Can We Talk Event Report

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Report for Community Event:

Can We Talk? About New Visions for the North End

Report Writer:

Ingrid R.G. Waldron, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor

School of Occupational Therapy

Faculty of Health Professions

Dalhousie University

5869 University Avenue

Forrest Building

Halifax, Nova Scotia

Canada

B3H 3J5

Email: [email protected]

Phone: 494-4558

February 22, 2012


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Table of Contents

Acknowledgements3

Introduction4

Key Issues/Challenges Facing African Nova Scotian & Aboriginal Communities in the NorthEnd

.5

Community-Driven Initiatives & Programs for Resolving the Challenges Facing North End

Residents.6

Employment6 Education, Schooling & Training6 Housing & Tenants Issues...7 Business & Financial Issues7 Criminal Justice System...8 Transportation..8 Parenting & Childcare.8 Health & Mental Health..9 Seniors.9 Youth..11 Community Engagement, Outreach &

Communication.11 Cultural Identity.12 Other Initiatives &

Programs..13

Partnerships for Resolving Some of the Challenges Facing North End Residents14

General...14 Business & Banking...14 Housing..14 Education...14 Community Agencies.15

Strategies, Methods & Avenues for Sustaining the Dialogue Initiated at the Can We Talk Event15

Developing an ActionPlan.15


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Outreach & LeadershipDevelopment16

CommunityEngagement16

Suggested Next Steps.................................................................................................................... 18

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would like to thank the following individuals, businesses and organizations for supporting and

assisting with this event:

Event Funders: Nova Scotia Health Research Foundation

(Knowledge Sharing Support Award)

Event Organizers: Pink Dog Productions

Event Location: Halifax North Memorial Library (DarlaMuzzerall, Manager)

Hostess: Charla Williams

Spoken Word Artist: El Jones

Facilitators & Note-Takers for Break-Out Sessions:

Pam Cooley

Debbie EisanRyan Gannon

Travis Malay

Dr. Lena Walker

Murleta Williams

Norma Williams

Dinner & Refreshments: Deli Green Bakery & Catering


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INTRODUCTION

This report integrates discussions from the break-out sessions at the Can We Talk event thatwas held on February 16, 2012 at the Halifax North Memorial Library and findings from the Dr.

Ingrid Waldrons research study titled: Challenges & Opportunities: Identifying MeaningfulOccupations in Low-Income, Racialized Communities in North End, Halifax.

The purpose of the event was to screen the DVD film titled The North End: In Search of a NewBeginning (produced by Pink Dog Productions) in order to elicit dialogue amongst diverseindividuals and stakeholders about key issues, priorities and challenges facing North Endresidents.

The event, DVD film and research project were funded by the Nova Scotia Health Research

Foundation. Event objectives and anticipated outcomes are outlined below.

Event Objectives

To bring together diverse stakeholders (government/policy, health professionals,community agencies, service providers, academics, students, community members,artists, etc.) to discuss the research findings and share creative solutions for some of the

challenges, exclusions and inequalities that North End residents face.

Anticipated Event Outcomes

To develop a document that incorporates notes from facilitated break-out sessions and theresearch report. This document will be posted on the Facebook page for the event anddistributed to event participants and other key decision makers via an email list.

To use the DVD film, social media and traditional media to sustain ongoing dialogueabout key issues facing North End residents;

To develop and sustain partnerships among diverse stakeholders in order to develop andmobilize around solutions and initiatives designed to eliminate some of the challengesfacing North End residents;


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To initiate the development of collaborative community-driven initiatives, projects andprograms designed to eliminate some of the challenges facing North End communities;and

To enable North End community members, agencies and interested individuals to takeownership of the initiatives, projects and programs that will be developed after the event.

Key Issues/Challenges Facing African Nova Scotian & Aboriginal

Communities in the North End

Can We Talk Event Break-Out Sessions & Research Report

Lack of a strong political voice; Members of the community are voiceless and not heard; Lack of self-determination; Lack of an infrastructure; Lack of government funding, resulting in income problems; Inequitable allocation of government funds; Racism in wider community; Stereotypes and stigma about the North End and its residents; Lack of cultural pride; Lack of community unity and cohesiveness; Educational challenges experienced by youth; Lack of youth employment opportunities; Lack of youth mentors; Lack of communication between seniors centres; Elder abuse on three levels: financial, physical and psychological; Concerns around safety and crime among seniors; Concerns around safety in larger community; Poor literacy among seniors; Low rates of home ownership;

Difficulties finding affordable housing; Gentrification; Difficulties accessing affordable transportation; Poor health and mental health; Fixed income, resulting in poor nutrition; Lack of a grocery store; Isolation; and Lack of information about programs and services.


