What does engagement look like?

We'll make it easy and inviting for people from across the community to participate by taking your needs into consideration, sharing information to connect you to the work and delivering a variety of opportunities and activities that make your engagement experience impactful and maybe a little fun.

We nurture relationships

Constructive, cooperative relationships between City staff, Council and the community are important. Good relationships help foster trust, create space for respectful dialogue, and allow us to hear from a diversity of voices.

You can expect the City to make time to develop relationships with community even when there’s no specific ask or project in mind:

  • you’ll see us around Guelph at places like community events, festivals, gatherings, and meetings

  • we’ll share, celebrate, and amplify community work aligned with the Guelph’s community plan and the City of Guelph’s strategic plan

  • we’ll facilitate conversations on topics that connect with City priorities and lead to collective impacts.

  • we’ll follow up when you reach out

We build capacity for participation

Informed participation requires us to strengthen organizational capabilities at the City and build capacity within the community.

Through professional development, training, and mentorship, we will continue to invest in growing and aligning City staff’s knowledge, skills, attitudes, and values related to community engagement core competencies:

  • designing and implementing inclusive and meaningful communications and community engagement

  • collecting, analyzing, and sharing community engagement data and insights

  • developing and stewarding community relationships

  • evaluating and innovating toward continuous improvement

The City and its partners will also work in the community to nurture informed participation:

  • addressing barriers to participation

  • delivering accessible and inclusive communications that clearly identify what’s at stake, explain potential impacts and describe required changes to diverse audiences

  • informing the community about diverse civic participation opportunities

  • developing the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and values required to participate meaningfully

learn more in our Community Engagement Charter.

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