Looking Back on 2019

December 23, 2019

As the year draws to a close, it’s appropriate to reflect on the accomplishments and challenges of the past 12 months. I enjoyed chatting with UBC student senator Julia Chai about the highlights of the year for UBC.
I hope the year 2019 was a good one for all of you. Best wishes for 2020!
Santa J. Ono
President and Vice-Chancellor

Previous Posts

  • Community Update, October 15, 2021: Vaccination Clinics at UBC
  • Community Update, October 8, 2021: Looking Forward to Celebrating Graduation In Person
  • UBC Sending Delegation of Eight to COP26
  • Community Update, September 29, 2021: Orange Shirt Day | National Day for Truth and Reconciliation
  • Presidential Priorities, 2021-22
  • Community Update, September 16, 2021: Homecoming
  • IRP Student: UBC’s Renewal Journey Continues
  • Do Your Part: Declare Your Vaccination Status
  • Community Update, September 1, 2021: Vaccination is the key to a successful return to campus
  • Voting in the 2021 Federal Election
  • Community Update, August 27, 2021: Mandated Masks and Vaccinations
  • Community Update, August 20, 2021: Preparing our campuses for Fall 2021
  • National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on September 30, 2021
  • Update, August 13, 2021: Supporting Mandatory Indoor Masking and Vaccination
  • COVID-19 Concerns
  • Community Update, July 16, 2021: Black Opportunity Fund
  • Black Opportunity Fund partners with UBC to empower next generation of Black leaders
  • Weekly Update: June 25, 2021: Return to Campus will be a transition, not an event
  • Statement on the Missing Children of Canada’s Indian Residential Schools
  • Weekly Update, June 18, 2021: The Anti-Asian Racism Forum is Over, But Our Work is Just Beginning
  • Weekly Update, June 11, 2021: A Phased Approach to the Fall
  • Weekly Update, June 4, 2021: Statement on the Kamloops Indian Residential School
  • Statement on the Missing Children of the Kamloops Indian Residential School
  • Weekly Update, May 28, 2021: Spring Graduation
  • Weekly Update, May 21, 2021: Plans for Fall 2021
  • External Review of Campus Security
  • Weekly Update, May 14, 2021: Join the Vaccine-Nation
  • Weekly Update, May 7, 2021: Asian Heritage Month
  • Weekly Update, April 30, 2021: Let’s Bring SkyTrain to UBC
  • Universities Must Do More to Address the Climate Emergency
  • Weekly Update, April 23, 2021: UBC and Global Engagement
  • Weekly Update, April 20, 2021: Planning for Fall 2021
  • UBC and the Overdose Crisis
  • Weekly Update, April 9, 2021: Vaccination Clinic at UBC
  • Launching UBC’s Global Engagement Strategy
  • Statement on Anti-Asian Racism
  • Weekly Update, March 12, 2021: Planning for the Fall
  • UBC and UTokyo – A Relationship Forged Through Baseball, Quantum Materials and Mutual Esteem
  • Weekly Update, March 5, 2021: International Women’s Day
  • QS World University Subject Rankings Demonstrate UBC’s Breadth of Excellence
  • Weekly Update, February 26, 2021
  • Weekly Update: February 19, 2021
  • COVID-19 innovations hold lessons for national policy
  • Weekly Update, February 12
  • Statement on Release of Loujain Al-Hathloul
  • Weekly Update, February 5, 2021
  • Weekly Update, February 1, 2021: Black History Month
  • Let’s Talk About Mental Health
  • Weekly Update, January 22, 2021
  • Congratulations to UBC’s Killam Professors
  • UBC’s response to sentencing of alumna Loujain Al-Hathloul
  • Holiday Greetings
  • Update on UBC’s Evolving Relationship with the RCMP
  • Weekly Update, December 11, 2020
  • Update: Extending the SkyTrain to UBC
  • Weekly Update, December 4, 2020
  • Weekly Update, November 26, 2020
  • Weekly Update, November 20, 2020
  • Weekly Update, November 13, 2020
  • Weekly Update, November 6, 2020
  • Weekly Update: October 30, 2020
  • Weekly Update: October 23, 2020
  • Weekly Update: October 16, 2020
  • Weekly Update: October 2, 2020
  • Voting in the 2020 BC Provincial Election 
  • Weekly Update: September 25, 2020
  • Weekly Update: September 21, 2020
  • Welcome Back to the Blue & Goldcast!
  • Weekly Update: September 14, 2020
  • Weekly Update, August 28: Welcome New Students
  • Looking Forward to the Next Five Years
  • Statement on National Indigenous Peoples Day
