2023 Women’s Day Is About Embracing Equity

By Carleton MPP Goldie Ghamari

For the first time in three years, I have been able to plan and host an International Women’s Day breakfast for the Carleton riding.

For most of you who are reading this on or before Wed., March 8, this year’s breakfast is taking place at Danby’s Roadhouse on Perth Street in Richmond from 7:30-9:30 a.m.

International Women’s Day is celebrated around the world. This year’s campaign theme is #EmbraceEquity.

According to International Women’s Day organizers, equality and equity are similar, but have two different meanings. While we have strived for equality, equity provides a better principal to progress society. Equity acknowledges that people don’t begin life in the same place, and that circumstances can make it more difficult for people to achieve the same goals.

Inequity affects many people, but most commonly historically it has marginalized communities such as women, people of color, disabled people, the economically disadvantaged, and those from the LGBTQ+ community.

The goal of equity is to change systemic and structural barriers that get in the way of people’s ability to thrive. 

Whether you are a professional, an executive, a tradesperson, a teacher, an entrepreneur, a bus driver or crossing guard, a mom or a grandmother, an aunt, a daycare worker, or a stay-at-home mom, International Women’s Day is a day for all women to celebrated for their contributions to their families, their communities and to society in general.

This breakfast is an opportunity for us to celebrate all women in our riding, regardless of their race, colour, religion or their work status.

Thank You Farmers!

It has been a while since I have been able to host an event, but I want to say thank you to everyone who came out to our Carleton Farmers Appreciation Breakfast Sat., Feb. 25 at the Richmond Memorial Community Centre.

The event was well attended by the local agricultural community in rural Carleton, members and representatives from the 4H Club, and residents from all over the riding who just wanted to get together, enjoy breakfast, and show our appreciation for the hard work of our farm and agriculture workers.

A special heartfelt thanks goes out to the Ontario Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs for making the long trip to Richmond to attend the event. She spent a lot of time at the event going from table to table, meeting our local residents and farmers. She shared stories and anecdotes of being in 4H as a youth and growing up on a farm. She took special interest in listening to our local farm families as they discussed their operations, their challenges, their successes, and most of all, their love of farming.

March Break is coming!

March Break is always a busy time for families in South Carleton. While some decide to get a head start on spring by heading down south for a week, other families in the area are doing things like visiting sugarbushes in the area, spending time at the arena for hockey and ringette tournaments, heading to the hills to ski or snowboard, ice fishing on the Jock or Rideau, or one of the countless other things to do in our beautiful area of the province.

And of course, March Break wraps up with St. Patrick’s Day. Many of the generational families in Manotick, Osgoode, Richmond, Kars and North Gower have Irish heritage. With all of the COVID restrictions finally lifted, there will be a lot of reason’s to celebrate St. Paddy’s Day! While it will be a day and evening of fun, let’s remember to keep things safe and responsible.

Ontario Protecting the Health and Safety of Paramedics

The Ontario government is working for workers by establishing a Paramedic Services Committee under the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) to develop resources that address the unique health and safety risks these frontline heroes face.

Paramedics respond to over 1.6 million calls every year. They face risks that are separate and distinct from those of doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals who typically don’t engage with their patients outside of their hospital, facility or office.

With support from CUPE, Unifor and labour leaders across the province, our government is protecting workers and working across the health and safety system to support and foster safe workplaces.

Quick Facts

• Examples of risks paramedics face while transporting and caring for patients includes violence, exposure to harmful chemicals and traumatic events. Paramedics are on the frontlines and sometimes respond to calls in place of firefighters or police.
• Section 21 committees include equal membership from both labour and management, which allows stakeholders with competing interests to exchange information and build consensus.

Governments Reach Landmark Agri-Food Sector Agreement

Farmers and the province’s wider agri-food sector will benefit from an upcoming new, five-year agreement between the governments of Canada and Ontario. The agreement will provide a range of investments that will help improve productivity, competitiveness and resilience in this key area of the economy and enable the province to meet goals outlined in Ontario’s Grow Ontario Strategy.

The governments have negotiated a Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership (Sustainable CAP) for Ontario that will see upwards of $1.77 billion in support for the agri-food sector over the life of the agreement. Through Sustainable CAP, $569 million will be invested in strategic initiatives, which is a 25 percent increase over the previous funding agreement. There will also be roughly $1.2 billion for continued, demand-driven, business risk management supports for farmers.

Sustainable CAP will also boost investments in research and innovation and other strategic areas to strengthen the sector. The agreement will include the launch of the new Resilient Agricultural Landscape Program (RALP), a funding initiative to mitigate climate change and support the agricultural sector in better addressing sustainability outcomes.

The Sustainable CAP starts on April 1, 2023 and replaces the Canadian Agricultural Partnership (the Partnership). The programs will support the vision and priorities the federal, provincial and territorial agriculture ministers agreed to in 2021 in The Guelph Statement.

The Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership (Sustainable CAP) is a five-year, $3.5-billion investment by federal‐provincial and territorial governments to strengthen competitiveness, innovation, and resiliency of the agriculture, agri‐food and agri‐based products sector. This includes $1 billion in federal programs and activities and $2.5 billion in cost-shared programs and activities by federal, provincial and territorial governments.

Details about Sustainable CAP funding opportunities and programming will be posted online as they become available.

Quick Facts

• Producers have access to a suite of business risk management (BRM) programs to help them manage significant risks that threaten the viability of their farms and are beyond their capacity to manage.
• This agreement will be finalized this month and come into force on April 1, 2023.
• In 2021, Ontario’s agri-food industry contributed $47.6 billion in GDP to the provincial economy.
• One in every 10 jobs in Ontario was related to the agri-food sector in 2021.

Priorities in the Sustainable CAP were set out by federal-provincial-territorial agriculture ministers in The Guelph Statement.

Office Notice:

My office is open Monday to Friday, 9 am to 4 pm. If you require assistance on any matter, please contact me at any time. My staff and I will be happy to assist. Even if it’s not a provincial issue, I’ll make sure to connect you with the proper office.

– Goldie

Your voice at Queen’s Park