Surrey Event - SFU Surrey Campus July 22, 2014
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Context The CYCC Network is a knowledge mobilization network that was created to improve mental health and well-being for at-risk children and youth in Canada. It promotes the use of research, best and promising practices and local knowledge in mental health programming for children and youth in challenging contexts. Our Wisdom2Action outreach events bring together members of the local community who are passionate about improving the mental health andw well-being of young people. The events are designed to help participants connect, share knowledge, and promote promising practices. The Wisdom2Action process is guided by a national committee that includes Network members across Canada. CYCC Network staff connect with Network members in each community to develop a local planning team that guides the planning process through distinguishing the local need and rationale for an event like Wisdom2Action, identifying participants to be invited and providing advice on logistics. The national committee met in October 2013 and developed a statement of purpose, principles and outcomes.
Network Objectives Promote knowledge and understanding about CYCC Network Expand Network community dialogue on core themes with a focus on best practise Deepen local connections amongst partners
Purpose Wisdom to Action: Sharing stories of best practise, and discovering ways to better mobilize what we know so we can support young people more effectively.
Product Hear stories from local promising practices related to the CYCC Network mandate Understand barriers to putting new programming into action Develop action plans Document best practices, share best practices and learn from others about best practices
Principles Support the goals of the CYCC Network (promising practises, interdisciplinary, knowledge mobilization) Ensure diverse engagement (youth to funders to decision makers) Multi sectoral (including private sector and public sector) Model best practices in technology and youth engagement Co-created locally Youth engagement In Surrey, the CYCC Network co-created and co-hosted the event with a local planning and hosting team, including youth and staff from community organizations. This report outlines the agenda of the day, explains the processes used, and highlights the themes that emerged from the many shared stories and conversations.
Approach: Hosting, Harvesting and Experimenting Hosting and Harvesting, Experimenting Participatory methods and tools from the Art of Hosting and Harvesting Meaningful Conversations created a framework for the day with many opportunities for rich conversations. Art of Hosting is a highly effective approach of harnessing the collective wisdom and self-organizing capacity of groups of any size. Based on the assumption that humans give their energy and lend their resources to what matters to them, the Art of Hosting blends a suite of powerful conversational processes to invite people to step in and take charge of the challenges facing them. (Learn more at www. artofhosting.org) Harvesting refers to making visible what has occurred at the event – the fruits of the conversations. This is the practice of bringing wisdom into action. Our approach to harvesting this gathering was based on experimenting with the question: How do we activate the wisdom that is present in the room and share it with a wider network?
Purpose and Agenda The harvesting tools we employed included video, photos, conversation hosting templates, social media, and graphic recording. The purpose of this event was to explore how to bring wisdom to action to better support youth in challenging contexts. 60 people gathered for this day of networking, offering stories of practices, asking questions and sharing learnings. The day began with a creative registration activity (details below). Next, participants were guided into an Opening Circle where the day was framed and we were welcomed into the space. This was followed by active introductions, and PechaKucha Presentations. The group then participated in three rounds of “World Café” small group discussions before lunch. The remainder of the day was spent in two rounds of Open Space process which created the time and space for people to engage deeply and creatively around issues of concern to them.
Active Introductions The event began with everyone sitting in a circle. Participants were invited to walk around the room until the facilitator said “Stop”, at which time they were to find two other people to exchange conversation with. Participants were asked to share with their group why they came, what they wanted to learn, and what they hoped to share. This activity was repeated three times, introducing participants to each other in a fun and informal manner. Participants were asked to share with their group why they came, what they wanted to learn, and what they hoped to share.
Creative Registration As participants arrived, they were greeted with an unconventional registration experience. Each person had their photo taken with an instant camera. They put this photo on a “Profile Card” where they answered the questions: What do you hope to learn? What do you hope to share? These “profiles” were posted on the wall so all participants could better connect with one-another. This harvesting tool immediately highlighted the richness and diversity of people in the room, helped everyone arrive in the context of the day in a playful manner and brought focus to their own learning objectives and offerings. The wall of “profiles” acted as a visual networking tool throughout the day.