  • Welcome to Steven Lewis Point; Farewell to Lindsay Gordon
  • Touring Brent Sparrow’s ʔəlqsən art installation
  • Guest Post: Working in the President’s Office
  • COVID-19: UBC and the Community
  • COVID-19: A Message to International Students
  • A Message to Students: The importance of physical distancing
  • Repatriating Cultural Property: A Priority for UBC
  • UBC: Among the Best in the World
  • Choose to Reuse
  • UBC launches Iranian Student Memorial Award
  • Happy Holidays from Santa
  • Honour the École Polytechnique Women by Learning About Them
  • UBC funding to foster collaborations in research excellence
  • Remembrance Day Reflections: We Owe Our Veterans So Much
  • Thriving at UBC
  • Election 2019: Why your voice matters
  • Presidential Priorities for 2019-20
  • UBC: The Next Century – the book!
  • Putting Students First with the Blue & Gold Campaign
  • U7 Alliance will Address the World’s Most Pressing Challenges
  • UBC’s Next Century: An update on the strategic plan
  • The President’s Medal of Excellence: 2019 Recipients
  • Changing My Mind: Margaret Trudeau on Mental Health
  • “Never lose that sense of adventure, that sense of wonder”
  • Blue and Goldcast: Talking about GenSqueeze
  • Three Takeways from the Roundtable on Non-Market Housing Innovation
  • Shaping UBC Okanagan’s Future
  • Congress 2019: Canada’s biggest academic conference is coming to UBC
  • UBC gets global recognition for sustainability impact
  • What Music Means to Me
  • Annual Giving – Faculty & Staff Appeal
  • Raising the Musqueam Flag: Acknowledging the past, recognizing our future responsibilities
  • UBC Connects: Connecting UBC to the community
  • Take the Cool Campus Challenge
  • Strategic Plan funding focuses on Indigenous, cross-campus initiatives
  • UBC’s Emeritus College is the first of its kind in Canada
  • Holiday Reflections: Honouring our commitments
  • So that the guns will fall silent forever
  • Thrive Week at UBC
  • His Highness the Aga Khan: An inspiration to us all
  • Shaping UBC’s Next Century: An update on the strategic plan
  • Listen Up, it’s the Blue & Goldcast!
  • Welcome to UBC!
  • Looking ahead to 2018-19
  • Stadium Neighbourhood: developing a thriving and sustainable community
  • Be a tourist at UBC this summer!
  • UBC: Proud to be a Pacific Rim university
  • The President’s Medal of Excellence: “A significant contribution to the purposes and ideals of the university”
  • Residential Schools: Breaking the Silence
  • Graduation: Sharing the Pride and Joy
  • Introducing Innovation UBC
  • Taking the SkyTrain to UBC
  • Continuing the journey: UBC’s strategic plan
  • Life is a marathon, not a sprint
  • The Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre: Fulfilling a Promise
  • Building a more inclusive campus community
  • Budget 2018: A clear recognition of the value of Canada’s science and research community
  • Digital Technology Supercluster means exciting opportunities for UBC, now and in the future
  • Inspire: “This is our moment”
  • Getting closer to where you want to be
  • Looking back on 2017, looking forward to 2018
  • The Blue & Gold campaign: Change their world so they can change ours
  • Going global: Our future depends on it
  • Building a better Canada
  • Overcoming the stigma of mental illness
  • UBC’s Next Century — the next phase of engagement
  • Supporting the dreamers
  • Imagine UBC 2017
  • Looking ahead to 2017-18
  • Summer at UBC
  • Exercise Run Down: Keeping the UBC community safe
  • Thank you, faculty and staff: you make UBC special
  • In a time of global uncertainty, innovation is more important than ever
  • Tokyo trip lays building blocks for future engagement with Japan
  • Graduation: The next stage in a remarkable journey
  • Exam anxiety? UBC can help
  • We cannot change the past, but we can honestly recognize it
  • UBC’s Next Century: Have your say
  • The Learning Exchange: Engaging UBC with the Downtown Eastside
  • Using data for social good: Announcing the Cascade Urban Analytics Cooperative
  • Update on Presidential Task Force
  • An innovative start to the Year of the Rooster
  • UBC’s Next Century: Moving from Excellence to Eminence
  • UBC’s Next Century
  • UBC’s Strategic Plan – seeking your input
  • A time for reflection