Allard Law professor Dr. Carol Liao has been awarded the UBC President’s Award for Public Education through Media.
The award recognizes professors who have demonstrated outstanding service to the university and the community by actively and creatively sharing their research expertise through the news media to foster greater public dialogue and understanding.
An expert in corporate law, climate governance, business ethics and social justice, Liao has become a trusted source for journalists covering a wide range of local and national issues. She has given more than 100 television, radio and print news media interviews and published 10 op-eds in outlets including The Globe and Mail, CBC News and the National Post. She has also delivered over 200 invited lectures and presentations at institutions and events around the world.
Liao regularly shares her expertise on complex business ethics and corporate governance matters locally and nationally, including the recent BC Housing-Atira scandal, the Rogers Communications governance battle, the Hockey Canada sexual assault case, and the SNC-Lavalin affair.
If legal analysis can shift even one public conversation toward accountability and long-term thinking, then it’s worthwhile.”
She’s also one of Canada’s most sought-after commentators on corporate climate governance, where she has been featured in outlets including, among others, Fortune, BNN Bloomberg, Financial Post, The Star, Canada’s National Observer, BCBusiness, Vancouver Sun, The Province, The Narwhal, Canadian Lawyer, and dozens of publications through the nationally syndicated Canadian Press. Her most recent op-ed with Professor Naomi Klein calls on the City of Vancouver to meet its climate commitments.
“Public education is part of climate action,” says Liao. “Misinformation thrives in silence, and climate policy – and the rollback of policy – affects every generation. If legal analysis can shift even one public conversation toward accountability and long-term thinking, then it’s worthwhile.”
Liao has also engaged with media to educate on urgent social issues. At the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, when Vancouver experienced a more than 700% increase in anti-Asian hate crimes, Liao was interviewed in multiple live TV and radio interviews and spoke out in an opinion piece for CBC News.
“It wasn't as though anti-Asian racism suddenly appeared, but during the onset of the pandemic, it was just so in-your-face and blatant,” reflects Liao. “That was a heightened opportunity for education. I wrote that op-ed to remind people – I'm human. My heart was breaking thinking about how the city I thought I loved was now the anti-Asian racism capital of the world.”
Early in her media work, Liao says she found it challenging to distill “years of research into a few minutes” on live TV or radio. Focusing on communicating what audiences most need to understand and correcting misconceptions made that easier. “That mindset shift made a huge difference,” she adds.
Independent journalism is essential to a healthy democracy. To the extent professors are able to provide expertise and context on issues, we should.
Getting up to speed on complex, fast-moving legal issues can also take time. “You're serving as a trusted source, and I work hard to prepare so I can give thoughtful, accurate answers to journalists,” adds Liao. But academics get something out of working with the media too.
“I can easily spend several months writing a paper and wait over a year for it to be published – and I do that,” Liao says. “But the media is constant and the reach is far greater. Sharing research with reporters takes time, but it’s time well spent.”
Liao urges fellow academics and other experts who may be hesitant to engage with reporters to start saying “yes” to interviews. “When scholars are willing to engage with media, we can help ensure that important public conversations are informed by evidence and careful analysis,” she says.
Her advice for giving a strong interview is simple: prepare, avoid jargon, and use concrete examples. If you don’t know the answer to a question, “just be honest about that.”
“Independent journalism is essential to a healthy democracy,” adds Liao. “To the extent professors are able to provide expertise and context on issues, we should.”
Dr. Carol Liao is an associate professor at the Peter A. Allard School of Law, Chair and Principal Co-Investigator of the Canada Climate Law Initiative, Co-Director Academic of the UBC Centre for Climate Justice, and the UBC Sauder Distinguished Fellow at the Dhillon Centre for Business Ethics, UBC Sauder School of Business.
