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This action research inquiry, undertaken in partnership with the Independent Schools Association of British Columbia (ISABC), was guided by the question: How might the ISABC’s Team Leadership Program support the leadership development and thriving of emerging and middle leaders throughout and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic? Data were collected with a survey and two focus groups involving 52 participants from 16 independent schools. Arts-based approaches included photo elicitation and found poetry. Key findings indicated the pandemic has magnified the human side of educational leadership and thriving as being a middle leader requires communication, relationship building, and the prioritization of followers’ needs. Recommendations addressed strategies to (a) develop self-awareness, coaching, and interpersonal skills amongst emerging leaders; (b) capitalize on existing leadership networks to foster a stronger sense of belonging within the ISABC; and (c) offer leadership-focused professional development and resources accessible to the broader ISABC community. Keywords: arts-based research, found poetry, K–12, independent schools, leadership development, middle leaders, photo elicitation, thriving at work

This case study will critically examine lessons learned during COVID-19 to inform how we advance change towards socially sustainable public spaces. Through the lens of equity, access to public space for vulnerable populations during COVID-19 in Victoria, British Columbia, is explored. A stakeholder analysis is presented to illuminate the nature of stakeholder engagement within the City of Victoria, followed by a review of the intersectoral response that led to the activation of ERCs and the mobilization of hotel rooms to accommodate people experiencing homelessness during the pandemic. Furthermore, this case study will discuss how participatory processes, such as equity-centred design, placemaking, and equity mapping, can facilitate community and citizen engagement. This case highlights the emergence of leisure-related innovations as catalysts for social change—an increasingly important area of leisure research. In addition, this case study outlines the urgent need for research related to the intersection of COVID-19, equity, public space, and leisure. For broader audiences, such as local governments, not-for profit organizations, and leisure service providers, the value of this case study is underscored by the relevance of co-creation in the context of inclusive land-use planning, policy, and design. https://viurrspace.ca/bitstream/handle/10613/25231/Broderick.pdf?sequence=3

This case study explores the conditions and motives that led to the formation of a local Chapter of environmental educators and documents the successes and challenges that occurred during the Chapter’s first year as the Salish Sea Environmental Educators Provincial Specialist Association (SSEEPSA). The thesis also explores the challenges experienced by the writer as a public-school environmental educator and highlights the learning and identity-forming experiences that occurred while she worked in collaboration with teachers who shared similar interests and passions. Details of the events that SSEEPSA organized offer best practices to implement when establishing a professional network or Chapter of a Provincial Specialist Association (PSA). In a year that was marked with additional isolation and challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the thesis highlights the importance to teachers of professional communities in which to share their passions and knowledge and collaborate on projects and practices that extend beyond their classrooms.

Building equitable, accessible and affordable campuses through Co-operatives. Webinars discussing co-operatives, what they are and how they could make for more equitable and accessible campus communities. Co-op webinar 2. This video is part of the second webinar in the webinar series on "COVID-19 Response: Building Higher Learning Resilience in the Face of Epidemics: Co-operatives and Campuses". Webinar occurred on March 17th, 2021.

For decades, the Canadian news media industry has been eroded by a myriad of factors including media conglomeration, the changing digital landscape, and declining advertising revenue—a situation which has only been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. This research examines six community news organizations across the western provinces of Alberta and British Columbia who are using new journalism practices and revenue models to serve their communities as a response to the ongoing crisis narrative currently surrounding the Canadian media industry. Through an action research appreciative inquiry methodology, this research focuses on what is working well for these organizations to create new regionally based knowledge regarding the keys to their current success, to future sustainability, and to potential replicability. In addition, the data is analyzed through Carlson’s metajournalistic discourse framework to uncover in what ways these journalists are challenging or changing the discourse surrounding local news production in their communities and in the wider industry. It concludes there are several foundational blocks other community news publishers can build upon to help create healthy and diverse media ecosystems, and while readers are showing support for these news organizations, the wider industry could be doing more to legitimize their organizations and metajournalisitc discourses.

Building equitable, accessible and affordable campuses through Co-operatives. Webinars discussing co-operatives, what they are and how they could make for more equitable and accessible campus communities. Co-op webinar 1. This video is part of the first webinar in the webinar series on "COVID-19 Response: Building Higher Learning Resilience in the Face of Epidemics". Webinar occurred on February 24th, 2021.

Building equitable, accessible and affordable campuses through Co-operatives. Webinars discussing co-operatives, what they are and how they could make for more equitable and accessible campus communities. Co-op webinar 2. This video is part of the second webinar in the webinar series on "COVID-19 Response: Building Higher Learning Resilience in the Face of Epidemics: Co-operatives and Campuses". Webinar occurred on March 17th, 2021.

Gateway communities throughout the intermountain west are an important part of the tourism experience. They are often the doorstep to the national parks and public lands that draw millions of international and domestic visitors each year. Along with many benefits, tourism brings unique challenges to these communities, and they face them with limited staff, resources, and time. This chapter explains the recent development of the Gateway and Natural Amenity Region (GNAR) Initiative and its current efforts to assist gateway communities in the intermountain west region of the United States. The GNAR Initiative is a Cooperative Extension program of the Institute of Outdoor Recreation and Tourism at Utah State University. The Initiative is a hub for gateway community stakeholders to identify shared needs, and cooperatively develop, share, and access resources. The initiative utilizes the infrastructure and mission of the university land grant extension system to operationalize its own, similarly aligned three-part mission: multidisciplinary, trans-boundary research, community and student education, and community capacity building. An overview of the GNAR Initiative’s development is provided as a possible model for similar efforts in other regions. The GNAR Initiative’s internal structure and development path focused on using a collaborative, grass-roots effort to build peer-to-peer networks that link GNAR communities to GNAR communities, and GNAR communities to research and resources in an arena that continues to rapidly evolve. The Initiative’s efforts to include a diverse stakeholder group to guide its efforts resulted in the initiative being equipped to quickly respond to the evolving issues in gateway communities during the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020. https://viurrspace.ca/bitstream/handle/10613/25258/PowellRumoreSmith.pdf?sequence=3

This thesis explored the question: “How might I act to facilitate interorganizational collaboration as an outside third-party action researcher and leader?” This first person-action research applied action learning methodologies and methods that included reflexive learning through journal writing and engaging in feedback sessions with feedback partners and a subject-matter expert. This study found that my own feelings, actions, and behaviours as well as those of others influenced the level of success of my ability to facilitate interorganizational leadership. The findings also demonstrated my ability and desire to learn new behaviours and actions that may improve my skills as a facilitative leader in the context of interorganizational collaboration. Recommendations for facilitating interorganizational collaboration as an outside third party and possible areas for further examination arose from this study. Keywords: action learning research; interorganizational collaboration; facilitative leadership, and change leadership; first-person action research.

Building equitable, accessible and affordable campuses through Co-operatives. Webinars discussing co-operatives, what they are and how they could make for more equitable and accessible campus communities. Co-op webinar 1. This video is part of the first webinar in the webinar series on "COVID-19 Response: Building Higher Learning Resilience in the Face of Epidemics". Webinar occurred on February 24th, 2021.