Announcement

In this role, Calvert will report to the Commissioner of Transportation and Works overseeing key areas such as the City’s Capital Works, Environmental Services (including Stormwater Management), Transportation Infrastructure Management and Transportation Planning. Collectively, these areas focus on the planning, development and construction of a multi-modal transportation system and stormwater network.

With more than a decade of experience with the City, most recently as the Acting Director and Manager leading the Development, Engineering and Construction team, Calvert’s leadership has been essential in addressing the aftermath of this past summer’s storms. Her efforts in delivering financial relief programs and developing future action plans have been critical. She has also played a key role in major developments along Mississauga’s waterfront, including Lakeview Village and Brightwater. Prior to joining the City, Calvert held progressive leadership roles with environmental engineering consulting companies in both British Columbia and Ontario.

Calvert holds an Honours Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering from Queen’s University and a Masters Certificate in Municipal Leadership from the Schulich School of Business. She is a member of the Professional Engineers of Ontario, the Ontario Public Works Association and the Municipal Engineers Association, where she is also part of the Development Engineering Committee.

Quotes

“I am pleased to welcome Emma to this important role. Her leadership experience combined with her insights from both the public and private sectors will be invaluable in advancing new initiatives and modernizing business processes. I am confident that Emma will play a key role in enhancing our transportation system and stormwater network, elevating the quality of life in our community.” – Sam Rogers, Commissioner of Transportation and Works

“I am pleased to step into this new role and look forward to working closely with the team, senior leaders, as well as Mayor and Council to deliver projects and services that will positively impact our community and infrastructure.” – Emma Calvert, Director of Infrastructure Planning and Engineering Services

With the vision of fostering a city where all residents thrive and are healthy, active, connected and supported within their community, the strategy embeds a “health equity” perspective into decision making to recognize the health, environmental and social differences across Mississauga and work towards decreasing the prevalence of diabetes and other chronic diseases in Mississauga.

Healthy City Strategy

The Healthy City Strategy was made possible through collaboration with Peel Public Health, the University of Toronto Mississauga’s Novo Nordisk Network for Healthy Populations, Trillium Health Partners and Cities for Better Health (CBH – formerly Cities Changing Diabetes).

The strategy focuses on compact, complete and connected neighbourhoods; community services and programming in support of active living and education; and collaborations with researchers, community, organizations, business, agency and government. It also outlines how the City can influence positive change without taking on responsibilities that belong to other organizations or levels of government.

The strategy incorporates input from research and data experts, health research findings and the experiences of other municipalities to pursue an evidence-informed approach. More than 1,000 participants provided feedback to help inform the strategy, which captured their lived experience and identified needs and priorities for healthy living.

Mississauga’s commitment to building a healthier city

In November 2021, the City joined the Cities for Better Health program and Council unanimously signed the Urban Diabetes Declaration. This partnership connects Mississauga with more than 50 international cities, facilitating shared resources and knowledge to better understand and combat the rise of type 2 diabetes. Since then, the City has benefited from the CBH shared resources and learnings from around the world to inform our strategy.

The City continues to promote active transportation and healthy lifestyles through its focus on complete and connected communities. Mississauga also offers a variety of public fitness and wellness programs.

Prevalence of type 2 diabetes in Mississauga

Diabetes is a serious medical condition that affects the way the body regulates and uses sugar as a fuel. This long-term (chronic) condition results in too much sugar circulating in the bloodstream.

The prevalence rates of type 2 diabetes in most neighbourhoods in Mississauga ranges from 13 to 16.9 per cent . These rates are significantly higher than the Ontario average of 9.8 per cent. Areas of high prevalence of diabetes in Mississauga appear to generally align with areas that are considered more at risk to climate change impacts, social vulnerability, lower walkability, access to green space, transit, higher proportion of fast food restaurants, core housing needs and poor air quality. This means that specific areas of Mississauga carry a higher burden of diabetes along with other risk factors that contribute to the challenge of healthy living. This is not health equity.

Moving forward, the City will begin to integrate the Healthy City Strategy and its health equity lens into planning and program implementation, working to advance the 25 actions outlined in the strategy and work towards health equity.

For more information about the Healthy City Strategy, visit the website.

Quotes

“Diabetes is a growing concern in Mississauga. I’m pleased we have a strategy that empowers staff and decision makers to consider health impacts in City planning and policy development. Thank you to our collaborators and the community for working with us to develop this important strategy. The City can’t address all health issues alone, and this plan allows us to seek integrated solutions with support from businesses, organizations and other government levels. Together, we can make our city a healthier place to live, work and play.”

Mississauga Mayor Carolyn Parrish

“Mississauga’s Healthy City Strategy is an important step for our community. Cities play a key role in promoting public health, helping residents stay healthy and reducing risks of chronic diseases, like diabetes. As a collaborator in developing the strategy, Peel Public Health looks forward to working closely with the City of Mississauga to put the strategy into action.”

Paul Sharma, Director, Chronic Disease and Injury Prevention, Peel Public Health

“The Novo Nordisk Network for Healthy Populations applauds the City of Mississauga for approving the Healthy City Strategy, and looks forward to continued collaboration as we work to lessen the inequities in risk and burden of diabetes and related cardiometabolic conditions. As rates of type 2 diabetes continue to rise, this strategy looks at tangible ways to reduce and remove the barriers to achieving good health faced by many in the Peel Region, and our network is pleased to be able to provide evidence-based research programs centred in the community to support this work.”

Lorraine Lipscombe, MDCM, MSc, FRCPC
Professor, Dept. of Medicine
Temerty Faculty of Medicine and Dalla Lana School of Public Health
Executive Director, Novo Nordisk Network for Healthy Populations                 University of Toronto