We’ve lost access to CSA Standards when accessing via OpenAthens. Users will see a blank screen or a ‘You have been blocked’.
eResources is investigating.
As a workaround please access CSA via an on-campus wifi or computer or use the UBC VPN. Use this direct link when accessing via the VPN or on-campus.
We’ve lost access to some Sage Journals for the years 2020-2024. eResources is investigating.
UBC Library did cancel multiple Sage Journals in 2026, but we have retained access pre-2025.
Photo courtesy UBC Brand
Have you ever wondered what a year in the life of a repository looks like? The cIRcle team is excited to share our 2025-2026 Impact and Activity Report—a glimpse into the projects, partnerships, and priorities that defined our progress.
Read on for highlights from the report to learn more about how we’re celebrating UBC’s strengths and supporting academic excellence.
Over 90,000 scholarly works in cIRcle are free to access from anywhere in the world via Open Collections. In recent years, a notable increase in complex and diverse submissions has been a powerful indicator of how rapidly the technological and academic landscape is evolving. UBC’s theses and dissertations exemplify this trend: in 2025, more than 5% of thesis and dissertation submissions to cIRcle included non-textual materials compared to just over 2% in 2021.
New and long-standing project partners bring breadth and diversity to cIRcle’s collections. A unique addition this year is the Slocan History Series, a collection of booklets exploring the history of the Slocan Valley. cIRcle also expanded its large collection of Mining Engineering conference papers with a selection from the 5th annual International Conference on Mine Water Solutions.
This year’s collection highlights also included several knowledge mobilization projects connecting UBC faculty, researchers, and students with community partners and community-centered initiatives. Through the UBC SHARE (Students Harnessing Academic Research for Exchange) Project, academic research about Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside was made easy to access and understand through infographics. Students in ENVR 400 Community Project in Environmental Science work with local partners to research real-world environmental issues and investigate and propose solutions. The Centre for European Studies (CES) Community Engagement Podcast series brings together scholars, activists, and experts in thought-provoking conversations on Europe’s politics, society, culture, and its connections to the world.
Learn tips on finding more content like this in our blog post: Alternative Research Outputs in cIRcle.
cIRcle’s biggest project this year has been preparing for the exciting migration to DSpace 9. After an extensive planning and technical solutions process, the cIRcle Office progressed to testing how our content, workflows, and customizations behave in the latest version of the open-source repository software. An important step in this process has been a systematic review and refresh of cIRcle support documentation, including all relevant user guides on our website featuring submission and content management instructions.
Meanwhile, we’ve continued to create resources for UBC researchers interested in open access publishing via the repository. The Get Started with cIRcle : Green Open Access blog post brings together information from across the Library’s research support services with a focus on grant-funding recipients. The wiki guide, UBC Theses and Dissertations : Open Access and Embargo Considerations, aims to help graduate students answer pressing questions about the world of open access, Creative Commons licensing, and how open sharing of their theses and dissertations can support future publication.
No need to wait for our next annual Impact and Activity Report to find out what we’re working on. Visit the cIRcle blog for regular updates on our projects, new content, and more!
You can also find cIRcle news via UBC Library social media channels including Instagram @ubclibrary, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
LAW LIBRARY level 3: KE3109 .B63 2026
R. Bocska, Social Media and Privacy Law for Employers: Hiring, Firing and Managing Reputation, 2nd ed (LexisNexis Canada, 2026).
LAW LIBRARY level 3: KEB248 .B75 2025
M.S. Weintraub & A.A. Mortimore, British Columbia Estate Litigation, 2nd ed (LexisNexis Canada, 2025).
For current Allard School of Law students and faculty only. Registration is required .
It’s been a productive year at the Digitization Centre and today we’re honoured to present the BC Dairy Historical Society collection.
This digitized collection was compiled by the British Columbia Dairy History Society (BCDHS) to support its mandate to research, document, archive, and publish the history of British Columbia’s dairy industry. The collection includes records created by BCDHS; research materials gathered by K. Jane Watt and BCDHS for BCDHS publications; and donations from Agrifoods, Saputo, members, and others connected to the B.C. dairy industry. These materials document the industry’s history, particularly the growth of co-operative dairy associations and companies, and include historical documents, magazines (many producer organizations and companies published periodicals for farmers with timely information on milk production improvements, political challenges, market conditions and relevant subjects), and photographs from farms, processors and dairy organizations across British Columbia.
