Welcome to What London Can Be, the podcast where we navigate our shifting world, shine a light on the issues our city is facing, and explore the innovative, made-in-London solutions to critical challenges in our community. Join our host Diane Silva, Director of Philanthropy at London Community Foundation, as she talks to experts, leaders and changemakers in London, Ontario, and discover together how to create a vibrant, resilient and just community.
What London Can Be is currently available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts!
Today Diane is joined by Season Bieronski, Manager of Housing Services at London Cares Homeless Response Services, to discuss the Community Vitality Grant which will help them open up a first of its kind 24/7 permanent supportive housing service for some of the most vulnerable housing-deprived people in London.
Episode Length: 21:14
In this week's episode of What London Can Be, Al Day, Executive Director of N’Amerind Friendship Centre, LCF Social Finance Committee member Dollar Luo, and Ayo Owodunni, a diversity and inclusion trainer who hosts The Immigrant View Podcast, join us for a Vital Conversation about Racial Equality.
Episode Length: 59:43
**Content Warning** This week on What London Can Be, host Diane Silva is joined by gender-equity consultant and public educator Dr. AnnaLise Trudell, Manager of Prevention Education & Research at gender-based violence shelter and sexual assault centre, Anova. AnnaLise shares her knowledge on a range of gender issues from preventing sexual assault through education, to the impacts of Depp vs Heard and the overturning of Roe v Wade.
Episode Length: 34:25
This week on What London Can Be, we revisit our first Vital Conversation event of the year; a panel discussion where our guest speakers discuss the unique housing challenges faced particularly by Indigenous, newcomer, and racialized communities. Hosted by chair of the LCF Vital Signs Committee, Dr. Jerry White, we’re joined by; Andrea Jibb, Director of Community Planning at Atlohsa Family Healing Services, Mariyam Zaidi MSW, RSW, Director of Services at Sakeenah Homes, and Dr. Valerian Marochko, Executive Director at Cross Cultural Learner Centre.
Episode length: 00:55:25
This week, our host Diane Silva is joined by Dr. Abe Oudshoorn, Associate Professor at the Arthur Labatt Family School of Nursing at Western University. A registered nurse who worked with homeless people in London, Abe has a strong knowledge of the history of homelessness in Canada, and in this episode he and Diane discuss how we’ve arrived at the housing crisis we see in London today.
Episode length: 00:27:48
As we return for Season 2 of What London Can Be, our host Diane Silva speaks again with Andrew Chunilall, CEO of Community Foundations of Canada, about the future of philanthropy, and the roles we all have to play.
Episode length: 00:56:45
In this episode of What London Can Be, our host Diane Silva speaks with Janet Tufts, Executive Director of Big Brothers Big Sisters of London and Area. Last fall, Big Brothers Big Sisters was granted $51,056 through LCF’s Community Vitality Grant program. This grant will help support the creation of a new volunteer coordinator position which will help address the volunteer intake bottleneck and eliminate the waitlist of children in need of a mentor, which is especially important amid the stress of the pandemic. Listen and learn more about how Big Brothers Big Sisters is positively impacting the lives of so many children in our community.
Episode Length: 25:02
In this episode of What London Can Be, our host Diane Silva speaks with Rick Frost, former CEO of the Winnipeg Foundation. As foundations are being challenged to raise disbursement quotas and boost charitable spending during these times of great need, Diane and Rick discuss equitable philanthropy, the power of endowment and the opportunity that lies ahead for the future of philanthropy and foundations.
Episode length: 42:38
In this episode of What London Can Be, our host Diane Silva speaks with Timothy Tuckey, Executive Director of Youth Centre for Change (YCFC) - a residential treatment facility for male youth between the ages of 12-18 who have demonstrated problematic sexualized behaviours. Join Diane as she learns more about YCFC, the impact of their work and why treating the youth they serve is so important.
To learn more about YCFC visit, ycfc.ca
Episode length: 28:17
In this episode of What London Can Be, our host Diane Silva speaks with Courtney Coqu, Institutional Worker and Counsellor at the John Howard Society about breaking the cycle of post incarceration homelessness. The John Howard Society recently received a $300,000 for this program which will help those leaving the criminal justice system access supports and find long-term housing. Take a listen and learn more about how the John Howard Society is fostering hope and creating a sense of belonging in one of our community's most underserved and often ignored populations.
Episode length: 24:07
In this episode of What London Can Be, our host Diane Silva speaks with Amanda Kennedy, Founder of Yotuni Social Enterprise and Michelle Kanter, Executive Director of Carolinian Canada about the Community Healing Gardens Project, a recipient of a $200,000 Community Vitality Grant. The Healing Gardens Project is a social enterprise that will employ Indigenous youth to create gardening kits to be sold to community members – enabling land-based wellness and learning at home with Indigenous food and plants.
Episode length: 35:19
In this episode of What London Can Be, our host Diane Silva speaks with Joe Ganselves, Coordinator of the JobWorks and PATCH programs at Hutton House Association for Adults with Disabilities, about the Cavendish Community Food Hub project – a brand new, accessible urban farm to be located in the Kensington Village area of London and recipient of a $230,744 grant through LCF’s Community Vitality Grant program.
In this brand new episode of What London Can Be, our host Diane Silva speaks with Thames Valley District School Board Chair Lori-Ann Pizzolato and Trustee Corrine Rahman about some of the challenges facing our community’s education system brought forth by the pandemic – and how the Board has faced them head-on.
Episode length: 26:54
In this episode of What London Can Be, our host Diane Silva speaks with Dr. Jerry White, Professor Emeritus of Sociology at Western University, LCF Board Member, and Chair of LCF's Social Finance and Vital Signs Committees about this year's Vital Signs report.
LCF's Vital Signs report aims to create awareness of pressing social issues in our community. Going beyond identifying the issues, Vital Signs 2021: Be the Change hopes to inspire action and provide the community with some of the tools and resources needed to begin creating change.
Follow the links below to find out more!
Vital Signs 2021: Be the Change
Episode length: 00:45:33
In this episode of What London Can Be, our host Diane Silva speaks with Corey Allison, Executive Director of the Women’s Rural Resource Centre in Strathroy and the Huron Women’s Shelter in Goderich, about gender equality, COVID-19, and the differences in advocacy and programming between rural and urban environments.
Episode length: 00:26:00
In this episode of What London Can Be, our host Diane Silva speaks with Dr. Prachi Srivastava, Associate Professor in the area of global education at Western University, member of the World Bank Expert Advisory Council on Citizen Engagement, and contributing author on two Science Briefs of the Ontario COVID-19 Science Advisory Table on education.
Dr. Srivastava also leads the COVID-19 School Dashboard, an open-access site that visualizes COVID-19 school-related cases throughout Ontario with equity-related school information.
Episode length: 00:55:43
In this Vital Conversation episode of What London Can Be, we revisit talks given by Dr. Javeed Sukhera, incoming Chair of Psychiatry at the Institute of Living (IOL) and Chief of Psychiatry at Hartford Hospital, and Blair Henry, Harm Reduction Case Manager at Regional HIV/AIDS Connection, about compassion, prejudice, and the importance of connection to health and well-being at Vital Conversation: Be Healthy in 2019.
Episode length: 00:20:19
In this episode of What London Can Be, our host Diane Silva speaks with Benjamin Hill, Associate Professor of Philosophy at Western University and Chair of the Middlesex London Food Policy Council (MLFPC), about London's food system, food security, and the MLFPC’s work in the community.
You can listen to Food for the Future Hosted by Peggy O’Neil on Saturday mornings at 8:30 AM on 980 CFPL. Learn more here!
Episode length: 00:24:55
In this Vital Conversation episode of What London Can Be, we revisit a talk given by Brian Salt, founder and President of Salthaven Wildlife Rehabilitation and Education Centre, about awareness of environmental issues, being conscious of our impact on nature, and doing our part to save lives at our Vital Conversation: Be Green event in 2019.
Episode length: 00:07:00
In this episode of What London Can Be, our host Diane Silva continues her conversation with Raymond Deleary, Executive Director of Atlohsa Family Healing Services, discussing the discovery of the unmarked graves near the site of the Kamloops Indian Residential School in Tk'emlups te Secwepemc, Kamloops, British Columbia.
We are incredibly grateful to Raymond for taking the time to chat with Diane and share his thoughts and feelings during this difficult time for him and his community.
Episode length: 00:38:38
