From Here Forward

UBC creative writing professor and award-winning playwright Anosh Irani (BFA’02, MFA’04) joins From Here Forward to talk about adapting Rohinton Mistry's Giller Prize-winning novel A Fine Balance for Toronto's Crow's Theatre. Anosh shares what "truthfulness" over faithfulness means in adaptation, how opening-night previews reshape a script, and how his UBC MFA years shaped his career as a novelist and playwright.

Links & Resources Mentioned in This Episode:

• A Fine Balance Tickets
• Learn more about Anosh Irani
• UBC School of Creative Writing
• Contact Carol
• Contact Jeevan
• From Here Forward
• Podium Podcast Company

• (00:00) - Introduction

Four decades after the Man in Motion World Tour, Rick Hansen (BPE'86, LLD'87) joins Carol and Jeevan to talk about the journey that changed his life. Recently voted UBC's most famous alum, Rick opens up about the chaos of day one on tour, the grind of wheeling an ultramarathon a day for more than two years across 34 countries, and an illness that nearly ended things in Greece.

He also reminisces about his friendship with Terry Fox, and traces how a rejection letter from UBC's Phys Ed program became the turning point of his life. The conversation closes on Rick's ongoing relationship with UBC and his current passions, work he calls part of a lifelong, unfinished journey.

Links & Resources Mentioned in This Episode:

• Contact Carol
• Contact Jeevan
• From Here Forward
• Podium Podcast Company
• Rick Hansen Foundation
• Answering the question: Who is UBC's most famous alum?

• (00:00) - Introduction

Stroke is one of the leading causes of disability in Canada—and for survivors in rural and remote communities, recovery often means navigating a health-care system with far fewer resources than their urban counterparts. In this episode of From Here Forward, hosts Carol Eugene Park and Jeevan Sangha sit down with Dr. Brodie Sakakibara, associate professor in UBC's Department of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy and director of the Okanagan Stroke Research Lab, to unpack how telehealth and virtual rehabilitation are reshaping recovery across BC's Interior.

Dr. Sakakibara breaks down why the current health-care system's acute-care focus leaves many stroke survivors without support once they return home—and how that gap contributes to alarming numbers: 16% of stroke survivors will have a second stroke within a year, and one-third within five years. He shares how his lab is using technology to extend care into rural communities, empower patients to self-manage chronic health, and address barriers like device and internet access.

Listeners will also learn how to recognize stroke symptoms, the modifiable risk factors that matter most for prevention, and why sleep, stress management, and physical activity remain foundational to long-term recovery.

Links & Resources Mentioned in This Episode:

• Contact Carol
• Contact Jeevan
• From Here Forward
• Podium Podcast Company
• About Brodie Sakakibara
• Learn more about the StrOKe Lab
• Know FAST - the signs of stroke

• (00:00) - Introduction

Loghan Paylor (MFA’20) didn't set out to win CBC's Canada Reads competition. They were just trying to write the book they needed to write. In this episode, the author of The Cure for Drowning—winner of Canada Reads 2026, Giller Prize longlistee, and Rakuten Kobo Emerging Writer Prize finalist—opens up about non-linear creative processes, writing queer and trans characters with care, the pros and cons of an MFA, and why the best writing advice has nothing to do with aesthetic morning routines.

Links & Resources Mentioned in This Episode:

• Transcript
• Contact Carol
• Contact Jeevan
• From Here Forward
• Podium Podcast Company
• Loghan Paylor
• Canada Reads
• Learn more about the UBC MFA in Creative Writing

• (00:00) - Introduction

In this episode, UBC's Associate Vice-President, Campus and Community Planning, Michael White, joins Carol and Jeevan to break down the SkyTrain to UBC project—the planned Millennium Line extension to UBC. Michael explains why the Broadway Subway Project is insufficient, how the Arbutus station will already be over capacity on day one, and why completing the line to UBC is the only real solution. He outlines the project's sweeping benefits: thousands of new housing units, major greenhouse gas reductions, and billions in economic opportunity. He also shares what it takes to align governments, nations, and communities around a shared vision—and why your voice matters.

