Consistently ranked among B.C.’s top 40 employers, UBC Okanagan is hosting its third annual Health and Sustainability Symposium, Spread Too Thin: Personal Sustainability Strategies for the Sandwich Generation, taking place on campus in the Fipke Centre on May 5 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Partnering with Bayshore Home Health, UBC Okanagan will open this event to the public for the first time to help support personal health and wellbeing in the face of competing demands related to work, life, aging parents, teens and more.
“Not only do we think it is important to build on the skills and talents of our employees through efforts that raise awareness about sustainability and advance healthy workplace practices, but we want to engage community members, business and civic leaders who care about these issues to join our conversation and participate with us,” says Doug Owram, deputy vice chancellor of UBC Okanagan.
Among the symposium highlights is keynote speaker Dr. Art Hister, a daily health analyst on Global TV, as well as the author of two best-sellers: Midlife Man and A Guide to a Longer and Healthier Life. Using humour to discuss and debate the evidence that healthy lifestyle adjustments improve all measures of health, Hister will address issues around lowering the risk of premature death, lowering the risk of developing life-limiting chronic illness, and lowering – perhaps even reversing – our inevitable aging.
Also featured is author and international speaker Maggie Reigh, who weaves together stories, anecdotes and humour into time-proven principles and techniques that add quality and substance to life and relationships. Her presentation will focus on identifying the real saboteurs in people’s lives so they can free themselves to live more productively, creatively and peacefully at work and at home.
“This symposium will be the foundation for future events and dialogue to explore how we can become more healthy and sustainable personally, within organizations and within communities,” says Leanne Bilodeau, manager of the Office of Workplace Health and Sustainability at UBC Okanagan. “By inviting leading subject matter experts from both the off-campus and university communities to lead sessions from Taoist Tai Chi to navigating the healthcare system and financial management for aging parents, we hope to provide information and tools people can apply.”
The cost for the event is $75 and includes complimentary refreshment breaks and lunch featuring sampling from an array of local food providers who will showcase healthy, organic options. Register for the symposium online by visiting http://healthsymposium.ok.ubc.ca/registration.php.
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