Council of Ontario Universities Enhancing Communities: Fostering Town & Gown Partnerships May 2012

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Executive Summary ● Introduction ● Regional economic development

Economy

● Community building and social innovation ● Cultural and lifestyle enhancement ● Conclusion

Universities Community

Lifestyle

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Overview ● 21 universities in 35 communities across the province ● Partners in making these communities economically vibrant ● Enhancing communities and revitalizing downtown cores ● Helping solve local issues and enriching the social and cultural fabric

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Regional Economic Development

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Economic Impact ● Large and stable employer in many communities; bulk purchasers (local suppliers where possible) ● Attract business to communities by hosting conferences and other events ● Examples of university economic impact studies: ▫

Economic impact on the Toronto area is $5.4 billion annually (estimated by City of Toronto)

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Impact of $227-$272 million annually to the Durham region in 2010

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Over $1 billion annually 5

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Downtown Revitalization

Council of Ontario Universities

Brantford – Wilfrid Laurier & Nipissing University

Cambridge – University of Waterloo’s School of Architecture

St. Catharines – the future home of Brock University’s Performing Arts Building

Toronto – Ryerson University’s Student Learning Centre

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Ensuring Economic Vibrancy & Stability ● Innovation Clusters (Peterborough and Waterloo) where business and researchers partner to create economic opportunities ● “Work in Kingston Day” connects Queen’s students and graduates with local employers ● Contributing to key economic initiatives of local communities: e.g. Brock University undertaking research to support Niagara’s grape and wine industry 7

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Leveraging Expertise: the Power of Partnerships ● Universities engaged in economic planning – University of Windsor’s Odette School of Business helps shape the city ● Research expertise targets local and provincial needs, e.g. GrowGuelph ● Connect to Innovate workshops – joint events between universities and local Chambers of Commerce

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Regional Economic Leadership ● Ontario Economic Summit/Ontario Chamber of Commerce initiative ● COU represented on the Advisory Council

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Community Building & Social Innovation

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Community Building ● uOttawa & Carleton faculty and students on the City of Ottawa’s Knowledge Transfer Table, part of the “No Community Left Behind” strategy ● Coordinates services and helps create safe and healthy environments in high-risk communities

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Community Building ● University of Waterloo, with multiple community partners, developed their “Age Friendly Communities” website and toolkit: www.afc.uwaterloo.ca

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Community Building & Research ● Laurentian’s partnerships to support Franco-Ontarian community ● Lakehead partnership/MOU with the Métis Nation of Ontario ● The Northern Ontario School of Medicine (NOSM) tackling local issues of direct importance to the local community through research

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Social Innovation & Research ● NORDIK at Algoma – community-based research institute ● OCAD University – Inclusive Design Research Centre. International community of open source developers to ensure inclusive design in ICT design and technology

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Social Innovation & Research ● University of Toronto – “IMAGINE” program ● York University – “Assets Coming Together” (ACT) for Youth

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Social Innovation & Research ● Carleton University – 6 themes of community engagement; partnerships with local organizations

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Volunteerism & Community Service ● Athletes and other university student-based groups are heavily involved in community service – from food drives to raising money for breast cancer ● Service learning – volunteer work performed for course credit, addressing both educational and community needs

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Cultural & Lifestyle Enhancement

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Lifestyle & Cultural Enhancement ● Universities share facilities with community members and groups in order to ensure local and regional communities benefit from them ▫ Athletics ▫ Music & the arts ▫ Academic and conference facilities

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Athletics ● UOIT hosted 2008 Special Olympics and 2010 Senior Games ● UofT is hosting the World Deaf Athletics Championships in July 2012 ● Several universities to host events for the 2015 Pan Am games

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Athletics for the community ● The Royal Military College offers free use of facilities to city-run programs (basketball & soccer) ● “Laurier Jump” – promotes campus life and the importance of education to local kids ● “Camp UofT” – over 2900 campers participate

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Music & the Arts ● University of Western Ontario – Don Wright Faculty of Music holds over 350 public concerts annually ● Theatre events – from traditional performances that are open to the local community to international conferences on the sustainability of the arts

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Academic Facilities & Partnerships ● Nipissing’s Education Centre Library – a joint venture by Nipissing University and Canadore College ● Ryerson and AMC Entertainment share 12 large cinemas in downtown Toronto 23

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In Conclusion ● Ontario universities are eager to continue to forge partnerships with municipalities that benefit the entire community ● The opportunity always exists to build closer connections with local business and with community and government leaders – we welcome continued opportunities for collaboration

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For Further Information Bonnie M. Patterson, C.M., O.Ont. President and CEO Council of Ontario Universities (416) 979-2165 ext. 256 E-mail: [email protected]