What London Can Be

In this episode of What London Can Be, our host Diane Silva speaks with Courtney Coqu, Institutional Worker and Counsellor at the John Howard Society about breaking the cycle of post incarceration homelessness. The John Howard Society recently received a $300,000 for this program which will help those leaving the criminal justice system access supports and find long-term housing. Take a listen and learn more about how the John Howard Society is fostering hope and creating a sense of belonging in one of our community's most underserved and often ignored populations.

In this episode of What London Can Be, our host Diane Silva speaks with Amanda Kennedy, Founder of Yotuni Social Enterprise and Michelle Kanter, Executive Director of Carolinian Canada about the Community Healing Gardens Project a recipient of a $200,000 Community Vitality Grant. The Healing Gardens Project is a social enterprise that will employ Indigenous Youth to create gardening kits to be sold to community members – enabling land-based wellness and learning at home with Indigenous food and plants.

In this episode of What London Can Be, our host Diane Silva speaks with Joe Ganselves, Coordinator of the JobWorks and PATCH programs at Hutton House Association for Adults with Disabilities, about the Cavendish Community Food Hub project – a brand new, accessible urban farm to be located in the Kensington Village area of London and recipient of a $230,744 grant through LCF’s Community Vitality Grant program.

In this brand new episode of What London Can Be, our host Diane Silva speaks with Thames Valley District School Board Chair Lori-Ann Pizzolato and Trustee Corrine Rahman about some of the challenges facing our community’s education system brought forth by the pandemic – and how the Board has faced them head-on.

In this episode of What London Can Be, our host Diane Silva speaks with Dr. Jerry White, Professor Emeritus of Sociology at Western University, LCF Board Member, and Chair of LCF's Social Finance and Vital Signs Committees about this year's Vital Signs report.

LCF's Vital Signs report aims to create awareness of pressing social issues in our community. Going beyond identifying the issues, Vital Signs 2021: Be the Change hopes to inspire action and provide the community with some of the tools and resources needed to begin creating change.

https://www.bethechangelondon.ca/

In this episode of What London Can Be, our host Diane Silva speaks with Corey Allison, Executive Director of the Women’s Rural Resource Centre in Strathroy and the Huron Women’s Shelter in Goderich, about gender equality, COVID-19, and the differences in advocacy and programming between rural and urban environments.

In this episode of What London Can Be, our host Diane Silva speaks with Dr. Prachi Srivastava, Associate Professor in the area of global education at Western University, member of the World Bank Expert Advisory Council on Citizen Engagement, and contributing author on two Science Briefs of the Ontario COVID-19 Science Advisory Table on education.

Dr. Srivastava also leads the COVID-19 School Dashboard, an open-access site that visualizes COVID-19 school-related cases throughout Ontario with equity-related school information.

In this Vital Conversation episode of What London Can Be, we revisit talks given by Dr. Javeed Sukhera, incoming Chair of Psychiatry at the Institute of Living (IOL) and Chief of Psychiatry at Hartford Hospital, and Blair Henry, Harm Reduction Case Manager at Regional HIV/AIDS Connection, about compassion, prejudice, and the importance of connection to health and well-being at Vital Conversation: Be Healthy in 2019.

In this episode of What London Can Be, our host Diane Silva speaks with Benjamin Hill, Associate Professor of Philosophy at Western University and Chair of the Middlesex London Food Policy Council (MLFPC), about London's food system, food security, and the MLFPC’s work in the community.

In this Vital Conversation episode of What London Can Be, we revisit a talk given by Brian Salt, founder and President of Salthaven Wildlife Rehabilitation and Education Centre, about awareness of environmental issues, being conscious of our impact on nature, and doing our part to save lives at our Vital Conversation: Be Green event in 2019.