On September 10, 2019, Manitobans will go to the polls to elect our provincial government. The province is responsible for so many important aspects of our community’s futures – local economic and enterprise development, community development, housing, social services and addressing poverty, and taking care of our environment and earth. We know that our shared movement for Community Economic Development – with local & fair local economies, no poverty, and more sustainable communities – has the solutions to tackle some of our province’s toughest social, economic, and environmental challenges.

This resource page is both to help make CED a priority this election, and to keep the community informed about developments throughout the campaign.

Platform Updates

Election Information – How to Vote

Public Policy Road Map for Manitoba’s Sustainable & Inclusive Social, Economic, and Environmental Future

Election Events

Platform Updates

Our Collective Vision is sustainable and inclusive communities directing their own social, economic and environmental futures. There are numerous promises from Manitoba’s four major political parties related to our vision for Manitoba’s social, economic, and enviromental future.

Below are some of the key highlights from each party’s platform related to the priority areas of our Public Policy Road Map. In cases where our partners have done analysis or questionnaires, we have links to that information.

Otherwise, the vast majority of the text is taken directly from the publicly available platforms of the political parties. Links to these documents can be found at the bottom of this page. At times, information was added from party’s specific announcements, press releases, and comments at public election forums and debates. We accept any corrections or additions to the information presented, though believe it is an accurate representation of key commitments written in party’s public platforms.

Social Future – Ending Poverty

For information related to party’s commitments related to ending poverty, social assistance/Livable Basic Needs Benefits, minimum wage, housing, childcare, and mental health, refer to the Make Poverty History Manitoba coalition’s platform update.

You can also watch highlights from the Hunger & Poverty Provincial Forum here.

Winnipeg Harvest also released a Manitoba Election Scorecard, available with great summary of party promises.

Economic Future

Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba

Refocus the responsibilities of the Social Impact Office to centralize and modernize various strategies including SIBs, social finance, social enterprise, and social impact procurement
Renew Manitoba’s Sector Council program to increase employer investment in training, and ensure post-secondary training is aligned with the labour market to give our students the best chance for rewarding careers
Fast track the development of Manitoba’s Skills, Talent and Knowledge Strategy. The Plan will focus on strengthening connections between industry, employers and apprenticeship and training providers
Implement a comprehensive MB job works and economic growth plan to add 40,000 jobs to the private sector
Support an employment-first approach where employment is the primary goal for working age adults with an intellectual disability
Create a new Advisory group of employers and advocates to develop the employment potential of persons with disabilities
Create a Team to Grow Manitoba including the Premier’s Enterprise Team, our Economic Growth Committee of Cabinet, the new Manitoba Economic Development Office (EDO) and our strategic partners (Travel Manitoba, North Forge, World Trade Centre) and regional partners (Communities Economic Development Fund (CEDF), Economic Development Winnipeg (EDW), Rural and Winnipeg Metropolitan Region)
Establish a new rural economic development hub, based in Brandon, to service the unique needs and growth potential of rural Manitoba
Work with industry to identify opportunities to grow investment and job creation within target sectors including agriculture, food processing, mining, forestry, transportation/logistics, manufacturing (including green innovation) and financial services
Support at least five more social impact bonds (SIB) in second term
Grow Manitoba’s community foundation network by creating a $5 million fund to permanently support the growth of community foundations through training and development, technology support, and investment management services and extend provincial participation in Endow Manitoba’s 24 Hour Giving Challenge until 2026

New Democratic Party of Manitoba

Invest in infrastructure like schools, roads, and hospitals creating 50,000 jobs
Increase small business tax threshold
Focus on smart job growth by convening an annual Tech Summit, which includes innovation and creative economy, with education leaders, entrepreneurs, and labour, to listen to the experts, and make sure we are training workers for the jobs of tomorrow
Create good jobs, bring unemployed Manitobans back into the workforce, and at the same time, meet social needs by better aligning social enterprises and government procurement
Work with industry to create a Centre of Excellence for Infrastructure Innovation
Create job opportunities for Indigenous peoples by putting Resource Revenue Sharing into a Jobs Fund for Indigenous communities
Use social enterprise as part of Manitoba Housing’s renovation and construction program to build new social and affordable housing units throughout Winnipeg, rural Manitoba, and Northern Manitoba

