Dreaming of Collective Transformation
Collective Transformation: Building Relationships to Land, People & Place
By Ancel Zhu
The ANHBC Collective Strategic Transformation Framework is no ordinary strategic plan. It intertwines individual stories, relationships, patience, uncertainties, bravery, heart and commitment. As the fruits of this work take shape, we want to introduce someone special in this journey—someone from the team who works to turn abstract thoughts, ideas and inspirations into words and visual illustrations. Today, our story is about Jenna Otto-Wray from ANHBC Central Services Office.
‘Forest Ecosystem,’ ‘Land, People & Place,’ ‘Soil, Roots, Trees & Nutrients’—can you imagine these are the values and directions that come from our strategic plan? "Throughout the last year, there were so many times when those of us working on strategic planning were questioning... worrying that people wouldn't get it, that it wouldn't be right," Jenna described. "As the two facilitators who started us on the path of transformation, Ta7talíya Nahanee and Chris Corrigan, identified, this work is not meant to look like a linear path or a colonized strategic plan. Maybe it just doesn't look like the strategic plans before it." The teams working on the Strategic Transformation had to reassure and remind each other that they are on the right path and set out to do this work in this unique way - centering our values throughout the process.
Jenna grew up in co-op housing in Southeast Vancouver, which she describes as a village—a place with many wonderful connections and an extended family, much like neighborhood houses. She found her path to the neighborhood house family through her work on Neighborhood House Small Grants and was inspired by the belief that everybody has something to give and everybody is valued. She now works as the Manager of Communications & Special Projects at ANHBC’s Central Services Office.
In early 2023, after much planning and dialogue surrounding the collective Strategic Transformation, Jenna was invited to support the Strategic Planning Team with engagement and to begin writing the framework. Collectively, they began translating data, inputs and stories into mission, vision, values and principles - which would eventually transform into the Forest Ecosystem. Jenna described her experience writing the framework as a very collaborative process, “We knew that to do things differently, and lean into the ANHBC collective, bringing people together in dialogue must be a priority throughout writing.” As a result, a series of engagement sessions were held throughout the year from 2023-24 to ensure the community is informed and included in this important journey. “I am in the process of completing a Dialogue and Civic Engagement Certificate through SFU, and I have been supported to utilize the skills and practices I’m learning throughout Strategic Transformation.”
Jenna emphasized that this transformative process could be nerve-wracking, but the team ensured that people felt supported and cared for throughout, they wanted everyone to see that they were continually building on something significant.
After nearly four years of efforts, the collective Strategic Transformation Framework has come together and entered its next stage. The transformation happened throughout the engagement and writing process, which the Team called ‘rippling out’. "Something that's been rewarding is people saying that they've now seen it two or three times and are getting how this all goes together. The visual of the forest and all its components, they think, will help solidify this work when taken into the neighborhood houses or camp. Even at Central, it will help us begin to envision what it could look like in our daily work, in our programs, and how we relate to each other," Jenna shared, feeling motivated.
Something that emerged throughout this process, Jenna shared, is that one way to use this framework to guide our work is to ensure that in every important decision, we have someone who is the "voice of the land," putting everything through the filter of this framework until it becomes second nature. "Who is going to ensure that the land is an active participant in decision-making?", Jenna quoted from one of the engagement sessions, "There is a lot of conversation around what land justice means for neighborhood houses, which is something the ANHBC Collective will continue exploring starting this fall."
"I think the thing that is so important to me in all of the transformation work is relationships," Jenna recalled. She described being part of the engagement sessions and seeing participants reflect on their relationship to land, people and place. More importantly, she saw them start to work on the relationships within the neighborhood houses. While we excel at building connections outward with the community and neighbors, we often overlook our own ecosystem, which needs nurturing and care. Jenna believes that true transformation towards decolonization requires us to figure it out together. "It takes time to build relationships, but in the end, if you're worried about productivity, it's actually more fruitful. A stronger team that trusts and relies on each other is invaluable."
Visit anhbc.org/donate to help our neighbourhood houses continue to Dream Together.
