Colleagues,
I hope that this finds you well.
I have the great pleasure of making significant announcements pertaining to new and expanded roles for two members of our Faculty of Forestry community.
Carlos Ormond, previously the Director of the Haida Gwaii Institute, has now taken on the expanded role of Director of Indigenous and Intercultural Initiatives for the Faculty of Forestry – you may have already seen (or heard) him in the halls over the past month. In this expanded role, Carlos will provide ongoing management support to the new Indigenous Land Stewardship (ILS) program; play an advisory role with the Alex Fraser Research Forest to develop business opportunities; work with the Director of the Haida Gwaii Institute (HGI) providing support at a strategic level; and be a resource for other Indigenous and intercultural academic initiatives within our Faculty, related to both teaching and research. Carlos will also be playing a key role in providing training, mentorship, and advice to the growing team of faculty, staff, and students across our community working on Indigenous and intercultural initiatives.
Which leads me to my second announcement…
I’m thrilled to announce that K’iinuwaas Carrie Anne Vanderhoop will be the new Director of the Haida Gwaii Institute. Carrie Anne, who is Gawa Git’ans Masset Inlet Eagle of Gaw Tlagée Old Massett and comes from a long line of Haida weavers, has been involved in education initiatives for nearly two decades in the areas of reconciliation, systems change, Indigenous education, among others. Since 2019, Carrie Anne served as the Indigenous and Community Initiative Manager for HGI, and also held the position of Academic Lead for the Haida Gwaii Higher Education Society from 2014-2016.
Please join me in congratulating and welcoming Carrie Anne to her new position on Haida Gwaii with HGI, and Carlos to his expanded role at our Vancouver campus. I would encourage you to get in touch with Carlos (carlos.ormond@ubc.ca) if you are interested in how he can be a resource for you and/or if you have any questions about what his new role entails. Likewise, if you would like to learn more about more about the spectacular offerings at HGI and how you might get more involved in programming on Haida Gwaii, please feel free to reach out to Carrie Anne (carrieanne.vanderhoop@ubc.ca).
Last but not least, my sincere thanks to Carlos, Carrie Anne, and everyone at HGI for helping to build such an amazing place on Haida Gwaii for our Forestry community to learn, work, and play.
All the best,
Rob
Dr. Robert Kozak
Professor and Dean