Climate change-related extreme weather patterns are becoming less predictable throughout the changing seasons, from atmospheric rivers, to fire clouds and heat domes. Northern B.C. has experienced an increase in weather-related emergencies with the 2017 and 2018 record-breaking wildfires and emergency evacuations, and the fatal heat dome in 2021. There is a growing need for northern communities to establish emergency preparedness and response plans for extreme heat events. As part of our Local Government Leaders Speaker Series, BC Healthy Communities is pleased to present Creating Healthy Public Policy: Equitable Extreme Heat...

In response to requests from communities and partners, we’ve extended the application deadline for our Healthy Public Policy grants for the Vancouver Coastal Health region. We’re now accepting applications until June 15, 2022. Local and Indigenous governments from Vancouver Coastal Health can still apply for $15,000 for projects that seek to develop new or amend existing policy in order to improve the health and well-being of community members. A total of 15 grants will be awarded. Interested in applying? We can help! Email us at grants@planh.ca for more information, or get started by...

The idea that ‘problems don’t see borders’ is never more true than in community planning: housing shortages don’t stop at municipal boundaries; emissions don’t respect borders; transportation challenges don’t restrict themselves to a single municipal jurisdiction within a larger area. While regional districts have long offered a regional perspective for planning domains such as infrastructure and land development, more local and Indigenous governments have identified a need for shared and collaborative regional approaches to addressing social issues such as poverty reduction and social cohesion in order to improve health and...

In collaboration with a selection of local and Indigenous government partners, BC Healthy Communities (BCHC) is hosting an ongoing speaker series to bring fresh ideas for healthy public policy to local and Indigenous government leaders in B.C. One of the current focus areas of BCHC’s PlanH program is the importance of developing Healthy Public Policy at the local government level. Rather than directly addressing physical health or health care provision, these policies make changes to living conditions—such as housing, transportation and income—in order to improve a community’s overall health and...

Use this printable resource as a visual reference for action areas within local government, as primer for those on your team who may be new to the concept of equity in government policy and planning, or as a quick reference summarizing the more in-depth content of the Equity Action Guide. Download the Quickstart Guide (PDF) >>

What is healthy public policy about? Public policies refer to strategic actions led by a public authority with the aim of increasing the presence of a phenomena, such as health and well-being, within the population.i Healthy public policy is one of the five building blocks of the Healthy Communities Approach. These policies can take many forms across a community to improve population health and quality of life, but are not necessarily developed by the health sector,ii as they focus on broader structural and social determinants of health rather than downstream...

For communities across Canada, 2020 was an especially trying year. However, the difficulties we are all facing continue to impact community members to varying degrees. Though inequities existed in our communities prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, current challenges have amplified these differences. Given all we have learned through our past and present experiences, how can we put equity into action to create greater well-being for all community members? Join BC Healthy Communities and Simon Fraser University’s Community Economic Development team as we explore the intersections of health, well-being and community...

We are excited to announce the release of the Supporting Equity in Planning and Policy Action Guide! This PlanH Supporting Equity in Planning and Policy Action Guide is for local governments across the province working to implement and champion equity across social, economic, environmental and cultural domains. Equity is the fair distribution of opportunities, power and resources to meet the needs to all people, regardless of age, ability, gender, income, education level, culture or background. This PlanH guide explores how equity can be incorporated into Official Community Plans, and also provides actions and examples to support...

More Indigenous and non-Indigenous local governments in B.C. will now be able to embark on projects to improve community health and well-being for their constituents, thanks to $150,000 in new grants and additional customized supports recently awarded by PlanH, a partnership of BC Healthy Communities Society and the Ministry of Health. Creating healthy communities for all involves the incorporation of health and equity into policy and planning. Two new streams of PlanH grants were offered to aid in different aspects of Healthy Communities work: the Community Connectedness Grant, which supports...

This guide is for local governments across the province working to implement and champion equity across social, economic, environmental and cultural domains.  Equity is the fair distribution of opportunities, power and resources to meet the needs to all people, regardless of age, ability, gender, income, education level, culture or background. This means providing support based on an individual’s level of need, instead of providing everyone the same amount of support. Governments traditionally focus on providing equal services to all residents. In contrast, an equity lens considers how services and resources can be...