Abstract

Grassroots social movements have been a factor in shaping history around the world by triggering discourse around important issues. It can be a critical element of urban development and planning. Calgary is no exception and has a history of creating civic discourse and engagement. CivicCamp Calgary was a public advocacy group started in 2009 by several community members interested in engaging citizens with concerns and desires in Calgary’s development. Major CivicCamp proponents included Mayor Naheed Nenshi (City of Calgary mayor, first elected in 2010), former City of Calgary Head of Planning Department Richard Parker, Sustainable Calgary founder Noel Keough, and many more. It all began during the City of Calgary’s Plan-It initiative, a city-wide initiative to map out long term growth and development for Calgary. The group held an event known as an “unconference” where community members could provide their feedback on different topics around the built environment. This article is documenting information regarding the CivicCamp Calgary movement—which ended in 2015—based on a series of recorded interviews with the proponents to understand and learn from the experience. Civic discourse and grassroots movements such as this are a key component to shaping the built environment and understanding past experiences can inform future processes and approach in Calgary.