Focus Areas

Toronto was not intended to become the massive city it is today, so its infrastructure and built form are forever catching up to what it has become. Managing the Toronto area's rapid growth has become a major political and planning issue as "getting it right" means preserving the livable neighbourhoods we already have while allowing for appropriate growth. City Building is where architecture, urban planning and civic improvements meet and the kinds of communities we want to live in are created and maintained.read on…

The Toronto area is Canada's largest design centre and has the third largest design workforce in North America (after New York and Boston).With a number of post secondary institutions offering training the workforce here is highly talented and often on the cutting edge of innovation, doing business around the globe. read on…

The City of Toronto's motto is "Diversity our Strength" and throughout the entire GTA diversity of race, religion and lifestyle are celebrated and set Toronto apart from many other world cities. Over 100 languages are spoken here and you are likely to find an expression of that culture in at least one neighbourhood, whether in the form of an ethnic event, restaurant or retail shop. It's a diversity that continues to grow: between 2001 and 2005 the Toronto area saw an average of 107,000 international immigrants arrive each year and almost three-quarters of Torontonians aged 15 and older have direct ties to immigration. The GTA is truly the place where the world meets, and mixes.read on…

The healthcare and wellness industry in and around Toronto includes a vast network of hospitals, doctors and health care professionals that are taking care of our residents and keeping them healthy. On top of this an abundance of research and innovation takes place here. These range from the labs and firms located in downtown Toronto's Discovery District to the many companies around the GTA who are doing global business.read on…

The Toronto area is home to the densest cluster of higher education institutions in Canada, with three universities, four colleges and other private institutions. read on…

The GTA is home to many of Ontario's world-leading researchers, entrepreneurs and innovation-based companies that are "inventing the future." These include companies that are finding new ways to treat disease or generate power in cleaner ways. Technology companies are developing ways for businesses to operate more efficiently and to communicate and share information better.read on…

Sustainability is big - and getting bigger - in the GTA. A commitment to hybrid busses, designing LEED certified buildings, renewable energy, waste diversion and encouraging active transportation (walking, biking) are all part of this region's efforts to adopt practices and lifestyles that reduce our dependence on natural resources, cut pollution levels and improve our quality of life. read on…

Toronto is a city on the move and though the automobile is still an important part of that, public transportation is increasingly the focus of nearly all future development as every traffic jam costs the region money.read on…