Canada's community foundations have gained recognition with an Impact Award from the U.S.-based Community Indicators Consortium for their leadership on Vital Signs, a tool used to measure quality of life in Canadian communities.

The annual report is released in Sudbury by Sudbury Community Foundation. The award goes to projects that “best demonstrate the power of indicators to drive community change,” Sudbury Community Foundation said in a press release. Community research projects from Australia, Minnesota and Cincinnati were also recognized.

“Like the other projects recognized, Vital Signs gives Canadian communities the data they need to set priorities that are strategic and responsive to local needs and opportunities,” said Ian Bird, president and CEO of Community Foundations of Canada. “Our network is honoured to receive this recognition and we share this award with all the local organizations who work with us on Vital Signs and who use it as a tool for action.”

Vital Signs data has acted as a catalyst for action on many fronts from innovative responses to homelessness in Victoria and targeted wellness strategies in Alberta to new active youth programs in Toronto, CFC said in the press release. Vital Signs have been collected and shared on the Vital Signs website at www.vitalsignscanada.ca.

More than 30 communities participate in the Vital Signs program, with local and national reports released every year. The reports are a compilation of research from numerous sources, many of them local, which help communities make connections between issues and trends in different areas. The findings are presented in a reader-friendly format to make them as accessible as possible.

Canada's Vital Signs report is also published to provide a national snapshot of issues facing communities across the country.

The SCF has been participating in the Vital Signs program for the past five years, and will be releasing its sixth edition in October.

“We have continued to use this report to help us better understand our city,” said Carmen Simmons, executive director of the Sudbury Community Foundation. “It helps us to realize both the areas in which we thrive and where our challenges are.”

The CIC Impact Awards will be presented Nov. 15-16.

For more information about Sudbury Community Foundation, visit www.sudburycf.ca or www.vitalsignssudbury.ca.