Title Sponsor

2009From Conversation to Action

May 26, 2009

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Message from the Honorary Chair ................................................................................................................................................ 2Message from the Summit Co-Chairs ........................................................................................................................................... 3

Mississauga Summit 2009: ......................................................................................................................................................... 4From Conversation to Action ................................................................................................................................................... 4

Conversation:The City of Mississauga`s Strategic Plan ............................................................................................................................... 6Transportation Update ............................................................................................................................................................ 7Economic Forecast ................................................................................................................................................................. 8

Big Ideas....................................................................................................................................................................................... 8Waterfront Development and Environmental Sustainability ....................................................................................................10Mississauga`s Post Secondary Education Strategy ...............................................................................................................12Centre of Excellence for Diversity and Immigration ................................................................................................................14Building Mississauga`s Human Services ................................................................................................................................16

Action ...........................................................................................................................................................................................18Where do we go from here? ...................................................................................................................................................18Next Steps ..............................................................................................................................................................................19Vision ......................................................................................................................................................................................19

AppendicesWaterfront Development and Environmental Sustainability ....................................................................................................20Post Secondary Education Strategy .......................................................................................................................................22Centre of Excellence for Diversity and Immigration ................................................................................................................24Building Our Human Services Capacity ..................................................................................................................................26Acknowledgements .................................................................................................................................................................28

Table of Contents

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Dear Friends:

I had the privilege of serving as Honorary Chair of the 2007 Summit. I was impressed with leaders that convened at the meeting and the extraordinary ideas that emanated from it. It demonstrated the tremendous power that can be generated by bringing together great minds from all sectors to collaborate on solving key issues.

The objectives of the 2009 Summit were to convert the conversation into action in the areas of human capital, post secondary education, sustainable waterfront development, diversity and immigration. These are four priorities for our City and its future direction. I am confident that bringing together leaders from all sectors to tackle these issues will result in the development of holistic solutions.

The City of Mississauga has a new strategic plan that will position Mississauga as a truly great international city for the 21st century. Thousands of Mississauga residents provided input in the development of the plan. It was their love for our city and diversity of thought that helped us create a bold plan for the future.

The four Summit priorities complement the City’s strategic plan. Both of these initiatives are dynamic and progressive. I am confident that with these plans in place Mississauga will flourish and continue to be a truly great city to live, work and play.

Congratulations to the sponsors, volunteers and participants who made the Mississauga Summit a great success.

Sincerely,

Hazel McCallion, C.M.

Message from the Honorary Chair

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On May 26th, leaders from all sectors assembled for Mississauga Summit 2009 – from Conversation to Action. The 2007 Summit brought together international, national and local leaders on topics related to sustainability, innovation and diversity. This meeting of minds was the beginning of a process to engage local leaders to work collaboratively on defining the future of our city.

The goal of this collaborative thought is to ensure that Mississauga remains a vibrant, resilient city where every individual, neighborhood and enterprise has the opportunity to thrive. This communal approach to strategic planning is more critical than ever as we face the challenges of the current economic climate.

Summit 2007 produced hundreds of ideas. Considering the direction of the City of Mississauga and other social, economic and political factors, we identified four key task forces that were launched at the 2009 Summit, including:

1. Building Mississauga’s human service infrastructure2. Creating a post-secondary education strategy to complement our economic and human capital development3. Waterfront development and sustainability4. Cultivating Mississauga as a “Centre of Excellence” for diversity and immigration

Each task force will develop concrete action plans that will be revealed early in 2010. We believe that these four areas of focus will play a critically important role in shaping the future of our city and complement the city’s strategic plan.

We want to thank Mayor McCallion for her leadership and support as the Summit Honorary Chair. The Summit would not have been possible without the generous support provided by our sponsors (AstraZeneca Canada Inc., CIBC Wood Gundy, Medtronic of Canada Ltd., PricewaterhouseCoopers, RBC Royal Bank, United Way of Peel Region, The University of Toronto Mississauga, and Pro Active Print) and volunteers. And finally, we would like to thank the leaders who participated in the 2009 Summit for contributing their knowledge, wisdom, and commitment.

Sincerely,

Brian Crombie Shelley WhiteSummit Co-Chair Summit Co-ChairPrincipal, Crombie Capital Partners CEO, United Way of Peel Region

Message from the Mississauga Summit Co-Chairs

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The success and vibrancy of every city depends on educated, healthy and engaged residents.

On May 26 over 175 leaders from the corporate, non-profit, government, education and labour sectors gathered at the Living Arts Centre to develop strategic plans to tackle issues critical to our city’s future.

The Summit’s value is in the diversity of its contributors. The conversations brought together intelligence, experience, and a fresh outlook by giving equal voice to all its’ participants.

The half-day conference built on the success and ideas generated by the 2007 Mississauga Summit. The discussion began with a request that all participants apply their ideas, energy and experience to four key priority areas:

1. Building human capital 2. Creating a post-secondary education strategy

to compliment our economic and human-capital development

3. Waterfront development and environmental sustainability

4. Cultivating Mississauga as a “Centre of Excellence” for diversity and immigration

Attendees participated in roundtable discussions designed to tap into their diverse and complimentary areas of expertise. Groups strategized on ideal outcomes for each of the priority areas. The results will provide actionable plans that include both vision and ground-level tactics.

As a means of providing context and background, participants were offered updates on the economy; the City of Mississauga’s newly released Strategic Plan; and a progress update on the city’s Transportation Plan.

Mississauga Summit 2009: From Conversation to ActionThe 2009 Mississauga

Summit was a successful catalyst for action. Community leaders from all sectors came together focused on strengthening our human services capacity, creating a vibrant, sustainable waterfront, cultivating a centre of excellence for diversity and immigration, and generating a post secondary strategy that will advance our economic development. Together we will create a sustainable, healthy and prosperous future for the City of Mississauga.

