COVID-19 (Coronavirus) Updates
The health and safety of our faculty, staff and students is our number one priority. To ensure the health and safety of our campus community and to prevent the risk and spread of COVID-19, the University will continue to operate with some employees required to be physically present on campus and others required to work off-campus in a virtual mode.
We'll respond to your email inquiries during our regular office hours from 8am-4pm. Please note that staff are not regularly monitoring their office phones; we ask that email be used to contact them directly.
If you require an in person meeting, we are happy to accommodate. Please email the appropriate person below to arrange a convenient time for an in person meeting. All appropriate distancing and face covering protocols will be followed.
Before Returning To Campus:
Based on advice from public health officials, Western employees and graduate students must complete the ‘Daily Symptom Check’ questionnaire prior to each work shift or each visit to campus, provided at: https://myhr.uwo.ca/. In addition, Western's Health, Safety & Well-being team has developed an eight-minute COVID-19 training video (accessed via OWL) called "Return to Campus Essentials" that all employees must view.
When You Arrive On Campus:
Western is providing medical grade (ASTM Level 3) masks that must be worn by students and employees when on campus. These masks must always be worn while indoors, as well as outdoors when physical distancing is not possible. Students can pick up their new masks at Western libraries using their Western ONEcard when they return to campus. There are some exceptions for those learning in designated clinical or research areas where an N-95 mask is required and provided.
Space assessments have been completed for our shared spaces (main office, graduate student offices, classrooms, conference rooms and labs). Signage designating maximum occupancy have been posted on doors. Please do not remove these. Hand sanitizer has also been placed in shared common rooms such as the main office, conference rooms and lounge. Additional hand sanitizer stations have been setup at elevators and building entrances.
Stay informed of information provided on Western's COVID-10 information page: https://www.uwo.ca/coronavirus/
Lab Research & Reopening:
If you oversee space in Geography that may be considered to be a ‘lab’ in some form (wet lab, dry lab, technical lab, computer lab, etc) and has student use, the Principal Investigator must:
1) Construct a plan so that the lab activities conform to the new Western Research Re-Entry Guidelines; and
2) Complete the Research Access Form and provide it to the Department Chair, Dr. James Voogt for approval
Lab PIs are responsible for providing the necessary PPE and cleaning supplies for their spaces. Contact Erika Hill (ehill5@uwo.ca) to place an order.
Fieldwork:
Given ongoing concerns related to social distancing and the impact of travel on communities, non-essential fieldwork should remain on hold for the immediate future. To complete fieldwork the supervisor/student must:
1) Complete the Field Research Exemption form: https://www.uwo.ca/research/_docs/resources/Field_Research_Exemption.pdf and provide it to the Department Chair, Dr. James Voogt for approval. Once approved at the department and faculty level it is then forwarded by the Deans office to the VP Research.
2) Once your field research is approved by the University, we still want to you complete the Department of Geography Safety Plan and Acknowledgement and Assumption of Risk form: https://geography.uwo.ca/resources/health_and_safety/index.html (see Fieldwork Safety)
