At UBC, we are committed to maintaining and respecting human rights at every level of the institution. This means providing students, staff and faculty with an environment dedicated to excellence, equity and mutual respect, and free from discrimination.
How we can help
Advising update
UBCO students, faculty and staff are now able to access human rights advising during regular drop-in hours. UBCO’s human rights advisor is available for drop-in advising:
Drop-in advising hours
UNC 325
Mondays
9:00 am to 12:00 pm
If you drop-in and a human rights advisor is not available, please check-back or request human rights advising support through our form below.
We are committed to supporting your requests for human rights advising and thank you for your patience.
For additional support during this time, consider the services listed below.
If you are seeking advocacy support related to a discrimination concern, please reach out as follows:
- SUO Advocacy, for undergraduate and graduate students on the Okanagan campus;
- Union and Association representatives, for member employees.
For urgent health-related support, please call 911, go to your local emergency room, or contact someone in your life who can support you.
For urgent mental health support, consider:
- BC Crisis Centre: 1-800-784-2433: for individuals who are or know someone who is having thoughts of suicide. The service is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and in up to 140 languages.
- Mental Health Support Line: 310-6789: for emotional support, information and resources specific to mental health in British Columbia. The service is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and is toll-free anywhere in British Columbia (no need to dial an area code).
UBCO students may review and access additional student health and wellness services.
UBCO employees may access health and well-being resources, including UBC’s Employee and Family Assistance Program - learn more about the range of wellness services for employees here: hr.ubc.ca/health-and-wellbeing/mental-health
If you have concerns related to discrimination on the basis of one or more of the 14 grounds protected by the BC Human Rights Code and as defined by UBC’s policy SC7: Discrimination, our team is here to help.
Protected grounds include real or perceived: age, ancestry, colour, family status, marital status, physical or mental disability, place of origin, political belief, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, and criminal conviction unrelated to employment.
Our human rights advising team:
- consults on human-rights related discrimination and provides information and advice;
- works with relevant parties to resolve concerns informally, where possible;
- assists with filing a formal complaint, as appropriate.
Discrimination is intentional or unintentional conduct, which can be individual or systemic, that imposes burdens, obligations, or disadvantages on or limits access to opportunities, benefits and advantages to specific individuals or groups as defined by the BC Human Rights Code and for which there is no real and reasonable justification.
Harassment that is related to one or more of the prohibited grounds of discrimination set out in the Human Rights Code is considered discrimination under this policy.
The following PDF provides an overview of the steps involved in UBC's discrimination complaint process:
UBC Discrimination Complaint Process
Get support
If you feel that you may have been subjected to discrimination or have concerns related to discrimination, please contact us by submitting a request for advising. We’ll get back to you as soon as we are able to acknowledge your inquiry and advise on next steps. We also provide training and education to leaders, units and campus groups.
Request training and education
Trans and Gender Diversity Support
If you are a Two-Spirit, trans and/or non-binary student, staff or faculty, and have questions and concerns specific to trans inclusion and gender diversity, our team has expertise and lived experience to support you.
Access
Our services are fully operational. Appointments are now provided in-person and virtually using Zoom.
Drop-in office hours
Monday to Friday
9:00 am to 2:00 pm
Our commitments to you
We consider all personal information, as well as reasons for reaching out to our office, confidential. If disclosure of information is necessary in order to respond to a request, we work closely with the discloser(s) to determine the most productive way of sharing information. In exceptional circumstances, where required by law or where there is risk of significant harm to anyone’s health or safety, we may refer the matter to appropriate parties within UBC and/or notify third parties, such as the police or child protection authorities.
Our office maintains an impartial approach. Simply put, this means that we avoid taking sides or advocating for one opinion or perspective in a given conflict scenario. Rather, we strive to explore the differing perspectives at play, and their intersections, in service of greater understanding on all sides. We do, at the same time, maintain throughout all our work a strong commitment to the values of equity, diversity, and inclusivity, as well as the policies and procedures that exemplify those and other core ethical values of the university.
We do everything we can to make our services accessible. Those with accessibility needs are encouraged to let us know in advance of a meeting to arrange to accommodate their needs. If English is not your preferred language, please request a translator or bring someone who can translate for you to any meetings with us.
We use a trauma-informed approach in our advising by understanding that an individual is more likely than not to have a history of trauma and by acknowledging the role trauma may play in an individual's experiences.
Advising team
Learn more about the Human Rights Advising team.