In partnership with Matchmaker Productions, we are happy to offer a discount to MVA members to a production of a new comedy about the Vancouver housing crisis. Satirizing issues familiar to all Vancouver audiences, The Concierge of Vancouver looks at the consequences of skyrocketing real estate prices and living costs. It is the second in a trilogy of new Canadian plays, written by local playwright Shaul Ezer.

Speakers from MVA's Housing Campaign Action Team will be making a presentation after the October 11th show.

Visit theatrewire.ca and enter coupon code GROUPB book tickets for $20 (regular adult admission is $31). Members who make use of this discount are asked to consider donating the savings (or a portion thereof) to Metro Vancouver Alliance. Visit our donations page to find out more about how your donation supports our work.

The play runs October 6 to 16, 2016 at Studio 1398, Granville Island. For more information, visit www.matchmakerproductions.com.

The MVA Housing Campaign Action Team is proud to announce a victory for OUR HOMES CAN’T WAIT! — a campaign and community vision for 58 West Hastings Street, Vancouver.

Today, at the Carnegie Community Centre, Mayor Gregor Robertson, along with five of the City’s housing management staff and Councillor Andrea Reimer, in front of 60 community members representing 15 local organizations, signed an agreement to begin the process to build 100% welfare rate housing at the city-owned site at 58 W. Hastings (opposite Army and Navy).

Since the founding assembly in 2014 the Metro Vancouver Alliance has grown by leaps and bounds. This year, for the first time ever, the International Areas Foundation Northwest Regional Leadership Training was held in Canada - right here in BC - hosted by the Metro Vancouver Alliance.

39 activists from Seattle, Spokane, Portland, Victoria, Calgary, Edmonton and Brisbane, Australia, participated in training from February 5th - 9th at Capilano University to gain a thorough understanding of the organizing practices and principles developed by Industrial Areas Foundation member organizations over its 74-year history.

Transit Campaign Action Team Co-chair, Maria Robinson, made a powerful presentation on the need for a fair fare structure to the Translink Board. In the coming months MVA will be gathering our members' views on what a fair fare structure would look like. Here's the video ...

North Shore - On February 27, 2016 at St. Anthony’s RC Church in West Vancouver, nineteen north shore residents most of whom had attended the February 8th Affordable Housing Assembly and made a commitment to work on the campaign, met with the Housing Team. Michael Markwick (Capilano University), Paul Clark (St. Catherine’s Anglican Church) and James Cavalluzzo (BCGEU) headed delegations to plan the follow-up meetings with the three north shore mayors. Attendees at this meeting all committed to become delegates on one of these three teams: City of North Vancouver, District of North Vancouver, and City of West Vancouver. All three teams will meet again on Saturday, April 2nd at noon at St. Anthony’s Church in West Vancouver to report on their progress.

City of Vancouver - The City passed a revised Standards and Mainantence By-law in the spring of 2015. MVA had no input on this. We attended the Council meeting when it was passed to express our concern. 

Our campaign to make covenants a component of all new developments, locking in truly affordable purchase and rental housing in perpetuity is continuing. We announced last fall to the Board and Strategy Team meeting that we were prepared to start a pilot project of our own to test the covenant policy. After meeting with key people who helped shape the Whistler Housing Authority with its covenant policy designed to supply affordable housing to people who work in Whistler, we launched a pilot project to find developer(s) and a site where we could demonstrate that our ask at the 2014 Municipal Election Assembly would work in Vancouver. 

A space to stretch your brain! For those who want to dig a little deeper into the ideas that sustain our work, we'll gather in small groups to discuss readings and events broadly relevant to our goals. Our facilitator is Deb Cameron-Fawkes, an MVA Board member and part of the Leadership Training team.  Deb is a theologian and preacher, and also a union steward with the United Food and Commercial Workers. 

Watch for new events every other month! 

NOVEMBER

Going Public: An Organizer's Guide to Citizen Action by Michael Gecan

Anchor Books, 2004

Join us for a four-part study of an organizer's life with the Industrial Areas Foundation.  Gecan's readable and entertaining style is a great kick-off to our study groups. His story, told in four parts, gets us deep into the how and the why of this kind of organizing, its public wins and personal rewards. Copies are available for purchase through the MVA office.

LOCATION: Downtown Vancouver (Strathcona)

7pm-8:30pm

FREE

Please RSVP for our host's address and directions:  [email protected]

You need not attend all four sessions, but registration is required as space is limited.

• Nov 12, 7-8:30pm : The Habit of Relating
•  Nov 19, 7-8:30pm : The Habit of Action
•  Nov 26, 7-8:30pm : The Habit of Organization
•  Dec 3, 7-8:30pm :The Habit of Reflection

Upcoming topics:

• Laudato Si, the Pope's encyclical about climate change and social justice

• Relational Meetings Save Lives - lessons from citizens building peace in Northern Ireland; "Labour" and "Faith" - sharing stories, shredding stereotypes for a stronger Alliance.

Representatives from the Metro Vancouver Alliance’s over 50 member organizations will make presentations on four issues - social inclusion, transit, income justice, and affordable housing - to candidates in the upcoming federal election and ask for a response and a commitment to work with MVA to make Metro Vancouver a better place for all.

