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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOR-2021-21 - Equity and Anti-Racism Advisory Committee to CouncilREPORT TO:Financeand Corporate Services Committee th DATE OF MEETING:August 9 , 2021 SUBMITTED BY:Suzanne Charles Watson, Director, Equity, Anti-Racism & Indigenous Initiatives PREPARED BY:Elin Moorlag Silk, Project Manager, Equity, Anti-Racism & Indigenous Initiatives WARD(S) INVOLVED:All Wards th DATE OF REPORT:July 29, 2021 REPORT NO.:COR-2021-21 SUBJECT:Equity & Anti-Racism Advisory Committee to Council RECOMMENDATIONS: That Council approve the creation of an Equity and Anti-Racism Advisory Committee to Councilas outlined in Appendix A of COR-2021-21; and, That Council approve the creation of an interim Nominating Committee to review and select applicants for theinaugural membership appointments to the Equity and Anti- Racism Advisory Committee; and further, That Council support areview of the current Nominating Committee responsible for all Council Advisory Committee appointmentsthrough an equity and anti-racism lens to ensure diverse representation for future Nominating Committee appointments REPORT HIGHLIGHTS: The purpose of this report is to provide Council witharationaleand proposed implementation planfor the creation of an Equity and Anti-Racism Advisory Committee to Council. This advisory committee will serve as a continuation of the grassroots community involvement as Equity and Anti-Racismwork is developed and implemented at the City andwillprovide a mechanism of community accountability for the recommendations and actions that have come out of the Mayor’s Task Forceon Equity, Diversity and Inclusion. In the development of this proposed Advisory Committee, all members of the Task Force were engaged in discussionsfocused on mandate, membership priorities, potential recruitment strategies, and nomination preferences This report supports the theme A Caring Communitywithin the Corporate Strategic Planas one element of the work developed by the Mayor’s Task Force on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion *** This information is available in accessible formats upon request. *** Please call 519-741-2345 or TTY 1-866-969-9994 for assistance. BACKGROUND: In September 2019, the City launched the Mayor’s Task Forceon Equity, Diversity and Inclusion. The Task Force is comprised of 45 members, who themselves are made up of four groups: community volunteers (selected through an application process), representatives from community organizations, City staff, and members of City Council. Members of the TaskForcewereselected to join based on subject knowledge and expertise, experience with community organizing, engagement or advocacy, and/or lived experiences they brought to the work.A particular focus in the selection process was to ensure ample representation from equity-seeking groups who themselves have experienced oppression, racism, marginalization and/or exclusion. Now that the Mayor’s Task Force on Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion has wrapped upas of June 2021, it is arecommendation of thetask force that an Equity and Anti-Racism Advisory Committee be permanently established as an advisory committee to Council. This committee will serve as a continuation of the grassroots involvement as Equity and Anti- Racismwork is developed and implemented atthe City and can provide a mechanism of community accountability for the recommendationsof the Task Force,and future related actionstaken by the City. In the development of this proposed Advisory Committee, all members of the task force were engaged ina discussion focused on mandate, membership priorities, recruitment strategiesand nomination processes. REPORT: TheproposedEquity and Anti-Racism Advisory Committee will fulfil an advisory role, providing advice and recommendations to Council on matters related to equity and anti- racism to support and further the City’s strategic directions. These meetings will be open to thepublicsimilar to other advisory committees to Council, though given the nature of this topic, staff will explore opportunities to hold confidential meetings when necessary. This advisory committee will ensure ongoing grassroots community involvement as work related to equity and anti-racism is developed and implemented at the City. This advisory committee willfurther provide a mechanism of community accountability for the Equity, Anti-Racism and Indigenous Initiatives divisionthrough regular collaboration and monthly updates from the team about ongoing and upcoming work. Membership on this Advisory Committee will include between 8 and 12 citizen community members who live, work, attend school and/or own property in Kitchener and willprioritize voices who have been historically underrepresented or excluded, including Black, Indigenous, racialized, 2SLGBTQ+ identified, people with disabilities, religious minorities, and the intersections of these identities. Consideration will also be given to diversity of age, education, lived experience and expertise related to social issues. Responsibilities of this Advisory Committee will include the following: a)Advise Council on equity and anti-racism issues in collaboration with the Equity, Anti-Racism and Indigenous Initiatives team. b)Support the Equity, Anti-Racism & Indigenous Initiatives team as a resource, a sounding board, and to provide review, collaboration, and feedback on ongoing work. c)Surface things that are happening in the community and help identify community priorities for equity and anti-racism work happening at the City. d)Serve as a conduit to the larger community when additional feedback and engagement is required related to equity and anti-racism work at the City. e)Support, provide review, collaboration and feedback on equity and anti-racism issues across all departments at the City. f)Serve as the selection committee forthe Community Grant program for Black, Indigenous and Racialized groups and organizations.