The IRES Seminar Series showcases the research of our graduate students, faculty and guests. There are also monthly professional development seminars. Our seminars are open to everyone.
The seminars run every Thursday during the Winter Session (September to April) from 12:30pm to 1:30pm (Pacific Standard Time).
Winter 2020/21 Term 2 Seminars will be held via Zoom. Please email Bonnie Leung (bonnie.leung@ubc.ca) for the Seminar Zoom link.
Select seminar videos are available for viewing here.
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November 7, 2019: IRES Student Seminar with David Righter and Livia Mello
October 31, 2019: IRES Student Seminar with Vikas Menghwani and Maayan Kreitzman
October 24, 2019: IRES Professional Development Seminar with Vicki Lynne George
Vicki is from the Wet'suwet'en Nation. She is trained in the legal, executive and corporate world with over 23 years of experience. Born and raised in the lower mainland, Vicki continues to stay connected with her Indigenous roots and extended family members in Northern BC. She understands the importance of carrying on the work of her parents and family relating to Indigenous issues. Her father, Ron George, was a prominent Indigenous leader and her late mother, Phyllis, worked at key Indigenous organizations. Vicki grew up with law, politics and history discussions around the dinner table. Her parents' knowledge and teachings enable Vicki to continue their work and achievements in today's world. Vicki developed and produced "The Constitution Express: A Multimedia History" (2005-2006), a joint project with UBC's First Nations Studies program and the Union of BC Indian Chiefs. Generational activism has deep roots for Vicki. Her father was a key participant and organizer in the Constitution Express, and Vicki's multimedia project started an archive for this historical movement that resulted in Section 35 being included in the Canadian Constitution. To date, Vicki’s project is still the only published and significant work on this extraordinary Indigenous history. This university project led to her being a documentary subject in the film "The Road Forward", (released 2017) written and directed by Marie Clements. Vicki has screened "The Road Forward" film around BC to further Truth and Reconciliation education in companies, universities and at film festivals. Vicki is a guest speaker at companies and universities in the lower mainland, including Vancity Savings Credit Union, National Film Board, Simon Fraser University and the University of British Columbia. She also applies her knowledge and experience with consultation services that includes Indigenous cultural awareness training, history and advancing initiatives in companies and post-secondary institutions. Vicki builds bridges and works at improving relationships between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people to move forward with Truth and Reconciliation. Read More
October 17, 2019: IRES Faculty Seminar with Sieglinde Snapp
Sieglinde Snapp is a Professor of Soils and Cropping Systems Ecology, Assoc. Director, Center for Global Change Earth Observations at Michigan State University, and Senior Advisor to Innovation Systems for the Drylands, ICRISAT. She is ‘Mother of the Mother and Baby Trial’, used in dozens of countries as a participatory action approach to improve research relevance. Through interdisciplinary, open-access science, her team has helped shape agricultural policy in Malawi, flagged declines in soil productivity, and identified overlooked forms of crop diversity for sustainable food systems: http://globalchangescience.org/eastafricanode. She is an Agronomy Fellow and a Soil Science Fellow, and received the ASA International Service Award. Read More
October 10, 2019: IRES Student Seminar with Evan Bowness and Abhishek Kar
October 3, 2019: IRES Faculty Seminar with Claudia Ituarte-Lima
Dr. Claudia Ituarte-Lima is research associate at IRES at UBC. She is also a researcher on international law at Stockholm Resilience Centre and affiliated senior researcher at the Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights. For more than 15 years, she has specialized in the human rights, biodiversity and climate law nexus both in theory and practice. Her focus is on law and policy for sustainability and social justice and the transformation of international law into new governance forms at national and community levels. Her methodology ranges from extensive fieldwork especially in Africa and Latin America, to studies examining the interactions of international regimes .Claudia provides expert advise to the Convention on Biological Diversity, and the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and Environment. Read More
September 26, 2019: IRES Professional Development Seminar with Kai Chan, Amanda Giang, and Leila Harris
After graduation, many graduate students will go on to hold influential and rewarding jobs in the governmental, policy, advocacy, and/or private sectors. But for those aiming to stay in academia, the competition can be fierce, with less than 25% of doctoral graduates obtaining a tenure-track faculty position. In this panel discussion, we speak with three faculty members with various perspectives on what it takes to set yourself apart when applying for -- and hopefully landing -- a faculty position. Read More
