TWU CREATE 2023 is a multidisciplinary conference showcasing outstanding achievements in creativity, research, exploration, arts, truth, and engagement (CREATE).
TWU community celebrates research
On Oct. 20, TWU faculty and student researchers gathered for a day-long conference organized by the Office of Research. The event opened with remarks by Dr. Richard Chandra, Associate Provost of Research and Graduate Studies and a welcome by Switametelót, University Siya:m.
“The research opportunities offered at TWU develop innovation, confidence,
and leadership in students.”
Fostering a culture of interdisciplinary inquiry
Dr. Kendra Rieger from the School of Nursing presented the first keynote on the topic of “Creating Collaborative Arts-based Responses to the Truth and Reconciliation Calls to Action in Healthcare.” Following this, Dr. Myron Penner from the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences presented the second keynote, "Building a Multidisciplinary Research Program."
At TWU, students gain hands-on learning experiences within their chosen field while being introduced to academic avenues in research, publication, and conference participation.
Research in every sector
The two professors were joined by Azam Fakhrehei in the MA in Leadership program, and Angelica Columbus, MA in Counselling Psychology student and winner of the TWU 3MT competition, who both shared highlights of their research experiences as student researchers.
All in all, more than 46 faculty and student researchers delivered oral presentations during the CREATE conference. Their areas of research spanned across topics related to health care, history, mathematics, linguistics, human kinetics, philosophy, biology, ecology, Indigenous knowledge, and more.
TWU Undergraduate Student Research Awards recipients receive funding to pursue research under the guidance and mentorship of faculty researchers.
Developing leadership beyond the classroom
Many of the student presenters are also current or past recipients of TWU Undergraduate Student Research Awards. Award recipients receive funding to pursue research under the guidance and mentorship of faculty researchers. Students gain hands-on learning experiences within their chosen field while being introduced to academic avenues in research, publication, and conference participation.
“Research goes beyond what students can learn in the classroom,” Dr. Chandra affirms, “The research opportunities offered at TWU develop innovation, confidence, and leadership in students.”
Students gain skills in research and presentation
In addition to a series of oral research presentations, students were invited to showcase their work at a joint research poster session. Members of the TWU community, including students, staff, faculty, leadership, and board members attended the event to interact with student researchers and hear about their research endeavours.
Dr. Chandra was thrilled about the work of TWU students and commented, "The atmosphere was electric during the student poster presentations. The students did such an excellent job of communicating the impact of their research to an audience with diverse research backgrounds, which made for a very exciting atmosphere during the poster session."
Positive impact for societies
Dr. Chandra highlights how the CREATE conference provides a platform to share “the incredible research happening at our university, the value and opportunities research gives to our students, and the impact that TWU's research is having in our community and world.”
TWU is grateful for the participation of all presenters and attendees at this year’s CREATE conference, and for coordination by the Office of Research. We look forward to celebrating more research activities that lead to positive impact for our societies.
Thank you to all presenters for their participation. Below are the presenters of CREATE 2023 by approximate order of their presentation time on Oct. 20, 2023:
Dr Kendra Rieger: Keynote Presentation I – "Creating Collaborative Arts-based Responses to the Truth and Reconciliation Calls to Action in Healthcare.”
Dr. Myron Penner: Keynote Presentation II - "Building a Multidisciplinary Research Program."
Azam Fakhrehei and Angelica Columbus: "Research Experience Highlights."
Dr. Chad Friesen: “Shaken Not Stirred: Advancements in Perfluoropyridine Prepolymers using Mechanochemical Methods.” Co-author: Scott T. Iacono
Dr. Sheryl Reimer-Kirkham: “Critical Resilience: A Research-Advocacy-Policy Network Addressing Human Rights with Mothers Impacted by Albinism in Tanzania, South Africa, and Ghana.”
Mr. Ryan Kopke: “Loving to Learn: proposing a Christian embodied realism to reunite aesthetics with epistemology for shalom.”
Mr. Bruce Wiebe: “The linguistic basis of an effective alphabet and writing system.”
Dr. Laura Onyango: “A Sweet Solution to a Superbug Problem.”
Dr. Erica Grimm: “Paying Attention & the Cost of Inattention.”
Dr. Bruce Shelvey and Mr. Tanner Timothy: “From Mentorship to Partnership: The Beauty of Collaboration”
Dr. Wang-Hung Tse: “Generative AI for Teaching Undergraduates Math.”