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PechaKucha Presentations Inspirations from projects and experiences were offered by four participants using the visual 20x20 PechaKucha format. In a PechaKucha presentation, the presenter has 20 images in their slide show and each image is shown for 20 seconds. This is a fun way for presenters to concisely share their stories, where participants are engaged by images and spoken words. The best PechaKucha presentations uncover the unexpected talent ideas. PechaKucha events started in Tokyo in 2003 by two architects who combined PowerPoint with the notion of a visual poetry slam - they now take place in 266 cities around the globe. For more information on PechaKucha, visit: www.pecha-kucha.org
Violence | Maria Goldin Maria is a student at Kwantlen Polytechnic University, and works for the Acting Together project (AT-CURA). The aim of AT-CURA project is to identify factors that prevent youth from violent and gang-related criminal activities. Using mixed methodology of academic research and community consultations, the project provides an evidence-based foundation to create programs to foster the identified preventive factors among youth. Maria emphasized the importance of targeting the culture and context for where you are working, and promoted that youth are experts too. Her closing catchphrase: together we can, and together we will! You can learn more about the Acting Together project at www.actingtogether.ca.
The CYCC Network and Knowledge Mobilization | Lisa Lachance
Lisa is the Executive Director of the CYCC Network. Her PechaKucha introduced participants to the CYCC Network, as many of them had never heard of the organization or its goals. She highlighted the importance of knowledge mobilization and some of the CYCC Network’s initiatives to innovate the area, including the Wisdom2Action event series. The CYCC Network is a national network that connects people working in community based organizations, academics, government representatives, and youth. It works to capture and share best and promising practices from its members and beyond with an understanding that good information can be evidence-based, practice-based, or stem from local knowledge.
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Youth and Technology | Rebecca Singbeil Rebecca is the Communications Manager of the CYCC Network. Her PechaKucha touched on findings from the Network’s report on Using Technology to Provide Support to Children and Youth in Challenging Contexts. It also reflected on her experiences using online technology to raise mental health awareness among University students in Halifax through her own start-up not-for-profit. Rebecca suggested that when using technology to support youth, organizations should consider if they are only creating new content for young people to consume, or whether they are giving them an opportunity to learn and gain empowerment through the creative process. She also encouraged participants to imagine ways that technology can be used to create opportunities for young people to form new relationships.
Youth Engagement | David Sadler David is the Child and Youth Engagement Co-ordinator for the City of Surrey. His PechaKutcha on youth engagement gave us a glimpse of the challenges and opportunities provided by Surrey’s unique context as the home to 40,000 13-18 year olds, with an expected population increase of 300,000 in the next 3 years. David stressed that all youth benefit from connection, and that youth need to be connected to their own city in order to thrive. But young people aren’t the only ones who benefit from this connection – engaged and contributing youth are essential for fostering a vibrant community.David suggested that creating a welcoming space for young people, providing them with a stable platform where they can build connections and have their voices heard, must be a key process in Surrey’s development.
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World Cafe: Nurturing the Field In the second half of the morning, participants took part in a World Café - a process used to foster interaction and dialogue with groups of all sizes. This tool is particularly effective in surfacing the collective wisdom of large groups of diverse people. World Café operates on the following principles: Create hospitable space - Explore questions that matter - Encourage each person’s contribution - Connect diverse people and ideas - Listen together for patterns, insights and deeper questions Make collective knowledge visible.
The following ettiquette is stated into the room: Focus on what matters Listen to understand Contribute your thinking Speak your mind and heart Link and connect ideas Listen together for themes insights, and deeper questions Play, Doodle, Draw - HAVE FUN!
