Change Camp Hamilton brings residents, post-secondary education institutions, community organizations, and the City of Hamilton together to talk about actions we can take to enhance Hamilton with a focus on community, partnerships, and collaboration.

This year, Change Camp 2017 is working in partnership with the Hamilton Community Foundation’s Neighbourhood Leadership Institute (NLI), to feature the theme of neighbourhoods where we will be focusing on a small number of project-specific workshops that connect to  priorities identified within and across Hamilton neighbourhoods.

How will Change Camp 2017 project topics be chosen?

The Change Camp Planning Team is looking for project ideas over July and August 2017, with the goal of determining 3 or 4 specific projects by August 4th. Project topics will be chosen based on existing neighbourhood priorities. We are looking for projects that best match the following criteria:

The project must:

●   Include more than one Hamilton neighbourhood*
●   Be an existing challenge or priority for the neighbourhoods involved
●   Have tangible opportunities for follow up over 2017/18
●   Align with at least one of four themes co-identified by community and campus partners**
●   Have potential to link with either college/university  courses, student clubs, or volunteer opportunities for community members and students
●   Align with existing projects where appropriate in order to ensure we avoid duplication of time and resources (e.g. a transportation theme should align with existing projects or priorities  related to transportation)

We will also be taking into consideration whether the topic has at least one, but ideally more, community champion, has potential for broader funding (e.g. Ontario Trillium Foundation Grant), and has existing in-kind staff contributions from one or more of the Change Camp Hamilton partners. Based on these requirements, the Change Camp Planning Team will determine 3 or 4 project topics for a September 2017 Change Camp event.

If you or your neighbourhood have a project idea that you think would be an ideal fit for Change Camp, let us know by clicking here and completing this short survey by August 1st, 2017! All ideas will be considered, but the Change Camp planning team will make a final decision on projects based on the above criteria.

What happens once projects are selected?

Once specific projects are selected, the Change Camp Planning Team will reach out to form project teams to run a 2 hour workshop on the project at the event. Teams will include neighbourhood and staff champions who are working on the project. Other team members will include the following:

• Residents: NLI, Discovery Program Graduates, City School students or community leaders/strong community advocates
• Students: McMaster, Mohawk, or Redeemer students.
• Staff Partners: Staff from one of the Change Camp Hamilton partner organizations and/or other community organizations.

If you have any questions, please contact Christine Yachouh at community@mcmaster.ca

*Neighbourhoods may include both those within the existing Neighbourhood Action Strategy (NAS) and neighbourhoods that are not a part of the NAS.

**Themes of Poverty & Inclusion, Healthy Spaces & Communities, Access & Knowledge Sharing, and Economic Development were co-identified by community and campus partners (including all Change Camp Hamilton partners) within McMaster University’s 2016-2021 Community Engagement Strategic Plan.