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Despite the essential role of recreation in the health and well-being of individuals and communities and the rural nature of Canada, rural recreation has received limited attention from researchers. To address this gap and explore the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on rural communities, researchers from the World Leisure Centre of Excellence at Vancouver Island University and the Recreation & Parks Association of the Yukon investigated pandemic impacts on rural recreation in the Yukon Territory. This study focused on five rural communities with unique governance structures, recreation delivery approaches, and population characteristics. The purpose was to explore pandemic impacts on residents and recreation delivery and how recreation can assist with pandemic recovery. Using a participatory rural appraisal approach, eight modified world cafes were hosted, and 28 key informants were interviewed. This research showed that rural Yukoners preferred to be outdoors and that most of their recreation and physical activity involved outdoor recreation, on-the-land activities, and tasks of daily life (e.g., hauling water or firewood). Engagement in these activities also proved to be more resilient in the face of public health mandates and for those who were vaccine-hesitant. Three strong narratives emerged from the data: (a) recreation funding and programs have been focused on children/youth, (b) physically active recreation has been defined as sports participation, and (c) indoor recreation (e.g., pools and arenas) facilities are necessary infrastructure in all rural communities. In contrast, it was found that (a) most engaged in unstructured outdoor recreation and on-the-land activities, (b) outdoor facilities and infrastructure would meet community needs, (c) communities want programs that promote social connections and wellness, and (d) there is a strong need for physical and social experiences across the lifespan. Outdoor recreation and on-the-land activities are central to the lives of rural Yukoners. They can also be central to the recovery of individuals and communities if decision-makers and funders consider systems-level changes (e.g., reviewing the Recreation Act) and if stakeholders consider broadening the scope of community recreation. Additionally, supporting residents’ capacity to engage in unstructured and self-led recreation across the lifespan would assist with pandemic recovery and developing a more sustainable recreation delivery model in rural Yukon. https://viurrspace.ca/bitstream/handle/10613/27224/PIRR2023FinalReport.pdf?sequence=3

The COVID-19 pandemic changed the way people work together, particularly how colleagues communicate with one another in a remote work setting. With the onset of the pandemic in early 2020, all organisations in Canada were mandated to move their employees to work from home to slow the spread of the virus. This resulted in the work from home phenomenon (WFH) and a transposition of the social aspects of work and relations between colleagues. This study investigates the WFH phenomenon through the lens of workplace communication and applies the findings to the practice of HR and organisational leadership. Through the use of adaptive structuration theory (AST), which proposes the idea of soft technological determinism, the study explains the introduction and utilisation of information and communication technologies in the workplace, particularly for a workforce with low digital literacy. The study reveals the absence of organisational policies and legislation on remote work, while acknowledging the challenges created by differences between organisations, unique features of various communication software, and varying individual preferences. Furthermore, the results demonstrate the importance of workplace relationships in organisational resilience and the role that HR and organisational leaders play in supporting a culture that promotes flexibility and openness.

Despite multiculturalism serving as a policy for more than 50 years in Canada and 30 years in British Columbia to build acceptance of cultural diversity, the COVID-19 pandemic has served as an impetus for a resurgence of anti-Asian racism in Canada, particularly in B.C. This study explores how the policy of multiculturalism has been applied in Canada’s westernmost province to address anti-Asian racism, examining its application from a communication perspective and its unique sub-national context. Using a pragmatic, mixed-methods approach, the study involved a survey of Canadians of Chinese, Japanese, and Korean backgrounds living in B.C., and a content analysis of B.C. government messaging related to multiculturalism and anti-Asian racism within the fiscal periods of 2017-18 and 2021-22. The study finds that the provincial government application of multiculturalism focuses on the fundamental acknowledgement of the existence and value of cultural and ethnic diversity rather than on a more advanced application promoting belonging and integration of immigrants into Canadian society. The findings suggest opportunities for government messaging to strengthen its focus on values related to inclusion that are of importance to Canadians of East Asian descent, and a need for the application of multiculturalism to focus on strengthening the sense of belonging between Canadians of all cultural backgrounds and ethnicities to collectively recognize the common values we share as a basis of a common civic identity.