Manitoba Liberal Party

Create a Manitoba Business Development Bank (MBDB) that would provide investments in growth-focused Manitoba businesses, including start-ups, scale-ups, co-ops, social enterprise, and farming. It would be province-wide and available to entrepreneurs whether they are in Winnipeg, rural or northern Manitoba, or on a First Nation Economic Development
MBDB would include microfinance ($2,000-$5,000) up to larger investments in the $10-million range and provide equity investments as “patient money” over a 10-15 year time horizon, to encourage true innovation
Launching a campaign that encourages Manitobans to “shop local” at locally-owned Manitoba businesses – including stores, services, arts, culture, sports and tourism.
Enhancing Manitoba government procurement to make it easier for Manitoba businesses to sell their products and services to the Manitoba government, and for the Manitoba government to consider “community return on investment” as a factor in spending and procurement decisions, not just “value for money.”
A voluntary “Manitoba Works for Good” jobs program that would pay individuals who find themselves out of work with to do jobs in the public interest, as an alternative to EIA or basic income

Green Party of Manitoba

Offer support to businesses interested in making the transition to renewable energy
Undertake measures intended to ensure that all economic activity and its impact are both ecologically sustainable and socially just
Undertake actions to replace jobs lost during the transition away from fossil fuels with a larger amount of better, long-term employment opportunities with more social and environmental benefits
Make local industry a priority by encouraging trade that is sensible, sustainable, and ultimately beneficial to Manitobans
Support and invest in small Manitoban companies producing goods for local markets by directing government assistance toward smaller businesses, especially new and young independent entrepreneurs
Support and invest in community economic development initiatives
Support green energy construction projects that will create jobs and help transition rural and northern communities to energy independence

Tackling Climate Change

For information related to party’s commitments on tackling climate change, reducing emissions, and more, refer to the great resources below:

Wilderness Committee Manitoba Votes 2019: Candidate Survey Results

Coverage from the Forum for Our Future from Sustainable Building Manitoba

Sustainable Community-Led Development

While we assume that many of the priorities in all the party platforms will affect or include community-based organizations, they are not specifically referred to as far as we can see.

Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, & Access

For information related to party’s commitments on the five priority disability issues from the Disability Matters Vote campaign, click here.

Many other priorities in the party platforms relate to inclusion or diversity, but aren’t specifically connected to CCEDNet Manitoba’s set of resolutions. We suggest reading through the platforms with a lens toward Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, & Access.

Links to Party Platforms:

Quoted text above and more information is available from Manitoba’s political party platforms, found here:

Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba

New Democratic Party of Manitoba

Manitoba Liberal Party

Green Party of Manitoba

Other Policy Backgrounders:

Make Poverty History Manitoba’s backgrounder on the six policy priority areas are here.

Check out these one-pager Voting Guide and Information Sheets, produced by the Social Planning Council of Winnipeg here.

Read this important backgrounder on issues facing newcomers & refugees, produced by MANSO (Manitoba Association of Newcomer-Serving Organizations). This backgrounder highlights key facts, issues, and questions for candidates and is intended to support facts-based dialogue on these issues.

Election Information – How to Vote

Election day is September 10, 2019

Advance Voting is: Thursday, August 29 to Thursday, September 5. More info about times & locations here.

Use CBC Manitoba’s Election Voters’ Guide for all you need to know before you vote.

Public Policy Road Map for Manitoba’s Sustainable & Inclusive Social, Economic, and Environmental Future

Unveiling the Public Policy Road Map for Manitoba’s Social, Economic, and Environmental Future

We are proud and excited to unveil the Canadian CED Network Manitoba’s newly revitalized Public Policy Road Map. Over the past two years, members have shared that our movement requires an organized articulation of our collective vision for Manitoba’s future.

