vancouver learning lab 2015 report

7/23/2019 Vancouver Learning Lab 2015 Report

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MA Sustainable Leisure Management

SLM 604 Vancouver Learning Lab (VLL): December 2015

Change Makers, Social Innovation, and Leisure Environments

The following are a few extracts from select MA SLM student VLL related assignments that highlight

some of the learning impacts from the 2015 Vancouver Learning Lab, and describes some of the VLL

activities, experiences and work of the organizations that support our learning.

My attention is immediately captured when Marie Lopes begins her talk by paying respect to the First Nations

tribes whose land we are presently on. Forty-five minutes later the room has been filled with words like equity,

community engagement, commitment, reciprocity, and advocacy. I sense a strong feeling of introspection and

inspiration among my classmates, and I hear the soft sound of sniffling from a few rows back. In barely an hour,

Marie at the Roundhouse Community Centrehas managed to move her audience by sharing the ways in which

Vancouvers only community arts and recreation centre is profoundly changing lives, socially innovating, and

developing community. These are the special gifts of change agents: the ability to motivate and empower others,

to share their power, and to nurture personal reflection and relationships (Dreschler & Jones, 2012). I feel

similarly inspired in the presence of David Eddy of Skwachys Lodge and Maya Goodwill of The HiVE, whose

innovative business models and glaring belief in their ability to enact change (Dreschler & Jones, 2012) make me

realise how much they truly understand that social issues are rooted in the complex systems in which we live, and

require long-term, intentional and collaborative solutions (Workman, 2012). Although I expect they would prefer

the words friends or partners, their stakeholders are many and diverse: the people who work and invest

themselves in these places, the governments and private firms who generously fund them, and the communities

and community members who benefit from their services. Community development and social innovation are

inclusive processes, and it is clear that input from all stakeholders is highly valued in these places, by these people

(Frank & Smith, 1999). I am struck by the intentional use of space through which collaboration and social change

are facilitated. Warm and friendly, I find myself wishing I lived closer so I could take part in their communities. Ialso note the use of the word iteration, meaning to evolve and build upon. Much like change agents themselves,

social innovation requires constant learning and persistent adaptation (Mulgan, 2006). The presence of leisure is

also apparent, in the lounge area at The HiVE, in the activity room at Roundhouse, and among the art-filled walls

at Skwachys Lodge. Transformative change is at the heart of these socially innovative enterprises. This is

collaborative community development and positive social change in their truest sense. Michelle Harnett

Roundhouse Community Centre


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Frank and Smith (1999) assert that it is important to understand that community development will mean

"different things to different people in different places" (p.1), and that any process of community development

will ideally "add value to everything that is done ... in a way that enhances all aspects of the community (the total

ecology) and is appropriate for today as well as for tomorrow" (p.6). Creative, vibrant communities tend to be

more resilient and are often better able to withstand change, as well as create new opportunities for community

development and increased capacity (Cahill, 2010, p. 262). Artists and other change agents from within

communities may offer innovative and creative ideas for communities who want to affect change, and

empathetic, respectful and collaborative efforts may realize powerful new ways to move toward "more inclusive

communities founded on equality and justices" toward strengths based solutions for social problems (Workman,

2012, p.114; Mulgan, 2006). For me, the VLL visits provided good examples of some of the significant differences

that may be found between communities - even those that might be located within a common geographical

location of a city. Granville Island, in its current incarnation as an artist and artisan community, enjoying a

symbiotic relationship with local communities also benefits from some tourism, and is sustained through its arts

identity. The Vancouver Native Housing Society (VNHS) showcases an innovative restructuring of tourism offering

art experience through social enterprises of the Skwachys Lodge and Aboriginal Art Gallery(Mair & Reid, 2007)

that serves to support its housing initiatives. The City of Vancouver, through employment of Vancouver Park

Board Arts Programmers and innovative use of space at Roundhouse Community Centreand other city facilitiesand parks, provides opportunities for enhancing social engagement and community wellbeing across diverse

populations through a variety of experiences of art and leisure. These examples also illustrate something of the

value added capacity of leisure and the transformational power of the arts (Artists in Community Program, 2015;

Eddy, n.d; Scher, 2006; United Nations, 2015). Rio Bates

Nowadays, many organizations, communities, and businesses have applied innovative ways to make a positive

social change, which involves using innovations to address the root cause of social issues and helping to build a

better community and society (Wagner, 2012). Social innovation includes the creation of new ideas, concepts,

and organizations to meet the needs of communities and societies (Cahill, 2010). YWCAand MECare two actors

that use different methods to promote positive social change and build a better society for humans and societies,

as well as also encourage these innovators to change the world in a better direction.

