Canadian CED Network

At the last meeting of CCEDNet’s Board of Directors, Diana Jedig was selected as the new President of the Board.  She takes over from Caroline Lachance, who had been President since 2009. 

Diana is Executive Director for the Ontario Association of Community Futures Development Corporations. Her direct experience with the Community Futures Program has been a key strength in ensuring the Network responds to the needs of its members.  She has been on the CCEDNet Board since 2005. 

The Board extends its warm appreciation to Caroline Lachance for her leadership over the last four years.  

CCEDNet’s new Board Executive is:

  • Diana Jedig, President
  • Carol Madsen, Vice-President
  • Caroline Lachance, Past-President
  • Christine Landry, Treasurer
  • Yvon Poirier, Secretary

Learn more about CCEDNet’s Board >>

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Earlier this spring, I was amazed to read a new research report prepared by UK group Localise West Midlands evaluating how localised and community economic development can be scaled up to help create more successful, socially just and diverse places. 

Their literature review struck me as one of the most thorough analyses of the evidence base for CED that I have seen for a long time.  But I wanted to get the opinion of an expert, so I asked honorary lifetime CCEDNet member Stewart Perry to review the document and provide his comments on how relevant it was for a North American audience. 

Stewart is one of the pioneers of CED in the US and Canada, as both a policy adviser and a designer and manager of CED institutions. As head of the (U.S.) Center for Community Economic Development, he helped create the first finance institution for CED, the Massachusetts Community Development Finance Authority. He helped start Canada’s first community development corporation, New Dawn Enterprises, and headed the Community Economic Development Center in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. A consultant, researcher, and author, Stewart currently specializes in community and development finance as an associate with the Canadian Centre for Community Renewal. 

Stewart generously agreed to review the report and here is what he had to say:

  • This is a very valuable consolidation of the literature on the evidence for a crucial range of impacts that CED intends, both economic and social impacts.  It usefully enlarges the analysis to the general frame of localizing economic effort.
  • It’s a careful and penetrating analysis.
  • A side benefit is that it explores what might be called the other side of the debate: for example, that big corporations do the important work.  It cites evidence for the other side, but carefully analyzes it.
  • It recognizes and uses the fundamental insight that social and economic conditions are intricately and visibly interwoven at the local level, entangled such that we have to take this into account in any programming and policy.  This should be evident yet is so often not recognized.
  • There are insightful comments on the relation of the idea and reality of social enterprises in regard to CED — with the former seen as being a valuable but limited strategy in what has to be a more ambitious effort
  • It might have benefitted by closer contact with USA literature of yore, especially to use the careful work of Avis Vidal, Rebuilding Communities (1992).
  • Some of the UK vocabulary would need translating for a North American audience:
    • high street  – which I take to mean the downtown or commercial district?
    • inward investment  – importing outside industry and its branch plants
    • the spend – the expenditure, particularly government budget expenditures
    • multiples – chain stores?
  • I was struck by some of the helpful analysis of the hard-to-assess contradictory findings—for example, whether little local shops or a chain supermarket will serve a local population better. Some of the findings were fascinating news to me.

Stewart’s reaction suggests that the report is a valuable addition to the literature that we here in North America would benefit from taking note. 

I encourage other CCEDNet members to have a look and share your thoughts on the state of evidence for CED.   Please log in or register to post comments below.

Download the Literature Review >>

See the other Mainstreaming CED project reports >>

 

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The Government of British Columbia announced last week that companies now can register to become a Community Contribution Company (CCC or C3), a new business model that balances social responsibility and profit.

Designed to bridge the gap between for-profit businesses and non-profit enterprises, this innovative business model is the first of its kind in Canada.

Longtime CCEDNet member David LePage was among a group that registered a company on the very first day. 

The BC government developed this new type of hybrid business model to respond to emerging demand for socially focused investment options. C3 status signals that a company has a legal obligation to conduct business for social purposes and not purely for private gain. This obligation will help attract capital not currently accessible to the social enterprise sector by appealing to philanthropic investors who still expect some financial return.

Social enterprises can exist in many business areas and have many different objectives, including health, environmental, cultural or educational. For example, a social enterprise could provide recycling services in a community with the social objective of generating employment in collecting recyclables and applying most of the profits to a local charity.

