Implementation of Section 41 of the Official Languages Act: Parks Canada Agency Action Plan, 2007-2010

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General information and period covered

Federal institution: Address: Web site:	Parks Canada Agency 25 Eddy Street Gatineau QC  K1A 0M5 www.pc.gc.ca
Minister responsible:	The Honourable John Baird
Senior official(s) responsible for implementation of Part VII of the OLA (e.g.: Assistant Deputy Minister, official languages champion):	Andrew Campbell, Chief Human Resources Officer Michel Latreille, Champion of Official Languages
Mandate of federal institution:	To protect and present nationally significant examples of Canada’s natural and cultural heritage, and foster public understanding, appreciation and enjoyment in ways that ensure their ecological and commemorative integrity for present and future generations.
National coordinator responsible for implementation of section 41: Exact title: Postal address: E-mail:	Diane Lépine Advisor, Retention and Official Languages Resourcing Strategies and Programs Human Resources National Office 25 Eddy Street 15th Floor Gatineau, Quebec K1A 0M5 Diane.Lepine@pc.gc.ca
Regional coordinators (if any): Exact titles: Postal addresses: E-mails:
Period covered by action plan:	2007-2010

Summary of the institution’s planned contribution to the achievement of the expected results

Parks Canada’s mandate is in harmony with the spirit of Section 41 of the Official Languages Act (OLA), in the sense that the Agency protects and features representative examples of Canada’s natural and cultural heritage.  These two elements are closely linked with the values of all Canadians, including members of official languages minority communities (OLMCs).

Basically, by delivering its own mandate, the Agency makes a positive contribution to the promotion of the two official languages and of Canada’s two linguistic communities.  Parks Canada has identified specific measures to ensure its success in the implementation of Section 41 of the OLA.

Awareness

The first step toward success is to make sure that all Agency managers, employees and stakeholders know and understand their obligations under Section 41 and demonstrate an increased awareness with regards to the needs and concerns of the OLMCs.

Consultation

Informal and formal consultations take place on a regular basis in the different business units, especially at the time of the preparation of management plans for national parks and national historic sites.  The Agency will take additional measures to consult official languages minority communities in order to create or strengthen partnerships.

Communications

The Agency will continue to reach OLMCs through the media.

Coordination and liaison

Parks Canada representatives will continue to actively participate in the various federal networks that support official languages in order to identify potential partners among networks members.

Funding and program delivery

The Agency will explore the possibility of implementing projects jointly with OLMCs. 

Accountability

The Agency will ensure that policies and programs reflect the Agency’s obligations regarding the implementation of Section 41.

Context and Responsibilities of the Parks Canada Agency

Mandate:

“On behalf of the people of Canada, we protect and present nationally significant examples of Canada’s natural and cultural heritage, and foster public understanding, appreciation and enjoyment in ways that ensure their ecological and commemorative integrity for present and future generations.”

The Federal Government Strategy to support official-language minority communities includes an accountability framework that requires departments and agencies to play a role in the following areas: awareness of linguistic duality and Official Language Minority Community (OLMC) priorities or new initiatives; communications with OLMC’s about programs and services; coordination and liaison with other federal/provincial/municipal government bodies; and accountability and to produce an action plan on the implementation of section 41 (Part VII) of the Official Languages Act.

Parks Canada protects, preserves and presents a magnificent system of national parks, national marine conservation areas and national historic sites all across this country.  By working with minority-language communities, it assists in promoting another aspect of section 41 of the Official Languages Act, which reads:

The Government of Canada is committed to enhancing the vitality of English and French linguistic minority communities in Canada and supporting and assisting their development and fostering the full recognition and use of both English and French in Canadian society.

The measures outlined in this plan aim to develop and enhance the vitality of official-language minority communities. To ensure these goals are met, Parks Canada actions are based on the achievement of four objectives:

1. Develop and put in place heritage presentation programs that take into account the presence of Official Language Minority Communities.
2. Work jointly with representatives of official language minority communities for the development of local, regional and national tourism infrastructure.
3. Encourage and support the expression of Canadian linguistic duality by working jointly with the local and national leaders for the promotion of this duality.
4. Ensure representation of Official Language Minority Communities within the workforce of the Parks Canada Agency.

Public consultation is an essential element of the national park and national historic site management plan process. These consultations provide an opportunity to consult with minority language communities.

A.      AWARENESS (In-house activities)

[Training, information, orientation, awareness, communication and other activities carried out in-house in order to educate employees and/or senior managers of Parks Canada about linguistic duality and the priorities of OLMCs; senior manager performance contracts and recognition programs; taking the viewpoint of OLMCs into account during research, studies and investigations.]

