Vital Signs Interim Report

Report focuses on building bridges of inclusion

Last Wednesday, The County Foundation (TCF) presented its interim report Building Bridges of Inclusion at the Regent Theatre. Approximately 150 people from various community organizations attended the launch of the 2023 Vital Signs interim report. TCF executive director Dominique Jones welcomed the attendees and said the report was intended to spark meaningful conversations within the community. The first Vital Signs report was issued in 2013, with subsequent full reports in 2018 and 2022. In between, there were several interim reports, and in 2021 an online databank was created that contains data related to the nine key-issue areas, news, events and information about current projects. Mayor Steve Ferguson said that these reports and the work of The County Foundation have been extremely important to the community. “As a financial supporter of Vital Signs, the County has been very proud to partner in enabling the kind of research and the reporting that goes into the Vital Signs report. The municipality relies a great deal on the report to guide and inform decisions of Council,” he said. “Several of Council’s priorities as outlined in the Corporate Strategic Plan are related to community, equity and cohesion. Vital Signs and its reports will undoubtedly inform what we do over the next several years to make progress in these priority areas. Vital signs data were also used extensively in our community safety and well-being plan. We are grateful to have The County Foundation Vital Signs project in our community to support the non-profit sector, government businesses and citizens in identifying and meeting community needs.”

Ms. Jones said that Vital Signs is a nation-wide initiative that’s led by Community Foundations of Canada, and its purpose is to leverage local knowledge, measure the vitality of our communities and support actions toward improving our collective quality of life. “Our Vital Signs data helps to guide donations and resources where they can best help our communities thrive,” she said. Brian Beiles, president of the TCF board, said that the Vital Signs report is a combination of statistical and qualitative data that is derived from a wide variety of sources covering the nine key-issue areas that are most relevant in the County. “It provides an evidence based snapshot of the community and is intended to promote awareness of community conditions, trends, successes and challenges and what is being done to address them,” he said.

Anne VanVlack, Vital Signs coordinator, then highlighted some of the key areas of the interim report, which included audio comments from community members. One area of concern is the accelerated rate of change in the County. An influx of new urban residents has caused some strain where longtime residents feel their traditions and culture are being eroded. At the same time new residents are struggling to fit in. The COVID-19 pandemic amplified these tensions and made it harder to preserve the County’s unique character and sense of belonging. In the five-year period from 2016 to 2021, 6,200 new people moved to the County, an increase of 77 per cent compared to the previous five years. The number of people leaving the County has shown a significant increase as well. From 2011 to 2016, 4,000 residents left; in the following fiveyear period that number jumped to 5,200. In an audio recording, business owner Evan Nash said that new faces and more diversity means more opportunities, but acknowledges that a growing segment of the population feels left behind or frozen out altogether. “That’s not who we are and that’s not what we stand for. We are grounded in being a really caring community and we need to be conscious of the fact that sometimes the community can feel impenetrable from the outside for new residents or young people. We need to make sure we are opening up to new people and opening up to new ways of thinking and new ideas and just making sure that nobody’s getting left behind or left out,” he said.

The interim report defines an inclusive community as one that is “welcoming to diverse groups of people, including seniors, youth, children Indigenous peoples, immigrants and newcomers, gender diverse, persons with disabilities, people experiencing mental health challenges, and low-income populations.” It also listed several groups that face barriers to inclusion, including: persons living with disabilities; residents living on low-income; racial and ethnic minorities; gender and sexually diverse populations; and youth. Each of these groups are addressed in the interim report, and the efforts that are being taken to ensure their inclusion and belonging in the wider community. The report noted that the County’s median income lags behind Ontario by $7,500 per year, and approximately 3,500 residents are living on low income, defined as less than $36.00 a year, after taxes. The income gap between low and high incomes in the County is greater than that in Ontario and Canada. The County’s population of racial and ethnic minorities is 6.3 per cent, and reports of racist incidents in PEC are on the increase. Judith Burfoot, founder of All Welcome Here, said that a 2022 survey of BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Colour) residents indicated that 73 per cent had experienced racism in the County. For student youth, that figure was 100 per cent. “To be clear, these are things that are happening to BIPOC students, 2SLGBTQIA+ students, to differently-abled students, or to students who are struggling with, say, learning disabilities. This is not something that any of us should ignore. We all deserve to be included in our communities,” said Ms. Burfoot, in an audio recording.

Following the presentation of the report, Dominique Jones issued a call to action to build a more inclusive community, with a welcoming environment where everyone belongs. Some of the actions that residents can take include: displaying kindness, where small actions hold significant impact; embrace diversity, to strengthen the community collectively; connecting with people, particularly those facing isolation or personal challenges; and contributing to a fund that supports Vital Signs priorities. For more information, please visit thecountyfoundation.ca and click on the Vital Signs tab.