(Note: this grant program will be considered by City Council in September 2021and is subject to their approval) See Attachment Afor a detailed draft Terms of Reference developed for this advisory committee, which includes responsibilities, composition, appointments, meetings, reporting and decision-making. Relationship to City Council It has been strongly recommended by members of the Task Force thatmembers ofCity Council do not sit on this advisory committee in order to ensure frank and open discussion and to truly prioritize the diverse voices of community membersfrom an equity and anti- racism lens.In particular, concerns were expressed about the power imbalance that exists between members of City Council and the community volunteers appointed tothis advisory committee, and that this power imbalance wouldimpede members’ ability to fully participate on the committeein an honest and transparent manner. Although members of City Council will not have an official seat on the advisory committee, mechanisms of Council inclusion will be put in place to ensure open channels of communication and opportunities forupdates onan ongoing basis. Recruitment and Appointmentfor the Advisory Committee Open recruitment for all eligible community members will be undertaken through an application process which will include the voluntary collection of demographic data from all applicants. Analysis of this demographic data will be a significant driver in the selection of candidates for this committee,along with the lived experiencesand expertise brought by the applicants. As the application process is underway, demographic representation will be assessed on an ongoing basis, and if gaps in representation areevident, additional recruitment efforts will be made through outreach to specific communities with an invitation to apply. Members will be selected by aninterimNominating Committee and appointed by Council for an inaugural transitional term of 11 months(December 2021 –November 14th, 2022), after which members will serve two-year terms in coordination with all other advisory thnd committee appointments. Between August 30and November 22, 2021, recruitment, selection and nomination processes will proceed, with the first term of this committee starting st by December 1, 2021. Staff Support Staff support for this committee will be provided by members of the Equity, Anti-Racism and Indigenous Initiatives team within the Corporate Services Department, which will be organized at the discretion of the Directorof that team.Staff support will be provided for the facilitation of meetings and all administrative aspects related to the running of meetings. Staff will play a neutral role on this committee and will not have voting privileges. Appointment of an Equity & Anti-Racism Nominating Committee In order tofacilitate a nomination and appointment process for the creation of an Equity and Anti-Racism Advisory Community that fits with the vision of the task force members, it is recommended that an interimNominating Committee be appointed. This interim nominating committee will operate in accordance to the guidelines specified in GOV-BOA-063: Appointments to Boards & Committees, and will be made up of community members who bring a diversity of voices not currently represented in the existing Nominating Committee. Itis recommendedthat membership for this interim Nominating Committee be made up of community members who sat on the Mayor’s Task Force on Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion, who themselves were vetted through a comprehensive application process and who would bring knowledge and expertise of the work that would be a benefit for this inaugural nomination process. If approved, an invitation for expression of interest for this opportunity willbe sent out to all community members who were part of the Mayor’s Task Forceon Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, and names of interested members willthen be brought to Council for appointmentby the Equity, Anti-Racism and Indigenous Initiatives team. Review of Current Nominating Committee & Processes of Appointment It is recommended that City staff undertake a review of the current nominating committee terms of reference(GOV-BOA-101)and appointment process from an equity and anti- racism lens, and make recommendations based on this review for strategies to increase diversity of representation. Any recommendations to come out of this review requiring changes or amendments to the current procedures or processeswill be brought to Council for consideration and approval. STRATEGIC PLAN ALIGNMENT: This report supports the theme A Caring Communitywithin the Corporate Strategic Plan as one element of the work developed by the Mayor’s Task Force on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS: Capital Budget–The recommendation has no impact on the Capital Budget. Operating Budget–The recommendation has no impact on the Operating Budget. COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT: INFORM –This report has been posted to the City’s website with the agenda in advance of the council / committee meeting. COLLABORATE –This Advisory Committeewas developed in collaboration with members of the Mayor’s Task Force on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, which is predominantly comprised of community members, whose lived experiences and expertise in a wide variety of areas directly informed the direction, scope and contents of the Terms of Reference, mandate, and