The World Leisure Centre of Excellence (WLCE) is pleased to share the announcement of VIU’s cultural mapping project called Where is Here?. It is an interdisciplinary project in collaborations among departments of Recreation & Tourism Management, Geography and Media Studies at VIU.
Through media and online mapping technologies, the project will engage with three small cities on Vancouver Island--Courtenay, Port Alberni and Nanaimo--by documenting and disseminating citizen responses to the following question: what connects you to your downtown?
Dr. Nicole Vaugeois, the Principle Investigator for the Where is Here?, explained the value behind the project: “the downtown of a city is a symbol and an emblem ofcommunity pride but sometimes the pressures of mall culture, the drift from aresource-based economy to a knowledge-based one and demographic shifts cancontribute to a community losing sight of that.”
Three research advisors/VIU faculty members will provide support and guidance to the project team, including Dr. Nicole Vaugeois (BC Regional Innovation Chair in Tourism and Sustainable Rural Development), Dr. Pam Shaw (Director, Master of Community Planning Program), and Alanna Williams (Instructor, Media Studies Department). For more information of the project, please visit: http://www.whereishereculturalmapping.com/
The team includes three students from Master of Arts in Sustainable Leisure Management: David Petroziello (left), Lan Le Diem Tran (middle), Olivia Li (right). For more information of the team, please visit: http://www.whereishereculturalmapping.com/team/
