Community Project Grant winners

Zhixi (CC)’s project, in partnership with the Learning Buddies Network of the Lower Mainland Society, is funded to create a web-based interactive educational game featuring Heiltsuk traditional knowledge and cultural teachings. This project aims to safeguard Indigenous knowledge and facilitate its transmission through a culturally sensitive intervention. By leveraging gamification and community-driven development, this project aspires to create a sustainable and accessible solution that honours the unique worldview of Indigenous communities.

Nikolay is partnered with the British Columbia Newcomer Camp Association to create the Newcomer Youth Mental Health Program. This project is dedicated to improve the accessibility and availability of mental health support for newcomer youth aged 15 to 30, specifically immigrants and refugees residing in Canada for less than 5 years. Mental health information sessions, weekly conversation sessions, and free access to therapy sessions aim to enhance community building and resilience among this community.

Simrat’s project with the Sher Vancouver LGBTQ Friends Society, “Saathi: Interactive Resource Library,” aims to provide accessible resources, create safe spaces, and foster community connection within British Columbia’s Queer South Asian (QSA) community. The library will feature a curated collection of educational materials, legal rights information, mental health support, and cultural artifacts which are tailored to meet the unique needs of QSA peoples. The evolving nature of this interactive digital platform will encourage community contributions which reflect the diverse lived experiences of the QSA community.

The geographic isolation of North British Columbian communities limits elementary school students’ access to quality science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics (STEAM) education and resources. Brian’s project with Flavourful Science aspires to fill the STEAM education gap among rural communities and improve accessibility based on community feedback by delivering hands-on workshops, collaborating with local educators/community leaders, and adapting educational materials. By engaging elementary school students in a meaningful and culturally respectful ways, this project aims to inspire a new generation of diverse thinkers and innovators in the STEAM field.

Jose’s project with Regenesis BC, “Green Careers for Youth Video Series,” aims to empower underrepresented youth populations with the knowledge, skills, and opportunities to pursue green employment in Canada. This video series plans to facilitate the creation of a digital platform which provides information on green job search tools, micro-credentials to build technical skills, insights from green industry leaders, and other content intended to support youth career paths in green employability.

Sara’s project with the Downtown Eastside Arts and Crafts Society focuses on supporting the women of Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside (DTES), a community facing profound challenges such as housing instability, the drug crisis, and financial struggles. Driven by an understanding of the therapeutic potential of art, this project aims to address the immediate emotional needs of women in the DTES community by offering a series of creative and Indigenous-centered workshops.

Newcomers and refugees frequently face barriers to accessing healthcare in Canada as a result of language limitations and absence of cultural sensitivity. Sohat’s project, in partnership with the Pacific Immigrant Resources Society, will organize a series of health literacy and health-screening workshops to provide newcomers and refugees education about diabetes and hypertension. Sessions and handouts will provide information on blood tests, cancer screening, and additional health resources.

Current research suggests that a lack of direct clinical research interaction with linguistically diverse populations risks the dismissal of their lived experiences and compromises the delivery of culturally safe healthcare. Riya’s collaboration with the Provincial Health Services Authority and the BCCHR Language Barrier Project will support researchers in expanding the collection of diverse clinical research papers by offering free language translation, transcription, and interpretation services. By increasing the participation of low English-language proficiency groups in research, this project aims to enhance the representation of minority populations within clinical studies.

People with certain neurodegenerative diseases or injuries, such as Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) and Rett Syndrome, may experience loss of motor control and speech that can severely impair their ability to communicate. To move up on waitlists to obtain an eye-gaze device (assistive technology which supports a person’s ability to communicate by tracking eye movements to select words on a screen) in British Columbia, patients must obtain prior experience in learning how to use these devices. Tiffany’s project with the Rett Syndrome Society of British Columbia intends to organize a workshop series to empower people with these neurodegenerative conditions to gain hands-on experience with eye-gaze devices and decrease access barriers to assistive technology.

Alex has partnered with the Urban Native Youth Association to create and host a free workshop series where Indigenous Youth ages 13 to 21 across Metro Vancouver can learn more about science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM) careers directly from Indigenous professionals working in these industries. They will be present to share their journey, answer questions, and offer career guidance. Additionally, resources discussing Indigenous educational and scholarship opportunities will be offered to youth attending these workshops.

Manpreet’s project in partnership with Solid State Community Industries aims to help decrease social isolation among seniors within local South Asian and Punjabi communities. This project intends to organize Apna Mela 2024, a free festival meant to increase intergenerational connections between youth and seniors. Additional workshops centered around culture, food, heritage, and tradition will be organized to continue to foster intergenerational solidarity.

