Winnipeg poet laureate launches city-wide collaborative project

Poet laureate Jennifer Still talks about “The Story of Winnipeg” project, what it is and how you can get involved.

A Winnipeg writer is asking for help from residents to write the story of the city.

Jennifer Still, the city’s poet laureate for 2025/2026, has launched “The Story of Winnipeg,” a collaborative poem project Winnipeggers can participate in.

“It’s to write poems and continue the work that I already do, but also to engage Winnipeggers in poetry however I can and to create community in the literary realm and outside of that,” Still said Wednesday during an interview on Your Morning Winnipeg.

The project involves the Winnipeg Arts Council and Winnipeg Public Library. Those interested can go to any library branch in the city and pick up a folded map book created by Still. The books have blank lines people can fill in, and can be returned to a mailbox at the library for Still.

“I’m going to read everything, and I’m going to listen to what Winnipeg is saying about our city, how much the wind affects them, how much potholes affect them, whatever it is, and I’m going to create a big collaborative work to share with the city,” she said.

Still said writers of all skill levels are encouraged to take part.

“You do need to notice things around you, and I think we all do that, and that’s a way we engage with our city,” she said. “If you notice something, if you care about something or something’s concerning you, you can do this.”

More information about the project can be found online.

-With files from CTV’s Katherine Dow