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Shelley White,CEO, United Way of Peel Region

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Conversation

Bruce Carr, Director of Strategic Planning for the City of Mississauga, introduced the new Strategic Plan and provided an overview of the process.

In June 2007, Mississauga Council challenged staff to have a conversation with the community and seek their involvement in drafting a new Strategic Plan. The initiative was called “Our Future Mississauga – Be part of the conversation”. It was the most comprehensive public engagement initiative in the City’s history. The community responded on an unprecedented scale and the initiative connected with over 100,000 people through events such as community meetings, the Speakers’ Series, the Visioning Symposium, a “puzzle piece” campaign, the Rogers Television series and an interactive website.

Throughout the public engagement process, a diverse group of citizens, including city leaders, urban experts and the business community shared their hopes, dreams and expectations for Mississauga’s future. As a result, thousands of ideas were gathered that are reflected in the City’s new Strategic Plan. The document will provide direction in areas such as short and long term planning, budget and resource allocation and service and asset management. The Strategic Plan will move Mississauga forward for the next forty years.

The Strategic Plan is outlined with five pillars: 1. MOVE: Developing a transit-oriented city2. BELONG: Ensuring youth, older adults and new

immigrants thrive3. CONNECT: Completing our neighborhoods4. PROSPER: Cultivating creative and innovative

businesses 5. GREEN: Living green

Many of the ideas from the initial Summit brainstorming session are reflected in this Strategic Plan. The City of Mississauga looks forward to working with the Summit Task Forces on the four key priority areas and participating in a community driven process.

The full plan is available at: http://www.mississauga.ca

The City of Mississauga’s Strategic Plan - Our Future Mississauga

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The 2009 Summit demonstrated that transportation was a crucial issue needing immediate attention. The City of Mississauga is experiencing heavy volumes of traffic spread over a longer period of time in the day, and not just the morning and afternoon rush hours.

Approximately 85% of Mississauga residents use their cars. Providing an adequate transportation network connecting people to work, education, health and social resources is a challenge for a city that had not originally planned for urban transportation.

However, Mississauga is facing that challenge head on. Martin Powell, Commissioner of Transportation and Works, updated Summit participants about strategic work that has been implemented and has been on-going over the last year and a half.

GOAL: Make transit faster and more affordable than the private car

Tactics:• Build Mobility Hubs: City Centre and Renforth BRT

Stations to function as transit gateways providing connections to Square One area, the airport, and linkages to the Toronto transit systems

• Studying the implementation of Higher-Order Transit Corridors:

• North/South: Environmental Assessment for higher order transit along the Hurontario/Main Street Corridor from Port Credit to Downtown Brampton (joint study with the City of Brampton)

• East/West: Implementation of the Mississauga Transitway by 2012 from Winston Churchill Boulevard in the west to Renforth Drive in the east

• Express Rail Connections to Downtown Toronto: Potential electrification of the Milton GO Rail Line from the Mississauga City Centre to Union Station (to be studied by Metrolinx)

• Facilitate Transit Use:• Incorporate access to cycling and transit on

roads, where feasible• Implement “real time” bus tracking to ease

uncertainty of wait times• Purchase new buses that feature clean diesel

technology, aerodynamic fronts, LED lighting and power for laptops

• Include hybrid buses in the Mississauga fleet• Install bike racks on all Mississauga Transit

Buses to encourage cycling as a viable means of transportation

Transportation UpdateThe City of Mississauga’s Strategic Plan - Our Future Mississauga

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Development of any sector takes highly supportive leadership. Companies are and will continue to be attracted to this area by the availability of qualifiedpersonnel.Iwould like to suggest that all of us, as leaders in this city, have a role to play. Let’s roll up our sleeves to see what we can do next to continue to develop this great city.”

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Catriona McMahon, Vice President, Medical Affairs – AstraZeneca Canada Inc.

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Since the 2007 Summit, there has been a substantial shift in the global economy that has had a significant impact on Mississauga residents. Dawn Desjardins, Assistant Chief Economist, RBC Royal Bank, presented an economic forecast to provide context and to inform the Summit participants of these present and future changes.

In her words, “Canada had a brutal start in 2009.” The changes in the economy and, specifically, the auto industry, have caused unemployment to increase significantly across the country. To date, 57% of Canadian job losses have occurred in Ontarioandthatfigureisexpectedtoincrease. Exports and consumer spending have decreased significantly and the recession has invaded all aspects of our economy.

The good news is that governments are spending and adding stimulus through non-traditional programs. The cost of credit has reduced slightly and home sales are beginning to stabilize. Investors are feeling more courageous.

These factors will help our economy to get back on its feet; however participants were warned that the recovery would be slow. We can only expect substandard growth for the short term.

Economic Forecast

Big IdeasWith these updates in mind, the delegates divided into four separate working groups armed with facilitators, scribes and innovative thinking in order to devise breakthrough strategies on the four priority areas.

Each roundtable was asked to discuss their issue of interest, identify areas of concern the Task Forces must address, and

develop one or two “big ideas” that were reported back to the larger group at the end of the day.

The results of these discussions were both thought provoking and motivating.

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Economic Forecast

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IssueWith 22 kilometers of prime Lake Ontario shoreline and 60 hectares (150 acres) of green space available via the networks and trails of the Credit River Valley, Mississauga has the potential to create world class tourism and community locations that rival Chicago’s Gold Coast and New York’s Central Park.

A key focus in the 2007 Summit was the issue of environmental sustainability. Participants flagged protecting the environment as a primary area of concern. Energy conservation, developing new energy technology and creating a network of trails connecting neighborhoods to encourage biking and walking were all designated as priority areas for action.

