The Research and Graduate Studies department at UFV held their Student Research Day event this year on April 2, 2025. Each year UFV students are invited to participate in Student Research Day by designing and submitting a research poster and/or by presenting a snapshot of their research project in under two minutes at the Student Micro-lectures. The purpose is to showcase the current state of their faculty-supervised research with a diverse audience. This year almost 90 students participated in the research poster competition and about 22 students took on the challenge to present their research in a two-minute micro-lecture.
Samarah Siddique, a Research Assistant at the South Asian Studies Institute, participated in Student Research Day 2025. She presented her research on the South Asian Muslims in BC project. She displayed her work at the poster presentations and presented her work in under two minutes in a series of micro-lectures. Her work included documenting and conducting qualitative interviews with people from the South Asian Muslim diaspora who are living in BC. These stories will be archived and disseminated through the creation of a dedicated oral history collection in the SASI’s South Asian Canadian Digital Archive (SACDA). The research documents the overlooked stories of the community, filling a critical gap in Canadian history. This is the first study of its kind in the Fraser Valley helping preserve heritage, challenging misrepresentation, and creating an archive for future generations (to be launched in the early fall of 2025).
Samarah shared her insights, offering a reflection on her experiences and discoveries throughout the project: “My experience throughout this research process and meeting people from the South Asian Muslim community in BC has truly opened my eyes to the immense diversity and beauty within the community I belong to. I have had the privilege of documenting incredible stories that will now be preserved online for the world to see. Through these narratives, I have witnessed how migration and settlement have shaped people’s identities, as well as how they have adapted while still holding onto their roots. As a South Asian Canadian Muslim myself, I will always be grateful to be a part of this journey and deeply appreciative of those who believed in my ability to take on this role. This experience has guided me and given me direction for my future studies and the path I want to take in life. Most importantly, it has shown me a strength I once underestimated, which is my natural way of speaking and connecting with others to share stories that matter. Additionally, it has also inspired me to continue doing work that gives light to communities whose stories and journeys are often overlooked or undervalued in society.”
Director of SASI and Samarah’s supervisor, Dr. Satwinder Bains expressed that, “Samarah’s work with the South Asian Muslims in BC project at SASI has been part of our effort to document the stories of families and individuals from the Fraser Valley who have made this area home. Samarah’s unique lived experiences, research skills, language skills and academic background made her the ideal person to undertake the oral history part of the project. We are so proud of her accomplishments, and she has done us proud with her ability to negotiate, work, study and research in such a seamless way and with so much grace.”
Samarah, your project on the South Asian Muslims in BC is truly remarkable. We are so impressed by your initiative in documenting these vital stories and creating an archive for future generations. It’s clear from your reflection how deeply this experience has resonated with you, and we admire your ability to connect with people and share narratives that often go unheard. Congratulations on presenting your work so effectively at Student Research Day. We are so excited to see the impact of this important research.