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Community-Driven Initiatives & Programs for Resolving the Challenges

Facing North End Residents

Employment

Can We Talk Event Break-Out Sessions

Developing more adult employment opportunities; Increasing employment opportunities in North End agencies for community residents; Bringing in community job training professionals; Creating awareness of available jobs; Developing emergency job training initiatives; and Implementing affirmative action hiring policies.

Research Report

Delivering more employment workshops that assist individuals in finding jobs; Developing a referral service that connects individuals to available jobs opportunities;

and

Developing a program to assist individuals developing practical job skills that preparethem for re-entering the workforce after they have been released from custody.

Education, Schooling & Training


Listing of programs/initiatives to be implemented within St. Patrick's Alexandra School; Securing and planning the St. Patrick's Alexandra School location for community use; Developing alternative education programs; Integrating classroom elders into the school system, particularly those who are interested

in supporting students throughout their educational journey;

Instilling cultural knowledge in schools; Hiring volunteers for after-school programming(e.g. tutoring);


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Eliminating the cost of criminal checks for school volunteers; Implementing outreach activities that link schooling to outcomes; Implementing vocational or mentoring services that encourage students to apply for

available scholarships; Ensuring affordable tuition; and Developing adult education programs.

Research Report

Supporting individuals in obtaining educational diplomas and degrees; Offering computer training workshops; Offering more workshops on financial planning, budget management, creative

expression, spiritual healing, self-esteem and parenting;

Providing ongoing education and training to agency staff on how the following issuesimpact the health of clients: discrimination, access to transportation, education andliteracy, cognitive and learning disabilities, financial issues, access to jobs and support

networks; and

Providing training to staff that support them in confronting their own assumptions andstereotypes around race, culture, sexual orientation, religion, poverty, disability,

homelessness, mental illness and other challenges faced by clients.

Housing & Tenants Issues


Developing a national strategy on housing; Implementing strategies to increase home ownership; Developing a partnership between community residents and a housing company; Developing partnerships between community residents, Metropolitan Regional Housing

Authority and Habitat for Humanity to deal with the issue of condemned places that have

been turned into low-cost housing;

Revising tenants rights to avoid evictions (Board required to undertake this); and Implementing rent control policies.

Business & Financial Issues


Building a grocery store;


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Providing more community support for the upcoming Co-op store; Building a credit union; Developing business incentives; Developing a banking/retail/commercial area; and Developing micro-financing opportunities.

Criminal Justice System


Implementing more restorative justice initiatives that provide options other than jail; Arranging for the Community Justice Society to hold monthly orientation sessions for

youth who may be in conflict with the law; and

Ensuring that Aboriginal and African Nova Scotian communities have a voice in VictimsServices (in process, but more work required).

Transportation


Implementing a community carpool service and Developing a buddy system that acknowledges the mobility issues experienced by seniors

and persons with disabilities.

Parenting & Childcare


Offering parenting programs that provide support to new families and Providing more support to new mothers.

Research Report

Developing programs that acknowledge the challenges that clients experience aroundfinances and childcare by providing spaces where children can be supervised whileparents attend programs and services and


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Offering programs and services during the days and evenings and on weekdays andweekends that bring the whole family together and that, consequently, eliminate thechallenges parents experience finding affordable childcare.

Health & Mental Health


Opening more health clinics;

Utilizing the two-eyed seeing health model, which integrates a Western health modelwith Aboriginal/Indigenous healing traditions;

Connecting with the Dal-Workplace Project, which focuses on healthy living; Developing and implementing more health promotion and education activities; Integrating public policy into health policy; Developing more volunteer initiatives around fitness/healthcare; and Encouraging Capital Health staff to reach out to the community to assist with resource

counselling, health information sharing and other forms of support.

Research Report

Offering more workshops on fitness, weight loss and healthy eating; Offering free exercise classes; Developing individual and group youth counselling programs that focus on sexual health

and education;

Offering free mental health support groups that provide supportive and holistic healthservices for clients who are dealing with the challenges of everyday life;

Developing more culturally-specific health and mental health programs that reflect theworldviews, cultural traditions and spiritual and religious beliefs and practices of

Aboriginal, African Nova Scotian and other communities in the North End;

Developing more effective health and mental health promotion strategies that focus onthe following: increasing awareness about physical, emotional, mental and spiritualhealth issues; reducing and eliminating stigma around mental illness; promoting healthylifestyles; providing information on and referrals to substance dependence and mental

health and counselling support services; assisting and supporting clients in accessinghealth and mental health services; and

Implementing collaborative health promotion strategies involving diverse stakeholders,including health professionals, community agencies, community members, educators andthe church.


