What we offer

  • Community Engagement

    Using our diverse cultural experiences and competencies, we strive to create an inclusive approach to decision-making in city planning and community development for equity-denied groups. Our approach is rooted in the intersection of art, language, scholarly research, and participatory tools.

    Photo credit: SFU Career and Volunteer Services

  • Research

    As a team of interdisciplinary researchers, we have collectively honed several academic methodologies. Our research approach is iterative and collaborative. Our methods include trauma-informed, community-engaged and participatory action research.

    Photo credit: Jasmeen Virk

  • Design

    We undertake and advise on built environment interventions and place-making projects involving those who are traditionally left out in planning processes. We offer a wide range of services such as needs assessment and developing women-centred design and planning guidelines.

    Photo credit: Ghazaleh Akbarnejad

How we do this work

Our methodologies for community engagement, research and design are explicitly anti-extractivist and grounded in a philosophy of mutuality and care. Our approach centers on meeting communities where they are at and engaging with them in a manner that is culturally and socially responsive.

From the outset, our primary focus has been to engage with communities that are frequently left out in planning processes. As we, the members of CiC, are all racialized immigrants and women, we naturally tend to engage and collaborate most effectively with similar demographics. We believe that this fosters greater trust and authenticity in our work, and allows us to effectively champion the interests of those we represent.

Our primary goal is to build trusting relationships with the community, with a keen investment in the well-being of the residents of City of Surrey.

Some of the methodologies we use include the following: 

  • Trauma informed - CiC uses a trauma-informed methodology for engaging communities seldom heard, which means that we recognise the impact of trauma in people’s lives and we use an empathic engagement design and facilitation to make sure people feel safe, respected and avoids re-traumatization.

  • Culturally sensitive and place based - CiC recognises the importance of the local and cultural context, considering in our engagement approach cultural values, language, traditions, and beliefs systems of the communities we work with. This understanding enables us to provide a culturally sensitive and respectful environment, promoting a meaningful engagement.

  • Art based - Using creative art methods, CiC offers a variety of expressive outlets for topics that might be difficult to articulate verbally. This alternative method can be effectively complemented with more traditional dialogue sessions, ensuring a comprehensive and inclusive approach.

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