Illustration of people meeting, walking, cycling, and tossing a disc on North Campus Quad.

Community engagement is about relationships, reaching out and building authentic and mutually beneficial connections. The University of Alberta’s century-long history of community engagement is deeply rooted in the connections with the communities we serve.

As an important part of Alberta's economic and social fabric, the University of Alberta is committed to engaging, supporting, collaborating and co-creating more effectively with the many communities of which we are a part.

Bill Flanagan, President and Vice-Chancellor

President Bill Flanagan
(Photo: John Ulan)

Report to the Community

During the 2018-19 community engagement consultations, the University of Alberta heard that the community wanted to know more about the work the U of A carries out with the community and a report that provides a compilation of those stories. We are proud to present the Report to the Community for 2023-24, highlighting some of the best stories of the year. For more stories like these, please see the Stories from our Community below.


Previous Years

Report to the Community 2022-23


Report to the Community 2021-22

English cover of the Community Engagement Report to the Community

Community Engagement Consultation Plan

The Community Engagement Consultation Plan contains the results of the year-long consultation, along with initiatives and measures that we plan to undertake in order to put the community’s feedback directly into practice. This plan will support community engagement work over the coming years and aims to strengthen community engagement in its many forms across our campuses.

English cover of the community engagement consultation plan

The community engagement consultation was a year-long process starting in the fall of 2018.

The process consisted of 3 steps:

Development

link to pdf

An advisory committee representing various communities and voices helped create a public consultation process that would engage both internal and external stakeholders.

Implementation

link to pdf

250 organizations were invited and 1,500 respondents participated in the consultation, which included 83 facilitated sessions as well as ongoing opportunities for online feedback.

Analysis

link to pdf

Every response solicited during the consultation was collected, transcribed and organized in a database, yielding more than 11,000 lines of unique data.

What we heard

From more than 11,000 lines of unique data, we identified the most commonly heard pieces of information and tracked recurring themes from the responses. The top five themes heard from respondents form the foundation of this community engagement report and plan.


Theme #1:

Improve Accessibility


Theme #2:

Support and Strengthen Outreach


Theme #3:

Respond to Community Need


Theme #4:

Improve Communication


Theme #5:

Celebrate Successes

Next Steps

We have developed a three-year community engagement plan, with specific goals and deliverables identified for each year. This plan is also a living document so the goals and activities listed may evolve and change as the University of Alberta receives more input and continues to engage with our community.

See a breakdown of the next steps in the plan »

Stories from our community

UNIVERSITY NEWS
St. Theresa Catholic School rallies in support of teacher with $6,000 donation to cancer rehab program
Society and Culture, Health And Wellness
St. Theresa Catholic School rallies in support of teacher with $6,000 donation to cancer rehab program
UNIVERSITY NEWS
Journée des valeurs du sport le 25 mai
Society and Culture
Journée des valeurs du sport le 25 mai
U of A launches new centre to fuel a hydrogen-powered future
Research, Society and Culture, Science and Technology
U of A launches new centre to fuel a hydrogen-powered future
UNIVERSITY NEWS
A strong foundation: Honouring Jim Montgomery and empowering future engineers
Science and Technology
A strong foundation: Honouring Jim Montgomery and empowering future engineers
UNIVERSITY NEWS
The vitality of francophone research with and for communities: progress, challenges and prospects.
Research, Society and Culture
The vitality of francophone research with and for communities: progress, challenges and prospects.
Study tackles challenge of Canada’s family farming legacy
Health And Wellness, Society and Culture, Business
Study tackles challenge of Canada’s family farming legacy
UNIVERSITY NEWS
Sports Values Day on 25 May
Society and Culture
Sports Values Day on 25 May
UNIVERSITY NEWS
La vitalité de la recherche francophone avec et pour les communautés: avancées, défis et perspectives.
Research, Society and Culture
La vitalité de la recherche francophone avec et pour les communautés: avancées, défis et perspectives.
UNIVERSITY NEWS
Une étudiante du Campus Saint-Jean sur le podium d'un concours de joute oratoire en français.
Society and Culture, Students
Une étudiante du Campus Saint-Jean sur le podium d'un concours de joute oratoire en français.

See all Community Stories