Social Planning Toronto hosted a lively discussion back in September on the issue of public use of schools, community hubs and school board processes in school closure situations. The audience included not only students and community members, but also a number of senior politicians and school trustees. Below you can find the proceedings notes compiled by Navjeet Sidhu as well as links to the presentation materials of the speakers.

Social Planning Toronto Research and Policy Forum

The People's Recession - One Year Later

Please join us for our November forum with:

• Armine Yalnizyan, Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives
  Recession and Realcovery: What’s Community Service Got to Do with It?
• Beth Wilson, Social Planning Toronto and the Social Planning Network of Ontario
  SPNO’s Hard Hit: Impact of the Economic Downturn on Nonprofit Community Social Services in Ontario
• Ann FitzpatrickRecession Relief Coalition
  Taking action on the people’s recession

• Date: Wednesday, November 11, 2009
• Time: 9:30 a.m. - Noon
• Location: Lillian H. Smith Library, 239 College Street (just east of Spadina) Room BC

All are welcome but space is limited.

The Social Planning Toronto Research and Policy Forum is held monthly to present new research and discuss emerging policy issues.

Crisis Coming for Ontario Communities

TORONTO, October 20, 2009

Hard Hit: The Impact of the Economic Downturn on Nonprofit Community Social Services in Ontario, a new research report from the Social Planning Network of Ontario (SPNO), documents the one-two punch affecting Ontario's nonprofit community services – an increasing demand for services and lost revenue from funding cuts driven by the economic downturn.

The report calls on Canadian leaders, who have been slow to embrace the potential of social innovation to respond to community challenges, to establish a cross-sectoral national strategy to advance SI in this country.

Interest is growing in the potential role of schools as community hubs and socially progressive feature of both urban planning and education. View report and powerpoint from the recent SPT Research Forum.

The Toronto Community Foundation has released Vital Signs 2009, noting that Toronto is Highly Desirable but Seriously Unaffordable. Read the report or the Toronto Star's substantial coverage.

The Open Policy Course in Public Policy is the inaugural class on public policy conducted by John Stapleton. John taught policy at the Maytree Public Policy Training Institute, the Schulich School of Business and delivered a policy development lecture series for the Metcalf Foundation. John spent 28 years as a public servant in Ontario, half of it in policy development.

GrassRoots Public Policy Course

The Center for Addictions and Mental Health and Community Resource Connections of Toronto are looking for participants who are either dealing with mental health issues or are family members or significant others of individuals dealing with mental health issues, who live in Toronto, and who are service users or family members from the Caribbean community.

Focus Group for Caribbean People-Users of Mental Health Services

October 14, 2009 from 2:30pm to 5:30pm
CERIS
246 Bloor Street West, Room 548

This seminar brings together leading academic and community researchers to share new evidence about social determinants of health for newly arrived immigrants and refugees. The seminar presenters will also discuss promising practices and policy recommendations for promoting newcomer health by proactively addressing socioeconomic determinants of health.

Download the Factsheet in PDF Format.

What is Employment Equity and why do we need it?

Many groups in Canada have long experienced discrimination or faced barriers in the labour market. First Nations people, newcomers, people of colour, women, and people with disabilities are still falling behind the rest of the population in terms of job selection, training opportunities, promotions, and job retention. For example: