Posts from — October 2010

The sustained standing ovation that greeted the final chorus of Vancouver Opera’s Lillian Alling at the Queen Elizabeth last night was evidence of the growing strength of BC’s cultural institutions, despite the recent provincial funding cuts.

This world premiere, which garnered outstanding reviews, was commissioned by Vancouver Opera in partnership with the Banff Centre. Seven years in the making, it is based on a uniquely BC story that uses the province’s wilderness as a backdrop for a mystery that explores issues as diverse as feminism and immigration.

The entire production was mounted with a self-confidence and professionalism we see increasingly on BC stages and and in major galleries. It was not only made in BC, it probably could only be made in BC. It is striking to contrast this reality with the virtual absence of top-ranked BC film and television drama (especially since the demise of Chris Haddock’s Intelligence), despite the size and sophistication of our film industry.

Why? No doubt there are many reasons, but it  is exciting to imagine the possibilities if BC’s cultural sector received even a fraction of the support that is typical in a province like Quebec, which stands sixth among Canada’s provinces and territories but invests nearly 10 times as much as BC.

What will global transportation look like in 40 years?

How about a 48-hour rail trip from Beijing to London? China is investing billions in its new high speed rail network, with transcontinental trips a real possibility.

Or perhaps a new wireless streetcar system that opens cramped downtown cores to trams without spoiling the view? A pilot program is under way in Augsburg, Germany.

Mass transit monorails that handle as three times as many people in an hour as Skytrain? Several such systems are under construction, including in Sao Paolo.

It’s not only all possible, it’s happening, according to the “gee whiz” presentation by Bombardier’s Steve Hall at yesterday’s panel discussion on future transport options organized by the Urban Land Institute. (Many of Hall’s key points were also part of this presentation last year.)

Excellent news, but light years from the Metro Vancouver reality, where Translink is doggedly consulting unhappy muncipalities on a proposed property tax lift to fund the long-awaited Evergreen Line.

Thirty years ago, 1,300 women made a sudden trip to Ottawa to hold a conference on women’s rights that the Liberal government of Pierre Trudeau had cancelled.

Their efforts produced dramatic changes in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, a story now retold in Constitute, a documentary on how Sections 15 and 28 became enshrined in the Charter.

As film maker Susan Bazilli told more than 100 gathered in Vancouver Oct. 18 for the premiere, the story of women’s equality in the Charter is “fundamentally about democracy and how we make democracy work.” It was a moving and exciting evening for many of the activists, young and old, who gathered at the showing sponsored by West Coast Leaf on Persons Day.

Despite the profound changes driven by the women who won Sections 15 and 28, one goal remained elusive. According to Mary Lou McPhedran, who participated in a panel discussion after the premiere, feminist activist Doris Anderson, who was interviewed for the film shortly before her death, assessed the victory this way: “We changed the Constitution, but we failed to change the electoral system.”

As a consequence, women have made great strides, but Canada and provinces like British Columbia still achieve poor grades when ranked against international standards of women’s rights.

Constitute is available online and comes packaged with a curriculum package to make it suitable for inclusion in BC school courses.

The explosion of poverty in America’s car-friendly suburbs, where waves of foreclosures are stripping families of their equity, is underlining the importance of public transit in supporting families on low income. The crisis is deepening this week as many states halt foreclosure sales because of fraud claims, a development that giving the US economy a further pounding.

But as this note on Planetizen makes clear, the newly-poor in these suburbs have no access to cheap public transit to continue job hunts or even get to work. Nor can their cash-strapped municipalities even think about new transit investment.

It’s a timely reminder that Metro Vancouver and Translink policy-makers need to avoid an academic argument over whether or not investments should serve existing ridership (as on the Broadway Corridor) or in emerging, lower-density communities (like Surrey). We need a pragmatic plan to do both, so that workers can get to the jobs.

In the longer-term, suburban planning needs to evolve its own town-centre approach to support transit where the car is now king.