We are delighted to welcome Naomi Klein and Avi Lewis as faculty members at UBC Geography.
Klein will take up her post as an associate professor in September. A New York Times best-selling author known across the globe for her work in climate justice and critiques of globalized capitalism, Klein has written eight critically-acclaimed books, including The Shock Doctrine, On Fire, No is Not Enough and This Changes Everything.
She has also been named the inaugural Faculty of Arts Chair in Climate Justice, and will take a leadership role in building a Centre for Climate Justice, housed within UBC Geography.
Currently in development, the centre’s goal is to bring together activists, policy makers, elders, scholars and frontline communities — harnessing the university’s skills and resources in service of those already working towards environmental justice in diverse spaces.
Of her appointment, Klein says; “I’m very excited to be able to focus all my energy on the climate crisis and on the responses to it that centre justice in my new role at the University of British Columbia. UBC is remarkable for its leadership in climate science and Indigenous studies. Both are at the very core of climate justice. I look forward to working with other UBC educators and researchers to break down barriers and spark important conversations across disciplines and communities.”
Lewis, a journalist and documentary filmmaker, will join the department as an associate professor in July, with a focus on teaching courses on social and political change, communication and documentary filmmaking.
“It’s a gift for me to work at a leading university during a historical moment that calls on communities to come together and put justice at the centre,” he says. “I’m eager to put my work at the service of students and help them find new narratives to confront the crises of our time.”
