People First Media program archive
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Stories from the frontlines

November 10th, 2011 | Posted by pfmarchive in uncategorized - (Comments Off on Stories from the frontlines)

Michael Christie’s powerful debut collection is inspired by his experiences working with people on the DTES

The Beggar’s Garden, Michael Christie’s debut collection of nine linked stories, is dazzling, writes reviewer Candace Fertile in The Quill and Quire.

“Drawing on his experience working in a homeless shelter in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, Christie explores the intense humanity of people living on the margins of society. His characters include addicts, homeless people, hospital patients, and those who interact with the city’s outcasts.” (more…)

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Can empathy be taught?

November 10th, 2011 | Posted by pfmarchive in uncategorized - (Comments Off on Can empathy be taught?)

Empathy, compassion, understanding, awareness—what happens when we try to put ourselves into others’ shoes?

Empathy is a relatively common word, but it’s also a concept that is poorly understood. It’s sometimes confused with sympathy, pity, or feeling sorry for someone. According to Edith Stein, a German phenomenologist, empathy can be facilitated. It also can be interrupted and blocked, but it cannot be forced to occur. When empathy occurs, we find ourselves experiencing it, rather than directly causing it to happen. [Reference here in PDF] (more…)

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Colliers Intl donates to Columbian Centre

November 4th, 2011 | Posted by pfmarchive in uncategorized - (Comments Off on Colliers Intl donates to Columbian Centre)

From left to right: Karren Vachon, Brad Archibald, Dave Ganong, Tom Grauman, Todd R., Kari Fetherston, Linda Ryder, Jason Winton, Dorina Medland, Brad Bailey, and Christina Dhesi.

Colliers International recently presented a cheque for $10,000, the proceeds from the Colliers International Charity Golf Tournament held on September 9.

Colliers International hosted its First Mid Island Annual Charity Golf Tournament on Friday September 9, 2011 at the Nanaimo Golf and Country Club.  Corporate representatives from real estate, investment, finance, legal, accounting, and development businesses, as well as community leaders, participated.

Colliers dedicated its First Annual Charity Golf Tournament to the Columbian Centre Society (CCS), under the theme “Lowering Handicaps” for this year’s tournament.

The Tournament was followed by a dinner, along with prizes, Silent & Live auctions, and a 50/50 draw.

Radio-UP premieres in Montreal

November 4th, 2011 | Posted by pfmarchive in uncategorized - (0 Comments)

Clubhouse members are working toward realizing their full potential, and now that includes broadcasting to a wider world

Donald Berman UP (Urban Pardes) House is a clubhouse that helps adults living with a mental illness achieve greater self-determination, self-esteem and self-worth. The Clubhouse is based on the International Center for Clubhouse Development model, founded in New York in 1948. There are currently 350 accredited clubhouses world-wide and 20 in Canada (including the Phoenix Centre Clubhouse in Nanaimo on Vancouver Island). (more…)

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On living deeply and dying well

October 20th, 2011 | Posted by pfmarchive in uncategorized - (0 Comments)

What if grief is a skill, in the same way that love is a skill, something that must be learned and cultivated and taught?

With counseling and ceremony, Stephen Jenkinson has for a quarter century been guiding individuals, couples, families and communities through all the human sufferings, sorrows and confusions in life. He is a Harvard-trained theologian, a sculptor and a traditional canoe builder. Stephen is also the subject of the National Film Board documentary Griefwalker, a lyrical, poetic portrait of his work with dying people. (more…)

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After the ruling, what’s next?

October 6th, 2011 | Posted by pfmarchive in uncategorized - (Comments Off on After the ruling, what’s next?)

The Insite decision could signal a fundamental change in the way Canadian society approaches and deals with addiction

The Supreme Court of Canada’s decision of September 30, 2011 regarding the continuation of the Insite supervised injection site has been seen as a victory for harm reduction policies and provincial and individual rights. It has also been portrayed as a repudiation of the Harper government’s focus on incarceration and punishment as an approach for dealing with drug-related social and health problems…a triumph of reason over ideology.

Now a larger question looms. What impacts might this decision have beyond the Vancouver supervised injection program—which is the only program of its kind in North America? It seems certain that ongoing ideological battles over harm reduction haven’t ended. But is it possible that the court’s decision reflects a fundamental change in the way Canadian society approaches and deals with addiction and its associated harms?

We look at the supervised injection program—and the court decision—with three guests. (more…)

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