With financial support from Canadian Heritage, the Quebec Community Groups Network (QCGN) is currently carrying out a historic priority-setting process for the English-speaking community of Quebec. The aim of this process is to assess and determine key concerns and priorities for the English-speaking community, as expressed by community members themselves. The concerns identified during this process will serve to inform partners – in particular federal, provincial and municipal governments and private stakeholders – with regards to policy and program development that will support the members of our community and help us to ensure the vitality of the English-speaking community in Quebec.
As part of this process, a total of 19 consultations were held across the province during the fall of 2011. These consultations involved community organizations and English-speaking residents and enabled participants to share their needs and priorities for the future.
Now, as the QCGN moves forward to the next phase of this process, they are inviting community members to participate in a two-hour focus group session, with the goal of validating the information that has been gathered from the community up until now. In particular, these focus group sessions will help to identify a set of key priorities around which the English-speaking community as a whole can mobilize.
The focus groups will be organized by region and, depending on the location, a facilitator will attend either in person or through video-conference. To get involved in a focus group or to complete the online survey, please contact the QCGN by e-mail, before January 13, 2012, at strategicprioritiesforum@qcgn.ca. In your message, please include your name, address, postal code, and telephone number. For those Townshippers who wish to participate in a focus group but do not have access to e-mail, contact Townshippers’ Association at 819-566-5717 (toll free: 1-866-566-5717) and we will help to connect you with the appropriate person at the QCGN.
If a focus group is not organized in your area, please contact Townshippers’ Association for more information regarding the focus groups taking place in other areas and to learn how to participate. If you are not available to attend the focus group sessions, you can still get involved in the process by taking part in an online survey which will sum up the results and ask for your feedback on the identified priorities. Your input is important and valuable to this process and all questions and contributions are welcome!
The QCGN’s priority-setting process will culminate in a province-wide Community Priority Setting Conference, set to be held in March 2012, during which participants will discuss how the determined priorities can be moved into action and how we can become a more united community.
Help Someone You Love Return to the Townships: Tell Them about Make Way for YOUth!
During the holiday season, families and friends often gather for quality time, to catch up with each others’ lives and to share news…
Did you happen to meet up with a young friend or family member this past holiday season who expressed an interest in settling in the Eastern Townships? Maybe it was a younger relative who moved away to complete his or her education and would now like to move back home, but needs a little support finding employment in the area…. Or maybe it was a friend or acquaintance that visited the Townships for the first time this year and fell in love with all that the area has to offer… If either of these examples sound familiar to you, why not get back in touch with that person and tell him or her about Townshippers’ Association’s Make Way for YOUth project?
Intended to help young professionals (with post-secondary training and education) re-locate to the Eastern Townships, this project can help candidates in a variety of ways, including by providing individualized support services and offering FREE, all-inclusive visits to the Estrie region. The Discovery Days weekends feature the best food, accommodations and activities that the area has to offer, as well as interesting workshops and networking events that help participants learn more about the Townships and begin building a support network for themselves before moving to the area.
The next Make Way for YOUth Discovery Days weekend will take place from February 10 – 12, 2012 at the Loge Hors Piste (“Off the Beaten Path” cottage) located at Jouvence, within Orford National Park.
During the weekend, participants will enjoy workshops and a networking party, as well as outdoor activities such as tubing, skating on Lake Stukely by Christmas lights, a sweat lodge and, of course, snowy walks. For more information or to register to take part in this unique experience, please contact Sheila Quinn, Make Way for YOUth/Desjardins Migration Agent, at 819-566-5717 (toll free: 1-866-566-5717) or mwfy@townshippers.qc.ca.
Photo Cutline: Participants in a recent Discovery Days weekend had the chance to participate in a variety of outdoor activities at Jouvence. They also had opportunities to meet, and visit with, a number of local entrepreneurs.
Photo Credit: Sheila Quinn
