Planning for Future Helpers

BY KEVIN HALL, PHD. PRESIDENT AND VICE-CHANCELLOR

We live in a rapidly changing world, marked by seemingly constant and immediate challenges that range from health crises and geopolitical strife, to climate change and growing inequities. In a world that is changing so quickly, we know that working to solve today’s wicked problems won’t be enough. We will need to be ready to address the unknown issues of tomorrow.

UVic’s new strategic plan will provide us with a renewed purpose, a pledge to uphold Indigenous rights and a set of principles that will inspire and guide our decision-making for decades to come.

When we began the engagement process for the plan, we asked our communities about what was important for our collective future and how we can contribute to ensuring that future is sustainable, equitable and just. We heard loud and clear that bringing together different perspectives and lived experiences was critical to flexibly navigating the unknown—especially when tackling the big issues we all face as a society.

Universities are among the most trusted public institutions in society, and that trust is the foundation for our autonomy and our ability to work for the benefit of society.

To earn and maintain that trust it is necessary that we confront the difficult truths about our history. We must have the courage to explore past injustices, be transparent about the role universities have played in upholding the dominant systems of power and face our own challenges to mend the damage done. Our strategic plan will work in tandem with our Equity Action Plan and new Indigenous Plan to call out these systemic and historical barriers, offering targeted actions to begin our own mending process.

As a public institution, UVic, and all universities, have the responsibility to develop knowledge and to educate and train the people necessary to protect our communities, our societies and our planet from immediate threats and potential future disasters as best we can. Universities need to promote creativity, innovation, collaboration, compassion and brilliance—not on our own, but together. It’s our differences, our unique perspectives and lived experiences that allow us to build better solutions.

Our strategic plan will present a purpose statement that identifies us as a community-minded, globally engaged university where we transform ideas into meaningful impact. This is how we will train and support the rescuers and helpers of our time and beyond.

When you read the stories in this issue and learn about the great work being done here at UVic, turn your thoughts to the pathways that enabled this work. Our institutional lens must always be trained to review and assess the full potential of these initiatives. Did our rescuers and helpers have the right resources? Did our policies empower or delay their projects? Were there sufficient avenues and opportunities for collaboration and community involvement? These are the questions our new strategic plan will ask us all to consider.

We are prepared to face a changing world, to lift each other up and face the challenges that come our way with renewed commitment, enthusiasm, compassion and humility. The next leaders of tomorrow will be the helpers, rescuers and those who have earned the trust of their community through openness and courage. T

UVic’s new strategic plan will be launched in the fall— watch uvic.ca/strategicplan for updates.