Featured News & Events (Secondary)

SPPGA Director and Professor Allison Macfarlane shares her thoughts on how small modular reactors will play a role in the future of nuclear power.

Professor M. V. Ramana co-authored this piece about why the environmental and public risks of Ontario constructing another nuclear reactor are too high and will detract from mitigating climate change.

Professor M. V. Ramana discusses why small modular reactors offer no hope for nuclear energy, and how continued government pursuit may jeopardize attempts to mitigate climate change.

Using an autobiographical narrative, Professor M. V. Ramana writes this essay offering a glimpse of the challenges posed by secrecy to democratic debate of India’s nuclear policy.

While it is expected that the United States will not agree to all of Russia’s security proposals, especially regarding NATO expansion, Professor M. V. Ramana shares why it is possible for the two sides to reach a compromise.

Even before COVID-19, protests by health workers in India were on the rise. Professor Veena Sriram (SPPGA; SPPH) writes about how the protests are a culmination of long-simmering problems in the governance of health policy in India.

Professor M. V. Ramana shares why the use of an American design for Canada’s first new nuclear reactor is a bad sign for the Canadian nuclear industry, and why it may be cause for the government to rethink its support for SMR developers.

As more COVID-19 variants emerge, public health measures remain the top concern of countries worldwide in their attempt to curb the spread of the virus. Professor Tara Cookson discusses how women are adversely affected by restricted human mobility.

Professor Hugh Gusterson (SPPGA; Anthropology) discusses how withdrawal from Afghanistan has played a role in the reported number of U.S. drone strikes plummeting under the Biden administration.

With the release of a news report detailing the 2022 national forecast for food prices, Professor Matias Margulis (SPPGA; LFS) examines why B.C. prices are estimated to be above the already high national average.

Professor M. V Ramana co-authors this article debunking myths surrounding renewable energy, and the argument that solar cannot be the foundation of a dependable electricity grid.

Professor Navin Ramankutty (SPPGA; IRES) discusses the best ways to approach climate solutions, and whether attaching carbon labels to products at the grocery store is an effective method.

This article co-authored by Professor Philippe Le Billon (SPPGA; Geography) discusses how behavioural science can enhance ocean sustainability by providing insights into illegal fishing.

As Black Friday kicks off the holiday shopping season, Professor Rashid Sumaila (SPPGA; UBC Oceans) urges consumers to make the connection between what they buy and what eventually ends up harming our ecosystems—and our health.

With North American leaders, Biden, Trudeau, and López Obrador planning to meet face-to-face for the first time in four years, Professor Kristen Hopewell discusses regional friction over issues such as trade and immigration.

In this virtual event, Professor Paul Evans was featured as a panellist to discuss the political and economic goalposts that anchor Ottawa’s strategy in East Asia and the Pacific, how it has or has not defined the means for achieving them, and where the demand is, if any, for Canada to step up and articulate its relevance.

Fish stocks in the South China Sea are at risk of collapse if action is not taken in the next 10 years to reduce overfishing and the effects of climate change. Professor Rashid Sumaila (SPPGA; UBC Oceans) states that it is important to enforce sustainable fishing practices so that fisheries can continue to feed and nourish us.

As the United Nations Climate Change Conference wraps up, SPPGA Director and Professor Allison Macfarlane states that there is a definite need to move away from fossil fuels, and that nuclear power could potentially be the way forward.

With India’s lack of transparency around nuclear weapon expenditures, Professor MV Ramana states that even government bureaucracies do not seem to have access to expenses relating to weapons facilities.

In a message directed to world leaders gathering for COP-26, Professor David Boyd (SPPGA; IRES) states that new taxes on air travel and maritime shipping could raise the billions of dollars needed to help the countries suffering most from climate change.

This letter in SCIENCE signed by nearly 300 scientists, including Professors Rashid Sumaila (SPPGA; UBC Oceans), Kristen Hopewell, and Philippe Le Billon (SPPGA; Geography), urges the WTO to make the commitment to eliminate harmful fisheries subsidies.

Professor Rashid Sumaila (SPPGA; UBC Oceans) appeared on GB News to discuss why it is necessary for the WTO to eliminates subsidies for fuel, distant-water and destructive fishing fleets, and illegal and unregulated vessels.

While South Korea was well prepared and acted rapidly at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic resulting in a comparatively low death rate, Professor Yves Tiberghien (SPPGA Faculty Associate; Political Science) discusses how the pandemic has exposed deep social fragilities and worsened inequalities.