Post update, July 8th 2021 – Recruitment for these openings has now closed!

The last meeting of the VFPC’s term was held in April and the committee is now on hiatus as  part of the usual turnover that takes place for all City advisory bodies every two years.

During this time, new members are being appointed by Council and, once appointed, the new members will participate in several training and orientation meetings in June-July. We anticipate that the first formal meeting of the VFPC, open to members of the public to attend, will be in September.

Please note and help spread the word – the VFPC is still recruiting for two additional applicants who identify as Indigenous. The recruitment of Indigenous identifying members is in fulfilment of the VFPC’s membership structure outlined here. More information can be found at www.vancouver.ca/volunteer (scroll to the bottom and select “learn more and apply”). Or reach out to foodpolicy@vancouver.ca with any questions.

Save the date! The next VFPC meeting is:

Thursday, April 29, 6pm,
Virtually (WebEx)
Link to the meeting can be accessed here.

Join in and say hi for our last meeting of the term! We’ll be wrapping up with a continued discussion on the urban farming guidelines, as well as a reflection on the accomplishments and progress achieved in food policy in the past year.

Agenda Overview:

• Councillor Bligh
• Councillor Wiebe
• Commissioner Dumont
• Trustee Gonzalez
• Rebecca Till (Park Board staff) 
• Rachel Telling (Sustainability Staff) 
• Caitlin Dorward (Social Policy Staff) 

• Leadership team
• Food waste
• Food cultivation and urban agriculture
• Children and youth
• Development/retail
• Community Food Programming

• The Urban Farming Working Group has put together a draft motion framing the history of urban farming and to ask council to remove barriers to urban farming.

• Housekeeping items
• Update on works in progress from working group to be continued in new term.

• Term in review. 

Update as of May 26, 2021: General applications have closed but recruitment is still open for two members who identify as Indigenous.  The recruitment of Indigenous identifying members is in fulfilment of the VFPC’s membership structure outlined here. More information can be found at www.vancouver.ca/volunteer (scroll to the bottom and select “learn more and apply”). Or reach out to foodpolicy@vancouver.ca with any questions.

Are you interested in becoming a member of the VFPC?

The VFPC’s current term ends on April 30th, 2021, and the City is now accepting applications from members of the public to serve on the next term (May 2021 – December 2022).  The application period is open from March 16th – 31st at  https://vancouver.ca/volunteer (scroll down and click “learn more and apply”).

Before applying, you can review more information about the VFPC on the City’s website, and review information about eligibility requirements for membership here. You can also find out more about the VFPC’s membership structure, which is informed both by “expertise” and “lived experience” here.

We would greatly appreciate if you could circulate this opportunity to others in your community who may be interested.

If you have questions about this opportunity, please feel free to reach out to the Food Policy team at foodpolicy@vancouver.ca

April 8, 2021 | 6pm – 8:30pm
Online on Zoom, pre-registration required at: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZcpc-isrTkpHddH6OA1vY6wvK6i-e56VCYq

Everyone is welcome!

Join us for a special session to learn about the progress of the Vancouver Park Board Local Food Action Plan (LFAP) Update and provide input. At this special session hosted by the VFPC, the Park Board’s LFAP Update team will share preliminary findings from our research, assessment, and engagement process so far. We will then host breakout groups for members of the public and VFPC members to discuss proposed goals for the plan with the LFAP team. In preparation for the session, we recommend reviewing the background below and the current LFAP.

Background: In 2013, the Vancouver Park Board adopted a Local Food Action Plan (LFAP) to enhance the local food landscape. This plan was guided by 5 goals and 55 actions. Many of the actions were achieved within the 5-year timeframe of the LFAP. However, so much has changed since the approval of the LFAP. We are now embarking on a process to update the LFAP to reflect the current food landscape and future needs with an emphasis on:

• Increasing and/or enhancing food assets and services
• Building resilience to mitigate the effects of a changing climate
• Allocating resources and reduce barriers to currently underserved populations
• Decolonizing the local food system to support indigenous food systems, food sovereignty, foraging practices, and food asset rich parks and natural areas
• Addressing gaps and opportunities highlighted during the COVID-19 pandemic including building community resilience to crisis, and to support the subsequent recovery process

Save the date! The next VFPC meeting is January 7, 2021.

