University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC)

The University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC) is a small university in Prince George, British Columbia, which was established in 1994 with the notion that it would be “in the North - for the North”.

Due to its extremely northern latitude, UNBC is a member of the University of the Arctic. UNBC’s motto, En Cha Hunà, comes from the indigenous Dakelh Elders, and translates as “he/she also lives”, suggesting respect for all life.

The main campus overlooks the city of Prince George from Cranbrook Hill in the west and is renowned for its innovative architecture. All buildings are linked together in such a way that the university can be heated by the gasification of clean-burning, renewable wood pellets, collected from pine trees killed by mountain pine beetle. UNBC’s trademark since 2007 has been “Canada’s Green University”.

Each building is designed to represent an element of northern Canada’s landscape: the Winter Garden, which has a flowing blue staircase beneath a wooden lattice ceiling, represents the rainforests on the west coast; the cafeteria, built to resemble a lighthouse, represents the rugged coastline; and in the UNBC Bookstore, the triangular glass peaked sky lights represent mountains.

There are also regional campuses in the cities of Prince Rupert, Terrace, Quesnel, and Fort St. John.

The UNBC First Nations Centre supports aboriginal students, bringing in elders, counselling, and hosting events such as talking circles and sweat lodges. The Northern Pride Centre Society gives support and resources to LGBT students.

Alumni include entrepreneurs, nurses, teachers, foresters, bankers, and community leaders. Canadian politicians who attended UNBC include James Moore, Robin Austin, Shirley Bond, and Daniel Brooks.