As part of the Greek Heritage Month, which runs from June 3 to June 26, the Hellenic Canadian Congress of B.C. and The Cinematheque will launch the city’s inaugural Greek Film Festival (VGFF) slated to run from June 16 to 19. The festival was co-founded by film director Harry Killas and artist Christos Dikeakos, who…

As June 8 marks the annual World Ocean Day, one is called to pay more attention to the sorry state of our blue planet, which is facing a cocktail of assaults from human pollution to climate change. “The ocean is getting tired – it is not going to solve our problems, it cannot assimilate all…

Celebrating North America’s Asian Heritage, a plethora of Asia-related events are on offer this month ranging from art, music, literature, to talks and workshops. ExplorASIAN Festival, being the main festival in town, alone is presenting a program of more than 60 virtual and in-person events for the public. “We are really happy to see so…

With a theme of “Finding our voices, telling our stories,” this year’s LiterAsian Festival will present a number of talented Asian storytellers who have mastered multiple mediums from books to screenplays. Running from May 7 to May 15, the festival will feature panel discussions, writing workshops, literary book talks, manuscript development sessions and will end…

Just in time to celebrate its 15th anniversary, Coastal Dance Festival will resume in-person performances at the Anvil Centre in New Westminster from April 20–24. “It is going to be special this year, and people are really looking forward to it. As we are preparing, it just feels like it’s going to be a very…

It is time to revive all your senses with a taste of “Frenchness” at the 33rd annual Festival du Bois. After so many protocol changes within artistic communities, this weekend festival – which runs Apr. 1–3 – promises to entice you back onto the dance floor with its in-person return to Coquitlam’s Mackin Park. “Our…

Francophones across the globe, celebrate International Francophonie Day on March 20. The Francophone presence in British Columbia, and the vitality of Francophone communities has shaped not only Canada’s history, but its cultural and linguistic diversity as well, says Nicolas Kenny, a professor of history at Simon Fraser University (SFU). “Rallying under a flag that brings…

Pamphinette Buisa is a force to be reckoned with, both as a top-performing Rugby player and as a young female leader who is passionate about social justice. Born in Canada to immigrant parents from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Buisa made her Olympic debut in Tokyo 2020 after joining the Canadian national team in 2014.…

Winter Arts Festival Vancouver’s award-winning Winter Arts Festival will return to the city from Feb. 11 to 27 after debuting last year in the middle of the pandemic. Produced by the team behind Vancouver Mural Festival, the event will fill public plazas in downtown Vancouver from Canada Place to Science World with 11 augmented reality…

PuSh Fest -“Aalaapi” “The audience will feel they are foreigners thrown into a northern village. Not everything is given to them right away. It is a show about the art of listening. If people slow down their rhythm, they can get access to the culture,” says Laurence Dauphinais, director of Aalaapi. Aalaapi is a collaborative…

Protocols in place to keep us healthy from COVID can be mentally damaging. And with Blue Monday – the third Monday in January considered the most depressing day of the entire year – approaching, it is an opportunity to revisit the concept of “Blue Monday” in regards to mental health and spread awareness of the…

The year 2021, much like the preceding year, brought its fair share of trials and tribulations. In addition to the ongoing pandemic, our province has experienced extreme climate change in the form of wildfires and floods, an increased focus on pressing social issues and a full-throated turn to technology as a way to cope and…

December 5 is United Nations (UN) International Volunteer Day. The UN General Assembly officially mandated the day in 1985 to celebrate the contributions of both volunteers and their organizations, as well as to showcase their efforts in their communities. The focus of International Volunteer Day is to thank volunteers worldwide and to highlight their work…