VANCOUVER, BC (May 19, 2021) – The COVID-19 and drug poisoning health emergencies have layered new challenges on to a frontline sector already facing multiple struggles to deliver affordable housing across B.C., making the potential for organizational and staff fatigue very real.
At the Virtual RENT event on Thursday, May 20, keynote speaker Vikki Reynolds, a social justice advocate and therapist, will explore how non-profit housing providers can create an environment of collective care – while ensuring the safety of staff, residents, clients and visitors – so they can continue to deliver affordable housing to those who need it.
“Hope is hard to find right now, but it’s our ethical obligation to bring hope to our work,” Reynolds said. Keeping tenants and clients at the front and centre of non-profit housing work builds solidarity with those we serve and builds collective care among staff, rather than individually centred self-care.
The Hon. David Eby, Attorney General and Minister Responsible for Housing, will deliver the morning keynote address to update the sector on the provincial government’s affordable housing initiatives and its responses to the affordable housing and homelessness crisis.
“The affordable housing sector is at a unique moment, facing both tremendous opportunity but also ever-growing challenges,” said BCNPHA CEO Jill Atkey. “COVID-19 has created many new issues and further exposed inequality that has been there all along, all of which has put significant pressure on our sector, but it has also demonstrated how important access to affordable housing is for individual and community health. Federal and provincial government funding commitments have created new opportunities for the sector to expand affordable housing across B.C., and the RENT event provides a platform for housing providers to share ideas and connect with decision-makers to help ensure that happens as quickly as possible.”
The second annual virtual RENT event (Regional Education, Networking & Tradeshow) is expected to draw more than 500 non-profit housing providers, thought leaders and policy makers online for a day of education and professional development to tackle the new challenges facing our sector amid the ongoing pandemic.
RENT education sessions explore a wide range of non-profit housing sector themes, including these highlights:
- Supporting Tenants in Reshaping Their Housing and Communities will share the initiatives developed with tenants and implemented by housing providers in regions throughout B.C.
- Leading Teams Through Change and Uncertainty will touch on neuroscience frameworks to support staff in navigating the unknown
- AHMA Talks, delivered by Aboriginal Housing Management Association CEO Margaret Pfoh and a panel of speakers, examines the systemic barriers faced by Indigenous Peoples in accessing Canadian housing systems
- Designing to Meet BC Housing Sustainability examines the early design considerations that will help societies avoid costly redesigns and achieve high energy efficiency standards
Media are welcome to join us for all or part of the day to attend sessions or to connect with members and/or presenters.
When: Thursday, May 20, 2021 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Where: virtualrent.bcnpha.ca
Contact: For access to the Virtual RENT event, or to book an interview, please contact Sarah Payne at 236-521-0617 or sarah@bcnpha.ca.