The ‘Your Stories, Our Histories’ public engagement project was a community conversation to hear what people think about how the City of Kingston represents local history through its work. It captured input about stories and/or histories that are less well-known or less frequently profiled and that need to be considered as part of an updated Culture Heritage Strategy. This City of Kingston Cultural Heritage Strategy will be used to guide the development of City-led exhibitions, programs and events. The Your Stories, Our Histories consultation began in September 2018 and concluded at the end of 2019, the engagement included multiple opportunities to hear from people, to foster dialogue, to engage with a range of themes and issues and to gather input from a diversity of Kingston residents. 

‘Your Stories, Our Histories’ also intentionally included opportunities to engage with the history and legacy of Sir John A. Macdonald in a Kingston context. This included multiple engagement opportunities over Fall 2018 and throughout 2019 under the banner of ‘Sir John A. 360°’. Public engagement events included an opportunity to hear from speakers, both Indigenous and non-Indigenous, as part of a public panel discussion that considered the history and legacy of Sir John A. Macdonald nationally as well as in a local context.

Staff worked on both ‘Your Stories, Our Histories’ and ‘Sir John A. 360°’ with the help of the First Peoples Group. As consultants, they specialize in offering inclusive engagement and facilitation practices and have worked with all levels of government across Canada. They also offer expertise supporting community education on cultural topics and leading conflict resolution, mediation and negotiation with a focus on consensus building. 

The Cultural Heritage Strategy is now being finalized and will be brought to Council for consideration in winter 2020-21. The completion of this strategy document has been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

On July 7, 2020 staff brought an update report to council focused on strategies to manage and interpret the history and legacy of Sir John A. Macdonald in Kingston. This report was brought to Council prior to the completion of the Cultural Heritage Strategy as elements of the consultation and the forthcoming strategy provide critical guidance around meaningful actions that can be taken in response to world events that include calls for action from Black, Indigenous and People of Colour (BIPOC) to address issues of systemic racism and the enduring impacts of colonial policies and practices.

Learn more about next steps coming out of the Sir John A. 360 consultation.

Timeline

• Winter 2020 - 21 – Cultural Heritage Strategy brought to Council
• Summer 2020 - Report to Council: Actions in Response to the Legacy of Sir John A. Macdonald
• 2019 - In-person and online public engagement
• Fall 2018 - Launch of online Your Stories, Our Histories Get Involved page
• Spring 2018 - Pre-engagement planning with Cultural Heritage Working Group