The 2009 Summit acted as a launch of that work by illustrating key synergies that have presented themselves – opportunities that are before Mississauga right now. Our city has the potential to become an international example of urban planning and environmental integration. The landscape is ripe for alignment and Task Force members will take the lead in crafting a livable, sustainable and thriving city for residents.

The Waterfront Development and Environmental Sustainability Task Force will focus on developing constructive solutions around energy conservation, waste management and managing urban sprawl.

The opportunities include:• The Imperial Oil Refinery lands in Port Credit, The Port

Credit Harbour Marina and the OPG site in Lakeview are three key sites that are being considered for redevelopment.

• The Credit River Valley is undergoing revision as a network of parks and trails are connecting to create one large urban park called Riverwood.

• The City of Mississauga’s newly launched Strategic Plan and it’s five priorities for action - Move, Belong, Connect, Prosper and Green

By employing vision and cross-sectoral collaboration, we can ensure Mississauga’s pride of place as a national model of aligned community, economic and environmental goals.

These opportunities and challenges were presented to the environment roundtable and four questions were asked:

1. What is your vision for Mississauga’s waterfront development?

2. Is it possible to implement the waterfront development vision and at the same time achieve environmental sustainability? What can be done?

3. What factors should the task force, established to study this issue, address?

4. What is the roundtable’s one BIG idea for the Summit?

Waterfront Development and Environmental SustainabilityOur Vision for the Future: Mississauga will inspire the world as a dynamic and beautiful global city for creativity and innovation, with vibrant, safe and connected communities; where we celebrate the rich diversity of our cultures, our historic villages, Lake Ontario and the Credit River valley. A place where people choose to be.

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City of Mississauga’sStrategic Plan -Our Future Mississauga

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Big IdeasRedevelopment opportunities

• Partner with education and build a post-secondary institution with a distinctive green focus, such as environment and environmental management

• Create an energy sustaining, affordable housing community to support Mississauga’s lower income families

• Set up a multi-use series of facilities accessible by tourists and ALL residents

• Connected, not fragmented neighbourhoods• Access to transit bringing people into

Mississauga• Carbon neutral footprint

• Build a Navy Pier similar to the city of Chicago

Factors for ConsiderationReview opportunities in detail

• Define best use of each site for the community at large. Clarify a purpose for each redevelopment location and the target: residents / tourism / community integration?

• Explore potential partnerships with private landowners and all levels of government

• Consider development incentives• Establish an organizational body to oversee

implementation

Redevelopment• Connect transit to bordering cities to facilitate bringing

people into Mississauga• Research the environmental and waterfront plans of

other countries• Promote accessibility to the waterfront by extending the

proposed Hurontario transit line

Riverwood Conservancy• Conserve the tradition of salmon fishing along the

Credit River• Create a network of trails to promote accessibility and

sustainability• Actively promote the potential of such an area as

Mississauga’s “Central Park”

We have the opportunity to create a model sustainable creative community on our waterfront. We can attract people and businesses to mixed use communities on our waterfront, complete with arts and culture districts, a variety of housing options, employment, retail and recreational uses – all built to world leading standards of urban and green design.

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Bruce CarrDirector of Strategic Planning, City of Mississauga

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IssueMississauga is the sixth largest city in Canada and has a population of more than 700,000 people. As we plan a proactive approach to the city’s economic viability and future prosperity, it is imperative we consider alignments between education and industry.

Over the next 10 years, projections indicate that two-thirds of all Canadian job opportunities will require post-secondary education. While Canada has one of the highest post-secondary attendance rates in the OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development), the majority of these students attend community college programs. We are well behind our counterparts in graduate enrollment. For example: Canada awards 30% fewer doctoral degrees and 50% fewer Masters degrees per capita than the USA.

Research and innovation is critical to participating in the global marketplace. Countries around the world are investing in talent through advanced education in order to remain competitive.

The Post-Secondary Task Force will strategize ways to ensure our post-secondary programs are geared towards today’s students and the future’s growing industries.

This collaborative will investigate problems such as “Where will the jobs of tomorrow be?” “How can Mississauga position itself to educate and train its citizens to take advantage of the opportunities of new industry?” And, “How can we attract and retain the best to learn, live and work in our city?”

Mississauga is already strategizing on how to ensure the marketability of our students. The Sheridan School of Business will open a new campus in Mississauga to provide educational programs serving the needs of business and industry in Mississauga as well as offering training and skills development for new Canadians and foreign trained professionals.

The discussion round tables were asked four questions:• What post-secondary offerings does Mississauga need

to achieve human capital objectives?• What gaps are present in this plan?• What factors should be addressed?• What’s the big idea?

Big IdeasFocus on delivering world-class programs vs. building a new institution.

Broaden offerings in areas such as: • Adding high-quality arts and trades programs • Doctorates in Biotechnologies• Law degree specialization in patents which

are integral to new technologies - now only available in the US or UK

• Create a school of the arts

Mississauga’s Post-Secondary Education StrategyThe community needs to work in partnership with government on new approaches to ensure the resilience of our city in this time of economic challenge and to create new opportunities for success.

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Brian Crombie, Summit Co-Chair

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Mississauga’s Post-Secondary Education Strategy Align Educational and Environmental Interests: Build a university campus on the waterfront focusing exclusively on environmental management and green technologies - thus positioning Mississauga as the location for green technology development.

Launch intensive brand strategy: Promote Mississauga’s world-class education and life-long learning:

• Tie into international programs• Re-brand• Market aggressively – domestically and around

the world

Establish collaborations and joint programs between high schools, colleges, universities and industry. Perform an environmental scan to determine the weaknesses in our current offerings.

