal (PhD Food Science 2022), won the LFS Top Dissertation Award, given to the doctoral student with the highest-ranked dissertation. Mandal’s topic was Design, development, and validation of continuous-flow pulsed UV light systems for liquid food processing.
Establishing Spaces for Indigenous Land-based Learning
Since publishing this article, Wilson Mendes has sadly, and unexpectedly, left us. We mourn the loss of a dear friend and colleague. If you wish, we invite you to read more about Wilson’s life and legacy here.
In 2021, Associate Professor Dr. Eduardo Jovel established the first ever Indigenous Land-Based Health, Wellness, and Education Research Cluster at UBC. The cluster brings together researchers and educators from different fields across UBC, Simon Fraser University, and University of Victoria to collaborate and address societal and cultural challenges related to Indigenous people’s health, wellness, and education.
Coordinating this new research cluster is Wilson Mendes, who is completing his PhD in Integrated Studies in Land and Food Systems and has extensive experience as an interdisciplinary scholar facilitating conversations between people of diverse cultural backgrounds.
Wilson Mendes
Mendes received his Master of Arts in Indigenous Community Planning from UBC’s School of Community and Regional Planning. During his studies, he completed a professional community planning project with the Yaq̓it ʔa·knuqⱡiʾit (Tobacco Plains Indian Band from the Ktunaxa Nation) where he supported the Comprehensive Community Planning (CCP) process for eight months.
His PhD research looks at how land-based education and Indigenous food system practices are essential for decolonization efforts. This involves engaging with land, food, culture, and community to promote the health and wellness of Indigenous communities, especially in urban areas.
Mendes’ knowledge of food as medicine is deeply influenced by his multicultural heritage. He grew up in Aquidauana, a small town in the midwest region of Brazil, and inherited a rich ancestry that includes Terena, Mozambican, and Portuguese roots. This diverse background has given him a profound understanding of how food can be used to promote health and wellbeing.
“As someone with an Indigenous background, I have always been deeply fascinated by Indigenous land-based practices, specifically around food. Through my community-based research and activism, I am driven to explore the transformative potential that Indigenous food systems can offer in decolonizing our current food system. I firmly believe that Indigenous food practices have much to teach us about sustainability, community building, and the relationships between humans and the environment.”
His research builds on Dr. Alannah Young’s research on land-based pedagogies. As a research associate in LFS, Dr. Young works at the xʷc̓ic̓əsəm Garden (Indigenous Health Research and Education Garden) with the Indigenous Medicine Collective, in partnerships with local Indigenous Elders. While her doctoral research interviewed Elders in her community outside of the city, Mendes’ research focussed on Indigenous youth in urban spaces.
Mendes interviewed 13 urban Indigenous youth on their land-based learning experiences at three Indigenous Gardens at the UBC Farm:The xʷc̓ic̓əsəm, Tal A’xin, and Tu’wusht garden programs. The interviews involved youth participants from diverse urban Indigenous communities beyond North America.
Through their participation in Indigenous ceremonies within their garden programs, the youth were able to reconnect with their identities in a powerful way. For many of these youth, it was their first experience of this kind.
Mendes’ findings show that Indigenous land-based programs are essential for promoting the overall health, healing, and cultural identity of urban Indigenous youth by facilitating reconnection to Indigenous knowledge, land, food, culture, and community.
According to Mendes, establishing culturally relevant and safe spaces, such as the three gardens, can help to address the multilayered effects of colonization: “By creating spaces where Indigenous knowledge and practices can be shared and respected, Indigenous peoples can reclaim their self-determination and promote cultural revitalization.”
Mendes also acknowledges the challenge of creating similar spaces in big cities. To contribute to this conversation, he developed a framework of five pedagogical guiding elements. “This framework aims to promote collaborative land-based education program development and delivery between Canadian settler society and Indigenous peoples and communities in urban spaces,” explains Mendes. “It can also inform the development of relevant Indigenous health promotion policies, practices, and programming for urban Indigenous youth.”
The framework highlights the need to move away from cultural competency, being aware of cultural values and beliefs, and towards cultural safety, which involves recognizing systemic inequalities and power imbalances within land-based program development and implementation. Mendes sees his role as supporting this process at UBC, working with faculty, staff, students, and external partners.
Alannah Jagpal, a fourth-year student in Applied Biology, was sponsored by the Dean’s Office to join the Advancing Women in Agriculture Conference (AWC), held in Calgary on March 12-14. Jagpal shares what she gained through the experience.
Who did you meet at AWC that made an impact, and why?
Every person I met at the conference from students to the Minister of Agriculture had an impact on me. Julia Flinton, who is a cattle producer and manager of Food Systems Program ISPARC, made an impact on me with how she ended her talk. After explaining all these unbelievably amazing things she’s done throughout her life/career, she said, “I feel like I’m just faking it until I make it. But really, what am I faking?” As someone who constantly faces imposter syndrome in the agriculture industry, it was almost comforting to know that even people who are literally changing the world feel this way. I learned how important it is to remind ourselves and think, “what am I faking?” and you will easily come to realize that everything you’re doing is real and you are truly meant to be where you are no matter how we may make ourselves feel.
What were some key takeaways that you gained from attending AWC?
After all the speeches and people I met at the conference my key takeaway was, I can do it (although I don’t know what my “it” is yet). These women have quite literally done it all (farmers, mothers, entrepreneurs, veterinarians). It was so inspiring to hear where many of them started out and where they are now. They are my first-hand proof that dedication, hard work and passion will take you wherever you want to be in life. They showed me that hardships and struggles do not define your journey or who you are but overcoming them does. There have been so many times where I thought that my goals in life were too far to reach but seeing these women live out my dreams and goals made me realize, “maybe my goals are closer than I thought”.
What is your background in agriculture?
For as long as I can remember, agriculture and farming have been the centre of my being. When my maternal family came from India in 1914, they made a living and survived by becoming dairy farmers. I come from a long history of farmers and grew up on a raspberry and blueberry farm myself. After being immersed in the agriculture industry for so long, I decided to follow my passion and am currently pursuing a degree in Applied Biology majoring in Sustainable Agriculture and Environment.
Throughout my education I have studied and learned much about the current issues farmers are facing in regards to the sustainability and longevity of farming systems. Issues based around soil science (infertility, contamination, degradation) and crop production fuel my desire for further knowledge in the area as I know first-hand how these issues affect farmers.
My schooling has taught me developed ideas which researchers know successfully combat these issues, but it has also introduced phenomena which are less understood yet have the potential to be even more successful. These less-developed ideas are what drive my passion to create change and make a more positive future for next-generation farmers. The change that research brings to the agriculture industry is so important, which is why I applied for and recently completed my research practicum position at the UBC Dairy Education and Research Centre.
