The Harambeecouver Multicultural, Diversity, and Reconciliation Fest/Parade (HMC’23), is a free event that brings the sounds of Africa, both traditional and contemporary to Vancouver Art Gallery Plaza in the summer of 2023. From Kizomba, Rhumba, Ndombolo, Zouk, Steal Drum, and Amapiano, our Cultural festival programming includes performing arts, visual arts, literary arts, interdisciplinary arts, crafts, expressions of cultural identity, Marathon, Diversity Soccer tournaments needing Clubs and or Leagues to participate, Exhibitor, Vendor, and Talents
We believe in the power of solidarity, which helps us build bridges, uniting a stronger, more caring, and inclusive society, the event reaches a diverse group of people from all origins, backgrounds, and of all ages, who share values of creativity, wonder, and community that cements traditions and customs filled with courage and strength of purpose. We delight, inspire, and educate through dancing, storytelling, celebrating a community, etc., and sharing lived and educational experiences. The festival will provide tourism benefits to our city. Additionally, we will promote Reconciliation through the African Folk Festival Vancouver which is coming in 2024, to mark the end of the UN Decade for the People of African Descent.
Our new high-profile venue Vancouver Art Gallery will ensure maximum traffic and big crowds for this year’s Harambeecouver Diversity Festival.
Welcome to Harambeecouver Multicultural, Diversity and Reconciliation Fest.
Arts promote true prosperity, spark creativity and innovation, and have a social impact. Art influences society by changing opinions, instilling values, and translating experiences across space and time. The Value of Art and Culture – Art and culture greatly impact society and play an important role worldwide. Throughout human existence, art has been an imperative tool in measuring cultural development and recording history. Humankind share their lives and experiences through art, leaving behind cultural monuments that still exist, such as Stonehenge, the Greek Parthenon, the Pyramids, Roman Colosseum, and more. Over a culture’s art, society gains a deeper insight into the history of that moment.
Our flagship event, the Harambeecouver Multicultural, Diversity and Reconciliation Festival is hosted annually in Vancouver to showcase, promote and celebrate the rich and diverse cultures and facilitate reconciliation amongst our communities. The festival is organized by the Great Lakes Networking Society of BC.
Festival History
Harambee is a Swahili word and slogan that means pulling together or working together. Loosely translated, it means unity. A popular slogan in East African, it came to represent a call of action or a development strategy where people supplemented government efforts through voluntary and personal contributions.
The act of coming together is also present in the Bantu word “Ububtu”. It is part of the Zulu phrase “Umuntu ngumuntu ngabantu; Omundu Khu Mundu”, which means “a person is a person through other people; I am, because you are“.
With the goal of reconciliation and unification, Harambecouver started in 2017 as a Multicultural, Diversity and Reconciliation Parade. It was billed as “Vancouver’s first multicultural parade” in Canada. We hope to continue this tradition annually and we hope to have you join us at our festivals.
THANK YOU
Thank you to all our supporters, artists, friends, families, festival participants and our volunteers for making it to the festival. We are so proud of our small and mighty team for accomplishing so much!
We look forward to seeing you all again next year!
Soccer
Soccer
Sunday August 28 2022
Trillium Park, Vancouver
Festival
Festival
Thornton Park on Saturday and Sunday.
September 3 and 4 2022 from 10:00 to 9:00 pm
Run
Run
Run – Seaside at Fasle Creek
on Sunday – September 4 2022
Thank you to our Sponsors
The Harambeecouver Diversity Festival is organized by the Great Lakes Networking Society of BC, a non-profit organization registered under the BC Societies Act (Reg #80232 7262 BC0001). We live and work on the traditional, ancestral and unceded territories of the Coast Salish People, including the territories of the Musqueam, Squamish, Stó:lo and Tsleil- Waututh Nations. We are grateful to be hosted on this land.
