Centre for Civic Governance

The Centre for Civic Governance works to support community leadership meeting today’s social and environmental challenges: climate change, Canada’s increasing equity gap, and shifting social trends. At the Centre for Civic Governance, our goal is to strengthen Canadian communities through sharing best practices, providing tools for locally elected leaders, and progressive policy analysis. We strive to provide knowledge and information to make real and positive social change.

Reinventing Suburbia

The new Ontario provincial strategy to curb the growth of suburban sprawl is discussed in this article from the Toronto Star. The strategy includes protecting the Oak Ridges Moraine and the Greenbelt from future development, intensification targets for existing built-up areas, and a requirement that 40% of all new growth in the GTA must occur within the existing urban boundary.

The article discusses how Vaughn will adapt to the new TTC subway expansion and Markham’s plans to protect 250 hectars of land and its own attempts at reducing urban sprawl since the 1990s. North Pickering, Mississauga, Richmond Hill, and North York are also mentioned, as well as the opposition and ongoing protests to the strategy.

Green Collar Jobs

This New York Times article reports on how the number of green jobs (those that relate in some way to fighting environmental challenges) is expected to increase in the U.S., as state governments mandate that more energy come from renewables. The article discusses the characteristics of green jobs as well as the upsides and possible downsides of a more green economy. One obvious benefit of green collar jobs is that they are not easily outsourced; buildings cannot be weatherized and solar panels can’t be installed overseas. Another benefit is that they often require special skills, so the jobs are likely to provide a living wage. Conservative groups warn that the creation of green jobs will result in a net job loss as jobs are taken away from less enviro-friendly industries.

Canadians Support Public Services

A poll released by the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) in May 2008 shows that that majority of Canadians prefer that municipal services remain in public hands. The 1,004 random participants in the survey were given nine public services and were asked who they would trust more to provide the service: municipal government and its employees or a private corporation. 73.7% of respondents said they believed municipalities should provide and operate public services on a not-for-profit basis over for-profit corporations providing and operating municipal services. Read an article about the poll or for a breakdown of the numbers, click here.

Downtown Revitalization in Canada’s Major Cities

A lengthy article in the Ottawa Citizen which discusses how the downtown cores of Canada’s major cities are becoming attractive places to live. The article discusses how affordability in downtowns everywhere is decreasing as gentrification becomes the norm as well as what is driving the desire for people to live downtown.

School Lands Bylaw in Cowichan Valley

On May 14, 2008 the Cowichan Valley Regional District passed bylaw amendments that restrict the use of school lands, in the hopes of discouraging school closures. The bylaws prevent the sale of school lands for private development in order to keep the lands for public use. Read an article from the Vancouver Sun about the role parents played in getting the bylaw amendments passed or click here to read an article about the impact the new bylaws will have on smaller communities.

Anti-Idling in the CRD

The Capital Regional District is proposing an anti-idling bylaw that would make it illegal to leave a vehicle engine running for more than three minutes in a one-hour period. Although the bylaw would be almost impossible to enforce, it could function as an education tool: according to Natural Resources Canada, idling wastes 1.8 million litres of fuel and produces 4,500 tonnes of greenhouse gases everday. Read an article in the Times Colonist about the proposed bylaw.

Polis Project on Ecological Governance

The Polis Project on Ecological Governance is an initiative of the University of Victoria which aims to understand the structure and dynamics of urban water use. The project includes several objectives relevant to local government, including developing innovative governance options that promote sustainable water management, developing water law and policy decision-making tools, and examining urban and emerging water issues in Canada.

Cap-and-Trade in BC

The Pembina Institute has released a report on cap-and-trade in its British Columbia Global Warming Solutions Series. The report reviews cap-and-trade basics and makes specific recommendations for the design of a cap-and-trade system in BC.

Housing & Supports for Adults with Mental Illness and/or Addictions

A report released in 2008 by the Centre for Applied Research in Mental Health and Addiction (CARMHA) and SFU shows that homelessness among adults with severe addictions and/or mental health illnesses is prevalent in both urban and rural settings and that providing adequate housing and support for these individuals would result in a net cost avoidance of $33 million/year for the province. Read the full report at the CARMHA website.