Calgary Centre for Global Community (CCGC) – Tenant Member (April 2018)
Interviewer: Maddison Coulson. CommunityWise – Practicum Student.
Interviewee: Chris Jensen. CCGC – Director, Operations.
What is the name of your organization?
Calgary Centre for Global Community (CCGC) – founded 2008.
Humainologie – multimedia production house, established 2015.
Can you summarize what your organization’s main objectives are? What are the mission/vision/value(s) that your organization abides by?
CCGC aspires to build a culture of people who are capable of bringing about extraordinary positive change through informed and sustained civic engagement.
Humainologie’s mission is to promote the recognition of our shared humanity, through raising empathy and awareness around issues of vulnerability, human connection, and breaking down barriers between people. We are all interconnected, and cooperation is vital to create a future in which we can all thrive.
How has your organization changed over time?
In 2015, we founded Humainologie to be a multimedia production house for CCGC to help increase empathy and understanding, as well as raise more awareness about ourselves and others.
Why did you feel the need to start this organization?
We felt the need to start Humainologie because we identified the ability to expand our influence and our impact, recognizing the need for increased empathy and understanding and raising awareness about ourselves and others. Through connection to ourselves and each other, we are able to accept and appreciate our own and others individual uniqueness, beauty, and imperfections. Through film and other multimedia content we reach a wider audience and have a bigger impact on increasing understanding.
What is it like working at CCGC? What is a typical day?
A typical day looks like connecting with partners in the community to see if and how we can collaborate, managing logistics for different events, and running the office.
What are some challenges working at CCGC?
As an organization, funding is a challenge, and so is raising our own profile. Also, because we’re so small, it gets a little lonely. However, reaching out to the community helps. It can also be challenging trying to break down barriers between other non-profits, but it’s important so we can start building each up.
Are there any new projects you are working on at the moment?
We’re looking at hosting our second annual Empathy Week, a series of programming to increase empathy and understand vulnerability. This will be held from June 1st– 7th.
We’re also working on our third annual film festival which will be held May 16thand May 17th.
We are also doing a podcast series called “Empathy Walk YYC” in which we will walk through the Beltline looking into historical buildings and the stories associated with those buildings.
There are currently two film series that we’ve done called Under the Umbrella we Met, and we are currently working on another in which we have partnered with Fairytales to address gender identities.
What is Humainologie in terms of CCGC? How are they different? How are they linked?
Humainologie is linked to CCGC in the way that CCGC is the legal entity and Humainologie is the production house. They are separate in that CCGC still has its own projects, such as the Social Transformation Tournament, and Humainologie does the multimedia side, such as films, podcasts and web series.
How has being a member at CommunityWise impacted your organization?
Working within CommunityWise raised our awareness about a lot of other good work happening in the city, and we have been able to make connections that we might not have otherwise made. It allowed us to partner with other members like SEEDS Connections, and Fairytales, as well as some other non-profit organizations.
Is your organization hosting any events coming up soon that folks might be interested in?
Yes, there is going to be the film festival on May 16thand 17th,2018, at the Globe Theatre. Empathy week is from June 1stto 7th, 2018, with programming to be held in various locations around the city. The third annual Social Transformation Tournament will be held in September 2018.
Where can folks go for more information about your organization?
Website: www.Humainologie.com
Facebook: Humainologie
Website: www.CalgaryCGC.org
Facebook: CalgaryCGC