January Session
- Energy Medicine For Self And Others: Level 3 NEW!
- The 1798 Lyrical Ballads By William Wordsworth And Samuel Tayler Coleridge NEW!
- Joyful Living With Meditation Practice NEW!
- Genealogy 101: How To Begin And Prove Your Tree NEW!
- Archaeology And The Bible NEW!
- Making Your Dreams Come True
- Writing Your Legacy
- Writing From Life
- Inspired Smartphone Photography NEW!
- First Nations Land In British Columbia NEW!
- Stop Getting Ready And Get Started! UPDATED!
- Stimulate Your Creativity NEW!
- Estate Planning For The Mature Client
- Founders Of Religions - Part 2: Eastern Religions NEW!
- How Do I Know It's True? UPDATED!
- Introduction To Yoga Philosophy
- Practical Photography
- Themes In Medieval And Renaissance Art
March Session
- Coal Mining History On Vancouver Island
- Intelligent Investing And Estate Planning Workshop
- The New York Jazz Scene, 1900-1960 NEW!
- Road Safety For Seniors
- Writing From Life - Advanced NEW!
- Aliens And Archaeologists NEW!
- Painting Our Salish Sea
- Building Resilience In The Face Of Trauma NEW!
- Your Microbiome - Both Good And Bad UPDATED!
- Vancouver Island History 1774-1871
- Meditation For Health And Wellbeing
- Sacred Geometry For Creativity And Fun NEW!
- Global Challenges, Local Solutions
- The Viking Age CANCELLED
- What Am I Doing Here? CANCELLED
- The World Of The Future UPDATED!
- Canada's Nobel Laureates In Literature NEW!
- A Theory Of Everything - Made Easy
- Adventures In Comparative Literature CANCELLED
- Cultural Travel In Europe
- Friday Forum - Attaining And Maintaining Mental Health
May Session
- Prepare For Emergencies And Disasters
- Vancouver Island History 1871-1914
- Music And Health NEW!
- Travel Writing
- Natural Healing Remedies NEW!
- Why The Arts Matter
- Living With Depression
- Populism, Social Media, Elections And Fake News NEW!
- The Diversity Of Life
- East Meets West Yoga
- Is Your DNA Your Destiny UPDATED!
One Day Sessions
Membership Required
- Advance Care Planning: Because We All Die
- England's Coast-To-Coast Walk (Self Guided) NEW!
- Introduction To Amateur Radio CANCELLED
- Probate Bypass Strategies
- Secret Life Of Pots: Emily Carr's Ceramics
- The Charitable Investor: Making A Difference
- Simple Strategies To Be Secure Online
- Planning Your Last Will And Testament
- The Money Laundering Threat NEW!
- We Will Make Each Other Be Great And Good NEW!
Saturday Speakers
Admission:
Become a VIU ElderCollege member and register for these free presentations while spots are available.
All presentations will be offered online for Spring 2021 via Zoom.
REGISTRATION REQUIRED
Call 1-866-734-6252 to register and purchase your membership. Limited spots available so register today!
February 27, 2021
Scientific Basis For Climate Change And Its Causes
10am to Noon (On Zoom)
ELDJ 004 S21X01
Highlighting recent climate changes and explaining how we know that we are the main cause of present-day climate change.
Presenter: Dr. Jeff Lewis, PhD, MSc, BSc, VIU Professor
About the talk:
Dr Lewis will provide an overview of the main driving forces that act to change the Earth’s climate and review the latest evidence of present-day climate change, specifically: global surface temperature, sea-level rise, marine acidification, and extreme events, as well as local impacts. Hopefully this will clarify how we know that climate change is occurring and that humans are the main cause of present-day climate change. With that knowledge we are better able to make evidence-based decisions and support appropriate actions and policies to avoid more extreme climate change.
