The “EO” in GenNext EO means making an impact across East Ontario, in Prescott-Russell, Ottawa, Lanark and Renfrew Counties. In this blog by Agata Michalska, United Way East Ontario’s Director of Regional Affairs, you’ll learn more about the work we do to support rural residents across our region.
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First, a bit of background …
For the past several years, United Way has been evolving and adapting to the needs of our communities. In 2017, the four United Ways of Prescott-Russell, Ottawa, Lanark County and Renfrew County unified into a single organization, and in 2019 took on the new name of United Way East Ontario. As one voice, United Way became even stronger—understanding, researching, and working on both rural and urban issues.
GenNext Ottawa soon followed suit, relaunching as GenNext East Ontario in 2021.
Although this is all still pretty new for GenNext, we’ve got the power of United Way behind us.
As we continue this journey of strengthening our region, we’ll be using what we’ve learned to develop a strategy to better understand and communicate United Way East Ontario’s role in supporting rural and remote communities.
Together with experts and those with lived experiences, we’re building the foundation for this strategy by exploring these key questions:
By Agata Michalska
Director, Regional Affairs, United Way East Ontario
What does it mean to be rural?
Statistics Canada classifies ‘population centres’ in three levels, ranging from areas with 1,000 people to areas with more than 100,000. But for United Way, basing a definition on census figures makes defining rural areas more challenging, because we know rurality is based on rural interests.
According to the Rural Ontario Municipal Association (ROMA), ‘rural interests’ means looking at the unique conditions that define the rural context like, income, education, and occupation.
This means we must change more than language. We must re-imagine a way of working that puts rural communities first, with their own networks and needs.
“It’s easier to look at an urban centre and form assumptions about the relationship that rural communities have in relation to that urban centre. The relevance of the rural communities is in direct proportion to that assumption. And we have to break that down.”
United Way uses data supported by the Eastern Ontario Regional Data Project, the Senior Vulnerability Index, the Ottawa Neighbourhood Study, and the Neighborhood Equity Index to paint a picture of how the communities we serve are distinct from one another.
Along with conversations with community groups and additional resources from partners, this analysis informs the collaborative approaches we take, the research we pursue, the programs we fund, and the advocacy we do on a municipal, provincial and federal level.
At the core of it all are the rural residents that depend on us: Indigenous peoples, women and girls, the 2SLGBTQ+ community, francophones, seniors, people with disabilities, and others who are more prone to vulnerability because of historical and systemic inequities.
- Rural residents struggle with food security due to a lack of access to grocery stores or mobility issues.
- It’s estimated that 1 in 8 Canadians are food insecure, which means people have inadequate access to food primarily due to financial constraints. Food insecurity can look different for everyone: skipping meals so children can eat, buying the cheapest, most unhealthy food just to have food on the table, or going days without eating to cover other bills.
- Home prices in Renfrew County rose 36.8% from December 2020 to December 2021—a higher increase than in the City of Ottawa. The lack of affordable rental properties in the county has also displaced residents or pushed them to homelessness.
- Many rural residents report not having enough income to be able to afford energy prices that are needed for their homes. 41.3% of households in rural Ontario are facing energy poverty, in comparison to 22.5% of households in urban areas.
- Access to after school programming or learning activities in rural areas is impacted by transportation, digital connectivity, and available resources, preventing children in rural communities from having the same access to resources as kids in urban areas.
- In the rural communities we serve, proportionally fewer residents between the ages of 25 and 29 have graduated high school compared to those in Ontario’s urban centres.
- Rural communities consistently have lower employment rates than urban areas.
- Employment looks different in our rural communities—the types of jobs and income opportunities is different from urban centres. Rural residents have also reported higher levels of work-related stress.
- Rural residents in the lower-medium income bracket spend far more of their before-tax income on shelter and food security than those in urban areas.
- While healthcare is not something United Way works on to a great extent, we are concerned with the social determinants of health, which work upstream to prevent health concerns in the future.
- According to the Profile of Wellbeing in Rural Ontario, fewer rural residents rated their overall health as very good or excellent compared to residents of urban centres, and a higher percentage are living with health-related conditions that can limit their participation in activities, and hinder their social wellbeing.
- There is a lack of access to specialized resources and services, with people often having to travel to urban areas to meet with professionals.
