LFS Today Mar 7, 2022

 News  

Reminder: Summer Course Expense Fund Requests – due March 15

Are you teaching an undergraduate course in any 2022 Summer Term (May – August)?
Send in your itemized course expense requests now.
Email your completed form to virginia.frankian@ubc.ca by March 15^th, 2022 by 4:30pm.

Expendable laboratory supplies, field trip expenses, and other expenses directly addressing course learning objectives are eligible.

To be reimbursed, expenses must be itemized and pre-approved or your claim will not be processed.

Find form and details at “Finance”. Click Forms. Check the ‘additional information’ link by Teaching-Related Funding. Then click Course Expenses Fund (MS Word) for the form.
Note that students should not be charged course fees for any LFS courses.

Course expenses for T1, T2 and T1+2 must be requested and approved prior to the start of the Summer session.
** Late requests may not receive funding ** ”

Pacific Agriculture Show – sign up by March 11

The Pacific Agriculture Show is coming up March 31-April 2 at the Abbotsford Tradex Exhibition Centre.

The Faculty and the Centre for Sustainable Food Systems at UBC Farm will have a 10×10 booth for the three days and we are opening the booth to showcase faculty research to the producers who attend. If faculty members, lab staff or graduate students would like to volunteer for a 3-4 hour shift to meet-and-greet agriculture show attendees, they are welcome to join the booth!

We’ve set up a sign-up sheet – please sign up for the booth by March 11:
https://ubc.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_8BPQRm2fE4wdjxQ

Your lab or research group can provide promotional materials – providing background about your work and/or including a call-to-action for show attendees – as well as research slides (up to 5) for our screen display.

If you have any questions, please contact Karen Lee (Karen.lee98@ubc.ca).

Pi(e) Sale is March 14 – Calling all bakers!

Pi Day is coming up on Monday, March 14 and LFS is once again having a Pi(e) Fundraiser! All proceeds will go to the AMS Food Bank this year.

We are looking for bakers to donate pies again! For those who love to bake and would like to donate a pie, please contact Barbara Hsiao (barbara.hsiao@ubc.ca).

Everyone is welcome to drop by the Dean’s Office on Monday, March 14 between 10am and 3pm and help yourself to a slice of pie! Minimum $3 donation per slice, or 2 for $5!

 Events  

Mar. 9 – FNH Food Graduate Seminars

Please note that Seminars would be offered in “Hybrid format” until further notice; Room FNH 60 is booked for Food Science Seminar on Wednesdays at 4:00 pm. Please be ready with a question.

FOOD

Speaker 01: Jianging  He
Topic: Reduction of Salmonella Enteritidis in Shelled Chicken Eggs Using Bacteriophage Injection
Chair: Yutong Ye
Question asker: Yutong Ye
Advisor: Dr. Wang
Seminar Type: MSc Proposal

Speaker 02: Yutong Ye
Topic: Computational Prediction of Bacteriophages against Salmonella Enteritidis through
Genomics Data Analysis and Machine Learning
Chair: Lennie Cheung
Question asker: Yutong Ye
Advisor: Dr. Wang
Seminar Type: PhD Proposal

Link for feedback for each of the presenters if you are not registered for FOOD 500/600: https://ubc.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_dbYqWEhWaumnb5r

If you are a graduate student registered for FOOD 500/600, please complete the feedback form on Canvas.

Zoom Info for FOOD graduate students who are not able to attend in person and have obtained approvals:
https://ubc.zoom.us/j/67165965551?pwd=WVFCV0ZkOXBJRWFzUWc2RkluWEVTZz09
Meeting ID: 671 6596 5551
Passcode: 358759

Mar. 21 – IAFNS Webinar: Communicating the Science of Caffeine 

Join IAFNS and the International Food Information Council (IFIC) on March 21st from 1:00-2:30pm ET for a webinar on communicating the science of caffeine. This webinar is designed for practitioners who seek to enhance their understanding of the science of caffeine, respond to consumer perceptions related to its safety, and communicate evidence-based messaging to consumers.

