Awards

What’s all the buzz about? Lana Harach Wins Award for Research on B.C.’s Asian Giant Hornets

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Lana Harach, an Agricultural Science student at UFV, is the Undergraduate Research Excellence (URE) Award winner for a journal article she wrote in CMNS 325: Writing for the Sciences and Technologies. Lana’s work explores the emergence of the invasive Vespa mandarinia species (Asian giant hornets) on the West Coast of British Columbia.

“I took CMNS 325 as I wanted to become more skilled at sharing the information I have learned,” says Lana. “My favourite part of the course was learning how to build scientific articles based on how people read and make connections between sentences within a paragraph.”

Below, Lana discusses her research article, “Mitigating Dangers of Vespa mandarinia (Asian Giant Hornet),” where she used secondary literature to underscore the threat this invasive species poses to the agricultural economy of the Fraser Valley.

Why did you choose to study Asian giant hornets? What did you learn in the process?

LH: My interest in Asian giant hornets started the year before I took CMNS 325 because one of the hornet nests found was close to my hometown. When brainstorming ideas for my focus in CMNS 325 I realized that the topic of Asian giant hornets overlaps with another one of my passions: ‘integrated pest management’. As pest management is a field that I am interested in pursuing as a career it seemed like a fun topic that I not only had an emotional connection to but one that could help me in a future career! Throughout the process of writing this paper I learned how important making short-term and long-term deadlines are, and how these can help me avoid procrastination. It also helped me see the value in coming back to a writing project with fresh eyes days later – teaching me that while having someone else read over your paper is valuable, there is a lot I can accomplish before that if I give myself the time to do so.

The topic of Asian giant hornets is a very popular one, with many articles published about it. It was interesting to wade through these and I feel gave me a better understanding of the whole picture. It taught me that it’s important to remain connected to the readers, to understand where their fears or misunderstandings are coming from so that I can better explain the science behind it.

Why should people in B.C. to be aware of the V. mandarinia? What steps can people take to protect themselves?

LH: It is critical for people in B.C. to be aware of Asian giant hornets because they would pose a high threat to our ecological systems if they became an established invasive pest. Asian giant hornets are ferocious predators in the insect world and their main target is bee populations. Our North American bee populations have not evolved defence mechanisms against Asian giant hornets, and because of this would be greatly impacted (and killed).

Another reason for people in B.C. to be aware of Asian giant hornets is to protect themselves. Protecting oneself starts as simply as observing your surroundings, especially when you are walking in forests (their preferred habitat). These hornets don’t tend to sting humans unless provoked so give them plenty of space and room. Asian giant hornets also get excited by bright colours like yellow and orange (the colour of their main prey), so wearing duller, more earthy colours would reduce the chance of catching their attention. If you do see an Asian giant hornet report it to the Invasive Species Council of BC (by phone, app or website).

Thanks for sharing your insights on the Asian giant hornets. Congratulations on winning the URE Award! What did you think about being nominated, and then winning the award?

LH: I was surprised and excited to be nominated. I tend to rely more on my speaking communication skills, so having my written communication skills acknowledged has opened some career doors for me in my mind. When I received the email telling me I had won the award I was so honoured! I think the most overwhelming moment for me was thinking about the number of individuals who decided that this paper not only worth their time to read through but to recognize officially as well is very humbling. 

Speaking of Success: Balneet Toor wins the Toastmasters’ Award

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Let’s toast Balneet Toor, the recipient of the Rise and Shine Toastmasters’ Annual Achievement Award, for her outstanding work in CMNS 235: Public Speaking. Balneet recently graduated from UFV with a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, as well as the Professional Communication Essentials certificate.

“I was very surprised and thankful when I found out about the nomination,” says Balneet. “It felt nice to know that my peers and professor enjoyed listening to my speeches and they have faith in my skills. Winning the award was the best feeling ever. I felt very proud of myself, and this was a fantastic way to end my last semester at UFV.”

Why did you take the class and what was your experience like?

BT: I took this class to challenge myself and to improve my public speaking skills. Another motivating factor was that I would qualify for a communications certificate since I had already completed the other two communications courses. It was a hard decision for me because I get very nervous while speaking in front of a large group. However, I am so glad that I pushed myself to take the course because it was a life changing experience for me. I was able to overcome my fear of public speaking and regain lost confidence. Samantha made this course enjoyable and valuable. It was a great decision to take this class.

What was your favourite part of the class? 

BT: My favorite part of the class was the impromptu speaking and having a theme for each class. This is something I looked forward to each week as the themes were very interesting and our class discussions were also very effective and valuable. I loved listening to my peers, hearing about their experiences and relating them to my life and also learning new things from them. This was a great way to get to know one another. It helped the class understand each other better and increase our comfort level.

What was it like taking a public speaking class on Zoom? 

BT: It was a very unique experience taking a public speaking class on Zoom. Honestly it went so much better than I had expected. Samantha made the course very easy to follow along and she encouraged us to use this opportunity to learn different techniques on how to present online. Since I am a business student, I feel this was a very valuable experience because I will be presenting online at some point in my career. Especially with the world changing due to the pandemic and most people working from home. I’m glad I was able to make progress with each speech and change the technique that I was using to present. For example, in my first speech I was sitting down and presenting. By the end of the course, I presented while standing in front of the camera.

Do you have any tips for future public speaking students? 

