A research project that explores how the stories of those with experience of housing insecurity can play a more central role in community conversations about housing has received nearly $585,000 in funding.
The project, Changing the Conversation: Re-envisioning Narrative Engagement about Housing Insecurity in Communities, is led by Dr. Elliot Rossiter, a Philosophy instructor at Douglas College. The grant comes from the College and Community Social Innovation Fund from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC).
With homelessness in Metro Vancouver at an all-time high, the goal of the project is to build a greater sense of solidarity among community members and people who have experienced housing insecurity. To meet this goal, informal public meetings will be hosted where people from both groups can come together to talk in a safe and respectful space.
Rossiter said that where and how these conversations happen is important for creating a comfortable environment in which people facing housing insecurity and the general public can listen to one another and advocate together for solutions to the housing crisis.
“At municipal public hearings, it is rare to hear the perspectives of people with lived experiences of poverty, housing insecurity, homelessness or substance use,” said Rossiter. “These conversation circles will provide people with lived experience a safe space to express their stories in a public context.”
The public discussions will be held during the first year of the project in public spaces across New Westminster, including Douglas College, the Eighth and Eight Creative Space, and the Purpose Society.
The grant money will be spent over the next three years. Of this funding, $359,457 will come from the Social Science Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC), and will go toward hosting the public discussions as well as assisting research. This money will also support the involvement of the Community Action Network (CAN), a not-for-profit that addresses social issues affecting people experiencing poverty.
The remaining $225,000 will come from the Canada Council of the Arts in support of the Arts Council of New Westminster’s involvement in the project.
Poetry, visual art and public displays will be created by artists-in-residence, as well as those affected by homelessness, to create further public discourse and understanding.
“Art builds empathy and has the power to change perspectives in a way that just giving people statistics often does not,” said Rossiter. “We want to try to create greater support and solidarity in the community through engaging in public art.”
Information gathered from this project will be communicated to policymakers, academics and local organizations in a push to start adapting community spaces in new and inclusive ways.
Other Douglas College faculty members working on this project include Dr. Rini Sumartojo from the department of Geography, Dr. Colleen Reid from the department of Therapeutic Recreation and Tina Fusco from the department of English Language Learning and Acquisition (ELLA).
Community partners include the City of New Westminster, Arts Council of New Westminster, Eighth and Eighth Creative Space (Massey Theatre), New Westminster Museum and Archives, New Westminster Public Library, Community Action Network (B.C. Poverty Reduction Coalition), Lower Mainland Purpose Society for Youth and Families and the Morris J. Wosk Centre for Dialogue at Simon Fraser University.
In 2019, Rossiter received a $17,900 Systems Change Grant from the Vancouver Foundation. This funding went toward research and an event series, whose aim was to foster positive public discourse around social housing.
Rossiter has also been involved in several community organizations including the City of New Westminster’s Community Poverty Reduction Committee, the Purpose Society’s anti-stigma working group and the New Westminster Homelessness Coalition Society’s Homelessness Action Week planning team. The strong relationships Rossiter has built through this community work has created unique opportunities and connections for Douglas students and faculty.
Douglas College is the largest degree-granting college in B.C., combining the academic foundations of a university and the employer-ready skills of a college to graduate resilient global citizens who adapt, innovate and lead in a changing world.
For more information, visit douglascollege.ca
-30-
Contact
Elizabeth Douglas
Communications Coordinator
douglase2@douglascollege.ca