The group behind Plan It Calgary holds its second event this month

Feeling disconnected from your community and the choices made around you in Calgary? Want to get more involved with municipal decisions that directly affect you?

Civic Camp 2.0 may just be the answer.

Created as a grassroots organization, Civic Camp is a community-based group that hopes to have more say in how their city will evolve and where their city’s money will go. On Oct. 24, Civic Camp is holding its second event in Calgary, Civic Camp 2.0.

Peter Rishaug, a member of Civic Camp since its genesis in the fall of 2008, said he sees this citizen-based organization as “a renaissance of civic engagement.” There is no formal structure of committees and boards, said Rishaug. Rather, individuals may get involved with issues where their passion lies, whether it be sustainable development or promotion of commuter cycling.

Rishaug has a background of community involvement, as the vice president of the Sunalta Community Association, and a member of Best West LRT citizens’ group. He said he believes that real change can be made within a community only when small changes are made by an active citizen base, and would like to see Calgarians more engaged.

Civic Camp is an all-volunteer organization, focusing on citizen involvement in large urban planning issues. The goal of Civic Camp, said Rishaug, is for citizens to “build the Calgary they envision for themselves and their children.” One of Civic Camp’s projects was Plan It Calgary, Calgary’s long-term development plan. Such a project commanded a great deal of citizen engagement, and Civic Camp has been whole-heartedly behind the plan from its inception, due to its emphasis on involvement from the people of Calgary.

Plan It Calgary, however, is only one component of many urban planning initiatives being faced by Civic Camp, who wishes to see greater citizen engagement. Rishaug said some of the group’s long-term expectations are to advocate for complete communities, which provide all services to the populations within them, and to see more city-planning involvement from citizens living out in the suburbs.

Cheri Macaulay, a community activist and member of Civic Camp, as well as other community groups such as the Brentwood Community Association, said she hopes the event will focus on positive change in the city. The focus of the event on Oct. 24 is to recap the goals that Civic Camp has accomplished over the past year and to show people how to build a better Calgary based on its grassroots.

Sarah Kopjar, one of the facilitators at the upcoming event, said she is looking forward to meeting with like-minded people interested in the same changes she would like to see in Calgary. Ideally, she would like to see an emphasis on good public transportation and less development on the outskirts of Calgary. The focus will be on the actions that can come out of the event, rather than simply talking about changes they would like to see, said Kopjar.

Civic Camp 2.0 is a daylong event during which the organizers hope to bring together individuals wishing for a greater involvement within their community. The first Civic Camp event occurred in April 2009, with roughly 160 people in attendance. Rishaug said he would like to see an even bigger crowd at this event, closer to 200 people.

The event will be taking place from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. in the Jack Singer Concert Hall lobby. The event is open to everyone, but registration is required to attend. Registration is free, accessed by logging on to civiccamp2.eventbrite.com. There will be a guest speaker at the event, Chris Turner, the author of “The Geography of Hope.” For more information on Civic Camp, and the upcoming event, please see their wiki page: civiccamp.net.