UBC & The Aga Khan University Student Research Forum 2023

Online, June 7- July 5, 2023

The Global Climate Crisis: East to West

Perspectives, challenges and solutions.

About the program

Dates: June 7 - July 5, 2023 (Wednesdays - no session on June 28)
Location: Online

This pilot Global Virtual Classroom program is a four-week online student research forum focused on the health impacts of climate change. The forum is an opportunity for students from UBC and The Aga Khan University to collaborate across disciplines and cultures, problem-solve on some of the world's toughest issues, and co-create original research. With mixed teams involving students from both universities, the program consists of the following:  

  • Lectures, discussions and workshops led by academics and professionals in the field 
  • Pre-course assignments to prepare for the academic sessions and group work 
  • Group work to develop original research presentations based on the topic 
  • Virtual site visits 
  • Final group presentations  
  • Final individual report 

Theme: The Global Climate Crisis: East to West; perspectives, challenges and solutions.   

Climate change is the single biggest health threat facing humanity, and health professionals worldwide are already responding to the health harms caused by this unfolding crisis. 

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has concluded that to avert catastrophic health impacts and prevent millions of climate change-related deaths, the world must limit temperature rise to 1.5°C. Past emissions have already made a certain level of global temperature rise and other changes to the climate inevitable. Global heating of even 1.5°C is not considered safe, however; every additional tenth of a degree of warming will take a serious toll on people’s lives and health. 

While no one is safe from these risks, the people whose health is being harmed first and worst by the climate crisis are the people who contribute least to its causes, and who are least able to protect themselves and their families against it - people in low-income and disadvantaged countries and communities. 

The climate crisis threatens to undo the last fifty years of progress in development, global health, and poverty reduction, and to further widen existing health inequalities between and within populations. It severely jeopardizes the realization of universal health coverage (UHC) in various ways – including by compounding the existing burden of disease and by exacerbating existing barriers to accessing health services, often at the times when they are most needed. Over 930 million people - around 12% of the world’s population - spend at least 10% of their household budget to pay for health care. With the poorest people largely uninsured, health shocks and stresses already currently push around 100 million people into poverty every year, with the impacts of climate change worsening this trend. 

(https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/climate-change-and-health)

Key issues and questions for reflection and group work: 

  • What are the health impacts of climate change globally, what are the pathways through which impacts occur, and what are the similarities and differences in Canada and Pakistan?  
  • What populations are most vulnerable to the health impacts of climate change in Canada and Pakistan? 
  • What approaches can be used to reduce inequity in the health impacts of climate change? What can be done to minimize impacts on those who are marginalized or disadvantaged? 
  • What adaptation approaches are in place in both countries; what approaches can be transferred across settings? 
  • How can educators, researchers, health providers and policymakers in different countries work together to help address the health impacts of climate change? 
  • What are the opportunities within climate mitigation policies to provide health co-benefits?  
  • What is the role of healthcare providers in making climate a health issue and using climate adaptation as an opportunity to improve population health (e.g. active transportation, plant-based diets, etc.)?

Participating students will have the opportunity to learn about the health impacts of climate change and climate change education in Canada and Pakistan first-hand while receiving mentorship from professors from both UBC and AKU.  

Format

The forum consists of four, two-hour academic sessions held weekly on Wednesdays (June 7, 14, 21 & July 5). The first three sessions will each be led by a UBC and an AKU faculty member and each session will focus on a different aspect of the theme. Students will be placed into cross-institutional, cross-disciplinary teams to work on developing a group research presentation focused on a sub-theme of their choice. Teams will meet outside lecture hours to work on their research presentations, which will be delivered on the final Saturday.

Sessions will be held at 8 – 10 am (June 7 & July 5) and 8 – 10 pm (June 14 & 21) Pacific Time.

About AKU

"The mission of the Aga Khan University (AKU) is to improve quality of life in the developing world and beyond through world-class teaching, research and health-care delivery. The University educates students for local and global leadership, generates new knowledge to solve problems that affect millions of people, and raises standards and aspirations in the countries in which it works. We empower women and the disadvantaged, build support for pluralism, and collaborate with local partners and world-renowned organizations to achieve shared goals.  

Founded in 1983 as Pakistan’s first private university, AKU is a not-for-profit institution and an agency of the Aga Khan Development Network. Starting in 2000, the University expanded to Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Afghanistan, and the United Kingdom." 

UBC Academic Sponsors

Dr. Tara Ivanochko

Dr Tara Ivanochko is Associate Professor of Teaching in the Department of Earth Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences (EOAS) at The University of British Columbia (UBC) and Academic Director of the University’s Sustainability Hub. She received her PhD from the University of Edinburgh and joined UBC in 2009. She has since served as Director of Environmental Science and as Associate Head of Undergraduate Affairs in EOAS. Dr Ivanochko is a member of the UBC Interdisciplinary Education Task Force and helped envision the UBC 20-year Sustainability Strategy and develop the Faculty of Science sustainability course offerings. 

Dr. Michael Brauer

Michael Brauer joined the UBC faculty in 1991 in the Department of Medicine. He was an inaugural member of the Occupational Hygiene Program, Director of the School of Environmental Health (2003-2008) and the Occupational and Environmental Health co-lead in SPPH (2011-2014). He holds associate appointments in the Division of Respiratory Medicine and the Institute for Resources, Environment and Sustainability at UBC and is an Affiliate Professor in the Department of Global Health at the University of Washington. 