Build Infrastructure for graduates to find work in Mississauga. The post-secondary sector will feed the job market

Use Education Strategy to Attract New Immigrants – An example: Foreign business owners looking for opportunities for their business and their children.

Factors for Consideration• Develop a clear vision of the types of business

Mississauga wants to attract. Then align post-secondary expertise with those industries.

• Create a vibrant community. Universities, industry, the arts, culture, and nightlife all entice talent to visit and to live.

• Increase affordable housing on post-secondary campuses.

• Fully research the pros and cons of building a “University of Mississauga” vs. expanding UTM.

• Research census data on Mississauga alone (vs. regional numbers) in order to identify trends specific to Mississauga.

• Improve public transit links to campuses. Create a “walking community”.

• Collaborate with newcomer initiatives in order to engage and improve access for newcomers.

We are living in challenging times, a dynamic time, – especially for universities; and we do have a chance to seize the opportunity for higher education and ensure that it is translated into achieving the governments goals for a “better educated, more productive work force.

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Ian Orchard,Principal,University of Toronto at Mississauga

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IssueMississauga is one of the few communities across the country that can boast a growing birth rate and labour pool. 52% of Mississauga’s residents were born outside of Canada. There are over 90 different cultures represented in our community and over 60 different languages spoken. Our diverse immigration leads to an infusion of new ideas, cultures and skills that contribute extensively to the rich fabric of our neighbourhoods.

This immigration is not only beneficial to our community, it is integral to our economic viability. Emphasizing this theme, settlement was a priority concern at the 2007 Summit. With questions raised such as “How can Mississauga ensure each newcomer thrives?,” the concept of Mississauga as a “Newcomer Centre of Excellence” was proposed in response.

This Task Force will work toward developing a strategy that cultivates Mississauga as a centre of excellence for diversity and immigration. This can be achieved by employing a city-wide approach that ensures inclusivity, equality, respect and embraces the opportunities that diversity provides.

As a Centre of Excellence for Diversity and Immigration, the City of Mississauga would have policies, systems, programs and services in place that ensure that all have equal access to quality of life and the opportunity to actively participate in all aspects of society, free from discrimination and racism.

Individuals from all ethno-cultural backgrounds feel welcome, included and have the opportunity to thrive.

The Question: What would it take to establish Mississauga as a Centre of Excellence for Diversity and Immigration?

Big IdeasSociety:

• Identify opportunities to integrate cultures• The City is safe and inclusive for everyone• Embrace and perpetuate Mississauga’s family

friendly environment• Identify and remove roadblocks and barriers to

inclusion and success

Employment:• Intensive Employer Engagement Strategy: Develop

a consortium comprised of government, non-profit agencies, community and corporate leaders charged with engaging business across Mississauga. Members would provide education, demonstrating the business case for hiring newcomers.

• Support Employers in Hiring Newcomers: Engage with HR professionals and small- to medium-size businesses. Provide lists of recruiting agencies and hold business fairs. Subsidize salaries of newcomers for a certain time period to encourage opportunity and the acquisition of “Canadian experience.”

Centre of Excellence for Diversity and ImmigrationStatistics indicate that by 2011, 100% of Canada’s labour force growth will be due to immigration.

“Statistics Canada

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Centre of Excellence for Diversity and Immigration • Support Entrepreneurship: Increase supports for new business. Develop infrastructure and access to financing, business plans, and market research. Remove Barriers to Employment: Ensure adequate child care, ESL supports, and transportation. Consider 24 hour childcare options for parents who work shifts.

Training/Credential Recognition:• Immigration Portal / Evaluation Centre: A centralized

portal offering an evaluation of an individual’s current credentials, training options and support in looking for work. Available in person or online. Accessible by new Canadians and potential new residents.

• Increase Accessible and Comprehensive Training Programs: Educate and train immigrants about Canadian industry and potential markets. Provide flexible, online programs offering both soft and technical skills as well as equivalency options.

• Fast Track Training and Experience in Underserved Areas: Build a volunteer-acknowledgement system and increase paid internships in underserved areas such as health care.

• Create a National System Geared Towards Foreign Credential Recognition: A large percentage of developed countries have processes to facilitate translation of skills. Why not Canada?

Social Inclusion:• Central Point of Access for Services: One location

offering a “road map” to settlement, disbursing information on transit, education, employment, social services, child care and mentoring opportunities. Develop a network of newcomers, helping them to make connections to the community.

• Research: Conduct an ongoing study of recent immigrants, tracking their settlement progress over a period of five years in order to identify gaps, successes and potential improvement opportunities.

• Social Marketing Campaign: Launch a public education initiative around the societal benefits and economic opportunities of welcoming newcomers. Celebrate the uniqueness of Mississauga. Represent diversity in the everyday and integrate tight-knit communities.

Factors for Consideration• Increase communication between all levels of

government and with potential new residents. Canadian offices oversees need to give an accurate picture of the potential job market.

• Engage newcomers in Mississauga’s arts, music and culture, which can transcend language.

• Consider that diversity is more than immigration, it’s also about able-ism, sexuality, faith etc. A “Centre of Excellence” should advocate for the elimination of all forms of prejudice and racism.

• Align with government’s immigration priorities and actively advocate for increased settlement funding to be channeled to Mississauga, as an immigration portal.

• Engage existing settlements already doing good work and leverage their knowledge.

• The “Centre of Excellence” framework will allow Mississauga to promote itself as a leader in developing best practices around settlement and integration – a model for Peel and eventually all of Canada.

Mississauga is well positioned to become the leading city in Canada, where all residents are integrated into the civic life of the community, using their contributions to create a strong and vibrant Community of Excellence.

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Evelyn Myrie,Director,Peel Newcomer Strategy Group

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IssueMississauga is a growing, vibrant community where people want to live. Its` human services sector is a national leader in collaborative work. The city welcomes approximately 11,210 new residents every year.

