Conference Program

Back by popular demand, prolific journalist Chantal Hébert returns to ROMA 2026 for another passionate address about public policy and national politics.

Chantal Hébert is a freelance political columnist frequently featured on the radio, television, and in print. She is also a weekly participant on CBC’s The National’s political panel “At Issue” and Peter Mansbridge’s podcast, “Good Talk.” 

Concurrent Sessions:

1. The Dirt on Cemeteries  
   Municipalities are responsible for abandoned cemeteries within their jurisdiction. There has been a growing number of rural municipalities who have had to take responsibility for cemeteries as local places of worship are sold, often without sufficient care and maintenance funds. This session will provide rural municipalities with information and insights on their responsibilities for cemeteries in their community.
    
2. Leveraging New Opportunities to Develop Housing in Rural Ontario  
   Strategic methods and innovative ways can be used to leverage opportunities to grow rural communities and create new market and non-market housing for low- and moderate-income households. An opportunity to explore is working with Build Canada Homes to ensure that rural Ontario will benefit from this new federal housing initiative.
    
3. Strengthening Rural Vitality through Arts and Culture  
   This concurrent will explore how arts and culture can be a driving force for spurring economic development in rural communities and will share on the ground experiences from rural municipalities. 
    
4. Rural Road Safety  
   Rural roads tend to be older, in poorer condition, and incorporate only basic road safety infrastructure. As a result, while rural Ontario is home to 17 per cent of the population, 55 per cent of the road fatalities occur on rural roads. This session hears from municipalities that have been able to successfully improve road safety and discusses potential approaches to addressing this issue across province. 

Plenary Program

• Welcome
• Opening Keynote: Chantal Hébert
• ROMA Chair, Christa Lowry
• AGM
• Rural Infrastructure:

Infrastructure investment is critical to supporting growing communities, however, funding constraints severely limit rural municipalities' ability to invest in and maintain infrastructure, exacerbated by their vast geographies and small populations. This session explores and addresses rural Ontario’s unique infrastructure challenges.

Plenary Program

Concurrent Sessions:

1. Best Practices from Rural Community Safety and Wellbeing Plans 
   Community Safety and Wellbeing Plans must be renewed every four years. With many communities coming to the end of their first cycle, this session will share lessons learned, best practices, and discuss further support needed to strengthen community safety in rural Ontario.

2. Strategies for Managing Rural Land 
    
3. The Roadmap for Waste – Unpacking Where Rural Municipalities Fit 
   Explore the current challenges and trends of municipal waste management and the impacts and/or opportunities that transitioning to a circular economy will have for rural municipalities. Explore what the role of municipalities in waste management should be going forward as we move towards producer responsibility mode and learn about innovative solutions to advancing the circular economy in local communities. 

Concurrent Sessions:

1. Unpacking the Implications of a New Code of Conduct 
   A new standardized code of conduct and an integrity commissioner process will have implications for all municipally elected officials. Join this interactive session to learn perspectives and reflect on your own to inform your state of readiness for this change.

2. Applying the IRAP in Rural Contexts 
   This session will discuss how ROMA members can apply AMO’s Indigenous Reconciliation Action Plan in their communities. It provides an overview of what the IRAP is and how it can help guide their relationships with Indigenous residents in their communities and neighbouring First Nations. 
    
3. Municipal Financial Planning
    
4. Getting Accurate Information to Residents  
   Reduced civic knowledge, the decline in local journalism, and misinformation easily shared through social media are fueling incivility and toxic discourse. This session looks at strategies municipalities can use to get accurate information about municipal services and Council decisions seen and understand by residents. 

Plenary Program

Registration Open

Plenary Program

• Access to Health in Rural Communities

Rural communities are disproportionately impacted by Ontario's health crisis. Despite being a provincial responsibility, rural municipal governments are developing solutions that meet the needs of their own communities. This session will showcase innovations built in rural Ontario, for rural Ontario that are making a difference in the health of rural Ontarians. 

• Leading the Way on Ontario's Economic Resilience

In response to changing a changing trade landscape, all levels of government are looking for opportunities to unleash Ontario’s full potential and build our economic resilience. Learn how municipalities can lead the way in supporting key rural industries.