As of last week, this collection has 4 new subcollections for researchers to explore including:
NNOCA Pictorial and NOCA Farm News, 1967-1981
NOCA Pictorial and NOCA Farm News was a quarterly publication created by the NOCA Dairy of the Shuswap-Okanagan Dairy Industries Co-operative Association from 1967 to 1981. This periodical was designed to provide news on the dairy industry, information, photos, and articles to Shuswap and Okanagan dairy farmers, industry employees and others interested in the industry. Originally, digitized by a Society volunteer in 2018, the collection includes 40 issues and 1,764 pages in TIF, JPEG, and searchable PDF formats.
Butter-Fat
Butter-Fat magazine was published by the former Fraser Valley Milk Producers’ Association from 1923 to 1993 to provide members of the FVMPA with information about the Association’s activities, and prompt discussion at local meetings. Its purpose was to build solidarity, unity, and cooperation for the Association’s progress and welfare.
The Interior Dairy Guide
The Interior Dairy Guide was published by Alfred Muller, the owner of Interior Creameries, from 1934 to 1947 for dairy farmers in British Columbia’s interior. The collection includes 128 editions and 796 pages. Covering a wide region from Telkwa to Prince George and Williams Lake, the Guide served as an important link between farms and creameries and offers a unique view of dairy farming life in more remote regions of the province.
Farm Service News
A single issue publication created in 1948 by B.C. Electric, now known as B.C. Hydro, to assist farmers with introducing electricity to their farms and operations.
Over the next few months we will also be adding 2 new periodicals, multiple monographs and documents on the history of dairy farming and dairy societies in BC, and an additional collection, the B.C. Dairy History Photo and Video Gallery, which will contain approximately 1800 images and videos documenting the BC Dairy Industry between the years 1900 and 2000.
Future researchers can look forward to accessing the following documents and publications:
Periodicals
Documents and Monographs
Click here to explore the BC Dairy Historical Society Collection on Open Collections
Marigolds in the Market © Ted McGrath CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
cIRcle holds many grant-funded and student works on oral histories of the Punjabi language and history. These items primarily contain footage of professionals, academics, and everyday citizens sharing their stories and knowledge on a variety of topics, such as the past and present Punjabi community and culture in B.C., the caste system in Canada, and personal understandings of what being Punjabi means to them. Read on to learn more about a few item highlights from the abundant works of each project.
Punjabi in BC documents stories of culture and history of the Punjabi language from students and professionals in British Columbia. The story of Brajinder Dhillon looks at her life from childhood to adulthood and how writing and storytelling were a constant activity. She recalls how she became interested in writing, her writing process, and her writing inspirations. Harinder Kaur Dhahan: Why Punjabi Matters Today follows Harinder’s growth from her education, achievements, and personal struggles. She shares stories of her teaching career, the impactful people she met along the way, and approaches to promote and support interest and learning for Punjabi language, literature, and culture.
Caste in Canada addresses experiences of the caste system in Canada and the resulting implications. Kamaljit speaks to the caste system as an international student, his participation in activism, and finding inspiration from Dr. Ambedkar’s works. Rashpal Singh Bhardwaj: Learning to Fight Caste looks at Rashpal’s involvement in social justice for caste-based injustices, establishing the Ambedkar International Social Reform Organization, and the relationship between caste and education.
Transnational Punjabi Literature and the Pursuit of the Secular features interviews with authors discussing their work on modern Punjabi literature in India, Pakistan, and neighbouring places, and its influence on South Asian culture, community, and language. Dalip Kaur Tiwana, an award-winning novelist, short story writer, and professor, speaks about her village as a place for revolution, learning, and kinship. She also analyses how changes in Punjabi language and culture are witnessed through Punjabi literature.
The Punjabi Oral History Project was highlighted in cIRcle’s Impact and Activity Report (2019-2020) for its major role in advocating for Punjabi language support in BC and improving the Punjabi Studies program at UBC. It includes oral histories and stories of Punjabi individuals’ various experiences of education, immigration, activism, and much more. From Punjabi Market, students interview business owners and patrons visiting the Vancouver Punjabi Market in the Sunset neighbourhood, while Exploring Punjabi Music in Canada examines the Punjabi music industry within its originating home of Punjab and the Canadian diaspora.
