Nerd culture thriving

Events and venues using the subculture to appeal to locals

By SYDNEY MORTON

ancouver nerd culture has

become particularly trendy

over the past few years and

is often used to market
events and venues in the city, said sub-
culture experts.

Events and establishments cater-
ing to self-proclaimed nerds and geeks
give locals the chance to unplug from
their computers and meet new people
with the same interests as them. On
any given weekend, nerd culture can
be experienced at bars, comedy shows,
even burlesque, and is used by some as
a marketing tool to stand out from the
competition.

Being a geek or a nerd is what it
really means to be a fan, it’s a strong
enthusiasm about a certain character
or company says Chris Nyarady, co-
producer and host of Geeks versus Nerds
Vancouver.

“Tt's an identity.
People identify
themselves as
being part ofa
community.”

—KYRST HOGAN, CO-PRODUCER
#NERDGASM

“The thing about these terms, geeks
and nerds, they have been used offen-
sively through growing up and people

calling us these names in mean ways,”

Burlesque performer Tina Belcher takes on the role of Baby LeStrange during Kitty Nights Burlesque’ show #Nerd-

gasm. The show is one of many in Vancouver using the term. AMANDA SIEBERT PHOTO

Nyarady said. “In recent times, when we
have been using these terms, it has been
more positive.”

Creating a safe place for subcultures
is increasingly important and trendy,
said Sean Cranbury, general manager
of Storm Crow Alehouse. It can also
aid restaurants in standing out from the
competition. Storm Crow Alehouse,
a restaurant that houses memorabilia,
board games and books that cater to

nerd culture, is a space Cranbury said
is inclusive of all gender identities and
sexualities.

“Society is a garbage dump,” Cran-
bury said. “[The alehouse] is what I
wished the world looked like when I
was 14 years old, when I was playing
Dungeons & Dragons and talking to
my friends about Star Wars.”

Storm Crow is not the only brand

banking on the current popularity of

nerd subculture in Vancouver. Com-
edy shows, games nights and burlesque
shows all label themselves part of this
genre. Kyrst Hogan, known by her stage
name as Burgundy Brixx, is co-produc-
er of the burlesque show #Nerdgasm.
“It’s an identity,” Hogan said. “People
identify themselves as being a part of
a community they have found and I
think getting those people off the In-

ternet and into a space together is really

Weed jobs: smokin busy

Marijuana
industry is hiring
as students set
to graduate

By DUNCAN ANDERSON

he medical marijuana industry

is actively hiring all types of

professionals, yet stigma and a
lack of legal clarity may lead some to
pass up these opportunities.

The local cannabis industry is hiring
client care specialists, marketers, writ-
ers, nurses and entrepreneurs. While
the jobs are there, most dispensaries
operate in a precarious existence and
are often unlicensed. Legal uncertainty,
along with stigma, may prevent some
from entering the industry.

Marijuana is becoming more com-
monly accepted to speak about at uni-
versities, yet Alejandro Arce said stigma
still exists for people trying to enter
this growing field. Arce, an employee
at Marpole-based dispensary Erbachay
Health Centers and organizer of a
Meetup group for cannabis profession-
als, sees potential for many types of pro-
fessions within the field.

“If you can have a bit of the fortitude
and long-term vision, this industry is
going to need accountants, marketers
and lawyers,” Arce said.

Madeleine Robichaud, Langara Col-
lege environmental geography student,
also said with so much money in the
industry, she likened it to the Silicon
Valley tech boom.

“Tt comes across as an entrepreneurial

job,” Robichaud said. “It is kind of up

Alejandro Arce displays marijuana strains for sale at Marpole-based dispensary Erbachay Health Centers. Arce is one
of the young professionals entering this industry, which is currently experiencing a boom in B.C. E/e'e PEACOCK PHOTO

to you to take it upon yourself to enter
the industry.”

While there were no representatives
from the cannabis industry at Langara's
March 13-17 Co-op & Career Week,
organizers were not opposed to these
companies advertising to students as

long as they are legal.

Development permits issued for
medical marijuana-related uses,
with 10 more under review.

“Nobody paid money for them to be
at the career fair,” said Heather Work-
man, chair of the Co-op & Career De-
velopment Centre. “We would check to
make sure they are operating legally if
we were approached, and it wouldn't be
an issue.”

Arce said if the industry continues

Tickets issued to businesses
operating outside the city's
legal framework.

growing and is legalized, there are long-
term benefits to working in the industry.

“Right now, the people coming into
the industry have the benefit of learn-
ing, being the teachers and helping
transition society,” Arce said. “Now is
the moment where you have to make
the investment.”

Tickets that have been
paid, of 1356 issued.

Injunctions issued, with the
next step being court dates
at the Provincial Court of
British Columbia.

Old
clothes
saved
from

landfill

Upcycling is one of
trendy options for
recycling old, broken
clothing in Vancouver

By EVAN HAGEDORN

here’s no need to throw out
those ripped jeans, thanks to
local initiatives reworking used

clothing to tackle the problem of cloth-
ing waste.

Upcycling, taking textiles destined
for the landfill and transforming them
into environmentally-friendly fashion,
is a practice that local clothing compa-
nies and even high-end designers at Eco
Fashion Week have taken on. Despite
their best efforts, each resident of Metro
Vancouver still throws away an average
of 22 pounds of clothing per year.

Skylar Stock, owner of Mintage, a
vintage store on Commercial Drive,

“There is so
much crappy,
overproduced

clothing that's low
quality.”

— JULIE NEWTON, LANGARA STUDENT

said eco-fashion practices such as re-
cycling and upcycling clothing gives
people the option to buy quality clothes.

“The one thing you can definitely get
out of [recycled clothing] is quality,"
Stock said. "Nowadays you buy clothes
and they just fall apart, whereas I got
clothes in here...that are 50 to 60 years
old, and they have been washed over
and over.

"And guess what, you can wear years
to come."

On campus, some Langara College
students are also
making conscious
decisions when it
comes to the cloth- [§
ing they wear.

“IT would much
rather reuse cloth-
ing because there
is so much crappy,
overproduced cloth-
ing that’s low qual-
ity,” said Julie New-
ton, second-year science student.

Even with the existence of upcycled
clothing, second hand shops and do-
nation bins, Karen Storry, project en-
gineer, solid waste services at Metro
Vancouver, said the main challenge is
informing consumers their old, broken
clothes have value.

“T think the main reason that people
throw out clothing, is that they are not
aware of the options, and they are also
not aware of what has value,” Storry
said. “So what we’re looking at is
[creating a policy] which encourages
people to put appropriate, dry, clean
and suitable clothing in donation bins,
instead of the garbage.”

Eco Fashion Week, taking place
March 31-April 2 in Vancouver, is chal-
lenging local designers to create a new
clothing line from textiles destined for
the garbage.

Skylar Stock
OWNER, MINTAGE