On March 31, Simon Fraser University launched its new Ideas in Action speaker series with a full room and a timely question that set the tone for what’s ahead. Hosted at SFU Harbour Centre and supported by the SFU President’s Office in collaboration with SFU Public Square and the SFU Community-Engaged Research Initiative (CERi), the inaugural event, Reimagining the Public University, brought together faculty, students, and community members to reflect on a question that feels both urgent and unresolved.

What is the role of the public university in a time of uncertainty, instability, and change? Rather than offering easy answers, the conversation created space to reflect, challenge assumptions, and imagine what comes next.