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Many Canadian municipalities have taken hits to their budgets due to the COVID-19 pandemic. But what has the effect been on municipalities around the world? Have municipalities in different countries fared better than others? What accounts for any differences? What needs to be done to ensure municipalities bounce back?
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This paper identifies specific policy fields where new tri-level agreements could have a positive impact and closes with six principles to inform their design and implementation.
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In this video, a panel examines the continued impact of COVID-19 on municipal finance. How are municipalities preparing for their 2021 budgets? What impacts are they anticipating from COVID-19? What steps are needed at the municipal, provincial, and federal levels to safeguard the fiscal health of municipalities?
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The paper suggests that community consultation be integrated into the earliest stages of the planning process to ensure that such plans proceed into the expensive construction process with much broader support.
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In this video, a group of experts explore how Toronto can begin to address its divisions and achieve more inclusive municipal governance.
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Engagement to Action: Improving Policy Outcomes Through Better Consultation contextualizes and summarizes remarks from a panel discussion on the role of public consultation in policy making within the context of intensifying polarization, erosion of trust, and increasing diversity.
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This paper describes the experience of some of Mexico’s largest cities in implementing nationally mandated urban growth policies, in particular the top-down nature of these new policies and the lack of local consultation in their implementation.
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The question of how best to govern large urban areas has long preoccupied policymakers, particularly as metropolitan areas have become recognized as drivers of national prosperity and globalization. This paper identifies five governance models in operation across the country and identifies five themes and trends in metropolitan governance.
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