Dr. Martha Piper
Author and Former President & Vice-Chancellor of the University of British Columbia
Dr. Martha Piper is a distinguished academic leader and co-author of the influential book Nerve: Lessons on Leadership from Two Women Who Went First. Building on the book’s success, she currently co-hosts the podcast She’s Got Nerve, where she explores trailblazing leadership alongside Indira Samarasekera.
An accomplished corporate and community director, Dr. Piper has served on the boards of BMO, Shoppers Drug Mart, TransAlta, and Grosvenor Americas. Her commitment to global and social initiatives includes board positions with CARE Canada, the Dalai Lama Center for Peace and Education, and the Canadian Stem Cell Foundation.
Dr. Piper is an Officer of the Order of Canada and a member of the Order of British Columbia. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and an Honorary Fellow of Merton College, Oxford, she holds 17 honorary degrees. She earned her PhD in Epidemiology and Biostatistics from McGill University, an MA from the University of Connecticut, and a BSc from the University of Michigan.
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Dr. Piper served as the 11th President of the University of British Columbia (1997–2006), where she was instrumental in the founding of UBC Okanagan, and later returned as Interim President and Vice-Chancellor from 2015–2016. Her academic career is marked by senior roles at the University of Alberta as Vice President of Research and Dean of Rehabilitation Medicine, as well as Director of the School of Physical and Occupational Therapy at McGill University.
An accomplished corporate and community director, Dr. Piper has served on the boards of BMO, Shoppers Drug Mart, TransAlta, and Grosvenor Americas. Her commitment to global and social initiatives includes board positions with CARE Canada, the Dalai Lama Center for Peace and Education, and the Canadian Stem Cell Foundation.
Dr. Piper is an Officer of the Order of Canada and a member of the Order of British Columbia. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and an Honorary Fellow of Merton College, Oxford, she holds 17 honorary degrees. She earned her PhD in Epidemiology and Biostatistics from McGill University, an MA from the University of Connecticut, and a BSc from the University of Michigan.