Agenda:

• Overview of Caffeine Safety and Sources
  Brienna Larrick, PhD, PMP, Scientific Program Manager, IAFNS
• Caffeine, Health and the Role of Genetics
  Marilyn C. Cornelis, PhD, Associate Professor, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University
• Consumer Perceptions and Behaviors Toward Caffeine: Highlights from IFIC’s Consumer Research
  Ali Webster, PhD, RD, Director, Research and Nutrition Communications, IFIC
• Using Science Communications to Address Consumer Perceptions
  Tony Flood, Sr. Director, Ingredient Communications, IFIC

Register here

 Deadlines  

Mar. 11 – NSERC Undergraduate Student Research Awards (USRA)

Eligible faculty members may apply for the NSERC Undergraduate Student Research Awards (USRA) program. Through these awards, you can receive a wage subsidy of $6,000 to hire an eligible student to work on research and development in your lab.  Professors gain valuable help in furthering their research while supporting students in their learning.

The LFS quota for the NSERC USRA has been announced by the UBC Centre for Student Involvement and Careers (CIS&C). The Faculty of Land and Food Systems has 4 NSERC USRA 2022-23 awards. These awards can be held in the summer (May – August 2022), fall (September – December 2022) or winter (January – April 2023) terms.

The LFS internal deadline for the NSERC USRA is Friday March 11, 2022; the LFS evaluation criteria and process are available on the LFS Research Support website.

Similar to last year, UBC will continue to have non-NSERC grant holders receive approval from their Associate Dean or appropriate designate as part of the application process.

Continuation of accommodations due to COVID-19:

• Remote supervision of projects will be permitted. Supervisors must hold regular meetings with USRA holders via phone or video calls.
• Work terms do not need to be 16 weeks long, and can be less than 12 weeks.
• Full value ($6,000) of the award will be honored once application is approved by NSERC.
• For the student’s salary, Faculty Supervisor are no longer required to top-up 25% of the award value. However, NSERC requires that the supervisor pays a minimum salary of $6,000 regardless of the length of the award term and BC’s minimum wage requirements must be met. The minimum wage in BC is currently $15.20 per hour.
• For faculty members who intend to apply to the NSERC USRA, please ensure that COVID-19 safety measures and considerations as well as contingency plans are included when submitting their application. Questions we would encourage faculty to consider: Will the USRA be feasible given the COVID-19 safety plans as per Faculty/School/department? Can the USRA be done safely?

Additional information about the program can be found on the Faculty and Staff webpage. Student eligibility information is available on Student Services website.

Please contact LFS Undergraduate Student Research Awards lfs.nserc-usra@ubc.ca if you have any questions.

Mar. 28 – Call for Expressions of Interest: Co-Director/Director ALDP

Memo from Andrew Szeri, Provost and Vice-President Academic, UBC Vancouver; Moura Quayle, Vice-Provost and Associate VP Academic Affairs, UBC Vancouver:

Professors Beth Haverkamp and Ian Scott have served as Academic Co-Directors of the Academic Leadership Development Program since 2018. They will finish their terms as Co-Directors on June 30, 2022.

During their tenure as ALDP Academic Co-Directors, Beth and Ian have collaborated with senior administrators, faculty and staff to initiate and enhance the leadership capacity and readiness of newly appointed academic leaders at UBC. Throughout these challenging times, they have worked closely with the ALDP leadership and planning teams to creatively design, develop and deliver relevant programming that best serves the needs of cohort members as they navigate their roles in this complex and changing environment. Please join me in wishing Beth and Ian the best in their post-ALDP careers.

We have established a search committee to recommend new Academic Co-Directors or an Academic Director of the ALDP. The membership of the committee is listed below. A Call for Expressions of Interest is posted to the Provost and Vice-President Academic website at https://academic.ubc.ca/academic-community/searches/academic-directors-aldp. The deadline to submit Expressions of Interest is March 28, 2022. In the meantime, if you have recommendations of anyone you think would suit this role or questions, please contact Moura at moura.quayle@ubc.ca.

Membership of the Provost’s Advisory Committee

• Moura Quayle, Vice-Provost & AVP Academic (Chair)
• Adam Charania, Associate Vice-President Strategic Partnerships and Support Services, UBC Human Resources
• Sara Ghebremusse, Assistant Professor, Allard School of Law
• Bernard Perley, Director and Associate Professor, Institute for Critical Indigenous Studies, Faculty of Arts
• Olivia Sperry, Program Manager, Academic Leadership Development Program
• Sheryl Staub-French, Professor of Civil Engineering / Associate Dean Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, Faculty of Applied Science
• Guy Stecklov, Professor and Department Head, Sociology, Faculty of Arts
• Mark Trowell, Director, Faculty Relations