This is a recreated image of 23 women visionaries shown next to an image of the 23 Fathers of Confederation. Taken at A Bold Vision Conference (http://aboldvision.ca/home) September 2014.

As women, we have a big, bold, and inclusive vision for the future of Canada. We believe that Canada can, and must, become a model of democracy, human rights fulfillment, and women’s equality, both for ourselves and for the rest of the world. As women, we embrace and are a part of every community and group in the country.
We understand and acknowledge the oppression, disadvantage, violence, and marginalization that women in all our diversity experience. We are dedicated to a future that brings real equality in conditions and circumstances to women and to everyone. Women’s voices bring critical value to areas in which they are currently not heard.
1. The pathway to Canada’s future must be boldly collaborative, building its foundation from the original
nation-to-nation relationships with Indigenous nations. The spirit and intent of the relationships and treaties forged
were based on mutual respect, prosperity, and protection. Reconciliation is fundamental.

2. A challenge in Canada is that the country was shaped by waves of colonization and immigration. Hence,
Canada must begin a new national dialogue where a new Constitutional agreement will be put forward with Québec,
the other provinces and territories, as well as Indigenous nations. We recognize that the future entails an ability to
respect and protect French and Indigenous languages and cultures so they can thrive. This is a necessary precursor to
respecting all other languages. These founding pieces of our shared history need to be fully acknowledged.

3. Confederation was built from East to West, but the North was not a part of the vision. Going forward, we need
to recognize the North and Northerners as the decision makers, and we must uphold the modern treaties and other
agreements forged between Indigenous nations, Federal, and Provincial and Territorial Governments. Northerners
must have access to infrastructure and institutions as they choose, to complete the map of Canada.

4. Canada is a large and complex country. We need to know each other in order to achieve the social cohesion
that will map our future. We need to support the sharing of our history and culture through research and the arts from
coast to coast to coast. We acknowledge that nurturing the creation and expression of our stories and our identities
will ensure a future grounded in possibilities.

5. Because equality is a core value of Canada, we recognize that in order for true equality to be actualized, it must be
substantive and reflected in laws and institutions, and it must be implemented. Building the future of Canada necessitates
that all people have a sense of belonging and full citizenship.

6. We recognize that women of colour, including women from immigrant communities, face specific barriers to
equality, dignity, and humanity in Canada. We also recognize that racialized women stand in solidarity with the men of
their communities to resist systematic racism and violence. There can be no equality for women or any people without
recognizing the specific race-based challenges faced by communities of colour, and that all programs, mechanisms,
organizations, and solutions must take race into account.

7. All people in Canada have the right to personal autonomy, including the right for women to make decisions about their
own bodies.

8. Canada must implement transformative justice models that support marginalized women both as victims of
crime and of criminalization and recognize the devastating impact of incarceration on communities. Addressing
the disproportionate representation of marginalized communities in the justice system involves seeking
community-driven and cross-cultural restorative models.

9. Given that economic research has demonstrated that inequality is detrimental to a healthy economy, it is
imperative that we take action to ensure economic wealth is shared fairly. This is central to the future of Canada and
to our ability to deliver on Canada’s core value of equality. In order to achieve full equality, we must support labour 1 In the context of the 150th anniversary of the Charlottetown Conference, where 23 Fathers of Confederation met to set the foundation of Canada, 23 women were selected from across Canada for their accomplishments and leadership met in Charlottetown to develop a shared vision for the future of Canada in the coming 150 years. and social movements and other civil-society organizations
that act as equality-promoting forces – as we cannot just depend on markets to deliver full equality for women.
Because of women’s persistent economic inequality and the growing number of economically marginalized people,
we must reinvest in Canada’s social programs so they can foster and support equality.

10. Accessible education is a right to allow everyone throughout their lives to achieve their full potential in any
fields that they choose. We boldly suggest a society that supports life-long learning and invests in creative research
and development that will advance scientific knowledge to positively benefit people in Canada.

11. We believe that the work of people, mostly women, providing paid and unpaid care, is essential to our economy
now and will remain so in the future. Providing a!ordable caregiving support systems is critical to allow access and
opportunity for all socio-economic strata.

12. We need to redouble our e!orts to work across all sectors and all jurisdictions for truly accountable systems
for health in order to achieve our bold vision that all people living in the territory of Canada shall be as healthy as
possible physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.

13. Over the past 150 years, the people living in the territory of Canada transitioned from largely rural to largely urban.
As urbanization will keep expanding in the future, the role of municipalities, their revenues and their power in providing
essential services – important determinants of the quality of life – must be reevaluated without leaving rural Canada
behind.

14. As good governance was chosen by the fathers of confederation as a founding value, we emphasize that
women and Indigenous nations must be full partners in the governance of Canada in the future. A commitment
to gender parity in all governing bodies in the public and private sector merits a bold e!ort to achieve that. Women
and civil-society organizations must have mechanisms that foster and support women’s full participation in shaping
policies and holding governments to account.

15. The bounty of nature has shaped this country. A healthy environment is one of the key legacies for the
future inhabitants of the territory of Canada. To prepare this future, the Canada of today should transition rapidly
towards sustainable energy and address climate change.

16. We collectively have no future unless we protect our people, especially children and youth, and our land, water,
and nations. We need to always consider our future generations, and this should be at the forefront of all
decision making.

Written and agreed upon in Charlottetown, September 26, 2014