[10] UBC is also home to TRIUMF, Canada's national particle and nuclear physics laboratory, which boasts the world's largest cyclotron.

[14] The University shall... provide for Such instruction in all branches of liberal education as may enable students to become proficient in... science, commerce, arts, literature, law, medicine, and all other branches of knowledgeIn 1877, six years after British Columbia joined Canada, the Superintendent of Education, John Jessop, submitted a proposal to form a provincial university.

In 1910, the Point Grey site was chosen, and the government appointed Dr. Frank Fairchild Wesbrook as President in 1913 and Leonard Klinck as Dean of Agriculture in 1914.

[18] By 1920, the university had only three faculties: Arts, Applied Science, and Agriculture (with the Departments of Agronomy, Animal Husbandry, Dairying, Horticulture, and Poultry).

Students marched through the streets of Vancouver to draw attention to their plight, enlist popular support, and embarrass the government.

By the end of World War II, Point Grey's facilities could not meet the influx of veterans returning to their studies.

[28] That same year, the university launched a normal school program under the direction of Sally Rogow to train educators on methods to teach students with multiple disabilities or who were visually impaired.

It is often the site of convocation ceremonies and the filming location for the 4400 Center on the television show The 4400,[43] as well as the Madacorp entrance set on Kyle XY.

The building will also include public engagement spaces, an art gallery, cafes, retailers and 473 rental housing units.

Works from the permanent collection and archives, with an emphasis on recent acquisitions, are exhibited on an annual basis and are also used by other institutions for research and loans.

[67] It uses energy obtained from the Earth and Ocean Sciences (EOSC) Building to heat itself, which wastes around 900 megawatts due to ten air changes every hour.

ECOTrek is Canada's largest sustainability project, which involved a massive water and energy-saving initiative, rebuilding almost 300 academic buildings at UBC.

According to the World Wide Fund for Nature 2001 report, about 1.5 million tons of plastic is used for bottling 89 billion liters of water each year.

UBC also has a president, who is the university's chief executive officer and a member of the senate, board of governors, convocation and also serves as vice chancellor.

Its First Nations Forestry Initiatives were developed in partnership with specific Aboriginal communities to meet their needs in their more remote areas.

The Alma Mater Society of the University of British Columbia, or AMS, represents UBC undergraduate students within the Vancouver campus.

[131] As a result, the administration has cancelled the bus loop project, although the rest of the renovations of the University Boulevard Neighborhood are still under consideration.

[133] The Nest, built for $107 million, is much larger than its predecessor, and has numerous amenities including a performance centre, an art exhibition space, a large ballroom, a three-storey climbing wall, radio broadcast facilities, a daycare, and a 10,740 square foot rooftop garden and public space with a water feature and outdoor seating.

[133] AMS Student Nest was designed by B+H Architects in collaboration with DIALOG, opened on June 1, 2015, on UBC's Vancouver campus.

[145] British Columbia's Residential Tenancy Act does not protect UBC residents because university accommodations for students and employees are exempt.

[146] As of the 2017–2018 school year[update], there are three dormitory style residences on campus, primarily for first and second-year students: Totem Park, Place Vanier and Orchard Commons.

The Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre is home to the varsity ice hockey teams and was also used as a venue for the 2010 Winter Olympics.

[160] A small number of large-scale, campus-wide events occur annually at UBC which are organized by university institutions, the AMS and student constituencies of various faculties and departments.

Additionally, a number of unofficial traditions exist at UBC: jumping from the Aquatic Centre's 10-metre diving board late at night and repainting the Engineering cairn so as to advertise other clubs.

UBC Recreation's student administrators fill various roles including event planning, sport officiating, public relations and building supervision.

Arts County Fair was an annual concert and party on the last day of classes in April, put on by the AUS and occurring at Thunderbird Stadium.

Due to increasing financial difficulties (mostly resulting from mounting security and related costs) the AUS announced they would not continue the event in 2008.

[161] In March 2012, UBC was the partner Host University of the Harvard World Model United Nations Conference (WorldMUN 2012 Vancouver).

Four Canadian prime ministers have attended UBC: Joe Clark, John Turner, Kim Campbell and Justin Trudeau.

[181] Alumni Mike Harcourt, Glen Clark and Ujjal Dosanjh have been premiers of British Columbia:,[182][183][184] People of UBC Law have also served on the Supreme Court of Canada: former faculty member Beverley McLachlin and alumnus Frank Iacobucci.