The City of New Westminster has won a Gold Award for Excellence in City and Urban Planning for an “innovative” approach to planning.
The Planning Institute of British Columbia (PIBC) has awarded the city with the 2023 Gold Award for Excellence in Planning Practice – City & Urban Areas for its Community Action Network (CAN) leadership training program. A press release from the city states that CAN is an innovative partnership with the BC Poverty Reduction Coalition that sees people with lived and living experience being engaged in planning and policy development.
Since it was initiated in 2019, the CAN leadership training program has had two intakes of participants – each intake involving 10 people with lived and living experience of disability, homelessness, poverty, settlement and more. Participants attend training sessions on topics such as advocacy, committee functioning, and community organizing, and program graduates go on to participate in city planning and policy development as subject matter experts.
“The CAN leadership training program meaningfully engages people with lived and living experience, enabling them to share their unique perspectives so we can ensure the City of New Westminster’s plans, policies, programs, and services are reflective of, and responsive to, all community members,” Mayor Patrick Johnstone said in a news release. “Congratulations to our planning staff and the BC Poverty Reduction Coalition on winning PIBC’s excellence award.”
According to the City of New Westminster, CAN graduates have been instrumental in the development of the city’s Homelessness Action Strategy, endorsed by Council in 2022, and the recent establishment of the New West Community and Resource Team (CaRT), which assists vulnerable community members and advocates for their diverse needs.
Graduates have also informed 11 other city initiatives and been members of three city committees and task forces.
“CAN graduates have expressed their appreciation for how the program taught them to advocate for their unique needs,” said Jackie Teed, the city’s acting director of climate action, planning and development. “In turn, they feel heard by city planners and respected as a contributing member of our community.”
The Planning Institute of British Columbia Gold Award for Excellence in Planning Practice in City and Urban Areas recognizes strategies and plans that envision planning solutions to enhance the social, economic, environmental and/or cultural well-being of communities.
