2016 Ontario Council AGM & Conference
May 13 - 14, 2016
Hosted by CFUW Orangeville & District at the Hockley Valley Resort
The theme for the 2016 OC AGM & Conference was Building Bridges - Creating Connections, and every meeting and session during the event was focused on developing bridges and connections--between CFUW members, between indigenous and non-indigenous Canadians, and between Canadians of all economic levels. [Scroll to the end of this page for notes from AGM & Conference sessions.] On Friday the connections began with a screening of FrontRunners: Niigaanibatowaad, a film on truth telling and reconciliation. CFUW member Laura Robinson is the film’s creator; it is the story of the ten teenage boys who carried the torch for the 1967 Pan American Games in Winnipeg. Nine of the ten young men chosen were from Aboriginal residential schools. Niigaanibatowaad is about the segregation of the Aboriginal athletes and the despair and abuse suffered in the residential school system. Frontrunners is a story of survival, hope, reconciliation and a dream for a new beginning that transcends hatred and racism.
After the film screening, creating connections continued when the Regional Director from Ontario West, Cheryl Ambrose, hosted the Leadership workshop and provided an overview of the newly revamped CFUW National and CFUW Member Resources websites.
And the highlight of Friday evening was the Welcome Reception, when the AGM & Conference was officially opened. First, we recognized First Nations lands:
“We acknowledge the lands of the First Peoples of Turtle Island and the many First Nations that lived on the lands we now call home today.”
Then we started our weekend journey to build bridges and create connections with a traditional drum ceremony, led by Cathy Elliott, First Roots Aboriginal Program Associate for the DAREarts Foundation for Children and a member of the Dufferin County Cultural Resource Circle. Cathy was joined by Deb Egerton from CFUW Orangeville & District and Carol Tyler from CFUW Guelph.
“The Drum represents Earth, Mother, Creation. It is made for or by a person and belongs to that person until it is gifted to someone else. The life force of the animal that gave its skin is honoured whenever it is played. There are different approaches all over Turtle Island, different systems, beliefs and protocols. Not all Nations on Turtle Island use a skin drum. Some use hollowed out trees, bark, and at times, the ground itself. The drum is still a universal voice. When you feel the vibration of a Big Drum hit your chest, you can’t help but feel something familiar … your heart beat.”
The drum ceremony was followed by welcoming remarks from two Dufferin-Caledon dignitaries, the Member of Provincial Parliament for Dufferin-Caledon Sylvia Jones and the Warden of Dufferin County and the Mayor of the Town of Mono Laura Ryan. Then Ontario Council President Brenda Robertson delivered Ontario Council’s welcome message and awarded 17 anniversary and fall gathering certificates. The speeches were followed by a wonderful presentation by Cathy Elliott that included a photographic display on a circular screen and 4 beautiful songs about Cathy’s experiences working with First Nations youth in remote communities.
On Saturday, we kicked into high gear with four exciting and informative sessions:
Dr. Susan Dion is an indigenous scholar (Potawatami/Lenape) with York University. Unfortunately, because she was late arriving, her presentation had to be cut short. However, she was able to share with us the film stories of two young indigenous Canadians that illustrate the challenges of building bridges across the indigenous/non-indigenous divide.
The speakers for the 2nd plenary session—Building Bridges – Creating Connections to reduce poverty—were Karen Glass and Laura Cattari. Karen is the Executive Director for the Poverty Reduction Strategy Office in Ontario and has over 20 years of experience in social policy. Ontario’s Poverty Reduction Strategy—Realizing our Potential—aims to be a comprehensive and flexible approach to reduce poverty in the province. At this plenary Karen gave us an update on objectives achieved and goals established since Ontario’s Poverty Reduction Strategy was introduced in 2014. Karen reviewed the 4 pillars of the current strategy: breaking the poverty cycle with a stronger focus on families; employment, income security and support of meaningful work; ending homelessness and evidence based policy development. The evidence based policy development combines experience, expertise and evidence, and is implemented through cross-ministry collaboration and coordination.
