This year's 20th anniversary edition of our annual Fall Lecture series will consist of three lectures.
South Asian Studies Institute
South Asian Studies Institute
This year's 20th anniversary edition of our annual Fall Lecture series will consist of three lectures.
A retrospect: Looking back and moving forward (2006-2026)
Date: Thursday, October 8th, 2026
Location: Conference Centre (Building J, Room J182), UFV Abbotsford Campus
Time: 5:00 - 7:00 PM
The first lecture of SASI’s annual Fall Lecture Series 2026 will be delivered by SASI’s Founding Director, Dr. Satwinder Kaur Bains, marking the launch of SASI’s 20th anniversary celebrations.
This special lecture explores the methods and outcomes of research and engagement that changed the research landscape of South Asian Studies in BC and beyond. Drawing on research examples, stories, photos, reports, media coverage, key people, and fundraising efforts, Dr. Bains will highlight the award-winning work of SASI over 20 years and how it accomplished its far-reaching goals to ensure the inclusion of South Asian Canadian histories and experiences in BC.
The evening will also feature the launch of the South Asian Canadian Digital Archive (SACDA) Collections Catalogue, showcasing 75+ collections.
Speaker:
Dr. Satwinder Kaur Bains
Professor Emeritus, University of the Fraser Valley
Founding Director, South Asian Studies Institute
Dr. Satwinder Kaur Bains is Professor Emeritus in the School of Culture, Media and Society, College of Arts, at the University of the Fraser Valley. She is an award-winning former Director of the South Asian Studies Institute and Associate Professor. Dr Bains’ research interests include the impact of language, culture and identity on South Asian Canadian migration, settlement, and integration; anti-racist curriculum design implementation; identity politics; migration and the South Asian Canadian Diaspora, South Asian Canadian archival records, socio-cultural determinants of health for marginalized groups, Punjabi Canadian cultural historiography and EDI policy development and implementation.
Date: Tuesday, October 20, 2026
Time: 5:00–7:00 PM
Location: South Asian Studies Institute (Building K, Room K180),
UFV Abbotsford Campus
Join us for the second lecture in SASI’s Fall Lecture Series, bringing together community advocacy and academic research to explore the role of caste throughout the 120-year history of South Asian migration to Canada. The lecture will also highlight findings from the “Caste in Canada” project.
Speakers:
Jai Birdi
Social Worker and Activist
Co-Founder and Executive Director, Chetna Association of Canada
Dr. Anne Murphy
Professor, Department of History, University of British Columbia
Cultural and Intellectual Historian
Dr. Seema Mahi
Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Dalit Studies, Department of History, University of British Columbia
Specialist in Caste-Based Discrimination and Migration
Jai Birdi is a social worker and activist based in British Columbia who co-founded the Chetna Association of Canada in 1999 to promote social justice, equity, and inclusion. As Executive Director of the organization, he works to raise awareness about South Asian caste-based discrimination and its presence within Canadian society. Driven by the human rights philosophy of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, Birdi leads educational initiatives, lecture series, and national symposia centered on Dalit emancipation. Through his advocacy, he actively collaborates with academic institutions, community groups, and local governments to push for the legal recognition of caste as a protected category against discrimination.
Dr. Anne Murphy teaches in the Department of History of the University of British Columbia, and is a cultural and intellectual historian. Dr. Murphy has been working in partnership with the Chetna Association of Canada for a decade, and the “Caste in Canada” project grew out of that ongoing partnership, with the addition — in its second phase from 2024 to 2026 — of the Ambedkarite International Coordination Society and the Ambedkar International Social Reform Organization. Generous support from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, through its Partnership Engage and Partnership Development programs, has enabled this extended partnership to document, disseminate and analyze the history of caste — and ant-caste activism — in Canada.
Dr. Seema Mahi is a postdoctoral research fellow in Dalit Studies at the UBC History Department, specializing in caste-based discrimination and migration.
Date: Thursday, October 29, 2026
Time: 5:00–7:00 PM
Location: Conference Centre, Building J, Room J182
UFV Abbotsford Campus
Join us for the final lecture in SASI’s Fall Lecture Series exploring Canadian politics and the impact of diversity in the Senate amid a period of significant political change in Ottawa and across Canada.
Speakers:
Senator Baltej Dhillon
Retired Career Police Officer, Community Leader, and
Advocate for Diversity and Inclusion
Dr. Hamish Telford (Moderator)
Associate Professor of Political Science, University of the Fraser Valley
Author of Engaging Canadian Politics (Northrose, 2021), and Talking Past Each Other: Quebec and the Federal Dialogue in Canada, 1867-2017 (Peter Lang, 2018).
Senator Baltej Dhillon is a retired career police officer, a community leader, and a lifelong advocate for diversity and inclusion. Emigrating from Malaysia in 1983, Senator Dhillon made history in 1991 as the first Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officer to wear a turban, advocating for the right to practice his faith while serving Canada. He went on to have a successful 30 year career with the RCMP as an accomplished major crime investigator, police interrogator, polygraph examiner, intelligence officer, and emergency planner. He played a key role in several high-profile investigations, including the Air India Flight 182 tragedy and the Robert Pickton case. Senator Dhillon also held various leadership roles, including overseeing the British Columbia RCMP Divisional Emergency Operations Centre and the federal Serious and Organized Crime’s Intelligence section, also in British Columbia, as well as establishing and managing intelligence operations at the Provincial Intelligence Centre of British Columbia (now the Real-Time Operations Centre of British Columbia), the first of its kind in Canada. In 2013, Senator Dhillon led the Sikh Leadership and Police Committee on Gang Violence to support youth prevention strategies within the Sikh Community. Since retiring from the RCMP in 2019, he has worked as Program Manager for the Crime Guns Intelligence and Investigations Group with the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit of British Columbia, the province’s anti-gang agency. Senator Dhillon is also deeply involved in community service. He serves on various committees and has led youth camps. He has received numerous distinctions and awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award from The Times of Canada, the King's Coronation Medal, the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal, the Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal, the RBC Top 25 Canadian Immigrant Award, and a host of other community accolades celebrating his service and leadership. In addition to his extensive police education and training, Senator Dhillon is the recipient of honorary Doctor of Laws degrees from McMaster University and Kwantlen Polytechnic University. He and his wife, Suroj, are proud parents to two daughters, Onkar and Rasna, son-in-law Ryan, and grandparents to their beloved grandson, Jovin Singh.
Dr. Hamish Telford is an associate professor of political science at the University of the Fraser Valley. He is the author of Engaging Canadian Politics (Northrose, 2021), and Talking Past Each Other: Quebec and the Federal Dialogue in Canada, 1867-2017 (Peter Lang, 2018). He is a past president of the BC Political Studies Association, and he twice served on the board of the Canadian Political Science Association. He is a frequent commentator on BC and Canadian politics in the national and international media.