Dr. Shane Durbach: “Re-routing plastics destined for landfills and oceans towards the production of shaped carbons for use in composites to prevent metal pipe corrosion.”
Prof. G Cornelis van Kooten: “Carbon Offsets and Land Use: Options, Obstacles, and Opinions.”
Dr. Tracy Stobbe: “Literature and Economics: Bias During the Industrial Revolution?”
Dr. Daniel Gan: “Changing Racial and Gender Profiles in Time-based Patterns of Homelessness in BC: Latent Profile and Regression Analyses.”
Dr. David Clements: “Climate change and the spread of invasive knotweed: opening the floodgates to alien invaders.”
Dr. Doug Trick: “Foreign/Local Participation in Bible Translation with Indigenous Peoples.”
Prof. Glen van Brummelen: “The Forgotten Man: Giovanni Bianchini and the Birth of the Scientific Renaissance.”
Dr. Sara Pearson: “Name Those Apostles!: Charlotte Brontë, the Apostles Cabinet, and Furnishing Jane Eyre.”
Alyssa Fenuta and Nicole Makihara: “Longitudinal Study on Sleep Difficulty and Behavior in Varsity Athletes.”
Dr. Mike Bodner and Kirsten Kampman: “Pre-Season Sleep Quantity/Quality and Sleep Hygiene in University Athletes.”
Meghann Buyco: “Siblings Impacted by Albinism in Africa: Implementing Family-Centred Approach.” Co-authors: Reimer-Kirkham, S. & Astle, B
Dr. Barbara Astle: “Nurses Leading an Intersectoral Transdisciplinary Partnership for Persons with Albinism and Human Rights.”
Ka Shing Wong: “Addressing Cultural Adaptation Challenges for International Graduate Students in their Initial Canadian Work Experience: A Quantitative Study at Trinity Western University.”
Jeremy Laity: “Headmen of the Central Salish Sea: Late Nineteenth-Century Chiefship Among the Tla’amin, Klahoose, and Homalco.”
Rebecca Stewart: “Perceptions from Canadian-based Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) on the Global Pandemic and its Impact on the Realization of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).” Co-authors: Astle, B., & Rieger, K.
Kathleen Lounsbury: “Weaving Knowledges: Sharing Ni Noxsola Stories about Kwakwak'awakw Birthing Experiences.”
Aidan Anderson and Jaylene Braithwaite: “Microsite Characteristics of Knotweed along the Chilliwack River, BC.” Co-author: David Clement
Maximillian Laurence: “Wax minimalism? Exploring the chemical composition of Monotropa uniflora surface waxes.”
Micaela Horngren-Rhodes: “Comparative Assessment of Amino Acids for the Synthesis of Zinc Based Compounds and their Antibacterial Efficacy.”
Emma Kim: “A Multidisciplinary Approach to Effective Communication: Environmental and Economic Effects of Knotweed.” Co-authors: Joshua Hale, Kelly Arbeau, and David Clements
Maggie Chang: “What happens when Taiwanese ask a question of a shaman?”
Harrison Goeldner: “Antibacterial Efficacy of Zn Based Particles Against Biofilm Forming Bacteria.”
Jeremy Breedveld: “The Therapeutic Nurse-Patient Encounter.”
Joefin Peter: “Who’s the most sexually distressed? Illuminating the Interplay between Sexual Orientation and Dimensions of Religiousness/Spirituality in Sexual Distress.”
Benjamin Zubaly: “Disgust and Religious Behavior: Testing an adaptive hypothesis of religiosity.” Co-authors: Katie Friesen, Diego Moran-Linares, and Curtis Venema
About Research at TWU
TWU researchers are award-winning professors, nationally recognized educators, and intellectually engaged students. Together, they are enriching our programming, contributing to society, and revealing the necessity of faith integration in research. Learn more at TWU Research.
About Trinity Western University
Founded in 1962, Trinity Western University is a global Christian liberal arts university. We are dedicated to equipping students to discover meaningful connections between career, life, and the needs of the world. Drawing upon the riches of the Christian tradition, seeking to unite faith and reason through teaching and scholarship, Trinity Western University is a degree-granting research institution offering liberal arts and sciences as well as professional schools in business, nursing, education, human kinetics, graduate studies, and arts, media, and culture. It has four locations in Canada: Langley, Richmond-Lansdowne, Richmond-Minoru, and Ottawa. Learn more at www.twu.ca or follow us on Instagram @trinitywestern, Twitter @TrinityWestern, on Facebook and LinkedIn.
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