Laura Cattari was our second speaker in this plenary. Laura is a writer and community advocate and Vice President with the Board of Canada Without Poverty—an organization calling for sustained action to combat the structural causes of poverty in Canada. Laura was nominated in 2013 as a Woman of Distinction in Hamilton, Ontario. Laura continued on the subject of evidence based policy development and human rights and reminded the audience that the International Convention on Economic, Cultural and Social Rights was ratified by Canada on May 19th, 1976. Economic, social and cultural rights (ESCR) include the rights to decent work, an adequate standard of living, housing, food, water and sanitation, social security, health, and education. ESCRs are thus as essential as the freedom of expression or the right to a fair trial for ensuring human dignity.
Laura then outlined Bill 185, Ministry of Community and Social Services Amendment Act (Social Assistance Research Commission), 2016. Bill 185 is a bill to form a standing research commission to define regions of Ontario on the basis of economic geography and determine the cost of living in different parts of Ontario. The Commission will be comprised of 9 experts, including one person with lived experience of Ontario Works and another person with lived experience of the Ontario Disability Support Program. Laura has been invited to be one of these experts. She closed by saying that she will stay in touch with CFUW and will ask for our support in the adoption of Bill 185.
At the Truth and Reconciliation break-out session, 4 CFUW clubs—North York, Owen Sound, Southport and Vaughan—presented ideas and actions they have taken to educate themselves about indigenous issues and to reach out and advocate. Jodie-Lynn also joined this break-out and contributed a number of ideas including support for cultural competency training for anyone who works with indigenous Canadians, celebrating Orange Shirt Day in September, and visiting a residential school. Each presenting club compiled a resource list, as did CFUW Orangeville & District. These lists will be made available to all Ontario clubs.
At the Poverty Reduction break-out session, we learned about the Circles program in Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph. The Circles program matches low-income leaders—Canadians who want to break out of the poverty cycle—with middle- or upper-income allies. The goal of the program is not to reduce but to eradicate poverty through community. “The opposite of poverty is not wealth but rather community.” A resource list to educate ourselves about poverty was compiled by CFUW Orangeville & District; the list will be made available to all Ontario clubs.
And finally, I’d like to mention the infographics that were on display throughout the AGM & Conference, just outside the main meeting room. The infographic displays were created by four young women who are attending two local secondary schools and participating in the Dufferin Historian Program, which was created and developed by teachers Neil Orford and Asher Kirk. Each of the students created one display for four different topics—Violence Against Women, Missing & Murdered Indigenous Women, Indigenous History in Ontario and Poverty in Dufferin.
After the film screening, creating connections continued when the Regional Director from Ontario West, Cheryl Ambrose, hosted the Leadership workshop and provided an overview of the newly revamped CFUW National and CFUW Member Resources websites.
And the highlight of Friday evening was the Welcome Reception, when the AGM & Conference was officially opened. First, we recognized First Nations lands:
“We acknowledge the lands of the First Peoples of Turtle Island and the many First Nations that lived on the lands we now call home today.”
Then we started our weekend journey to build bridges and create connections with a traditional drum ceremony, led by Cathy Elliott, First Roots Aboriginal Program Associate for the DAREarts Foundation for Children and a member of the Dufferin County Cultural Resource Circle. Cathy was joined by Deb Egerton from CFUW Orangeville & District and Carol Tyler from CFUW Guelph.
“The Drum represents Earth, Mother, Creation. It is made for or by a person and belongs to that person until it is gifted to someone else. The life force of the animal that gave its skin is honoured whenever it is played. There are different approaches all over Turtle Island, different systems, beliefs and protocols. Not all Nations on Turtle Island use a skin drum. Some use hollowed out trees, bark, and at times, the ground itself. The drum is still a universal voice. When you feel the vibration of a Big Drum hit your chest, you can’t help but feel something familiar … your heart beat.”
The drum ceremony was followed by welcoming remarks from two Dufferin-Caledon dignitaries, the Member of Provincial Parliament for Dufferin-Caledon Sylvia Jones and the Warden of Dufferin County and the Mayor of the Town of Mono Laura Ryan. Then Ontario Council President Brenda Robertson delivered Ontario Council’s welcome message and awarded 17 anniversary and fall gathering certificates. The speeches were followed by a wonderful presentation by Cathy Elliott that included a photographic display on a circular screen and 4 beautiful songs about Cathy’s experiences working with First Nations youth in remote communities.
