Citizen Voices on Advisory Committees
Recently we released a statement about our concerns with the current review of the City of London Advisory Committees (ACs.). Advisory Committees are an important component of citizen engagement that provide valuable ways for residents to engage with the City of London and bolster transparency and accountability to City and Council decisions.
We are supportive of strengthening and reviewing Advisory Committees but any effort to review them should begin by implementing past recommendations, including those that were part of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities’ (FCM) Diverse Voices for Change Project’ surveys that Advisory Committee members already completed and input local organizations were invited to provide at the beginning of this review process.
Reinitiating a review process without taking into consideration the work that has already been done is a waste of money and staff time, as well as disrespectful to the citizens and organizations who have already provided input. A review should lead to Advisory Committees that are more equitable and that strengthen the voice and role of citizens in City decision-making processes.
So, as a follow-up to our statement and concerns, we are launching a weekly series of blog posts from current and past advisory committee members. We want to hear their perspectives on the role of ACs, where they are effective and what can be improved to ensure their recommendations are heard. Our first blog post written by Paul Sealeis about how ACs provide valuable information to the City free-of-charge.
We hope you enjoy this series, but more importantly, we hope it inspires action from you in a couple of ways:
Email all your City Councillors and the Mayor in support of Advisory Committees and the valuable work they do. Copy us at info@urbanleague.ca
Share the weekly blog posts and your support on Facebook and Twitter, tagging @CityofLdnOnt your City Councillor if possible and @ULLdn