This is a time when Canada must harness its community-driven resilience. We’re asking you to share examples of how Canadian communities are responding to the crisis with creativity and imagination. Collective problem-solving and collaboration will be instrumental in how Canada mitigates the local impacts of COVID-19 and creates on-the-ground solutions.

Highlighted Initiatives

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Initiatives

PACE Society — a peer-driven organization located in the Downtown Eastside of Vancouver is providing support for current and former sex workers of all genders

Income support

Funding is prioritized to people of colour, Indigenous people, transgender individuals, and members of other marginalized communities.

Indigenous doctors on strength, resilience in the face of pandemics

Indigenous | Mental health | Public health

Indigenous communities have a shared history of colonialism and inter-generational trauma that can make COVID-19 more stressful.

Canadian Legion initiatives going strong in the midst of the pandemic

Mental health | Public health | Seniors | Social isolation

Highlighting how veterans are connecting to socialize, provide for those in need and support service needs

Twitter page run by veterans through the Royal Canadian Legion OSI Special Section where veterans can gather at a place and time to enjoy peer support over coffee

General: Online communities and networks | General: Tools for engagement | Mental health | Social isolation

The initiative gives Veterans a chance to meet for coffee in a supportive setting, to socialize. With the new restrictions in place across the country, locations have moved their meetings online. Recently an online “Buddy Check Coffee” involved veterans serving from all over the globe calling in

Prince Edward County-based website updates residents on businesses offering products and services to the community.

General: Online communities and networks | Local businesses

Prepared by Dale Mugford, who works at Yeeboo Digital in Prince Edward County, the website is updated daily, directly from the business community and with partnership between local organizations

Webinar: New models of community-led housing in the EU

Housing and homelessness | Learning and education

Urban Innovative Actions and URBACT are hosting an interactive web event on alternative community-led housing models and governance structures. While these organizations focus on fostering sustainable, integrated urban development in cities across Europe, the event will showcase collaborative approaches that could potentially apply in a Canadian context. The event promises to provide practical insights to inspire urban leaders and practitioners in taking action to meet residents’ rights to safe, adequate, and affordable housing.

Camp Tech digital marketing webinars for main street businesses

Employment | General: Sector resources | Learning and education | Local businesses

Camp Tech is running a series of free digital marketing webinars as part of the Ontario Digital Main Street Initiative, which helps businesses achieve digital transformation. The program is built around an online learning platform, structured training programs, and a digital service squad, who help main street businesses grow and manage their business through the adoption of digital tools and technology.

Canadian policy response group launched to get through pandemic

Policy leadership

Based out of Ryerson University, First Policy Response was launched in March 2020 to bring together the Canadian policy community and highlight the best economic and social policy ideas to get through the immediate crisis and prepare for the uncertain future. Contributions and suggestions are welcome.

Toronto’s Evergreen Brickworks’ Farmer’s market goes virtual with “Farm in a Box”

Food | Local businesses

Helping local food system stay strong in this time of social distancing. Pre-order to pick up a weekly $50 box filled with local produce, cheese and bread from local farmers and producers.

Downtown Vancouver businesses move online

Arts and Culture | General: Online communities and networks | Local businesses

Dance, laugh, learn, work out, meditate and play with the Downtown Vancouver BIA’s new virtual events forum. Weekly listings!

Pandemic best practices exchange from Europe

General: Crowdsourced tools and resources | General: Online communities and networks | General: Sector resources | Policy leadership | Public health

EUROCITIES has activated a Twitter feed to consolidate and exchange information among its membership network, comprised of elected representatives of major European cities.

Montrealers united to sing a Leonard Cohen song Sunday night

Arts and Culture | Social isolation

Martha Wainwright led a citywide “So Long, Marianne” sing-along.

SmartCentres, one of the largest real estate companies in Canada, offers government and health authorities free space to support COVID-19 efforts

Local businesses | Public health

SmartCentres properties are located in every province across the country, accessible to a large percentage of the Canadian population. They are offering rent-free use of a total of up to 1-million square feet of space in 200 shopping centres across the country, as well as its land, parking lots and signage, to all Canadian governments and health care authorities, effective immediately, to assist in their COVID-19 support efforts

City of Belleville, ON Transit to Temporarily Transition to On-Demand Services Only during COVID19

Mobility and transportation | Policy leadership

Ridership has decreased by 80% so customers can now book trips by: App – “On-Demand Transit – Rider App” is available for download and can be used to book rides any time of day for any time of service. Online – btletsgo.ca can be used to book rides any time of day for any time of service Phone – Passengers can contact us at 613-962-1925 and book rides for any time of service. Email – Passengers can email bellevilletransit@belleville.ca for service.

Maximum City a adapté son Kidscore/Youthscore pour COVID19 pour mesurer les zones urbaines conviviales pour enfants et jeunes

Voici comment ils adaptent leur enquête par la distanciation sociale : A) Si la marche à l’extérieur est autorisée là où vous êtes: Allez faire une courte promenade, mais n’oubliez pas de rester à au moins deux mètres des autres. Lorsque vous faites l’enquête (étape deux), répondez aux questions en fonction de ce que vous avez vu sur la promenade et ce que votre emplacement est comme maintenant, pas comment il est habituellement. Les scores peuvent être inférieurs à la normale – mais c’est ok, nous savons que c’est un moment unique! B) Si vous ne pouvez pas sortir : pensez à une promenade que vous prenez normalement à l’école ou chez un ami, et remplissez l’enquête en fonction de la mémoire, ou en regardant l’itinéraire à travers des cartes en ligne.

