5. Gulf of Georgia Cannery: Storytelling the Roles of Asian Canadians in the Local Seafood Industry

Organization Information

Organization Name

Gulf of Georgia Cannery National Historic Site of Canada

Mission and Vision of Organization

The primary mandate of the Gulf of Georgia Cannery Society is to operate the Gulf of Georgia Cannery National Historic Site on behalf of Parks Canada. Since the 1980s, the Society has worked in partnership with Parks Canada to preserve the Cannery facility and is now responsible for its interpretation through tours and educational programming, site promotion and regular maintenance. The Society works to achieve its mission through other activities such as creating annual feature exhibitions related to fishing history and producing community events such as the annual Pull of the Net multicultural celebration. In all activities, the Society is committed to working with the Steveston community to preserve its fishing heritage and local charm

Guiding Principles + Values

The Gulf of Georgia Cannery Society is a non-profit and registered charity responsible for the operation of the Gulf of Georgia Cannery National Historic Site on behalf of Parks Canada. We honor the importance of Canada’s West Coast fishing history by sharing stories of the fishing industry and fishing communities through exhibitions, collections, and programs, and events.

Contact Information

• Primary Contact Person(s)*: Gillian Chan, [[1]]; Heidi Rampfl: [[2]]; Krystal Newcombe, [[3]]
• Contact Person(s) for Proposal Development*: Dr Henry Yu (he/him), henry.yu@ubc.ca; Jenny Lu (she/her) jennifer.lu@ubc.ca
• Phone: NA
• Address: 12138 Fourth Ave, Richmond, British Columbia V7E 3J1
• Website: https://gulfofgeorgiacannery.org/

*Please ask your TA for more information on the division of partner communication for this project

Preferred Method of Contact

• Best method(s) to contact: Email
• Best day(s) to contact: To be determined with community partner
• Best time(s) to contact: Mornings, Afternoons

Preferred Platform(s) for Remote Collaboration

• In person
• Email
• Zoom

Project Description

Context: What challenge or issue does the project aim to address?

The Gulf of Georgia Cannery is located in the historic fishing village of Steveston, the largest commercial small-craft fishing port in Canada. Built in 1894, the Cannery was once the largest of its kind, and was known as the “Monster Cannery”. Today the Cannery is the last among more than 15 canneries that once stood on the Steveston waterfront. Now a national historic site, our exhibits showcase the history of Canada’s West Coast fishing industry.

As part of its mission to help visitors learn and discover pieces of fishing and canning stories in our West Coast Fishing industry, students committing to this project will ultimately add value to the storytelling facets at GoGC. In this project, students will work under the guidance of Dr. Henry Yu and Jenny Lu from UBC, alongside the Fish Tales team from Gulf of Georgia Cannery to identify an intriguing theme/topic related to the involvement of Asian Canadians in the local seafood industry, and then to propose and produce a narrative that tells the story of findings related to the chosen topic.  

Main Project Activities and Deliverables

• Researching the involvement of Asian Canadians in the local seafood distribution network
• Compile and communicate findings in a digital format (video, audio, mapping)
• Students are encouraged to be proactive and creative in doing their research and presenting their findings to the community
• Final deliverables will be used for public engagement purposes.

Student Assets and Skills (preferred or required)

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Creativity and interest in public engagement/digital communications
• Proficiency reading, reviewing, and condensing academic and non-academic literature and information
• Interest in community programming
• Strong organizational skills

Are there any mandatory attendance dates (e.g. special event)?

• N/A

Will the project take place online, in person, or a combination?

• · Online

Is a criminal record search (CRS) required?

• No

Related Community Service Opportunities for Students

• Please visit our Volunteer page to view the most current list of volunteer opportunities
• Depending on individual/group performance throughout the course, students might be offered a paid internship position to work with UBC’s INSTRCC organization on community engagement programs, including possible internships with various local organizations

Required Reading

Project/Partner Orientation Materials

Students should review these materials prior to the first partner meeting:

• An example of storytelling campaign for the GOGC done by previous ACAM students: Fish Tales. Fish Tales posts are from October 2021 to November 2021.
• GoGC website

Additional Project/Partner Orientation Materials

The following will be provided at the first community partner meeting:

• Students may have the opportunity to visit Gulf of Georgia Cannery at Steveston during the first Flexible Learning week (students receive confirmation by the first week of classes)