About the presenter:
Jeff Lewis, PhD, is a faculty member in the geography department at Vancouver Island University (VIU) where he teaches earth and atmospheric sciences. Jeff has expertise working with large scale climate models used to predict past and future climatic trends. He is also a faculty mentor for the awareness of climate change through education and research (ACER) project, a university-based initiative to promote a greater understanding of the science and social implications of climate change to students and the general public throughout Vancouver Island and coastal BC.
March 27, 2021
Climate Change And BC Forestry
10am to Noon (On Zoom)
ELDJ 005 S21Q01
A summary of potential impacts of climate change on BC's forest ecosystems and forestry and a discussion of adaptation strategies.
Presenter: Bill Beese, MF, BS, RPF, VIU Professor
About the talk:
This presentation will summarize some of the potential impacts of climate change on BC's forest ecosystems and forestry and discuss strategies for adaptation to changes and mitigation of impacts.
About the presenter:
Bill Beese, MF, RPF, joined the VIU faculty of forestry in 2010. Prior to that Bill spent over 30 years on the BC coast doing research, environmental consulting and policy development in the forest industry. His research interests include silvicultural systems, prescribed burning, forest regeneration and biodiversity.
May 1, 2021
The Effects of Climate Change On Vancouver Island Freshwater Resources
10am to Noon (On Zoom)
ELDJ 006 i21X01
A review of the current state of freshwater resources on Vancouver Island and an examination of how climate change will impact the availability of freshwater in the future.
Presenter: Dr. Alan Gilchrist, PhD, BSc (Hon), PGeo, VIU Professor
About the talk:
The science of climate change is well known and is now a concern for many Canadians. This presentation will review the current state of freshwater resources on Vancouver Island. Many regions are starting to show signs of stress during the dry months of a typical summer when the natural supply of water is low and human demand is high. Climate change is predicted to influence the dynamics of water flow through the environment and how it replenishes storages that humans use to access freshwater. This will challenge our ability to manage water resources in the future.
About the presenter:
ALAN GILCHRIST, PhD, PGeo, is a professor in the Geography Department of Vancouver Island University. He has a BSc (Hons) in geology (1988) from St. Andrews University in the UK and a PhD in earth sciences (1991) from the University of Liverpool in the UK. He immigrated to Canada in 1992, arriving in Halifax, NS, where he was a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Oceanography at Dalhousie University. He moved west in 1994 to Terrace, BC to teach geography at Northwest Community College and arrived on the Island in 2000. Since then he has taught environmental geography, hydrology, geomorphology and GIS at VIU.
Alan has also worked as an environmental consultant and is registered as a Professional Geoscientist with Engineers and Geoscientists BC, focusing on terrain assessment in the forest sector and groundwater management.
Alan’s research interests have evolved over his almost 30-year career, but a constant theme has been the study of water, both as an agent of erosion and a resource that needs careful management. His early work studied the erosion of mountain ranges in contrasting plate tectonic settings on passive continental margins and convergent plate margins. He has studied mountains in southern Africa, eastern Australia, Antarctica, the European Alps, the Himalayas and the Andes. As a consultant he has turned his attention to more applied research assessing slope and floodplain stability in coastal BC that has been influenced by forest harvesting. During his time at VIU he has developed an active research program assessing freshwater resources on Vancouver Island and developing tools to help in their management. He was the academic lead on the “Vancouver Island Water Resources Vulnerability Mapping Project” that developed intrinsic groundwater vulnerability maps for all of Vancouver Island. These are being used for water-centric planning to help protect groundwater resources. More recently he has examined the influence of climate change on agricultural crop water requirements in summer supplied by irrigation. His latest project uses GIS and numerical modelling techniques to develop water budgets for several key watersheds around the Island and predict how climate change will impact the water budget in the future.

REFUNDS
VIU policy permits refunds only if the withdrawal request is received at least 7 days prior to the start date of an ElderCollege course. Extenuating circumstances may be considered if the request withdrawal is made later.
Do course fees fit your budget? If not, there's help.
If you want to attend a VIU ElderCollege course but find the fee problematic, please indicate at the time of registration that you require financial assistance.
Valid for one course per course calendar, membership fee not included.