Kamloops is starting to feel like a second home to me, as I’ve visited five times in the past year to graphic record for a variety of workshops. The passion and enthusiasm people feel for Kamloops is a common thread I’ve noticed in every workshop I’ve graphic recorded there. Whether it’s City Councillors working through big issues, health care providers mapping patient journeys to identify gaps in care, or the public sharing their views — this little city has a mighty energy!
Most recently, I was thrilled to be a part of a visioning workshop in November that asked people to identify what makes a community a great place to live and translate those ideas to the future of Kamloops.
I partnered with the facilitators early in the planning process for this workshop to brainstorm how we could integrate graphic recording and any supporting visuals so they add the most value. Being involved in the planning stages allowed me to build a working relationship with the facilitator and really understand the goals and objectives for the day.
We determined that a large visual template, prepared in advance, would be great to help “break the ice” for the group and start the flow of ideas. At the start of the workshop, people wrote their ideas for Kamloops on sticky notes and placed them on this Social Ecological Model according to what area is impacted the most:
The group then discussed in broad terms what makes an ideal city before narrowing down specific positives of Kamloops and potential next steps for public engagement.
People were intrigued to see their visions illustrated big and bright in front of them — this spurred more ideas and the energy in the room was palpable. As an “outsider” I’m inspired by the passion in this community and hope to graphic record here again soon!