These projects were led by Dr. Anne Murphy, a faculty member in the Department of History and the Chair in Punjabi Language, Literature, and Sikh Studies. Her blog outlines her past and current research projects, and expands on her research interests.
As noted by Dr. Murphy, cIRcle’s services provide worldwide discovery, access, use, and digital preservation of these unique oral works:
“It is so exciting to see our work as a part of the UBC collection, so that it can easily be accessed by students and the public – and preserved and made available for the future. So much work went into these projects: hours of interviews – a significant commitment by community members who shared their stories, researchers, and student research assistants alike – and hours of work editing them for public dissemination, work largely done by students. We are grateful for the support that has made these projects possible – and to UBC Library and cIRcle for making them available to the world in their carefully designed system. Thank you!”
Not just faculty, but graduates, undergraduates, and staff members can deposit their work in cIRcle! Please review the kinds of content accepted in cIRcle on our Content Guidelines page. If you have questions or need more information, please contact us.
Did you know that the month of September is National Save Your Photos Month?
Since this topic is especially near and dear to our hearts, here are some examples of photo collections we are thankful to have in our collections. Stick around until the end for some tips on how to preserve your own personal photos!
While we have many photos in our collection that were taken earlier in history, this anonymous album is one of our earliest private photo collections that features the city of Vancouver. This album was donated to UBC Rare Books and Special Collections by the illustrious Vancouver antiques dealer Uno Langmann.
The album features 201 photos, around 76 of which are albumen photographic prints which utilized an interesting type of late 19th century photographic technology that used albumen (egg whites) to bind photosensitive chemicals and silver to a paper base. The albumin images are often accompanied by matching silver gelatin negatives.
The album includes photos of the Granville Bridge under construction, local Indigenous peoples, Niagara Falls in Ontario, and a variety of scenes and buildings from early colonial life in Vancouver.
When the Klondike Gold Rush sent thousands north to make their fortune in the Klondike gold rush, Swedish-American photographer Eric A. Hegg joined a group of prospectors heading North in 1897, accompanied by fellow photographer P.E. Larss. Many of these photos were developed in a travelling darkroom built inside the bow of a small boat that was specially designed for the journey.
The album contains 48 images of travel, landscapes, and people Hegg and Larss encountered on their journey through the Chilkoot and White Pass Trails, as well as their river journeys on the way to the Klondike frontier.
This album from the Chung Collection was originally compiled by Frank Jue (Jue Fong), a Chinese-American tenor singer from Oregon.
Compiled in his teenage years, this album consists of photographs of family, friends and events taking place in his hometown in Oregon, as well as his travels across America. Often accompanied by humourous captions, this album offers rare insight into the personal life and adventures of a Chinese-American teen in 1910’s America that wouldn’t be too out of place on a modern social media feed!
Peter Anderson was born in Onsjo, Sweden. He emigrated to the United States in 1885, before following the Klondike Gold Rush in 1897, where he then made his fortune. After the Gold Rush, he set up a mill in Washington state before coming north to British Columbia, where he started his own logging company with his sons in Knox Bay and Grassy Bay, B.C.
The Peter Anderson Photo Collection was digitized after being donated to UBC Rare Books and Special Collections and consists of a variety of photographs of the early logging industry in British Columbia, including those of the Knox Bay Camp (1890s-1929), alongside Anderson’s personal reminiscences about his own life and family.
Anderson’s son Dewey fought for the American Army in WWI and his other son Clay fought for the Canadian Forces.
Every image on Open Collections required some degree of preservation before finding its way into our collection, and most of the items featured here owe their existence to family members, friends, or strangers who took care to keep them safe until the present.
Some photos show signs of failed preservation that occurred before they were digitized for Open Collections and have lost some of their former detail. In addition, many photos lack the full context required to make complete sense of when they were taken, and who they were taken by.
While many of these photos weren’t considered valuable at the time they were taken, they have proved remarkably relevant and interesting in 2026.
While it might not seem worth it to preserve our photos in the digital age, we can never know who might be grateful to have them in the future, whether that’s a museum or archive, or future members of your own family.
If you’ve been thinking about going through your personal photos, here’s some basic advice on how you can do that.
For example: Kodak film strips, slides, negatives, glass plates, or paper-based photos.
Check out the following helpful links for more advice on this topic!
Thank you for reading our post and be sure to check out some of these image collections!
