UBC Reports | Vol. 51 | No. 2 | Feb. 3, 2005

Planning for the Great Northern Way Campus

In 2001, Finning International, Inc. donated 7.6 hectares of Vancouver land to four B.C. post-secondary institutions -- UBC, SFU, BCIT and the Emily Carr Institute of Art and Design.

Dubbed the Great Northern Way Campus (GNWC), the four institutions are working together to build a unique and integrated centre of excellence in teaching, learning, research and entrepreneurship. The campus is expected to house 4,000 students by 2020.

In the area of urban sustainability, UBC and SFU will begin offering a series of pilot courses in June and September 2005 that combines policy research with community action. Meanwhile, with funding from UBC and the Canada Foundation for Innovation, and further funds expected from the B.C. Knowledge Development Fund, construction will begin on the first building of the Centre for Interactive Research on Sustainability, which will be both a test bed for innovative sustainable building technologies and a venue for research and teaching.

UBC and the Emily Carr Institute will soon begin offering courses at the GNWC in theatre, industrial design and the graphic arts. A UBC scenography class will be one of the first occupants of the innovative Black Box Studio, a 1,500-square-metre performance and workshop space based on the design recommendations of the UBC department of theatre.

The Learning and Teaching Centre at BCIT is currently assisting with a feasibility study for a proposed Master of Digital Entertainment program at GNWC that would provide Vancouver’s thriving electronic gaming and animation community with highly qualified personnel.