These are the priorities of our Network – reimagined as a Public Policy Road Map for Manitoba’s Social, Economic, and Environmental Future. While just in time for Tuesday’s provincial election, this Road Map will guide our advocacy, organizing, and collective voice every day of the year, no matter the results on Tuesday night.

Read the Road Map here!

It is our collective belief that if Manitoba follows this Road Map rooted in a Community Economic Development vision, our social, economic, and environmental future will be stronger and our communities will be more inclusive, democratic, and sustainable.

When taken all together, the recommendations proposed in this document, while not exhaustive, represent solutions to some of Manitoba’s most challenging, interconnected issues.

As members know, our public policy mandate is the result of a democratic decision-making process. Every year, members work together to create a pragmatic, wide-ranging and solutions-focused set of public policy resolutions. This is the result.

When you go to vote on Tuesday, consider this Road Map when you make your decision. Ask your candidates when they knock on your door if they’ll support a Community Economic Development vision for Manitoba’s future. Copies of this Road Map will be sent to every elected MLA after the election.

In the coming days, we’ll be posting a party platform analysis, up against our revamped Public Policy Road Map.

Our Collective Vision is: Sustainable and inclusive communities directing their own social, economic and environmental futures.

Together, we’re focused on:

Ending Poverty
Local & Fair Economies
Tackling Climate Change
Sustainable Community-Led Development
Inclusion, Diversity, Equity & Access
Democracy & Directing our Own Future

Find out more information about our Public Policy Road Map.

Election Events

Previous Events:

Hunger and Poverty Provincial Forum – Tuesday, August 20th – part of Make Poverty History Manitoba’s kNOw Poverty campaign

UpForDebateMB (Gender Equality and Women’s Rights) – Wednesday, August 21

Disabilities Matters Leaders Debate – Tuesday, August 27 – part of the Disability Matters Vote campaign

Time to Talk about Public Health Care: Leader’s Debate – Thursday, August 29 – part of Manitoba Health Coalition’s campaign

Forum For Our Future: Manitoba Leaders Debate on the Environment – Thursday, September 5

More to add? Another important campaign to mention? Contact Michael Barkman, CCEDNet Manitoba Public Policy Coordinator at: m.barkman at ccednet-rcdec.ca

CBN After three long years, the City of Toronto has adopted a new landmark Community Benefits Framework which will create more opportunities for training and well paying careers in the trades through Apprenticeships with hard targets for hiring Toronto residents from historically disadvantaged communities and equity seeking groups. In addition, the framework will create more opportunities for local, diverse owned businesses and social enterprises to access City contracts through social procurement.

The community benefits framework will apply to:

City Led Projects – Construction projects of the City and its Divisions, Agencies, and Corporations
City Owned Land – As requirements within leases on City-owned land (e.g. Real Estate Services, CreateTO, Housing Now Affordable Housing Initiatives)
Financial Incentive – Where the City is providing a financial incentive for a new private development project
Voluntary – Where community groups and developers are both willing to enter into discussions about community benefits on private developments on privately-owned land

Details: Community Benefits Framework

The adopted Community Benefits Framework will include:

Hard targets for workforce development on projects that fall under this Framework. Hard targets will vary between 5-10% depending on project
A commitment to hire a new Community Benefits Coordinator to support tracking, reporting and implementation at the City
The establishment and convening of a multi-stakeholder Community Benefits Advisory Group(including representation from equity seeking groups) to provide expertise, address real-time community benefits implementation challenges and solutions, and promote transparency and accountability in the City’s community benefits activities
The Community Benefits Coordinator will work with a Data Analyst to develop and implement a City-wide community benefits data system to monitor, track and report on City of Toronto community benefits targets and/or achievements on a project by project basis, to be published on a City webpage
Scarborough Training Centre: Utilize the Sir Robert L. Borden property located at 200 Poplar Road as a job skills training centre to assist job candidates from equity seeking groups, including Indigenous peoples, by providing pre-employment training and employment supports prior to and during employment, to maximize employment retention in eastern Scarborough

Report Back: The City will also be reporting back on a few items that will help the City to understand best practices and bring forward additional recommendations for City Council to make an informed decision. This includes:

2020 report back: A) Recommendations to advance the City of Toronto’s community benefit initiatives, including additional and/or higher minimum hard targets; B) a jurisdictional scan of best practices related to hard targets on community benefits, including community engagement, criteria and actual hard targets; and C) an indication of the required resources to move the Community Benefits Framework forward.