As excellent as our human services are, they are unable to respond to the needs of our community. Over the last 20 years, the provincial and federal governments’ funding has not kept pace with our growing numbers. The unfortunate result is that our human services infrastructure doesn’t have the capacity to support the current population, let alone the projected growth.

There is an ever widening per capita gap in services for Mississauga residents vs. those who live outside of high-growth regions. Our city receives only 40% to 60% of the funding that is allotted to the average Ontario community for child care, child welfare, and health care, as well as developmental and adult services. This inequity directly affects our quality of life. People needing childcare, access to services for seniors, and developmental supports are unable to access them.

Today:• 21% of Mississauga children are living in poverty

– doubling since 1990. This is higher than both the provincial and national averages

• Over 13,500 families in Peel are waiting for subsidized housing

• The most recent Early Development Instrument (EDI) results show 26% of children entering senior kindergarten in Peel are developmentally vulnerable.

• 1n 2007 almost one third of all violent crimes were committed by youth

Growth projections indicate that Mississauga will become a community in crisis if something isn’t done to change the current trajectory. By ensuring an adequate human services infrastructure for residents, we are investing in the health and economic prosperity of our city.

Engaged residents from health, social services, business and education were asked the questions “What is your vision of human services in Mississauga?” and “What do we need to do to get there?”

Big IdeasService:

• Central Human Services Centre: Integrated human services locations positioned to increase efficiencies and access to service.

• Coordinating Body for all Human Services: • Assessing service gaps across the city for

youth, newcomers, affordable housing, child care etc.

• Tracking Mississauga-specific data such as numbers served, needs, and trends.

Building Mississauga’s Human ServicesHuman services are not frills – they should not be viewed as a cost to taxpayers. Rather they are a cost saving, an investment – a cost avoidance to social ill health – that is far more costly to repair than prevent.

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Janet Menard, Commissioner of Human Services, Region of Peel

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Building Mississauga’s Human Services • Identifying key “connectors,” or coordinators with linkages in various communities to facilitate dialogue.

• Ensure an integrated service offering vs. piecemeal.

• Leverage the successes of specific organizations. Use them for frameworks across the city.

• Outreach to Community and Stakeholders:• Develop community advisory groups for each

of the human services areas.• Increase public knowledge about services

already available.• Ensure outreach to vulnerable populations.

Engage students to act as messengers.• Build partnerships with government, education,

business, labour and non-profit sectors – each contributing their skills and networks to a city wide solution.

Advocacy:• Hold a Human Services Summit for Mississauga• Develop an Advocacy Task Force with Federal,

Provincial, Regional, Corporate and Community Representation:

• Increase communication. • Ensure that “the right services are in the right

places”.• Build partnerships.• Research resources required.• Advocate for human service needs such as:

new immigrant supports, a national child care strategy, Employment Insurance supports, poverty initiatives, youth programs, bylaws on social housing, anti-racism / anti-oppression initiatives.

• Include the Business Sector: Encourage corporations to invest in their best resource – their human resource - by supporting parental leave, flexible work hours, education and training.

Funding:• Engage the entire community in promoting human

service issues, including both public funding and private philanthropy:

• Develop the business case for investing in people.

• Engage private developers in social housing initiatives.

• Provide tax breaks to business participating in resourcing human services, such as funding or providing in-kind services such as data collection and information support.

• Base government funding allocations on population: Channel social and health service dollars to where people actually live.

• Create a research team to investigate alternative resource solutions: Consult with communities and governments across the country and internationally.

Factors for Consideration• Incorporate transit into our human services picture.

Address how people get to work, access childcare, etc. (Cost and time may be prohibitive.)

• Ensure that there are subsidized childcare locations close to where people work.

• Human services are least likely to get funding through tax dollars. Encourage city planners and developers to account for social service and health supports at the same time they consider roads and sewage lines.

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Action

John F. Kennedy asked the question: “If not us, who? If not now, when?” Shelley White and Brian Crombie asked themselves these questions on behalf of Mississauga while attending the motivating and successful Toronto Summit. A conversation started with Mayor McCallion, connections were made, and the momentum began.

History teaches us that great things can be achieved by individuals joining in a common purpose. A community that brings together their skills and networks can craft a future of unimaginable possibilities. The Mississauga Summit is a representation of the power of civic engagement. Our city has come together to consider a vision of what Mississauga could and should be.

Four priority areas have been identified, strategic actions have been discussed and Task Forces are being developed to drive the work forward.

The intent is to develop a global city that continually engages in:

1. Celebrating and capitalizing on its diversity 2. Building its economic sustainability3. Cultivating opportunities for innovation4. Providing a rich quality of life that ensures all residents

thriveThe Summit is just the tip of the iceberg. Each Task Force will act as a forum for ideas and innovative thinking. The mandate of the individual Task Forces is to assist in shaping the Mississauga of tomorrow. The call to the community is to get involved.

Bring your perspective and skills to the table and take part in building the future of our city. Pick an area that interests you and participate. The opportunity to grow, adapt and thrive is before us. Contact us at http://www.mississaugasummit.ca to volunteer, contribute ideas, or learn more.

Where do we go from here?Altruistic private engagement in public planning is not just a good thing – I believe it is essential. My entreaty is for your personal involvement. There is more talent and expertise in this room than can be appreciated. Just a small portion of your knowledge and skills would be invaluable to so many agencies with so much need. The value of the time you give is immeasurable. You have the knowledge. You have the skills. You have the connections.

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Lorry Smith,PresidentProactive Print

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Where do we go from here?The Summit Steering Committee has developed a critical path of next steps for the coming year to ensure the success of the Task Forces.

