In British Columbia: the 5th dumpling festival in Coquitlam with a Chinese theme, an expanded program for repeat offenders in the Lower Mainland, and the return of the “Vancouver Canucks” training camp to Penticton.
BC Dumpling Festival 2026: 40,000 people, Chinese theme, and free entry
The fifth annual dumpling festival in British Columbia is once again bringing Vancouver residents and visitors together at Town Centre Park in Coquitlam. Organizers are expecting around 40,000 attendees, making it one of the region’s largest multicultural food events. The festival will run on August 15, from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., and it’s open to everyone for free, despite rising operating costs and sponsorship challenges.
As reported by Vancouver Is Awesome, the festival was launched during the COVID-19 pandemic by the Society for Asian Art and Culture as an initiative to bring people together through food and conversation. Over five years, it has grown from a grassroots project into a vibrant symbol of diversity. Each year, the organizers choose a country to honor in a special way. In 2026, that country is China. “This year we decided to honor China,” says Gina Chong, the society’s founder and the festival organizer. “Every year we celebrate different countries and try to put more focus on its culture in the performances.”
Visitors can look forward to 23 food vendors, 12 food trucks, more than 70 community booths, over 150 performers, and 230 volunteers. Among the newcomers are Naked Mandu, Brooklyn Dumpling Shop, Fat Dragon Eatery, May Wei, and Fraser Bar Dumplings, along with returning favorites from different culinary traditions. “This year we have more food vendors than ever,” Chong notes.
A highlight will be a dumpling-eating competition, where sponsors and local politicians compete first, followed by ten audience participants selected via Instagram. With the Chinese theme in place, there will be a Chinese Pavilion, cultural displays, events at the Chinese Consulate, and the chance to play mahjong—a traditional Chinese tile game—with the Vancouver Mahjong Club. For children, there will be face painting, crafts, and temporary tattoos.
Throughout the day, there will be performances on stage, including a lion dance by the Hong De Vancouver Dragon & Lion Dance Team, the BC Chinese Chamber Ensemble, dance studios, taekwondo demonstrations, and an evening headliner, COCO Project. A full schedule will be posted later on the festival website.
Despite financial challenges, organizers are keeping entry free thanks to community support and volunteers. The festival continues to fulfill its original mission—bringing people together, whether it’s for music, dumplings, or simply a summer day spent with neighbors. In 2026, it promises to be even bigger and more diverse, reaffirming that small dough wrapped around filling is truly a worldwide language of connection.
British Columbia expands its repeat-offender program: 365 people under supervision across the Lower Mainland
The British Columbia government announced an expansion of its program to combat repeat offending, adding not only violent offenses but also theft and disorderly conduct. The initiative began last month on Vancouver Island and will now extend to the Lower Mainland—the province’s largest metro area. A total of 365 people will be brought under supervision: 160 in Vancouver, 80 in Surrey, and the remainder spread across seven new intervention and monitoring centers. The CAD $16 million project includes the creation of coordinated teams made up of prosecutors, police, probation officers, social integration and mental health specialists.
Public Safety Minister Terry Jung emphasized that “a small percentage of offenders commits a significant number of crimes,” and the new program is aimed at the most prolific offenders. As reported by CBC News, last year in British Columbia there were about 42,000 incidents of shoplifting—1.5 times the national average. The numbers have been rising for the fifth year in a row, and small business owners say the real situation is even worse. Tricia Hill, owner of the Stoxx Thrift & Vintage second-hand store, estimated her shop’s losses at $20,000 just in the past year and said she stopped calling police. “It’s a waste of time. Nothing happens. Ever.” Her staff now use radios connected to the shopping centre’s security service. Jason Overbo from the Brooklyn Clothing store in Yaletown described how thieves come in, grab items, and leave without hiding their faces. In his view, it undermines staff safety.
Jess Ketchum, co-founder of the community group Save Our Streets, called the initiative long overdue, saying that “a small number of people commit an enormous number of crimes again and again,” and that any intervention by authorities can make a meaningful difference.
Not everyone shares the optimism, however. Megan McDermott, director of policy with the British Columbia Civil Liberties Association, questioned the effectiveness of an approach based on criminal prosecution and surveillance. She noted that the promise to connect repeat offenders to social services isn’t backed by additional investment in those services. “We can’t solve the problems of poverty and inequality with police alone,” she said, adding that increased surveillance could only draw people deeper into the court system. In her view, funding should be directed directly at addressing the root causes of crime, such as lack of housing and the need for psychological support.
The program, launched in 2023 for violent repeat offenders, has now been expanded to cover property crimes and offenses that disrupt public order (for example, aggressive panhandling or vandalism). In total, there are now 865 people under provincial supervision. The core idea of the initiative is to break the cycle: rather than releasing an offender after each arrest, specialized teams will support them at every stage—from court to reintegration—providing housing, benefits, and treatment for substance dependence. The question remains whether this “targeted” approach can reduce crime without increasing stigma, and without additional investment in social infrastructure.
The Canucks’ training camp returns to Penticton in 2026
The Vancouver Canucks have announced that their 2026 training camp will again take place in Penticton, British Columbia, from September 17 to September 20. It will be the third consecutive year that the team begins the season at the South Okanagan Events Centre (SOEC) arena. A full schedule with ice times will be announced later. Co-president of hockey operations Henrik Sedin noted that returning to Penticton makes perfect sense for the organization, calling SOEC a world-class facility that works well for both practices and meeting with fans. Sedin stressed that the club values support from across the province and is looking forward to September, when the season begins in the interior.
Penticton Mayor Julius Bloomfield said the city is excited to welcome the Canucks for a third straight year, pointing to significant investments in SOEC and surrounding infrastructure that attract world-class events. He added that hosting an NHL training camp brings economic benefits to local businesses and strengthens community pride. SOEC general manager Dean Clark emphasized that the long-term partnership with the Canucks organization is a source of great pride, and he thanked the club for its trust as well as the collaboration between the club, the city, and Oak View Group. All ice sessions will be open to the public, and there will be free entertainment planned for fans of all ages.
Since 1974, the Canucks have held training camps in many communities across British Columbia—from Abbotsford to Victoria and Whistler—and they have only once gone outside the country, to Stockholm in 2000. As stated in an official release on the NHL website, the move strengthens the team’s connection with fans in the interior region and shows how important these out-of-town camps are for growing the game across the province. The regular return to Penticton also underlines that the club sees SOEC as a convenient, high-quality base for preparing for the season, while the local community gets a unique opportunity to see NHL stars in person.
