Calling DIBS

Stephanie Papik, the Moose Hide Campaign Society’s Director for the Public Service. Stephanie Papik is currently working on a temporary assignment with the Moose Hide Campaign Development Society as Director for the BC Public Service. Stephanie and I discuss how BI can help us understand some of the barriers to Reconciliation, like blindspots and difficult emotions. We also discuss how BI can cont...

Dr. Andrea MacNeill, Surgical Oncologist at Vancouver General Hospital and the BC Cancer Agency. Dr. Andrea MacNeill, the Founder of UBC’s Planetary Healthcare Lab, introduces us to the concept of planetary healthcare, which is a re-envisioning of the intersection between healthcare and the environment. We discuss how behaviour can contribute to problems and solutions when it comes to planetary he...

Maria Giammarco, Senior Lead of Research and Development with the Business + Higher Education Roundtable. Through the lens of her interdisciplinary, cross-sectoral BI journey, Maria Giammarco and I talk about the inadvertent ways that many of us stumble into our love for Behavioural Insights. We also discuss how to build an intentional and inclusive pathway to Behavioural Insights for the next gen...

Sylvia Apostolidis, President of the Jasmar Group. Sylvia Apostolidis returns for Part 2 of our exploration of the intersection of Behavioural Insights and Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion. In Part 2, we turn to how EDI can improve BI. We discuss ways in which the field has not been diverse, inclusive, and equitable, changes it can make to be more diverse, inclusive, and equitable, and how those c...

Sylvia Apostolidis, President of the Jasmar Group. Sylvia Apostolidis joins us for our first ever double-header set of episodes! In these two episodes, we return to the intersection of Behavioural Insights and Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion. In Part 1, we start with basic definitions, talk about how BI can help us move from awareness to action, and discuss examples of how organizations can and h...

Takuro Ishikawa, Senior Behavioural Scientist with the BC Behavioural Insights Group (BC BIG). Takuro Ishikawa has made a career of applying BI to different challenges. We zero in on public health and discuss how behaviour is at the root of many health challenges, whether in prevention or treatment. Tak shares case studies, highlights, challenges, and ethical considerations for applying BI to publ...

Kirstin Appelt, Research Director of UBC Decision Insights for Business & Society (UBC-DIBS). In this episode with guest host Dave Hardisty, we mix things up and Kirstin Appelt is the interviewee rather than the interviewer. Kirstin talks about her BI journey, the DIBS origin story, how BIG Difference BC got its start, and how the Advanced Professional Certificate in Behavioural Insights devel...

Cassandra Bernard, Senior Specialist, Innovation with the Canada Mortgage & Housing Corporation. Cassandra Bernard is a Senior Specialist in Innovation with the Canada Mortgage & Housing Corporation as well as a graduate of UBC’s Advanced Professional Certificate in Behavioural Insights. In recounting her journey from her first exposure to BI to using her BI knowledge and skills in her wor...

Sharilynn Wardrop, Knowledge Translation Strategist with the BC Behavioural Insights Group (BC BIG). Sharilynn Wardrop is on a temporary assignment as Knowledge Translation Strategist with BC BIG. Sharilynn shares her BI journey and how she plans to use BI towards conservation when she returns to her regular role with BC Parks. Sharilynn and I also talk about how BC BIG and UBC-DIBS work separatel...

Ekin Ok, PhD student in UBC Sauder’s Marketing and Behavioural Science Division. Ekin Ok is a current PhD student in UBC Sauder’s Marketing and Behavioural Science division and a graduate of two different Master’s programs. Ekin and I compare and contrast Master’s and PhD programs in fields related to BI. We cover their different purposes, application processes, structures, and student experiences...

Greg Lockwood, Partnership Strategist with UBC’s Equity & Inclusion Office. Greg Lockwood is a Partnership Strategist with UBC’s Equity & Inclusion Office, in addition to being a graduate of UBC’s Advanced Professional Certificate in Behavioural Insights. Greg shares what he’s learned in his journey from electrical engineering to economics to Behavioural Insights. We also discuss how Behav...

Lindsay Miles-Pickup, Methods Specialist with the BC Behavioural Insights Group (BC BIG). After graduating from UBC’s Advanced Professional Certificate in Behavioural Insights, Lindsay Miles-Pickup has seamlessly transitioned into the Methods Specialist role with BC BIG. Lindsay discusses how Behavioural Insights complements and strengthens the other tools in her toolkit for behaviour change. She...

