BCHC Newsletter | September 2014

THE NEWS
New CVYC Coordinator
Welcome Sarah Graham

Please join us in welcoming the new City of Victoria Youth Council Coordinator, Sarah Graham. Sarah is in her first year of studies at the University of Victoria and hopes to complete a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science and Economic Policy, while pursuing her interests in the French language and photography. In 2013, she chaired the United Way’s Youth Now Council and oversaw the council’s two major projects: a conference for youth groups operating in the Victoria area and the annual Youth Now Awards to recognize outstanding youth contributions to community development. Before Sarah became the City of Victoria Youth Council’s (CVYC) coordinator, she was an active member for two years and contributed to various projects, including the Youth Caucus and Employability Fair. In the past she also worked with the United Way and Coast Capital Saving’s Youth in Action team to evaluate community assets and areas of need in the Hillside-Quadra area. During her time as a secondary student she co-lead the organization of the Youth Addressing Local Poverty conference which drew together over 150 youth and ran her school’s Amnesty International team for two years. When Sarah isn’t following her passions in the community she can be found reading, walking by a body of water or satisfying her endless appetite for good food.

Check out the CVYC website or email Sarah at info@cvyc.net. 

THE COMMUNITY
The City of Victoria Youth Council is recruiting!
Interview with Sarah Graham
By Penny Dunlop

The City of Victoria Youth Council (CVYC) is a diverse group of 14-24 year olds who live, work, hang out or go to school in the City of Victoria. By organizing awesome projects and working with the City of Victoria Staff and City Council we are making our community a better place and allowing young voices to be heard.

Wondering what the CVYC is all about? Below is a Q &A with this year’s CVYC Coordinator, Sarah Graham.

Q. What kind of people make good candidates for the Youth Council?

Sarah: Really, anyone who wants to make their community better is a great candidate. We make space for people of diverse perspectives and backgrounds and there is always an exciting mix of personal experience - that’s what makes the council so rich.

Q. What typically motivates people to get involved?

Sarah: Some people come with a sense of the kind of impact they’d like to make and they see the council as a platform to take action. Some people have already been in leadership roles in school and this kind of a group attracts them. And others are keen to be involved in something important but they are open to what that looks like.

Q. What should new members expect?

Sarah:  What members discover is that this is not a structured school-like environment. We start the year building our personal and collective capacity through workshops and learning retreats, exploring topics such as grant writing, community asset mapping, change theories, and story-telling for change. Then, in early November we gather as a group to brainstorm what our direction and purpose will be for the year and we start imagining what kinds of activities and projects we’d like to engage in.

Q. What kind of projects has the council engaged with in the past?

Sarah: Well, the projects are always entirely determined by the interests and aspirations of the members that year. Last year, for instance, one of the issues that members really cared about was youth employment. They were aware of the job market being really difficult for young people. Young people often experience this barrier in which you need experience to get a job, but you need a job to get experience. So a sub-group coordinated and hosted the You(th) Employability Fair which offered resume support, mock interviews and opportunities to speak to people in a variety of different fields. It was a great success. We had a great turn out and there was really rich dialogue.

Q. Sounds like a pretty spectacular environment to develop all sorts of skills and apply them in a meaningful way.

Sarah: You’ve got it! Members of the Council gain incredible amounts of experience.

Q. So, how does someone get involved?
 
Sarah: If you are interested, you can apply online at cvyc.ca/sign_up. The application takes about 15-30 minutes and asks you to explain who you are and why you want to be involved.

Check out the CVYC website or email Sarah at info@cvyc.net.  The submission deadline is September 26th, but applications are accepted on an ongoing basis.

THE CHAMPION
Visions of an Age Friendly Telkwa
Mayor Graf
By Krissi Spinoza


Mayor Graf’s long and distinguished political career began in 1971 when he was elected to Smithers Town Council where he served for the next 21 years, including two terms as Mayor. During those years, his expertise and leadership skills were utilized in the supervision of many important projects. Mayor Graf now lives in the Village of Telkwa, a vibrant community located in the Bulkley Valley at the confluence of the Telkwa and Bulkley Rivers and is honoured to have served two terms as Mayor of the Village.

