Maria is the former Vice Mayor of Vienna, Austria, where she was responsible for Urban Planning, Traffic & Transport, Climate Protection, Energy and Public Participation. She is devoted to open, inclusive and green cities and is passionate about urban transformation and sustainable, systemic change. In her nine years serving as Vice Mayor, she implemented a transformation agenda that has significantly contributed to Vienna’s top position in liveability rankings within the last decade.

Maria now works as an independent advisor on urban transformation. She shares her experience with cities, NGOs, organizations and corporations developing strategies, agendas and solutions, organizing transition management and capacity building for liveable, sustainable and inclusive cities.

Kevin Huang 黃儀軒 (he/him) is the co-founder and executive director of Hua Foundation, an organization – based in Vancouver – with the mission of strengthening the capacity among East Asian diasporic youth, in solidarity with other communities, to challenge, change, and create systems for a more equitable and just future. His work has ranged from scaling culturally sensitive consumer-based conservation strategies through a project called Shark Truth, advancing municipal food policy to address inclusion and racial equity, to providing supports for youth from ethnocultural communities to reclaim their cultural identity on their own terms.

Kevin organizes in Vancouver’s Chinatown and serves on committees with Vancity Credit Union, Vancouver Foundation, and the City of Vancouver.

Ginger Gosnell-Myers, member of the Nisga’a and Kwakwak’awakw Nations, served as the City of Vancouver’s first Indigenous Relations Manager. She was central to advancing Vancouver as the world’s first official City of Reconciliation, and created the City’s reconciliation framework to ensure Indigenous identities and worldviews were included in City plans. Ginger was key to the Vancouver City Council’s official recognition that it is on unceded Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh homelands – the only government in Canada to do so.

Ginger has also served as the Project Manager and Public Engagement Director for the Environics Institute’s Urban Aboriginal Peoples Study, Canada’s largest research study on Aboriginal people living in cities, focusing on their values, aspirations, experiences and identity.

Nic is a joy and justice-seeker who believes that accountability and reflection are the necessary foundations to make equity, diversity and inclusion work sustainable. Her heart-centered approach, coupled with her breadth of experience generates a unique set of services through her consulting company, Hook or Crook. Possessing a penchant for lively discussions and self-exploration, Nic is also co-creator and co-host of the podcast Seen, and serves as a board member at WISH Drop-in Centre Society and Healing in Colour. Nic holds a Master of Public Administration and a Bachelor of Arts in Gender, Race, Sexuality and Social Justice Studies.

Tiffany is a senior lecturer in the Department of Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies and the Urban Studies Program at Simon Fraser University. She is originally from Bde Óta Othúŋwe (Minneapolis), traditional Dakota homelands. She teaches courses on feminist urbanism and research methods and serves on the Advisory for SFU’s Community Engaged Research initiative (CERi).

Tiffany completed a master’s in public policy, followed by a doctorate in geography with a certificate in feminist studies from the University of Minnesota. Her research and community activism focuses on urban inequalities and inclusion strategies, especially those targeting women and 2SLGBTQ+ communities.

Reading by

Elliott Slinn

Poet Laureate, City of New Westminster

Elliott is New Westminster’s 5th poet laureate. This role sees has him act as a literary ambassador for the City, inspiring those around him by sharing his passion for poetry and art. Elliott enjoys writing poetry on the spot using his typewriter. His poem at Reimagining our Cities will be based on his reflections during the panel discussion – listen carefully, you might even hear him typing!

Format

• Doors open at 6:00 pm. Seating will be first come first served.
• The event starts at 6:30 pm, followed by
• A keynote address
• A moderated panel discussion
• And an audience Q&A
• The event will close with a poem created at the event by Elliott Slinn, New Westminster’s Poet Laurette

Location

• Our event will be held in the Djavad Mowafaghian Cinema at SFU Goldcorp Centre for the Arts (149 West Hastings Street, Vancouver).
• The main entrance to Goldcorp Centre for the Arts is located in the courtyard on the North side of the building, near the corner of Cambie St. and Cordova St. The building is also accessible via the doors on the South side of the building on Hastings St. (in the block between Cambie St. and Abbot St.).

Parking

• Several EasyPark lots are located near Goldcorp Centre for the Arts (head to our event page for more information).
• Please note that other parking options are available around Goldcorp Centre for the Arts, including street parking and other parking lots.

Transit

• Goldcorp Centre for the Arts is accessible by multiple bus routes. The centre is also a walkable distance from the Waterfront and Stadium-Chinatown Skytrain Stations. Plan your transit trip at www.translink.ca, or with google maps.

Cycling

• Public bike racks are located near the Cordova entrance of Goldcorp Centre for the Arts.

Accessibility

Mobility Access

The building is accessible at street level on the Hastings side or via a ramp on the Cordova Street Courtyard side (across from JJ Bean Coffee). There are two ramp entry points, one is located against the building, near the entrance to the Woodward’s Westbank Atrium (which houses London Drugs and Nesters) and one is located against the building, beside the alley. Both the Hastings doors and the Cordova Courtyard doors can be operated by accessibility buttons located beside the doorways.

The Djavad Mowafaghian Cinema is located on the second floor of the building and is wheelchair accessible.

Washrooms

Public washrooms are available on the B2, 2, 3 and 4 levels of the SFU Goldcorp Centre for the Arts building. All public washrooms are equipped with wheelchair accessible stalls. Gender Neutral washroom is available on the B2 level.

Other accessibility needs

• ASL interpretation will be available for our live event. Closed captions are available for our online livestream
• Hearing assist headsets are available from SFU for the duration of that event, please check this webpage for details
• This event is child-friendly and there will be childminding onsite for our in-person event
• Guide and medically required companion dogs are welcome in Goldcorp Centre for the Arts. For audience safety and comfort, please email sshortt@ywcavan.org if you are bringing a companion dog
• There are water stations that dispense filtered water on each floor of Goldcorp Centre for the Arts
• For other accessibility needs, please email sshortt@ywcavan.org or visit SFU’s webpage.

ABOUT YWCA CITY SHIFT

YWCA City Shift aims to make our region more equitable, prosperous, and just by supporting Metro Vancouver cities to challenge assumptions, incorporate diverse perspectives, and support actions that serve the entire community.

YWCA City Shift is funded by Women and Gender Equality Canada.