In a world where the luxury of swift translation is only a WiFi connection away, it can be all too easy to think of language barriers as a solved issue. For millions, though, the question of communication across linguistic and cultural divides remains a daily struggle.

This year, The Ubyssey’s Asian Heritage Month supplement highlights both the enduring challenges of interpretation in the multilingual Asian world, as well as the innovative steps that Asian care workers, activists and artists take to bridge systemic linguistic gaps. We spoke with Canadian medical interpreters on how their work allows people to access life-saving health services, heard from Asian singers paving the way through genres that weren’t built for them and searched UBC’s archives for the forgotten origins of cherry trees on campus.

Contributors reflected on feelings of comfort and alienation in their relationships with language, telling stories of stumbling through words that are supposed to feel natural and trying to find comfort through prayer in the wake of the Lapu-Lapu Day tragedy. Others took a look at the translation of customs and colours across the borders of Hong Kong, Taiwan and Vietnam.

Read these stories, parse their meaning. If they speak to you, in Tagalog, Hoisanese or English, tell your friends in whatever language rolls smoothly off your tongue.

— Elena Massing & Julian Coyle Forst
2025 Asian Heritage Month Supplement Editors

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Features

‘I want to see the weird in you’: Mila Zuo’s refreshingly honest take on cinema

Words by: Bernardo Sampaio de Saboya Albuquerque
Photos by: Mehnaj Syed

Dr. Mila Zuo wasn’t always going to study film — but after taking a pornography course at UBC Berkeley, she was hooked.

Opinion

Opinion: How Enrolment Services failed me

Words by Gabrielle Lee
Illustrations by Ayle Cilliers

"UBC is a huge, global university; however, the second I needed assistance with transcripts and diplomas, the systems were non-existent and staff were apathetic, at best. And my experience hardly feels singular, anyway," writes Gabrielle Lee.

News

AMS sued by removed VP AUA for wrongful termination

Words by Colin Angell and Aisha Chaudhry

"If there were concerns about my performance, a performance improvement plan would be put in place ... that didn't happen," said removed VP academic and university affairs Drédyn Fontana

Culture

Spencer Britten marks Asian Heritage Month and Pride Month with recital Memoirs of a Gaysian

Words by Yujia Huang

As a part of both the Asian Queer community and the opera world, Britten frequently explores the potential for openness and change in their field. The adjacency of Asian Heritage Month in May and Pride Month in June inspired them to celebrate both identities with the creation of Memoirs of a Gaysian.

Sports

From four to a force: How Isaac Qi led the UBC quadball team’s revival

Words by Hailey Park

At the beginning of the 2024/25 season, the UBC quadball team was in danger. With just four members returning from the previous season, they were on the verge of shutting down. Yet, at the heart of what would become a remarkable comeback stood Isaac Qi.

Science

Frictionless fuel

Words by Harleen Randhawa

Imagine a liquid that moves endlessly, without resistance — so smooth that it seems to defy the laws of physics. Researchers at UBC have observed this rare phenomenon in a molecular system for the first time.