Reimagining Dementia Calgary Initiative
Taking It to the Streets - Calgary:
Stories of Resilience, Connection, and Living Well with Dementia
Join us this September during World Alzheimer's Month for a free public exhibition that invites us to reimagine dementia.
Thanks to the generosity of people living with dementia, their family and friend care partners, healthcare providers, advocates, and community members, we have received many meaningful stories, photographs, poems, and artworks that reveal experiences of resilience, connection, creativity, humour, hope, and everyday life.
We warmly invite community members to visit the exhibition at the University of Calgary, explore these powerful contributions, join conversations, and reflect together on how dementia can be understood beyond loss and decline.
✨Everyone is welcome. Admission is free.
Why are we taking It to the streets?
▸ COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Taking It to the Streets is an initiative of Reimagining Dementia: A Creative Coalition for Justice, a global movement that is creatively transforming the tragedy narrative of dementia.
"Around the world, millions of people are living with and impacted by dementia. And yet, dementia continues to be surrounded by a fear-, shame- and stigma-filled cone of silence that impacts us all." - Mary Fridley
📑Read Mary's essay on the emotional dominance of tragedy narratives and its impact on living with dementia.
"Stigma is produced and reproduced in everyday interactions on the streets, in community centres, in clinical spaces, in the media, in families, and in public discourses. If dominant narratives are sustained socially, then narrative change must also occur socially." - Jasmine Hwang
📑Read Jasmine's article about the inspiration behind Taking It to the Streets - Calgary and why changing the story of dementia matters.
Calgary is taking it to the streets to:
Shatter the silence about dementia &
Creatively transform the journey of dementia for everyone
How to Get Here
The exhibition will be held in the Little Gallery, located on the 6th floor of the Faculty of Arts (Arts Parkade) Building at the University of Calgary.
Parking: Visitors may park in Lot 1 or the Arts Parkade.
Finding the gallery:
Enter the Faculty of Arts (Arts Parkade) Building.
Take the elevator to the 6th floor.
When you step out of the elevator, the first gallery you see is the Little Gallery.
Our volunteers will be there to welcome you and help you find your way.
▸ VISIT THE EXHIBITION
🔍 Click Campus Map
Join Our Volunteer Team
This community-led initiative is made possible by passionate volunteers, advocates, and artists. Whether you have a few hours or would like to be in volved throughout the exhibition, we'd love to have you join us.
📸 Photography – Capture meaningful moments throughout the exhibition.
🎥 Videography – Record the event and interviews for future storytelling and knowledge sharing.
📱 Social Media & Communications – Share highlights and help amplify the conversation online.
🙋 Exhibition Hosts & Venue Guides – Welcome visitors, answer questions, and help create a warm, inclusive environment.
🖼️ Exhibition Setup & Takedown – Assist with installing and dismantling the exhibition.
💬 Public Engagement – Facilitate conversations and invite visitors to share reflections.
📚 Knowledge Mobilization – Help share project resources and connect visitors with community organizations.
📣 Marketing & Community Outreach – Promote the exhibition and help us reach broader audiences.
🤝 General Event Support – Help wherever an extra pair of hands is needed.
No previous experience is necessary for many roles—just an interest in supporting a meaningful community initiative.
✨Interested in volunteering?
We'd love to hear from you! Please contact jasmine.hwang@ucalgary.ca and let us know a little about yourself, your interests, and how you would like to be involved.
▸ OUR PARTNERS
This initiative would not have been possible without the generous support of our community partners, organizations, advocates, and volunteers. Thank you for helping us spread the word and reimagine dementia together.
Reimagining Dementia: A Creative Coalition for Justice
Reimagining Dementia: A Creative Coalition for Justice is an international group of people living with dementia, carers/care partners, family and community members, dementia activists and allies, health professionals, advocates, artists, academics, policymakers, and others.
We share a vision of care, support, and social transformation that promotes inclusion, relationships, creativity, joy, and the possibility of growth for everyone impacted by dementia.