September 19, 2019: IRES Faculty Seminar with Daniel Steel
Dr. Steel is Associate Professor in the W. Maurice Young Centre for Applied Ethics in the School of Population and Public Health. His research focuses on values and science in the context of environmental and public health issues. Dr. Steel is also the author of Philosophy and the Precautionary Principle: Science, Evidence and Environmental Policy (2015 Cambridge University Press). Current research includes SSHRC funded projects on concepts of diversity their relevance to science and public engagement with health policy decisions. Read More
September 12, 2019: IRES Faculty Seminar with Claire Kremen
Claire Kremen will discuss why conservation in working lands is needed to complement and enhance the effectiveness of protected areas, describe several agricultural case studies where working lands conservation appears successful, and discuss meta-analysis results, barriers to adoption and potential solutions through community engagement. Read More
September 5, 2019: IRES Faculty Seminar with Tahia Devisscher
Dr Tahia Devisscher has ten years of international experience working at the interface of environment and development. In her work, Tahia adopts systems thinking and interdisciplinarity to integrate traditional knowledge with scientific data, and assess possible climate adaptation strategies based on ecosystem management. Tahia has a PhD from the University of Oxford (UK), and is a Postdoctoral Research and Teaching Fellow at the University of British Columbia (Canada). Currently, she is investigating the extent to which urban forests increase social-ecological resilience to climate change, and improve the way in which urban residents relate to, benefit from, and engage with nature. Read More
April 11, 2019: IRES Student Symposium Speakers: various RES Master and PhD students
The IRES Student Symposium showcases research done by our Masters and PhD students. Presenters include John Driscoll, Naya Arriagada Oyarzún, Krista Cawley, Victor Lam, Steve Williams and Connor Robinson. ************************************************************************************************ Photo Credit: from openclipart.org Read More
April 4, 2019: IRES Faculty Seminar with Navin Ramankutty
Navin Ramankutty is Professor and Canada Research Chair in Global Environmental Change and Food Security at the Liu Institute for Global Issues and the Institute for Resources, Environment, and Sustainability at the University of British Columbia. ************************************************************************************************ Photo Credit: Graham McDowell Read More
March 28, 2019: IRES Professional Development Seminar: Non-academic career options
************************************************************************************************ Photo Credit: Madison Stevens, IRES PhD Student Read More
March 21, 2019: IRES Faculty Seminar with Dr. Ron Stewart (University of Manitoba)
Dr. Ron Stewart from University of Manitoba will be presenting on climate/ weather extremes in a changing climate. While focusing on the physics aspect, Ron will also include societal impacts and adaptation measures. Read More
March 14, 2019: IRES Student Seminar with Marco Vázquez Pérez and Alejandra Echeverri
We will be hearing presentations from Marco Vázquez Pérez, MSc student, and Alejandra Echeverri, PhD student. More talk info coming soon . ************************************************************************************************ Photo Credit: Rocio Lopez, IRES PhD Student Read More
March 7, 2019: IRES Professional Development Seminar with Nafiza Ali
February 28, 2019: IRES Student Seminar with Sahir Advani & Sean Smillie
We will be hearing presentations from Sahir Advani, PhD student, and Sean Smillie, MSc student. Read More
February 14, 2019: IRES Faculty Seminar with Dr. Nathan Bennett
Nathan Bennett is a Postdoctoral Fellow with the Institute for Oceans and Fisheries at UBC. His research focuses on research projects that interrogate various aspects of the complex relationship between the marine environment and human society. Read More
February 7, 2019: IRES Faculty Seminar with Dr. Noella Gray
Marine protected areas (MPAs) are playing an increasingly significant role in global ocean conservation governance. In just the past ten years, total ocean area under protected status has increased more than fivefold. Drawing on literature from political ecology, political geography, and Science and Technology Studies, this talk will examine how science and other kinds of knowledge are produced for, and integrated into, MPA policies. Read More
January 31, 2019: IRES Faculty Seminar with Dr. Michelle Daigle
Michelle Daigle is Mushkegowuk (Cree), a member of Constance Lake First Nation in Treaty 9 in northern Ontario Canada, and of French ancestry. She is an assistant professor in the Department of Geography at the University of British Columbia, located on the unceded and ancestral territories of the Musqueam nation. Read More
January 24, 2019: IRES Faculty Seminar with Dr. Margery Fee
Margery Fee is an Emeritus Professor of English at UBC and discusses “Polarizing Bears” and the Climate Change Debate in this week's seminar series. Read More
