Canadian Rural Partnership
Rural Dialogue



LAC MÉGANTIC DIALOGUE
SUMMARY REPORT
"YOUTH"

LAC MÉGANTIC, QUEBEC
November 14, 2003

Publication # 2238E
© Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada, 2004
Cat. No A22-372/2003E-HTML
ISBN # 0-662-35846-5

This report is a summary of discussions that took place during the Lac Mégantic Dialogue, entitled "Youth", held in Lac Mégantic, Quebec, on November 14, 2003. No limits were placed on the participants during discussions that took place in brainstorming sessions. In order to present a true report of the free-ranging discussions, recommendations made by participants that fall outside federal jurisdiction are also included. Views expressed do not necessarily represent those of the Government of Canada.

The Lac Mégantic Dialogue was part of the Rural Dialogue, an ongoing, two-way discussion between the Government of Canada and Canadians from rural, remote and northern regions. Launched in 1998, the Rural Dialogue is a key citizen-engagement component of the Canadian Rural Partnership (CRP) Initiative. The CRP is designed to support rural community development by adopting new approaches and practices that respond to rural, remote and northern priorities. The Dialogue process helps the Government of Canada to understand local and regional priorities, and provides rural, remote and northern citizens with an opportunity to influence Government of Canada policies, programs and services that affect them.

This dialogue brought together 30 people, 12 of which were young people between the ages of 18 and 29 years old and the others were: representatives of the Eastern Townships Rural Team (which includes 7 representatives of federal departments); the leading development officers in the Regional County Municipality region of Lac Mégantic; the municipal sector; community organizations; and development officers representing groups in this community.

This exercise was part of the Eastern Townships Rural Team's action plan and was aimed at determining the needs of youth in that region, identifying their priorities in order to improve their quality of life, and enabling discussions on this subject.

The Regional County Municipality (RCM) of Lac Mégantic

The RCM of Le Granit is located in the Eastern Townships about 100 km east of Sherbrooke, near the Canada-US border. The RCM of Le Granit covers an area of 2,830 km², consisting mostly (85%) of forests and farmland.

With 20 municipalities totalling a population of 22,200, the main sectors of industrial activity are wood processing, granite processing and clothing manufacturing. The Town of Lac Mégantic is the main service centre in the region. In addition to having a large industrial park, it is a dynamic business hub offering basic economic, development, health and educational services.

The discussions first focussed on the quality of life of youth in the region and on the initiatives young people would like to see carried out, and secondly on their involvement in the development of their region and particularly on the issues in that area that concern them. Following these discussions, participants proposed actions and formulated recommendations for follow-up by the members of the Eastern Townships Rural Team. The Dialogue took place in an exclusively rural region, in which the out-migration of young people is a concern of the region's stakeholders.

(A) Quality of life

• Participants recognize the high quality of life in the region, the vitality of the region's organizations, and above all the residents' strong sense of belonging. It is a community in which nature is present and many facilities are available. It is also a community that is considered safe, in which all people know each other.
• It was noted, however, that it is sometimes difficult to mobilize young people for projects that concern them, and that elected representatives should listen more to the demands of young people. Youth should also receive support and guidance when they submit projects or ideas to the municipality. Opportunities should be created as they consider it is easier to become involved when there are specific projects that affect them.
• Furthermore, services exclusively for youth and cultural activities should be increased, and more sports equipment is required. The lack of public transportation should be recognized as often hampering employment or the practice of a sport.
• It was pointed out that young people who remain in the region are often less educated, and that jobs are scarce for these youth. Increased information is required on the types of specialized jobs available in the region, and specifically those available within existing businesses for young people with a college or university education that wish to stay in, or return to the region.

(B) Involvement in development

• Young people want to feel involved in the development of their region, and find it difficult to join groups of decision-makers already well established in the region. They want the community to listen more and to follow up on their demands. It was noted that they often have difficulty expressing their needs. Young people recognized that they are able to become involved in specific projects, however, they often need support and guidance.

(C) Volunteerism

• The youth participants are generally involved in volunteer activities either in their schools, in various committees supporting the community, or at the recreational and sports level.

(D) Opportunities to communicate their opinions

• Young people recognize they can communicate their opinions to the Municipal Council, however, ways to better inform them of the schedule of Council sessions should be found. The meeting framework should also be streamlined to increase participation, thus, interest.

(E) Services

• In response to the question "do you feel the services you have meet your needs", participants responded that increased transportation services are needed and that the coordination of these should be improved. They also expressed that additional space for indoor recreational activities (e.g. swimming pool, music, extracurricular activities, etc.) and businesses that meet their needs are required.

(F) Migrating and returning

• Young people have to leave the region to pursue a higher education and obtain more attractive jobs. It was recognized, however, that their region offers an attractive quality of life. Focus should be placed on providing them pertinent information on job prospects in the region, and businesses should be urged to promote their respective areas of activity.
• Greater awareness and understanding of the tools available to support young people in settling in the region, how to start a business for example, is needed.

The participants made the following recommendations and proposed actions to address the issues raised during the Dialogue:

• Young people should become more involved in various areas of activities within their community.
• Greater efforts should be undertaken to inform youth of the job market. Information sessions or Career Fairs should be organized specifically for high school students.
• Young people should be informed, starting at the elementary level, about the quality of life in their region to develop a sense of belonging to the community.
• To counter the exodus of young people, the community should be made even more attractive, by improving transportation for example, and diversifying the economy.
• Financial programs should be developed to give young people incentive to pursue their post-secondary education, or resume it if they dropped out.
• Municipalities should reserve a seat for a youth representative on the Municipal Council and ensure that the youth representative is present. This youth representative should be guided by a member of the Municipal Council who would play the role of mentor.
• A list of volunteer activities in the municipalities should be established so that young people can become more aware of the various volunteer opportunities available and eventually become involved. Young people should be better supported and informed, and better received by organizations.
• Steps should be taken to ensure a follow-up to this meeting and the proposed actions.

The participants, aware of the role of the Eastern Townships Rural Team, made recommendations for follow-up by the members. They expressed significant satisfaction with the interest shown by federal departments in listening to what they had to say and in focussing on rural concerns relating to the future of young people in that region.

The Co-Chair of the Eastern Townships Rural Team made a commitment to report the results and recommendations of this session to the Team and to identify the follow-up actions required. The participants will thus be informed of the outcome of this dialogue. The summary report of this dialogue will be sent to the federal departments concerned.

Participants also requested a follow-up meeting in six months bringing together the same attendees and the Community Futures Development Corporation representative for the Lac Mégantic region to report the results of this dialogue to the different regional action tables.

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