proposed nomination process. APPROVEDBY: Victoria Raab,General Manager, Corporate Services Department ATTACHMENTS:Attachment A –Equity and Anti-Racism Advisory Committee Terms of Reference EQUITY AND ANTI-RACISM ADVISORY COMMITTEE TERMS OF REFERENCE 1.Purpose The purpose of the Equity and Anti-Racism Advisory Committee is to: a)Fulfil an advisory role, providing advice and recommendations to Kitchener City Council on matters related to equity and anti-racism to support and further the City of Kitchener’s strategic directions. b)Support the Equity, Anti-Racism and Indigenous Initiatives team as a community accountability mechanism. c)Ensure ongoing grassroots community involvement as work related to equity and anti-racism is developed and implemented at the City. 2.Definitions Anti-Racism:Working to understand and dismantle racism. It is a change and transformation focused practice and requires action. It’s not anti-racism if a conversation isn’t followed by concrete actions and accountability. Equity: An equity approach seeks to create the conditions for fair and equal access and opportunity for everyone, by addressing discriminations, exclusions and barriers experienced by distinct groups. Equity is not the same as equality, nor is it the same as inequality. 3.Responsibilities The Equity and Anti-Racism Advisory Committee will: a)Advise Council on equity and anti-racism issues in collaboration with the Equity, Anti-Racism and Indigenous Initiatives team. b)Support the Equity, Anti-Racism & Indigenous Initiatives team as a resource, a sounding board, and to provide review, collaboration, and feedback on ongoing work. c)Surface things that are happening in the community and help identify community priorities forequity and anti-racism work happening at the City. d)Serve as a conduit to the larger community when additional feedback and engagement is required related to equity and anti-racism work at the City. e)Support, provide review, collaboration and feedback on equity and anti-racism issues across all departments at the City. g)Serve as the selection committee for the Community Grant program for Black, Indigenous and Racialized groups and organizations(Note: this grant program will be considered by City Council in September 2021and is subject to their approval) Approved \[Date\] 4.Composition and appointments a)Membership includes no less than 8 and no more than 12 citizen community members wholive, work, attend school and/or own property in Kitchener and represent voices who have been historically underrepresented or excluded, including Black, Indigenous, racialized, 2SLGBTQ+ identified, people with disabilities, religious minorities, and the intersections of these identities. Consideration will also be given to diversity of age, education, lived experience and expertise related to social issues. b)Members will serve a period of 2 years, up to a maximum of 8 years. c)Members of City Council will not have an official seat on the committee, but mechanisms of inclusion will be in place to ensure open channels of communication and opportunities for ongoing updates to be provided between the advisory committee and members of City Council d)Staff support for this committee will be provided by members of the Equity, Anti- Racism and Indigenous Initiatives team, which will be organized at the discretion of the Director of that team. Staff support will includethe facilitation of meetings and all administrative aspects related to the running of meetings. Staff will play a neutral role on this committee and will not have voting privileges. 5.Meetings a)Meetings will be held monthly and are open to the public b)Given the nature of and potential sensitivity of equity and anti-racism work, staff will explore opportunities to hold confidential meetings when necessary,drawing from the criteria outlined in section 239 of the Ontario Municipal Act (2001), subsection (2), (3) and (3.1). If ameeting or part of a meeting willbe closed to the public,the committee shall state by resolution the fact of the holding of the closed meeting and the general nature of the matter to be considered at the closed meeting, or in the case of a meeting beingclosed for the purpose of educating or training the members (subsection 3.1), the general nature of its subject matter and that it is to be closed under that subsection. c)To support a collaborative approach to agenda setting where all members have a voice, time will be reserved during each meeting to set the agenda for the next meeting. d)Members are expected to attend all meetings. Members missing two consecutive meetings, or more than four meetings total, will be contacted for a confirmation of commitment. Members who cannot attend meetings and/or otherwise fulfill the duties outlined in the terms of reference and volunteer role description will be asked to step down. Approved \[Date\] 6.5.1 Ad-hoc meetings and/or subcommittees Ad-hoc meetings and/or sub-committees are formed if necessary with a mandate to address specific issues related to equity and anti-racism in Kitchener. 7.Reporting and decision-making a)The committee reports to City Council as required b)The committee serves as an accountability mechanism for the Equity, Anti-Racism and Indigenous Initiatives division within Corporate Services through regular collaboration and monthly updates from the Equity, Anti-Racism and Indigenous Initiatives team about ongoing and upcoming work c)The committee strives to make decisions through consensus. If consensus cannot be reached, the decision will be made by a vote and simple majority is required. Staff will not have a vote. 8.Review Terms of reference will be reviewed by the advisory committee at least once per term and updated as required. Approved \[Date\]