Recognizing Important Contributions

COMMUNITY SERVICE CERTIFICATE

The 2006 Community Services Certificate was awarded recently to Barry Freeze for his work in recreation and inclusion.

The certificate is presented annually by the Human Development Council to recognize an individual or individuals for outstanding contribution to the welfare and development of the greater Saint John area.

Barry receieves his award from Human Developement Council President Mary Anne Leblanc at the Council's annual meeting, May 1, 2006.

Image: CommunityLens

Learn About “The Greatest Canadian”

Join the Human Development Council at the Imperial Theatre, 8:00 pm, May 1st, 2006 for a production of TOMMY DOUGLAS: The Arrows of Desire, a one-man show that explores the life, battles, and humanitarian accomplishments of “The Greatest Canadian” - Tommy Douglas. This event will be the Human Development Council’s largest fundraiser this year.

Presented by Phantom Poets Touring Theatre Company of Canada, the original script, TOMMY DOUGLAS: The Arrows of Desire was written and is performed by Canadian actor and playwright, John Nolan, following 20 years of study, research, and writing, as he pared down 81 vibrant years to a workable feature-length play.

Funds raised from this event will support the Saint John Youth Cabinet initiative for youth aged 13 to 25, and our Community Information Centre, an Information & Referral service serving New Brunswick.

Tickets are $20.00 and are on sale now at the Imperial Theater box-office 674-4100 or 1-800-323-7469.










Sponsors for this event are: CAW – Canadian Auto Workers Union, C.U.P.E. Local 1418 – Sub Local 11, and Saint John District Labour Council.

Bullying is Being Addressed in our Community

How do community agencies and the education system support bullying victims? What can we do to prevent this too common occurrence? These questions are addressed in the Human Development Council's current newsletter, NEXUS. A list of on-line resources is available to download in pdf.

A bullying information session will be offered by School District 8 on March 29, 2006 at the NB Museum, Market Square, 7:00pm - 9:00pm. For information contact Susan Holmes, Supervisor, Guidance and Health Education, 506.658.5300.

Volunteer Income Tax Clinics for Low-income Individuals

The schedule of clinics for the Community Volunteer Income Tax Program is now available. Read the Human Development Council's Media Advisory to find a local clinic.

Doing Less With More - It's Not Acceptable

Worth checking out - the Canadian Council on Social Development'’s study exploring the effect of the diminished financial capacity of non-profit and voluntary organizations in Canada. Funding Matters: The Impact of Canada'’s New Funding Regime on Nonprofit and Voluntary Organizations was written by Katherine Scott, CCSD'’s Vice –President of Research. More and more valuable time is being spent securing project funding in an effort to maintain the status quo, to the detriment of organizations'’ core missions. Scott's report examines just how the sector is coping with cuts.

More resources and reports on this issue are available from the CCSD.

Saint John: An Industrial City in Transition

The Community University Research Alliance (CURA) and the NB Museum offers three evenings of presentations about recent discoveries on the theme - Saint John: An Industrial City in Transition. This week's talk on Marsh Creek, Little Water Clears Us of This Deed will be presented by Graeme Stewart-Robertson. The series continues in February. The presentation will be held January 26, 2006, 7:00pm in the Mary Oland Theatre in the NB Museum, masked Square.

The Human Development Council is one of five partners in the CURA research project analysing the Industrial-Post-Industrial transition currently underway in Saint John, New Brunswick. It is documenting how a medium-sized industrial city of a 120,000 people is reshaping its economic base, sustaining its cultural life, and protecting and conserving its natural environment.

The Community-University Research Alliance program focuses on four broad and interrelated themes that will address many aspects of the Industrial City in Transition. Research themes include:

• The People of Saint John: A Community and Neighbourhood Profile
• The Environmental History of Saint John
• Urban and Rural Planning and the Changing Shape of Greater Saint John
• Cultural Representations of Greater Saint John

The Human Development Council is one of five partners involved in this research project. Others include:

• UNB Saint John
• Atlantic Coastal Action Program
• New Brunswick Museum
• Peninsula Heritage Inc.

Photo: Joe Godin

Mayor McFarlane's 2006 State of the City Address

The following is an excerpt from Saint John Mayor Norman McFarlane's State of the City Address, delivered Jan. 17, 2006. The Human Development Council figures prominently in the City's True Growth Strategy and it's commitment to reduce poverty.

True Growth: As I've said, True Growth is ultimately about attracting people to our community and in 2006 nothing will be more important. Saint John now has an unemployment rate of 5.5 per cent. This is record breaking news and presents us with a new challenge - work force shortages. I've heard this everywhere - in IT companies, trucking companies and throughout the trades, Saint John needs more people. Overcoming this growth-related challenge cannot be done without repatriation, retaining and creating a positive environment for immigration.To that end, continuing to engage our youth with initiatives like Fusion and the Human Development Council's Youth Cabinet will guide us to ensure that as a community we are developing the policies and infrastructure to retain many of our young people and our future leaders in our city.In 2006, through the efforts of our economic development arm, Enterprise Saint John and its partners, we will be developing and launching several 'made in Saint John' initiatives to attract new and former residents back to our community ensuring we have the labour force numbers so that we can continue to grow our city.

Social Development: I've said all along that the city has a leadership role to play in social development. With prosperity all around us, a poverty rate that drops from 29 per cent to 25 per cent is still unacceptable.We heard just last week at BCAPI's annual dinner about our community's many innovative projects, including Vibrant Communities, and the Human Development Council which are making a real difference combating unacceptable rates of poverty and developing more affordable housing. In a prosperous community this is only socially responsible.

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