The COVID-19 pandemic caused me to reflect on how my home economics grade 8 to 12 pedagogy changed during crisis. In addition, the quarantine period from March to June of 2020 created an immersion in rapid adaptation of food practices during a time of socio-economic disruption. This multidisciplinary approach to resilience research explored autoethnographic narratives of personal identity and transformation with regard to food systems during crisis using an ecofeminist lens, in addition to writing as inquiry comprised of a selection of themed Twitter comments about quarantine baking intended to explore the relationship between cooking and socioecological resilience. A growing sense of connection to nature through food and finding my place in the feminist movement emerged through reflective practice and reflexive responses to bake from the public domain that I discovered. Finally, I reflect on how these insights fed my teaching practice to become more aligned with the values of environmental education and the caring ethic of feminism.

This thesis explores the phenomenon of secular transformative tourism on the Camino de Santiago, identifying catalysts that facilitate the experience. As primary motivations for walking the Camino have shifted from religious and spiritual towards secular, this research corroborates that many modern pilgrims seek transformation rather than transcendence. Four main themes of catalysts were observed: communitas, liminality, physical elements, and Spanish elements. The catalysts identified allow individuals to address explicit issues in their lives and tap into unrealized potential for transformation. As the world emerges from the COVID-19 pandemic, individuals need to re-establish their physical, mental, and emotional health. For tourism organizations looking to enhance transformative experiences, the elements of motivation, catalyst, and transformation within this study may be incorporated into activities and events. Based on a sample of 15 Canadian participants, this study identified 25 catalysts that link motivations to walk the Camino with the transformations experienced by participants. Overall, this study offers a way forward for the emerging field of transformative tourism by providing insights into the importance catalysts have in facilitating transformative experiences for individuals seeking transformation and for tourism organizations wishing to create an environment that is conducive to transformation for their guests.

Middle school is a time when students learn a greater understanding of the world, create a sense of independence, develop new interests and skills, and make new friends. It is a crucial time where students need to learn valuable coping strategies and life skills in conjunction with academics. The emotional effects of COVID-19 have intensified the need for social-emotional learning (SEL) strategies and mental health literacy (MHL) to be taught in schools. Many teachers are lacking knowledge around mental health, which leaves them unaware of how to support their students. The goal of this study was to determine if teaching a mental health literacy program elicited any changes to teachers’ knowledge, understanding, and attitudes towards mental health. This study used both qualitative and quantitative data, in the form of reintervention and post-intervention surveys, participant journals, and a focus group interview, from three teacher participants to better understand the effects of teaching the Elementary Mental Health Literacy Resource (EMHLR). The results of this mixed methods study showed that there was little to no change in teacher’s attitudes towards mental health, a mental health literacy program was valuable for increasing teachers’ knowledge of mental health, there was concern around the terminology associated with mental health and stigma, and finally, the three teacher participants were able to critically reflect about the state of their own mental health and wellbeing and make changes accordingly. https://viurrspace.ca/bitstream/handle/10613/27349/Bevan.pdf?sequence=3&isAllowed=y

In 2019 the World Health Organization (WHO) declared vaccine hesitancy as a top threat to global health while highlighting the concerning resurgence of vaccine preventable diseases. In the Northern British Columbia region, which is under the jurisdiction of the Northern Health Authority, there are lower routine child vaccination rates than the rest of the province, however, these rates do not tell us why parents may be vaccine hesitant. As a communications professional working in healthcare, I conducted this qualitative research to better understand the local barriers and drivers of vaccination for Northern BC parents. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with two key audiences: parents of young children (five years and younger) and immunizers (nurses) who administer routine child vaccinations. The interview data were analyzed using discourse analysis to develop vaccination-related themes. Unexpected results included the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on increasing parental vaccine hesitancy, the impact of the pandemic on increasing general vaccine awareness, the experience of first-time parents, and the impact of family dynamics in small communities. This research also revealed the extreme difficulty in recruiting participants in the vaccine-hesitant parent population. In accordance with the WHO’s Tailoring Immunization Programmes approach of not guessing why populations may be hesitant but determining the root cause, this research sheds light on several reasons why Northern BC parents may be vaccine-hesitant, and it goes one step further by offering strategic communication recommendations informed by the Behaviour Change Wheel to help increase vaccine uptake for young children in the region.