The regulations were developed in consultation with members of the B.C. Social Innovation Council. Public consultations held in 2010 supported the idea of a new business model like the C3, and the resulting amendments were well-received by the social enterprise community.

C3s are based on a model first introduced in the United Kingdom in 2005 (Community Interest Companies or CICs).  They differ from a typical private company in that they are subject to an “asset lock”. There is a strict cap on dividends that can be paid out to shareholders.  The bulk of a C3’s profits must go toward the C3’s community purposes or be retained or transferred to a qualified entity, such as a charity.

Read the BC Government’s Press Release >>

For more information about C3s >>

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CCEDNet’s Board is pleased to announce that Wendy Keats has been named Director for a term ending at the 2014 Annual General Meeting. 

Wendy is a co-founder and the Executive Director of the Co-operative Enterprise Council of New Brunswick, a leading CED agency in the province. Prior to this, she spent 18 years as a private CED consultant and trainer working with nearly 200 community groups in organizational development, strategic planning, governance, project management, and many other development areas. Wendy is a certified mediator and served as a senior faculty member of UPEI’s Centre for Conflict Studies for more than a decade.  She provides training and mediation services to all levels of government, business and the community. Wendy sits on numerous boards and committees related to CED and has a special passion for youth engagement and renewable energy.  She lives completely off-the-grid in the woods of Salisbury, tending her gardens and relaxing on the river whenever the hectic world of CED allows it.

Learn more about Wendy and other Board members >>

Board membership is open to all CCEDNet members, with at-large Director positions elected each year.  If you are interested in joining the Board, contact us or watch for the annual call for Board nominations, which is usually sent to members in February. 

 

 

 

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On July 24, Benoît Hamon, France’s Minister responsible for the Social and Solidarity Economy, presented a new bill on the Social and Solidarity Economy. 

The proposed law is described as a key part of the government’s ‘battle for employment,’ supporting the Social and Solidarity Economy sector’s strong growth potential. 

The government notes that, the Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE) sector in France represents 2.4 million workers (1 out of 8 non-public sector jobs) in 200,000 organizations:  non-profits, cooperatives, mutuals, foundations and social enterprises.  In fact, over the last 10 years, the SSE sector created 23% of new jobs, compared with 7% for the traditional economy. 

The bill focuses on five priorities:

  • Amplifying financing for SSE structures and businesses
  • Increasing worker empowerment and control
  • Creating regional employment
  • Consolidating the economic model of SSE businesses
  • Integrating SSE public policies for long term stability

France’s step follows Québec’s introduction of a Social Economy Framework Law earlier this year, and a growing number of other countries which have passed similar legislation. 

See the Government of France’s announcement (in French) >>

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Social enterprises are springing up in every nook and cranny you can imagine.  Some are even hard to get to.  A few weeks ago, a diverse group of non-profit, community, and trades workers, as well as members of the media, boarded a bus to visit one of Manitoba’s newest and boldest social

enterprises, Aki Energy. The tour, co-sponsored by BUILD and the Canadian CED Network, was a method of bringing whoever was interested in direct contact with the work being done and the people doing it.

What unfolded was a story seldom seen by your average urban Canadian, or covered in the mainstream media. Aki Energy, along with the communities that support it, smashes the nefarious misconception that First Nations are takers, recipients, and unwilling to work. The tour showed off two communities that were active, innovative, and eager to work. What’s more is that they are themselves the engine of change. The power of social enterprise was already quite evident.

Aki Energy is a young Aboriginal social enterprise. It was incorporated in early 2013, with its

operations only running since the spring. For now, Aki installs geothermal heating systems on two reserves, Peguis First Nation and Fisher River Cree Nation. Workers are local people who face multiple barriers to employment. Aki Energy connects Aboriginal workers to the green economy, which benefits the community, the environment, and, hopefully, the workers themselves.

The Aki model has become even more viable recently as the Manitoba Government and Manitoba Hydro put into effect PAYS (Pay As You Save), the first piece of legislation of its kind in North America. PAYS reduces the cost of a retrofit from $22,000 to $14,600, a significant amount of which is labour, meaning that it will stay in the community. The initial plan is fifty units for this year. Eventually, Aki hopes to retrofit most of the 1,000 housing units on the two reserves.

