Success Stories 2009-2010

Updated Community Profiles

In partnership with the Ontario Trillium Foundation, the Office of Francophone Affairs published a new Profile of Ontario’s Francophone Community in December 2009. This report provides an overview of the community, profiling a variety of economic, social, and demographic aspects. It is the first report to include statistics that take the new more inclusive definition of Francophone into account. This definition was adopted in June 2009 in response to a recommendation by the Commissioner in 2008. More detailed profiles on youth, women, seniors, and visible minorities in the Francophone community will be produced at a later date.

French Toll-free Telephone Lines for Ontario Legal Aid

In 2009, the government announced that it was going ahead with the transformation of the legal aid system. Over the past year, Legal Aid Ontario has funded projects to enhance French-language service delivery through its legal aid clinics. To this end, community legal aid clinics in Vanier, Toronto, and Sudbury have introduced French toll-free legal aid telephone lines. These clinics play a key role in the administration of justice in Ontario. In light of this, Legal Aid Ontario has been listening to the members of advisory committees, three of which deal with French-language services, and to stakeholders in the context of the Strategic Plan undertaken by the Ministry of the Attorney General.

ServiceOntario

In December 2009, ServiceOntario brought together a group of bilingual government employees who interact directly with the public in French and English. The purpose of the consultations with this group was to improve the quality of French-language service delivery at ServiceOntario sites around the province. ServiceOntario also scheduled training on active French-language service offer for all front-line employees, in order to make them fully aware of their responsibilities under the French Language Services Act. In addition to providing its bilingual employees with a button that says, Bonjour, je parle français [Hello, I speak French], ServiceOntario is pursuing its efforts to provide signage in both French and English at all of its sites.

Campaign to Encourage the Use of French-Language Services

On May 12, 2009, the Assemblée de la francophonie de l’Ontario launched Dis : services en français [Service in French, Please!], the first-ever province-wide campaign to promote the use of French-language services. With financial support from the Office of Francophone Affairs, this campaign encouraged Francophones to exercise their rights and request service in French. Media partners, including TFO, Mouvement des Intervenant.e.s en Communication Radio de l’Ontario (MICRO), and 12 French-language weekly newspapers carried messages and advertisements for over a month. This campaign was the first of its kind since the French Language Services Act was enacted in 1989. Shelters for Francophone Women

At the beginning of the year, the Ministry of Community and Social Services announced that two new shelters for Francophone women would be created. One of these shelters, , will be the first of its kind in Toronto. It will accommodate 20 women and their children fleeing domestic violence and help them to rebuild their lives. In 2008-2009, shelters across the province helped 13,000 women and 9,000 children.

Ontario House at the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games

With Ontario House, the Ontario 2010 Olympics Secretariat ensured that Ontario was well-represented at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. The Secretariat paid special attention to compliance with the French Language Services Act, ensuring that, in addition to signage and touch screen menus in French, employees who spoke French were identified by a pin that said Bonjour! Events at Ontario House included performances by Franco-Ontarian singer-songwriter Damien Robitaille and Swing.

Promoting Tourism and Recreation to Franco-Ontarians

The Ministry of Tourism and Culture conducted market research to determine which recreational activities appeal to Franco-Ontarians. This research was then used to develop a strategy to promote recreational activities to Ontario’s Francophones. Since January 2010, the Ministry has coordinated the distribution of brochures and pamphlets in French on a variety of seasonal activities that reflect the interests of this target market.

French Health Services Policy

In 2009, the North East Local Health Integration Network became the first LHIN to adopt a French-language health services policy. Endorsed by the LHIN’s Board of Directors, this policy will help to ensure that French service offer is more fully taken into account throughout the territory served by the LHIN. It will help the LHIN to meet its legal obligations under the French Language Services Act. The adoption of this policy is all the more noteworthy because it preceded the adoption of Ontario Regulation 515/09, Engagement with the Francophone Community under Section 16 of the Act, which came into force in January 2010.

Symposium on French Ontario and French Africa

In October 2009, the Office of Francophone Affairs organized a symposium in Ottawa entitled L’Ontario et l’Afrique francophones : des alliances à explorer [French Ontario and French Africa: Exploring Possibilities for Alliances]. The event attracted business leaders and politicians from Ontario and a number of African countries. It provided a venue for sharing information on business practices and the development of business ties between Francophone countries in Africa and Francophone stakeholders here in Ontario.

FLS and You

The Ministry of Finance initially funded and developed the FLS and You video, which attracted the interest of other ministries. The Network of French Language Services Coordinators worked with the Ministry to broaden the visual examples to apply to the OPS as a whole. This project coincided with the designation of Kingston in May 2009. This video provides an overview of Ontario’s Francophone community, past and present, and is designed to raise awareness of the French-language service obligation for the OPS staff.

Ministry of the Environment Video

The Ministry of the Environment’s Drinking Water Programs Branch has created a wide range of learning materials for elementary-school-age children. Among these is a video in French on the filtration of drinking water, created for students in Grades 2 to 5. This educational tool is available on the Ministry’s Website and has been actively offered to every French-language school board in the province.

FrancoGO Network

On October 20, 2009, the FrancoGO network was created within the Ontario Public Service. FrancoGO stands for Francophones in the Government of Ontario. With over 1,000 members to date, the network will work to foster the cultural, personal, and professional development of Francophones and Francophiles within the Ontario Public Service, helping them to break the isolation they sometimes feel, connect with other Francophones and Francophiles, and appreciate the rich contribution and potential of government employees who speak French within the government, whether or not they hold a designated position.