Expected Result: Creation of lasting changes on Parks Canada organizational culture; employees and management are aware of and understand their responsibilities regarding section 41 of the Official Languages Act and OLMCs.
Planned activities to achieve the expected result	Expected outputs	Indicators to measure the expected result
A1 Heighten awareness of managers responsible for preparing management plans for national parks and national historic sites regarding the importance and relevance of consulting official languages minority communities when appropriate.	Communication tools, such as presentations, guides, guidelines, intranet, etc. Action plan Part VII distributed to managers.	Types of communication tools available. Number distributed (for tangible products). Questions received and follow-up on the part of the Agency.
A2 Identify and take opportunities to promote linguistic duality within Parks Canada, including participating in official languages minority community events and activities.	Identification of national events. Identification of regional events. Active participation in events, such as the Rendez-vous de la Francophonie. Messages included in corporate communications with Agency staff.	Number and types of national events. Number and types of regional events. Number of participants from Parks Canada. Number of messages and other communications mentioning linguistic duality.
A3 Encourage commercial lease holders and Parks Canada suppliers, as well as businesses in the tourism industry that use the Agency’s infrastructure to offer their services in the two official languages in order to promote Canada’s linguistic duality.	List of businesses. Bilingualism clauses in commercial leases and contracts, where appropriate. Monitoring system in place. Information material for potential partners from the tourism industry. Products and other services available that could assist partners from the tourism industry.	Number and types of businesses targeted. Number of leases and contracts with clause. Number of complying businesses. Number and types of questions received. Number of tourism organisations that offer services in both official languages.

B.      CONSULTATION (Sharing of ideas and information with OLMCs)

[Activities (e.g. committees, discussions, meetings) through which the Agency consults the OLMCs and dialogues with them to identify their needs and priorities or to understand potential impacts on their development; activities (e.g. round tables, working groups) to explore possibilities for cooperation within the existing mandate of Parks Canada or as part of developing a new program or new policy; participation in consultations with OLMCs coordinated by other government bodies; consultation of OLMCs by regional offices to determine their concerns and needs.]

Expected Result: Creation of lasting relationships between Parks Canada and OLMCs; the Agency and OLMCs understand each other’s needs and mandate.
Planned activities to achieve the expected result	Expected outputs	Indicators to measure the expected result
B1 Consult OLMCs formally and informally to ensure that policies, programs and management plans take into consideration their priorities.	Ongoing cooperation and partnerships with organisations representing OLMCs. Consultations with OLMCs regarding external programs. Inclusion of suggestions and comment, when appropriate	Number of consultations. Number and types or organisations consulted (e.g. tourism, etc.). Distribution of minutes and other documents. Follow-up to recommendations or suggestions made by OLMCs. Number of suggestions and comments included in the management plans.
B2 Establish and maintain regular contacts with OLMCs at the Field Unit level.	Regional liaison with OLMCs. Participation in annual general meetings of relevant organisations. Open consultations with local official language minority organisations to identify projects and opportunities for collaboration. Creation of awareness projects about minority official languages with the cooperation of community leaders.	Contacts clearly identified and known by OLMCs. Number and types of exchanges (e.g., in person, teleconferences, correspondence, etc) between Parks Canada and official languages minority communities. Follow-up to recommendations or suggestions made by OLMCs. Number and types of projects. Dollars invested in projects.

C.      COMMUNICATIONS (Transmission of information to OLMCs)

[External communications activities to inform OLMCs about the activities, programs and policies of Parks Canada and to promote the bilingual character of Canada; inclusion of OLMCs in all information and distribution lists; use of the Agency’s Web site to communicate with OLMCs.]

D.      COORDINATION AND LIAISON (Does not include funding - Internal coordination and liaison with other government institutions)

[Coordination activities (research, studies, meetings, etc) carried out by Parks Canada itself along with other federal institutions or other levels of government; participation in activities organized by other federal institutions, other levels of government, etc.; participation of official languages champions, national and regional coordinators, etc., in various government forums.]

E.   FUNDING AND PROGRAM DELIVERY

[Implementation of Parks Canada’s programs and delivery of its services; funding, alone or in cooperation with other federal institutions, of OLMC projects; inclusion of the needs of OLMCs in the delivery of Parks Canada’s programs and services.]

F.      ACCOUNTABILITY

[Activities through which Parks Canada integrates its work on the implementation of section 41 of the OLA with planning and accountability mechanisms (e.g. report on plans and priorities, performance report, business plan, status report on implementation of section 41 of the OLA, etc); internal audits and evaluations of programs and services; regular review of programs and services as well as policies by senior managers of the Agency to ensure implementation of section 41 of the OLA.]

External Distribution list:
Members of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Official Languages
Members of the Senate Standing Committee on Official Languages
The Commissioner of Official Languages
Minister of the Environment
Canadian Public (Parks Canada Internet)

Internal Distribution list:
Champion - Official Languages, Parks Canada
Parks Canada Senior Managers
Parks Canada Employees (Parks Canada Intranet)