With the holiday season fast approaching, we are delighted to announce that applications for the GSS Holiday Hampers are now open! This initiative provides essential support to UBC Vancouver graduate students facing financial challenges, helping make the holiday season a bit brighter for them and their families.

As in previous years, each hamper is carefully assembled to address the unique needs of each student. We kindly ask that you share this opportunity with your graduate students to ensure those who may benefit are aware. Applications will be open until November 18th, and selected applicants will be notified in early December. The sign-up form is available here.

In addition to sharing this announcement, we would be grateful for any contributions toward the hampers. Donations of holiday-themed items are welcome at the GSS Office (452-6371 Crescent Rd, Thea Koerner House 4th Floor Penthouse, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z2) until November 27th, 2024. Items such as gingerbread kits, good-quality chocolates, holiday treats, family games, toiletries, and more are greatly appreciated, especially items suitable for student families.

For questions, please feel free to contact us at officeassistant@gss.ubc.ca. Thank you for helping us make this initiative a success and for supporting graduate students at UBC during this special season.

Warm regards,

Negar Mousavi, M.Sc. (She/Her/Hers)
Office Assistant
E: officeassistant@gss.ubc.ca



Thea Koerner House 225 – 6371 Crescent Road, Vancouver T: 604.822.3203gss.ubc.ca

Next week’s IRES Seminar is back in the Beaty Museum Allan Yap Theatre.

November 7, 2024: IRES Student Seminar with Jerry Achar and Aaron Aguirre

Time: 12:30pm to 1:20pm

Location: Beaty Museum Allan Yap Theatre (Basement, 2212 Main Mall). Please check in at front desk on main floor before going downstairs.

No food or drinks allowed in the Theatre.

Click here for Zoom link. Zoom will be terminated if we encounter tech problems 5 to 10 mins into the seminar.

Conservative Consensus QSAR prediction of rat acute oral toxicity of chemicals: implication for decision-making under conditions of uncertainty

 

Talk summary:

Acute oral toxicity (AOT) is required for regulatory classification and labeling of chemicals according to the United Nations Global Harmonized System (GHS). With the advances in toxicology towards alternatives to animal testing, quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR) models have been developed to support AOT predictions. However, uncertainty associated with the use of these models hinders their utility for AOT predictions. Consequently, when used to assign health-protective (conservative) AOT values to chemicals, it is advised that one should apply a model with low incidences of predicting chemicals to be less toxic than the corresponding animal data imply. In this talk, Jerry will present a study that compares the prediction performance of a consensus approach (combination) of two QSAR models against these individual models for the prediction of conservative AOT of a diverse and large number of chemicals. To this end, the number of conservative predictions and prediction capacity for AOT hazard identification (according to the GHS criteria) will be used for the performance evaluation.

 

  Jerry Achar, IRES PhD candidate                                                                                                                              

Bio:

Jerry Achar is a Ph.D. candidate in Gunilla Öberg’s Egesta Lab. His research interests intersect chemical risk assessment, human health, and toxicological risk prediction using new approach methodologies (NAMs). His Ph.D. research focuses on the application of in silico toxicology methods for chemical risk prediction and analysis of uncertainty associated with the methods and their predictions. This research is supported by the Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarships (Vanier CGS) program. Before UBC, Jerry completed his BSc. in Environmental Science from Kenyatta University and his MSc. in Environmental Engineering from Korea University.

The Twilight Zoning: Influences of Urban Land Use on Bat Activity in the Metro Vancouver Region

 

Talk summary:

Bats are facing conservation concerns ranging from disease, wind turbine collisions, and habitat loss. Urban greenspaces have been identified as hotspots for bat foraging during the reproductive phase of their life cycle. However, it is difficult to identify critical habitat for bat species due to limited information on how urban landscape features influence bat activity. Through a series of acoustic sampling across Metro Vancouver, we aimed to answer what landscape features are associated with high bat activity. Over 80,000 confirmed bat passes through two summer seasons at 21 parks and surrounding landscapes. The presence of a freshwater source and the amount of vegetation near parks were key landscape features in predicting bat activity. While greenspaces may provide habitat islands for some bat species, our results provide an opportunity to target urban bat management that can contribute actively to regional sustainability initiatives while also promoting human-wildlife coexistence in urban spaces.

