Comox Valley resident Hans Peter Meyer shares his thoughts about Courtenay's downtown core with VIU students recording video interviews for the community mapping project 'Where is Here?'.
June 2, 2016 - 1:15pm
Public invited to ‘get on the map’ in unique project exploring Courtenay’s downtown
Which location in downtown Courtenay, Port Alberni or Nanaimo makes you feel most connected to your community?
That’s a question a team of Vancouver Island University (VIU) masters and undergraduate student researchers are asking members of the public as part of a community mapping project called ‘Where is Here?’
From now until July 8, 2016 Courtenay residents are invited to take a video of themselves talking about the spots in downtown they feel most connected to and why. The answers they receive will be incorporated into an interactive community map that reflects what moves people about the downtown core of the community they call home.
“We know that small cities are struggling to survive in a changing economic landscape,” said project coordinator and Simon Fraser University PHd student, Sharon Karsten. “We know that downtown areas in these cities are ‘beacons’ of civic identity and they can offer opportunities for economic, social and cultural development. Making our downtowns more vibrant requires knowledge of what residents value about them. We want to know what people love about their downtowns, and what keeps them there.”
The invitation marks Phase 2 of the cultural mapping process. In March and April the Where is Here? team hosted day-long video-mapping sessions with residents from all three communities, resulting in the creation of over 80 connect-spot videos.
Phase 2 enables residents to make and upload their own videos – adding new insights to the conversation. Anyone from Courtenay interested in contributing can go to the website Where is Here? which includes directions on how to make and upload your own video. A similar call will be issued in Nanaimo and Port Alberni at a later date.
Courtenay-based partners supporting the project include: the City of Courtenay, the Downtown Courtenay Business Improvement Association and the Comox Valley Art Gallery.
For more details about the project visit Where is Here? or email: sharonkarsten@live.com
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MEDIA CONTACT:
Dane Gibson, Communications Officer, Vancouver Island University
P: 250.740.6288 | E: Communications@viu.ca T: #viunews
Tags: In the Community
