^{What more could you know if you took the time to research some of the issues facing the community? What would you learn if you attended Council meetings regularly? These were some of the questions we asked ourselves when t he Southgate Public Interest Research Group was founded in April 2005. The community learned -- to their shock -- that Southgate Council was giving some thought to hosting a mega-dump for Toronto trash. We felt a need to get involved: to learn more about what was happening in the community. What kind of economic plans were in place? What were the key issues facing us? How can we get involved?
The result was the formation of Southgate Public Interest Research Group: the first community PIRG in Canada.
The goal of Southgate PIRG is two-fold: to provide information and to facilitate action in the community. We will access and conduct research and generate analysis on issues of public policy that have a bearing on the wellbeing of current and future residents of the area.
As with most other PIRG organizations (rhymes with "burg"), we will also act as an umbrella organization -- helping to establish and/or support action organizations that share a commitment to the public interest. As a rule, these groups will be autonomous, but will share resources under the PIRG umbrella.
You can read more on this site about current activities of two different citizens' groups who are currently at work in the community: one dedicated to developing a community wind project in Southgate, and another committed to defending the public interest against the spreading of sewage sludge in the Township. (See our issue "hot buttons" at left)
We invite you to join us as a member, or to support our work with a contribution. Watch for more details on upcoming activities!}