June is Recreation and Parks Month

Did you know that Alberta has a whole month dedicated to Recreation and Parks? How fantastic is that? June, in fact, is “June is Recreation and Parks Month” (JRPM).

Organized by the Alberta Recreation and Parks Association (ARPA), June is our official month for getting ourselves, our kids, our spouses, our dogs, and our neighbours outdoors and active.

The purpose of observing June as “Recreation and Parks Month” is to draw public attention to the important and varied benefits of recreation and parks to individuals, families, neighborhoods, communities and the province as a whole!  Want to know just what the benefits of recreation and parks exactly are (like… does being active so I can eat more chocolate count)? Well, you can easily look them all up at the online National Benefits Hub.

I know that I will be partaking in some of the events advocated by ARPA. Check out, for example, these great resources on hiking and the old age standard – kite flying. Now you can tell someone to go fly a kite and actually mean it… in a positive way! Hurrah!

June is also a perfect time to get kids outdoors and engaged in the natural world as it blooms and grows around them. It’s particularly timely as awareness about the importance of connecting children and youth with nature grows.

To help communities get children and youth active in nature, ARPA has created two activity passports with fun ideas for children and youth to get outside, engage with the natural environment, and be active. The activities may be completed with friends, at a day camp, or individually. Click this link to see how!

And for those who might need some assistance planning, ARPA is also providing inspiration and guides for your June events and celebrations. These resources include activity suggestions, media releases, posters, and newspaper ad templates. All of these are either available now on the JRPM website, or will be in the very near future. 

The ARPA Twitter and Facebook accounts will also be providing one benefit of recreation and parks every day in June, as well as a link to the National Benefits Hub. We encourage everyone to follow ARPA on Twitter and 'like' ARPA on Facebook.

So I look forward to seeing you outside this June!

Funding now available for Alberta Culture Days!

Guess what? Funding for Alberta Arts Days is back! Well, technically - Alberta Arts Days are now called Alberta Culture Days. Hey - new name but, like last year, there will be funding again for communities through an open call process.


If you have never heard about Alberta Culture Days, it all began in 2008 as a one-day event to recognize the value of Alberta’s vibrant cultural communities. This initiative of the Government of Alberta Culture and Community Services is now a three-day province-wide celebration occurring on September 28-30, in conjunction with our national Culture Days.


Alberta Culture Days events are free-of-charge and encourage community participation and access. Public events take place in a variety of facilities including, but not limited to, art galleries, museums, libraries, schools, theatres, concert halls, community centres, and outdoor gathering places. 


Like last year, up to five applicants will have the chance to become Alberta Culture Days Feature Celebration Sites; which means they will be eligible to receive a maximum grant of $20,000. Additional applicants may also be selected as Host Celebration Sites, making those hosts eligible to receive a maximum of $5,000.


To help spread the word, I will be hosting a FREE webinar on April 25th regarding the available funding. Click on this link to register!


Now, I would like to pause here and officially declare that I AM NOT an employee of the Alberta Culture Days. I am simply passing this info on in good faith. If you would like to contact those who are ACTUALLY working for the Alberta Culture Days, email: albertaculturedays@gov.ab.ca


Of course, another way to receive official info is to take a look at this info sheet provided on the Culture Days website. Here you’ll also find the official application form and very handy items like a sample budget. How fantastic is that!


I would also recommend that you pay close attention to the project objectives as I’m guessing that the more you reflect these objectives, the better your chances will be to receive funding. And here they are for your perusal:

• provide free, family-friendly events;
• showcase Alberta culture, artists and/or heritage;
• involve Albertan talent; 
• involve youth;
• partner with other organizations in the community; and
• include a multicultural component

I also figured, for good measure, that I would include some questions that came up last year from communities who did apply. Why not, right?! But to check out any updates to this process, join me on my April 25th webinar and learn more about this fantastic arts opportunity for our rural Alberta communities.


2 new questions from 2012:

1) When doing the budget, is there a formula that your department recognizes for calculating in-kind dollar amount for volunteer work? 

