The COVID 19 pandemic brought with it much uncertainty. Except for the amazing resourcefulness of our staff and volunteers, Umoja was no exception. We collectively embraced this season as an opportunity to explore new ways to better serve our community. Below are some key highlights from 2022.
Umoja’ hosted a brunch to celebrate our staff and supporters for their outstanding service through a challenging season. The event was followed by a strategic planning design thinking workshop led by our Board chair Geoff Bazira, where staff and leadership freely discussed opportunities and challenges to Umoja’s strategic direction. Ideas emerging from the session will prove invaluable as we collectively look to a future of enhanced community impact.
Umoja is delighted to a have recently partnered with Victoria based Africa Arts & Culture Community Contributor Society (AACCCS/Issamba) as well as other exceptional stakeholders on three milestone community research and advocacy projects.
The ongoing BC Housing commissioned community engagement and research project on the status of housing for the PAD community is the most recent. This current project included an engaging all day design thinking session facilitated by Umoja’s board chairperson, Geoff Bazira, and a province wide community survey targeting at least 200 members of the PAD community.
The in-person session drew in our AACCCS (contract holder) as well as PAD professionals across different specializations. The project is itself an offshoot of the milestone provincially mandated Black in BC Community Convenor report and Anti-Racism Data Legislation community engagement project partnerships also recently facilitated through AACCCS/ISSAMBA.
Our hope is that these projects will be impactful in positively influencing government policy as well as intra-community consensus on suitable approaches to ensuring the success of all disadvantaged communities across BC.
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