NIMJI’MUATL ~ SUPPORT, ENCOURAGE (VIABILITY)
The EOED pilot aims to strengthen community resilience over time. A resilient community is one that is connected and supportive, leaving no one behind. In times of distress and uncertainty, resilient communities support and encourage their residents, local businesses, and organizations by coming together and offering their skills, knowledge, and resources to best navigate these challenges and fluctuating circumstances.
HIGHLIGHTS
EOED has the potential to strengthen community resiliency, providing there is an awareness of how the community operates and a deep understanding of what residents view as important or beneficial. This deep-seated process takes time and will be a major determining factor to the project’s overall success. Therefore, community endorsement and support of the program by residents as well as local business and organizations is imperative.
LOCAL SUPPORT & INTEREST There has been much evidence indicating both strong community support of the program and interest in participating in the future. Throughout the design phase of the pilot, emphasis was placed on how the EOED support platform could foster new connections across different parts of the neighbourhood. For example, we know that MNFC provides a safe and welcoming space for Indigenous community members to be together and learn, and part of our aim was to draw new people into the centre who may otherwise not feel welcome, or that they have a reason to do so. Similarly, we intentionally established a network of community spaces that could invite and encourage diverse individuals and groups to connect across different parts of the neighbourhood. Over the course of the pilot, there were many instances of local organizations reaching out to project team members, with offers to support and collaborate. After one particular session, a host who is also involved in the youth social enterprise where the session was hosted offered to donate flower boxes for a future session that could later be placed throughout the community. On another occasion a volunteer from a local screen printing shop who attended a session on mask making expressed interest in partnering on creative projects and hosting at their neighbouring organization. At the neighborhood level, local organizations provided space, staff support, and expressed an overall willingness to help in whatever ways they could. Around the time that local health officials announced a Covid-19 circuit breaker, a manager at the North End Library reached out to see if we needed any additional support with transitioning sessions to online. - Project Team member
A local business owner spoke about the diversity of the community and said that being a part of this project gave them an opportunity to connect with residents in the community who they knew were there but were unable to reach. They continued by emphasizing the importance of partnerships in making this happen. (Observation)
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Shortly after the public launch of the EOED pilot, and as momentum grew around the work, the Program Director, sometimes alongside another team member, engaged in 4 media interviews and 8 presentations/gatherings related to different themes. After one conversation with an inter-cultural design class at NASCAD, a student reached out with a visual interpretation of EOED that resonated deeply with project staff. I am an international student from NSCAD. You gave a lecture on the Every One Every Day activity in our professor Leslie’s class last month. This is a great organization and activity. I stayed in the city of NS for two years. At the beginning, the unfamiliar environment, culture and language often made me feel lonely and fearful of communication. Seeing such activities made me feel a lot of the warmth and friendliness of this city. - Community member This program allowed me to connect with residents that I knew were there but was unable to connect with. - Host Even just the opportunity to visit spaces in the neighbourhood. I’ve lived in the North End for more than 10 years and have never been inside the Friendship Centre. - Participant
