Trans, Two-Spirit and Gender Diversity Task Force

In years leading up to the Task Force, faculty, staff, students and alumni challenged UBC’s commitment to its trans, Two-Spirit and non-binary community members due to external events held on the Vancouver campus. These developments highlighted the pressing need for action in the area of gender identity, gender expression and human rights, particularly in light of the commitment to inclusion in UBC’s Strategic Plan and the addition of gender identity and gender expression to the BC Human Rights Code. 

A Trans, Two-Spirit and Gender Diversity Task Force was established to provide strategic direction to UBC’s senior leadership and to make recommendations to create a more inclusive campus for trans, Two-Spirit and non-binary faculty, staff, and students. The task force expanded on the scope and resourcing of the former Trans, Two-Spirit, and Gender Diversity Working Group of the Vice Presidents Strategic Implementation Committee on Equity & Diversity (VPSICED). The Task Force worked from March 2020 to early 2023. 

The mandate of the task force was to: 

• Detail the primary areas for attention and improvement to address inequities that directly impact members of trans, Two-Spirit, and non-binary communities. 
• Develop a set of actionable recommendations to address gaps in systems, policies, procedures, and practices that address the human rights concerns of trans, Two-Spirit, and gender diverse members of the UBC community.

Over the course of its work, the Task Force and its leadership met stakeholders across both campuses to deepen its understanding of current state, identify areas needing attention and improvement, build relationships, and inform its final report and recommendations. The Task Force also retained a consulting firm to conduct an audit of gender diversity at the university in early 2021. 

Co-chairs (2):

• Arig al Shaibah, Associate Vice-President, Equity and Inclusion (July 2022 - March 2023)
• Sara-Jane Finlay, Associate Vice-President, Equity and Inclusion (March 2020 - December 2021)
• Janice Stewart, Professor of Teaching, Associate Dean, Faculty, Faculty of Arts

Associate Chairs (3):

• Jesse Grimaldi
• Hannah Kia (March 2020 - September 2022)

Members (18):

• Jodey Castricano
• JP Catungal
• Bec Chan
• Atmaza Chattopadhyay
• Kip Chow
• Jordy Decker
• Skylar Dubois
• Seren Friskie
• Daniel Gallardo Zamora
• A. Gonzalez
• Daniel Heath Justice
• Harper Keenan
• Sophie MacDonald
• Em Mittertreiner
• Ky Sargeant
• Mary Ann Saunders
• Corrina Sparrow
• Sasha Wiley-Shaw

HR representative:

• Lindi Frost

EIO staff for operational and strategic support:

• Hélène Frohard-Dourlent, Strategist
• Kaitlyn Kraatz (June 2021 - July 2022)

We also want to thank former members for their essential contributions to the Task Force: 

• Hannah Kia (co-Associate Chair) 
• Sara-Jane Finlay (co-Chair) 
• Kaitlyn Kraatz (EIO staff) 

The Task Force met on a monthly basis from March 2020 - October 2022. You can find meeting minutes below. 

Documents

Terms of Reference

Interim Report on Task Force Progress, March 2021

Trans, Two-Spirit and Gender Diversity Task Force Final Report

Meeting Minutes

July 27, 2020

May 25, 2020 

April 21, 2020

March 4, 2020

September 15, 2020

October 21, 2020

November 20, 2020

December 17, 2020

January 22, 2021

February 22, 2021

The task force was charged with developing a set of actionable recommendations for the Provosts, Deputy Vice Chancellor, Vice President, Student and Vice President, Human Resources (through the VPSICED) to address gaps in systems, policies, procedures and practices to address the human rights concerns of trans, Two-Spirit and non-binary members of the UBC community, so as to create more inclusive environments for trans, Two-Spirit, and non-binary people on UBC campuses. 

To ensure accountability over time, the recommendations of Trans, Two-Spirit, and Gender Diversity Task Force have been integrated into the StEAR Framework and Roadmap for Change.