TOQOLUKWEJIK ~ WORK TOGETHER (INCLUSIVITY)
Creating an ecosystem of participatory projects with all residents of the neighbourhood requires the community to work together. These working relationships must foster cultural diversity and acknowledge the many lived experiences that make up the community’s past and present, reinforcing collective agency and supporting inclusivity.
HIGHLIGHTS
We need to keep an open-mind for the program, constantly asking ourselves “Who aren’t we reaching?” and always looking for new opportunities to reach out to people in the community. - Project Team member
BUILDING INCLUSIVE PARTICIPATION While we did not collect specific demographic data from participants, many observations made by project team members provided anecdotal evidence that the EOED sessions attracted people of diverse ages and cultural backgrounds, including: • Children taking part in a wide range of sessions from neighbourhood walks, to making traditional dream catchers, to tea and bannock, and introduction to capoeira. • Many different hosts offering a wide range of skills and talents helped to attract diverse participation. While some participants attended several sessions, participant lists indicated that unique community members were drawn to each session. • Indigenous and non-Indigenous community members hosting and participating. Many of the hosts for the March Program were Indigenous and it was clear that sessions attracted both Indigenous and Non-Indigenous participants. • People from different cultural backgrounds expressing desire to learn and share. This was observed by different people asking questions and expressing willingness to share openly. During the Dream Catcher session, a father and son shared their Jewish customs with the group while making and learning about dream catchers. They also spoke about their interest in learning the Mi’kmaw language. (Observation)
18
During the session on smudging and powwow knowledge, two participants introduced themselves as Indigenous, seeking to learn more about their culture, while two others introduced themselves as non-Indigenous, interested to learn about the practice of smudging. (Observation) During interviews, some people suggested that participants did not fully represent the North End community. For example, one person indicated that they would like to have seen more seniors participating in the program (acknowledging that they may have been limited by Covid restrictions), and another would have liked more youth involvement, specifically as hosts.
