SSHRC-ing my Responsibilities

I’m working on a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council grant or SSHRC, pronounced shirk for short. Those of you who have done a Masters or a PhD will know what I’m talking about and will empathize with me. It’s a monster – with many moving parts. And the deadline […] Read More

Solar Building Blocks

Over the last few weeks I’ve been sharing photos of buildings and other structures made from solar panels on my Facebook page. Photovoltaic Cells (PV) are being used for shade in large parking lots, as roofs and external walls (seen above on the ECN building) and to construct entire buildings, […] Read More

Wholesome Doesn’t Ad Up

Walmart has a commercial running right now that features a young boy at a kitchen table with a giant box of frosted flakey cereal in the foreground, a granola bar and a barely visible fruit cup. The mother is asking him to choose which one he wants in his lunch. […] Read More

Pool Weather

Every May long weekend I celebrate the opening of the Kitsilano pool. Then it rains til July. I still swim during the rainy months, alongside the triathletes, all cozy in their wet suits. But the crowds don’t roll in til the weather warms. The second Sunday in September, I mourn […] Read More

Haz Mat

In the mid-1990s, I became interested in what was then a relatively new phenomenon, genetically modified foods, an industry ripe with politics. Although it was never directly part of my work at City Farmer, I took the subject on as a side interest. I began to collect newspaper clippings, friends […] Read More

Orientation

I attended a grad student orientation at UBC last week. The uplifting video and the speakers succeeded in making me feel like one of the chosen. But the moment I felt most proud to be attending school here and living in this beautiful province and amazing country, was when Jenny […] Read More