A community informed Diversity and Inclusion Plan was received by Red Deer City Council at their regular meeting today.
The plan acknowledges The City has an important role to play alongside community members in enhancing the wellbeing of our community, and that the organization needs to model desired behaviours and actions to demonstrate ongoing systemic change. By receiving the plan, Council directs administration to develop an implementation strategy for our organization that honours The City’s leadership role within the community.
“This community plan is inspired by community voices who offered their individual experiences, and I commend all participants for the bravery demonstrated by sharing these stories,” said Mayor Ken Johnston. “Acknowledging these experiences and being open to learning from them is an important first step. Recognizing opportunities and creating capacity to intentionally action this work is where we will begin to see true progress in our community. We all come from different places and each of us is capable of making a difference.”
Identified in the plan are nine priority areas which indicate starting points for actions that will increase equitable access and celebrate diversity. Each is accompanied by a series of recommendations to be taken by The City of Red Deer, Red Deer’s Welcoming and Inclusion Community Network (WIC) and other community organizations.
Next steps include the development of a measurable and sustainable Diversity and Inclusion Framework for The City of Red Deer that will address the priorities and recommendations. This framework will recognize the resources that might be required and will provide opportunities to realistically address these recommendations.
By actioning this plan, The City of Red Deer will increase awareness, demonstrate commitment, assist in dismantling barriers and develop a plan towards equitable success.
See Red Deer Community Informed: Diversity and Inclusion Plan (pdf).