Commissioned Reports

Aligning the Canadian Communities Agenda

Sept. 19–21, 2007
Whistler, British Columbia

On the shared territories of the Lil’wat and Squamish First Nations a gathering of diverse leaders from communities across Canada met for this three-day forum in Whistler. The 25 participants—representing government, Aboriginal people, academics, non-profit organizations, and local planning and philanthropic sectors—have demonstrated leadership in advancing the communities’ agenda.

Co-convened by William Roberts (The Whistler Forum), Paul Born (Vibrant Communities Network), Mike Harcourt (Sustainability Solutions) and Sheldon Tetreault (National Centre for First Nations Governance) the forum focussed on three goals:

  1. To advance the growing body of knowledge and collaboration in Canada on the communities’ agenda with leaders committed to sustainability, social inclusion and economic prosperity at the local level.
  2. To identify best practices, frameworks and tools for the communities’ agenda in order to assist more Canadian communities in their efforts to accelerate collaborative planning.
  3. To foster the synergies of cross-sectoral thinking and leadership to maximize limited resources available to meet growing community needs.

Deliberations were informed by three recent reports, all addressing the integration of disparate community players finding common ground in order to work together:

  • From Restless Communities to Resilient Places
    External Advisory Committee on Cities and Communities
    Chaired by Mike Harcourt
  • Shared Space: The Communities Agenda
    Sherri Torjman
  • Looking Down the Road, Leadership for Changing Communities
    The Community Foundations of Canada.
    Judith Maxwell

Based on the deliberations of this Whistler Forum the four co-conveners recommend next steps and actions on an eight-fold path forward:

  1. Expanding the Forums for deliberation on the communities agenda by thought leaders across sectors and across Canada.
  2. Aligning the Actors to facilitate communities embarking on ICSPs with more allies in collaborative planning and actions.
  3. Refining the Language and the means to communicate effectively the Communities’ Agenda.
  4. Engaging the People on the growing processes for increased participation and involvement in this new localism.
  5. Connecting the Connectors with maps and virtual networks for exchanging knowledge, experience, funding and indicators of success.
  6. Supporting Community Leadership with skills in adaptive, collaborative and experiential knowledge and practice.
  7. Working within Open Federalism respecting the federal and provincial governments’ constitutional role and fiscal powers for community benefits.
  8. Continually Celebrating the Spirit of Community and Place-Making.

Download the final report: Toward the Tipping Point: Aligning the Canadian Communities Agenda (PDF, 2400 KB)