Here are some notes from these conversations:
Question 1: What themes/opportunities should we be focusing on to make the biggest impact on the lives of children and youth in our community? Leadership Prevention Ask youth what they need Belonging (physical, emotional, spiritual) Collaboration (families, funding, networks) Supporting youth in meaningful engagement Resilience (building on strengths) Meeting basic needs of youth Youth ownership and motivation Relationships Service awareness Undetected trauma Developing life skills Resources Mental wellness
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Question 2: In what ways are these themes currently being addressed in the community? Community examples of youth engagement in management and design Open channels of communication Partnership centres (such as Surrey Youth Resource Centres): dealing with multiple issues youth face in one location – ù Prevention programs such as School Age Children and Youth (SACY), Children of the Street, and online apps for mental health
Promising Programs: Sahara Healthy Mind - youth helping youth filling service gaps Surrey Leadership Youth Council YMCA- Access for all; helps low income families gain access to be community engaged High Five- (SFU Burnaby) mental health wellness support without judgment STRIDE- harm reduction and education around drug abuse Red Cross: RespecED- Peer facilitated presentations focusing on bullying, personal stories, early interventions Kelty Mental Health Resource Centre – offers peer support, support while migrating the mental health system, and online resources for youth and families Youth Leadership Agency - connecting youth with decision-makers and adult allies; engaging youth in policy and research VYPER and SLYC- programs where all people are people and not put into categories Big Brothers of Greater Vancouver- mentoring and role models Youth Direction- youth led implementation, youth advisory
Question 3: What could we be doing to better to address these needs? Build relationships with other organizations outside “youth” organizations Increase integrated and multi-disciplinary service teams that include youth Promote services and resources Learn from youth Increase the capacity for inclusion and accessibility for youth leadership Better bridging of services Informed advocacy by youth Share info between front line and management Increase Mental Health vocabulary (verbal and physical) Eliminate barriers for youth to initiate programs/ services for other youth
How do you learn about new and emerging practices and ideas? · Social media · CYCC Network · Colleagues · Events · Workshops · Ted Talks · Networking
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Open Space The rest of the day was held in Open Space format, allowing participants to host and take part in deep conversations on more specific topics. OpenSpace is a simple facilitation tool with a profound worldview that creates just enough structure for people to self-organize into the conversations they want to have. Assumptions underlying this method of engagement include: We can trust the innate intelligence of groups: We don’t need a master conductor to decide what is important for people. People know the conversations they need to have - if we create space for self-organizing, people will connect their own experiences and ideas and this will create new possibilities that did not exist before. Every person brings: life experience, their unique vantage point, capabilities, ideas, and resources. You must take responsibility for what you love: Give everyone a platform to share, express and learn in a way that is meaningful for them. When we have the freedom of choice to engage in what truly engages us, we can contribute the best of ourselves and everyone benefits.
QUESTION: What promising practices would you like to share? Participants hosted 10 self-organized conversations across two rounds of Open Space. These conversations discussed promising practices for addressing cross-cutting issues, and explored associated challenges and next steps or opportunities. The conversation topics were: My Neighborhood, My Future // Bridging Academia and Practice // Spirit of our Communities Youth Group // Gender and Mental Health // RLIFE // Roots of Empathy // Youth-adult collaboration in all stages // MCFV and Chilliwack School District // Aging out/Transitioning //
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Topic: My Neighborhood, My Future This conversation stressed that communities need to be strengthened as a whole, rather than only placing focus on improving individual programs. Successful community development initiatives identify and build upon the community’s assets. Finding community champions, creating community “hubs”, building on existing policies, and using a systems thinking approach that sees individual people as important parts of a whole were some of the promising practices identified in this discussion.
Next Steps/Opportunities:
Mentoring programs Bringing together mentoring/capacity building programs Building relationships between agencies Need to create space without competition Involve community in planning Community dashboard
“Young people grow up in communities, not programs”
Topic: Bridging Academia and Practice (partnerships) This discussion focused on the need for researchers and service providers to work together, learn from each other, and together assess and share their knowledge (both evidence and practice based). The strengths of academics lies in assessment, and this strength should be utilized by community programs and services. Combining evidence based and practice based knowledge can create a powerful narrative with the strength to change government views on a subject and garner support and funding.
Next Steps/Opportunities:
More qualitative research Disseminate knowledge in regular language and to community Advisory committee to share knowledge Community groups should own their data Build trust between communities and academics Work with transformational methods Easy evaluation tools (like the RRC’s Evaluation Tool Basket!)
