We’ve all heard it: “Vancouver is isolating.” What does social connection have to do with politically and democratically engaged communities?
City Shapers was a cohort-based, civic education program that brought together 18 to 30 year olds from across Metro Vancouver to learn about civic engagement and how cities work. Together, we explored both formal and informal ways of getting involved and collectively shaping the future of our communities, from activism to online dialogues to running for political office.
The Fall 2019 session of City Shapers looked at social isolation. With inspiration from guest speakers and presenters from various areas of work, we explored questions like: How does physical design and local governance affect isolation? What are governments doing to address isolation and promote inclusion? And how can being more connected contribute to more democratically engaged-communities?
Civic Education and Social Inclusion
Canadians have limited trust in elected officials.
The Strengthening Canadian Democracy Project looks at how people across the country believe democracy is working and what can be done to strengthen the democratic system. A recent national poll found that while most Canadians are strongly committed to democracy as a system, 68 per cent feel that elected officials don’t care what people like them think, and only 33 per cent trust elected officials.
Vancouver is lonely.
In 2017, the Vancouver Foundation’s Connect and Engage initiative asked 3,785 people across the region how connected they felt to neighbours, friends, and their communities. Half said they find it hard to make friends in Metro Vancouver. And around 1 in 4 said they find themselves alone more often than they’d like. What’s more, some people are disproportionately likely to feel lonely, including young people and those living in lower-income households.
Sense of belonging and democratic participation are connected. We want to explore these links and talk about what can be done to create more engaged, connected, and informed communities.
The Program
The first City Shapers program was held over seven sessions in October and November 2019, on weekday evenings and one full-day workshop. After spending the first three sessions exploring current issues in civic engagement and social isolation, the cohort put their learning to practice by co-creating projects or ideas to tackle social isolation and and support engagement at the community or local level.
The Final Event took place on Wednesday, November 20th at The Pace, a performance and event venue in Vancouver.
Presenting Sponsor
This program was delivered in partnership with SFU Morris J Wosk Centre for Dialogue’s Strengthening Canadian Democracy Project with support from the Vancouver Foundation.
