Dave LaBerge, Manager of Community Safety with the City of Nanaimo, speaks about the rollout of the city’s new Community Safety Officer program.  

Nous sommes en plein été et bien sûr, en été, la chaleur s’installe. Peut-être avez-vous remarqué que vous avez la mèche courte quand le thermomètre monte. Ça pourrait être le cas si vous êtes un joueur de baseball dans la ligue majeure. Joël Guérette, de l’Université de Québec en Outaouais, a récemment trouvé que quand il […]

The Nanaimo 7-10 Club Society has been providing meals to the hungry since 1985. Since last August however, they’ve been without a building, as their old location on Prideaux Street was demolished to make way for supportive housing. They’ve switched to a bag lunch to go format, and are still looking for a new home […]

Designed for vulnerable youth, Take a Hike! is an alternative education program that sees students spend 4 days a week in the classroom and one day out in nature. Students also have constant access to a full time registered clinical counsellor. There are Take a Hike programs in many BC communities, including Nanaimo, where around […]

Shea Smith co founded The Homeless Idea Podcast, which is described as “a view into the everyday events, and insights of a Homeless individual in today’s society from a first hand perspective.” Smith spoke with People First Radio about the podcast, his journey, and his perspective on some of the systems surrounding homelessness.     […]

Some healthcare professionals are noticing a link between climate change and our mental health, especially in younger populations. So much so that there’s a new lexicon emerging, with conditions like eco-anxiety and ecological grief falling under the umbrella term of “Psychoterratic Syndromes” Natania Abebe is a registered nurse who practices in Ottawa.  Earlier this year […]

How can someone get help when they might not even recognize they’re in trouble? It’s a question that’s been on the mind of Ottawa Comic artist Von Allan. Earlier this year, Allan learned that his best friend since childhood, Dave Foohey had died. Police had found Dave dead inside his home, and estimated he had […]

Lisa Brinkman, Manager of Community Planning with the City of Nanaimo, discusses the city’s affordable housing strategy.  First broadcast July 2022.

If you’re an organization looking to address homelessness, it makes sense to to take into account the perspectives of people who’ve experienced homelessness. This can be easier said than done. Issues can arise when people with lived experience aren’t being compensated the same as salaried employees when attending meetings and conferences, for example. These experiences […]

One day riding the metro in Montreal, Annie Archambault overheard people complaining that someone on the street wouldn’t take a sandwich they’d offered. As you’ll hear her explain, the experience galvanized the community worker, who has experienced homelessness herself. It led her to speak out on a new TikTok account, surleborddelaligne. Now with tens of […]