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Seniors


Collecting demographic data on the senior population in the North End, includingcollecting data on Aboriginal seniors;

Building a seniors community centre, complex or central space where seniors can meet(e.g. Spencer House);

Implementing a seniors bus system; Holding free events for seniors; Bringing programs to seniors and bringing seniors into programs; Developing activities that promote inter-generational (youth, teens, adults and seniors)

interaction; Developing partnerships between seniors and youth organizations; Conducting community outreach that involves community members visiting the homes of

seniors;

Developing a co-op program that pairs students with seniors; Developing initiatives that involve youth assisting seniors in the activities of everyday

life (e.g. getting groceries etc.);

Developing an initiative that takes cooked food to the homes of seniors; Developing a letter writing/pen pal program for seniors that involves story exchange and

students writing to seniors. This would help develop the literacy skills of seniors in thecommunity;

Organizing Seniors Day events; Implementing frail-friendly environments in the community; Utilizing a pastoral care model for partnering seniors; Developing a seniors Buddy System; Developing an initiative that takes pets to seniors; Developing an initiative that sends nurses out to visit seniors in their homes; Developing an initiative that sends produce from the Community Garden to seniors; and Setting up a central phone number for seniors (Province will be setting up 211 line

eventually).

Research Report

Developing seniors programs and clubs that engage seniors in activities inside andoutside their homes (e.g. knitting, crocheting, card games etc.);

Providing opportunities and spaces for youth, adults and seniors to come together to shareexperiences and build a sense of community through meaningful interactions,connections and social networks (e.g. recreational and sports activities: ball and

basketball tournaments and outdoor games);


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Providing opportunities for youth to reach out to and connect with seniors in thecommunity (e.g. a program that enables youth to volunteer a few hours of their timeevery week visiting seniors in their homes); and

Developing an initiative that involves community members assisting seniors in theactivities of everyday life (e.g. shopping, groceries, recreation, etc.), particularly in theevening when many seniors are hesitant to venture out alone.

Youth


Developing more consistent youth programming; Developing more inter-agency collaborations on programs for youth of various ages; Holding intergenerational events that bring together children, teens and seniors; Identifying role models and mentors for youth; Extending Family SOS to engage youth in leadership activities; and Engaging youth in community meetings and other important community events.

Research Report

Developing more youth employment opportunities; Hiring community organizers to develop sport and recreational programs and events for

youth;

Developing individual and group youth counselling programs that focus on sexual healthand education, youth parenting, financial management, housing and other issues;

Providing opportunities and spaces for youth, adults and seniors to come together to shareexperiences and build a sense of community through meaningful interactions,

connections and social networks (e.g. recreational and sports activities, such as ball andbasketball tournaments and outdoor games);

Developing youth mentorship programs that provide opportunities for adults and seniorsto share their own life experiences with youth;

Providing opportunities for youth to reach out to and connect with seniors in thecommunity (e.g. a program that enables youth to volunteer a few hours of their timeevery week visiting seniors in their homes);

Offering after-school programs during the days and evenings and throughout the weekthat provide youth with opportunities to participate in recreational, educational andcreative activities;

Developing youth programs that are offered during the days and evening and throughoutthe week, weekends and summer that engage youth in outdoor recreational activities; and


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Developing programs that instill cultural pride in Aboriginal and African Nova Scotianyouth.

Community Engagement, Outreach & Communication


Following up on the Can We Talk event to ensure that initiatives are underway and thatanticipated outcomes are being realized (e.g. through community facilitation);

Using an email list of Can We Talk participants to spread the word aboutcollaborations and/or upcoming events and projects;

Inviting guest speakers from different backgrounds who can speak on key issues atsubsequent meetings and events;

Increasing awareness of other community groups; Increasing outreach activities by Black Educators Association; Increasing involvement of teachers in community initiatives; Increasing interaction with or community outreach to political leaders at all three levels

of government;

Ensuring that all members of the community are informed about 'coffee house' events andother meetings;

Placing a Suggestion Box or Suggestion Board at North End Community Health Centeror North Branch Library; and

Emphasizing and continuing to use diverse forms of communication off the internet,including postering, flyers and newsletters. Many seniors dont use Facebook and are

often frustrated when events are only advertised online.