• Summer 2009: • Recruit Co-Chairs and members • Seek resources to establish a Mississauga

Summit Secretariat to support the work and planning of the Task Forces.

• Fall 2009: Publicly launch each Task Force • Six Month Mark: The Task Forces will develop

recommendations – one or two breakthrough strategies – that will evolve into a strategic plan for each area.

• One Year Mark: Mississauga Summit 2010 will provide a progress report back to the broader community.

Next Steps Vision

Human Services

Task Force

Post- SecondaryTask Force

Diversity and ImmigrationTask Force

Environmental Sustainability

Task Force

Advisory Group

Advisory Group

Advisory Group

Advisory Group

Mississauga Summit

Secretariat

Steering Committee

A summit without action is not a summit. The Task Forces are extremely important to devise the action plan and do the work. Let’s go forward with commitment, enthusiasm and determination.

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Mayor Hazel McCallion

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Appendix One

Mississauga’s waterfront and Credit River Valley are the city’s hidden gems. Most residents aren’t fully aware of the vastness, beauty and opportunity that our waterfront and river valley offers. Mississauga has a 22 kilometer Lake Ontario shoreline, the Credit River Valley and other waterways.

Waterfront development and City park development can establish an image for a City and a critical community amenity. Think of Chicago’s Gold Coast, Baltimore’s Inner Habour, Central Park and Stanley Park contrasted with the frustration over development of Toronto’s waterfront or Downsview Park. Mississauga has both greenfield and brownfield development opportunities along the shores of Lake Ontario and in the Credit Valley with offer the potential for social, artistic, cultural, civic and recreational usages that are accessible to all.

The Imperial Oil Refinery lands in Port Credit, the Port Credit Harbour Marina and the OPG site in Lakeview are three key sites located on the Lake Ontario shoreline that are being considered for re-development. The Lakeview Ratepayers Association, a group of local residents, led by Jim Tovey, with Dr. John Danahy, a professor with the Centre for Landscape Research, University of Toronto, have created a vision called the Lakeview Legacy Project. Their plan is aligned with the city’s direction. Its stated guiding principles are, “the Lakeview experience is the community’s capital. It underwrites the community lifestyle that attracts smart people and money to form what will become the next generation sustainable economy.” Mississauga’s Lakeview Legacy Project, p. 1.

In addition, the development of the Credit River Valley is underway connecting a network of parks, nature trails, ecological, heritage, arts and culture centres into one large urban park called Riverwood Conservancy. Riverwood is co-owned by the City of Mississauga and the Credit Valley Conservancy. It is a 60 hectare (150 acre) area that brings together the City’s heritage, beauty, peace and natural environment.

Mississauga’s waterfront and river valley has the potential to become a internationally renowned model of planning and environmental integration utilizing best practices and new technology. We have the opportunity to develop an economic, environmental, cultural, residential, research, educational, tourism asset that will protect our heritage and environment as well as augment Mississauga’s brand, attractiveness, success and sustainability.

Waterfront Development and Environmental Sustainability

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Appendix Two

Does Mississauga need more post-secondary education institutions? The key role post-secondary education plays in city building has been proven by many studies, for students, the economy and for the vibrancy of the city. Particularly the cities on the periphery of larger cities, world-class universities have been shown to be important, as in Stanford, CA or Cambridge, MA. As Canada’s sixth largest city, and Ontario’s 3rd largest, does Mississauga have enough and the right mix of post-secondary institutions?

Mississauga has a population in excess of 700,000 and its population is projected to increase to over 788,000 by 2041. Studies show that today students tend to stay in their own communities for university and that graduates tend to similarly stay in the communities in which they went to school. Without enough post-secondary institutions, are we at risk of losing our best resource, our young people.

The city has one great university, University of Toronto Mississauga (UTM), which has been expanding is undergraduate and graduate programs and is starting to introduce doctoral programs. Its student population exceeds 10,000. There are also a number of adult education programs offered by the public school boards, and private career colleges. In close proximity, residents have access to 10 universities and colleges.

When one examines how other nations are moving ahead in the global innovation race, it’s clear that talent is a key ingredient – including talent development through advanced education. For the period from 2006 to 2015, for example, Human Resources and Social Development Canada estimates that two-thirds of all job openings will require post-secondary education… a transformation in our labour markets. Canada is therefore fortunate to have attracted a tremendous number of ambitious and highly educated immigrants in recent years. As well, Canadians have the highest post-secondary participation rates in the OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development). That said those participation rates are driven overwhelmingly by high community college attendance. Canadians go to university at about the OECD average rate - 18th out of 27 nations in 2005, without much movement in the past couple of years. Furthermore, in graduate education, we are laggards, sitting well down any list of the percapita output of persons with either Masters or Doctoral degrees.

The most successful cities in Canada and worldwide have a strong post-secondary education culture. Toronto, Waterloo, Boston in the US, and London, in the UK are a few examples. The synergistic relationship between post-secondary education and training institutions, business and government drives innovation and the cultivation of new business opportunities. New business will spring up from these relationships. As well, new business will be attracted to establish themselves in Mississauga to have access to the benefits that economic cluster provide as well as having access to a well educated and trained labour pool.

Post-Secondary Education Strategy

From a social perspective, access to post-secondary education and training is a key poverty reduction strategy. Local access to post secondary educational opportunities makes it affordable for individuals from low income backgrounds or workers who are displaced and require retraining, to pursue their interests and increase their knowledge and skills.

Access to education and upgrading their professional credentials is especially important for new immigrants coming to our communities. Mississauga is one of Canada’s largest gateway community’s. Foreign trained professionals are attracted to Mississauga because of the availability of professional positions and post-secondary education for upgrading their skills.

