Country: Open-mindedness to the opinions expressed by others even when we don’t agree, that it not escalate to violence or ugliness of hateful words.

World: An awareness and open appreciation for different cultures, beliefs and ways of life around the world, without the righteousness that their culture is the dominant or “right” way simply because they live it.
Overall, acceptance for one another is my underlying theme with the hope that we can embrace the diversity of culture without trying to change it; moreover, find ways to change so that the dominant culture is inclusivity and collaboration with each other on a global scale.
Note: To see the graphic above click on it :)

Community: More community/ volunteer participation in community initiatives to solve issues specific to that area. For example - mental health, drug abuse, homelessness, wealth disparities, natual disaster relief etc.

World: A global movement towards battling social justice issues such as human rights, racial injustice, climate change, etc. Despite the cliche goal of "world peace", it is better to achieve any steps towards bettering these issues. With the increase of global communication and connectivity, I also think it important to address issues of language/ culture preservation and cultural imperialism that arise from this.

Country: I wish that Canada would begin to elevate indigenous voices in our country. Before moving to the Northwest Territories, I knew almost nothing about indigenous history or culture. I am so grateful for my experiences and the people I met while living there and I wish everyone could have that opportunity. That immersive experience completely changed my perspective and educational philosophy. 

Community: I wish we could promote a greater sense of empathy in the community for others with differing opinions. The comments sections on local news articles are full of people with differing opinions speaking to each other in condescending and vicious language. It is heartbreaking how people within the same community could feel so divided and disconnected from each other. I would love for there to be an event that reminds us all of our sameness and humanity so that we could respectfully disagree without hatred or division. 

Country: At the national level, I would like to see equity in terms of access to resources. For example, there are communities in our country that do not have access to clean drinking water, which should be a basic right of all Canadians to have. Equal access to technologies like the internet, as well, was highlighted during the pandemic as we saw wealthier students with access to the digital technologies needed to learn online were significantly more able to succeed with online learning. Again, in a wealthy country like Canada, all students should have equal access to the technologies they need to learn in an equitable way.

Community: At the local level, I would like to see equity in access to resources being spread more evenly between all communities. For example, my school is located in an area of the Lower Mainland that has quite a high socio-economic standing. As a result, the schools in my community benefit from significant parent donations that benefit student learning in terms of access to technologies and resources. Other communities in the Lower Mainland are not as wealthy and the local schools do not receive many parent donations, so their students do not benefit from the same access to technologies and resources that their more wealthy counterparts do. I would like to see change in the way funding is assigned to schools to help mitigate these inequities.

Country: I wish the Canadian government would provide easy access to services and information from the government in various languages, even during a pandemic when things are urgent and require everyone to understand how to stop spreading the virus. As Canada's diverse population is increasingly growing, I found the government's COVID-19 guidelines and resources are often only available in English and French, and then it takes a very long time to publish the translation in different languages.

World: Social equity and poverty issues. I hope that no one in the world should worry about hunger, food insecurity, clean water, clothes, housing issues, education, healthcare accessibility. These are basic necessities of humans, yet many families and children struggle and suffer from those worldwide, even within the first countries. 

 

Country: I think collective memory in Canada tends to overlook darker aspects of our history focus more on our triumphs. Wartime persecution of Jews in internment camps in Canada, blatant and outright anti-Semitism within the government that led to the SS St Louis being turned away, colonialism, slavery, human trafficking, residential schools are often neglected parts of our national history. I would like to see a drastic improvement, even legislation related to historical understandings, how we remember, memorialize and interpret various events. 

 

World: Inaction with relieving the world of poverty, hunger and disease. While actions plans might exist within the walls of the UN, and western governmental offices. The execution of these plans is often questionable. Similar to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission reports Calls to Action, how many of those calls have been met with an adequate response? Certainly not all 94. Correspondingly, the UN might have a concrete action plan to deal with poverty, hunger and disease and submit various recommendations. However, I would like the action and afterlife of these recommendations to be taken seriously. 

 

Country: An improvement rather than a change to the health care system in Canada. Increasing the # of emergency departments and staff is crucial to be able to attend to patients’ needs in a timely manner and to increase readiness to face issues such as this pandemic.

 

World: six out of ten children and adolescents worldwide were not learning a minimum in reading and mathematics in 2017 (UNESCO, 2021). This makes me pause and wonder what the new number would be with the pandemic, were many kids have no access to internet/devices or even electricity. So, the first thing I would change in the world is giving all kids equal access to education. This change will eventually solve many global issues.

Country: In Canada, I would want the curriculum to reflect and change towards the truth about Canada's Indigenous heritage. The curriculum is still very misleading and shadows what Indigenous individuals endured and how Canada came to be. 

World: I have always been passionate about feminism. I still do not understand how men can make more than a woman and both are working the same job. I have no idea how this makes sense and is still going on. For example, in the Netflix movie "Don't Look Up" Leonardo DiCaprio was paid $5 million more than Jennifer Lawerence despite them both being the lead characters.  ​​

 

Country: My main wish for Canada would be to expand universal healthcare. Canada has a universal healthcare system that is far from perfect; it is still severely lacking in basic mental health services as well as pharmacare. Mental health services and prescriptions are extremely costly, and Canadians should not have to worry about being able to afford their rent or afford their prescriptions. Oftentimes, provincial drug programs are either too strict or omit many life saving medications needed for those who suffer from various illnesses.  

 

World: I would like to see a global movement that enforces basic human rights such as access to healthcare, clean drinking water, and food security. The pandemic further highlighted the inequities that many people suffer in other countries. 

 

Country: Privileging historically marginalized and oppressed voices, cultures, and communities to ensure more equitable governance, policy making, and planning of federal and provincial resources, services, and supports (e.g., environment, education, arts & culture, healthcare, social services, infrastructure, etc.). I believe that in welcoming and prioritizing previously silenced voices will help to disrupt the harmful status quo imposed by Eurocentric and capitalist discourses and priorities, and instead create a more equitable society that is holistically invested in the livelihoods of citizens of today and the future. 

 

World: A global undertaking (plans and actions) to address the social, economic, and environmental-related crises that will impact the current and future generations. It is difficult to pick just one issue to change, since they are all so interconnected. 

Country: I’d like there to be increased allocation of governmental resources, finances, and attention towards Aboriginal reserves in Canada. Things like unclean drinking water, food insecurity and price inflation in grocery stores, and inadequate housing and infrastructure are just some of many issues that persist on these reserves which stem from governmental neglect. 

World: I’d like there to be greater inclusion and acceptance of different worldly views, cultures, and histories in education curriculums around the world. I think that some curriculums that do attempt to do this tend to place an emphasis on Western perspectives and ideals, but I think that learning many different worldly views, cultures, and histories other than one’s own is enlightening and promotes greater diversity and inclusion.

(Edmonton)

Edmonton’s historic Chinatown has been experiencing an increase in crime and vandalism, yet problems in the area continue to be ignored by city officials. Local businesses in the area are being forced to shut down because crime in the neighbourhood is driving out community members and customers. Although the issue is intertwined with other complex social issues surrounding homelessnes, drugs, mental health, and more, I wish that I could help this community of Asian-Canadian immigrants rebuild and thrive. 

Country:

(Canada) 

Since working in public libraries, I have noticed that newcomers to Canada often have difficulty finding appropriate resources for their needs. From my experience, many newcomers seem to be unaware of free programs to help them develop their English language skills, search for work, find childcare, and much more. This area of my work felt personal to me because I know that my parents experienced similar difficulties upon arriving in Canada. I wish that I could change the way that newcomers are welcomed to Canada by creating a more streamlined and straightforward process for their settlement.

World: 

The world inequality report saw the steepest increase in the wealth of billionaires on record. This is old news, but the richest 10% of the world owns 52% of the world’s wealth, while the poorest half shares only 8% (https://wir2022.wid.world/). I wish that I could redistribute wealth somehow and reduce global inequality between developed and developing countries. I think that this huge wealth inequality as well as the inequalities of power that result from it need to be addressed in order to help move forward with other social issues (climate change, gender inequality, etc.) as well. 

Country (Canada): I wish for improved social/living conditions for temporary foreign workers. Compared to permanent residents, this group is extremely vulnerable and has limited access to social services (health, language courses, local support, etc.). Some services are only available online in French/English, which represent a major barrier for some workers who don’t speak the language, and are not used to digital devices.  

World: I wish for collaboration and understanding among countries to take action on global issues (climate change, migration, access to key resources). Given the essential role that technology plays nowadays, I think global forums should also discuss legislation on tech companies and ethical concerns about privacy and exchange/use of people’s data.   