Generally, the Ministry recognizes volunteer work as an in-kind donation of $15/hour.

2) One group is being the lead on an application.  They have another group who is willing to participate in the day (so offer a letter of support) but really will be doing their own thing.  The 2nd group won't be tapping into the funds from the 1st group's application so can they then charge admission for THEIR event?

Yes, if the second group will not be utilizing the Alberta Culture Days funds, they are welcome to charge admission; however, the 1^st group should articulate that is the case, so the jury panel is not confused.

And here is the 2011 Q&A: 


1) If two organizations from one community apply for an Alberta Arts Day Grant, would they cancel each other out?


No. But you will be in direct competition with each other. It is useful to note that one of the priorities of the Alberta Arts Days (now Alberta Culture Days) this year is to encourage partnerships between organizations in each community. Any application demonstrating partnerships will be looked upon favorably. So get out there and chat with others in your community as you might have the perfect collaboration opportunity just waiting for you!


2) Is this a one-time funding opportunity?


The long-term goal for Alberta Arts Days is for community events to be self-sustainable. So it will really be up to you to make sure that your event or project is sustainable for the long haul. Be creative... look for new partnerships and embrace an entrepreneurial spirit!


3) Can I apply for liability insurance for my project?


Yes… having stated that, however, an applicant’s budget will be graded on overall merit, and if a large portion of their proposed budget is simply going towards insurance (ex. 50% of their budget), they may not score very high.


4) If I have received funding from other government agencies for my event, will this decrease my chances to receive an Alberta Arts Days grant?


No – quite the opposite! The Alberta Arts Days encourages applicants to seek out other funding for their events. They can’t foresee any conflicts to date. Now… if you are looking to possibly use Alberta Arts Days funding as match funding for OTHER grants, it might be a different story (like for Travel Alberta, for example). That is where you will need to do a little bit of research and contact those alternate funders.


5) Can I apply to be a host for a Feature Celebration site if my organization was already one last year?


Yes!


6) If I’m unsuccessful in my application to be a Feature Celebration site, can I also apply to be a Host site?


Yes, but PLEASE indicate this interest in your proposal letter.


7) If I have an event like an artist fair/sale where artists are selling their artwork, will this make us ineligible?


No, you can sell artwork at events or other merchandise like band t-shirts, for example. However, if you are charging admission for your event (like tickets to a concert), you CAN’T use Alberta Arts Days Funding towards that particular event as well.


8) Can municipalities apply?


No! See the info sheet for a list of eligible types of organizations.


9) Can my event be outside of the dates outlined by the Alberta Arts Days (September 30 – October 2, 2011)?


This would be evaluated on a case-by-case basis so I would suggest contacting the Alberta Arts Day Staff.


10) Who can I contact then with my questions about the Alberta Arts Days?


Email: albertaculturedays@gov.ab.ca

Creating Synergy in Airdrie

Money, facilities, communication…. I wasn’t overly surprised to see these come up as priorities at a session that I facilitated recently for the arts and culture community in Airdrie.

After all, these are the things that often surface when speaking to people in the arts, recreation, and even sports sectors. I have seen many communities attempt to solve their challenges by building a new rec centre or arena only to falter later as they attempt to find the people to fill it or the money to sustain it.

So when a fourth priority arose during my recent discussions with Airdrie, my heart did that happy little thump. But maybe I should first go back a step.

My trip out to Airdrie began with an invitation by the city’s Community Development Department to help facilitate a visioning session. This session was for members of the arts and culture community but also included other interested participants like city council members, city staff, and volunteers.


Like many smaller communities who live in the shadow of major centres (in this case, Calgary), Airdrie was at a tipping point in terms of their identity for the arts and culture sector. The community had a lot of great things happening but often things were happening in pockets throughout the community. There were whispers of what needed to be done but the arts and culture community still lacked a unified voice and a collective vision. The talent in Airdrie was more than apparent but also apparent was the pull that the larger city of Calgary had on their creative pool.

So what was a city to do? After careful consideration of their assets and a possible vision, the participants at the session came to a unanimous decision about seven top priorities. And yes, financial stability, a gathering place or facility, and open communication all stood out as important to the community as did a focus on education, corporate partnerships, and dedicated city staff assigned to the arts. But what was the one priority, as I mentioned earlier, that made my heart go pitter pat?


The answer… create synergy! Synergy… cohesion… collective impact… that was, I feel, the most notable priority that came out of my discussions with Airdire. The participants decided that day that working as a group towards the common goal of strengthening their community was also top on their list. Hurrah!

This commitment to the common good for all involved is called collective impact. It might seem simple in theory but can be pretty darn hard at times. We, ultimately, all have our own agendas but if that agenda automatically included playing nice with others and working towards a common goal, imagine the possibilities.

I was in a meeting today where someone reminded me that ACE Communities has now worked with 75+ communities in rural Alberta. And one thing we have seen consistently is that when a community works collectively across groups as well as across sectors, they are the ones who flourish, create economic stability, and draw newcomers (and as well as youth who may have left) to their communities.

That is the true power of collective impact.

And so, as Airdrie moves forward in their efforts to become strong and unified as an arts community, I will wait to see how this spills over into other areas and into other sectors. I have seen that when a group can articulate their vision and their value, the money and the facilities will come. No doubt that it will still take work, and it will be messy, but we creative types can do amazing things, especially when we have a community championing our efforts.


Click here to see more pictures from the visioning session in Airdrie!

And here is a great document from the City of Airdrie also summarizing the evening.

If you are interested in more about collective impact, check out this great blog by ACE Communities Director Brenda Herchmer.

March 8th is International Women's Day!

Did you know that March 8th is International Women’s Day? I’m ashamed to say that I didn’t. In fact, International Women’s Day has been around for over 100 years. 100 years! Imagine the history that this day has seen.

To celebrate this important day, Canada has chosen the theme of: Strong Women, Strong Canada - Women in Rural, Remote and Northern Communities: Key to Canada's Economic Prosperity.

This theme is explored on the Status of Women Canada website. This website not only shares info on the background of International Women’s Day but also outlines facts to celebrate, and even a poster to share! My favourite part of the site, however, is a very intriguing quiz about Canada's rural, remote and Northern communities and the women who live in them. I think that you might be surprised about some of the answers.

As a woman who was born and raised in a northern AND remote part of Alberta (Fort McMurray to be exact), I was so pleased to see this collection of information that I would like to share it with all of you. Strong Women, Strong Canada! Don’t you just love it?

So pass on this info to others as it includes links to funding as well as gender-based analysis and strategic policy. We all know that there is still work to be done out there and the role of women in Canada’s future is one that needs to be championed by us all.

---
Excerpted from the Status of Women Canada website:

Women across Canada are as diverse as the communities they live in.  This year's theme for International Women's Day and International Women's Week celebrates women's roles in the economic prosperity of rural, remote and Northern regions.

Canada covers a total area 9,984,670 square kilometres. It is home to 17.4 million women and girls and contains more than 5,400 communities — approximately 5,200 of which are rural, remote or Northern. During the week of March 8, 2012, we are celebrating the three million Canadian women and girls across every province and territory who are integral to life in these rural, remote and Northern communities.

In rural and remote areas, women make up approximately 45% of the labour force, but significant gaps still exist between women and men in labour force participation rates, employment rates and income. These trends are more pronounced for Aboriginal women, who make up a large part of the rural, remote and Northern population.

Women and girls are contributing to economic prosperity in these regions through innovative projects such as business networks and training in non-traditional occupations. Leadership initiatives for women and girls in rural and remote areas can also be found across the country.

International Women's Day has been celebrated for more than 100 years.  In that time, substantial progress has been made in advancing equality for women, and we recognize the critical role that women continue to play in the prosperity of Canada's diverse communities.

Click here to read more!

Where your passion may take you...

The key is to follow your passion. That’s a lesson that I was reminded of recently after sitting down for coffee with two phenomenal ACE Community leaders named Tony and Michele Geistlinger from Longview, Alberta.

I first had the pleasure of working with Tony and Michele as part of the ACE ARTS Tour when I spent four days in their town doing a series of dance and music workshops as well as a series of concerts. It was during the ACE ARTS tour that I realized that Longview was a mini-Mecca of musical talent and home already to great cultural events like Longstock – an annual music festival organized by acclaimed musician Eva Levesque.

For a town of about 300 people, Longview had the heart of a city of a million but faced obstacles that many rural towns do – generational in-fighting, loss of amenities like a grocery story, and a disconnect between the needs of newcomers and those who have lived in the town for their entire lives.



As luck would have it for me, I soon became Longview’s ACE coach and had the opportunity to assist their local leaders as the community progressed through their time as an ACE community. I saw this little town of 300 people face their obstacles and accomplish amazing things… from the tangible extreme makeover of their town that raised nearly $400,000 (yes – you read that correctly - $400,000!) to the more subtle unification of a community that had slowly become fractured over the generations.

To read in more detail about Longview’s accomplishments, click here!

But back to Tony and Michele! For those who know the couple, they know two people driven by their passions to, as volunteers, truly improve the quality of life in their community. They don’t look for monetary rewards or acclaim – just for naysayers to get out of their way and for others to join them in their passion for community building.

When you ask Michele why she spends so much time volunteering in Longview, she will tell you that it is to create the quintessential small town life that she always dreamed of living. This is the life where you not only know your neighbours but, more importantly, you know that you can depend on them during good times and bad.

In my recent meeting with Tony and Michele, they were updating me about plans for the building of a possible museum/interpretive centre for the village. This construction slotted tentatively for the town’s 50th birthday in 2014. Expanding on the community’s pioneering spirit and artistic leanings, it would be yet another coup for the ranching community.

“It was all I could do to keep my hand down so I wouldn’t volunteer to help with the project,” Michele said with a twinkle in her eye, referring to a recent presentation that she attended that outlined the museum’s potential. “It was so cool! I still might have to check in now and then, though, and see how things are going.”

What was Michele’s main reason, this queen of volunteering, for the hesitation? Michele has decided to follow another passion, her love for music, and help fellow ACE leader Eva Levesque with Longstock. This event, run by Levesque (who recently won the 2011 Association of Country Music in Alberta (CCMA) Best Group award for her band The Travelling Mabels) has been a growing event in Longview for a few years now and would benefit from Michele’s dedicated touch.

So now, with the 2 years of heavy lifting that has represented her steady community building with ACE Communities under her belt, Michele has decided that it is prime time to combine her love of community with her love of music and the arts. Her guitar and her saxaphone have gone neglected for far too long!



Because like I said before, the key to true community building is to follow where your passions may lead you. Like with Tony and Michele, you never know where that adventure may take you.

Resolved for 2012

This past December I threw down the gauntlet and challenged our province’s grassroots community leaders to make a community building resolution. The idea was to supplant the traditional New Year’s resolution that mainly focused on inwards, personal goals… to go to the gym, eat better, and be a better person… with one that turned outwards.

Sure, I admit, these are all important personal resolutions but what would happen, I wondered, if Albertans got together and committed instead to making their communities better as a whole?

Well, first I decided, that I better get walking the talk and talking the walk, so as part of my own community building resolution, I hit the street and had real, invested conversations with my particular spheres of influence. The result? Engaging conversations with my neighbours, my teammates on my tackle football team, and the spectacular ladies who volunteer with me. I found that I paused more frequently to really listen about their passions, to learn from their wisdom, and to celebrate the unique qualities that they all brought into my life.

And what was reaffirmed for me by this process? To truly build community, you must put genuine effort into first building relationships.

With this enlightenment in mind, I decided to throw the concept of a ‘2012 Community Building Resolution’ out in to the world in the form of an ACE webinar and see what riches it might bring. The idea: to provide a welcoming venue that would enable community builders from across the province to connect with each other and share their stories. After all, once we plunge back into the new year, the last thing often on our minds is to stop and reflect on the road ahead.

And, like they said in the iconic feel good movie, Field of Dreams: “If you build it, they will come.”

Much to my delight, representatives from around fifteen different communities attended the ACE resolutions webinar. People signed on from Leduc, and Didsbury, Longview, and as north as High Level. We heard voices from Okotoks, Lethbridge, Red Deer, Bon Accord, and Fort MacLeod. There was even one lone participant from Ontario (who impishly kept bragging about her sunny weather and lack of snow).

Interestingly enough, there were some common themes that appeared as the conversations rolled out. If you ever wanted to check the pulse of rural Alberta, then here it is. Common goals for 2012 were:

• Awareness of affordable and/or free recreation opportunities
• Increased community engagement
• The creation of partnerships and true collaboration with community groups
• Promotion of the arts, culture & heritage
• Engagement with more with marginalized populations
• Engagement with youth but also with ALL age groups in a more productive way
• To help people with disabilities be active in their communities

And a HUGE overarching theme… Down with silos – it’s time to work together to improve our quality of life in a holistic way!

Or, as Brenda Herchmer (the Director of ACE Communities) likes to put it: “It’s the perfect time that Alberta embraces ACE Communities as a methodology for comprehensive community transformation.” Hurrah! Want to know more about the concept of 'comprehensive community transformation' then, click here!

I’ve always been a fan of the idea that the knowledge is in the group. All the great ideas that I have experienced have reflected the power of many minds. These ideas are always far richer and more complex than one we come up with by ourselves. So while, I’m not sure what all of these community builders will do to get to their goals, I truly look forward to the conversations that happen as they try.

Anything to add to this list of goals for rural Alberta? I’d love to hear from you.

What's Your 2012 Community Building Resolution?

For the New Year, many of us are inclined to make personal resolutions… to exercise more, to eat better, to spend more time with our loved ones. That is definitely my modus operandi! For 5 years now, the New Year rolls in and I, once again, vow to kick my pastry habit. The result? Another year of me pigging out shamelessly (and I really mean shamelessly) on pastries.

Sigh.

So, for 2012, I’m vowing to make a new kind of resolution – wipe the slate clean and start afresh. Only this time, my resolution will be one that affects my community. It’s my very own 2012 ‘Community Building Resolution’ challenge!

After all, in the bigger scheme of things, no one but me (and my thighs!) is really affected if I utterly fail on my bid to make 2012 pastry-free. However, if I fail on my resolution to make my community better, we all lose out. Imagine, though, if I hold true to my commitment to improve my community – no matter how small that change might be – do you think that my little piece of the world will be better for it? Absolutely!

And so – here I go… throwing it out into the universe…my community resolution for 2012 is: to have more meaningful, courageous conversations with the people who live around me. And I mean REAL conversations!

This resolution was inspired by a chat that I had recently with older gentleman named Herman as I was out walking my dogs. Herman happens to live exactly one block away from me on the same side of the street. I’ve often paused in front of Herman’s house (mainly to let my bassets have a good chance for a sniff) and wistfully speculated on who my doppelganger might be if I lived at number 1417 instead of number 1317.

During one of these recent pauses, Herman happened to be out in his yard and we got to chatting. Turns out that Herman is a widower, with just a small extended family left in Calgary, who was a pet owner too but lost both his dogs to what he phrased as a malady of old age… death! I liked Herman instantly. I figure I might pop by Herman’s with some Christmas cookies this year to pass on some holiday cheer and offer some company. I think that if I do, my little piece of the world will be better for it.

Imagine now if others in my little neighbourhood decided to also make a small but positive change in their community. If say… my neighbour does the same as does their neighbour, and their neighbour, and their neighbour, and their neighbour. Before we knew it, we would have a place where you’d want to set down roots, raise your children, and walk your dogs.

So I’m throwing this out to all of you…make a resolution this year that will help make your community better - consider this your 2012 ‘Community Building Resolution’ challenge!

You can even join me later as I host an online conversation on January 18th aimed at those interested in sharing ideas about how to positively affect the quality of life in their communities. I’d be interested to hear about what positive change you plan to make in the lives of those around you.