“work together, assess and share”
Topic: Spirit of our Communities Youth Group Participants explored the promising practices, challenges, and opportunities of the Spirit of our Communities Youth Group – a First Nations based group that unites young people living between Abbotsford and Boston Bar, B.C. The group is youth run, and operates from a guideline of respect to celebrate youth voices and provide young people with a sense of belonging. The group is currently in the process of identifying areas of need in their community and hopes to host a conference to discuss this topic. The Spirit of our Communities Youth Group is also seeking partnerships in other communities.
Next Steps/Opportunities:
Continue process of identifying areas of need in their community Look for partnerships in other communities
“Celebrating youth voices within our community ”
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Open Space Topic: Gender and Mental Health (Young men in mental health)
Topic: RLIFE (Resilience, Self, Community)
The stigma associated with mental health, coupled with cultural expectations of masculinity, can prevent boys and young men from seeking the help they need. This group acknowledged a number of promising practices for successful mental health promotion towards young men. These include making mental health awareness fun, strengthening peer-to-peer education, working to normalize mental wellness at a young age, and providing support by meeting young men in the spaces they spend their time – instead of asking them to come to you.
R Life is a project of the John Howard Society with the goal of creating preventative strategies on substance misuse and to promote mental health. RLife provides workshops and online resources to educate youth, parents, and community members living in B.C. on the factors that contribute to resilience. Youth take part in the design of the project, which also provides peer mentorship to middle school students transitioning into high school. RLife operates out of the understanding that everyone has a role to play in fostering resilience. The project also includes an Elders’ group that focuses on the process of reconciliation.
Next Steps/Opportunities:
Next Steps/Opportunities:
Incorporate food/enjoyable activities or honorarium to engage young men in programs Establish peer connection in support spaces using a small group approach. Bring in well-known mentors or role models to speak about personal experience and to ‘normalize’ talking about mental health Improve our own ability to facilitate conversations about specific mental health issues Debunk traditional notions of masculinity Collect knowledge and support networks
“Debunk guy-ness stigma, #Beyourownman #Beyourownperson ”
Further online resources- John Howard Society committed to moderate ongoing support Build the involvement of the Elders’ Advisory Committee into all of the project’s work Build relationships between elders, ceremony, and schools
“rlife resilience project from community to BC recource project ”
Topic: Youth-adult collaboration in all stages This Open Space conversation discussed the importance of ensuring that youth-adult collaborations are part of every stage of a project. This includes development, planning, execution, and ongoing decision-making. Youth are their own experts - they should be
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Next Steps/Opportunities:
Meet like-minded individuals in other areas Create a model that can be used widely so that organizations don’t have to start from scratch Convince adults that youth can help make decisions and that they should be part of the process all of the way through Collaborate and push for youth engagement that actually involves youth, not just giving the impression that it does. This can help increase trust between youth and adults.
“are you talking at youth or with youth? Youth are more likely to communicate if they feel connected.”
Topic: Surrey Youth Strategic Planning Participants of this small group discussed the need for a strategic plan to bridge and connect complex organizations and programs working to support youth living in Surrey. They highlighted the benefit of fostering personal connections amongst organizations and between organizations and youth, and recommended that special focus be placed on supporting youth in transition (between programs/age groups). Challenges to strategic planning between organizations include a current lack of collaboration and communication within and
between organizations, inadequate resources, programs already feeling overwhelmed with work, and a lack of strategic direction or leadership.
Next Steps/Opportunities:
Create a space for a non-competitive environment Create a purposeful space to bring people together to share - a space to incubate new ideas and relationships Organizations to build a collaborative idea and approach funders- in order to encourage funders to also provide/focus on collaboration
"What can we do better together that we can't do on our own? what is my organization willing to give us or share?"
Topic: Roots of Empathy Roots of Empathy is a non-profit organization that promotes experiential learning, building caring and peaceful civil societies by building empathy in school children. This classroom based program involves elementary school children and teachers, along with a ROE instructor, a parent and a baby (2-4 months). The children learn about the baby’s emotions and apply it to themselves, giving language for emotion.
