Submitted by Rachel Henderson - MA Sustainable Leisure Management Student
 
Through coordination by faculty Dr. Suzanne de la Barre (Department of Recreation and Tourism and WLCE), Vancouver Island University is part of a global network of seven universities that conduct circumpolar tourism research and educational programming. The University of the Arctic’s (UArctic) Master’s Certificate in Northern Tourism was created and developed as a collaboration between Vancouver Island University (Canada), Nipissing University (Canada), UiT the Arctic University of Norway (Norway), Umeå University (Sweden), University of Oulu (Finland), University of Lapland (Finland), and the University of Iceland (Iceland).
 
The Master’s Certificate in Northern Tourism is a three-course certificate offered to graduate-level students from UArctic partner university programs. This certificate consists of two online courses; Sustainable Tourism Development in Northern Environments and Northern Tourism: Performances and Experiences, and one (typically) in-person field course; Northern Tourism in Practice. Each course offers a unique perspective to the theories and practices related to northern tourism environments, presented in collaboration by instructors from diverse northern tourism research backgrounds.
 
After having completed the two previous online courses of the Master’s Certificate in Northern Tourism, I participated in this year’s field course in Pyhä-Luosto National Park, northern Finland.
 
On October 31st, 2022, I joined seven graduate students and five researchers from Canadian, Icelandic, Swedish, and Finnish universities to embark on a journey to Pyhä-Luosto National Park in northern Finland. Upon arrival to the park, we settled into our home for the next five days; a cozy, historic cabin equipped with a kitchen, a fireplace, and (my personal favourite feature) a sauna.
 
After a flurry of short introductions and greetings, we made our way to the Naava visitor centre where we were introduced to the history of the area. Using the guiding question, “How should we (re)think and communicate tourism in the era of climate emergency – and in the aftermath of COVID-19 pandemic?” discussions emerged surrounding our roles as northern tourism researchers, students, and employees in the current global setting. This was the first of many moments during the field course that I realized just how powerful it is to be with fellow researchers and students who share similar interests and backgrounds.
 
The following day we heard from a local tourism operator, ate local cuisine, and walked through the endless trails that exist in the region. All these experiences set the scene for our first assignment – creating a digital story to illustrate the need to re-think tourism in the current era.

Contributed by Rachel Henderson, February 9, 2022

On February 2 – 4, 2022, I joined my fellow classmates of SLM 604 to participate in the Vancouver Learning Lab (VLL), a field-based experiential learning event organized by Dr. Suzanne de la Barre. Throughout our short three days in the city of Vancouver, we visited several social enterprises to investigate real-life examples of how to influence change towards sustainability. Inspirational, is certainly an understatement to the work these organizations do to both enable and embrace change.
 
One of our stops of the VLL was to Groundswell Alternative Business School, an organization that empowers (often systemically marginalized) citizens to have the tools and resources to influence change (Groundswell, n.d.). We even had the opportunity to meet with alumni Suzie to hear her story of social innovation within the bike community.

In response to the pandemic-induced ‘bike boom’, Suzie developed an inclusive bike education space for individuals who would otherwise feel unwelcome in cis male-dominated bike shops (Suzie, personal communication, February 4, 2022). This inclusive environment not only empowers individuals to develop their own bike knowledge capacity, but also seeks to address the ongoing ‘breakable bike’ culture that largely ignores preventative maintenance (Suzie, personal communication, February 4, 2022). In adopting Green’s (2016) terminology, I would say that Suzie embraced a critical ‘window of opportunity’ for meaningful change. As a bike-enthusiast myself, I know firsthand that the lack of inclusivity in bike spaces predates the global pandemic, however, I’m not so sure if Suzie’s business would have gained as much momentum without the recent bike demand. As Wagner (2016) emphasizes, solutions to complex problems are typically non-linear, and embracing existing momentum often enables exponential growth. In essence, I believe that Suzie embraced the opportunity to change at the right time.

However, just like the steam clock in Vancouver’s Gastown, the time might not always be right. Sometimes the time for social change is not possible, and as frustrating as that feels, I think it is better not to dwell on what we can’t do, but rather what we can. As echoed by Hunjan and Pettit (2011), this involves being motivated to change through power, rather than powerlessness. Change happens when we focus on collective capacity building, empowering citizens, and cultivating a system to influence change when the time is right.