2022 report back: Status update on the Community Benefits Framework Implementation Plan, and recommendations for Community Benefits Framework future direction.

Source: www.communitybenefits.ca

The OECD Local Development Forum, which will take place from 10-11 December 2019 in Antwerp, Belgium, is looking for promising international practices, including examples of employment, skills, social innovation, culture/creative industries and entrepreneurship programmes.

Guidelines for submission

For the purpose of this call please submit information pertaining to one programme. Programmes submitted for consideration must adhere to the following minimum criteria:

Have achieved measurable impacts in terms of jobs created, employment and inclusion;
Have existed for at least one year;
Be results-oriented and highlight the potential for replicability in other communities.

Possible thematic areas

This call seeks to gather examples of innovative programmes on “what works” that could inspire on the following topics:
Employment and skills development programmes that link people to jobs or improve the skills of those already working who might be at-risk of job loss;
Programmes that actively engage firms (especially SMEs) in the design and delivery of training;
Social innovation programmes and strategies that provide education, employment and entrepreneurship opportunities;
Entrepreneurship initiatives, which are providing start-up and business development support services to new businesses;
Initiatives to support cultural and creative industries and/or culture/heritage-led urban/rural regeneration programmes; and
Programmes that are either directly managed or implemented in regions or cities;

Selection of programmes

Complete this form by 30 September 2019. The organisers will acknowledge receipt and notify the applicants of its decision by 31 October 2019. Selected programmes will be highlighted through a dedicated stand and/or presentation at the OECD Local Development Forum to be held in Antwerp, Belgium, from 10-11 December 2019. Selected programmes will also be featured in OECD work on good practice programme examples

Complete the survey here

Find out more about the OECD Local Development Forum here

Our dominant models for economic development are failing us. The extractive economy, as Ted Howard and Marjorie Kelly of the Democracy Collaborative call it in their forthcoming book The Making of the Democratic Economy, is “designed to benefit the wealthy, to enable the financial elite to extract maximum gain for themselves in every possible way, everywhere on the globe, heedless of collateral damage created for workers, communities, and the environment.”

from_the_extractive_economy_to_community_economies.png

We know what the collateral damage is: precarious work, high inequality, climate change, contamination of traditional Indigenous territories and displacement of the most vulnerable, outmigration from rural communities, rising cost of living in urban communities…

We also know that there are other economies than the ‘extractive economy’ and, similarly, other ways of approaching economic development. Some of these may be new but many (most) of them have been around for a long time. At the Canadian CED Network, we tend to talk about the Social Economy and Community Economic Development (CED), but there are many names given to these different (and not so different) types of economies and economic development approaches. These terminologies reflect the diversity of the communities at the centre of this work. And not only should communities be central to economic development, they should be at the core of social innovation.

Business innovation is sometimes seen as coming from an individual entrepreneur. But social innovation that sticks and that is truly transformative comes from people working together. Join leaders from across Canada at EconoUs2019 in London, Ontario from September 16 -18 to learn how communities are leading innovation. Build networks for social and economic change and learn and share strategies for community-led innovation through stories, skill-building workshops, and creative process sessions. econous.ca

“People have always come together to solve unique problems. Cultivating and stewarding strong relationships and scaling innovation requires Elder’s and young people. Intergenerational collaboration contributes to and drives social change.” Victor Beausoleil of SETSI (Social Economy Through Social Inclusion) shared this with me the other day and I think it covers so much. Problems are not typically solved by one person – they’re solved when people work together. If the goal of social innovation is social change, it’s not enough to just create a product or a service. Whatever the project is, it needs to be embedded in community so that there is shared ownership and direction.

