ACROSS THE COUNTRY

BRITISH COLUMBIA REPORT
by Janet Patterson, Shauna Butterwick, Brenda Pengally and Etta Connor

Planning Process
The Vancouver network began a planning process in November, 1985, in order to clarify our mission and objectives. Throughout we have made ongoing acknowledgment of the importance of combining personal needs of members with a larger vision of women's learning needs. We have also attempted to combine the serious nature of our tasks with our desire to have fun and enjoy each other's company. Using various small and large group exercises, we have focused on the following national goal: to advocate for the redress of the inequities blocking women's access to and experience of learning by supporting the increase of women's access to education, validating women's experience, theorizing and popularizing solutions, and joining with other advocacy groups on specific issues. Many suggestions have come forward in the spirit of cooperation and consensus as to how this objective can be put into action. A strong recurring theme has been the need to educate ourselves about research done on women's experience of learning, about feminist perspectives on research and on ways of researching and exploring women's learning issues as a group and as individuals. Initial suggestions include a workshop to discuss various aspects of research. We will also cooperate with other groups in developing a phone tree connecting groups, organizations and individual women throughout this vast province who are concerned with women's learning issues. Our planning process will continue with constant regard for the importance of sharing the workload and avoiding the reinvention of the wheel.

Women's Economic Agenda

Over the past six months, CCLOW as an organization has supported, and individual members have worked to organize, the Women's Economic Agenda: a broad based, nonpartisan coalition of women's organizations formed to make women's and children's issues a priority in the next B.C. provincial election.

Priority issues are: Poverty, Employment, Education, Daycare, Healthcare and Social Services. Current strategies include: grassroots organizing within readings, including neighborhood forums on the issues; distribution and discussion of the brochure, Voter's Guide for Women; and workshops on voters' action; a questionnaire to be sent to each candidate and a "report card" to be compiled on the candidates responses and/or record; a forum on women's issues with leaders of the political parties. Copies of the Voter's Guide for Women and the California based Women's Economic Agenda have been deposited in our Learning Resources Centre (national office). For more information, contact Women's Economic Agenda, c/o Dorrie Nagler (Steering Committee), TC 304, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, B.C. V5A 1S5, (604) 291-4360.