Research Report

Hiring outreach workers to conduct outreach in the community to identify communityneeds around services and programs (particularly for hard-to-reach individuals);

Developing more effective outreach to men in the community in order to increase theirawareness of and access to programs and services (particularly since men tend to access

services less than women);

Developing referral services that provide adults, seniors and youth with information oncommunity resources, services and programs, such as housing, food banks and health and

counselling services etc.; and Creating awareness of agency programs and services through the following promotional

strategies: community outreach and direct communication; posters, brochures,

newsletters and flyers; community newspapers; email listserv; webpages; Kijiji; socialmedia; Halifax North Memorial Public Library; church; radio and television; and a

Directory of Community Services, Programs and Resources.


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Cultural Identity


Organizing more cultural events; Developing more cultural awareness initiatives that support the community in reclaiming

their sense of identity and that celebrate various cultural communities and

neighbourhoods;

Developing initiatives that focus on the de-stigmatization of the North End; and Providing opportunities for residents to engage in dialogue that interrogates pervasive

myths and underlying assumptions about a definition of the North End and its identity.

Other Initiatives & Programs


Collaborating with the North End Community Circle to create community cohesiveness; Creating community sustainability; Developing a community plan in collaboration with the Greater Halifax Partnership; Conducting an asset inventory; Creating more accessible environments; Collecting more accurate demographic data; Developing a Neighbourhood Watch Program; Developing cost-efficient programming; Ensuring that agencies in the North End receive more dedicated, long-term and stable

funding from corporations and the City (e.g. funding that does not result in agenciesdelivering programming in patch work and that does not require community members to

make choices between work and volunteering);

Developing programs that integrate physical and learning/educational activities; Developing a community supper initiative; and Developing an initiative that provides more life coaches;

Research Report

Ensuring that programs and services are more inclusive of and accessible to clients withcognitive, learning and developmental disabilities, low levels of education and varyinglevels of English literacy skills (e.g. helping clients fill out forms and reviewing other

documents and guidelines with them in person);

Implementing a clean-up project in the North End that brings community memberstogether to clean up the North End (graffiti etc.); and


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Developing a Neighbourhood Watch Program that hires volunteers to support communitymembers who feel unsafe in the neighbourhood. Such a program may involve volunteersaccompanying seniors on errands etc.

Partnerships for Resolving Some of the Challenges Facing North End

Residents


General

Developing action teams that make partnerships more effective and Nurturing inter-agency cooperation in order to avoid funding disputes.

Business & Banking

Developing partnerships between businesses, funders and community agencies to buildself-sufficiency and develop skills;

Developing partnerships with the business sector in order to expose youth to new ideas;and

Developing partnerships between mentors and corporate sponsorship banks that offerpersonal financial education.

Housing

Developing a partnership with a housing company; Developing partnerships with Metropolitan Regional Housing Authority and Habitat for

Humanity to deal with the issue of condemned places that have been turned into low-costhousing; and

Developing partnerships between carpenters and architects to develop house building andrenovation projects, both of which would provide the community with jobs, training andskills development opportunities.


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Education

Developing a partnership with Faculty of Health Professions at Dalhousie University; Developing partnerships with Dalhousies Black and Mi'kmaq services, which need to

bring outside communities into Dalhousie (similar to program at Kings College);

Developing a partnership with the Nova Scotia Community College; and Developing partnerships between high schools, universities and employers within the

community.

Community Agencies

Developing a partnership with the Greater Halifax Partnership to develop a communityplan;

Developing partnerships between churches, the Black Educators Association and NorthEnd Community Health Center to develop programs, including a mentorship program;

Developing a partnership with Family SOS; Developing partnerships among diverse groups to make Imagine Bloomfield a

community hub;

Developing partnerships between seniors and youth organizations; and Developing partnerships that offer local childcare programs.

Research Report

Developing more inter-agency partnerships in the North End that provide agencies withopportunities to draw on diverse skills, experiences and networks, learn from one another,

eliminate redundancy in programming and to respond collectively to community needsand

Providing more opportunities for community members to contribute to decisions aroundthe development of programs and services in the North End.

Strategies, Methods & Avenues for Sustaining the Dialogue Initiated at the

Can We Talk Event

Developing an Action Plan


Providing opportunities for the community to develop and buy into an action plan; Prioritizing community needs and actions; Clarifying goals and objectives for an action plan;


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Settling on an appropriate timeline for each goal to be reached and determining whichindividuals will take on each task;

Determining how the goals and objectives will be reached; Finding resources to meet the goals and objectives; Developing more grassroots bottom up approaches; Moving beyond due diligence and providing genuine action; and Ensuring that there is transparency, which is necessary to build trust and provide safe

spaces for all voices to be heard.