As we think about Our Future Mississauga, it is crucial that we understand our future economy and our education and training requirements to achieve our objectives. How do we need to align our economic development with post secondary education opportunities to ensure that we continue to be a strong and diverse business centre?

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Appendix Three

One of Mississauga’s greatest assets is the diversity of our residents. Mississauga is a vibrant city that is home to people of different ethnic and cultural backgrounds, including skilled immigrants with unique worldwide experiences. This richness of diversity can be largely attributed to a long standing and growing trend in immigration. Currently, over one-half (52%) of Mississauga’s residents where born outside of Canada and this number continues to grow.

Statistics indicate that by 2011, 100% of Canada’s labour force growth will be due to immigration. Mississauga is showing signs of this trend. 2006 Census data shows that our non-immigrant population decreased by 2% while our immigrant population increased by 20%.

As a community, Mississauga understands the importance of immigration and diversity. Positioning Mississauga as a Centre of Excellence for Diversity and Immigration will play a critical role in ensuring our future wellbeing and prosperity.

Diversity and immigration demographics in MississaugaThe picture of diversity and immigration in Mississauga is impressive:

Immigration:• 343,245 residents where born outside of Canada• 54% of Mississauga’s immigrants arrived between

1990 and 2006• 63% (74,810) of all Peel’s recent immigrants live in

Mississauga• Each year approximately 15,000 newcomers to Canada

chose Mississauga as their home.

Visible minority:• Mississauga’s visible minority population has increased

from 40% in 2001 to 49% in 2006• The three largest groups of visible minorities in

Mississauga are South Asians (134,750), Chinese (46,120), and Blacks (41,365).

Language:• Almost half (317,345) of Mississauga’s residents have

a mother tongue spoken other than English or French• The top three languages are Chinese, Urdu and Polish

Centre of Excellence for Diversity and Immigration

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Value of diversity and immigration to economy and society in MississaugaHowever, diversity is not just about numbers. It is the story of how diversity and immigration enriches our community’s social, economic, and cultural vibrancy. From an economic perspective, skilled immigrants bring talent, education, and international connections. Diversity drives creativity and innovation and brings positive change to our human capital mix. Research indicates that diversity does indeed enhance economic output and innovative activity.

From a social and cultural perspective, diversity and immigration bring new knowledge, ideas, tastes, perspectives and lifestyles. Evidence of this positive change includes new retail and commercial centres, increased housing demand, new neighbourhood and community development, vibrant growth in places of worship, expanded health and social services, and an increasingly global approach to recreation, sports and the arts.

A Centre of Excellence for Diversity and ImmigrationMississauga is well positioned to become a Centre of Excellence for Diversity and Immigration. While cities across the globe grapple with issues of immigration and diversity, Mississauga has already proven itself to be a role model in welcoming and integrating newcomers. Successful integration is the result of thoughtful and strategic planning. Multi-stakeholder collaborations such as the Peel Newcomer Strategy Group, the Regional Diversity Roundtable and TRIECs Employer Roadmap are some of the many examples

of Mississauga’s effectiveness at working together to address challenges and capitalize on opportunities.

Mississauga is one of a growing number of Canadian cities that recognize the importance of diversity and immigration. However, Mississauga has a unique place in Canada in attracting significant numbers of immigrants and in proving itself to be a proud city of immense possibilities. Creating a Centre of Excellence for Diversity and Immigration will help us to brand, share and promote our successes. And as we move forward, Mississagua will be known as a city where the value of diversity and immigration are an integral and planned component of the social, economic and cultural fabric of civic life.

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Appendix Four

Mississauga is a growing, vibrant community where people want to liveMississauga’s human services sector is a national leader in collaborative and cross-sectoral work. Representatives from the social services, health and government sectors continually come together to identify gaps and align priorities with a view to providing exceptional social and health services. This commitment to service excellence has contributed to Mississauga’s reputation as a great place to live. The community welcomes approximately 11,210 new residents every year, 80% of whom are new immigrants.

Key issues of concernAs excellent as our Social and Health services are, they are unable to fully and adequately respond to the needs of the community. The social and health infrastructure doesn’t have the capacity to support the current population, let alone the projected growth. Over the last 20 years the provincial and federal governments’ support for human services has not kept pace with the growth in population.

The result is an ever-widening per capita gap in services for residents who live in Mississauga vs. those who live outside of the 905/GTA in Ontario. Compared to the average Ontario community, our city receives 40 to 60% of the funding for childcare, child welfare, health care, developmental and adult services. This inequity directly affects the quality of life in our community.

The health and social service providers in Mississauga struggle to meet the needs of seniors, new immigrants, youth, parents and their children, and other vulnerable residents or people seeking social and health support. Many are waiting lengthy periods of time for access to service, whether it is housing, support for seniors, child care, mental health services for children and youth, or assessments for children with developmental challenges. New immigrants to Canada experience great difficulty in becoming fully integrated into our society in a reasonable length of time because of barriers to employment, lack of supports and other issues such as racism and discrimination.

Over 21% of Mississauga children (over 38,000) are living in poverty doubling since 1990. This is higher than both the provincial and national averages. The poverty that these children live in within our community makes it more difficult for them to learn and to develop the kinds of skills they need to be contributing members of society. Their parents are struggling to provide food, shelter and clothing for their families. In Peel over 13,500 people are waiting for subsidized housing. In 2007, Peel’s homeless shelters housed 1,122 families including 2,570 children. There are 2,400 children awaiting access to subsidized child care in Peel. These statistics are a reflection of significant unmet need in our community and of many vulnerable residents unable to receive the support they need. The character and quality of life of a city is affected by how it responds to its vulnerable. It is in the best interests of our community from a economic and quality of life perspective to find ways of addressing these issues.

