Please join us on Thursday, February 3 when the Chapman Discussion Series presents Affordable Housing for All? Homelessness and Legal Activism in Vancouver.

This panel discussion will explore the systemic inequalities and injustices built into Canada’s public policy that impact the availability of affordable housing for low-income and marginalized persons. Our panelists will provide diverse, informed perspectives on the housing crisis in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside and beyond. More information on topics and panelists is available here.

UBC students, faculty and community members are welcome to bring their questions and comments to this engaging event, which takes place on Thursday, February 3 at 5:30 p.m. in the Lillooet Room, located in the Chapman Learning Commons on level three of the Irving K. Barber Learning Centre. Refreshments will be served.

Live-in for Literacy is taking place again this year on the second floor foyer of the Irving K. Barber Learning Centre. Three students are “camping” at the Learning Centre between January 27 and February 3, raising funds to build schools, libraries and other educational infrastructure in developing countries.

This year, the goal this year is to raise $27,000 through participating universities for the construction of six libraries in India. You can find out more about this inspiring initiative here.

UBC Library is proud to welcome the Live-in for Literacy initiative once again – please come by the Learning Centre and show your support!

Note: this year’s Live-in for Literacy initiative was covered by Global BC television news.

The inaugural e-newsletter of Chinese Canadian Stories is now available.

Chinese Canadian Stories, an initiative of UBC Library and SFU Library, is funded by Citizenship and Immigration Canada’s Community Historical Recognition Program.

You can view the e-newsletter here, and you can view the Chinese Canadian Stories website here.

The 2009/10 Report of the University Librarian to the Senate is now available here.

This document, which serves as UBC Library’s annual report, provides a valuable overview of important developments from the past fiscal year, and highlights goals and plans for the year ahead.

Want to learn how to find and use images? Then check out UBC Library’s ARTstor workshops.

ARTstor is a digital library of more than one million images licensed for educational use at UBC, covering the areas of art, architecture, the humanities and the social sciences. In this workshop you will learn how to effectively search the ARTstor database, and interact with its many features – such as saving and downloading images and using the offline presentation software.

Friday, January 21, 10:30 a.m. to noon – register here.

Wednesday, February 16, 10:30 a.m. to noon – register here.

Friday, March 11, 10:30 a.m. to noon – register here.

Attention, distance learners: UBC Library has a new information portal for you. Now you can find everything you need to know about Library services in one place. Find information about getting your library card or barcode and pin number; register for home delivery; request journal articles; find research help and more. Check it all out here.

It’s 2011, and Woodward Library is proud to enter the new year with a new look. Late last fall, the Library’s lower level – also known as the Garden Level – was unveiled to the public after undergoing an extensive renovation. The handsome result is a user-centred, collaborative study space that features more natural light, increased seating and bookable group-study rooms.

The Woodward renovation is a great example of UBC Library’s commitment to enhancing student learning, which is a key plank of its strategic plan. Refurbishments are also underway at the David Lam and Law libraries.

Funding for the work at Woodward Library was provided by Classroom Services, UBC Properties Trust and UBC Library development funds.

At its seasonal luncheon leading up to the holidays, UBC Library announced that its charity raffle had raised more than $1,000 for Covenant House, which provides food, shelter, clothing and counselling for street youth in Vancouver.

The raffle prize winner was Lucia Balabuk, who works in UBC’s Science One program, which is based in the Irving K. Barber Learning Centre. Lucia won an amazing technicolour quilt that was made by the talented UBC Library Knitwits team. (Lucia appears on the right in the photo, while Sara McGillivray, a Knitwits member and UBC Library employee, is on the left.)

Thank you to the Knitwits for their effort, and to everyone who bought raffle tickets to support a very worthy cause.