Manitoba currently boasts the highest rate of geothermal installations per capita in Canada, and for good reason. By harnessing the naturally stable temperature beneath the earth’s surface, geothermal energy is able to provide green heat and cooling for one third of the cost of traditional systems.

After departing from Neechi Commons, the first stop was a job site in Fisher River Cree Nation. The

crew was installing a geothermal pump that will heat the new community fitness centre, which remains in the early stages of its construction. Geothermal is three-to-five times more efficient than electricity. The Fisher River site was the earliest phase of the geothermal installation process, with the other sites, of which there were three in Peguis, each showing a subsequent stage in the installation process. The tour of the sites imparted a familiarity with the first set of Aki Energy’s workers, as well with the installation process. The workers were wonderfully accommodating and helpful to a group that, by and large, had no experience with the technology.

With a business strategy that employs people who are otherwise often overlooked, mistreated, and generally excluded from the economy, Aki Energy is poised to strengthen the communities, economies, and environments in which it operates. As a local initiative, led by the two reserves, it is also an example of a story far too often overlooked in Canadian media and discourse: that reserves are places of innovation, generosity, energy and pride.

Christopher Thomas is Communications Assistant and CreateAction participant in the Winnipeg office of the Canadian CED Network.  Reach him at c.thomas (at) ccednet-rcdec.ca

This post is one of several CCEDNet will be doing to profile how social enterprises contribute to strong and inclusive communities in preparation for the Social Enterprise World Forum, October 2-4, in Calgary.  Join us there!

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What do shoes and authentic Aboriginal art have in common? Nothing, or so I thought as I was hunting along Queen Street in Toronto looking for a new pair of comfortable shoes. Definitely not my favorite activity, but I couldn’t help noticing the moccasins and mukluks on sale. I was tempted. Buying a pair would be a neat way to show my support for Canadian Aboriginals. Then I realized they were knock-offs made in places like Bali and China, and I changed my mind.

As luck and my job as research and development coordinator for social enterprises at the Canadian Community Economic Development Network would have it, a week later I found myself interviewing the developers of Kitigan, an Aboriginal social enterprise. This one-of-a-kind Aboriginal art business just opened last month and sells authentic, high quality, handmade goods online. Founded by the Ontario Federation of Indian Friendship Centre (OFIFC), Kitigan operates through their ‘social enterprise incubator’ which will enable other Aboriginal social enterprises to develop.

I quickly learned that getting access to the mainstream market is a huge issue for artists such as Georgina Franki, a member of the Tlicho Nation in Behchoko, Northwest Territories. Georgina sells intricately beaded purses made of moose hide. She learned about Kitigan when she brought some of her work to the OFIFC to sell. This online store is a dream come true for her.

For many Aboriginal artists, especially those who live far from cities, travelling to galleries and organizations to sell their work takes away precious time from creating their art. In addition, their work may be under-valued by buyers. As well, as I witnessed while looking for shoes, their original art forms are often replicated by foreign businesses. Kitigan ensures that the artists are being represented properly to customers through accurate descriptions of their art and that they are not being exploited by paying full value for their work.

Chester Langille from OFIFC explained that providing quality products to customers is their number one priority. Nonetheless their social mission is something they are proud of. In addition to providing Aboriginal artisans with an avenue to promote their work and receive revenue through sales and royalties, Kitigan also builds the capacity of Friendship Centres and participating Aboriginal businesses and organizations, who act as their suppliers.  

Kitigan purchases art from their suppliers because they are directly engaged with artists who can be inaccessible to buyers such as Kitigan. In return the suppliers receive commissions on all products sold by Kitigan. Eventually Chester envisions supporting suppliers to have physical distribution outlets which will further build the social economy in their community. I couldn’t believe how streamlined Kitigan was making the process of purchasing authentic Aboriginal art, yet I was still concerned that unsuspecting customers such as myself, may buy an imitation.

All artists selling their products on the website will be certified through Authentically Aboriginal, when it is launched by Kitigan’s partner Nation Imagination. This quickly addressed my worry. This certification is similar to the Fairtrade Certification for customers that want to be sure that they are supporting fair trade products. The brand Authentically Aboriginal enables Aboriginal artists to differentiate their art from those who simply create “native art” through a certificate and serial number associated with their work. It will be the only registry of its type in Canada.

