Introduction

As we enter the 21st century, Toronto remains one of the world's best places to live. Canada's largest metropolis is one of the wealthiest cities in the world, well-placed to adapt to the changes sweeping cities everywhere. The future offers Toronto, as part of one of the fastest growing city-regions in North America, tremendous opportunity to be a dynamic centre of innovation and prosperity. But the future also holds many challenges, as growing social polarization and inequalities threaten to erode the progress we have made.

The Social Development Strategy (SDS) is part of Toronto's plan for the future. As the social component of the city's Strategic Plan, the Social Development Strategy describes some of the challenges Toronto faces, enunciates the shared values that bind us together as a city, and describes the principles that should underlie our approach to social development. It also lays out a set of specific strategic directions to guide Toronto's course.

The Context

The buoyant economy of the late 1990s has produced wealth for many Torontonians, but the benefits of the boom have not been shared equitably. Income disparities in Toronto are growing. Alarming numbers of Toronto families and individuals are poor or are at risk of falling into poverty and homelessness. Single-parent families-who are most at risk and who are usually headed by women-are on the increase, their numbers rising faster than they have in 25 years. Nearly 40 per cent of Toronto's children are living below Statistics Canada's low-income cut-off point.

Growing numbers of people are homeless or at risk of being homeless. In 1999, nearly 30,000 men, women and children lived in emergency shelters at some point during the year. One hundred thousand people are waiting for subsidized housing. An average of over 100,000 people use food banks every month. Tied to the growing polarization in incomes is a diminution of opportunity for those who are vulnerable and disadvantaged. The income gap severely and disproportionately affects ethno-racial groups. The gulf between Toronto's haves and have-nots is widening, threatening the quality of life for all residents of the city.

The growing social and economic polarization is caused in part by changes in the labour market brought about by fundamental shifts in the global economy. Changing family structures also play a role. But equally significant in creating the growing social and economic gaps is the retreat of the federal and provincial governments from key areas of social programming. In recent years, reduction of fiscal deficits has become the guiding priority for senior levels of government, while programs that address social deficits have been allowed to erode. Tax reduction, rather than income redistribution, is the priority. Funding for income support programs, such as employment insurance, social assistance and social housing has been dramatically reduced. Tenant, employment and environmental protections have been weakened, and support for education and community services has been cut.

As part of the refocusing of their priorities, senior levels of government have downloaded new responsibilities-along with substantially increased costs-to municipalities. The City of Toronto has assumed stewardship for a range of services, but has not been given the fiscal capacity to properly carry out its new responsibilities. At a time when Toronto faces increased needs, more is expected from both the city and community sectors, but there are fewer resources to cope with rising expectations. The city has little flexibility beyond raising property taxes, imposing user fees, or cutting services.

The Challenge of Change

Toronto can adapt to change; we have done so before. A hundred years ago, when the city was in the midst of its industrial transformation, Toronto's slums were home to legions of urban poor. Many children did not survive infancy. A sense of security and opportunity grew as Toronto met the challenges of the day. As the decades passed, governments and the community working together invested in a social infrastructure-a complex system of resources, programs, facilities and social networks-to provide Torontonians with an improved quality of life. The social infrastructure is now as diverse as the needs it was developed to address. It consists of bricks-and-mortar facilities such as hospitals, social housing, schools, libraries, nursing homes and recreation, arts and cultural centres, as well as services such as child care, public health, social assistance and children's aid.

Underpinning the development of the social infrastructure has been the city's social cohesion: residents' sense of inclusion, based on a respect for their differences, and their understanding of the things they have in common that bring them together. Toronto has defined itself by including newcomers, children, young people, Aboriginal people, senior citizens and persons with disabilities. Strong communities support social inclusion, using public resources to meet the needs of those who face hardships, discrimination and other barriers to participation. A cohesive community benefits everyone, because people who feel part of a larger community have an investment in the public good.

The new City of Toronto-created in 1998-has assumed stewardship for vital parts of our social infrastructure. Working side by side with school boards, community organizations and senior levels of government, the city has the opportunity to reaffirm its longstanding commitment to the public good, both as a service provider and funder and as an advocate for social justice. Social development offers us the opportunity to maintain both our stewardship and our commitments.

Principles of Social Development

According to the 1995 United Nations' World Summit for Social Development, "the ultimate goal of social development is to improve and enhance the quality of life of all people." The World Summit adopted the Copenhagen Declaration and Program of Action, which was signed by Canada and more than 100 other nations. The declaration lays out a set of goals, two of which are central to Toronto's Social Development Strategy:

• [to] promote democracy, human dignity, social justice, and solidarity.
• [to] promote the equitable distribution of income and greater access to resources through equity and equality of opportunity for all.

The City of Toronto's Strategic Plan states that social development "encompasses principles of social equity, social well-being and citizen engagement, and is an important determinant of healthy communities and quality of life."

Toronto's Social Development Strategy recognizes that well-being is a social achievement, and not exclusively an individual one. The aim of the SDS is to democratize prosperity and opportunity, so that all those who live in Toronto can lead healthy lives in a safe, socially cohesive urban environment. It values diversity and reaffirms the goals of achieving access and equality of outcome for all residents as expressed in the city's access and equity action plan. Movement towards these goals must be guided by five principles:

Equity - the fair distribution of resources, free from discrimination on the basis of age, disability, gender, socioeconomic background, race, ethnicity, religion or sexual orientation

Equality - equal, effective and comprehensive rights for all

Access - fair and equitable access to all services, so that no one falls below minimum standards that include adequate income, sufficient nutritious food, adequate and affordable housing, and sufficient clothing

Participation - the opportunity to participate fully in the life of the city and the decision making that will determine our collective future

Cohesion - the fostering of social trust, mutual care, and respect for diversity as the foundation for supportive communities.

Strategic Directions

To build a healthy, inclusive and sustainable community in which residents have access to good jobs and to the services they need, we must strike a balance between social development and economic growth. While markets may promote efficiency, it is up to people-their communities and governments-to promote equity. Our strategy sees wealth as a means to an end: ensuring that all Torontonians enjoy healthy, worthwhile lives. This quality of life significantly contributes to Toronto's economic position by helping the city attract investment and retain a skilled workforce.

Toronto has the opportunity to articulate a shared vision of a liveable, prosperous, attractive and creative city in which public effort combines with individual initiative to enhance the quality of life of all residents. This vision should guide the city in leading an effective and constantly evolving human services system-a system that must be based on cooperative partnerships and sustained by the commitment and financial support of all levels of government.

Social development is based on an integrated understanding of the challenges facing Toronto at the beginning of this new century. Although there are no simple or isolated solutions to the challenges we face, progress towards Toronto's social development goals will be realized by the city pursuing the proposed set of 11 strategic directions which are laid out in this document. The directions are grouped under three general headings:

• Actively support the building of community capacity
• Encourage participation in communities and government
• Increase access to community space

• Identify areas for strategic investment in social development
• Increase the effectiveness and co-ordination of planning activities
• Extend social monitoring and reporting
• Evaluate program success
• Seek more fair and flexible sources for city revenue

• Work towards a joint strategy for social development in the Greater Toronto Area
• Work with other municipalities to develop a national urban agenda
• Strengthen the city's role as advocate

Section 2 contains a discussion of the strategic directions. Section 3 contains a full summary of the directions.

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