Home
BC - Welcome
About Safe Harbour
Join Us
Stories
Locations
Media Coverage
Our Supporters
Members Forum
Contact Us

The Safe Harbour: Respect for All program was funded in British Columbia through the Welcoming Communities Strategy, with federal funding provided to the Ministry of Advanced Education and Labour Market Development under Canada's Action Plan Against Racism. The BC program is now generously supported by the Immigrant Integration Branch of the Ministry of Advanced Education and Labour Market Development through the The Welcoming and Inclusive Communities and Workplaces Program (WICWP).

Safe Harbour: Respect for All went national in September 2008, thanks to the generous support of the Government of Canada through Citizenship and Immigration Canada.

Support us! Demand is growing for the Safe Harbour: Respect for All program, as Community Organizers continue to reach more and more audiences with our pro-diversity message of respect for people of all backgrounds. Consider purchasing a Respect for All wristband or making a donation to support the program. As a business, take advantage of opportunities to reach new markets and be a leader in your community through Corporate Sponsorship.

Become a Signature Sponsor
By becoming a Safe Harbour Signature Sponsor, it will build on your existing commitment to diversity and take it to the next level.  We require funding for the continuity and expansion of Safe Harbour throughout BC and across the country. As Canada becomes more diverse, the need to understand diversity grows with it. As a Signature Sponsor, your organization will receive extensive profile within BC's diverse communities and will be recognized for your leadership and commitment. Please contact AMSSA for more information on how you can become involved.

Thank You!
AMSSA wishes to extend thanks to the following supporters: TELUS, BC Hydro, Starbucks, Blenz, Happy Planet, and the Burnaby Board of Trade.

Celebrity Champions
Author and concerned citizen, Severn Cullis-Suzuki, and folk singer and actor, Leon Bibb, have been long-time champions of Safe Harbour: Respect for All. Severn founded the Environmental Children's Organization at age nine and attended the Rio Earth Summit in 1992. She has spoken worldwide on the necessity of redefining our values, acting with the future in mind, and listening to children. She's an editor of and writer for Notes From Canada's Young Activists: A Generation Stands Up for Change. She currently lives on Haida Gwaii off BC's coast and sits on the board of directors of the David Suzuki Foundation.

Mr. Bibb was born in Louisville, Kentucky. During the late-1950s and early-1960s, Bibb was one of a number of American entertainers, such as his good friend Paul Robeson, who were blacklisted for alleged ties to left-wing groups and causes. Mr. Bibb works tirelessly with a youth organization in Vancouver and provided music and storytelling at our Safe Harbour Celebration Event held in Vancouver on March 21st, 2008.

Endorsement from Severn Cullis Suzuki:

Respect.

It is a simple, quiet word. It is also a profound concept, a necessary pillar of a healthy community. We need more of it in the world - respect for others, respect for the Earth, respect for ourselves. In our province of BC, one of the most culturally diverse places in the world, the only way of coexisting is with profound respect for each others’ differences.

My family always taught me that each of us has a responsibility to stand up for our beliefs. I think most people believe in respect. But we need to do more than just believe in it, we need to stand up for it. Especially for the children of BC’s diversity, youth growing up a multicultural reality.

Safe Harbour is a simple and profound idea. This quiet concept gives businesses, institutions and individuals the chance to stand up for respect, and be advocates for peace and justice in our communities. It’s a strong, peaceful way of standing up for diversity, a feature of our country that can make us all stronger.

- Severn Cullis-Suzuki

Severn has been active in environmental and social justice work all her life. She founded the Environmental Children's Organization at age nine and attended the Rio Earth Summit in 1992. She has spoken worldwide on the necessity of redefining our values, acting with the future in mind, and listening to children. She's an editor of and writer for Notes From Canada's Young Activists: A Generation Stands Up for Change. She currently lives on Haida Gwaii in British Columbia and sits on the board of directors of the David Suzuki Foundation.

Who Do You Respect? Series
'Star' power can play an important role in helping us create more welcoming communities that embrace everyone's differences and move beyond simple acceptance or tolerance. We welcome celebrity champions to take part in our meaningful Who Do You Respect? Series. Please contact Pansy Hui at AMSSA at amssash@amssa.org for more details.

Explore Marketing Opportunities or Partnerships with Safe Harbour:
Demonstrate your corporate citizenship and benefit from valuable marketing opportunities by taking advantage of a variety of innovative partnership opportunities with AMSSA’s Safe Harbour: Respect for All program. Promote your brand, products and services to a targeted market or wider public audience by integrating sponsorship of Safe Harbour events and initiatives into your overall marketing plan. If sponsorship does not suit your philanthropic or marketing objectives, AMSSA is able to customize a package tailored to your needs. Or, we may develop a new and innovative partnership based on your organization. These are some examples of where your organization could receive Safe Harbour branding exposure:

• Co-Branding of Diversity Initiatives across 25 BC communities in up to 650 Safe Harbour locations
• Public Awareness Campaigns
• Promotional Activities & Events
• Community Resource Tools & Support
• Diversity Training & Curriculum Development

Develop an Employee Volunteer Program
Allow your employees to actively participate in making our communities better places to live by connecting with Community Organizers in each of the cities where your organization has an office and have your employees volunteer their time to promote the program and help in facilitating Safe Harbour orientation sessions. Your employees will connect with a local non-profit community agency that often requires much needed assistance, which in turn, allows them to focus their resources on those they serve. This would certainly demonstrate how employees make a difference in our local communities.

For further ideas on how to show your respect for diversity, see our Safe Harbour Blog.

Supported by: