AROUND TOWN: March

AROUND TOWN IN MARCH A month of drive, dance and dresses

HAYLEY WOODIN

DANCE THE NIGHTS AWAY The Vancouver International Dance Festival returns to the city with its mission to support under-represented contemporary dance. The festival offers a number of free and paid performances throughout Vancouver until the end of the month. Guests can also trade in dress shoes for dance shoes by attending one of the festival’s free workshops. This year marks the festival’s 20th iteration. vidf.ca

GURYANOV ANDREY/SHUTTERSTOCK

CELEBRATE A CENTURY OF CAR SHOWS This year marks the centennial anniversary of the Vancouver International Auto Show, which celebrates 100 years of B.C. automotive history March 25-29. The event, operated by the New Car Dealers Association of BC, will feature a special history-of-auto procession, with Jimmy Pattison behind the wheel as the parade grand marshall and event honorary chair. The show has attracted more than 115,000 attendees each of the past three years. vancouverinternationalautoshow.com É

SERGEI BACHLAKOV/SHUTTERSTOCK

GET RUNWAY READY Vancouver Fashion Week is back with its Fall/ Winter 2020 show lineup. Founded in 2001, the event features both established and emerging designers in a series of runway shows and related events. Vancouver Fashion Week has expanded to highlight children’s fashion and provides an international platform for up-and-comi ng desig ners th rough its Globa l Fash ion Col lective. vanfashionweek.com

SERGEI BACHLAKOV/SHUTTERSTOCK

SECTOR SNAPSHOT: FILM AND TV B.C.’s film industry the fastest growing in the country

Albert Van Santvoort

B.C.’s moniker as Hollywood North is a star that burns brighter with each passing year. The province has become the No. 1 film and television production centre in Canada and the third-largest physical production centre in North America. Three years ago, B.C. generated more revenue from film and TV than did Ontario. Between 2013 and 2017, the industry more than doubled in size. Revenue increased by 175% to $3.3 billion in 2017, up from $1.2 billion in 2013. That pace of revenue growth significantly outpaced growth in Quebec and Ontario over the same period (29% and 18.8%, respectively). In 2019, B.C.’s film and TV sector contributed $3.2 billion to the economy.

The provincial government predicts the industry will grow to be one of B.C.’s largest employment sectors. Employment is projected to grow 3.3% annually until 2023 – more than three times the 1% annual growth rate expected for overall employment over the same period. The industry’s revenue and employment growth are supported by more demand for filming in Canada. The increase is largely due to foreign investment, which increased 18.7% over the past year. In 2019, Canada secured a record $5.6 billion of foreign investment into the country’s film sector.

FIRST NATIONS ECONOMIC RECONCILIATION TO CONTINUE IN 2020 Bill 41 changes what is possible between First Nations and the provincial government

CRYSTAL SMITH

To say the least, Canada’s First Nations have been playing on an unequal playing field for a long time. But I can confidently say the tides are turning – and, I believe, will continue to turn throughout the next decade.

F i r s t N a t i o n s h a v e s p e n t years fighting to reclaim our basic rights to our lands, to practise our culture and to self-govern. We have advocated for the right to be part of the discussions that lead to decisions and projects that impact the everyday lives of our people, now and in the future. As the late Heber Maitland, a former Haisla Nation elected chief councillor, once said, “All we want is a share and a say.”

In this last decade the Haisla Nation finally did get a share and a say.

As part of the $40 billion LNG Canada project, we negotiated agreements that allowed us to protect our environment in a way that is based on our input, priorities and needs. The agreements also gave us the ability to invest in programs we believe can help empower this generation of Haisla and those who follow us.

We have also developed positive relationships with many other proponents in our territory, and have become equal partners, with a share and a say, in their projects.

Many other First Nations – the Nisga’a and the Tahltan, to name two – are taking similar steps, sitting at the table with industry, not only participating in discussions and projects but leading them too.

While this means economic growth for our First Nations, the most important impact has been the improvement in the physical, mental and social well-being of our people. Feelings of hope and pride are back.

For the Haisla Nation the last decade represents a shift in what is possible in relationships between industry and First Nations. We are no longer on opposite sides of the table. Instead we work together, share decision-making and create mutually beneficial outcomes.

For the Haisla Nation, the next decade will see B.C.’s Bill 41 – based on the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) and passed unanimously in the legislature in late November of last year – change what is possible in our relationship with the government. Bill 41 lays the groundwork for a more positive, mutually advantageous and – most importantly – legally supported, consent-based relationship.

No one knows the exact implications of Bill 41. As these things go, it could be messy and confusing. It will take time to sort out and clarify. But the fact that UNDRIP has been enshrined in a provincial act puts a focus on economic reconciliation like never before.

Bill 41 enshrines the right of B.C.’s Indigenous people to participate in all decision-making that affects our interests. It affirms a new approach to Indigenous rights and issues that entails moving forward, together, in a way that we all have that “share and a say.”

The Haisla Nation will continue to advocate for our rights and the rights of all First Nations. We will continue to support responsible development in our territory and in the world overall. And we will continue to build positive partnerships with respectful proponents and the government.

We look forward to seeing what this new relationship model will look like. And we look forward to sitting at the table and being part of those discussions with our fellow Nations and partners.É

Crystal Smith is chief councillor of the Haisla Nation.

THE MOST IMPORTANT IMPACT HAS BEEN THE IMPROVEMENT IN THE PHYSICAL, MENTAL AND SOCIAL WELL-BEING OF OUR PEOPLE