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Community presentations are available. Please contact us at 905-897-8880 or by email at [email protected] for further details.

The Community Foundation of Mississauga is pleased to present Mississauga’s 2018 Vital Signs. This marks our fourth release of the document since we started producing it in 2011. You can download a copy of the document by clicking the links above.

Vital Signs is a national program led by local community foundations and coordinated by Community Foundations of Canada. It leverages local knowledge to measure the vitality of our communities and support action towards improving our quality of life.

The digital version of Vital Signs provides a little more context to the data sections and provides more detail in a narrative form than the print. The print version is the most economical to print as it is a shorter document containing all of the data and less narrative. You can also view and download our sources as a separate document to Vital Signs itself. We have also provided access to some of our source data and created a community directory which provides useful web links to additional content and information mentioned in Vital Signs.

As we endeavored to create this document and undertake the research we learned a lot about Mississauga, Canada’s sixth largest city. We are home to one of the most diverse populations in Canada with more than half of us identifying as immigrants. We are a well-educated city with more of us per capita having some kind of post-secondary certificate or degree than the rest of the province or country. Mississauga residents even report feeling happy and healthy at strong rates. There is a lot of good news about city, but this does not mean there is no work to be done. The unemployment rate in Mississauga is among the highest in the GTA and more of us are living at or below the low income measure now, than in 2011. All of this is just the start of the picture Vital Signs paints. We invite you download any of the 2018 versions of Vital Signs to learn more.

The report helps our community identify where we are doing well and where we want to target philanthropy for greatest impact. It is our hope that the information in the 2018 report will inform, inspire, and generate conversation. Please consider what you might do to build a strong and vital Mississauga for all of us now, as well as our children and all who follow us.

Mississauga’s Vital Signs measures the quality of life in our community, identifies trends and shares opportunities for action. Mississauga’s strengths and most pressing needs are examined across thirteen distinct indicators: 

Gap Between Rich and Poor

Income – Is concerned with the growing gap between the rich and poor in Mississauga. In this section information around income levels in the city will be shared. By providing this information Vital Signs is providing information those in the city need if they hope to address the divide in our neighbourhoods between those who have and those who do not.

Labour – In Vital Signs the work section is concerned with the labour force in Mississauga. Vital Signs shares data and insights into the diversity of our work force and unemployment.

Food Security – Highlights and shares important information about access to food in Mississauga. The section is informed by data collected from Mississauga’s food banks and sheds light on the need for good food in our city and its increasing costs.

Housing – The section on housing in Vital Signs is concerned with housing affordability in the city. By sharing how much families and individuals are paying for housing and what these costs amount to as part of the household budget the Foundation provides insight into how affordable of city Mississauga is to live.

Getting Started

Youth Well-Being – This section is concerned with how well our children and youth are faring in Mississauga. Vital Signs will provide data around youth engagement and feelings of belonging as well as youth unemployment and youth physical and mental health.

Education – Data here is reflective of the level and quality of education our youth and post-secondary students receive in Mississauga. There is also attention paid to the costs and need for child care in our city. By analyzing the education level of our city the Foundation is able to provide an idea of well-educated the city is.

Newcomers – Mississauga has the largest growing immigrant population in Canada. Newcomers pour into our city through a variety of different means. Vital Signs hopes to provide insight into who these newcomers are and how they fare in our city. 

Health and Safety

Wellness – Is the section of vital signs that is concerned with how physically and mentally healthy Mississauga is. By taking a look at public health data and sharing the most important indicators the Foundation hopes to provide residents of Mississauga with a look at how

Crime Prevention – This set of indicators is concerned with the safety found in Mississauga’s communities and neighborhoods. The Foundation provides crime rate, crime clearance rate and neighbourhood watch data to provide a snapshot of Mississauga’s level of safety.

Community Engagement

Community Belonging – Vital Signs shares information and data around how well people in Mississauga feel like they belong and feel included in the city. This data is important to the city and its residents because studies show that the more people feel engaged and included by their city the more they become involved in it. As more and more people engage with the city and its resources other social determinants of health and wellbeing increase as well. 

Arts and Culture – The robust arts and culture sector in Mississauga is thriving. Vital Signs provides information about the robust offering of arts and culture programming available in the city. Information and data is also provided to understand how the arts and culture sector in Mississauga helps to transform our urban environments, shared spaces and vibrant culture.

Creating a Sustainable City

Environment – Vital Signs provides data and information around how Mississauga is working to create a more environmentally friendly city. This section provides information and data around how Mississauga is creating a more sustainable city through sustainable development.

Getting Around – This is a section of Vital Signs that will share commuter data for Mississauga. It highlights how people get around this city, how our public transit is utilized and how Mississaugans are taking advantage of more active, environmentally friendly ways of travelling.

We previously released Vital Signs in 2015. You can download a copy of this document by clicking the image below.

CFofM Vital Signs 2015 Website Button