A Niagara-wide network for collaboration, planning and community action

Niagara Connects (formerly Niagara Research and Planning Council) is a Niagara-wide network for collaboration, planning, learning, innovation and community action toward a stronger future for Niagara.

Niagara Connects has four core products that fast-track Niagara citizens’ search for relevant, reliable, Niagara-focused information to support evidence-informed decision-making. They are:

1.Living in Niagara – reports and documents – such as the Living in Niagara report (2008, 2011), a regular measure of quality of life in Niagara’s communities, across 12 sectors that align with the social determinants of health.

2.Niagara Knowledge Exchange – a tool that leverages the Niagara Connects network of citizens, and is enabled by:

• Knowledge Broker service to connect people to people and people to resources

• Real-time opportunities to exchange information

• An online platform that offers a social space in which Niagara citizens can connect to share data, information, knowledge and resources

The Niagara Knowledge Exchange:

• Supports the learning needs of people seeking relevant, reliable Niagara-focused evidence and data to enable planning that drives community action

• Stimulates, supports, and shares innovations in Niagara

• Builds and strengthens collaboration between diverse community partners and citizens of Niagara

3.Niagara Community Calendar – an online tool that is part of the Niagara Knowledge Exchange, for Niagara-wide sharing of events, community activities, and learning opportunities.

4.Linking Niagara: facilitating community projects – a service that enables focused planning and decision-making that strengthens well-being and opportunities for Niagara’s citizens. Our research team offers:

• Effective facilitation and recording of processes and events
• Data gathering, recording, review and analysis
• Event planning to gather and leverage diverse community members’ ideas about community assets, and gaps requiring further research
• Assistance with work planning for innovative community action and effective outcomes
• Environmental scans
• Network mapping and tracking, to build bridges and weave ties among diverse community partners
• Leadership in evidence-informed decision-making, based on relevant, reliable Niagara-focused knowledge