Life lessons: Evan Wood

published on August 19, 2014 by Jen St. Denis in Business in Vancouver

Evan Wood, an addictions and HIV-AIDS expert, is a professor of medicine at theUniversity of British Columbiaand co-director of the Urban Health Research Initiative at the BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS.

Wood has spent his career in two intense areas: the highly competitive world of scientific research and the often combative realm of political advocacy. As the principal investigator of Insite, Canada’s first legal injection site, he has fought for acceptance of the harm-reduction model of treating addiction.

But in both roles, Wood said, he’s found that it’s more productive to work with people than against them.

“Certainly I see instances in my daily life all the time where brilliant scientists are operating in the scientific community a little bit like a bull in the China shop,” Wood said. “And their good ideas and best intentions are often limited in the community because of people that don’t have good interpersonal skills or respectful interactions.”

Wood has seen the power of excellent people skills in action within the scientific community, politics and business.

Jen St. Denis
Business in Vancouver
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