2024 municipal election results

The results of the municipal elections held in the Municipality of Inverness County on Saturday, October 19, 2024 are as follows.

Inverness County Awards for Excellence in Healthcare

Thank you to all of those who submitted their nominations. The winners will be announced in April at a special Gala event. More details to follow.

The Municipality of Inverness County is delighted to announce the inaugural Inverness County Awards for Excellence in Healthcare.

This is a time to express sincere gratitude and thanks to all dedicated healthcare professionals who work so tirelessly and selflessly to serve others.  These awards offer everyone the opportunity to highlight those individuals who deserve special recognition for their service.  There will be seven individual awards and one team award (see categories below for details).

Nominees can be anyone involved in the healthcare sector in the Municipality of Inverness County in some capacity, which includes, but is not limited to, doctors, nurses, nurse practitioners, long-term and palliative care staff, and any other allied healthcare professionals such as paramedics, phlebotomists, pharmacists, radiologists, X-ray and lab technicians, physiotherapists, administrators or receptionists, to name a few.  (Note that volunteers should continue to be referred to Inverness County’s Volunteer Recognition Program – for more details on that program, email lisa.organ@invernesscounty.ca.)

We hope you will join in appreciating and celebrating the invaluable contribution that healthcare professionals make to our lives every single day.  They are all champions, but who stood out for you this year?  Use the form below to submit your nomination.

Additional copies of the nomination forms are available at municipal administration building, 375 Main St, Port Hood, as well as Inverness Consolidated Memorial Hospital, Sacred Heart Hospital and all libraries in the Municipality of Inverness County.

Nominations must be submitted by noon on Tuesday, December 31, 2024.
The awards committee will review and determine the winners, which will be announced at a special Awards Gala in Spring 2025.

To submit a nomination or for more information contact Lynn Carter, Healthcare Navigator:

• lynn.carter@invernesscounty.ca | +1-902-323-0057
• Municipality of Inverness County, 375 Main Street, Port Hood, B0E 2W0

Categories

1. Outstanding physician
2. Outstanding nurse
3. Outstanding nurse practitioner
4. Outstanding long term or palliative care professional
5. Outstanding mental health care professional
6. Outstanding allied health professional – this category includes professions such as paramedics, phlebotomists, pharmacists, radiologists, X-ray and lab technicians, physiotherapists, administrators or receptionists, to name a few.
7. Outstanding young healthcare professional (30 years and under)
8. Outstanding collaborative care team

Guidelines

• Any organization or individual may nominate one healthcare professional.
• The nominee must be a current or former healthcare professional within the Municipality of Inverness County.
• The healthcare professional must work within the Municipality of Inverness County.
• Nominations must be accompanied by a clearly written or typed description (250 words max.) of the nominee’s activities that have gone above and beyond for our community.
• One outstanding nominee in each category will be chosen as the overall winner(s) and winners will be announced at a special Awards Gala in Spring 2025.
• The final deadline to receive nominations is noon on Tuesday, December 31, 2024. Any nominations after that date will be placed on a list for recognition in 2025.
• Eligibility of all nominations is at the sole discretion of the awards committee, which consists of municipal staff and retired healthcare and local professionals.

Read the Participaper online!

Cape Breton’s best loved municipal periodical now has an online home at participaperonline.ca.

Content is posted online when each new edition is published. Read this week’s article here.

Four decades of archives

Delve into the Participaper archives, kindly digitized by the staff of Chestico Museum and Historical Society.

How can this website serve you better?

Use the survey below to let us know what you’d like to see on a new, improved website for the municipality.

Scroll down inside the survey area to access all 12 questions.

Create your own user feedback survey

Do you need support with storm recovery?

Operating assistance to arts organizations

Registration is now open for a in-person discussion about Operating Assistance to Arts Organizations in Cape Breton on Friday, November 10 from 2-5pm at Eltuek Arts Centre, Sydney NS.

Register here

This event is aimed at professional arts organizations and artists who work as part of collectives. Please feel free to pass on the invitation to others who you think may be interested.

This registration is for the Cape Breton gathering only. Further information will be sent out about a Halifax gathering and an online gathering soon.

About the Event

Arts Nova Scotia has a long-running Operating Assistance to Arts Organizations program, which was designed to enhance stability within established arts organizations that develop and sustain Nova Scotia’s arts community.

We are currently reviewing the program and are seeking input from members of the professional arts community in Cape Breton.

Arts Nova Scotia board and staff will be in attendance and the three-hour session will be facilitated by Eryn Foster.

Tea and snacks will be provided.

Where and when?

We will be at the Eltuek Arts Centre on Friday, November 10 for a facilitated session from 2-5pm.

Who should come?

This session is meant for organizations and artists who have accessed Operating Assistance to Arts Organizations from Arts Nova Scotia in the past or wish to in the future. Including:

• Staff, board, or volunteers from professional arts organizations
• Artists who work as part of a collective or ad-hoc groups

Will there be other opportunities to participate?

