An entire season has passed since I last posted, so it is time for an update!
I pressed the pause button this summer and spent the time rejuvenating my own health and well-being. I also reflected upon the past two years at Viswali Consulting and our practice of fostering systems change. I am amazed by how much we have achieved together. I have been enriched by amazing clients and ongoing project partners in planning, government, and post-secondary sectors. I am especially grateful for all the conversations I have had with people who are engaging in diverse activities in systems change, while also effecting change in their own lives. Thank you for including Viswali Consulting in your endeavours!
I encourage you to visit the Projects page on the Viswali Consulting website. This month, we added new information about recently completed projects and some that are on the go. Projects include developing more inclusive planning systems, including planning education, as well as embedding equity in research design and research practices. There is also a new video resource posted to the Public Speaking page about practicing anti-racism in post-secondary education. There is more to come! I continue to write for the Indigenous Climate Hub blog, contributing to conversations about climate change adaptation and relationship building between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples.
I am excited to have been invited to the 2022 Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning (ACSP) Annual Conference in November, to moderate a conversation: “From Representation to Reconciliation and Inclusion: Centring Black and Indigenous Voices and Experiences in Planning.” The theme of the ACSP conference this year is “(Re) Shaping the Inclusive City: Engaging Indigenous and Immigrant Voices, Histories, and Lived Experiences.”
The fall season marks the start of the last quarter of the year, and slow entry into hygge, a time for “cozy contentment and well-being,” as the days grow shorter, and the weather gets colder (at least here in Southeastern Ontario). However, having just marked and celebrated Diwali, the festival of lights, I cannot help but reflect on my gratitude, reconnect with the people in my life —the diverse lights—and feel a sense of renewal in the universe of Viswali Consulting. I am looking forward to the months ahead, as we create a path ahead together, to engage in moments that ignite new ideas and conversations, cultivate joy, and apply creativity in effecting systems change.