- The beauty of living in rural areas is the human connection and tightness of the communities. But the downfall of living in small, rural communities is that many people know who you are. When there are resources available, people may feel the need to travel further to access support if they want to ensure confidentiality.
Barriers to consider when thinking about access to rural services:
- Transportation: A reliable vehicle is necessary for rural residents to access essential services and social interactions. Without affordable, flexible transportation options, many residents are faced with isolation or poor health outcomes.
- Digital equity: Many residents in our rural and remote communities do not have access to a strong, fast, and reliable internet connection; may not understand how to safely and effectively use technology and information tools, and don’t have access to digital devices. This means many are limited from participating in fundamental services and activities online, like healthcare, education, and employment.
- Systems navigation: The distance that’s inherent with rurality impacts how information is shared and how residents become aware of available resources. Informal information sharing has been severely impacted during the pandemic as meeting places were no longer available for in-person attendance—leading more people to depend on technology, the internet, or direct outreach from social service agencies.
What issues should we focus on?
United Way’s work is about equity. We want to ensure all people have equal access to opportunities, regardless of their race, gender, ability, education, work experience—or in this case—location. Where you live should not determine your outcomes in life.
There are many unique challenges facing people in our rural communities that can affect their vulnerability. Think: long-distance and infrequent transportation options to and from day-programs for seniors; unreliable internet access for kids who are learning virtually; and a lack of emergency shelter and affordable housing for youth experiencing homelessness.
The key word here is access. Here are some areas that connect directly with GenNext’s causes:
- Housing access, including energy poverty
- Home prices in Renfrew County rose 36.8% from December 2020 to December 2021—a higher increase than in the City of Ottawa. The lack of affordable rental properties in the county has also displaced residents or pushed them to homelessness.
- Many rural residents report not having enough income to be able to afford energy prices that are needed for their homes. 41.3% of households in rural Ontario are facing energy poverty, in comparison to 22.5% of households in urban areas.
- Equitable employment
- Rural communities consistently have lower employment rates than urban areas.
- Employment looks different in our rural communities—the types of jobs and income opportunities is different from urban centres. Rural residents have also reported higher levels of work-related stress.
- Rural residents in the lower-medium income bracket spend far more of their before-tax income on shelter and food security than those in urban areas.
- Mental health
- There is a lack of access to specialized resources and services.People often have to travel to urban areas to meet with professionals.
- The beauty of living in rural areas is the human connection and tightness of the communities. But the downfall of living in small, rural communities is that many people know who you are. When there are resources available, people may feel the need to travel further to access support if they want to ensure confidentiality.
How can we better serve people in need? It’s not one-size fits all
Start here: rural communities are unique, and differ fundamentally from large urban centres. Solutions in central Ottawa won’t necessarily work in Alfred and Plantagenet, Killaloe, or Carleton Place.
For one thing, we’re all governed differently. There are 35 municipalities in United Way East Ontario’s catchment. 34 are classified as ‘lower-tier’ municipalities—governed both on the County level, and as towns, villages and townships within Prescott-Russell, Lanark, and Renfrew counties. Ottawa is the outlier—it’s considered a single-tiered municipality since it’s governed by one municipal administration.
This feeds into a second truth, which is that change happens differently in rural areas.
Eva Oloumi, Founder of Paradiegma, helps us break this down.
She has seen first-hand how mindset shifts are important when trying to address the root causes of complex social problems in rural communities.
“Trying to make change in rural contexts is very personal. It’s not a subset of people making decisions for an entire city where the people who are going to receive the end impacts are distanced from you. Often, you're talking about people's own family, friends, or neighbours."
Eva’s tip: Think like a farmer
If you need to create context for the change you want to make, think of it like a homemade loaf of sourdough bread; you have to put the right ingredients together—making sure the water is at the right temperature, giving the starter time to form yeast, and then you let these independent agents do their own thing.
“Farmers and people close to the land know everything is interconnected. Everything relies on something else for survival. Change emerges not in their arrangement, but in the flow of communication and information.”
Looking ahead
One key thread that stands out when we talk with rural experts, is that relationship building is key.
“Educate and engage with all segments of the community. Allow participants to drive the agenda and listen to their stories. Learn and adapt to changing community needs and desires.”
Our partners see United Way’s role as one that continues to build capacity—creating the spaces for change to happen, being a facilitator, dedicating resources, making connections, and starting conversations. When exploring rural needs and solutions, we must always put rural communities first.