Next Steps/Opportunities:
Have youth determine their prevention needs Improve engagement and support for First Nations children and youth in programming Recruit diverse instructors and families Provide opportunity for prevention programs to build on one another and establish partnerships
“Preventing builds caring communities”
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Topic: MCFV and Chilliwack School District This conversation discussed suicide prevention workers who give workshops on mental illness in schools and provide resources to students in Chilliwack. Teens are more likely to talk to their peers than support workers, so prevention workers work to get youth involved and trained as youth leaders. Youth leaders are trained in how to direct vulnerable young people to the right professionals
Next Steps/Opportunities:
Get interested youth to participate and facilitate presentations to other youth Incorporate sexual health education/training Expand program into more school districts
“Youth As Gatekeepers: teens are more likely to talk to other teens about their issues”
Topic: Aging out/transitioning Many mental health services are only available to youth under 19, making it necessary for youth to access adult services (like shelters) that don’t fit their needs. Some organizations, such as Youth Services in Vancouver, are working to bridge this gap by providing support for youth up to the age of 25. This Open Space group agreed that safe environments with multi-faceted services are needed to provide a ‘one stop shop’ to young people, instead of sending them to a variety of locations for the supports they need. The Surrey Youth Resource Centre, Community Living BC, Burnaby Youth Hub, and the Vancouver Foundation are examples of organizations working to close the gaps for youth in transition. Limited support for transition workers, limited funding, and service restrictions provide ongoing challenges.
Next Steps/Opportunities:
Personalized support initiatives Improved advocacy Organizations who may be interested in collaborating on this issue: YMCA, Aunt Leah’s (transitioning youth out of care), Abbotsford youth health centre (multi-disciplinary to 24)
“#helptheinbetweeners - youth between 19-24 years old need services too! ”
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In one word, h ow do you feel now moving forward after today?
Insight opportunities action Humbled
empowered
collaborative
Insighted knowledge
fiercly proud of youth informed grounded in collective goals
insightful
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There's More Online | www.cyccnetwork.org
Feedback from Wisdom 2 Action Surrey
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Thank you to everyone who participated in Wisdom2Action Surrey for your contributions to this report: Katie Rapson-Stecula Paige Freeman Bobbi Wilkison Devinder Chattha Freda Maideen Mary Catherine Williams Roxan Trudeau Taylor Stevens Nicole MacLellan Mia Thompson Tania Crowley Brynn Warren Roxanne George Jess McBeth Meagan Colenutt Charlene King Hayfa Abichahine
Danna Pierlot Julie Cankin Carla Hilario Rajdeep Chris Black Stacy Wood Cheyenne Sutherland Joseph Wilson Rashmeen Nirmal Margaret Sigsworth Kiran Johal Tanya Miller Christine Shepherd Jasmine Jassal Shayun Mau Sally McBride Hanna Whitehead
Sofia Goldin Karanvir Thiara Roxan Trudeau Taylor Stevery Pat Turo Joey Sevigny Jasmine Garcha Rebecca Farnell Amy Schactman Christine Shepherd Chris Black Nusha Elliot Rashmeen Nirmal Elizabeth Viefhues Stephen Hockey
We'd also like to express our sincere gratitude to Lisa Binder and Ruby for being our youth co-hosts for the day, and to the following individuals and organizations for their contributions as part of our local planning team. Steve Dooley (SFU Surrey) David Sadler (City of Surrey) Meghan Toal (Canadian Red Cross) Sonya Johnston (Pacific Coast Resource Society) Karanvir Thiara (City of Surrey/SFU) Maria Goldin (Acting Together, Kwantlen Polytechnic University) Daniel Bryce (Dalhousie University) Special thanks to Steve Dooley and Simon Fraser University for being our gracious hosts!
The Wisdom2Action Event Series is hosted by The CYCC Network: CYCC Network
Find more information online: www.cyccnetwork.org @CYCCNetwork /CYCCNetwork
Funding for the CYCC Network is provided by: