WTC relocated our in-person co-working space to make room for another non-profit at Spencer Creo. We packed up over a decades worth of memorabilia while listening to the herstory of the items from WTC's founder, Ellen Woodsworth, and our current co-chair, Dr. Joy Masuhara.

For the second year in a row, WTC oversaw a team of UBC Arts PhD and Graduate student interns for the summer. They did an incredible job researching civic processes to create resources on topics like the city budget, speaking to city council, and so much more. We can't wait to share these resources with all of you soon.

The Georgia Straight published our article that discussed the need for Vancouver City Council to support front-line orgs through sustainable and flexible funding. This came in response to a recent council decision from earlier in the year that tried to silence grant recipients from the City of Vancouver from publicly critiquing actions or policies of city council.

We hosted a new member welcome session to connect with our newest WTC members and welcome them to our community. We chatted about our current programs, the history of WTC, and what kind of benefits and resources there are for members of our community. It was so great getting to meet new faces!

We collaborated with the folks at Gordon Neighbourhood House to offer a free workshop to the West End neighbourhood on advancing food justice through civic action and advocacy. We broke down who the key players of local government are and tips on how to engage in civic action. 

Our Project Lead, Clara Prager, and Ginger Gosnell Myers, who wrote our foreword to our report: TRC Calls to Action in BC Municipalitie presented to UBCM's Indigenous Relations Committee. We presented the findings from our report and an update on our TRC research across BC municipalities. We are looking forward to working together with UBCM on ways to facilitate knowledge-sharing on the TRC Calls to Action. ⁠
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In response to the deaths of older adults during the 2021 heat dome, Little Mountain Neighbourhood House launched the Climate Response Team (CRT). The CRT is made up of front-line organizations, service providers, community members, and older adults to develop collective strategies, tools, and resources to support those at risk during extreme climate events. We heard from the City of Vancouver's Resilience and Disaster Risk Reduction team about current heat preparedness initiatives and from LMNH about the CRT's vision. Participants brainstormed ideas, identified priorities and created a collective map of resources and gaps and emphasized the critical role that trusted community and neighbours play as first responders in emergencies.

Our Executive Director attended a gathering of women and people of marginalized genders who are working on issues of climate, care and community. The gathering was funded by the MakeWay Foundation and hosted at the Soul of the Mother Lodge at the Six Nations of the Grand River. This gathering was an incredible opportunity to hear the learnings and knowledge of the council of elders, and identify ways to collaborate and build power in our collective work.

Our staff worked with the Manager of Democratic Engagment at the City of Vancouver to provide a workshop to South Vancouver Neighbourhood House on local government, including tips on how to sign up and speak to Vancouver City Council. WTC also wrote a letter in support of the motion they were speaking to, "Addressing Ongoing Inequities by Improving Social Infrastructure and Access to Services Across South Vancouver & Marpole Neighbourhoods."

Our Executive Director, Ash Peplow Ball, attended Canada Vote Summit in Toronto, hosted by the Democratic Engagement Exchange. The summit focused on addressing "the challenges facing our democracy nationally by fostering cross-sector collaboration to build solutions that enable Canada’s democratic institutions to earn trust and confidence."

We added a short-term staff member, Chris Higham (she/her) to our team to help us study the governance policies of cities across British Columbia. Chris will be attending the University of British Columbia in the fall to start her master's in Community and Regional Planning. 

WTC wrote a letter to councillors urging them to advocate to the province and endorse the Transit for Teens campaign which would extend free transit from youth aged 0-12 to all youth 0-18. Unfortunately, amendments were made to the motion so that free transit was not prioritized.