Alexis Gordon, Behavioural Insights Specialist with the BC Residential Tenancy Branch. As the inaugural BI Specialist in the BC Public Service, Alexis Gordon is rightly excited about the future of BI in BC and beyond. Alexis shares insightful highlights from her experience in UBC’s Advanced Professional Certificate in Behavioural Insights, including the crucial importance of thoroughly investigati...

Carl Jensen, Acting Head of the BC Behavioural Insights Group (BC BIG). Carl Jensen is another wonderful graduate of UBC’s Advanced Professional Certificate in Behavioural Insights. After serving as BC BIG’s project director, he is now acting head of the unit. In a bit of a meta twist, Carl shares how he thought the certificate program itself used Behavioural Insights and evidence to create a posi...

Rachel Yang, Market Research Analyst and Behavioural Scientist with Technical Safety BC. A graduate of UBC’s Advanced Professional Certificate in Behavioural Insights, Rachel Yang recently started a new role as a Market Research Analyst and Behavioural Scientist with Technical Safety BC. Rachel shares her journey from Marketing to Market Research to Behavioural Insights. In chatting about how Rach...

Stephanie Papik, Director of Strategic Integration of Indigenous Knowledge, Cultural Safety and Humility in Strategic Partnerships at Emergency Management BC. In her work and life, Stephanie Papik bridges Indigenous and settler approaches to behaviour change. Stephanie describes some of the similarities between Indigenous ways of knowing and Behavioural Insights. She also describes some of the beh...

Adam King, Founder and Chief Behavioural Strategist of BeThink Solutions. Adam King’s education and career have crossed disciplines and sectors in the pursuit of understanding human behaviour. Adam recounts his journey, including what led him to found BeThink and to recently start an Interdisciplinary Sciences PhD. Along the way, he shares insights about differences and commonalities between disci...

Maja Niksic, Program Manager at Harvard’s Behavioral Insights Group, and Jaclyn Lefkowitz, Co-President of Harvard’s Behavioral Insights Student Group. Maja Niksic and Jaclyn Lefkowitz are our first duo interview! Maja’s perspective as program director of Harvard’s Behavioral Insights Group and Jackie’s perspective as co-president of Harvard’s Behavioral Insights Student Group combine perfectly fo...

Rishad Habib, PhD student in UBC Sauder’s Marketing and Behavioural Science Division. Rishad Habib is an all-star Marketing and Behavioural Science PhD student in her 5th year at UBC Sauder School of Business. In sharing her experiences as a former MSc student and current PhD student, Rishad emphasizes the importance of research in both types of programs. We also discuss the challenges and rewards...

Michael Buttazzoni, Scrum Master with the Information Management Branch serving the BC government’s natural resource ministries. As one of the founding members of the BC Behavioural Insights Group (BC BIG), Michael Buttazzoni has a number of BI projects under his belt. Michael shares some of the ups and downs of client management, with a particular focus on challenges and strategies for collaborat...

Heather Devine, Head of the BC Behavioural Insights Group (BC BIG). Heather Devine returns to the podcast to talk about how BC BIG approaches scaling and reporting. Recognizing that scaling is a nuanced decision for clients, Heather offers tips for what factors to consider and how to encourage scaling from project start to project end. Heather also talks about the importance of good, well-tailored...

Sasha Tregebov, Director of BIT Canada. Sasha Tregebov comes back on the podcast to talk about what happens once the results of a BI project are in. Sasha shares recommendations for how to increase the likelihood that learnings from a BI project are implemented, whether that means scaling up a given solution to a wider population, replicating the solution in a similar context, or helping the clien...

Jeremy Douglas, Executive Vice President of External Relations at Ocean Wise. Jeremy Douglas weaves together his experiences in the non-profit and media sectors to highlight the need to scale BI findings for impact, the importance of approaching projects with humility, and the danger of unintended consequences. Together we discuss how consultation and measurement can help with each of these challe...

Kaylyn Kretschmer, Market Leader at Technical Safety BC. Over the last few years, Kaylyn Kretschmer has been a strong champion for BI at Technical Safety BC. Together we chat about how even technical systems rely on human decisions and human behaviours, an insight Technical Safety BC used to begin their BI journey. Kaylyn also shares her tips for socializing BI with folks from different background...

Monica Soliman, Senior Research and Innovation Advisor at Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC). Monica Soliman has worked in a number of BI roles in government, including roles at Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada and Employment and Social Development Canada. In chatting about the growing variety of BI roles in the public sector, Monica shares her experiences working on proje...