January 17, 2019: IRES Faculty Seminar with Dr. Nadja Kunz
Join us for a talk by Nadja Kunz, Assistant Professor at the School of Public Policy and Global Affairs and Norman B Keevil Mining Engineering at the University of British Columbia. Read More
January 10, 2019: IRES Professional Development Seminar with Panel Discussion
Join IRES on Thursday, Jan 10th for our first seminar of the term, "Effecting change through community research and non-research projects" featuring panelists Dr. Terre Satterfield, Dr. Hadi Dowlatabadi, and Dr. Nathan Bennett. Read More
November 29, 2018: IRES Faculty Seminar with Dr. Matthew Mitchell
(Last Seminar for Term 1)
Join IRES on Thursday, Nov. 29th. Matthew Mitchell, an NSERC postdoc with IRES, will be presenting on "Managing landscapes for people and nature at multiple spatial scales." Read More
November 22, 2018: IRES Professional Development Seminar with Panel Discussion
Join IRES on Thursday, Nov. 22 for a panel discussion presentation on "The nuts and bolts of the publishing-industrial complex." Read More
November 15, 2018: IRES Faculty Seminar with Sheryl Lightfoot
Join IRES on Thursday, Nov. 15 for Sheryl Lightfoot's presentation on "Global Indigenous Rights and Politics: A Subtle Revolution." Read More
November 1, 2018: IRES Faculty Seminar with Dr. Amanda Giang
Join IRES on Thursday, Nov. 1 for Amanda Giang's presentation on "Policy Evaluation Problems: Evaluating the effectiveness of a global mercury treaty" Read More
October 25, 2018: IRES Professional Development Seminar with Dr. Justin Ritchie & Dr. David Shiffman
Join IRES on Thursday, Oct. 25 for a professional development seminar on "Communicating our research through creative media," presented by Dr. Justin Ritchie and Dr. David Shiffman. Read More
October 18, 2018: IRES Faculty Seminar with Robin Harder
Join IRES on Thursday, Oct. 18 for Robin Harder's talk on "Five often overlooked aspects of closing nutrient cycles from human excreta to food and farming systems." Read More
November 8, 2018: Seminar with Nathan Bendriem & Weildler Guerra Curvelo
Join IRES on Nov. 8 for Nathan Bendriem's talk on "Economic Analysis of Genomic Technologies used to Enhance Coho Broodstock" and Weildler Guerra Curvelo's talk on "Wayuu Ontology: a relationship between time, Wayuu people, and the non-human world." Read More
September 20, 2018: IRES Faculty Seminar
Speaker: David Boyd
David Boyd, UN Special Rapporteur on human rights and the environment and environmental lawyer, will be presenting on "The Right to Breathe Clean Air: Catalyst for Change?" Read More
February 21, 2019: No Seminar due to Reading Week
No Seminar due to Reading Week ************************************************************************************************ Photo Credit: Ivana Zelenika, IRES PhD Candidate Read More
October 4, 2018: IRES Student Seminar
Speakers: Johnnie Manson and Rainer Lempert
We will be hearing presentations from Johnnie Manson, a PhD student and Rainer Lempert, MSc student. ******************************************************************************************************** Photo Credit: Graham McDowell, IRES PhD Candidate Read More
October 11, 2018: IRES Student Seminar
Speakers: Abhishek Kar and Zachary Sherker
We will be hearing presentations from Abhishek Kar, a PhD student and Zachary Sherker, MSc student. ************************************************************************************************ Photo Credit: Robin Harder, Postdoctoral Fellow at IRES Read More
September 13, 2018: IRES Faculty Seminar
Speaker: Julia Baird (Brock University)
Julia Baird, Assistant Professor at Brock University, will present on the "Understandings of water resource systems through a resilience lens" Read More
September 6, 2018: IRES Faculty Seminar
Speaker: Charlie Wilson
(First Seminar for Term 1)
Charlie Wilson, an IRES alum, and a current research in the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research will be speaking on "Transforming Energy Demand to Meet the 1.5°C Climate Target and Sustainable Development Goals Without Negative Emission Technologies". Photo Credit: Madison Stevens, IRES PhD Student Read More
December 7, 2017: IRES Special Seminar
Speaker: Bradley Eyre
Last Seminar for Term 1
IRES Seminar Series Time: 12:30pm to 1:30pm (every Thursday) Location: AERL Theatre (room 120), 2202 Main Mall *************************************************************************** Role of shallow water carbonate sediment dissolution in the future accretion of coral reefs in an acidifying ocean Abstract: Ocean acidification (OA) is predicted to have a significant impact on the future of coral reefs, […] Read More
November 30, 2017: IRES Faculty Seminar
Speaker: Wade Davis
February 1, 2018: IRES Faculty Seminar
Speaker: Steve Conrad
Friday March 2, 2018: Future of Food Global Dialogues: ‘Grazed and Confused’
“Grazed and Confused”: Panel on meat production, climate change, and sustainability This is a joint event between IRES, UBC Farm and UBC Animal Welfare Program (in Faculty of Land and Food Systems) Friday, March 2, 2018 10:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. Room 107 – Aquatic Ecosystems Research Laboratory, 2202 Main Mall, Vancouver Grazing animals […] Read More