About

Public humanities are understood at the University of British Columbia Okanagan (UBCO) as a field of engagement between members of many publics both on and off campus interested in fostering dialogue in both virtual and physical spaces in order to collectively reflect and engage in conversation about contemporary issues facing society today. Added to this, it is the mission of the PHH-O to work beyond disciplinary and campus boundaries to address problems and find solutions through public conversations. The PHH-O acknowledges that there are many publics in the Okanagan, on unceded Syilx territory.

The PHH-O was founded in 2019 as a cross campus initiative between UBC, Vancouver (UBCV) and UBCO to foster critically engaged and expansive spaces for the humanities in the Okanagan that address real-time challenges facing society, from climate change to social justice, to dialogue about civil society, history, and culture. Through research and knowledge sharing, the PHH-O brings faculty, graduate, and undergraduate students together with community partners representing a range of stakeholders to raise the profile of the humanities both on our campus and in our community. Engagement is fostered in the PHH-O through various forms of learning and sharing that ranges from collaborative conversations and lectures at community centres, galleries, restaurants, and parks, to exhibitions, conferences, performances, and other programs and interventions that tackle topics such as history, applied philosophy, popular culture, media, the arts, and other matters of public interest. Some of the innovative outputs from the PHH-O members include podcasts, open access publications, dynamic presentations, and the co-creation of new projects that inspire action and capacity building.

The PHH-O believes that the public humanities have a critical role to play in shaping our future, and as such aims to increase recognition of public humanities within the university, and increase access to relevant training opportunities. To do this, the PHH-O envisions new futures in the Okanagan through collaborative research and sharing by:

• Promoting inclusive efforts between various publics throughout the Okanagan to inspire dialogue and respectful exchanges;
• Creating funding mechanisms and training opportunities to support innovation, collaboration, and dialogue that mobilizes social change;
• Inspiring new projects that bring together diverse perspectives, methods, and expertise to tackle lived-realities that raise awareness of real-time issues; and
• Promoting an understanding and recognition of the value of public humanities within academia and in our broader communities.