Change for Today
The Society's work to date has included documenting and giving voice to the efforts of women and other groups in social development areas such as health, housing, employment, law and human rights. A program entitled Building Futures documented the story of how a group of unemployed "street women" learned unconventional construction trade skills and participated in renovating a 5,000 square foot house in downtown Victoria. This house became the city's first emergency shelter for homeless or under-housed women.
During the past several years, the Society has produced four legal education videos with major funding from the Law Foundation and the Legal Services Society, B.C. The 26 minute video Income Assistance Tribunal Appeals: Information for Advocates was produced in partnership with the Legal Services Society and teaches advocates how to handle various aspects of client appeals.
The 24 minute video Window on the Process: Residential Tenancy Arbitrations is designed for tenants and landlords who need to know how an arbitration hearing might help settle their disputes. Another LSS co-production, the 21 minute video Making Your Case: the Family Court Process reveals the Family Court process for unrepresented litigants. Finally, the 2004 LSS co-production with LSS was Family Matters in Supreme Court: Judicial Case Conferences and Chambers Hearings. This 20 minute video provides information for people without legal representation who are involved in Supreme Court family cases. The last two LSS videos are now available through conventional distribution venues as well as the Legal Services Society Family Law website: www.familylaw.lss.bc.ca
In June 2000, ETC completed the latest in a series of docu-dramas on family violence issues: It's Not Like I Hit Her, a co-production with the Victoria Family Violence Prevention Society. This program examined the issue of men's emotional abuse of women in intimate relationships. Most of the royalty revenues currently earned by ETC derive from this production.
More recent projects have included a $5000 grant to filmmaker Krista Loughton to cover the cost of hiring a professional Cinematographer on a proposed documentary about Our Place Society which provides shelter for the hard-to-house and other services to the homeless.
A grant of $5000 was awarded to May Street Productions towards a CIDA funded project – The World We Want.
The project is based on UVic's Global Art Exchange where children from nine countries all over the world exchange artwork on two themes - The World We Live In and the World We Want. A demo was made and has been sent to SOS Villages, CIDA and to the Global Art Exchange.
In 2009/10, ETC collaborated on the creation of KidCare Canada. This included the development and production of a demo for a DVD that would teach new parents how to care for their infant's needs, as well as their own. Parents will learn how to nurture their infant during the first months of life – and why this is so critically important.