Making an impact, working in collaboration with marginalized individuals and groups, and creating a culture of belonging is the work that Jessie Sutherland, Director of Intercultural Strategies and one of Raise a Dream’s community members, has done passionately for many years. It is with tremendous joy that we acknowledge Jessie for being a recipient of the prestigious BC Achievement Foundation 2023 Community Award:
About the Award:
The Community Award program celebrates British Columbians who go above and beyond in their dedication and service to others. It honours individuals who devote their time and energy to making their communities more caring, dynamic, beautiful, resilient and inclusive.
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Jessie was presented with her award on May 10th, 2023, and you can watch the full livestream playback of the award ceremony or the portion where Jessie receives her award below:
The next day, Jessie was welcomed by Hon. Katrine Conroy during question period at the legislative assembly to congratulate her for the award and recognize the work she is doing throughout the province and around the world:
About Belonging Matters:
Jessie’s award-winning Belonging Matters framework and her work in reducing stigma, building a culture of belonging, and engaging the voices of those who have been pushed out was recognized for building better, stronger, and more resilient communities.
Her processes and approach have been adopted and used by people, community groups, organizations, municipalities, and government departments around the globe. When people implement the framework and skills needed to build belonging, they are able to solve their community challenges and create long lasting and sustainable change.
About Jessie Sutherland:
An international speaker, trainer, and consultant, Jessie Sutherland works with organizations and communities to engage diversity, build belonging and ignite intercultural collaboration.
Jessie’s work has been delivered in over eight languages and has taken her across Canada and around the world to support communities in their efforts to address challenging issues including workplace inclusion, poverty, homelessness, the overdose crisis, elder abuse, reconciliation, youth engagement and more. Many of her clients go on to win awards for their work in engaging diversity and fostering collaboration for sustainable and lasting change.
As founder of the organization Intercultural Strategies, Jessie helps leaders and groups build cultures of belonging to create change in an inclusive and positive way. She is the innovator of the award-winning Belonging Matters framework and community change model designed to change mindsets, deepen interconnections, impart greater social capital and build stronger communities.
Jessie holds a M.A in Dispute Resolution, is a TEDx speaker and author of the book, Worldview Skills: Transforming Conflict from the Inside Out.
Jessie in the Media
Jessie has already received some great media coverage for her achievement:
- NationTalk: BC Achievement Foundation names Recipients of the 20th annual Community Award
- Richmond News: Richmond Resident Recognized for Fighting Against Stigma and Promoting Inclusion
We reached out to Jessie and she had this message to share:
“I’d like to thank Charmaine Hammond for the incredible support and mentorship along the way. Charmaine is a role model in how to lift up those around us. After the award ceremony, I am overflowing with gratitude. My big take away and invitation—may we all create many opportunities to celebrate and recognize the achievements of those around us in big and small ways. Thank you Charmaine!!!”
Please take a few minutes to read more about Jessie and celebrate with us!
Jessie Sutherland receiving the BC Achievement Foundation 2023 Community Award from BC's Lieutenant Governor, Her Honour Janet Austin