The world:
I wish for people to genuinely care and look into the issues that have caused a lot of people around the world, to suffer. We learned from this pandemic, that we are so interconnected and dependent on each other, that a start up of a virus on one end of the world, closed down all parts of the world, and continues to affect us today. Moreover, if the world is one big house, then what happens in one end of the house will greatly affect everyone else, so, it is only right to be mindful of each other. 

The country:
I wish for people to accept each other’s differences. This can be achieved by opening forums for discussions on religion, cultural differences, mental health, refugee stories, etc., all for the sake of education. I think with education, people can better understand others, instead of formulating assumptions about others simply for not knowing them. When we listen to each other, and be informed of one another’s stories and culture, we will better understand each other, and hopefully this will reduce events of hate and racism. 

The community:
I wish for everyone to get to know their neighbors, exchange foods, gifts and invite each other over. This way, everyone learns about everyone else’s culture and traditions. My wish is for everyone to get to know their community, at a deep, cultural level to better connect with others. With cultural knowledge, one can easily start a conversation with a co-worker who may look different, build connections, and work better in a diverse team project. Building a strong community means people getting a long, benefiting from each other’s differences, and so, making significant positive changes everyday. 

I would love to provide each country with the resources necessary for maternal health. I find it incredibly difficult to know that the maternal and infant mortality rates are so high across the globe despite all the advances and resources available. Unfortunately, the numbers remain high because many countries do not have access to those resources for financial or logistical reasons and/or they are not equitably distributed amongst the country itself. With that I would also like more resources provided to women across the world to educate them to become advocates for themselves. 

I would love to see a day where there is systemic racism does not exist for all minority groups. Canada is a melting pot of cultures and while the vast majority are incredibly welcoming, that cannot be said for everyone. I would especially focus on Black and Indigenous communities who are marginalized because of their ethnicities and encourage true integration (national apologies and accountabilities for what was done). I would also like to see more discussions in schools and communities across the country (not only in cities where diversity is visible).  

I would love to see more solidarity among communities and less visible economic gaps between neighbourhoods/communities. I believe that sometimes it is unavoidable to see differences from one community to the next but I would love to see things such as updated parks, community centres, libraries etc. in all communities especially inner-city communities. 

Country: That every community in the country had access to education, at least up to the high school level, ideally up to the college level. Many First Nation communities are forced to choose between keeping their minor children at home or sending them to the big cities due to lack of high schools in their communities; the cities being rife with racism and discrimination towards many of these vulnerable children who must live with strangers and learn to navigate alone in, many a times, a predatory world. 

Community: This can also be a country issue - the opioid crisis that is prevalent in many of the communities throughout the country. Both legal and illegal opioids that flood the market have resulted in accidental overdoses. There are many deaths involving fentanyl and more needs to be done in order to check the presence of fentanyl in the drugs to avoid accidental, many a times fatal overdoses. 

Because of the unsatisfactory English learning environment combined with Chinese students’ choice of communicating with Mandarin both at home and with their classmates, I hope to improve their English skills with four dimensions (speaking, reading, listening and writing) through tutoring as a volunteer at weekends both in person and virtually.

Country: As a Chinese citizen, I hope to change the Chinese suppressive government. The leadership of authoritarians has deprived me and other Chinese people of many human rights, including the freedoms of speech, religion, and assembly, etc. Furthermore, growing up in China, my critical thinking and creativity have been greatly impacted at schools. Teachers teach us with the authorized curriculum and no one dares to question the knowledge in the textbooks of the Chinese, Politics and History and relevant learning resources available to us. Therefore, we have not been given opportunities to analyze what we read and critique them properly. It is a great pity as critical thinking is so crucial for learners. 

World: I wish that there would be no war in our world. Each country could solve conflicting issues through diplomatic conversations. International order should be maintained and not be destroyed by any single country. To me, a war connects with deaths, injuries, and disabilities. It is also miserable for a family who lost their loved ones in wars. Additionally, any war destructs cities and causes long-lasting influence on economy. We should maintain peace that suits the interests for each individual and each nation. 

Country: As mentioned by some of my colleagues, I wish Canada wasn’t as slow or hesitant in addressing issues related to Indigenous peoples. Not only is there a lack of resources in place for support, but the poor reporting on existing issues within Indigenous communities is worrisome. 

World: I wish there was less pressure on BIPOC individuals to work twice as hard to prove themselves worthy of respect, trust, honour and authority. Although there is some progress in today’s world, I still feel negative stereotypes continue to follow minorities in their classrooms, workplaces and society in general.