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Summer 2003 Update

2003 has been a very busy and exciting year for the work of Common Ground and community mapping.

Highlights

International Links and Presentations

In Winter 2002 Maeve Lydon, part of the International Advisory Board of the Green Map System, visited Bellagio, Italy and met 25 mapmakers from around the world. This seeded some exciting new developments, including the development of the Mapas Verdes Vision and Learning project with Latin America to develop Spanish and Portugese community mapping learning modules (print, PDF and CD) and to increase practitioner/academic learning and research opportunities. See http://www.greenmap.org/news/archive.html for more info.

In May 2003 Nedjo Rogers presented a Community Mapping presentation at UVIC's international Geography Conference (see www.geog.uvic.ca). He developed and gave a detailed power point presentation on the methodologies and approaches that Common Ground takes.

In May 2003 Maeve presented several workshops on mapping, green cities and food security at the Convergence Sustainable Living Festival in Dublin Ireland, a 10 day European-based assembly of workshops, conferences and field trips focused on sustainability and skill sharing. (see www.sustainableireland.com) This has led to further support of community/green map and community development (particularly food security) projects between Common Ground (Victoria) and Ireland.

Canadian and British Columbia Work

Common Ground published a feature article "Community Mapping: The Recovery (and Discovery) of Our Common Ground" - in the Summer Issue of Geomatica which profiles cutting edge work in cartography in Canada between 1999-2003. Common Ground continues to sell their Food System Mapping and Community Mapping booklets particularly in Canada and the U.S. and plan to update it this Fall 2003. **

Local Community Mapping Projects

Greater Victoria Regional Green Map
After several years of hard work and revisions, our Green Map is in its final stages of production, thanks to the help of Ken Josephson, a UVIC Cartographer and artist. It is very beautiful and will be a large poster-size map with a mapping resource guide on the other side! Victoria will be part of a worldwide network of local green community maps to support global sustainability.

City Greenways
Common Ground with the help of 1000+ hours of volunteer time completed the City of Victoria Greenways Project compiling and digitizing 8 route and site maps. This was from approximately 700 survey maps from local residents of their existing and desired walking and biking routes and key nodes in our city. This was used as the basis for the City Greenways plan. The next stage of implementation has begun.

The Regional Community Food Resources Directory and Map
Common Ground mapped the significant community food access sites in Victoria for the Resource Directory, published with CRFAIR, VIHA and the Community Council.

The Hillside-Quadra Community Mapping PATH Project
Common Ground worked for seven months with the neighborhood and the Promoting Action Towards Health UVIC -linked research and community development project to provide community-wide learning, mapping and project development events. A composite Green Map and a 40-map health atlas has been created and will be launched in the Fall of 2003.

The Victoria West Vision Project
This project, facilitated by Common Ground, began in March 2003 and continues to use public education and community/green mapping as the main tools to develop a 5 year vision and community action plan for Victoria's fastest growing neighborhood. Community asset maps have been developed into on-line resource maps using green map icons. Neighbors have identified greenways, community gardens and markets, murals, health centres, bookstores as part of their desired action projects so far!

The Gordon Head Walking Map has been supported by Common Ground and will be published this Fall.

Workshops

Common Ground has given many local workshops including:

• Victoria Coalition for Survivors of Torture - three hour asset mapping workshop for 60 delegates
• University of Victoria Campus Plan Workshop - planning and delivery of a three hour mapping workshop for UVIC administrators, academics and students to discuss UVIC assets and development visions
• Camosun Community Association - three-hour workshop focused on assets and visions for Bowker Creek stream restoration and community development.
• School District 61 Youth Mapping Workshop - 2-hour place mapping for 70 students
• South Park School Children's Mapping Workshop Project

Fall 2003 Priorities

• Continued development of Greenways and Neighborhood Projects
• Promotion and Launch of Greater Victoria Green Map
• Development of Mapas Verdes project with Latin America
• Presentation at Northern British Columbia Healthy Communities Youth Workshop

Project coordinator 
Maeve Lydon 

    Why Mapping? 
      Yr 1 and 2         
Schools & Youth Work 
Looking Ahead 

Common Ground Community Mapping Project     

For more information, contact Maeve Lydon at cground@gworks.ca