Outreach & Leadership Development


Developing an outreach program with community members in the North End andbeyond;

Determining strategies for conducting outreach; Determining the individuals that will be selected to conduct outreach and leadership

activities, including determining who the champions and heroes in the neighbourhood

are;

Training outreach workers in the North End to honour the skills, wisdom, and resourceswithin the North End (including youth);

Reaching out to youth advocates, who are the leaders of tomorrow; Creating a wave of intellectual activists and leaders who are willing to shake things up,

take the lead on social justice issues and initiate real change in the community (e.g.

Rocky Jones and others);

Seeking out those invisible leaders and powerful forces in the community (e.g. seniors,individuals involved in the St. Pats issue etc.);

Reaching out to the most vulnerable members of the community with a progressiveoutreach program that is well-structured and provides ongoing training and supportsystems;

Bringing in individuals from the broader community to assist with community initiativesin the North End, including policy makers and justice workers; and

Ensuring that community members commit to staying involved and doing the work in thecommunity they live in.

Community Engagement



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Organizing Community Meetings & Events

Organizing a one-day forum as a follow up to the Can We Talk event;

Holding regular bi-weekly or monthly open space town hall meetings and eventsmodelled after the Can We Talk event to sustain momentum;

Organizing community building nights and events; Holding structured small-group and large-group meetings that enable all community

members to have a voice;

Engaging in more government consultations; Engaging in more ongoing safe dialogue with partners; Making attendance at these meetings mandatory; and Ensuring that these meetings and events are a mandatory condition of parole and

probation. In other words, individuals should be required to attend monthly meetings fora year instead of performing 15 hours of community service work.

Committees & Task Groups

Organizing task forces and groups; Creating a steering committee; and Organizing youth-led youth groups.

Topics & Activities for Meetings & Events

Organizing an ongoing series of meetings and events modelled after the Can We Talkevent, with each meeting and event highlighting a different aspect of that events

activities and topics, including film screenings, speakers and community discussions and Holding events that celebrate the North End community and its heroes in order to change

the negative stigma associated with the North End.

Involvement of Key Decision Makers

Community developers; Police liaisons; Representatives from NGOs; Youth; Politicians and policymakers (attendance at community meetings should be mandatory

for these decision makers); Grassroots individuals and groups; and Visible and invisible community leaders.

Advertising & Promotion of Community Meetings & Events


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Creating a North End Community (NEC) resource guide that lists all of the communityservices, programs and resources in the North End (flyer or business card size);

Maintaining a database of all individuals attending community meetings and events; Ensuring that all individuals are kept up to date and involved in events and meetingsthrough more effective advertising and promotion using traditional and social media, e.g.

Facebook, Twitter, online blogs, email, radio, TV, newspapers;

Posting information on events and meetings on community notice boards; and Advertising and promoting events and meetings in flyers, weekly notices and mail-outs.

Suggested Next Steps

The following are suggested next steps for implementing the recommendations that came out ofthe Can We Talk event and Dr. Waldrons research report:

Collaborate with Pink Dog Productions to develop a communication and knowledgemobilization plan that engages with diverse and innovative online tools and platforms,

including Facebook and Youtube etc.;

Post project documents and resources on the Can We Talk Facebook page, includingresearch report, Can We Talk Event Report and the DVD film The North End: In Searchof a New Beginning;

Dr. Ingrid Waldron to meet with the North End Community Circle (NECC) to connectresearch findings, DVD film and Can We Talk event discussions and recommendations

to the activities being carried out by the NECC;

Inform Can We Talk event participants about next steps and activities arising out of theevent through email communication, community agencies, online blogs, Halifax NorthMemorial Library, flyers, newsletters, churches, community agencies, the Can We TalkFacebook page, newspapers, radio and TV;

Organize a follow up event (e.g. all day forum) based on discussions and suggestionsfrom the Can We Talk event, DVD film and research report. The objective of this event

is to develop an action plan that identifies and clarifies the following:

1) Priority issues and associated community-driven activities, initiatives andprograms;

2) Goals, objectives and timelines;3) Resources for meeting goals and objectives;4) Strategies for realizing goals and objectives;5) Intended outcomes;


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6) Task groups (including youth task groups) and steering committees;7) Inter-agency partnerships;8) Outreach strategies;9) Community engagement strategies;10)Community leadership activities; and11)Communication and knowledge mobilization strategies.

Can We Talk Event Report

Documents

Transcript of Can We Talk Event Report