By Staff
September 3rd, 2024
BURLINGTON, ON
The City is looking for volunteers to join its new Community Panel at getinvolvedburlington.ca/communitypanel. Through the panel, selected participants can choose which City topics and issues they want to share their feedback on.
The opportunity to apply to be a volunteer on the panel is open to residents and Burlington business and property owners aged 14 years and older, of all genders, cultures, identities, and abilities. There is no limit to the number of panel members.
How it works
To help the City build a diverse Community Panel that reflects a wide range of viewpoints in our community, interested applicants can follow the steps below:
- Visit getinvolvedburlington.ca/communitypanel to apply.
- Choose the topics of interest. Applicants will be asked to identify the types of City projects and initiatives that matter to them the most.
- Be at the ready to share ideas and feedback. Successful applicants may be called on to share their input, based on the topics of interest they choose. Panel members will be selected based on the engagement need and alignment with participants’ expertise. Both online and in-person engagement opportunities are available.
- Participate as their schedule allows. There is no specific time commitment for being a member of the Community Panel.
The Community Panel will help ensure the services and programs the City provides reflect the needs of our diverse community. Applications and information are available at getinvolvedburlington.ca/communitypanel or burlington.ca/volunteer.
Nice idea. The problem is that the people who are informed and involved with what happens at City Hall no longer trust the bureaucrats. Who is going to choose the participants? The people at City Hall. You remember the phrase: Fool me once.
The city needs to learn to live without controlling.
They could do what MASS LP does. Their approach lives like this: “Fundamentally we believe in people, which is why we are working to see that more people have a hand in shaping the policies that shape their lives.”
A typical Citizens Assembly run by MASS
They have led more than 50 Reference Panels and Citizens’ Assemblies. A citizens assembly created by an independent group that pulls volunteers from various demographics age, gender, education, income and location that results in a truly representative group. Burlington has worked with MASS LBP in the past. They choose not to work with them because that would mean giving up control.
Same thing happens with the citizen advisory groups which have members of council taking part as baby sitters.
Lots more on what MASS LBP does HERE. They have worked with the Region for more than a decade.
The next real community feedback opportunity will occur on Oct 26,2026 when we all get to vote on whether our council member and Mayor listened to us and spent our money wisely. That is the one and only feedback opportunity they pay attention to and when they come knocking on our doors.
So, if I read this correctly, the COB is looking for Volunteers to engage on a “Community Panel”, But, Council wants to know if your “Topics and Issues align with what they want you to discuss First”, before any Applicants are chosen for the “Community Panel”. This is Not Engagement!!
“Past History is a good indication of future behaviour.”
Are they going to provide “food for feedback” as well.