Event password: VFPC

Join the meeting

Join by phone (audio only)

1-604-646-8916
1-855-699-3239 (Canada – toll free)

Access code: 146 067 0818

Agenda:

6:00 – 6:10 pm
Opening

• Confirming quorum
• Welcome and land acknowledgement
• Reminders re: online meeting format and etiquette
• Introductions

Leave of Absence Requests

Approval of Minutes – November

6:15 – 6:30pm
1. Liaison updates

1. 1. • Councillor Bligh
      • Councillor Wiebe
      • Commissioner Dumont
      • Trustee Gonzalez
      • Rebecca Till (Park Board staff)
      • Rachel Telling (Sustainability Staff)
      • Caitlin Dorward (Social Policy staff)

6:30 – 6:45 pm
2. Working group updates

• • Leadership Team (including updates on meeting schedule/plan to May 2021)
    • February = No Meeting
    • March = informal meeting on LFAP (open to the public, no minutes, no quorum needed)
    • Agenda: LFAP engagement, TBD based on January session and input from members/working groups
    • Proposed date: March 4th
    • April = Formal Meeting:April 1st

• • Food Waste
  • Food Cultivation & Urban Agriculture
  • Children & Youth
  • Development/Retail
  • Community Food Programming

6:45 – 7:00 pm
3. Letter of support for the DTES Food Hub

• This request comes from Jill and Sam from the DTES Indigenized Food Sovereignty Co-op who came to speak to the VFPC earlier this
• A collective under the name of the DTES Indigenized Food Sovereignty Co-op is working together to develop a food hub in the DTES to “build a shared food storage and processing facility to ensure a secure stream of healthy, culturally-appropriate food for a coalition of DTES frontline agencies”
• https://docs.google.com/document/d/1HChGKjtygk8X3t2dzZAMEfKlWp

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• At the meeting we will discuss the letter and look for a motion to approve the letter to send to council and the funder(s)

7:00 – 7:15 pm
4. Vancouver Food Policy Council – Report of Activities 2019-2020

 This is a DRAFT report of activities that will go back to council and will inform our priorities for the rest of our session, as well as help inform the next session. Please review this document, add comments, questions, thoughts, additions, We will discuss, and then will be looking for a motion to accept the report of activities.

• https://docs.google.com/document/d/1s7VymtvVXTXzecsst24LWOlelZ hlSJ25/edit#

7:25 – 8:25 pm
5. Vancouver Social Infrastructure Presentation

• What is social infrastructure? It refers to facilities and services that are usually run by nonprofits that help individuals, families, and community groups meet their social needs, and enhance community well-being. Examples include: neighbourhood houses, family places, youth centres, seniors’ centres, informal gathering spaces, indigenous healing and wellness centres, and diverse social and community serving spaces for drop-ins, resources or referrals. As part the strategy’s work to date, the City have engaged with various stakeholders, including social nonprofits, places of worship, and City Advisory Committees.

• Your feedback will help refine the scope of the actions so that they are relevant, impactful and intentional in addressing the space needs and gaps for social-serving spaces. The final strategy report is tentatively set to go to Vancouver City Council for approval early

8:25 – 8:30 pm
6. Close/Bread Basket

Next Meeting: March 4th – Informal

November 12, 2020 VFPC Meeting
6pm – 8:30pm
Online,  members of the public must register here to attend (please note that the email you receive after registering will contain a unique link for you to sign in with. To extend the opportunity to others, please refer them here to sign up rather than forwarding them your sign-in link)
Everyone is welcome!

Do you have ideas on how we can contribute to a just and sustainable local food system by leveraging Vancouver Park Board land, facilities, programs, and community connections? Join us for a special focus on the Local Food Action Plan Update at the November 12th VFPC meeting.

Agenda Overview (Full Agenda Forthcoming)

Vancouver Park Board Local Food Action Plan Update and Engagement Session (Details)

In 2013, the Vancouver Park Board adopted a Local Food Action Plan (LFAP) to enhance the local food landscape. This plan was guided by 8 goals and 55 actions. Many of the actions were achieved within the 5-year timeframe of the LFAP. However, so much has changed since the approval of the LFAP. The Park Board is now embarking on a process to update the LFAP to reflect the current food landscape and future needs with an emphasis on:

• Increasing and/or enhancing food assets and services
• Building resilience to mitigate the effects of a changing climate
• Allocating resources and reduce barriers to currently underserved populations
• Decolonizing the local food system to support indigenous food systems, food sovereignty, foraging practices, and food asset rich parks and natural areas
• Addressing gaps and opportunities highlighted during the COVID-19 pandemic including building community resilience to crisis, and to support the subsequent recovery process

At this special session, Park Board staff and consulting team will share a progress snapshot on the LFAP update process so far, then take a deeper dive into key topics through facilitated breakout group discussions based on the focus areas of the VFPC Working Groups.

