Annual CONFERENCE & EVENTS | Quick Links |
Layered Histories: Hard Conversations2026 BC Historical Federation Conference, Vancouver | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Full Conference | |
|---|---|
| Early bird rate (until May 1) | $210 |
| General admission (May 1 - May 15) | $250 |
| Full conference includes keynote speaker, panel presentations, catered lunch, field trip (bus tour), health breaks, and an awards dinner gala ticket. | |
| Half Day | |
|---|---|
| General admission | $60 |
| Half day admission includes keynote speaker, panel presentations, health breaks, and a catered lunch on site. | |
| BCHF Awards Banquet Tickets | |
|---|---|
| Ticket Price | $100 |
| Tickets for the Awards Banquet. Includes a buffet style dinner, live awards presentations, networking opportunities, and a silent book auction. | |
Schedule Overview
Saturday, May 30
- Doors Open (9:15 AM sharp)
- Welcome and Keynote
- Panel Presentation - Contested Grounds
- Panel Presentation - Out of the Shadows
- Catered Lunch (1:00 PM)
- Bus Tour - Layered Histories: Hard Conversations (2:00 - 4:30 PM)
- BCHA Awards Dinner Gala (5:00 - 8:00 PM)
Venue
All conference activities are taking place at the Creekside Community Recreation Centre, located in the former Olympic Village on False Creek at 1 Athletes Way, Vancouver, BC. This scenic venue is a five minute walk from Main Street/ Science World SkyTrain station.
Parking and transit information: coming soon
Accommodations
Information coming soon.
Vendors
We are able to host a limited amount of local historical organizations and related vendors. If you are interested in booking a table for $25, email a description of your booth to: members@bchistory.ca
Presenters
Keynote Speaker
How Ordinary Photos Unlocked BC History Catherine Clement
Award-winning community historian, author, and exhibition curator, Catherine Clement, will share the story of how ordinary community photographs of everyday people helped her recover two forgotten chapters in B.C. and Canadian history.
Catherine Clement is known for her extensive, crowdsourced community history projects that help uncover, share and preserve the experiences of ordinary people in extraordinary times. Her widely celebrated books have been extensions of her history projects Chinatown Through a Wide Lens: The Hidden Photographs of Yucho Chow (2020) and The Paper Trail to the 1923 Chinese Exclusion Act (2025). She lives in Sechelt, BC.
Panel Presentation
Contested Grounds: Peeling Back the Layers
Panelists: Elder Larry Grant, Lindsay Gibson, and Scott Steedman with moderator Sarah Ling
Larry Grant sʔəyəɬəq 洪禮興 is the Elder-in-residence at the Justice Institute of BC and the University of British Columbia’s First Nations House of Learning. He holds a President’s Medal from UBC and an honorary Doctor of Laws from Simon Fraser University. His memoir Reconciling: A Lifelong Struggle to Belong was published in 2025 with Scott Steedman. He lives with his wife on the Musqueam reserve in Vancouver.
Scott Steedman has worked in publishing for 35 years, including roles with Dorling Kindersley, Larousse, Raincoast, and Douglas & McIntyre. He teaches publishing at Simon Fraser University and is co-author of Art for War and Peace. He lives in Vancouver, BC.
Lindsay Gibson is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Curriculum and Pedagogy at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. He has written a variety of publications about various topics in history education. Lindsay is the Teaching and Learning Cluster Co-Lead of the Thinking Historically for Canada’s Future SSHRC Partnership Grant, has worked on K-12 social studies curriculum writing teams in B.C. and Alberta, and organizes annual Historical Thinking Institutes in partnership with Canada’s National History Society.
Sarah Ling is a community historian and award-winning filmmaker with a community-centered research background in Chinese Canadian and First Nations relations in BC. She was a founding staff member of the Chinese Canadian Museum in Vancouver from 2020-2025. She was selected for the 2025 Telus Storyhive Pan-Asian Storyteller Program. She serves as President of the BC Historical Federation and leads the BCHF Conference Committee. She is Co-Founder of Chinatown Wonders.
Panel Presentation
Out of the Shadows: Affirming Asian Canadian Histories
Panelists: Chad Soon, Laura VanZant, and TBA
Chad Soon enjoys exploring Indigenous and Canadian histories and cultures with his elementary school students in Vernon. He is a local organizer for BC Heritage Fairs, and serves on the Board of Directors for BC Historical Federation and the Okanagan Historical Society (Vernon Branch). A writer of newspaper and magazine articles for local to international audiences, Soon published his first book in 2024, The Longest Shot: How Larry Kwong Changed the Face of Hockey, which has been recognized and shortlisted for many national awards.
Laura VanZant is the Assistant Curator at the Revelstoke Museum & Archives. She received an Advanced Diploma in Museum Studies from Algonquin College in 2019, and is currently working towards her Masters of Philanthropy and Nonprofit Leadership through Carleton University. She sits on the Board of Directors for BC Historical Federation and the Revelstoke Visual Arts Society. Her passion is for community stories and sharing unheard voices, and making the museum experience more accessible for all visitors.
Field Trip
Layered Histories: Hard Conversations Bus Tour with John Atkin
Trace the city's fascinating labour history and experience the vibrant heritage of the Strathcona, one of Vancouver's earliest residential neighbourhoods with civic historian John Atkin. For over three decades, John has explored Vancouver like few others have and offers interesting and offbeat insight to the city’s architecture, history, and neighbourhoods.
Note that walking will be required on this guided tour. Please bring comfortable walking shoes.
About your guide: John Atkin is a heritage consultant and civic historian with extensive experience on heritage and neighbourhood projects across the Lower Mainland and the Kootenays. He serves on the board of the Friends of the City of Vancouver Archives and is a vice president of the Chinese Canadian Historical Society of BC. John previously sat on the City’s Historical Discrimination Against People of Chinese Descent Advisory Committee and chaired the Civic Asset Naming Committee. His work includes curating the Vancouver Museum’s City Light: Neon in Vancouver exhibition (1999-2000), writing the 2008 Chinatown Lighting Strategy, and co-authoring the successful 2010 application for Chinatown’s National Historic District designation.
Delegate forms (AGM)
Contact us
- members@bchistory.ca