Tourism is an important contributor to Canadian economic growth, as evidenced by the record-breaking 22.1 million visitors that Canada welcomed in 2019, leading to employment opportunities and service growth in all regions of the country (Destination Canada, 2019). However, the COVID-19 pandemic's global travel shutdown had severe consequences for the tourism industry and altered host communities' perceptions of visitors (Destination British Columbia, 2020). As a result, residents' views on tourism may have shifted since the pandemic, making it essential to study their attitudes and beliefs toward tourism in their community post-pandemic. Knowing residents’ sentiments towards tourism can offer destination management organizations (DMOs) and tourism stakeholders valuable insights, which they can use to enhance local tourism development by improving tourism planning and policies. Although previous studies have explored residents' sentiments toward tourism at the national or provincial level, less attention has been paid to the community level (Destination British Columbia, n.d.; Destination Canada, n.d.). This study investigated residents’ sentiments toward tourism in the Vancouver Island community of Nanaimo. Grounded in social exchange theory, this study used an online survey to measure participants' agreement with positive and negative statements about tourism in Nanaimo. Hypotheses were established according to involvement status in the tourism or hospitality industry, length of residency, areas of residency, age, and Net Promoters Score categories. Additionally, this research also explored how residents in different Net Promoter Score categories spoke about Nanaimo as a destination. To test the hypotheses and identify any significant differences between the groups, the data analysis employed SPSS software and a range of statistical tests, including T-tests, Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), group comparison, Chi-square test, and Cronbach's alpha reliability test. Results revealed that Nanaimo residents generally had a positive attitude toward tourism. Participants who were employed in the tourism and hospitality industry were more positive than those who are not employed in the industry. Passives and Detractors had similar attitudes toward tourism and were less positive than Promoters. Tourism Nanaimo serves as the Destination Management Organization committed to enhancing Nanaimo's appeal as a tourism destination (Tourism Nanaimo, 2022). The study’s findings offered valuable insights and suggestions for Tourism Nanaimo and other tourism stakeholders, aimed at promoting the sustainable growth of tourism in Nanaimo. https://viurrspace.ca/bitstream/handle/10613/27443/Chen.pdf?sequence=3&isAllowed=y

Conference paper: 2022 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition. Conference dates: June 26 - 29, 2022. Location: Minneapolis, MN. © 2022 American Society for Engineering Education. This paper was originally published as: Dick, B. (2022). Long-term impact of COVID-19 on the first-year engineering experience at a mid-sized teaching focused university [Paper presentation]. 2022 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Minneapolis, MN. https://peer.asee.org/41352 This paper discusses the COVID-19 adaptions made within the first-year engineering design curriculum, and reflects on their impact fulfilling the required learning outcomes, mitigating student mental health issues, and addressing academic misconduct. It will further articulate the adaptations that are planned to be continued within the first-year experience as students return for face-to-face instruction. The impact of these changes will continue to be studied over the coming academic year. https://viurrspace.ca/bitstream/handle/10613/26179/DickASEE2022.pdf?sequence=3

This report was originally published as: Jóhannesson, G.T., Welling, J., Müller, D.K., Lundmark, L., Nilsson, R.O., de la Barre, S., Granås, B., Kvidal-Røvik, T., Rantala, O., Tervo-Kankare,K., & Maher, P. (2022). Arctic tourism in times of change: Uncertain futures - from overtourism to re-starting tourism. Nordic Council of Ministers. DOI: 10.6027/temanord2022-516 This report presents the findings of the third and final workshop and field course hosted by the project Partnership for Sustainability: Arctic Tourism in Times of Change funded by the Nordic Council of Ministers’ Arctic Co-operation Programme 2018–2021. The focus of the workshop was on overtourism and the impact of and response to COVID-19 by companies and stakeholders in Arctic tourism. This publication was funded by the Nordic Council of Ministers. https://viurrspace.ca/bitstream/handle/10613/25309/delaBarre2022.pdf?sequence=3