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OVERVIEW

University graduates are entering a world characterized by climate change, biodiversity loss, food and water inequality, and upheaval in economic and social systems. Addressing these issues requires transformative perspectives, innovation, and new approaches. If you have a great idea for a new course or program (or would like to update a current one) that uses applied, experiential and/or interdisciplinary approaches to learning, we’d love to hear from you. We encourage applications that support advancements in climate, health promotion, wellbeing, biodiversity, resilient communities and the circular economy. 

To apply for funding, please review the application process and eligibility criteria and submit a proposal to the Sustainability Hub. One key eligibility element is that you must apply with at least one other faculty member from a different Faculty, Department or discipline. Both of you must be in ongoing roles at UBC. We encourage proposals from faculty members who have not previously engaged with UBC Sustainability Hub’s curriculum grant programs. The funding must be used for curriculum project work, including hiring students or consultants, attending relevant conferences, purchasing resources, or a teaching buy-out if approved by the grant holder's home Department and/or Faculty. 

If your grant application is successful and you become a Sustainability Education Fellow, the expectation is that you (up to two faculty members per project) will participate in monthly meetings with other Fellows for the duration of the grant period (2 years). You will meet once a month (dates to be determined) in person, throughout the academic year to report on your project progress, share your experience in integrating specific content into your teaching and possibly collaborate on emergent projects. Sustainability Education Fellows are viewed as champions for sustainability education within their departments.   

 

 

GRANT CRITERIA

1. Faculty Teams
We accept proposals from faculty members who wish to work together to build or refine curricula on sustainability and wellbeing issues or topics that demand an interdisciplinary approach. At least two of the leading applicants must be in ongoing faculty roles at UBC and come from different departments, faculties or disciplines. Typically, teams are made up of two faculty members but more than two is also acceptable. In your application, please describe the interdisciplinarity of your team. In some cases, interdisciplinarity within a department will be considered eligible.

2. For Credit
Curriculum projects can be of any scale but must focus on a for-credit option. For example, your proposal could be to create a course, create a cluster of courses around an issue or theme, or develop a minor or a major program. Proposals for field, summer and online courses are also accepted.

3. Appropriate Budget
All project proposals must include a project budget. Your proposal should reflect the scale and scope of the project. For example, a new course proposal will require fewer funds than a proposal to develop a new minor program. Funding for hiring students must align with UBC student salary guidelines.

Eligible expenses include:

• Student wages
• Materials
• Conference fees
• Consultant fees
• Faculty buy-outs

4. Priorities
We will prioritize projects that:

• Are led by new applicants (faculty members who have not applied for a sustainability grant with us before). If you have applied before, you are still eligible, but please wait for 2 years before applying again. 
• Reach a large number of students over the years.
• Involve underrepresented disciplines in the sustainability education space.
• Make curriculum accessible to students from more than one discipline or field, ideally by creating Open Educational Resources.

Explore recently funded projects to understand what a successful project looks like.

Applicants can opt-in to be considered for the Wellbeing Stream: At least one selected project will emphasize wellbeing content and pedagogy in course design. IMPORTANT: Even if you choose to be considered for the Wellbeing stream, your proposal will also be considered for the regular Sustainability stream. Examples of wellbeing-focused project themes include:  

• Developing course/program content that centers Indigenous perspectives on wellbeing  
• Developing course/program content linking climate change, health, and wellbeing 
• Embedding health and wellbeing modules into first-year courses to support personal capacity and life-enhancing skills 
• Incorporating community-based projects that address health and well-being-promoting settings (where we live, learn, work, and play) 

 

HOW TO APPLY

1. Review the application form – including the eligibility requirements, your responsibilities as a project lead, and signature requirements.

2. Prepare your proposal – this includes providing a summary of the project, a statement of interest, a detailed project description, the deliverables and anticipated benefits, and a project budget.

3. Provide your Curriculum Vitae – we require an up-to-date version of your CV in short form (up to a maximum of five pages).

4. Submit your application to the review committee – The Selection Committee includes the UBCV Vice-Provost and Associate Vice-President Academic Affairs, the Sustainability Hub Academic Director and the Sustainability Hub Manager of Teaching and Learning.

Download Application

Submit completed applications to Oliver Lane, Manager of Teaching and Learning, at oliver.lane@ubc.ca. 

 

SUPPORT WE PROVIDE

In addition to the Sustainability Education Fellows program, the UBC Sustainability Hub offers a range of support services that will be available to you, including:

• Making sustainability curriculum resources available, such as UBC’s Sustainability Education Framework, and other general resources
• Connecting you to curriculum development and open educational resource design experts. 
• Suggesting co-curricular student engagement options
• Helping promote new sustainability and wellbeing courses or programs to students across campus
• Providing comprehensive information on sustainability courses and interdisciplinary themes at UBC*
• Connecting you to resources such as the Climate Hub workshops and the Climate Teaching Connector program to support the delivery of in-classroom sustainability content

*We encourage you to review UBC’s existing courses that address sustainability-related issues. Our team curates an up-to-date database of 700+ sustainability courses. We can organize these courses by interdisciplinary theme and help expose barriers to access (e.g., pre-requisites) and availability (e.g. course popularity).

 

QUESTIONS?

Contact Oliver Lane, Manager of Teaching and Learning, at oliver.lane@ubc.ca if you have questions or would like to discuss your idea for a proposal.