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Striving for safe and respectful childbirth

Illustration by Celina Koops of a mother holding her baby while wearing a mask. Both of them are symbolically being held and supported by embracing arms.

September 17 marks World Patient Safety Day, a day which “calls for global solidarity and concerted action by all countries and international partners to improve patient safety.” This year, the theme is safe maternal and newborn care — an essential conversation, as the World Health Organization (WHO) estimates 6,700 newborns die every day, while 810 … Read more

Labour Day in Canada

Illustration by Celina Koops of workers in clothes indicating different professions: a healthcare worker, a person in a suit, and a construction worker.

Canadians are about to enjoy the Labour Day long weekend with an extra day off as the unofficial end of summer and start of the new school year. But for such a major weekend of vacations and gatherings (in normal years, at least), how often do we really consider the name and origins of Labour … Read more

CHASI calls on the international community to support Afghanistan

Photo of Chelsea Novakowski and Afghan women skating outdoors on a snow-covered frozen lake, with brown stone cliffs in the background.

In light of this weekend’s news that the Taliban has overthrown the government of Afghanistan, CHASI joins the call for the international community to act with immediacy and urgency to ensure the significant gains the Afghan people have made in recent years are not lost. Canada has committed to resettling 20,000 Afghans, and pledged to … Read more

International Day of Friendship

Illustration by Celina Koops of two friends emerging from the screens of their laptops to share a hug.

Today is the International Day of Friendship. Writing on the day’s meaning, the U.N. explains that confronting the world’s challenges requires “promoting and defending a shared spirit of human solidarity that takes many forms — the simplest of which is friendship.” During the COVID-19 pandemic, friendship has looked different, and many of our connections have … Read more

Disability Pride Month

Illustration of Karsten Renaerts wearing a cowboy hat and riding a horse, with a sun-like yellow glow illuminating him from behind.

July is Disability Pride Month, and in celebration of this observance, CHASI is proud to share the following guest post from Karsten Renaerts, an Accessibility Advisor for UFV’s Centre for Accessibility Services. When I was asked if I wanted to contribute to this blog post, I enthusiastically said “Sure! I’d be happy to.” Then, I … Read more

UFV researcher confirmed presumed unmarked graves at Kamloops Residential School

Photo of Dr. Sarah Beaulieu pushing a Ground Penetrating Radar machine in a wooded area, while people with clipboards observe and take notes.

Dr. Sarah Beaulieu, a University of the Fraser Valley (UFV) anthropologist, presented a summary of her ground penetrating radar (GPR) investigation to media Thursday morning at an event held by Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc First Nation, highlighting 200 “targets of interest” of what are likely to indicate human burials. The Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc First Nation have … Read more

Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc press release: KIRS missing children findings but a fraction of investigation and work need to bring peace to families and communities

Logo of Tk'emlúps te Secwépemc

CHASI is sharing this press release from Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc in support of their investigation of presumed unmarked graves of Indigenous children of the former Kamloops Indian Residential School, which is in part a collaboration with CHASI Faculty Associate Dr. Sarah Beaulieu. July 15, 2021 – Kamloops. Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc calls on people worldwide to … Read more

Bigger Than Me Podcast highlights CHASI

Logo for Bigger Than Me Podcast with Aaron Pete

The Bigger Than Me Podcast, hosted by UFV alum Aaron Pete, featured two interviews with members of the CHASI team in June! First, Aaron spoke with Spencer Huesken, our Research Associate. Today, Bigger Than Me released an interview Dr. Martha Dow, CHASI’s director. CHASI would like to extend our thanks to Aaron for taking the … Read more

Celebrating Pride and acknowledging what still needs to be done

An illustration of two cartoon, rainbow-coloured hands coming together in celebration. Text reads: Canada is home to 1 million people who are LGBTQ2+, accounting for 4% of the total population

Content warning: suicide June may be coming to an end, but CHASI is proud to celebrate Pride year-round. This year, Canada marks an exciting milestone, reaching one million members of the LGBTQ2+ community! Canada still has a long way to go, however. Statistics Canada has also shared information on the discrimination and challenges that the … Read more