In preparation for this session, we encourage you to review the 2013 Local Food Action Plan before the meeting

This is the first of multiple opportunities for VFPC members and the public to share their ideas and feedback on what should go in the LFAP Update. In addition to this special session, Park Board will be assembling a stakeholder steering committee, holding small group/one-on-one meetings with members from equity seeking groups that are often underserved, conducting a second general stakeholder session, and more!

 Remember you must register here to attend. Everyone is welcome!

Please remember that the email you receive after registering will contain a unique link for you to sign in with. To extend the opportunity to others, please refer them here to sign up rather than forwarding them your sign-in link!

Link to join: https://vancouver.webex.com/vancouver/onstage/g.php?MTID=e976aa027b102ad25eb398f09a89d500a

6:00    1. Welcome/Call to order

1.1 Land Acknowledgement
1.2 Quorum
1.3 Roundtable introductions

6:15     2. Consent agenda matters
2.1 Previous Minutes – approve September minutes

2.2 Liaison Reports

• Councillor Wiebe
• Councillor Bligh
• Commissioner Dumont
• Trustee Gonazlez
• Rebecca Till (PB staff)
• Rachel Telling (Sustainability Staff)
• Caitlin Dorward (SP staff)

2.3 Working Group Updates

• • Leadership Team
  • Food Waste
  • Food Cultivation/UrbanAg
  • Children & Youth
  • Development/Retail
  • Community Food Programming

7:00 3. Matters requiring discussion

3.1 Victoria Urban Food Table
3.2 DTES Food Sovereignty Coop
3.3 First We Eat film screening
3.4 Earthsave Good Food City declaration
3.5 Food Waste Working Group Motion
3.6 Admin – December meeting and extension of term

8:30 4. Adjourn Meeting

Date: Thursday, September 10, 2020
Time: 6-8:30pm
Location: WebEx Meeting (Virtual) – Click HERE to join the meeting.
Co-chairs: Martina Marsic, Marc Schutzbank

Time       Agenda item

6:00

1. Welcome/Call to order
1.1 Land Acknowledgement
1.2 Quorum
1.3 Roundtable introductions

6:15
2. Consent agenda matters
2.1 Approve Previous Minutes (June, July 2020)

• Liaison Reports
  • Councillor Wiebe
    • PDAC Letter
  • Councillor Bligh
  • Commissioner Dumont
  • Trustee Gonalez
  • Katelyn Ling (PB staff)
  • Rachel Telling (Sustainability Staff)
  • Caitlin Dorward/Sarah Carten (SP staff)
• Working Group Updates
  • Food Cultivation & UbAg
  • Development/Retail
  • Food Waste
  • Children & Youth
  • Leadership Team
  • Community Food

6:55
3. Matters requiring discussion
3.1 Participation Requests

3.1.1 Earthsave Canada – GoodFood City Declaration inquiry
3.1.2 Evergreen Canada – “Future Cities Canada – Unexpected Solutions”
3.1.3 COV 2021 Budget Survey
3.1.4 Vancouver Plan Feedback

• Marc meeting update
• Post-event online survey

7:20     BREAK

7:30
3.2 Film Screening update: “First We Eat”

3.3 Anti-Racism and Tangible, Transformative Actions for the VFPC

• Draft letters
• Equity statement

3.4 Ministry of Agriculture open letter endorsement

8:30     4. Adjourn Meeting

“With income and food insecurity increasing among Canadians, a school food program on a national scale is essential to address inequality and ensure all Canadian children learn basic food skills and have access to healthy meals…”

Read this letter sent to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau by our own Vancouver Mayor, Kennedy Stewart. Derived from a City Council Motion passed on March 11, 2020, it speaks in support of a national cost-shared universal healthy school food program.

Letter to PM Trudea – Shared cost for Universal Healthy School Food Program – 2020-06-16

Click HERE to join the meeting

Agenda

6:00
1.     Welcome/Call to order
1.1 Land Acknowledgement
1.2 Quorum
1.3 Roundtable introductions

6:15
2.     Consent agenda matters
2.1     Previous Minutes
2.2 Liaison Reports

• Councillor Wiebe
• Councillor Bligh
• Commissioner Dumont
• Trustee Gonazlez
• Katelyn Ling (PB staff)
• Rachel Telling (Sustainability Staff)
• Caitlin Dorward/Sarah Carten (SP staff)

2.3 Working Group Updates

• Leadership Team
• Waste
• Urban Farming
• Children & youth

6:55
3.     Matters requiring discussion

3.1 Update on the PWD letter and collaboration
3.2 Update on documentary film screening
3.3 Food Waste Working Group Motion
3.4 Anti-Racism and Tangible Actions for the VFPC
3.3 Resetting VFPC: priorities and actions for after August break

8:30
4. Adjourn  Meeting