Rural and Northern Engagement Enhancement
Current Projects
Civic Belonging in a Northern Resource Economy Context
This Community Enhancement Research project will address the issue of low community connection and engagement among youth in resource-dependent northern Alberta communities. Lack of community connection and engagement is associated with higher instances of poverty and crime, lower levels of education attainment and other poor social outcomes. Young people are especially likely to report low connection and engagement, and evidence suggests that many people living in northwestern Alberta communities experience a relatively poor sense of place belonging.
Past Projects
GP-PACT 2.0
Our research team conducted a comprehensive evaluation of the implementation, service delivery and training, and short and long-term outcomes of the Grande Prairie Police and Crisis Team (PACT) program. The evaluation led to impactful recommendations for the improvement of the PACT program with long term implications for mental health communities, applications and programs in the City of Grande Prairie.
Partners
Our research partners - the City of Grande Prairie (Safe Communities), Alberta Health Services, and the RCMP - provided continual research and financial support to ensure the project's success. Our team was also the proud recipient of research funds from the Tri-Council College and Community Social Innovation Fund (CCSIF).
Approximately $300,000.00 in funds have been dedicated to the GP-PACT project.
Grande Prairie Local Immigration Partnership (GPLIP)
This project was led by the City of Grande Prairie-Community Social Development. The aim was to gather information about personal and organizational challenges related to immigrant settlement and integration as well as related issues around housing, health care, and education for immigrants in Grande Prairie. NWP provided feedback regarding instrument development, wrote and submitted the ethics application, and wrote the literature review that was incorporated into the Community Engagement Report (written by the GPLIP coordinator).
Community Awareness Survey on Health and Safety Issues
Instruments developed, data collected, and report written for Grande Prairie and Safe Communities
Youth, Barriers and Employment Opportunities in Grande Prairie
The Youth Community study was undertaken to identify the training and support needs of Grande Prairie youth (15 to 30-year-olds) who were facing barriers to employment. The goal was to identify priority needs in order to develop a three-year Youth Community Plan. NWP assisted with instrument development, data collection, and data analyses. The information gathered was incorporated into a report that was written by the City of Grande Prairie-Family and Community Support Services.
Integrated Family Violence Intervention Unit (IFVI)
The IFVI Unit consists of front line staff from the RCMP, CFSA and Victim’s Assistance. IFVI staff collected various forms of data; individuals from various agencies were asked to assess the value of IFVI, victims of family violence were asked about their experiences with the IFVI Unit, and RCMP files pertaining to incidences of family violence were flagged. NWP analyzed the data and wrote a review report for the IFVI Unit.
Issues for Staff Working with People with Developmental Disabilities (PDD)
After the Government of Alberta determined that the annual turnover rate of staff who work with people living with developmental disabilities (in residential and vocational settings) is 73%, the PDD Community Board of Northwest Alberta, AACTI, Alberta Council of Disability Services and NWP worked together to determine the reasons behind the high turnover rate. Surveys were distributed to staff employed at 11 agencies in Northwest Alberta. NWP developed the instruments, analyzed the data, presented the findings and wrote a report for the PDD-Northwest Alberta Community Board.
Factors affecting Volunteerism in Northwest Alberta
The Volunteer Services Bureau of Grande Prairie wished to determine the demographics of those who volunteer those who do not volunteer, reasons for volunteering, for whom people volunteer and in what capacity, the perceived benefits of volunteering, how people learned about volunteering opportunities, etc. Agencies who utilize volunteers were also asked about how they recruited volunteers, the training/skills required for volunteers, etc. NWP developed the instruments, collected and analyzed the data, and wrote a report for the Volunteer Services Bureau of Grande Prairie.
Public Awareness of Symptoms of Stroke and Heart Attack/Placement of Public Access Defibrillators
Grande Prairie and Area Safe Communities were interested in determining what the public believed to be the greatest risks to the health and safety of children, adults, and seniors, whether the public has seen advertisements regarding health and safety, and whether they were aware of “Grande Prairie and Area Safe Communities” and “Safety City”. NWP developed the questionnaires, collected and analyzed the data, and wrote a report for Grande Prairie and Area Safe Communities