Extreme weather events in recent years have disproportionately impacted vulnerable and marginalized community members, including seniors, low-income households, and new immigrants. Jimmy’s project collaborates with the Richmond Poverty Reduction Coalition to host cooling stations which will provide immediate heat relief to community members by providing cooled refreshments, sunscreens, hand fans, and resources on extreme heat protection. Their engagements will also help raise awareness about how to stay cool during anticipated hot weather events.

Tiffany’s project aims to foster empowerment, skill development, and community building through hosting baking workshops at Connective, a community-based social services non-profit located in British Columbia. This project serves vulnerable populations in Vancouver by offering opportunities for social connection and community inclusion for community members experiencing housing instability, developmental disabilities, criminal justice involvement, and mental health concerns. Through sharing experiences in baking delicious food, this project aspires to create a supportive environment which decreases social isolation within marginalized communities.

Although affordable sports programs are often available for younger children with disabilities, these programs frequently have age cutoffs that shut out older youth with disabilities (YWD) from participating. Keren’s project collaborates with the Taking Strides Children Foundation to increase accessibility of summer sports programs to older YWD. Program sessions will be led by professional coaches experienced in instructing YWD. Additionally, every Person with Disabilities (PWD) in this program will receive 1-on-1 support from a student mentor to offer personalized support for each child to thrive.

Kiara’s project partners with the Local Spiritual Assembly of Surrey in organizing a community garden to build community cohesion around social, health, and environmental issues present in her local community of Guildford in Surrey, British Columbia. The community garden will be in a communal courtyard and offers a space for neighbors to foster friendships and share knowledge about plants or farming. Educational workshops and community gatherings will be hosted in this community garden to create further opportunities for connections among neighbors.

Catiyana’s project collaborates with the Marpole Neighbourhood House to capture the neighbourhood’s rich history, from the land’s pre-settlement era to its significance to Indigenous peoples and the present day challenges of gentrification. The neighborhood’s history will be showcased through a collaborative community-created historical art display which will be permanently affixed at the Marpole Neighbourhood House. As Marpole moves into a new stage of significant change in urban development, this project will seek to explore key questions: “What do we remember of our neighborhood? Why? How will we choose to remember Marpole as we move forward into an uncertain future?”

Homeless youth often face limited access to essential sexual health resources. Sriya and Nana’s project partners with the Covenant House Vancouver to offer gender-inclusive sexual health workshops and resources to homeless youth and those who may be at an increased likelihood to engage in sex work to meet their basic needs (such as food, shelter, or income to survive). This project aims to empower homeless youth with knowledge about safe practices, consent, resource access, and other topics relating to sexual health.

Sabrina’s project partners with the Joyce-Collingwood Neighbourhood Support Group to empower migrant workers with the education and opportunities necessary to advocate for improvement of their working conditions, rights, and welfare. This project intends to create a collective of migrant workers across the Joyce-Collingwood neighbourhood area to form a solidarity network of mutual aid, political education (e.g. tenant rights workshops), and culturally-oriented craft work (e.g. poetry reading/writing). Poetry writing sessions, events, and zines will be organized and created to offer migrant workers creative tools to self-advocate through cultural expression and portray their political struggles.

The divide between the African continent and its diaspora is a multifaceted challenge that stems from historical, cultural, and socio-economic factors. Efforts to bridge this gap have taken the form of cultural exchanges, educational programs, and community-building initiatives. Omar’s partnership with Hogan’s Alley Society aspires to continue bridging divides by organizing a transformative 3-day Pan-African Conference to foster unity and empower the Black community in Vancouver. Addressing this issue is an important step towards strengthening unity, understanding, and collective empowerment within the Black community.

Shreya and Savindya’s project with the Griottes Polyglottes Arts & EDI Society aims to increase representation of transgender and non-binary individuals through educational materials in the French language. This project seeks to catalyze an evolution in language/pronoun usage by showcasing how French gender-inclusive language can support diverse gender expressions. This will be accomplished by hosting gender-inclusive French improv workshops at secondary schools, distributing comic books representing gender-diverse identities/experiences, and creating gender-inclusive French language website resources.

Elia and Katya, partnering with the Journey Home Community Association, aim to explore immigrant and refugee women’s experiences of navigating sexual and reproductive healthcare services (SRH) in British Columbia. By conducting a series of interviews and focus groups, this project aims to amplify the voices of immigrant and refugee women about their interactions, experiences, and access to SRH services. Suggestions gathered from these conversations will be useful to policymakers, legislators, healthcare professionals, administrators, and immigrant service providers to promote culturally sensitive practices.