Around 80% Kitigan’s anticipated market consists of non-Aboriginal customers. To find Kitigan’s website, the non-Aboriginal community would typically use labels such as “Native American”, “American Indian”, or “Indian” to search for Aboriginal products online. Nevertheless, it was a conscious decision made at the outset of Kitigan to not list their products using these labels.

Considering that Kitigan is faced with the challenge of attracting business from a customer group that is less aware of Aboriginal artwork and artisans, this decision may appear illogical. However, similar to other social enterprises, Kitigan faces the challenge of serving its social goals and making money. In this case, one of Kitigan’s priorities is its cultural mission and by not listing their products using the above labels, they are honouring the teachings and properly representing the identity of Aboriginal people in Canada.

Kitigan is confident that through search engine optimization techniques, and creative solutions, including partnerships with organizations such as the Ontario Nonprofit Network who can increase the number of backlinks to their website, they will be seeing plenty of traffic and revenue generation.

I encourage you to check out Kitigan and other Aboriginal social enterprises such as those mentioned in Trico Charitable Foundation’s blog. The Osoyoos First Nation’s Nk’mip Cellars is a beautiful winery! As for myself, I am leaving behind the crowded streets and packed stores and jumping onto Kitigan to buy a pair of moccasins that supports authentic Aboriginal arts.

Stephanie Massot is a Social Enterprise Research and Development Co-ordinator and a CreateAction participant in the Toronto office of the Canadian CED Network.  You can reach her at ontario at ccednet-rcdec.ca or on LinkedIn.

This post is one of several CCEDNet will be doing to profile how social enterprises contribute to strong and inclusive communities in preparation for the Social Enterprise World Forum, October 2-4, in Calgary.  Join us there!

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The 20th anniversary of the Santa Maria Fair was held July 11-14 in the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul, providing an occasion for many activities. 

One of those was the 2nd World Social Forum on the Solidarity Economy.  One representative from the Intercontinental Network for the Promotion of the Social Solidarity Economy (RIPESS) was invited to attend, which was the reason Yvon Poirier, Chair of CCEDNet’s International Committee, was there representing RIPESS North America. 

The event celebrated the 10 years of the Brazilian Solidarity Economy Forum as well as the 10 years of the National Secretariat for the Solidarity Economy and 16 years of intercontinental networking for the social solidarity economy that RIPESS has facilitated. 

The numerous activities were a valuable opportunity to learn more about the dynamic solidarity economy movement in Brazil.  It is well established, in particular thanks to the dedication of the Brazilian Secretary of State for the Solidarity Economy, Professor Paul Singer. 

Yvon Poirier, Paul Singer and Brigido Simon

Read more (in Portuguese)

Photo (left): Yvon Poirier, Paul Singer and Brigido Simon

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Board member Yvon Poirier travelled to Edmonton recently to represent CCEDNet in the General Assembly charged with planning the first Peoples’ Social Forum (PSF) in Canada.  At the meeting, a broad range of participants from labour, Aboriginal, international solidarity and other sectors decided to go forward with the project and hold the event in the Ottawa area in August 2014.

CCEDNet has joined the organizing process in order to try and include community economic development and the social economy as economic alternatives on the Forum program.  Our broader goal of building a people-centered agenda in Canada will require reaching out to new constituencies and building new alliances, an opportunity that the Forum offers.  The Forum will explore a very wide range of subjects and can help forge links between often dispersed strategies and efforts.
 
Our partner in Québec, the Chantier de l’économie sociale has also formally joined the Peoples’ Social Forum process.
 
Two reports on the Edmonton meeting are available:

  • a blog post on rabble.ca (in English) by Ethan Cox, an independent  journalist from Montréal
  • an article (in French) by Michel Lambert, the Executive Director of Alternatives, a Canadian NGO working domestically and internationally.

CCEDNet will provide regular updates on preparations for the Forum and hopes that members and partners will get involved, either at the PSF itself, or in regional meetings that will be organised in the months before the event.

Visit the PSF website

Yvon Poirier
CCEDNet participant at the Edmonton meeting
 

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This week, the Credit Union Central of Canada awarded the National Credit Union Community Economic Development Award to Vancity for their Resilient Capital Program. Resilient Capital is dedicated to accelerating the growth of enterprises with proven business models that add to the social, economic and environmental well-being of their communities. To date, Resilient Capital has invested more than $4 million in eleven social enterprises focused on addressing social and environmental challenges, and building resilient communities.

