We are very excited to announce that this year we will be holding elections for the four (4) open seats on CCEDNet’s Board of Directors. Before the nomination deadline of April 23, 2025 we received nominations for five (5) candidates whose eligibility were verified by our Credentials Officer, Melissa Lessard, and whose candidacies were approved by our Elections Officer, Christina Eyangos.
All members in good standing are eligible to vote (one membership = one vote). Please review the candidates backgrounds and motivations below prior to casting your vote during the election period from May 8 to May 22.
Derek Bassey
Representing organizational member Fireweed Food Co-op
Winnipeg, MB
Originally from Nigeria, Derek Bassey moved to Canada to pursue a Bachelor of Business Administration through the Canadian Mennonite University. Since May 2021, he has been working as the Finance Coordinator for Fireweed Food Co-op. To Derek, community economic development means relying less on globalization and more on local partners and players. He believes the heart of a community is people’s spirits, and they thrive best when they feel they are safe and encouraged to be themselves. When it comes to good governance, Derek believes the key is open communication, willingness to collaborate, and communicating through conflict. In his spare time, he likes to paint and listen to music.
Derek believes that with his background he can provide operational and governance support to the organization. Furthermore, he is in the process of acquiring his CPA designation to become a licensed accountant. This financial know-how can also provide additional support to CCEDNet.
Noelia Delgado
Representing organizational member CDÉC de Québec
Québec, QC
Noelia Delgado is from Peru. She is trained in Business administration and has an MBA in Management counselling from the École des sciences de la gestion at the Université de Québec à Montréal. She has 16 years of experience in the field of community action and of the social economy. She has been very involved in the Quebec ecosystem through her contribution to CDÉC de Québec (Corporation de développement économique communautaire de Québec), to Chantier de l’économie sociale and to COCDMO (Coalition des organismes communautaires pour le développement de la main-d’œuvre). She also has international experience thanks to her contribution to C.I.T.I.E.S (Centre international de transfert d’innovations et de connaissances en économie sociale et solidaire), to GSEF (Global Social Economic Forum) in 2016, 2018, and 2020, to FSMET (Forum mondial social des économies transformatrices) in 2020 and to RIPESS (Intercontinental network for the promotion of social solidarity economy).
Noelia considers that her involvement in the community development and social economy ecosystem in Quebec and internationally will be an added value to the Board of Directors. Her passion for getting involved and contributing to society’s development through the promotion of equity, diversity, and inclusion will allow her to collaborate with the various CCEDNet committees.
Barb Rallison
Representing organizational member Institute for Community Prosperity
Calgary, AB
Barb Rallison is a facilitator, educator and practitioner of social impact. In her role as Associate Director of the Institute for Community Prosperity at Mount Royal University, Barb oversees several of the student-oriented and community-oriented social innovation and systems leadership initiatives offered through the Institute including Catamount, Systems Leadership Sandbox and StartWork. Previously, Barb worked for Momentum, a changemaking organization and long standing CCEDNet member. Her work at Momentum focused on strengthening support for social entrepreneurship both locally and provincially. Barb is also a co-founder of Local Investing YYC, an impact investment cooperative that provides capital to Calgary-based businesses generating social and environmental returns. She has also served on the board of Green Calgary and participated on the Benefit-Driven advisory taskforce with the City of Calgary.
Barb believes that her skillset and background experience are well aligned to continue serving as a Director with CCEDNet. Her Board involvement has included participating on the finance committee, nominations committee and theory of change working group. She looks forward to the opportunity to continue to support CCEDNet’s mission.
Matthew Rempel
Representing organizational member Strategy Made Simple
Winnipeg, MB
Matthew Rempel has been providing support to social enterprises in Manitoba for the past 8 years as a consultant in social enterprise development, marketing, and media production. He has previously provided paid and volunteer services to CCEDNet as a social enterprise development coach through the SPARK program, as a facilitator for workshops held both in person, and online, and as a presenter at The Manitoba Gathering. Each of these experiences, as well as conversations with staff over many years inform his view of what CCEDNet has been and what we could be. His experience in network development, strategic planning, organizational development support, and media production will be elements that he leans on if selected to contribute to governance and decision making for CCEDNet members.
Matthew sees this moment as a time to lead while we are in a period of uncertainty. Being able to weigh both the risks and the opportunities of the situations and the environment that surrounds us will be critical for us to see success as a network in the coming years. He is excited to be involved in national discussions about community based economic development and pushing for further understanding and collaboration between provinces. On a more personal note, Matthew would like to contribute to a stronger CCEDNet because the network provided significant support for him as he was initially developing in his career.
Shanthi Senthe
Individual Member
Windsor, ON
Dr. Shanthi E. Senthe is an Associate Professor of Law at the Faculty of Law at the University of Windsor, whose research and teaching explore the intersections of corporate-commercial law, financial inclusion, and entrepreneurship. Her work examines how legal frameworks can support equitable economic development and advocates for policies that empower communities through access to business and financial tools. She is particularly interested in small business law, creative entrepreneurship, and the legal dimensions of the sports, arts, and entertainment industries. With a strong commitment to community engagement, her scholarship and advocacy operate at both national and international levels, advancing inclusive approaches to economic justice and sustainable development.
This year, the Board election process is using STV for a ranked choice vote through the Montreal-based platform Simply Voting. We hope you enjoy this fairer voting system.
How to Vote
All CCEDNet members in good standing are eligible to vote. An email will be sent to you via Simply Voting with your login credentials. Once you’ve logged in, you’ll see the roster of candidates up for election and you’ll have the opportunity to rank each candidate (to successfully vote you’ll need to rank all five candidates). If you encounter any issues please contact us at or call 1-877-202-2268.
Don’t Forget to Register for the AGM
Election results will be announced at CCEDNet’s 2025 Annual General Meeting, which will be held entirely online on June 12th. CCEDNet members who would like to participate must register in order to receive the meeting link.