BT: Some tips that I have for future public speaking students is to take risks, chances and have faith in yourself. You are your biggest motivator. It’s important to brainstorm and practice your speech beforehand to ensure that your speech will be effective. Lastly, don’t forget to have fun! This course is full of enjoyable activities and amazing opportunities.­­

Balneet’s award-winning acceptance speech is below. “I prepared for my final speech by creating a speech plan and noting down everything that I would like to include,” said Balneet. “From there onwards I just spoke from the heart. I was so thankful and happy that I was given this opportunity.”

$500 survey draw winner: Communication skills used in “almost every aspect of life”

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Congratulations to University of the Fraser Valley student Garrett Johnson, a 2020 Bachelor of Arts graduate  for having his name drawn from a pool of over 1100 alumni and current students who responded to the recent Communications Department survey. The survey gathered information to contribute to developing a Communications Major within the Bachelor of Arts.

We extend a huge THANK YOU to everyone who responded to the survey!!!

Garrett says he put his knowledge from his Communications 125 course to work immediately in applying to Simon Fraser University and has been accepted to a Masters program  – something we are always happy to hear.

We also liked hearing his answers to our questions below because we know that our students at UFV have an amazing array of plans for the future and reasons why they decide that university is great path to meet their goals. Here are some of the things he had to say:

What are some favourite memories about any of the courses you took?
I took that specific course while studying remotely from Toronto. I found myself really enjoying the course material as I took three online courses. Being able to communicate to both professors and fellow students in a concise and professional manner is key when using technology to communicate. Being able to directly implement the ideas and concepts directly into my other courses was very gratifying!

In what ways have you been able to use any of the communications skills?
I have used the communication skills learned from the course in almost every aspect of my life. I have applied the skills in my various volunteer positions that I hold where I am required to regularly communicate in a professional manner. I have also made use of the skills in applying for Grad school, and to which I owe some credit in regards to my acceptance.

What are your future plans?
Besides preparing for Grad school, I am a freelance translator, translating between English and French. I am very interested in researching, analyzing, and promoting Franco-Columbian literature and authors. I would like to continue my work translating, as well as pursue my scholarly interests into what I hope will one day transition into a career opportunity.

What else would you like to say about yourself?
I am thankful for the variety of courses that UFV offers, despite possibly not having a complete program in [Communications]. I would love to go back and follow more CMNS courses now that I know the benefit from them.

Congratulations again Garrett and best wishes for all your future successes.

Catching up with public speaking award winner, Liz Power

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By Jess Wind

Every year one student from each section of CMNS 235: Public Speaking is nominated by their class for the Rise and Shine Toastmasters award at the end of the semester. These nominees present an acceptance speech as their entry for the award and one exceptional speaker is chosen for the annual $600 prize.

Our most recent winner is Liz Powers, a Bachelor of Arts student with plans to major in psychology before moving on to a Masters in counselling. She’s prepared for it to take longer than the average four-year degree because on top of being a student and server, Liz is a mother of three.

Liz came into every class with a smile and enthusiasm that radiated to everyone around her. Liz’s speeches were relevant to her life, and that of her audience with a healthy dose of humour to draw her listeners in. Most memorably, Liz taught us how to bake cookies for her demonstration speech, and there were plenty of samples to go around.

I caught up with Liz to find out what it took to earn the nomination from her classmates, and the mark Public Speaking has left on her.

Talk to me a bit about your decision to take the class and your journey throughout the term.

So I took the class because I was told there was no final exam. I was just trying to balance out my course load and figure out how to do that with kids and going back to school because I was still really new to the process.

And then the process of learning how to write a speech and then how to execute it was actually far more interesting than I thought it’d be.

What did you think about being nominated, and then about winning?

I was actually very surprised. And then I was grateful and also ungrateful in that I was like “I don’t have time to write another one of these and memorize it,” but I thought, it’s good practice.

Winning the award was a nice confidence booster. It was almost necessary at that stage. When I got the email that I won, it was at a really difficult stage in my life personally with my kids and what not and that was just like a nice moment in what was a really chaotic couple of months.

How’d you plan for the final speech?

One of the memorization techniques that was mentioned in my psychology class was the memory palace. And so I used that to memorize my last speech which was so helpful.

I memorized the speech walking through my house from room to room and each space in my house had a different component of my speech. So when I was giving my speech it was a lot easier because it had a flow to it … I feel it made the process far less nerve wracking.

Do you find you’re more aware of speaking skills in others now?

I am more aware of my hand gestures when I’m talking, because when I started I looked like an aerobics instructor from 1980. Which is really appropriate being the size of my hair typically.

I went to the Tedx Chilliwack, and it was very interesting watching the different speakers because they work with coaches and some of them were so on point and I can tell [they’ve] really dialed this down. I was so impressed — things I probably wouldn’t have noticed before … but now when you understand the number of things that need to go into that. And then the moments where they would forget you could see them stop and close their eyes and look for it in their mind … I know what that moment feels like.

Do you have any tips for the next round of public speaking students?

In terms of memorizing, the memory palace was key for me. And the other thing that I think helped was … I practiced in front of my video recorder … and then I would watch it. And then I would do it again and I would watch it. I would see where I stumbled or where I missed and then I would try to make those pieces more memorable.

And I would also practice in my car, anytime I was driving anywhere, it was repeat, repeat, repeat.

Looking toward the future, Liz dreams of opening a bed and breakfast one day and possibly combining that with her counselling focus into a retreat centre.

I actually just love making people’s beds and cooking them breakfast and telling them about the community and all the cool fun things there are to do.