Building Our Human Services Capacity

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Investment in Human Capital is good for businessMississauga has been an attractive place for business in the past. The lack of services for residents poses a threat to this trend. If the employees of local businesses do not have access to child care, support for their elderly parents, or care for their developmentally delayed or mentally ill child, then they are not going to be able to devote full attention to their employment. Good attendance at work is threatened by the lack of these services. A growing poverty rate limits the ability of people of spend on local goods and products.

By looking to initiatives such as poverty reduction, newcomer supports and youth programs, we are investing in health of our community and promoting the economic prosperity of a city. Infrastructure development in child care, senior supports and health care are essential to a productive work force and a healthy community.

We have a vision in which all children, youth, families and residents in Peel are thriving and enjoying the benefits of our great city. The human services in this community are dedicated to providing excellent service in a collaborative and coordinated fashion which makes the best use of the dollars invested in them on behalf of the residents. With adequate funding and capacity the services will be able to respond to the needs of the vulnerable and those in need in a timely and caring fashion.

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Appendix Five

We gratefully give our heartfelt thanks to the Mississauga Summit 2009 sponsors, planning committee, suppliers and participants for their support and input.

Acknowledgements

Title Sponsor• AstraZeneca Canada Inc.

Sponsors• CIBC Wood Gundy• Medtronic of Canada Ltd.• PricewaterhouseCoopers• Proactive Print Management• RBC Royal Bank• United Way of Peel Region• The University of Toronto

Mississauga

Summit Steering Committee• Mayor Hazel McCallion, Honorary

Chair, Mississauga Summit • Brian Crombie, Co-Chair

Mississauga Summit and local business consultant

• Shelley White, Co-Chair, Mississauga Summit and CEO, United Way of Peel Region

• Princess Alexander, President, Alexander Business Solutions Inc.

• Jill Birch, Vice President of Business Development, Sheridan Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning

• Bruce Carr, Director of Strategic Planning, City of Mississauga

• Michelle Cole, Senior Vice President, GE Commercial Finance

• Jake Dheer, Manager, Rogers Television Dufferin-Peel, Past Chair, Mississauga Board of Trade

• Rabbi Larry Englander, Solel Congregation

• Michael Gray, Senior Account Manager, Not-For-Profit Markets, RBC Royal Bank

• Genevieve Lavertu, Director, Legal Affairs & Business Development, Medtronic of Canada Ltd.

• Sheldon Leiba, President and CEO, Mississauga Board of Trade

• Liz Leake, Director of Communications and Marketing, United Way of Peel Region

• Eva Liebermann, Vice President, Mary Kay Cosmetics

• Benoit Long, Vice President and CIO, Trillium Health Centre

• Sanjay Makkar, President & CEO, InSureU

• Winston Meyer, First Vice President, CIBC Wood Gundy

• Carl Oxholm, Partner, PricewaterhouseCoopers

• Joseph Palumbo, Executive Director, Career Development Centre, Schulich School of Business, York University and Chair, United Way of Peel Region

• Daniel Park, student, University of Toronto Mississauga

• Dr. Colin Saldanha, Past Chair, United Way of Peel Region and Family Physician

• Anita Stellinga, Director of Community Investment, United Way of Peel Region

• Andrew Stelmacovich, Executive Director of Advancement, University of Toronto Mississauga

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Facilitators• Gordon Anderson, University of

Toronto Mississauga• Aamna Ashraf, United Way of Peel

Region• Maureen Etkin, Ontario Network for

the Prevention of Elder Abuse• Judy Gast, Family Education Centre• Hugh Gunz, University of Toronto

Mississauga• Farheen Khan, United Way of Peel

Region• Susan Kulkarni, United Way of Peel

Region• Shari Lynn Ladanchuk, Big Brothers

and Big Sisters of Peel• Norm McLeod, Regional Municipality

of Peel• Lee McTavish, University of Toronto

Mississauga• Barbara Murck, University of Toronto

Mississauga• Nellie Sheppard, Catholic Family

Services of Peel-Dufferin • Jyoti Shukla, Dixie Bloor

Neighbourhood Centre• Carine Strong, Volunteer MBC• Soo Min Toh, University of Toronto

Mississauga• Vanita Varma, Telecare Distress

Centre• Anthony Wensley, University of

Toronto Mississauga

Scribes University of Toronto Mississauga• Maleeha Ahmad• Ravindra Boodram• James Boutilier• Eric Cheng• Magdalena Choruzy• Rahulpreet Dhaliwal• Kavisha Jayasundara• Kristen Kazlovskis• Cecilia Ip• Ryan Lall• Kenny Lee• Aaron Liew• Shantanu Mittal• Sagar Patel• Shahnur Saiyad• Meghana Venkatesh• Kristina Vitovec• Jasdeep Singh• Archana Shenoy• Marvin Weekes• Eve Man Yin Wong

Volunteers• Jonathan Crombie• Amanda Connolly

Logistics Team• Susan Danby, Executive Admin.

Human Resources Manager, United Way of Peel Region

• Trudi Ford, Communications Manager, United Way of Peel Region

• Carol Kotacka, Media Relations, Arro Marketing & Communications

• Liz Leake, Director of Communications and Marketing, United Way of Peel Region

• Jacqueline Pereira, Receptionist/Office Assistant, United Way of Peel Region

• Michael Scholz, Photography, Image Force

• Vladimir Simic, Webmaster, Credit Valley Hospital

Special Thanks To:• Sue Hinton, City of Mississauga• Ester Ortiz, Living Arts Centre• Victor Svenningson, Living Arts

Centre• Gerry Townsend, Living Arts Centre• Tara Verma, University of Toronto

Mississauga

2009gratefully acknowledges the generous sponsorship of

Printing provided by Proactive Print Management