Links for this episode

• Transcript
• SkyTrain to UBC website
• Learn more about the UBCx plan
• About Michael White
• Mario Canseco: Three in four Metro Vancouverites want SkyTrain extended to UBC, poll finds
• Opinion: UBC SkyTrain must be Metro Vancouver's next public transit priority
• Contact Carol
• Contact Jeevan
• From Here Forward
• Podium Podcast Company

• (00:00) - Introduction

What if the innovation economy has always had a gender problem—and we just couldn't see it? Despite a wave of visibility for women entrepreneurs, the numbers are stark: 90% of inventors in Canada are male, and women-led ventures receive less than 5% of available funding. In this episode, UBC Sauder School of Business assistant professor Angèle Beausoleil (PhD'17)—a researcher, serial entrepreneur, and self-described "pracademic"—unpacks why innovation culture skews masculine, what groupthink costs organizations that ignore it, and why the traits society calls "feminine" might actually be the entrepreneurial superpowers we've been undervaluing all along.

Links for this episode

• Transcript
• Contact Carol
• Contact Jeevan
• From Here Forward
• Podium Podcast Company
• Contact Dr. Angele Beausoleil
• Learn more about Dr. Beausoleil's research
• Jeevan & Carol’s Fave Canadian Businesses | Blume Skincare | Dexy Paws | Stranger Tails

• (00:00) - Introduction

What does it take to protect some of Canada's most iconic—and at risk—animals? In this episode, Carol and Jeevan sit down with Mateen Hessami (MSc’22), wildlife biologist and UBC Okanagan master's graduate, to find out. From collaring moose out of helicopters to rediscovering a caribou herd believed to be extinct since 2014, Mateen's work is as thrilling as it is meaningful. He breaks down why caribou are disappearing, why hunters might be conservation's greatest allies, and why the most important voice in wildlife management often belongs to the communities who've lived on the land for generations. Whether you're a nature lover or someone who's never left the city, this conversation will change the way you think about the wild world around you.

Links & Resources Mentioned in This Episode:

• Contact Carol
• Contact Jeevan
• From Here Forward
• From Here Forward is on LinkedIn
• Podium Podcast Company
• Mateen Hessami
• UBC Okanagan Backcountry Hunters & Anglers Club
• The Indigenous Guardians Program

• (00:00) - Introduction

In this Valentine’s Day-themed episode, From Here Forward goes beyond conventional ideas of romance to explore love, cooperation, and connection in the marine world. Hosts Carol Eugene Park and Jeevan Sangha are joined by UBC professor Dr. Andrew Trites, Director of the Marine Mammal Research Unit, to discuss groundbreaking research revealing a surprisingly collaborative relationship between orcas and dolphins. From dolphin “scouts” and killer whale teamwork to physical touch as a love language, this episode reimagines companionship through the eyes—and sonar—of our marine mammal cousins.

🔗 Links & Resources Mentioned in This Episode:

• Contact Carol
• Contact Jeevan
• From Here Forward
• From Here Forward is on LinkedIn
• The Truth About Love - From Here Forward's Valentine's 2025 Episode
• Podium Podcast Company
• Dr. Andrew Trites
• Marine Mammal Research Unit
• Orca and Dolphin Cooperative Foraging Research
• UBC Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries

• (00:00) - Introduction

In this episode, hosts Carol and Jeevan sit down with Jonathon Braun (JD’15), Allard Law alum, Legal Director of the Migrant Workers Centre, and winner of Season 11 of The Amazing Race Canada. Jonathon shares the realities facing migrant workers in Canada today—from closed work permits and systemic vulnerability to the human cost of shifting immigration policy—and challenges the myths that continue to fuel anti-immigrant sentiment.

Later, Jonathon pulls back the curtain on his The Amazing Race Canada experience. He shares how the pressure, strategy, and surprising authenticity of reality TV, as well as his lifelong love of games, performance, and community, helped carry him through both law school and the race itself.

🔗 Links & Resources Mentioned in This Episode:

• Contact Carol
• Contact Jeevan
• From Here Forward
• From Here Forward is on LinkedIn
• Podium Podcast Company
• Jonathon Braun
• The Migrant Workers Centre
• Amazing Race Canada
• The Greatest Survivor Scene

• (00:00) - Welcome and Intro

In our final episode of 2025, hosts Carol Eugene Park and Jeevan Sangha connect with Dr. Lesley Cormack, Principal and Deputy Vice-Chancellor of UBC's Okanagan campus, for a conversation about UBC Okanagan’s 20th anniversary. They discuss the extraordinary growth the campus has seen over the past two decades, and talk about the important connections that have been made between the institution and the region it calls home.

Links & Resources Mentioned in This Episode:

• Contact Carol
• Contact Jeevan
• From Here Forward
• From Here Forward is on LinkedIn
• alumni UBC
• UBC Okanagan
• Dr. Lesley Cormack
• Podium Podcast Company

• (00:00) - Introduction