The Torchbearers: Recent Episodes
UBC First Generation Students Union
UBC First Generation Students Union (FGSU) presents The Torchbearers, a podcast that highlights the narratives of first-generation university students and faculty members at UBC. In each episode, we invite first-generation individuals with different backgrounds and perspectives to address challenges and interventions for the inclusion of first-generation individuals in both academic and work environments at UBC.
In this bonus episode of The Torchbearers, Dr. Murali Chandrashekaran, UBC's Vice-Provost, International and Professor in the Sauder School of Business, talked about his personal stories and the role of the university in solving global issues and upholding equity and inclusion for first-generation, low-income students.
Directed by Zahra Fazal. Produced by Alec Christensen and UBC FGSU on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) people. Supported by the UBC Equity Enhancement Fund 2019.
Music credit: Storybook by Scott Holmes
Zahra Fazal, producer of The Torchbearers and the founder of UBC First Generation Students Union (FGSU), talks about her difficult transition to university, the ideas behind the creation of FGSU and the podcast, and what comes next for FGSU in terms of raising awareness on first-generation student issues.
This episode was produced during the COVID-19 global pandemic. UBC FGSU wishes the best of luck to the graduating class of 2020 #InThisTogether #TogetherApart #StrongerTogether #HomeIsHere We also stand in solidarity with the Black community amid recent events #BlackLivesMatter
Check out UBC First Generation Students Union (FGSU), the student organization that brings you The Torchbearers. Connect with us on our website (https://ubcfgsu.wixsite.com/home), Facebook (@UBCFGSU), and Instagram (@ubcfgsu).
Directed by Zahra Fazal. Produced by Alec Christensen and UBC FGSU on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) people. Supported by the UBC Equity Enhancement Fund 2019.
Music credit: Storybook by Scott Holmes
Born and raised in Ghana, low-income university student Prince Adu recently completed his Ph.D. in Population and Public Health at UBC and is currently a post-doctoral scholar at the BC Centre for Disease Control. Family support and his strong work ethic contributed to his successful transition from Ghana to Canada, making him a role model for first-generation/low-income students.
This episode was produced during the COVID-19 global pandemic. UBC FGSU wishes the best of luck to the graduating class of 2020 #InThisTogether #TogetherApart #StrongerTogether #HomeIsHere We also stand in solidarity with the Black community amid recent events #BlackLivesMatter
Featured campus partner: Graduate Student Society; visit gss.ubc.ca for more details.
Directed by Zahra Fazal. Produced by Alec Christensen and UBC FGSU on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) people. Supported by the UBC Equity Enhancement Fund 2019.
Music credit: Storybook by Scott Holmes
Coming from Bangladesh, Amrit is an International Leaders of Tomorrow (ILoT) scholar studying Physics at UBC. Though lacking guidance and financial support from his parents, his ILoT scholarship, vision for science, and dedication to his studies helped him overcome personal challenges as a low-income student in a STEM field. He hoped to see UBC play a more proactive role in STEM retention, paying more attention to students who need to juggle with various responsibilities that negatively impact academic performance and well-being.
Featured campus partner: Science Advising; visit science.ubc.ca/students/advising for more details.
Directed by Zahra Fazal. Produced by Alec Christensen and UBC FGSU on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) people. Supported by the UBC Equity Enhancement Fund 2019.
Music credit: Storybook by Scott Holmes
Rhoda Akuol Philip, hailing from the Kakuma Refugee Camp in Kenya and a recent graduate from the UBC Sauder School of Business, shares her experience with managing peer pressure and personal finance. She encourages UBC to develop proactive solutions to ensure students' financial wellness and destigmatize financial hardships.
Featured campus resource: Financial Wellness Peers; follow them on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/ubc.fwp/) for more details.
Directed by Zahra Fazal. Produced by Alec Christensen and UBC FGSU on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) people. Supported by the UBC Equity Enhancement Fund 2019.
Music credit: Storybook by Scott Holmes
PhD student Verena Rossa introduces the concept of distributive justice and how climate change disproportionately affects lower income populations. Verena draws upon her identity as a first-generation middle-class student and how these identities guided her to study planetary health at UBC.
Featured campus resource: UBC Climate Hub; visit ubcclimatehub.ca for more details.
Directed by Zahra Fazal. Produced by Alec Christensen and UBC FGSU on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) people. Supported by the UBC Equity Enhancement Fund 2019.
Music credit: Storybook by Scott Holmes
In this episode, a student spoke to her realization of being a statistical anomaly as a low income, Aboriginal, first-generation university student pursuing her studies without having family members with post-secondary education. Her journey highlights the importance of having institutional safety nets for first-generation students to encourage their university retention and graduation.
Featured campus resource: UBC Longhouse; visit https://aboriginal.ubc.ca/longhouse/ for more details.
Directed by Zahra Fazal. Produced by Alec Christensen and UBC FGSU on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) people. Supported by the UBC Equity Enhancement Fund 2019.
Music credit: Storybook by Scott Holmes
Ziad Merdas, an international student from Yemen and a Civil Engineering graduate from UBC, had been through it all: late start in university due to visa issues, the loss of his father, the civil war back home, mental health struggles, and financial hardships. Now he is speaking about how scholarships, peer support, and his mother as a role model empowered him to combat the clash of cultures he faced while attending university abroad.
Featured campus resource: AMS Speakeasy; visit https://www.ams.ubc.ca/student-services/speakeasy/ for more details.
Directed by Zahra Fazal. Produced by Alec Christensen and UBC FGSU on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) people. Supported by the UBC Equity Enhancement Fund 2019.
Music credit: Storybook by Scott Holmes
Zahra Fazal, founder of UBC FGSU and director of The Torchbearers, sheds light on food insecurities and the associated stigmatization faced by low-income UBC students. Iris Lopez Ramirez, a Peruvian immigrant studying Dietetics at UBC, shares her involvements with on-campus initiatives tackling food insecurities and her eagerness to create change.
Directed by Zahra Fazal. Produced by Alec Christensen and UBC FGSU on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) people. Supported by the UBC Equity Enhancement Fund 2019.
Music credit: Storybook by Scott Holmes
Tamasha Hussein is a Congo native who grew up in the Dzaleka Refugee Camp in Malawi. As a first-generation university student in UBC, she made it through a challenging admissions process, navigated her way in university, and found a place to call home in UBC and Canada.
Directed by Zahra Fazal. Produced by Alec Christensen and UBC FGSU on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) people. Supported by the UBC Equity Enhancement Fund 2019.
Music credit: Storybook by Scott Holmes
UBC First Generation Students Union (FGSU) presents The Torchbearers, a podcast that highlights the narratives of first-generation university students and faculty members at UBC. In each episode, we invite first-generation individuals with different backgrounds and perspectives to address challenges and interventions for the inclusion of first-generation individuals in both academic and work environments at UBC.
Directed by Zahra Fazal. Produced by Alec Christensen and UBC FGSU on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) people. Supported by the UBC Equity Enhancement Fund 2019.
Music credit: Storybook by Scott Holmes