Measuring Up The North Process

Each Participating Community is engaged in a Measuring Up The North Process to achieve their goals of inclusion and accessibility and universal design. The community will look at policies, built environments, programs, and practices in this process. The process will involve engagement of the community and development of new strategic relationships.

Each participating community has two Project Liaisons - an NCMA Liaison who is a representative of the city, town, village (i.e. planner, recreation director, engineer, or councillor) and a Community Liaison who is a person with a disability or a senior. (In come cases, communities have both)These two individuals work in partnership and ensure that a local Measuring Up The North Committee is formed.

The Committee consists of a variety of individuals including seniors, persons with disabilities and representatives from First Nations, youth, building/planning officials, the business community, tourism, homebuilders, recreation, transportation, employment, education, parks, arts and culture, sustainability, and other interests.

The intent is that the Committee will assess its own community and determine areas of priority to make improvements. The community then seeks funding through a variety of sources to carry out a variety of  projects and also incorporates the principles of accessibility and inclusion into their community vision, official community plans and community strategic plans.

Steps Include:

• Identifying the NCMA and the Community Liaisons
• Engaging a MUTN Committee
• Identifying achievements the community has made already
• Identifying problem areas
• Conducting a baseline evaluation using the Measuring Up Guide and Tool, Start Up Guide, Measuring Up Short Evaluation , MUTN Assesment Form,  MUTN Community and Planning Reporting Checklist, and Accessibility/Measuring Up the North Project , Age-Friendly Guides, and other tools
• Identifying short term, mid term and long-term goals
• Begin with achievable projects that will show change within one year (Momentum building)
• Identify funding
• Evaluate results
• Begin again on next set of goals

Here is a brief one page MUTN Information sheet