Wall Scholars Program 2022

Catalyst: an agent that provokes or speeds significant change or action.

As part of the Wall Scholars Catalyst program, these 12 UBC scholars will come together to build connections, cultivate relationships and initiate collaborations that engage with the urgency, scale and complexity of the Climate and Nature Emergency.

The 2022-23 program will be guided by 4 principles:

Ethical Collaborations: Transdisciplinary, intergenerational, and community relationship building grounded on trust, respect, reciprocity, consent, and accountability.

Intellectual Depth: (self)Critical and relational rigour in moving beyond common patterns of simplistic solutions, paternalistic forms of engagements and ethnocentric ideals of sustainability, justice, and change.

Reparative Redistribution: Allocation of resources prioritising populations most affected by the Climate and Nature Emergency and precarity, and research areas of greatest urgency and impact guided by principles of reparation.

Engagement with the Indigenous Strategic Plan: Deepening understanding of settler responsibilities and supporting the aspirations of Indigenous scholars and communities.

Dr. Mohammed Rafi Arefin will serve as the Wall Scholars Catalyst Program lead responsible for supporting and guiding collaborations in line with the program’s principles.

The 2022-23 Wall Scholars Catalyst Program establishes PWIAS as an incubator of the kinds of inter- and trans-disciplinary collaborations that understand the complexities of bringing about systemic change, and the urgent need for coordinated efforts to address the climate crisis, climate justice and biodiversity loss both locally and globally. The scholars will engage with their departments, students, and current emerging issues  to expand the ways of knowing and acting in these challenging socio-ecological times.

Learn more about 2022-23 PWIAS initiatives focused on the Climate and Nature Emergency.