Category: Community
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re:THINK(ing) Affordable Housing in Vancouver
And on go the thinking hat(s)…… “As part of the work being done by the Mayor’s Task Force on Housing Affordability, re:THINK HOUSING, an open ideas competition, is being launched to generate a broader discussion of possibilities for Vancouver’s affordable housing crisis. Aimed at everyone who has an interest in affordable housing, from the general public, to… Read more
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Walking the Walk
Jane Jacobs (1916-2006) was an urbanist and activist whose writings championed a fresh, community-based approach to city building. She had no formal training as a planner, and yet her 1961 treatise, The Death and Life of Great American Cities, introduced ground-breaking ideas about how cities function, evolve and fail that now seem like common sense to… Read more
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Now I’m a Licensed Prospector, Too
Some things in life are surprisingly simple. For a fee of $25.50, presentation of photo i.d., and the completion of a form that required little more than my name, address, telephone number and birthdate, I became a licensed prospector in the province of Ontario. I am now permitted to stake mineral claims anywhere in the… Read more
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A Carpenter’s Life: As Told By Houses
I was encouraged by my elders to “follow my heart.”…Would not our world be a better place if we all followed what our hearts tell us to do? People with heart won’t fight senseless wars, they won’t strip-mine a beautiful mountain, commit genocide, pollute our land with toxic waste and chemical fertilizers, foul the air… Read more
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Street Art: Things Change
I love when street art and murals bring cities to life. But this is no average mural. It was conceived as an animation, as living storytelling, and not as a static snapshot in time. However, in the end, it is unable to escape its essential form. A three-week painting condensed into a 3 minute animation.… Read more
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The Farmer By the Side of the Road
It was clear by the tire impressions left in the tall grass that others had stopped at that same place by the side of the road. I’m guessing they stopped for the same reason we did: to ogle the dozen or so brand-spanking new lambs in the farmer’s field. Located just west of Kemptville on… Read more
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Expats: From Neither Here Nor There
Ottawa is known as a government town. It is predominantly middle-class, not obviously flash or sexy. I don’t say these things as a criticism. We chose to live here for the past thirteen years and continue to make that choice for a variety of reasons. But unlike Montreal or Vancouver, with their more obvious charms,… Read more
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More Urban Than You
Last summer we attended a barbecue at a friend’s house in Westboro, Ottawa’s hip neighbourhood filled with yoga studios, coffee houses and Montessori daycares. It was a stunningly gorgeous blue sky day, the spread of food looked amazing, and our kids happily wandered off in search of other kids to play with. I’m generally happy… Read more
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How Did You Find Your Dream House?
ser·en·dip·i·ty/ˌserənˈdipitē/ Noun: The occurrence and development of events by chance in a happy or beneficial way: “a fortunate stroke of serendipity”. – Merriam-Webster We never did look at another house. We were driving ever so slowly through the tiny rural village when we saw the real estate For Sale sign on the front lawn.… Read more
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Making Tangible Our Intangible Cultural Heritage
[pullquote]Cultural heritage does not end at monuments and collections of objects. It also includes traditions or living expressions inherited from our ancestors and passed on to our descendants, such as oral traditions, performing arts, social practices, rituals, festive events, knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe or the knowledge and skills to produce traditional crafts. UNESCO Culture Sector, 2003… Read more