Addressing parallel systems

Recommendation 5: Establish cultural knowledge/skills sharing hub that works off of UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage (2003) Article 14(a), where each State Party shall endeavour, by all appropriate means, to ensure recognition of, respect for, and enhancement of the intangible cultural heritage in society, in particular through:

• educational, awareness-raising and information programmes, aimed at the general public, in particular young people;
• specific educational and training programmes within the communities and groups concerned;
• capacity-building activities for the safeguarding of the intangible cultural heritage, in particular management and scientific research; and
• non-formal means of transmitting knowledge.

City & regulatory body support

Recommendation 13: Provide assistance & resources to traditional businesses regarding succession planning. Explore opportunities for implementing long-term sustainable and community ownership models such as cooperatives.

City & regulatory body support

Recommendation 14: Establish special economic zones for Chinatown and the DTES to recognize the unique cultural and social assets of these neighbourhoods.

• Provide appropriate support services to traditional businesses.
• Incentivize cooperation with culturally specific infrastructure.
• Legitimize aspects of informal and survival economies.

Policy recommendations

Shifting systems level beliefs and behaviours

Recommendation 16: Improve social cohesion and decreasing social distance

As shown in this report, parallel economic and social systems exist and are pronounced in Chinatown. While there are multiple parallels in existence in all neighbourhoods to a degree, we believe that it is highly pronounced in this neighbourhood due to its demographics, history, and recent changes.

As identified in the Resilient Vancouver Phase One Engagement Report (2018), social cohesion and community connectedness were of key interest to the City. The engagement report explores several reasons as to why there are high levels of social isolation, including the “lack of understanding about Vancouver’s history and cultural heritage.” This cultural blindness contributes to the reinforcement of injustices and inequitable flow of knowledge and resources.

To fully recognize historic ethnocultural spaces and parallel social and economic systems will:

• Meaningfully shift the orientation of policy from “Place-making” to “Placekeeping;”
• Support the maintenance and growth of Chinatown’s social infrastructure as something critical to residents, businesses, and other groups; and
• Broaden the definition of “food assets” to include cultural food assets for their role in ensuring residents have access to healthy, culturally appropriate, and affordable food, along with a place for community identity and social connection.

This approach should be applied across the city to historically significant and culturally specific neighbourhoods where there are clear parallels in social and economic systems. We recommend that there be further public discourse to recognize the histories and relations with the Coast Salish peoples, along with Hogan’s Alley due to the community’s shared space and history

As our findings showcased and we have discussed in our conclusion, integration is not always possible nor is it ideal. Policies should start to recognize these parallels and their histories; measures of social cohesion and social distance both reflect the segregation that we rarely talk about as a city.

There are also UNESCO implications beyond just recognizing and valuing diversity through intangible cultural heritage; “within the context of globalisation, Intangible Cultural Heritage has capital importance as it allows cultural diversity to be maintained through dialogue between cultures and the promotion of respect towards other ways of life.” Intangible cultural heritage, as UNESCO states, will contribute “to social cohesion, encouraging a sense of identity and responsibility which helps individuals to feel part of one or different communities and to feel part of society at large.”

While several actions are discussed in the recommendations to “Addressing Parallel Systems,” we believe that focusing on increasing civic and public knowledge of our history and cultural heritage will result in an emergence of strategies and tactics that will reflect a more equitable reality.

Policy recommendations

Refinement and refresh of existing policies

Recommendation 18: Systemic neighbourhood environmental issues

To address safety concerns expressed by interviewees, there are several larger structural solutions such as increasing the number of safe and affordable housing units, access to health-focused treatment, and equitable employment opportunities. One short-term measure could be to install lighting on streets and in alleyways to help people feel safe during evenings and at night.

In the interim, reducing criminalization and stigmatization of community members would alleviate further social divides. Instead, we recommend an approach that allows them to thrive that takes an inclusive approach to housing, employment, social security, and access (services, food, other), which would require cooperative action by all levels of government and stakeholders.

Ultimately, a systems change approach would need to be applied to adequately address the root causes of these issues. As noted in the Resilient Vancouver Phase One Engagement Report (2018), many of these issues are interrelated and solutions need to involve multiple city departments, all levels of government, and other stakeholders.

REFINEMENT AND REFRESH OF EXISTING POLICIES

Chinatown Economic Revitalization Plan and Chinatown Neighbourhood Plan

Recommendation 20: “Tenant retention strategy.” As with the experience of the BIA, the “lack of succession planning makes retention challenging.” Due to the contributions that traditional businesses make to the neighbourhood character, through intangible values with the social and cultural connections they hold, we recommend that a working group be formed to come up with options that the City, other levels of government, as well as other stakeholders can implement to assist with succession planning of these businesses. Namely, to explore how traditional businesses can succeed in becoming community- and membership- owned entities. Applying cooperative values can serve the community/membership as well as democratizing ownership and economics of the business.

REFINEMENT AND REFRESH OF EXISTING POLICIES

Systemic neighbourhood environmental issues

Recommendation 25: In the interim, reducing criminalization and stigmatization of community members would alleviate further social divides. Instead, we recommend an approach that allows them to thrive that takes an inclusive approach to housing, employment, social security, and access (services, food, other), which would require cooperative action by all levels of government and stakeholders.

REFINEMENT AND REFRESH OF EXISTING POLICIES

Systemic neighbourhood environmental issues

Recommendation 26: Ultimately, a systems change approach would need to be applied to adequately address the root causes of these issues. As noted in the Resilient Vancouver Phase One Engagement report (2018), many of these issues are interrelated and solutions need to involve multiple city departments, all levels of government, and other stakeholders.