Strategic Alignments with City of Edmonton

ConnectEdmonton is the City’s strategic plan for 2019-2028. It provides an inspirational and aspirational view for Edmonton’s future, and outlines the steps we need to take today, and over the next few years, in order to realize this vision by 2050. 

Here is how our work relates to this strategic vision:

• ConnectEdmonton has one unifying principle: connectedness.  This aligns directly with our work. Our wellbeing framework is rooted in the six kinds of connection necessary for individual and community wellness, and our work seeks to build these connections to create healthier communities.

• We create as a community to connect people to what matters to them. Our research has shown what matters most to Edmontonians, and what it means to live well and be well. 

• We care about the impact of our actions on our social, economic, cultural, spiritual and environmental systems. This is our mantra, and our wellbeing framework supports these values.

• We serve those here today, and those who come after us. While we seek to make changes that make life better for Edmontonians immediately, we also take a longer view, and recognize that each small change adds up to community transformation over time.

• It is an invitation for Edmontonians to work together. So is Recover. Our work is co-created with community members and other partners.

The City Plan includes Recover’s work under the pillar ‘Healthy City.’ It reinforces the need for connectedness, and recognizes wellbeing as a key part of health.

The following are the City Plan’s guiding values, and how they connect to our work:

• Create: “Community wellness fosters citizen leadership, capacity-building, and co-creation.”

  Our work within communities is co-created and reciprocal, and in many cases, citizen-led. And it is all about building capacity within our relationships to ensure communities are better supported.

• Belong: “Edmonton fosters personal wellness by promoting connection and supporting those who feel isolated or vulnerable.”

  This is exactly what we do!

• Live: “Edmontonians feel safe… public spaces support physical health.”

  We believe physical safety is important, but that public spaces also need to be psychologically and culturally-safe for all Edmontonians. 

• Thrive: “Edmontonians acknowledge Treaty 6, honour diverse cultural perspectives.”

  Our work is inter-cultural in approach. We honour and respect people of all cultures, and in particular, work for greater inclusion and understanding of Indigenous practices and ways of knowing, in order to create culturally safe and ethical relationships across communities.