His research focuses on linkages between the built environment and human health, with specific interest in transportation-related and biomass air pollution, the global health impacts of air pollution and relationships between multiple exposures mediated by urban form and population health. He has conducted monitoring and epidemiological studies throughout the world and served on numerous advisory committees (e.g. World Health Organization, Climate and Clean Air Coalition, the US National Academies, Royal Society of Canada). 

Dr. Videsh Kapoor

Dr. Videsh Kapoor is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the UBC Department of Family Practice, Director of the Division of Global Health, and family physician practicing in Vancouver. She completed all of her medical training at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. She is involved in numerous Faculty of Medicine curriculum development and teaching activities, most notably in establishing Global Health education programs for both undergraduate and postgraduate medical students. Dr. Kapoor is also the co-director of the Enhanced Skills Program R3 Global Health in the Department of Family Practice, and the Global Health Theme Leader in the Medical Undergraduate Program at the University of British Columbia (UBC), as well as the co-founder of the UBC Global Health Initiative. Dr. Kapoor supervises many partnership projects in India, Nepal, Bhutan, Kenya, and Peru in collaboration with community partners. She also chairs a College of Family Physicians of Canada working group to develop core global health competencies for Canadian family medicine residency programs. 

AKU Academic Sponsors 

Dr. Fozia Parveen

Hailing from Gilgit Baltistan, Dr Fozia is an environmental scientist and Assistant Professor in the Institute of Educational Development. She has a strong passion for scientific research and community outreach. She believes in the application of the scientific and indigenous scholarship available in order to build communities of change for a sustainable planet. At AKU-IED, she plans on re-strengthening sustainability education to create that impact by educating educators. 

Dr. Zafar Fatmi

Dr. Fatmi is a leading scientist in Public Health and recognized as “Productive Scientist of Pakistan” by Ministry of Science and Technology. He is a professor in the Department of Community Health Sciences, Section Head of Occupational Health and Non-Communicable Diseases, and Associate Faculty in the Institute for Global Health and Development. Dr. Fatmi operates several large research grants from international sources. He has more than 70 peer-reviewed publications in international journals to his name and a book chapter (Megacities and Global Health) with American Public Health Association. He is also reviewer for several international peer-reviewed journals. He has done research in health systems, and conducted evaluation of large-scale projects related to reproductive and child health and currently focusing on environmental health research and teaching. He is also working as consultant for a project on Air Pollution monitoring and health effects in Makkah-Madina and Jeddah cities with King Abdul Aziz University. 

Dr. Jai K Das

Dr Jai K Das is an Assistant Director, Institute of Global Health and Development (IGHD) and Assistant Professor, Department of Paediatrics and Child Health and Section Head of Public Health and Epidemiology. Dr Das is currently pursuing his doctoral degree in Population and Public Health from the Aga Khan University. He has been associated with the University for more than 10 years and has led multiple research projects including community and clinical trials, population-based surveys, qualitative, mixed-method research, and evidence-based systematic reviews. His interests are related to the use of evidence in policy and programs, including estimates of burden of disease, estimating the effectiveness of various interventions, development of research capacity and the strengthening of public health. He has worked on various reports which have been used to influence policy, both nationally and internationally. Dr Das is the lead author for various Lancet series, including Childhood Pneumonia and Diarrhoea 2012, Maternal and Child Undernutrition 2021 and 2013, Newborn and Neonatal Health 2014, Stillbirth Series 2016, Women’s and Children’s Health in Conflict Settings 2021, and Maternal and Child Undernutrition Progress 2021. He has also authored more than 180 international peer-reviewed papers and contributed to more than 20 book chapters. He is co-editor of the book Health and Sustainable Development Goals for Pakistan. In addition, Dr Das holds a strong interest in coaching and mentoring. Besides actively organizing training workshops, he also dedicates his time to teaching, both undergraduate and postgraduate students. 

Student eligibility

Up to 15 UBC students will be selected to participate: Undergraduate students or graduate students are eligible to apply, though priority will be given to senior undergraduate students. Successful applicants should demonstrate a strong academic performance, interest and experiences in extra-curricular activities, and be a good team-player.  

  • Full time undergraduate or graduate students (minimum 18 credits in the 2022-23 academic year)  
  • Minimum 70% academic average overall, and in Term 1 2022 
  • Currently 2nd year status or higher  
  • Students from any faculty are eligible 
  • Students from both UBC-V and UBC-O are eligible     
  • Highly motivated students who possess a strong interest in the forum themes. Prior to the forum, participants should prepare themselves for fruitful discussion by researching on a specific topic of their interest relevant to the main theme.    


Fees 

This is a fully funded program. There are no student participation fees. 


How to apply

Application deadline: March 28, 2023 at 4 pm.

Complete the online application

In your application you will be asked to provide a Statement of Intent (500 words maximum) commenting on the following:  

  • Your motivation for joining this program 
    • Your interest in the topic 
    • How this program will benefit you in your current academic program and support your career goals 
  • What you can bring to this global collaborative program 
    • Any experience working on a team 
    • Leadership skills 
    • Your interest and/or experience in community engagement or service 

Please also upload your most up-to-date resume/CV. 

Selected students will be notified by April 6.