City of Ottawa Ambassadors Working Group

Terms of Reference

BACKGROUND

Ottawa has changed dramatically since it was incorporated in 1855, when it was a small lumber town of 16,000 people. This year, the City of Ottawa will reach one million people and the Ottawa-Gatineau Metropolitan region will reach 1.5 million people.

And the pace of change accelerating. What will Ottawa look like as it grows over the next century? How do we make sure that we can keep pace and adapt to change in a way that makes Ottawa an inclusive, liveable and globally competitive city?

We have an opportunity to prepare for the future with a brand new Official Plan: the strategic document that guides our city’s growth and development. The plan impacts how and where the city will grow around us, now and for years to come. It establishes a policy framework that will inform the shape of   the communities where you live, work and play. The scope of the plan may reach as far as the middle of this century and will affect generations to come.

MANDATE OF THE AMBASSADORS WORKING GROUP

The mandate of the working group is to provide advice and feedback on the City’s Official Plan. This group will be the primary mechanism for engaging diverse communities in the process of creating a new Official Plan.

VISION AND VALUES

The Ambassadors Working Group will work within the objectives of the City of Ottawa’s Equity and Inclusion Lens.

Vision: Our community is becoming more and more diverse and so are the needs and aspirations of its residents. For this reason, we need to incorporate this reality into how we plan and deliver programs and services so we can remain relevant, meaningful and effective.

Values:

• To raise awareness of the New Official Plan, with a focus on ensuring underrepresented groups throughout the City of Ottawa are informed and engaged.
• Reach out in new ways to tap into diverse perspectives and encourage the meaningful participation of all voices in the dialogue around the new Official Plan.
• Use in depth conversations with diverse communities to create a narrative on what the Official Plan means to different groups. This narrative will inform broader stakeholder engagement and the new Official Plan.