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Common Look and Feel - Background
In February 1998, Treasury Board ministers made several policy decisions aimed at
strengthening the identity, presence, and visibility of the Government of Canada
(GoC). In part, the decisions were
taken to fulfil the Government's obligation to provide Canadians with evidence that
their tax dollars are used to provide programs, services and infrastructure that is
relevant and important to their everyday lives.
The ministers recognized that innovative use of existing and emerging technologies
would play a key role in strengthening the GoC identity, presence and visibility. One
of their decisions focused specifically on the opportunities inherent in electronic
media, and set out a clear mandate for optimizing its potential:
The Treasury Board Secretariat will develop, in consultation with departments
and agencies, a common look and feel for federal Internet / Intranet sites and
electronic networks. The Federal Identity Program is to be applied consistently
to all electronic services, including Government of Canada Internet / Intranet
sites, products and deliverables.
In June 1998, the Common Look and Feel Working Group
(CLFWG) was established,
under the direction of Treasury Board Secretariat Internet Advisory Committee. The
CLFWG was made up of 75 individuals with expertise in fields related to the use of
electronic media as a tool for information dissemination. It included Web developers,
communications experts, publishers, information technology professionals and
information designers. In total, more than 50 GoC institutions were represented,
including central agencies, stakeholders, line departments, and crown corporations.
In the fall of 1999, through the Speech from the Throne, the government set the
ambitious goal of providing Canadians with access to all government information and
services on-line, at the time and place of their choosing by 2004. This Government
On-Line (GOL) initiative will give
clients seamless entry to a full range of government institutions, enhance the
delivery of service to the public, increase productivity of the Public Service, and
improve Canada's competitiveness in a global economy.
CLF will act as an enabler for GOL by supporting the client-centred approach that lets Canadians acquire
information and services on their terms, and according to their needs.
In January 2000, the CLFWG tabled its report and recommendations with the Treasury
Board Secretariat. These recommendations were subsequently consolidated into a list of
standards and guidelines and further assessed by several business and technical
interdepartmental committees for their impact on the implementation of the GOL initiative.
In May 2000, TB ministers approved the
CLF standards and guidelines and required all institutions represented in
Schedule 1, 1.1 and 2 of
the Financial Administration Act to comply with them by December 31, 2002.
The CLF standards are designed to ensure that all Canadians, regardless of ability,
geographic location or demographic category, are given equal access to information on GoC
Web sites. Sites must be designed and information made accessible in such a way that a
wide range of technologies, including personal computers, assistive devices, and advanced
technologies can be used. Content on GoC sites must be as easy to acquire through a slow
modem or old browser as it is through a screen reader or voice activator. Adopting this
approach now will ensure that the CLF standards remain relevant, as cellular and digital
technologies become more widespread and new communication technologies emerge.
The implementation of the CLF standards is not an attempt to bring Web design to the
lowest common denominator or return to text only Web sites. Rather it challenges
Web
developers and content providers to consider both information and information design
within the context of universal accessibility. Information design and infrastructure of
any given Web site will affect an institution's ability to meet moral and legal
obligations to make all information available to all Canadians.
CLF for the Internet is a model of how the Government of Canada will provide electronic
information to the public and to its employees today and in the future. One of the next
steps in fulfilling the mandate provided by TB ministers is to apply CLF to GoC Intranet
sites to ensure all internal communications initiatives reap the full benefits of improved
consistency in communication, identification, navigation and information.
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