A Pemberton / Mount Currie Drug and Alcohol Task Force Report WINDS OF CHANGE A Pemberton / Mount Currie Drug and Alcohol Task Force Report

AGENDA Mount Currie and Pemberton – A Community Snapshot Valley Background Call to Action Our Approach and Methodology Our Vision Our Recommended Tactics Next Steps Lessons Learned

A Community Snapshot - Population Pemberton and Mount Currie have experienced a “population explosion” since 1996 The following table summarizes the growth: 1996 2001 2003 2004 % Chg Mount Currie 1267 1428 1633 1854 146% Pemberton 857 1637 1997 2117 233%

Community Snapshot - Profile Mount Currie Band Is a First Nation – known as the Lil’wat Nation with a reserve land base of 6000 acres. The development of the Lil’wat Nations economic base continues. Key infrastructure includes: A Community School (K-12) An Adult Education Center A Health Center (but no acute care services) and Daycare Center Tribal Police Pemberton Is a medium sized Village Historically was a logging and agricultural community Is now adding tourism as a key industry Key infrastructure includes: 1 high school and 1 elementary school Diagnostic & treatment centre airport RCMP

Valley Background Pemberton and Mount Currie are two neighboring communities located about 30 minutes north of Whistler Historically, there have been many diverse challenges to working together, including: Different jurisdictional frameworks (the Municipality of Pemberton and the First Nation council of Mount Currie) Cultural differences A lack of understanding the differences of the communities, and using these differences to work against each other The 6km difference between the communities does not truly reflect the “distance”

A Community Snapshot – The Problem Parents and youth in both communities perceive that the most used substances are alcohol and marijuana To a much lesser extent, there is also use of cocaine/crack There is a high degree of tolerance for alcohol and marijuana use Alcohol and marijuana are easy to obtain (other drugs are more difficult, but not impossible) Alcohol and drug services are very limited Source – Focus Groups & One on One interviews

The Call to Action Things changed in May 2002 The tragic death of a Mount Currie youth caused both Pemberton and Mount Currie residents to put pressure on their elected officials WE decided it was time to do something serious about the drug and alcohol issues of our joint communities WE could no longer use our differences to work against each other; WE needed to trust, understand, and work with each other to develop strategies and plans to reshape our future

The Call to Action The Mount Currie Band Council and the Village of Pemberton Council formed a Joint Task Force with the goal of increasing the safety of our communities by reducing harm associated with drugs and alcohol The Task Force established an 8 week project timeline We quickly learned that WE DID NOT KNOW WHAT WE DIDN”T KNOW And so, we looked for support from the Kaiser Foundation and the Centre for Addictions Research of BC 8 months later, solutions were starting to be identified and implementation planning initiated

Our Approach and Methodology The Task Force adopted a four phase methodology Phase One – Understanding the Community Understanding the social, cultural and economic factors that shape our community Understand the patterns of risky substance use and associated harms Understand some of the key baseline data Phase Two – Strategy Development Development of a Strategic Vision Developing recommendations, establishing priorities, developing tactical action plans Phase Three – Action Executing tactical implementation plans Phase Four – Evaluation Conducting Post Implementation Reviews and evaluating results

Our Vision We are neighbours, friends and relatives working together to reduce the harmful effects of drugs and alcohol on our communities. We respect our differences and find strength in the common goal of a healthy and safe environment for our children and families

Task Force Recommendations The Task Force developed the following 4 categories of recommendations – the categories representing THE WINDS OF CHANGE: The North Wind – Promoting Healthy Lifestyle Choices The South Wind – Increasing Awareness The East Wind – Improving Services The West Wind – Community Leadership and Responsibility

Recommendations – North Wind Promoting Healthy Lifestyle Choices Conduct a joint community wellness campaign Solicit community group support to sponsor events promoting healthy activities Maximize development of recreational and leisure infrastructure

Recommendations – South Wind Increasing Awareness Conduct a joint public awareness program promoting personal knowledge and good social policy Coordinate multi-partner regulation and enforcement teams to address problems related to the sale and consumption of tobacco and alcohol Produce and publicize an easily accessible alcohol and drug resource directory

Recommendations – East Wind Improving Services Encourage Vancouver Coastal Health Authority to provide increased services in the Valley Ensure that increased public transit between communities remains a priority Create a Community Coalition to develop and operate a Sobering Centre that is available 7 by 24 and that is separate from a jail cell Encourage community agencies to develop broad services that address harms from substance use

Recommendations – West Wind Community Leadership and Responsibility Ensure visible and effective leadership support and commitment to this program Complete a review of all existing regulations related to tobacco and alcohol and assess opportunities for the application and enforcement of existing or new regulations and guidelines Ensure both the Mount Currie and Pemberton Councils continue to promote ways to reduce social tensions and to encourage positive relationships

Next Steps Transition the Task Force Strategy and Recommendations to the HEALTHY COMMUNITIES COMMITTEE for further implementation planning and for action Review the “baseline data” to identify what will be useful for the ongoing monitoring and evaluation Initiate further implementation work

Lessons Learned We have categorized our learnings into 2 categories: What would we do the same; and What would we do differently;

Lessons Learned -- What Would We Do the Same Engaging and maintaining community involvement Effective media promotion and support A planned transition to the Healthy Community Committee Visible commitment and support of community leaders An emphasis on WE and not US AND THEM Using community focus groups to provide input, and also to break down barriers Understand that this is a process and not an event Effective use of external expertise with ongoing community ownership A focus on “doing” using what we have versus delaying because of what we don’t have

Lessons Learned What Would We Do Differently An up front focus on managing expectations; Develop a plan to deal with the pressure to “take action” Establish a more realistic timeline up front Try and ensure continuity of the people involved Define success measures up front Be proactive instead of reactive

Questions