Innovation often gets conflated with invention, but in reality, most innovations build upon existing technology, knowledge and models by finding new practical applications. CED necessitates innovation because every community is different, with specific needs, assets, and issues to address and opportunities to seize. As a result, what works in Montréal won’t work the same way in Calgary or in Rankin Inlet – each community has to find their own way, inspired by what has worked elsewhere and emboldened by the unique vision of its members. In this way, communities are leading innovation, by thinking creatively about how to adapt and improvise upon the previous work of others and how to involve those who have historically been left out of economic development decision-making and ownership structures.

A new partnership group that is exploring how to creatively shift the power imbalances within our economic and political systems is the Power Lab. Currently led by people working to make sure historically excluded and equity-seeking communities are involved in the decision-making process for public infrastructure development projects, this innovation lab “is a space for experimenting, stretching, and developing skills to realize a shared vision of an economy that works for everyone.”

In rural communities across Canada, innovators can turn to Community Futures Development Corporations (CFDCs) for support. More than just providing small business loans (not to downplay the importance of this financial service), CFDCs provide leadership on strategic community planning and support for the development and implementation of local initiatives.

Social finance is also currently a hot topic of conversation in the innovation landscape, especially with the Government of Canada’s announced $800M Social Finance Fund. Credit unions like Vancity, Assiniboine and Alterna Savings have long held commitments to community investment and continue to look for new and creative ways to address local needs. A new and innovative support system for rural and urban economic and business development is Community Impact Investment organizations. Often using the co-operative model, these organizations effectively bridge the gap between local investors and local ventures in need of financing.

With all of this increased interest in social innovation and social finance, however, we must be careful to not fall into old traps. “Who are the individuals that are pushing for social finance and what is the agenda and intentions behind this?” asks Victor Beausoleil. “My concern is the means shaping the ends. Those with power need to align themselves with those who don’t because those that feel it most usually have the most at stake and usually their voices are never heard. The most innovative models are developed when your back is against the wall, so inclusion, diversity, equity and access, is not just the right thing to do it is also a prudent approach to social innovation and social finance.”

The wellbeing of all people through this century will require a fundamental departure from the extractive economy. Fortunately, community-led innovation is flourishing and offers a wide range of alternatives. How would you like to build your community economy?

Matthew Thompson has been working with the Canadian CED Network since 2007 and is currently the Director of Engagement. The Canadian CED Network is a values-based, non-profit organization committed to strengthening the social, economic, and environmental conditions of Canadian communities. We have several hundred members throughout Canada working at the grassroots level in rural, urban, Indigenous and northern communities. We engage a broad and inclusive range of community interests in common efforts to influence policy, create stronger and fairer local economies, tackle poverty and homelessness, and invest in sustainable communities.

Source via Charity Village | July 24, 2019

Labour Program Stakeholder Engagement Employment and Social Development Canada is inviting participation in consultations on the development of regulations for recent amendments to Part III (Labour Standards) of the Canada Labour Code (Code) to improve protections for employees, particularly those in precarious work, while supporting productive workplaces. These amendments, introduced in Bill C-86 – the Budget Implementation Act, 2018, No. 2, aim to:

make it easier for employees to qualify for certain labour standards;
add new scheduling, break and leave provisions to improve work-life balance;
increase the minimum age to be employed in certain types of work;
adjust the existing leave for members of the Canadian Forces reserve;
provide measures to ensure employees in non-standard employment are treated fairly;
modify individual and group notice of termination requirements to help safeguard the financial security of employees whose employment is ended; and
improve the administration of Part III of the Code.

These amendments are coming into force in several waves over the next two years, with the majority of changes be coming into force on September 1, 2019.

To ensure that the regulations meet their intended purpose and balance the needs of all stakeholders, your feedback is sought on the Labour Program Stakeholder Engagement discussion paper. The paper outlines the changes to the Code and poses specific questions for your consideration. Your views on any aspects of the new provisions are welcome. For example, in addition to the discussion on regulations, we are interested in knowing what type of guidance, information materials and other tools would be most useful for helping employers and employees understand their obligations and rights.

To ensure that your written input is fully considered in the regulatory development process, please e-mail your written comments to brenda.baxter at labour-travail.gc.ca by June 28, 2019.