Jennifer Liu

Skwachys Lodge and Aboriginal Art Gallery

Art has become an essential part in peoples life. Art is a change agent helping to solve social problems. In

Vancouver, the Roundhouse Community Centre, Skwachys Lodge and Aboriginal Art Gallery, and Granville

Islandall trigger social innovations by using art to establish art-oriented communities, address social issues, and

promote community development. As Cahill (2010) pointed out, social innovation is about new ideas that work

to address pressing unmet needs (p.1). Homelessness, poverty and inequality are all current social problems

need to be solved. These three communities create accesses for common people to live with art, change through

art, and develop community impact by art. This art-change-society model just begins. As Frank and Smith (1999)

propose, community development is an inclusive process (p. 28). Diverse community members, different

organizations should be involved in the community development process. Community development is a complexprocess, which needs time and patient to forge ahead. I believe more and more people will enjoy the change art

brings and get benefit from it.Olivia Li


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Mountain Equipment Co op

Everyone has the power to make a positive difference, whether big or small, local or global. This is clearly what I

took during our Vancouver Learning Lab (VLL); I had an opportunity to have hands-on experience by visiting

various organizations that applied or are currently using the theories and concepts that we learned in class. I also

had a chance to foster my ability to analyse leisure in relation to change, community development, planning,

stakeholders, sustainability and innovation. The things that strike the most for me during the VLL week is: 1)

social innovation and social enterprise both from Skwachys Lodge and Aboriginal Art Gallery and theYWCA;

and 2) community engagement and stakeholders for the Roundhouse Community Center.Sunil Kanumuri

Mountain Equipment Co-op (MEC) and the Roundhouse are two change-maker organizations that are

innovatively using leisure to create change in the community. This change is influenced by a community-based

strategic plan that balances its input from both top-down and bottom-up stakeholders, and taking the needs of

the community into consideration to provide community benefits (Mair & Reid, 2007). Numerous stakeholders

and partnerships are involved in the change-making process, both directly and indirectly, and span across all

three sectors (public, private, and non-profit). Within these community-based development strategies, MEC and

Roundhouse use leisure as a catalyst for change. This change-oriented work is in many ways reflective of

Mulgans (2006) process of social innovation; where needs are identified and ideas are generated (p.149), then

piloted (p. 151), then assessed (p. 153), and finally evolve to application in future practices and opportunities

(p.154). This process is evident when considering the events that MEC and Roundhouse host. For example, MEC

helps to enable people to experience outdoor recreation and lead leisure literate lives (MEC, 2015). Roundhouse,on the other hand, connects communities to the arts and culture industry through singing, dancing, and drawing

(Roundhouse, 2015) which are other forms of leisure literacy. These initiatives from both MECand Roundhouse

create a multitude of positive change within ones community. Communities that engage in leisure together,

become more cohesive, which fosters a sense of relatedness among individuals (Arai & Pedlar, 1997). MECand

Roundhouse are actively influencing change towards sustainability in the community. Individuals who are

exposed to these initiatives are likely to become more leisure literate, and hence better equipped to sustain

leisure in their lives.Julia Froese

Mapping the

Experience Economy

on Granville Island


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Komives and Wagner (2012) suggested that the social change model of leadership development is a process of

art designing for a positive social impact, thus influence or change social behaviors. From this Vancouver Learning

Lab, it is absolutely understand that any successful social enterprises have ability from the attitude to affect user

preferences, from the cognitive provide details to the user and on action provides convenient to the people

Edible Canada and Skwachys Lodge are keeping the focus on cultural identity and the value of sustainable

tourism development.Wei Huang

Edible Canada

I always thought that if you want to understand a place you should go to public markets and eat local food. In my

attempt to find Canadian food on my first day in Granville Island, I found Edible Canada, a charming restaurant

right in front of the Public Market. I did not decide to eat there because it was a social enterprise or for their

business purpose and their mission/vision (Cahill, 2010). It was as simple as trying to find Canadian food. Now,

after my field trip experience with my class, I am aware of the actual goal of this business and I could get the

message that they want to send to the consumers. I understood that what I saw back then it was just the tip ofthe iceberg, I did not see behind the scenes (Gibson-Graham, 2013). That makes me think about the importance

of well-informed consumers, they are key stakeholders and have an essential role in the business scene, as

Lorentzen (2015) stated, "What people do as consumers is much more powerful than what they do as voters.

They vote every three or four years, but they consume every day" (p. 203). The products and services that we

receive from social enterprises are useless if the story behind is not properly reached to the final consumers. After

this learning process, my take away is that the delivery of the message is crucial to foster social change. I have a

better understanding of some relevant issues in the city now, but also my attitude as consumer has changed. In

my opinion, the power of information is more clearly seen in the social enterprises context.Angie Granja

If a change agent believes in the power of change and effectively plans to create change, sometimes, a fruitful

social innovation will appear. Skwachys Lodge is a great example of how small change efforts can make a

difference to society. Skwachyscombines a hotel with a street level Urban Aboriginal Fair Trade Art Gallery.

