We identified an opportunity to assist the Green Infrastructure department, and Vancouver residents, in shifting from climate change vulnerability towards climate change resilience through a mutually beneficial process. Green Infrastructure (GI) is a crucial, but an often unseen piece of the puzzle that needs to be amplified among the public. In consulting the Rain City Strategy and the Climate Emergency Response document, our group developed a community engagement framework.

Our hope is for future projects to be mapped onto this framework in order to identify how activities might be framed so as to provoke an emotional response and connection. We propose this process for building ongoing, trust-based relationships with the public. This long-term community involvement in GI projects would benefit the City ecologically, socially, and economically.

Our framework consists of 4 recommended action-emotion combinations with multiple entry points. This process can be demonstrated through the following examples. (i) Hopeful messaging on the interpretive signage around GI sites could allow the public the opportunity to learn in a hopeful way. (ii) A hands-on event at Master Gardener Day could provide the public with a chance to participate and care for a GI site. (iii) Personalized naming at GI sites could create a sense of ownership through stewardship projects. (iv) The establishment of a citizen advisory panel could empower members of the public and provide a space for citizens to be advocates.

The ultimate vision of the framework is to assist the GI department to build trust with the public and to empower residents to advocate for further GI projects and stronger climate change policies in Vancouver.