On Saturday, we kicked into high gear with four exciting and informative sessions:
- OC business meeting – AGM and voting on the OC Age Discrimination in Ontario resolution
- 1st plenary Building Bridges – Creating Connections to Honour the Truth and Reconcile for the Future
- 2nd plenary Building Bridges – Creating Connections to Reduce Poverty
- 2 concurrent break-out sessions focused on education and learning to become an ally to an indigenous Canadian or to someone living in poverty
Dr. Susan Dion is an indigenous scholar (Potawatami/Lenape) with York University. Unfortunately, because she was late arriving, her presentation had to be cut short. However, she was able to share with us the film stories of two young indigenous Canadians that illustrate the challenges of building bridges across the indigenous/non-indigenous divide.
The speakers for the 2nd plenary session—Building Bridges – Creating Connections to reduce poverty—were Karen Glass and Laura Cattari. Karen is the Executive Director for the Poverty Reduction Strategy Office in Ontario and has over 20 years of experience in social policy. Ontario’s Poverty Reduction Strategy—Realizing our Potential—aims to be a comprehensive and flexible approach to reduce poverty in the province. At this plenary Karen gave us an update on objectives achieved and goals established since Ontario’s Poverty Reduction Strategy was introduced in 2014. Karen reviewed the 4 pillars of the current strategy: breaking the poverty cycle with a stronger focus on families; employment, income security and support of meaningful work; ending homelessness and evidence based policy development. The evidence based policy development combines experience, expertise and evidence, and is implemented through cross-ministry collaboration and coordination.
Laura Cattari was our second speaker in this plenary. Laura is a writer and community advocate and Vice President with the Board of Canada Without Poverty—an organization calling for sustained action to combat the structural causes of poverty in Canada. Laura was nominated in 2013 as a Woman of Distinction in Hamilton, Ontario. Laura continued on the subject of evidence based policy development and human rights and reminded the audience that the International Convention on Economic, Cultural and Social Rights was ratified by Canada on May 19th, 1976. Economic, social and cultural rights (ESCR) include the rights to decent work, an adequate standard of living, housing, food, water and sanitation, social security, health, and education. ESCRs are thus as essential as the freedom of expression or the right to a fair trial for ensuring human dignity.
Laura then outlined Bill 185, Ministry of Community and Social Services Amendment Act (Social Assistance Research Commission), 2016. Bill 185 is a bill to form a standing research commission to define regions of Ontario on the basis of economic geography and determine the cost of living in different parts of Ontario. The Commission will be comprised of 9 experts, including one person with lived experience of Ontario Works and another person with lived experience of the Ontario Disability Support Program. Laura has been invited to be one of these experts. She closed by saying that she will stay in touch with CFUW and will ask for our support in the adoption of Bill 185.
At the Truth and Reconciliation break-out session, 4 CFUW clubs—North York, Owen Sound, Southport and Vaughan—presented ideas and actions they have taken to educate themselves about indigenous issues and to reach out and advocate. Jodie-Lynn also joined this break-out and contributed a number of ideas including support for cultural competency training for anyone who works with indigenous Canadians, celebrating Orange Shirt Day in September, and visiting a residential school. Each presenting club compiled a resource list, as did CFUW Orangeville & District. These lists will be made available to all Ontario clubs.
At the Poverty Reduction break-out session, we learned about the Circles program in Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph. The Circles program matches low-income leaders—Canadians who want to break out of the poverty cycle—with middle- or upper-income allies. The goal of the program is not to reduce but to eradicate poverty through community. “The opposite of poverty is not wealth but rather community.” A resource list to educate ourselves about poverty was compiled by CFUW Orangeville & District; the list will be made available to all Ontario clubs.
And finally, I’d like to mention the infographics that were on display throughout the AGM & Conference, just outside the main meeting room. The infographic displays were created by four young women who are attending two local secondary schools and participating in the Dufferin Historian Program, which was created and developed by teachers Neil Orford and Asher Kirk. Each of the students created one display for four different topics—Violence Against Women, Missing & Murdered Indigenous Women, Indigenous History in Ontario and Poverty in Dufferin.