These both support first-nation artists to pursue their careers while using a social enterprise model to fund

housing for Aboriginal people who are at risk of homelessness. This model is totally different from those more

common ones that focus on charity to benefit the needy (Tisch & Weber, 2010, p. 10). Skwachys experience

tells us that small actions may appear to be meagre drops of water in the ocean; however, as long as you believe

in what youre doing, you can make the effort to change the world. Similar to SkwachysLodge, Roundhouse

Community Centrealso includes artists in their community activities. Roundhouse successfully organized several

community-based activities that reduces barriers and allows participants to integrate art into their lives. As long

as human society is progressing, change will never stop. Any of us can be a change maker, or at least be

supportive to positive changes.

Jie Ding


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Skwachys and Roundhouse provide good examples of building an experience economy through resilient

communities. By enabling the creation of art, they provide an immediate benefit for the artist, but they also lay

the groundwork for future generations through the creation of cultural memory and a sense of community. In

these two specific cases, they have also enabled the recovery and reintroduction of some First Nations traditions

that were lost during the residential school era. This sense of place and culture is what draws participants into the

experience economy. Sundbo (2009) suggests that art creates an environment that, by fostering creativity, can

lead to opportunities in an experience economy. I grew up in a household where imaginative play was

encouraged and fostered by my parents. I read countless books, played trumpet and guitar, and ran wild through

the forests and fields of Northeast Ohio. Life excited me, and I tended to approach it with a wide-eyed sense of

wonder. At some point, I decided that I needed to grow up and prepare for my adult life. I chose to attend a

military academy and enter the Army as an officer, where this kind of mental approach was tacitly discouraged.

After I left the Army, I bounced from corporate job to corporate job without realizing that I was suppressing a

huge part of myself. I was miserable and depressed. My story is just a microcosmic representation of what

happens to a community or society that doesnt foster art and imagination. This kind of life is not sustainable or

resilient. Without art, we cannot thrive.Seth Kretser


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Growing up in a small town it has been a common personal reaction to feel out of place and uncomfortable in a

city. Besides the fast pace and chain store galore, one issue that personally caught me off guard was the feeling

of hopelessness and the inability to help when encountered with the homeless on the streets, this was one issue

not often seen in my small town. How was it that in a city surrounded by big buildings, expensive shops and

important looking people in their suits, that the issue of homelessness was not addressed? And why was no one

trying to fix these issues? Therefore, it was of no wonder I fell victim of Ellis (2007, pp.4, 8) thought trap in the

cycle of cynicism thinking thats just the way the world is and not knowing enough about the issue.

This is

where the Vancouver Learning Lab for my MA SLM program helped me understand that there are organizations

out there in the city that are currently doing their very best to help tackle issues such as homelessness, affordable

housing and help fight cultural misappropriation: for every social problem that has existed there have been

people dedicated to solving it and creating positive social change (Ellis, 2007, p.4). The idea that little causes

can have big effects, and sometimes these can happen very quickly (Gladwell, 2006, pp.9, 11) was a term that I

believe that through the Vancouver Learning Lab some of my present and future fellow cohorts, will one day

become change agents towards creating a positive social purpose business (Cahill, 2010, p.264), support

organizations that offer social impact through social innovations and to help others become conscious consumers

and become involved.

Examples of such organizations are the YWCA Hoteland Skwachys.As consumers looking

for accommodation, one is directly helping support and finance these organizations and their causes. If it wasntfor the chance to become involved in this learning lab and dig deeper behind these social impact organizations,

my opinions would have remained cynical and I would have kept believing that a single person could never

change anything. Who knew doing your homework had its rewards?Roberto Donoghue

Groundswell

The Vancouver Learning Lab introduced me to social enterprises and social innovation in a way which I had not

previously encountered. Feeling the buzz and energy coming from the people behind organizations likeGroundswelland The HiVE, was intoxicating. As Paola Qualizza spoke to us about Groundswelland the very real

change they sought to make in the world, a picture came very much into focus for me. These places were real,

and real people worked there. Third sector solutions like social enterprises reframe not only which economic

activities are valued (Gibson Graham Cameron, & Healy, 2013) but also re-center economic activity away from

profit maximization and shareholder gain towards social purpose and reinvestment (Teasdale, 2012). Change,

through social innovation, occurs in response to the persistent existence of social problems which conventional

systems or organizations fail to address or resolve (Tisch, 2010; Murray, Caulier-Grice, & Mulgan, 2010). Be it for

problems of food security, inclusion, social justice, minority rights, economic mobility, or homelessness, there is

an increasing array of individuals and groups pursuing solutions outside of the traditional frameworks of markets

or the state. Maya Goodwill and The HiVEhave also integrated the essence of social enterprises harnessing the

creative forces of the market for social impact with the conditions which lead to innovation in the form of an

innovation incubator (Westall, 2007). Inspiration and collaboration are the goals political action couldnt help me

reach. These change agents are doing something about that sense of dissatisfaction. Its about time I did too.

David Petroziello

vancouver learning lab 2015 report

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