“I look forward to learning about each student’s unique experience, as well as facilitating connections between students, faculty, organizations, and ideas to create new pathways for engaged learning.”
SPPGA is pleased to announce that starting July 1, 2023 Dr. Sara Shneiderman has been appointed Graduate Program Director of the Master of Public Policy and Global Affairs (MPPGA). Providing leadership and strategic guidance, Prof. Shneiderman will work closely with staff, faculty, and students to oversee the MPPGA program.
Sara Shneiderman has been on the UBC faculty since 2014, and Associate Professor with the School of Public Policy and Global Affairs since its founding in 2017. She is the co-lead of the Himalaya Program in addition to being jointly appointed with UBC’s Department of Anthropology. She is a sociocultural anthropologist whose research focuses on community resilience and disaster governance in the face of ongoing environmental, social, and political transformation in both Canada and Asia. Prof. Shneiderman is also involved in various governance and community initiatives as part of her long-term ethnographic engagement with Indigenous and other communities in Nepal, India, and Tibetan regions of China. She is currently part of the Sajag-Nepal project, a partnership to improve preparedness for the mountain hazard chain in Nepal, and the Disaster Resilience Research Network at UBC.
SPPGA acknowledges the tremendous work of outgoing Graduate Program Director Dr. M.V. Ramana whose support and leadership was appreciated by faculty, staff and students alike.
To learn more about Prof. Shneiderman and her role as MPPGA Program Director, we sat down with her to ask a few questions.
What excites you the most about taking on the role of MPPGA Graduate Program Director?
I love supporting students to discover new things about themselves and the complex world we share. In this role I look forward to learning about each student’s unique experience, as well as facilitating connections between students, faculty, organizations, and ideas to create new pathways for engaged learning.
What advice do you have for students of the MPPGA program, both new first year students coming in, and those in their final year of the program?
Figure out what motivates you most and prioritize that, while also taking the time to figure out how your own aspirations can be best supported by the actually existing structures we all live within—and how you can contribute your own talents and knowledge base to building collective well-being both locally and globally.
What is your favourite spot on the UBC campus and why?
The Museum of Anthropology (MOA). As an anthropologist, I draw much inspiration from the rich cultural belongings that we are privileged to house here at UBC, from Indigenous communities of BC and all over the world. The space itself, as well as the outdoors area behind the museum, is very contemplative. I go there when I need a moment to reflect and be reminded how special it is to live and work on Musqueam land, as well as being connected with people from all over the world through my daily work.
What’s a fun fact about yourself that would surprise people?
I traveled to Nepal for the first time almost 30 years ago as a college student, and have since spent much of my research career as an anthropologist there. On that first trip, I had a hiking accident where I broke my ankle badly, and between the original surgery and an update to it last year, I now have a bionic ankle with 5 pieces of metal in it! I feel very lucky that I am able to hike, ski, and bike again – some of my favorite activities – with my family.
You can learn more about Dr. Shneiderman and her research here, and in the following video:
