Social Development Centre Waterloo Region

Can you marvel the perseverance of the initiative that started in 1994 and still finds ways to reinvent itself? One of its founders, John MacDonald says: “It’s about creating opportunities for each of us, by growing relations and understanding with everyone around us. When we reach out and meet others we create better conditions for each and all of us, and it has a multiplier effect. Propinquity may seem a silly word, but it’s a basic measure of quality in our neighbourhoods and in our daily lives. Simple actions and simple gatherings of strangers have proven and positive results.” Join the 29th Annual Celebration on November 20th at 1pm at the Kitchener City Hall with over 40 neighbourhoods coming together as Pros in Propinquity. We will unveil the Inclusion Award 2022 and have a number of $500 Welcome Back prizes to draw. You can register on www.festivalofneighbourhoods.ca.

Displacement in Kitchener’s Inner Suburbs: Experiences and perspectives from low-income tenants: A key aim of this report is to centre the experiences of low-income tenants, focusing on their day-to-day experiences and the knowledge that they have about changes in their buildings and wider communities. Too often, these voices are omitted from mainstream planning and policy debates. By assembling and amplifying these voices, we can shift beyond isolated stories and anecdotes in order to identify trends which shape the lives of communities that are rarely heard. We thank you University of Waterloo and City of Kitchener for their collaboration.

Research and Engagement Coordinator at the Civic Hub has joined our team in July - Lia Forma has experience in supporting the work of underserved communities, needs assessment studies, and connecting with a range of experiences in kind and compassionate ways. She is currently assembling an Advisory Group of community minded folks who are already with the Hub partner groups and some who are not, for the post-pandemic direction setting for the Hub and for the broader community of equity seeking groups and initiatives.  

Building a strong sense of individual agency can be the first and necessary step in countering the climate change locally. A group of nine participants, undertaking multiple challenges instead of just one, learned and shared over 30 days their successes, challenges, and shifts in thinking about change in the current social, economic, political and multi-cultural contexts. What is the environmental footprint of A Better Tent City? How would diverse meat-eating traditions adjust to the current meat-alternatives inspired food production and consumption? How do we instill new sets of values to the children regarding technology, energy consumption, reusable containers? How do we experience food growing, preparation and enjoyment as spiritual? Why are colder showers so invigorating? The report we are compiling will