John Ede is running to be a staff representative on UBC’s Board of Governors. He was formerly the president of the Graduate Student Society (GSS) in 2018-19 and now works as a contract manager at the university. He holds a master’s in public policy and global affairs from UBC.
The Ubyssey spoke to Ede about his campaign and what he hopes to bring to the board. We asked him the same questions we asked all candidates, and edited this interview for length and clarity.
The Ubyssey: Why are you running and why should people elect you?
John Ede: It's a marriage of duty, experience and opportunity. UBC has been home to me and my family since 2017. I worked here for eight years now, and my sense of duty comes from being responsible to contribute to the society that feeds you. I think that everyone has a sense of duty to contribute to the society that sustains them and their families. I also have a very wide field of experience, from business, politics, technical experience, business management and people management. I think that, for the past 20 years, I've amassed quite a chest of skills that will be very helpful to a body like the Board of Governors. I'm running to bring my wealth of experience to bear on a sense of duty. The opportunity part is, I'm a growing professional. I made a switch from business management and engineering to public service when I chose to do a master's in public policy and global affairs here at UBC. I see this opportunity as a chance to grow my profile in public management and public service. It's a marriage of three objectives for me. I think people should vote for me because I bring a unique perspective as a former international student, an international business person, someone who has worked and served as a student leader, a staff leader in the Association of Administrative and Professional Staff of UBC and even run for public office in Vancouver-Quadra in the last federal election. All those things put together, I think that I bring a unique set of skills that would help and support the board in meeting its objectives.
Last week, the federal government announced it would be further reducing the number of new international study permits from 437,000 in 2025 to 155,000 in 2026. This is a 65 per cent decline. How should the university respond to budget shortfalls that may result from this?
Not being on any financial or planning body within the Board of Governors, I cannot make specific recommendations, but I've managed businesses for over 10 years. I did budget balancing for the GSS when I was president, and I can only say that it's best to consider all the elements on the ground when a challenge comes, and consider all options for alternatives at the time and make the best decision. If the federal government has made a decision to reduce international student study permits, I know that is hinged on the recent political climate and conversations. All I would say is that, from my perspective as a candidate, we have to bear all the best judgments and the resources that UBC has at the present time and plan a response accordingly.
Earlier this year, the UBC Library announced a “significant structural deficit” in its funding, despite UBC President Benoit-Antoine Bacon stating that the university is in a financially strong position. What do you believe is the correct response to the library’s problems?
I'm not going to offer a response because I'm not well-informed enough to know these issues. I would rather defer to better judgment and more information. The one thing I do know is that, in recent years, consumption of printed media has suffered a loss in relation to online resources and open sources all across North America. That might actually be the same for institutions of learning across the world. So it could be that has woven its effect into the operations of the UBC Library. That is the most I know, and if I had the chance, I would investigate that further.
Should UBC organize teaching and learning around the tradition of a university as a place of pure knowledge-seeking, or around the interests of the post-graduation labour market?
Those two are intrinsically related, even though there seem to be two different streams. UBC’s core business is to advance learning, teaching and research. That is critical, because it accomplishes the objective of pursuing relevance. In the same way, UBC is actually turning out graduates and people that work in industry, and so one does not come above the other. It's a tightrope balance the university has to do. Clearly, that's why we have a very strong partnership profile with industry and wider society. You have to get feedback from the industry on what their needs are for their staff. In the same way, UBC cannot be limited by the needs of companies or industry, or the needs of staff to dictate what its research and learning strategy should focus on. It's a balance, and this is why I think that's where my expertise comes into play the most. If you run a business or a corporation, you have to balance sometimes-conflicting interests, and your success in that business depends on how well you balance the needs of your customers. In this case, our customers are the students and the graduates of UBC. On the other hand, you have to compete with your competitors, turning up new products, new ideas, innovating to make sure that if your market turns and requires more, you're not left with the bag. It's just a tightrope that UBC’s governing body has to walk, and I think that I'm well poised to advise in that regard.
Over the last three years, some students and staff have called on the university to divest from companies they say are complicit in the Palestinian genocide. If elected, will you push for divestment from these companies?
It's not a simple yes or no. If you're running a corporation, you have to make the best decision for the organization, given the array of options and issues on the table at the time. I'm aware that UBC Staff for Palestine is quite active, and I think they've reached out to all candidates to make a statement. I have declined making a statement for that group for the same reason, since the act that establishes UBC’s Board of Governors says that all governors must make decisions in the best interest of the university. One can’t just make a decision of yes or no without considering what the impact is — long and short term — for the university. UBC represents people from at least half of the world, all of them with a cultural-historical background. I think that it will be very counter productive for an institution that represents all of these people to try to balance the needs of all people that are part of this aggregation. It might be best for the board to come up with a framework to handle emerging issues like this.
Perhaps UBC doesn't have the policy for responding to issues like this because there hasn't been the need. But since COVID-19, since the Israel-Palestine conflict and the Ukrainian war, the world is evolving in such a way that UBC has to be prepared to respond. Divestment is not an easy question. If elected, I will not be voting yes or no until the Board of Governors has a very wide conversation and discussion around what I've just mentioned. What is UBC’s core and strategic direction for the near and short term? What should UBC’s position be in taking decisive action when it comes to conflict and moral issues across the globe? What kind of precedents are we setting?
Despite a 44 per cent decrease in UBCV greenhouse gas emissions since 2007, the university is not on track to meet its 85 per cent reduction goal by 2030. Is there anything you would do differently to attempt to meet this goal? If not, how do you plan to approach climate-related issues at UBC?
I think that UBC is doing all it can do given the current realities in the availability of technology and the availability of funds to make changes. I think that UBC is doing a good job of infusing almost all of its programs with an awareness for climate change action. I work in procurement on this contract management with facilities. Actions are being taken on every level, even at the procurement level, to bring the perspective of UBC’s Climate Action Plan.
It's easy to sit outside the Board of Governors and talk about solutions of what you would do. To improve our climate action, I'd have to be more privy about what the university has on the ground, what resources we have, what the plans are, how well they performed, and make a decision based on that. The best quality of governors will be how dexterous they are in their analytic skills, amassing data and knowledge, making judgments based on the best interests of the university.
Are there any issues important to your candidacy that you haven’t got the chance to talk about already?
What I have seen in recent years is that the social construct globally is shifting, probably influenced by social media. People are more connected, and information goes around quicker. When I was the president of the GSS, a group reached out to me to try to stop a talk by a public speaker whom they thought was too far right. I didn't take any action at the time. On the other hand, we hear of this recent request by the UBC for Palestine group asking for an assertive statement that one would vote to divest.
UBC stands to create an example of cordiality and community, or at least retaining the best version of cordial society. In the diversification that was seen globally, the issues of anti-racism, anti-LGBTQ, far right or far left political discourse is actually breaking people apart. I think that there's a place for an institution like UBC to take a lead. It's not in the arbitration of what is right or wrong, but it's in the development and discussion on how to reign in divergent views to still have cordial and progressive conversation.
One of the strategic priorities in the current strategic plan is a focus on people and community, and I think that that's where I’d like to do some work. Actions that UBC can take, and how the Board of Governors can lead in creating the most cohesive and accommodating society for all the members of our community.
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