Contract opportunity - Rural Culture Liaison

Engaging rural voices in the development of Ottawa's Culture Plan ensures that the city's diverse cultural landscape is fully represented, fostering inclusive policies that reflect the unique heritage, needs, and contributions of rural communities.

The City of Ottawa’s Cultural Development and Initiatives team is looking to hire a rural culture liaison to undertake research and support engagement informing the development of the City of Ottawa’s next Municipal Culture Plan 2026-2031.

The feedback collected through the work of the rural culture liaison will be used to support the inclusion of rural perspectives, voices and needs in:

• The creation of a City-wide definition of culture to be used across the City of Ottawa’s departments and programs
• The development of a five-year action plan to better support cultural access, participation and expression for all
• Mapping and gap analysis of Ottawa’s cultural spaces, resources and artists

Successful candidates must have lived experience of, or demonstrated deep connection to, one or more of Ottawa’s rural communities.

Skills profile

Ideal candidates will have the following knowledge and skills:

• Experience working with rural communities
• Experience (formal or informal) facilitating conversations among community members, including navigating different points of view
• Knowledge of rural communities and rural cultures in the Ottawa area
• Involvement in rural community and cultural organizations, groups or projects
• Bilingual (English/French)
• Driver’s license or transportation plan to support visits across different rural communities

Work to be delivered

• Engagement plan outlining the way the liaison will connect with residents and cultural groups in rural wards
• Budget for delivering engagement activities
• Planning of conversations, interviews and other engagement activities
• Facilitation of planned conversations
• Preparing data for analysis by City staff
• Summary report of findings
• Presentation of findings to community for validation
• Sharing community-validated findings with the City of Ottawa’s Arts and Heritage Development Branch

Timeline

This work will be carried out between October 2025 and December 2025

What does it pay?

This is a temporary, short-term contract of up to $10,000 (inclusive of HST).

This contract does not constitute employment with the City of Ottawa.

Payment breakdown

Estimated rate per hour: $81.90

Planning and budgeting (16 hours)

Preparation of engagement sessions (30 hours)

Engagement sessions with community members (10 x 3 hours)

Validation sessions with community members (10 x 1 hour)

Compiling and preparing information (20 hours)

Report writing (10 hours)

Sharing findings with City staff (3 x 2 hours)

Total anticipated hours: 122

Project budget

This position comes with a project budget of $5,000 to spend towards organizing and delivering engagement activities including, where needed, venue rentals, supplies, and honoraria.

Selection process

All applications will be reviewed by a panel of City staff and a representative of a rural Ottawa community association.

Applications are expected to include:

• A letter or video of interest that outlines your connection to rural Ottawa
• A résumé or CV including community involvement and/or volunteer work

How to apply

Please send your application to culture@ottawa.ca by October 21, 2025

Alternative formats, such as audio/visual applications, will also be accepted.

Questions? Need more information?

If you have any questions about this opportunity please reach out to Thomas Radford at Thomas.Radford@ottawa.ca or 1 (613) 413-2062.

For more information about the City of Ottawa’s next culture plan 2026-2031 please visit Engage Ottawa - Culture Plan. For more information about the City of Ottawa’s cultural development work please visit City of Ottawa - Cultural Development.