Trent Community Research Centre

This paper evaluates the effectiveness of OPIRG Peterborough in supporting its working groups. The conceptual framework is built on a literature review drawing on relevant themes, policy review of PIRGS across Ontario and interviews from working group participants to identify working group dynamics and best practices. Results suggest that communication, training, networking, planning and reflection are areas in which OPIRG both demonstrated strengths and weakness. Recommendations for OPIRG staff and working group members are included. This study extends previous discussion on effective campaigning and relationships between OPIRG and working groups by implementing planning mechanisms within the working groups and offering networking opportunities on a local, provincial and PIRG to PIRG basis.

Unintentional injury is the leading cause of death and injury in children and youth in Canada. The Peterborough Risk Watch Network aims to reduce the rate and prevalence of injury for children and youth in the city and county of Peterborough, Ontario. The project aims to locate local injury data sources and create a rubric tool that will be used to evaluate the injury data sources for their potential applicability with injury prevention initiatives. The project involves an environmental scan, personal discussions, and the creation of a rubric assessment tool. The environmental scan involves looking for organizations that deal with children and youth in Peterborough and to see if they possess injury information. The number of injury data sources pertaining to Peterborough children and youth is limited. The rubric assessment tool developed is digital and user friendly. The data sources' usefulness is limited based on the type of information contained does not go into great detail. The future recommendations based on the project outcomes are to investigate a greater variety of organizations for injury data, ensure a greater breakdown of data once collected, and the creation of a centralized child and youth injury data system.