Maximum City has adapted its Kidscore/Youthscore for COVID19 to measure kid/youth friendly urban areas

Children | General: Tools for engagement | Parks and public space

Here is how they are adjusting their survey through social distancing: A) If walking outside is allowed where you are: Go for a short walk, but remember to stay at least two metres away from others. When you do the survey (step two), answer the questions based on what you saw on the walk and what your location is like now, not how it usually is. Scores may be lower than normal – but that is ok, we know this is a unique time! B) If you cannot go outside: think about a walk you normally take to school or a friend’s house, and complete the survey based on memory, or by looking at the route through online maps.

Together Project connects refugee newcomers and Canadians to build stronger, more integrated communities. How to maintain connections in this time of physical distancing?

General: Online communities and networks | General: Sector resources | General: Tools for engagement | Social isolation

Together Project is currently conducting a needs assessment with refugee households to determine what would be most helpful in terms of remote Welcome Group support and we will be sharing these findings shortly. This is challenging as there are different levels of comfort of newcomer households with technology such as WhatsApp video, Facetime, Zoom or other platforms to facilitate remote social connection. Also newcomers may not have access to WiFi or computers and may wish to save data use for calls over seas.

Dalhousie research team prepares for clinical trial of COVID-19 vaccine.Phase 1 of human clinical trials could begin in the next 3 weeks

Public health

Dalhousie’s COVID-19 rapid response team is moving forward with testing a vaccine that uses a genome of DNA from SARS CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

Calgary pour réduire les voies sur certaines routes pour aider les marcheurs, les cyclistes gardent leurs distances pendant la pandémie COVID-19

Mobility and transportation | Parks and public space | Policy leadership | Public health

Le service des routes de Calgary, en coordination avec la CEMA, a identifié des routes où les voies seront réduites dans l’espoir que cela puisse donner aux marcheurs, aux cyclistes et à d’autres modes plus d’espace pour être à l’extérieur, tout en maintenant la distance sociale. Des sections de Elbow Drive et du sentier Crowchild feront partie de cette mesure, entre autres lieux de marche populaires à Calgary

Calgary to reduce lanes on some roads to help walkers, cyclists keep their distance during COVID-19 pandemic

Mobility and transportation | Parks and public space | Policy leadership | Public health

Calgary’s roads department, in coordination with CEMA, have identified roads where lanes will be reduced with the hope this can give walkers, bikers and other modes more space to be outside, while maintaining social distance. Sections of Elbow Drive and Crowchild Trail will be part of this measure, among other popular walking spots in Calgary

Podcast: Vancouver Mayor Kennedy Stewart announced that a safe drug supply is coming to Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside to help with harm reduction during COVID19

Frontline services | Housing and homelessness | Policy leadership | Public health

Host Alex de Boer gets comment from Trey Helton, Manager of Vancouver’s Overdose Prevention Society and Jonathan Orr, Program Manager for Raincity Housing’s Peer Services. Trey and Jonathan comment on changing conditions in the City’s overdose prevention sites and share their questions about Vancouver’s new safe supply. Podcast: UBC’s CiTR 101.9 FM focused on alternative and locally-based programming

COVID-19: Safe-drug supplies part of package as Vancouver addresses Downtown Eastside

Frontline services | Policy leadership | Public health

The City’s Community Action Team to help the roughly 20–30% of drug users not connected to the health care system make sure they can access a safe supply. For everyone else, the City is planning for safe supply to be enabled through existing physician relationships, with more details to be announced by the Province.

Artscape collates financial resources and supports to help creatives and creative entrepreneurs in 2020 through COVID19

Arts and Culture | Employment | General: Sector resources | Income support | Local businesses

Artscape knows that COVID-19 is already having a pronounced financial impact on the creative sector. From cancelled performances and festivals to the shuttering and slowdown of storefronts, creatives of all disciplines are facing economic hardships. To help creatives navigate this unprecedented situation, we have compiled a list of financial resources and supports to help creatives and creative entrepreneurs in 2020.

Sprawl Calgary is asking kids to share their own stories of what they’re experiencing right now during COVID-19

Children | General: Online communities and networks

Sprawl Kids is posting specific assignments each week in the form of questions. And kids are the journalists! Here’s Sprawl Kids assignment #1: How are you feeling? You can see more on Twitter using hashtag #sprawlkidsyyc.

Sprawl Calgary’s Sam Hester produced a poignant graphic story that reflects on a week of strangeness and rediscovery.

Children | General: Tools for engagement | Mental health

The Sprawl is Calgary pop-up journalism. It’s crowdfunded, 
ad-free, and made in Calgary—
a reinvention of local journalism 
in tough times

Google doc showing those cities considering or implementing temporary bikeways/Open Streets/Livable Streets as a COVID19 response

General: Crowdsourced tools and resources | Mobility and transportation | Parks and public space

Developed by Mike Lydon, to collectively crowdsource details.

Buy gift certificates now…for use later to support local business

Food | Local businesses

Buy Gift Certificates to Support Local Businesses for Greater Victoria’s local, independent businesses for future use

Psychological First Aid

Mental health

UK-based Psychological First Aid is building a network of psychologists, therapists and counsellors to provide psychological first aid for those impacted by COVID-19

Wemunity Project is an open source system where those who have recovered from COVID-19 can be approved to provide assistance in keeping up critical societal functions.

Public health

They are looking for technical skills, domain knowledge and funding. 200+ techies, designers, legal experts and MDs have been mobilized to date – originated in Norway but going global – fast.

Funding to support coronvirus coverage in Canada for freelancers and local newsrooms

Fundraising and volunteering | Income support

The Independent News Challenge is partnering with the Facebook Journalism Project to ensure $1 million fund reaches independent news outlets in Canada.

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