Sunday Discussions (see chart)
On Sunday, all conference participants gathered to review reports from Saturday's discussion groups and to priorize issues using the voting method of "dotmocracy." Six major areas, of the fifteen that were discussed in groups, were identified as priorities (grey boxes); draft project proposals for these areas are included in Appendix A of this report. The remaining nine areas (white boxes) were clustered under these headings, in some cases under more than one heading. The chart on the previous page illustrates their distribution.

Congress Results

Though the fixed time available at the congress did not allow for the full scope of objectives to be achieved over this set period (as is discussed in more detail under "Evaluation"), a majority of goals were met and more than sufficient ideas and information were produced to generate ongoing results.

Firstly, conference organizers managed to attract and facilitate the participation of a diversity of women from across Ontario and Canada. In attendance were First Nations women, older women, women with disabilities, young women, women from geographically diverse locations, women of color and economically disadvantaged women. This diversity is reflected in the recommendations from both the Friday workshops and the Saturday discussion groups.

Secondly, the six theme areas identified by CCLOW's Board of Directors as important for their current and future relevance to women's education and training were thoroughly discussed among women with particular knowledge and experience in the areas, and, through the conference, a wealth of information, connections, ideas and initiatives were shared. The number of recommendations resulting from the conference, as well as the opportunities identified for future work (as outlined in the attached proposals), are an indication of the fruitfulness of these discussions.

Thirdly, a number of possible partnerships were identified for productive work in the area of women's education and learning. One potentially fruitful partnership was identified between ACTEW and CCLOW. These organizations are no strangers to each other but it was evident that they might collaborate more fully, particularly within the arena of new technologies on information sharing, advocacy and the execution of projects. A number of potential partnerships were also identified in the area of women's entrance into non- traditional or technical occupations. CCLOW and WITT-NN already possess a history of collaboration, and conference discussions re-affirmed how these organizations could continue to work together to promote the participation of women in trades, technical and blue collar work. The workshops on the innovative programs "Power Up" and the "Learning Experience Centre" generated a great deal of interest in bringing computer or technical skills to women, and in collaborating in order to have these programs, or similar ones, delivered in other provinces. In the area of violence and its impact on learning, participants were very encouraged by the success of the Stardale Women's Group from Saskatchewan. Those involved in the Saturday discussion group recommended that the Stardale Women's Group act as the hub of an ongoing network on trauma. Other connections were made between family resource programs and literacy programs, recognizing the value of incorporating family needs into an effort to bring literacy skills to women.

Partnerships were also recommended, through participant evaluation forms, between CCLOW and organizations such as Women's Legal Education and Action Fund (with respect to women's unequal access to training and EI benefits); Feminists for Just Public Policy (FEMJPP); Web Girls and Wired Women; the Centre for Literacy in Montreal; Status of Women Council of the NWT; the YWCA (with respect to learning programs that incorporate a mind/body/spirit approach); the Canadian Research Institute for the Advancement of Women (CRIAW); and the Canadian Students' Federation.