Pecha Kucha Vancouver gets political, but also highlights health, comics, spiders, and friendship

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      Last night,  Cause+Affect put on its 35th Pecha Kucha Night in Vancouver, featuring 11 speakers, including myself, who were given a simple instruction.

      We were told to talk about whatever we like for six minutes and 40 seconds. And we were to do this as 20 images appeared for 20 seconds each on the big screen behind us at the Vogue Theatre.

      These events began in Japan and have spread around the world.

      Steven Cox, creative director of Cause+Affect, was the host, introducing the band Woodpigeon, which got the night off to a terrific start. Singer-guitarist Mark Andrew Hamilton said at one point that he speaks more than most musicians on-stage, but on this evening, he let the music do most of the talking.

      Cox is equally comfortable speaking in front of an audience after 35 of these events, and he moved seamlessly from humorous banter to earnest appeals about the importance of being an engaged citizen.

      After the band left the stage, entrepreneur Steve Curtis told a fascinating tale about how he was diagnosed with an incurable cancer in his 20s, yet managed to beat back the disease, thanks to psychoneuroimmunology.

      It's an emerging field of research focusing on the links between the mind and human health. Curtis, also known as the Urban Shaman, explained that he eventually became fit enough to climb Mount Everest and he brought along a picture to prove it. By that time, he only had one little lesion on his butt. He said it was there to give him a kick in the ass.

      After hearing his presentation, I felt sympathy for whomever had to follow. It turned out to be Vancouver Opera's Colleen Maybin, who did a stellar job explaining how her organization is addressing relevant themes, bringing about social change, and building connections in the community.

      Maybin focused a fair amount of attention on Stickboy, which is a critically acclaimed opera chronicling spoken-word artist Shane Koyzcan's experiences being bullied.

      Each of the other speakers brought passion to their presentations. Seth Klein of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives talked about how his grandfather's experience as an animator at the Walt Disney Company shaped him and his sister, the author Naomi Klein.

      It turned out that Klein's grandfather organized a union, got fired, and was eventually blacklisted during the Communist witch hunt of the late 1940s and early 1950s. This has fuelled the family's passion for social justice ever since.

      Another speaker, Reilly Yeo of Open Media and Groundswell, launched her talk by asking people to put up their hands if they have not invested in Kinder Morgan. Then she informed everyone that they all had, in fact, sunk money in this company and several other corporations through their contributions to the Canada Pension Plan. She went to explain things people can do to level the playing field between citizens and Big Oil.

      Poet, educator, and diversity consultant Meharoona Ghani delivered an inspiring poem about her struggles and triumphs while battling racism in her youth and multiple sclerosis in adulthood.

      On the lighter side, UBC zoology professor Wayne Maddison provided a gallery of photos of exotic-looking spiders. His enthusiasm for these creatures shone through before he ended with a pitch to think more about nature and the future of the planet.

      Pivot Legal Society lawyer DJ Larkin talked about her clients—homeless people and tent-city dwellers who inspire her. She explained why it's important to bring their stories before the court, even if she doesn't always win.

      Mohammed Ehab, founder of Reel Causes, discussed how he overcame social isolation as an immigrant from Cairo by sharing Egyptian food with people in Port Alberni. After moving to Vancouver, he created a large group of film enthusiasts who use their purchasing power to raise money for a variety of charities. His wealth, he emphasized, comes from the friendships he's developed.

      Artist Sean Karemaker talked about his obsession for comics in front of some amazing and often dark imagery he's created. In recent years, he's developed a passion for teaching and his art is, at times, a little brighter.

      The final speaker, designer John James Ignacio, spoke of the difficulties of being accepted in the advertising industry until she took an Anglicized male name. It was an insightful presentation forcing the audience to think about the gender and racial biases that still permeate our society.

      As for me, I spoke about civic politics and the recent Vancouver election. I supplemented my presentation with a bunch of photos that have already appeared on this website.

      It was my first Pecha Kucha. Yes, I admit I was late to these parties, which have been going on for five years. But I highly recommend it for anyone thinking about attending the next one.

      Comments

      2 Comments

      Rob

      Nov 28, 2014 at 4:54pm

      I found this show frustrating, something that I hadn't experienced at previous editions. Many speakers chose to speak of the causes of the evils, but they did not choose to speak of the effects that their actions or recommended changes would make. Whether it be deaths in Oppenheimer Park, continued abuse of the downtown east side impoverished by organized crime, drastically reduced income and payouts for Canada Pensions, decreased tax income, there are many affects to the changes they are proposing.
      Is lower health care, education, and welfare payments worth saving the environment. These are real issues that should have been addressed, and the speakers were not really honest and forth right about the effect that their causes would have.
      As a side note, we as a society are going to have to make some serious sacrifices to save the environment, eliminate poverty, and feed the poor. Let's admit to this, embrace it, and Steve Curtis said learn to love it. If we want more tax revenues, let's also eliminate the tax haven that non profits and co-ops get. Let's make everybody, corporations, non-profits, and every individual in society all pay their fair share.

      mike

      Nov 30, 2014 at 10:41am

      really glad I missed this bitch fest