The Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association (SUMA) has announced a new partnership with the Johnson Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy (JSGS) aimed at enhancing municipal governance and sustainability efforts across Saskatchewan. On November 7, representatives from both organizations will gather at SUMA’s office to sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) solidifying this collaboration. SUMA’s CEO, Jean-Marc Nadeau, and Dr. Jim Farney, Director of JSGS at the University of Regina campus, will be in attendance to formalize the agreement.
This partnership will facilitate the creation of a Mitacs-funded post-doctoral position, intended to strengthen municipal capacities for sustainable development through rigorous research and data analysis. The three-year role will be filled by Dr. Stephanie Ortynsky, an expert in municipal finance and governance, who will focus on identifying and implementing best practices for inter-municipal cooperation to further sustainability goals within Saskatchewan.
According to Nadeau, SUMA’s primary mission is to support and advocate for member municipalities with a foundation in data-driven insights. “Our best tools in municipal governance are well-informed people, and the path to that is having a continuous flow of good research and data from which they can learn. This partnership opens the doors to strengthening municipalities,” Nadeau said, emphasizing the value of this collaboration in advancing SUMA’s advocacy efforts.
Mitacs, a national non-profit organization supporting innovation-driven economic growth in Canada, is funding this research position, highlighting the importance of Ortynsky’s work to both organizations. SUMA anticipates that this project will yield insights beneficial to municipalities across Saskatchewan, fostering more informed, sustainable governance.