Arts Nova Scotia will be hosting three sessions so if you are unable to participate on this date, there will be other opportunities.

• November 10 – Sydney
• November 17 – Halifax
• TBA – Online

About the Facilitator

Eryn Foster is an interdisciplinary artist who also works as a filmmaker, educator, curator, community arts organizer and arts consultant. For the past three years, she has been working in close collaboration with ISANS (Immigrant Services Association of Nova Scotia) and the arts organization Nocturne, to offer free programming to members of the newcomer community in Halifax. In previous years, Foster has worked as the program Director/Administrator for the Yukon School of Visual Arts, and the Director of the artist-run centre, Eyelevel Gallery.

Background

The 2023-2024 provincial budget included a $1.4 million increase to Arts Nova Scotia’s budget for operating grants. With this increase, Arts Nova Scotia committed to reviewing the Operating Assistance to Arts Organizations fund to ensure it remains responsive to community needs and supports the long-term sustainability of sector. Previously, the structure of the operating assistance program did not allow for meaningful changes in funding levels for established organizations or the welcoming of new and emerging organizations.

The review of this program takes into account the learnings from the Building Back Better Report as well as the Arts Nova Scotia’s 2023-2025 Strategic Priorities established by the Arts Nova Scotia board that were outlined in the 2022-23 annual report.

The review is divided into three phases:

Phase 1: Board and Staff Planning (completed)

• Jurisdictional scan of operating programs across Canada
• Informational interviews
• Establishing board priorities

Phase 2: Community Engagement (October – December 2023)

• Sector-wide survey
• Drafting of new guidelines
• Targeted in-person and online engagement sessions with professional arts organizations

Phase 3: Implementation (January – March 2024)

• New guidelines to be available in early January 2024
• Application intake for all organizations March 1, 2024

Contribute to improving Nova Scotia’s environmental assessment process

Environmental assessment is a planning and decision-making tool used by governments around the world. It supports sustainable development by allowing consideration of overall project impacts at an early stage.

Large industries and companies complete environmental assessments to identify all potential impacts of their work on the environment, along with approved plans to mitigate those impacts. This process ensures Nova Scotia’s environment is protected while economic opportunities are developed. The government is seeking ideas from all Nova Scotians on how this process can be improved.

There are several ways you can share your views:

• through the consultation website: https://novascotia.ca/environmental-assessment-engagement
• email: EAmodernization@novascotia.ca
• phone: 902-424-0991
• a do-it-yourself workshop kit; details on are on the consultation website.

The last major update to Nova Scotia’s environmental assessment regulations was over 15 years ago (in 2008). The world has changed in the last 15 years, and it continues to change quickly. This is why, as part of the Environmental Goals and Climate Change Reduction Act, the provincial government has committed to modernizing environmental assessment in the Province, by 2024, taking into consideration:

• cumulative impacts
• diversity, equity and inclusion
• independent review
• netukulimk
• climate change

Public engagement runs until October 6, 2023.

For more information, visit  https://novascotia.ca/environmental-assessment-engagement.

Inverness County housing survey 2022

The Municipality of Inverness County conducted a public survey to gain insight into current housing needs between May and July 2022. The survey was available in both English and French. 879 responses were collected.

The data has been reviewed and analyzed, and a report was presented to council on April 6 2023.

View the presentation [pdf]

View the highlights report [pdf]

The survey results have been shared with the Government of Nova Scotia to inform the province-wide assessment of housing needs which is currently underway.

The provincial government will develop municipal housing profiles for each of Nova Scotia’s 49 municipalities.

Municipal staff will work with the Cape Breton Partnership to create packages that housing developers can use when considering or building a new housing development. These packages will include housing survey results, census data, a list of local contractors, associated bylaws, and any incentives a developer may be eligible to receive.

Housing is a pillar of the Cape Breton Local Immigration Partnership. It is integral to attracting new residents to live and work in Inverness County. Housing, population growth, economic development, and immigration are closely intertwined.

Municipal staff will continue to work with the Cape Breton Partnership, using survey results to inform mutual priorities.

Beach Clean-Up Bingo!

Plastic Free July is a global movement of millions of people who are working – and playing – to be part of the plastic pollution crisis. Every year, 8 million metric tonnes of plastic enter the ocean – that’s the equivalent to 1 garbage truck full of plastic every minute!

Inverness County Waste Services Department has created Beach Clean-Up Bingo so residents can have fun while keeping our beaches clean and pristine. Plus you have the chance to WIN a $25 gift card to spend at Mabou Farmer’s Market.

Next time you’re at the beach, take a bag with you and pick up any litter you see. Every bit of litter counts.
Download the game rules and the bingo cards [pdf]

Submit your bingo cards to waste@invernesscounty.ca before August 2^nd for a chance to win 1 of 3 $25 gift cards to the Mabou Farmer’s Market.

Tackling the effects of cognitive and physical decline