The following statement was given today in the House of Assembly by the Honourable Steve Kent, Minister Responsible for Office of Public Engagement:

Community Summit 2014 a Great Success

Mr. Speaker, I rise in the House today to update Honourable Members of the work the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador has been undertaking to help support the community sector in the province.

Last month, through the Office of Public Engagement, the Provincial Government held its third Community Summit, which I’m proud to say, was our most successful summit to date.

Mr. Speaker, this year’s summit was unique in that it connected community leaders province-wide in four locations through a web-based engagement process called Interactive Rooms. Sector representatives in St. John’s, Grand Falls-Windsor, Corner Brook and Happy Valley-Goose Bay worked together in real time through a combination of webcast and other Internet applications, including audience response remote-polling software. In addition, there was a virtual web-based discussion table option for those who could not attend any of the physical sites.

Using this innovative approach to facilitate constructive relationships within the community sector, we engaged over 200 people across all regions of the province – an all-time high for the community summit. I participated from the St. John’s location and was pleased to be joined by my Honourable colleagues in their respective regions.

Mr. Speaker, later this spring, we will be releasing a “What We Heard” document, based on the feedback of summit participants. The information gathered will help us advance government’s commitment to communities, which includes providing innovative training tools, research opportunities, and promoting social enterprise.

I can tell you that the feedback received was very positive and constructive, and it highlighted the importance of continuing networking opportunities between government and the community sector.

As our Premier stated in his first address in this House last week, “We need to engage people in building a better province for all, which means reaching out to where they live in their communities…it means engaging them, not for show but for real.”

Mr. Speaker, in the coming days, the Provincial Government will bring forward even more public engagement activities and create new dialogue opportunities through our Open Government Initiative.

By building partnerships with community and stakeholder groups, and by connecting and engaging with residents in innovative ways – just like we did with the Community Summit – the people of the province will have a greater say in the decisions that make a difference in their lives, no matter where they live.

Thank you.

2014 03 18                                          1:50 p.m.