A champion of all the residents of Telkwa, Mayor Graf recently supported Telkwa’s age-friendly work: completing an Age-friendly Assessment and receiving an Age-friendly Recognition Award from the province and BC Healthy Communities. The Mayor is committed to serving the seniors in Telkwa and makes sure he takes time to volunteer for “Meals on Wheels” and spending time with area seniors who cannot get around on their own.

In addition to his public service, Mayor Graf has devoted his time and experience to many other organizations including Smithers Flying Club, Smithers and District Chamber of Commerce, and Smithers Minor Hockey.

Mayor Graf’s hobbies include hunting and fishing with his grandchildren, golfing, square dancing, carpet bowling and reading. He has a keen interest in airplanes, especially war planes, and enjoys using the flight simulator on his computer.


THE ARTICLE
Promoting responsible drinking practices
New Resource for Local Government
By the Ministry of Health

Local governments have a key role to play in helping create safe, strong communities and an important part of that role is promoting responsible alcohol consumption. As well as the Municipal Alcohol Policy program offered by BC Healthy Communities in partnership with the Ministry of Health, there are some other great resources available to local governments who want to develop municipal bylaws around alcohol use.

The newly released Alcohol and Pregnancy Warning Signage Information Kit for local governments in BC provides information and guidance for local governments who wish to move forward with alcohol-related bylaws.  It provides information about signage to raise awareness and help prevent Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD), the leading preventable cause of developmental disability among Canadian children. It also provides the rationale and process for developing bylaws to mandate FASD warning and prevention signs to be displayed at the point of sale of alcohol.
 
Read more.

If you have questions about how BC Healthy Communities can help your community promote responsible drinking practices, call Krissi at 250-952-9177 or email hccoordinator@bchealthycommunities.ca.


THE EVENTS
Webinar
Health and Climate Change - NEW Series
Where: Online
When: 2014-2015
Cost: Free

We had 90 people tuning in to kick off the Health and Climate Change Webinar Series with Health in a Changing Climate: Impacts and Opportunities for Canada and BC on September 16th. This was the first in a series of free interactive webinars exploring the health implications of a changing climate, and the proactive approaches that communities and organizations are taking to prepare for health risks and opportunities. This webinar series will be of interest to health professionals, emergency services providers, local governments, environmental organizations, and community organizations.
 
The presentations, resource and recording from our first webinar are available for download on the BCHC website.

Participant Quotes:

• “There is a shift coming on the horizon where health professionals will be taking on a bigger role in terms of climate change. Having systems in place early to assist populations adapt to changing environment is a new idea to me, and an intriguing one.”
• “The organized way of thinking about health in a changing climate. It was useful to have this kind of overview as well as access to various key government documents.  Together the webinar was extremely useful in thinking about equity and social justice issues which is my primary interest area.”
• “It was great to hear such knowledgeable presenters share complex content in a clear and concise way.”

Watch for more information about our second installment later this year!

THE READ
Recommended by Jodi Mucha
Pitch Perfect: How to Say It Right the First Time, Every Time
By Bill McGowan

Saying the right thing the right way can make the difference between sealing the deal or losing the account, getting a promotion, or getting a pink slip. It’s essential to be pitch perfect—to get the right message across to the right person at the right time. In Pitch Perfect, Bill McGowan shows you how to craft the right message and deliver it using the right language—both verbal and nonverbal.

Pitch Perfect teaches you how to overcome common communication pitfalls using McGowan’s simple Principles of Persuasion, which are highly effective and easy to learn, implement, and master. With Pitch Perfect you can harness the power of persuasion and have people not only listening closely to your every word but also remembering you long after you’ve left the room.

Read more.

Review from HarperCollins Publishers.