info_mark

Llgaay gwii gina sk'aadGa 'láas ad Xaaydas gina Gan unsid

Enhancing business education with Indigenous knowledge

scroll_arrow

A long-term initiative to Indigenize UBC Sauder

Through a Teaching and Learning Enhancement Fund (TLEF) grant and with additional support from the BMO Aboriginal Teaching Fund, UBC Sauder faculty and staff are working together to infuse our business education mission with Indigenous knowledge.

The goal of the project is to weave Indigenous perspectives, knowledge, and competencies into the pedagogy of UBC Sauder, and to ensure Indigenous students are engaging in a healthy, supportive learning environment. Curriculum resources and training opportunities are being developed to support faculty to approach Indigenous topics in an informed and sensitive manner. This work is in alignment with UBC’s Indigenous Strategic Plan, and specifically addresses goals 4, 6 and 7.

A future that includes reconciliation must also include the challenging work of decolonizing established worldviews and approaches to business, education and research. This project specifically makes space for this work, and integrates across other initiatives from Ch’nook Business Education and other UBC departments

Get involved

We’re seeking Indigenous community members who wish to share knowledge and participate in paid collaboration on the co-development of case studies, in-class experiences, videos, storytelling and more.

If you identify as Indigenous/First Nations/Aboriginal/Inuit/Metis and want to share your perspectives and expertise in business, curriculum development, or facilitation, we would love to hear from you for possible collaboration opportunities.

Contact Ben Wells

benjamin.wells@sauder.ubc.ca
604.827.2489

About Ben Wells

TLEF Project Manager – Enhancing Business Education with Indigenous Knowledge

Ben Wells comes to UBC Sauder from a diverse background as an entrepreneur, facilitator, student and community builder. Ben is of mixed settler and Indigenous backgound, including the Shxw’ow’hamel near Hope, BC, Métis of North West Territories, and Irish, German and Italian. He was raised in the territories of the Tk’emlúps te Secwèpemc (Kamloops) and Haida, and moved to the lower mainland in 2010. Ben co-founded the worker-cooperative Shift Delivery in 2011. Departing Shift in 2019, Ben completed a BA in Psychology at UBC, graduating last April.

Ben believes that cultivating the responsible leaders of tomorrow means more than just teaching students how to interact with Indigenous peoples in a respectful way. “The project aims to expose students and faculty to the truths and injustices of the past, break down persistent stereotypes and bring the complexity and nuance of the Indigenous experience into the classroom.”

Ben Wells