The Vancouver Collective House Network presents two free opportunities to
in long-established collective houses in the Commercial Drive area,
and have been sponsored by the Neighbourhood Small Grant Program
via the Vancouver Foundation.
happiness, connectedness and sustainability. Not to mention save money,
tread lightly on the environment, and enjoy life together!
Registration required.
Let us know in advance if you need child-care.
Snacks & bus tickets provided.
Both hosting houses have accessibility challenges (between 10 and 15 stairs).
collective living: how to make it work in a collective house
Thursday, August 4
6:30 – 9pm
This workshop outlines foundational systems and structures that make collective living successful. We’ll look at food & shared meals, work & energy around the home (aka chores), financial options, managing collective projects, and how to start a collective house. Using years of lived experience from within the Collective House Network, within each topic we’ll consider a range of possibilities to prepare you to move forward with the pieces that are right for you. Hosted by the Beehive Collective House.
Workshop followed by a short social, together with participants from "creating welcoming homes" workshop.
creating welcoming homes: anti-oppression and collective housing
Thursday, August 4
6 – 9pm
This workshop explores the social dynamics of the collective house movement, asking some important questions about who we attract to our houses and why. Through anti-oppression exercises and discussion, participants will be invited to strengthen understanding of some of the ways various forms of oppression operate in daily life, developing skills and awareness to create safe, welcoming homes. Hosted by the Bicyclette Rouge Collective House.
Workshop followed by a short social, together with participants from "collective living: how to make it work" workshop.
Facilitator bios for collective living: how to make it work in a collective house
Allison Prime is a sustainability educator, teacher, guide and facilitator who lives at a collective house called cherry tree fort. She is passionate about collective living and loves sharing her passion with the world.
Sara Ross (aka RedSara) lives at the Beehive, and loves the connections and practical life support it provides day to day. She is a community artist and organizer, collective facilitator, and loves to ride her bike into the sunset or the rain!
Facilitator bios for creating welcoming homes: anti-oppression and collective houses
Naava Smolash is a researcher and teacher whose work centres on nationalism, racialization, and antiracism. She has provided workshops on anti-oppression and critical media literacy for grassroots organizations such as SFPIRG, the Otesha Project, and others. She currently teaches a third year literature class on nationalism in Canadian literature at Simon Fraser University, and collaborates with the Press Release collective producing social-movement-based poetry. She has helped found three collective houses, including La Bicyclette Rouge where she currently lives. She is one of the co-founders of the Vancouver Collective House Network.
Anthony Meza-Wilson has lived in many (by last count 9) communal living situations throughout his entire life across North and South America. He has served as faculty at the North American Students of Cooperation Education and Training Institute since 2004 and is thrilled by creating spaces where people freely share skills, ideas, and resources. He is currently working to complete a Master's degree in Educational Studies at UBC where he studies the intersections between anti-authoritarian educational projects and anti-oppression work, particularly decolonization. He loves the wilderness, cats, and red raspberries and frequently drinks far too much coffee.