I was very inspired by a quote from Barbara Lane, Director/General Manager of Metro Vancouver’s YWCA Hotel, who eloquently stated that, “if no one is brave, then nothing ever changes” (B. Lane, personal communication, February 2, 2022). Truly, humans are at the heart of any social change initiative. This fact was evident while visiting the YWCA Hotel where we were given a small glimpse into the people behind a social enterprise, and how they are able to embrace complex situations to facilitate meaningful change.

In the face of the ongoing systematic inequalities related to women, non-binary, Two-Spirit, and transgender individuals and families in Canada, the YWCA Hotel seeks to bring awareness and advocacy for housing issues, truth and reconciliation, and gender equity in Metro Vancouver (B. Lane, personal communication, February 2, 2022). By doing this, I believe that the YWCA Hotel reduces the stigma associated with seeking housing help. I agree with Belcher and DeForge (2012) in stating that reducing stigmatization discourages the ‘us versus them’ mentality, and further contributes towards societal togetherness. For the same reason (and with risk of stating an oxymoron), I’d also argue that the YWCA Hotel’s self-isolation services during the COVID-19 pandemic actually reduce the stigma associated with COVID-19 infection, and similarly contribute towards greater community togetherness. Thus, I believe that the YWCA Hotel promotes community coalition building which, as Bonnet (2016) describes, significantly influences meaningful social change for better communities. Undoubtedly, social change is possible with the right people.

The third organization we visited during the VLL, 312 Main, is situated in the former Vancouver Police Department headquarters, transformed into a community-centred hub for social and economic innovation (312 Main, n.d.). As a symbol of powerlessness and oppression for many Indigenous peoples, the building of 312 Main serves as a historical reminder to the system which reinforces marginalization. As Bonnet (2016) questions, “how does the community redevelop when some within the community feel alienated or marginalized?” (p. 186). In my opinion, it is impossible.
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Through engaging in Indigenous stakeholders in the building’s planning (S. Swarup, personal communication, February 2, 2022), I strongly believe that 312 Main is influencing adaptive change towards a more inclusive Vancouver community. As Bonnet (2016) describes, awareness of community history is an important element of building coalitions, and is critical in our understanding of systems of oppression. In this fashion, I believe 312 Main strives to remember their past, without re-traumatizing those who have faced harm within its space. Indeed, the contextual history of a community is another important consideration when striving for social change.
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Overall, my biggest takeaway from the VLL is that change often isn’t simple, it often isn’t easy, but it is possible. I agree with Wagner (2016) in describing a need to embrace influence – rather than control – in order for organic change to occur. While I can’t pretend to know when the right time for change is, I can certainly acknowledge that it is always the right time for developing our collective capacity to influence and embrace change in the future. With the right people, in the right place, at the right time, we can influence meaningful social change towards resilient communities.
 
A huge thank you goes to YWCA Hotel, 312 Main, and Groundswell for welcoming us into their spaces to share their stories, and to Dr. Suzanne de la Barre and Dr. Patrick Brouder for making the Vancouver Learning Lab happen. It was an honour to learn and stay on the unceded territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and Sel̓íl̓witulh (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations.

References
 
312 Main. (n.d.). A centre for social and economic innovation. https://312main.ca/#about-312
 
Belcher, J. R., & DeForge, B. R. (2012). Social stigma and homelessness: The limits of social change. Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment, 22(8), 929–946. https://doi.org/10.1080/10911359.2012.707941
 
Bonnet, J. (2016). Citizenship. In Leadership for a better world: Understanding the social change model of leadership development (2nd ed., pp. 175–196). John Wiley & Sons, Incorporated. http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/
 
Green, D. (2016). How Change Happens. Oxford University Press.  https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198785392.001.0001

Groundswell. (n.d.). Programs in leadership for social change. https://groundswellschool.com/

Hunjan, R., & Pettit, J. (2011). Power: A practical guide for facilitating social change. Carnegie United Kingdom Trust. https://www.ywcaelpaso.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/37/Power-A-Practical-Guide-for-Facilitating-Social-Change_0.pdf
 
Wagner, W. (2016). Change. In S.R. Komives, W. Wagner, & National Clearinghouse for Leadership Programs (Eds.). Leadership for a better world: Understanding the social change model of leadership development. (pp. 201-232). John Wiley & Sons Incorporated. http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/