Launched in 2011 in partnership between Vancity and the Vancouver Foundation, the Resilient Capital Program offers depositors the opportunity to make a guaranteed fixed return on their money while backing social enterprises with high growth potential. This successful program has attracted more than 20 institutional and individual depositors who collectively have contributed over $13.5 million in Resilient Capital Term Deposits, including a $3.5 million loan loss reserve provided by the two partners. Vancity was able to leverage its $1.75M investment to create this fund that is expected to reach $15M by summer, 2013.

The Resilient Capital Program offers:

  • Equity investments and loans in highly impactful social enterprises;
  • Funded by CUDIC insured term deposits offered by Vancity; and
  • Secured by loan loss reserve (Vancity and Vancouver Foundation dollars)

To date, Resilient Capital has invested more than $3.5 million in over ten social enterprises focused on addressing social and environmental challenges and building more resilient communities. The number and diversity of community partnerships supported and spawned by the program is no less impressive.

Read more >>

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After meetings in Lima in 1997, Québec in 2001, Dakar in 2005 and Luxembourg in 2009, it is now Asia’s turn.

Every four years, organizations and practitioners of the social solidarity economy, community economic development, fair trade, microfinance and others have met as part of the Intercontinental Network for the Promotion of the Social Solidarity Economy (RIPESS) to discuss and debate how to strengthen our practices, and how to promote our alternatives as a response to the numerous crises, including climate, that we are facing.   

This year, they will meet in Manila, Philippines on October 15-18.  The overall theme selected for the 5th Meeting is Building Social Solidarity Economy as an Alternative Model of Development.  The complete program, with specific themes is posted on line. 

CCEDNet has been a member and active participant in RIPESS since 2002.  In particular, we have been represented on the board by Michael Lewis (to 2005) and Ethel Côté (2005-2009).

A good number of members attended the meetings in 2005 and 2009.  We would like to send a strong group to Manila as well.

We are currently soliciting contributions to a dedicated fund that will allow us to send 3 to 5 people. If ever the funds collected exceeded our requirements, we will put out a call for more participants.

If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact us.

Mike Toye
Executive Director

Yvon Poirier
International Committee Chair

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The Social Finance Awards is an annual award series hosted by SocialFinance.ca. The awards are presented to leaders who are playing a pivotal role in catalyzing the Canadian social finance marketplace.

The awards showcase and celebrate the efforts that individuals and organizations are making to mobilize private capital for public good. Too often these efforts go unnoticed, and there exists an opportunity to inspire action in this field by highlighting the stories of these leaders.

Last year, we celebrated the Most Promising New Financial Player in the Canadian social finance landscape.  Over 2,500 voters cast their votes to determine the winner of the Social Finance Award for 2012 as the RBC Generator Fund with the Casse d’économie solidaire: Desjardins as the second place finalist, and the Toronto Atmospheric Fund as the third place finalist. 

We are excited to announce this year’s theme for the Social Finance Innovator Award as the “Most Promising Collaboration” in the Canadian social finance landscape. 

This year, SocialFinance.ca will present two types of awards. 

  • Social Finance Innovator Award: is an annual people’s choice award that recognizes trailblazing innovators in the Canadian social finance landscape based on a theme selected by SocialFinance.ca
  • Social Finance Excellence Awards: are a series of awards that will recognize players who have demonstrated a strong commitment to building the social finance sector in Canada.  The winner of each award will be determined by SocialFinance.ca based on a predetermined set of data-based criteria

The Award Process

If you are, or you know, an individual or organization that should be recognized for their leadership in impact investing in Canada, be sure to nominate them.

Not sure if you qualify for one of the award categories? Check the detailed Innovator Award criteria and Excellence award criteria that will serve as the basis for determining the award winners.  You can also contact us at for more information about the award criteria or winner determination process.

Award Timeline

Nominations for Innovator and Excellence awards will be accepted during July and August

Judging of Innovator award nominees will take place between August and September

Finalists for Innovator and Excellence awards will be informed by the end of September

Public Voting for the Innovator award finalists will take place in October and November

Announcement of all award winners will take place at the MaRS Centre for Impact Investing’s impact 8 Demo Day

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