Message from the Co-Chairs

2020 marks the 15th anniversary of the annual Capstone Conference, which is taking place on July 29th, 2020 with the theme of “Hope: The Power of Occupation”. This is our first virtual Capstone Conference and we are honoured that you have chosen to be present for it.

This year’s conference features 28 research projects completed by UBC’s Master of Occupational Therapy Class of 2020. Research is conducted year long with various topics related to occupational science and occupational therapy. We encourage you to attend the project presentations that are of interest to you, and to engage in the question period following each presentation. When not attending the research presentations, we hope you visit the display booths of our generous donors who have supported our conference.

We are excited to announce this year’s conference speakers: Andrew Freeman as the Keynote Address, Hélène Thériault will be delivering the community address as a clinical guest speaker, and Ben Mortenson will be our Faculty Address. Please see our speaker pages for bios.

This conference would not be possible without the support and guidance of many individuals. We would like to take this opportunity to extend our sincere appreciation to all members of the Capstone Committee, as well as department staff and faculty, Tracy Henderson, David Tsukada, Shareen Khan, Mark Meheriuk, and Dr. Sue Forwell. Their endless dedication and efforts have helped us organize what we anticipate will be a successful conference.

2020 is an extraordinary year. As we continue to live through this situation, we are reminded of the importance of occupations in our lives and the meaning it brings to every individual. We are reminded of the value of occupational therapists and other health care professionals, and the sacrifices many make to deliver hope to people’s lives. We need occupations now more than ever; the world needs hope now more than ever.

So please join the class of 2020 for the final step of our journey as occupational therapy students and celebrate the culmination of our achievements. We sincerely wish you enjoy your time at the Capstone Conference and feel inspired to find hope in your everyday activities, wherever you may be.

Everything that is done in the world is done by hope – Martin Luther

Yours truly,

Maggie Mei & Alex Tham

Capstone Conference 2020 Co-Chairs