Kule Institute for Advanced Study

The Kule Institute for Advanced Study (KIAS) is a major endowed research institute based at the University of Alberta, in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. KIAS supports interdisciplinary and collaborative research in the Social Sciences, Humanities and Arts at the University of Alberta, focusing on research with the potential for national or international recognition.

KIAS ENDOWMENT PURPOSE:

To fund in perpetuity the Kule Institute for Advanced Study (KIAS) as an interdisciplinary and comparative research institute that fosters an innovative intellectual environment for the study of major modern and historical, political, social, and cultural issues and therein, advances society and global polity in a manner consistent with the high humanitarian ideas of the founding donors.

KIAS VISION:

Fundamental to the Kules’ ideals are the history and culture of Ukraine and its global legacy. In memory and respect for those who suffered, challenged, or inspired Ukrainian history and culture through the millennia, KIAS scholars will undertake research in the humanities, social sciences, and fine arts that will foster greater understanding of the complex and broad human issues that such a history and legacy invoke such as political oppression, diaspora studies, folklore, multiculturalism, minorities, the meanings of cultural identity, religious persecution, the politics of famine, and food distribution, the World Wars, and revolution, the environment, the Canadian and European North, global peace and conflict, and other themes that emerge as researchers attempt to create greater understand of the most important issues of the day.

KIAS MISSION:

To facilitate transformational interdisciplinary and comparative research at the highest level nationally and internationally, guided by the ideals of Peter and Doris Kule, the legacies of Ukrainian history, and the purpose of research and learning at the University of Alberta, articulated by President Henry Marshall Tory in 1908: “the Uplifting of the Whole People.”

KIAS GOAL:

To establish KIAS as a globally recognized institute of interdisciplinary and comparative research excellence within five years of inauguration by linking University of Alberta undergraduate and graduate student researchers and professors, Kule Post-Doctoral Fellows, and distinguished visiting researchers from around the world in and across disciplines, so as to stimulate original ways of thinking, initiate new lines of inquiry, and incubate innovative ideas.

The University of Alberta stands with our students, employees, academic colleagues, alumni and friends who have deep roots in Ukraine.

To learn more about DUSS UAlberta click here.

For students and employees who require support please visit U of A Stands with Ukraine to be connected with resources and services, including an FAQ for prospective and current students.

Read the March 8 letter from President Bill Flanagan and Steve Dew to learn more about the multiple efforts the U of A is engaged in to respond and support those affected.

The University of Alberta has created an emergency fund to support students and scholars directly affected by the crisis in Ukraine. You can donate by visiting the Financial Support in Response to the Crisis in Ukraine website.

In alignment with the vision set up by Drs. Peter & Doris Kule to foster greater understanding of complex issues such as the presence and effect of social exclusion or marginalization based on aspect of individual or collective identities, The Kule Institute for Advanced Study (KIAS) is committed to supporting a diverse and inclusive research community and recognizes that equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) strengthens the research community and the quality, relevance and impact of research.

Achieving a more equitable, diverse, and inclusive research environment is essential to creating the excellent, innovative, and impactful research necessary to advance knowledge and understanding, and to respond to local, national and global challenges.

With these goals in mind KIAS is committed to:

Supporting equitable access to funding opportunities for all researchers
Promoting the integration of equity, diversity, and inclusion-related considerations in research design and practices
Increasing equitable and inclusive participation in our research programming

Through these means KIAS will work with researchers and the University of Alberta to develop the inclusive culture needed for research excellence and to achieve outcomes that are rigorous, relevant, and accessible to diverse populations.

For more information on EDI at the U of Alberta please visit: https://www.ualberta.ca/equity-diversity-inclusivity