 

Aaron Aguirre, IRES MSc student

Bio:

Aaron Aguirre (he/they) is a MS student in the Connected Human and Natural Systems Lab and the Mitchell Multifunctional Landscape Lab advised by Dr. Kai Chan and Dr. Matthew Mitchell. Prior to joining the Institute for Resources, Environment, and Sustainability (IRES), they received their BS in Fisheries and Wildlife. Their current research focuses on how urban bat populations are impacted by land-use with the goal to inform bat conservation with regards to land development and foster an appreciation for urban wildlife.

 

See you on November 7!

 

_______________________________________________________________________________

Bonnie Leung

RES Program Support (she/her/hers)

Institute for Resources, Environment and Sustainability (IRES)

University of British Columbia | Vancouver Campus | Musqueam Traditional Territory

Aquatic Ecosystems Research Laboratory (AERL Building)

Room 429 – 2202 Main Mall | Vancouver, BC | V6T 1Z4 | Canada

 

Email: bonnie.leung@ubc.ca

Tel: 604-822-9249

PART-TIME EMPLOYMENT – STATISTICS CANADA
STATISTICAL ASSISTANT
RESEARCH DATA CENTRE PROGRAM

The Research Data Centre (RDC) Program is part of an initiative from Statistics Canada, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, the Canadian Institutes for Health Research and university consortia to help strengthen Canada’s social research capacity and to support the policy research community.

Organization: Statistics Canada, Research Data Centre Program. Information on the RDC program can be found at the following link: https://www.statcan.gc.ca/eng/microdata/data-centres

Position: Statistical Assistant
Location: University of British Columbia Research Data Centre
Rate of pay: $57,217 – $61,761 per annum, prorated. (Approximately $29.34 – $31.67 per hour)
Tenure and work schedule: Part-time as needed approximately 8 hours per week up to a maximum of 11.75 hours per week. The incumbent’s schedule should be reasonably flexible.

Language requirement: English essential

Job description: The Statistical Assistant is a Statistics Canada employee on site at the University of British Columbia Research Data Centre (UBC RDC). Under the supervision of the RDC Senior Analyst located at UBC, the Statistical Assistant is responsible for ensuring that all aspects of data security and access in the centre are in accordance with Statistics Canada policies and procedures for conducting research in an RDC. This includes, but is not limited to:

– Monitoring the effectiveness of and maintaining the integrity of the security systems in the RDC.
– Performing administrative duties such as preparing administrative reports, contract preparation, corresponding with researchers, working with university IT and facility staff, ordering supplies, and other related duties under the supervision of the RDC Analyst.
– Provide basic assistance to researchers on the use of the computer network, statistical software and Statistics Canada policies and procedures for conducting research in the RDC.
– Conduct other tasks as assigned.

Qualifications:

– Enrolled in, or completion of a degree program specializing in economics, health sciences, demography, geography, statistics, sociology, or a related field.
– General knowledge of the Windows operating system.
– Good working knowledge of Microsoft software with particular emphasis on Teams, Excel, and Word.
– Previous work experience in administration and client services.
– Ability to work independently.
– Ability to communicate effectively orally and in writing.
– Willingness to become functional, as needed, in the use and application of statistical software packages.

Assets:

– Graduation with a bachelor’s degree specialization in economics, health sciences, demography, geography, statistics, sociology, or a related field.
– Experience in the processing and analysis of Statistics Canada microdata or equivalent data sources.
– Experience with at least one of the following statistical software packages: Stata, SAS, R, SPSS.

Personal suitability:

Effective interpersonal relationships, Judgement, Initiative, Reliability

Obtaining and maintaining the security status of Enhanced Reliability is a condition of employment.
Preference will be given to Canadian citizens and Permanent Residents of Canada.

To apply:
Send your curriculum vitae, cover letter and names of three referees by email to wendy.kei@statcan.gc.ca

CVs and cover letters should be received at the above email address by November 21, 2024.