Burlington Launches Citizen Action Labs and Online Survey to Study Citizen Advisory Committees
The City of Burlington is reviewing all of its Council-appointed Citizen Advisory Committees to figure out the best way we can use the knowledge and diversity that they can bring to our city.This month, city staff is looking to get feedback (online and in-person) from current members of citizen committees and the general public. As well, staff is researching other municipalities to see how they use their citizen groups for feedback and advice.
"The Citizen Action Labs are a new way to brainstorm, share ideas and discuss topics. We're hoping this format will allow us to get as many new ideas as possible from participants and will form the basis of our engagement and research. The Labs will be run by a professional, independent facilitator who will ensure we get the best discussions and ideas from everyone. Anyone unable to attend is encouraged to go to getinvolvedburlington.ca/actionlabs to give us their feedback. Most importantly, we are excited to begin a new conversation with citizens and to further explore ideas on how we might provide advice to Council and staff differently than we are today." — Danielle Manton, Manager of Committee Services
Citizen Action LabsCitizen Action Labs are where people work together in small, welcoming groups to engage, discuss, share and explore new ideas. Three of these are planned, and current and past citizen advisory committee members and the greater public are encouraged to attend.
Registration is required as there is a maximum capacity of 80 people at each session, so please do so by visiting: Burlington.ca/AdvisoryCommittees.Citizen Action Labs are planned for:
- Saturday, May 25 — 10 a.m.-12:30 p.m. — Mainway Auditorium, 4015 Mainway; and
- Wednesday, May 29 — 2-4:30 p.m., or 6-8:30 p.m. — Burlington Public Library, Central Branch, Centennial Hall, 2331 New St.
Online SurveyAn online survey is available at getinvolvedburlington.ca/actionlabs if you cannot attend the Action Labs and still would like to share your feedback. It will be available until Tuesday, May 14.Once the information has been collected and analysed, staff will share a report with City Council.About Citizen CommitteesThe City of Burlington citizen advisory committees play a key role in providing advice and feedback to Council and staff on a variety of issues in the City.City of Burlington Council Appointed Citizen Advisory Committees:
- Burlington Accessibility Advisory Committee
- Burlington Cycling Advisory Committee
- Burlington Downtown Parking Advisory Committee
- Burlington Inclusivity Advisory Committee
- Burlington Integrated Transportation Advisory Committee (ITAC)
- Burlington Seniors’ Advisory Committee
- Burlington Sustainable Development Advisory Committee
- Heritage Burlington Advisory Committee
Other:
- Audit Standing Committee
- Burlington's Best Committee
- Burlington Mundialization Committee
- Committee of Adjustment
- Greater Bay Area Sub-Committee
- Mayor's Millennial Advisory Committee
- Charter Action Team
MY TAKE:Keeping our fingers on the pulse of our community helps set us all up for success. We value the feedback we get from our residents and various committees, and we want to make sure Council and City staff receives that public input in the most effective way possible. Other municipalities use their citizen committees differently, so we want to learn from our own residents which ways they feel would be best for them and Burlington moving forward.Links and Resources