Vancouver has slipped into a state of social isolation over the years, a matter complicated by poverty, housing, and transportation. 

Since 2014, MVA's social inclusion committee, led by Clark, has been working on simple measures to reduce isolation based on the dynamics of individual communities. 

“There are thousands of little drops that fill a bucket, and it’s up to us to enable thousands of creative people to unleash them,” he explains. “We have to get rid of the barriers for them, allow them to magnify and upscale their initiatives.”

The Vancouver Observer talks to Paul Clark, co-chair of MVA's Social Inclusion Action Team.

VANCOUVER – The Living Wage for Families Campaign and the Metro Vancouver Alliance congratulate the City of Vancouver for its commitment to become a Living Wage Employer.

A motion introduced last week by Mayor Robertson to make the City of Vancouver a Living Wage Employer was debated today at the Standing Committee on City Finance and Services and passed unanimously. This is a welcome response to the growing income inequality in Vancouver. By adopting a living wage policy for its direct staff and contractors, the City of Vancouver is making it a little bit easier for working families to meet their expenses.

The living wage is a regional calculation that looks at the amount that a family of four, two adults working full year, full time, need to earn to meet their expenses. The living wage for Metro Vancouver is $20.68/hr.

“$20.68 is not just a number on a spreadsheet. It’s a crucial tipping point that affects every facet of life,” presented Vania Tse, CUPE 391 member and City of Vancouver employee. “I work more than 35 hours to make ends meet. What does this mean? It means more transportation time between jobs. More bus tickets per week to get to those jobs. It means I’m more tired and less able to commit time to see my family, exercise or further my own education.”

Prior to the most recent municipal election all Vancouver parties committed to explore becoming a Living Wage Employer at Metro Vancouver Alliance’s Municipal Accountability Assembly. The unanimous support demonstrates that the mayor and council intend to act on that public commitment.

“So many are struggling day to day to make ends meet with the ongoing stress this causes in families emotionally, spiritually and economically,” stated Rev. Margaret Marquardt representing Anglican Bishop, The Rt. Rev. Melissa Skelton, Diocese of New Westminster. “It is our responsibility to stand with those who are struggling and to show that we mean to do something about it. This motion on the living wage is a way towards this end!”

The next step for the City of Vancouver will be to draft an implementation plan to pay its direct employees and major service contractors a living wage. This plan will be reviewed and approved by the Living Wage for Families Campaign in order for the City of Vancouver to qualify as a certified Living Wage Employer.

For interviews, contact

• Deanna Ogle, Campaign Organizer, Living Wage for Families Campaign, 604-364-2917  www.livingwageforfamilies.ca
• Patrick Bragg, Metro Vancouver Alliance, 778-889-3486 www.metvanalliance.org

NOTICE OF RALLY AND PRESENTATIONS TO CITY COUNCIL

Vancouver – The Metro Vancouver Alliance and Living Wage for Families Campaign are coordinating a rally to show support for Vancouver to become a Living Wage Employer. On July 8th Vancouver City Council will debate a motion that will begin the process of making Vancouver a living wage city.  The rally will take place on the steps of city hall and will be followed by presentations to the Standing Committee on City Finance and Services in support of the living wage motion.

When: Wednesday, July 8, 2015  Rally: 9:00 am Standing Committee on City Finance and Services: 9:30 am

Where: City Hall, 453 W 12th Ave, Vancouver

Rally Speakers

• The Rev. Margaret Marquardt representing Anglican Bishop, The Rt. Rev. Melissa Skelton, Diocese of New Westminster
• Irene Lanziger, President, BC Federation of Labour
• Blanca Salvatierra, community organizer

Moderator

• Deborah Littman, Lead Organizer, Metro Vancouver Alliance

Presenters to Council include:

• Mary Lyn Diana, member of Hospital Employee’s Union
• The Rev. Margaret Marquardt representing Anglican Bishop, The Rt. Rev. Melissa Skelton, Diocese of New Westminster.
• Father David Pourier, St. Joseph the Worker, Catholic Parish
• Vania Tse, member of CUPE 391 (Vancouver, Gibsons and Sechelt Library Workers)
• Deanna Ogle, Campaign Organizer,  Living Wage for Families Campaign
• Stacey Berisavac, Manager, Health Promotion, Canadian Cancer Society, BC and Yukon Division
• Linda Morris, Senior Vice President Business Development, Member & Community Engagement, Vancity Savings Credit Union

For further information, please contact:

• Deanna Ogle, Campaign Organizer, Living Wage for Families Campaign, 604-364-2917 www.livingwageforfamilies.ca
• Patrick Bragg, Metro Vancouver Alliance, 778-889-3486 www.metvanalliance.org

The Living Wage for Families Campaign announces the annual living wage for Metro Vancouver, certifies Living Wage Employers and builds broad understanding of the importance of living wages to child, family and community health.

The Metro Vancouver Alliance is a group of nonpartisan, proactive, everyday citizens dedicated to making the Metro Vancouver area a better place for all to live and thrive. Our members come from faith congregations, youth groups, neighbourhood houses, union locals, co-ops, academic departments and community non-profits.

NOTICE OF RALLY AND PRESENTATIONS TO CITY COUNCIL – MONDAY, July 6, 2014