This text is part of the special section Municipalities
From the fight against climate change to local democracy, Quebec municipalities are implementing innovative solutions to meet many challenges. During his 18e edition, the Ovation municipal merit gala of the Union of Quebec Municipalities (UMQ) will reward several of these original and inspiring projects.
“There are things happening in the municipal world! Year after year, we are surprised to see the number of people in municipalities who pull ideas out of their hats to face challenges or solve problems, exclaims Bernard Sévigny, president of the jury of merit. Municipal ovation, former mayor of Sherbrooke and former president of the UMQ. Succeeding in approaching or apprehending a problem with inventive means, that is innovation. »
The competition will be presented during the 2023 UMQ Conference, which will be held in Gatineau from May 3 to 5. It will highlight, for an 18e year, innovation projects in various categories, such as sustainable mobility, administration, the circular economy, planning, the fight or adaptation to climate change. Among a hundred projects submitted, the jury selected 21 finalists according to various criteria, including the innovative nature of the project, its potential for adaptability and its impact on the community.
The exercise aims to highlight the best practices for creating emulation, explains Bernard Sévigny. “We are going to look for innovative solutions on the territory to present them to other elected officials, so that the municipalities can be inspired by each other,” he says. They are independent and our role is to help unite their forces. »
Unifying honey
Among the finalists, the City of Chambly will present “A buzzing citizen adventure”, its community project of urban hives deployed in the city. The bees did more than forage; they also helped stimulate community mobilization, believes Alexandra Labbé, Mayor of Chambly.
“The citizens were by our side at all stages of the project,” she says. We voted for the names of the queens — one of them is Honey Gibson! — and invited the young people to paint the hives before installing them. The citizens were able to watch the maintenance visits, but also participate in the honey harvest. »
Participation and communication with citizens was more difficult to obtain in the past, observes the mayor, recalling that a few years ago, they very rarely asked questions during city council meetings. “It’s a great symbol to be named in the Local Democracy category,” she confides, proud of the progress made.
After their overwintering period, the bees will start buzzing again in Chambly and once again give a little sweet taste to the community.
Awakening toddlers to the arts
In the Eastern Townships, several municipalities have set up “I will invite childhood”, a cultural awakening project for children from 0 to 5 years old. Childcare educators and artists have pooled their expertise to develop best practices and better integrate cultural activities for toddlers.
“As artists are familiar with the learning profile of toddlers, they adapt shows and art workshops for them,” explains Sylvie Beauregard, Mayor of Cowansville. This allows educators to get out of the regular framework and get to know other mediums for DIY, for example. »
The program notably counted on the participation of artists and students in childhood education from the Cégep de Granby. “It allows a better connection between culture and early childhood”, appreciates Mme Beautiful eyes. The lessons learned from the project are also made available to daycare centers and artists on the site. jinviteailenfant.ca.
Livelier communities
This type of innovative idea allows municipalities to increase the quality of life of their population, to have more democratic and participatory governance, but also to fight and adapt to climate change, explains Bernard Sévigny.
“Municipalities cannot carry out their projects in a vacuum; they must work with partners in the territory, with health and education services and institutional, community and citizen partners,” he observes. Today, municipalities wishing to carry out a project have the reflex to consult more. “More and more, the municipal world also wants to achieve parity and include groups in society that are less represented in decision-making,” notes the former mayor.
Mr. Sévigny also observes that the municipalities of the province have a greater environmental sensitivity. “Small steps are also important in the fight against climate change,” he believes. Acquiring electric buses at $1 million apiece is not the reality for small municipalities. But we see projects to better manage stormwater and optimize the efficiency of equipment instead of building more, for example. »
Several municipalities are also pioneers in certain environmental measures which are subsequently adopted by the provincial or Canadian government, notes Bernard Sévigny, giving the example of wine bottle deposits or the creation of currencies to encourage local purchases. .
The winners of the municipal Ovation merit will be announced on May 5th. But beyond the prices, the most important thing, according to Bernard Sévigny, is emulation.
This special content was produced by the Special Publications team of the Duty, relating to marketing. The drafting of Duty did not take part.