Creating Manitoba’s New Non-Profit Strategy

CCEDNet’s recommendations to the Provincial Government

city-2042634.png

In May 2019, the Province of Manitoba announced plans to develop a new non-profit strategy.

Find the Canadian CED Network’s submission to government here. It’s essential that the government hear from as many community-based organization volunteers, staff, participants, and funders as possible through their consultation.

Organizations and individuals are encouraged to submit. If you’re feeling stretched to submit to this large consultation, feel free to utilize text from the Network’s submission for your own. Click here to view our submission. You can submit either online or via a written submission at ">. Find out below how else you can contribute to the consultation.

The stated intention behind the strategy is to build capacity and promote sustainability in the non-profit sector in order to guide future policy and spending. We agree that a strategy for Manitoba’s non-profit sector is essential to capture our deep social and economic impact, and to address some of the challenges we know that organizations are facing.

We plan to be part of the process to create a strategy, and will take every opportunity to contribute the perspectives of the Network’s members. Members have expressed a number of concerns or issues with the current consultation process, coming on the heels of funding changes through the new Building Sustainable Communities Program.

>A co-creation exercise that is founded upon and works in partnership with the knowledge of Manitoba’s non-profit, community sector would be the ideal process. A new strategy for the Province of Manitoba must uplift and centre the crucial work of community-based organizations and ensure access to the resources needed to achieve essential community development initiatives.

Add your voice to the online consultation

How to Get Involved

Make sure the government hears your voice. Again, please feel free to utilize text from the Network’s submission for your own. Click here to view our submission. The Network’s submission is based on our members’ democratic public policy process, as well as two decades of experience as a network of many non-profit organizations. Organizations and individuals are encouraged to submit.
Online consultation can be completed in English or French. Online consultation is open until midnight on June 30, 2019.
The province will accept written submissions by email at "> until June 30.
The in-person consultation in Winnipeg was held on May 9, however there are still opportunities in Brandon on June 21 and Thompson on June 25.
Further information about the Province of Manitoba’s plan can be found in their discussion paper.
Stay tuned for further action following the June 30 deadline as the Province continues to shape its strategy.

Want some help filling out the survey or contributing to the consultation? Or, want to get involved in organizing around funding and community development?

Contact Michael Barkman, CCEDNet Manitoba Public Policy Coordinator, at m.barkman at ccednet-rcdec.ca

On June 6, CCEDNet members gathered online to participate in the 2019 annual general meeting (AGM).

Watch the AGM Recording

Board Chair, Laurie Cook, helped the meeting run smoothly. Given the discussion around the proposed resolution, the chair let the meeting run 15 minutes over the alloted hour. The resolution was adopted by the members and the Board will be deliberating how best to move forward with it. Stay tuned for more news on this in the coming weeks.

Feedback following the AGM was very positive. Here are a few things our members had to say about the AGM:

[The highlight of the AGM for me was] the discussion of the member initiatied resolution
This is where we need to go….Your system gave me some really interesting new approaches to pursue such as the split screen and the in real time voting system Very creative you guys are.
I appreciated a lot the overview of significant achievements.
[The highlight of the AGM for me was] the ability to bridge members from across the country in two languages!
Comments were interesting, the well run format was great
By far the best participation, with more than 40 members.

CCEDNet’s Executive Director, Mike Toye, presented highlights from 2018 and CCEDNet’s Treasurer, Diana Jedig, presented the audited financial statements.

Check out the Highlights from 2018

Download the AGM PowerPoint Presentation

Members congratulated Laurie Cook, Marianne Jurzyniec, Walter Hossli, and Yvon Poirier on renewed Board mandates, as well as recently appointed Board member, Jean-François Parent. Members alse expressed gratitude to outgoing Board members Carol Madsen, Wendy Keats, Carol Anne Hilton, Emmanuel Bertrand-Gauvin, and Luc Morin.

Many thanks to the members who participated, the staff who organized the logistics, and to CCEDNet’s Board members who guide the Network throughout the year.

Jean-Yves Duclos makes the announcement on Wednesday as Shannin Metatawabin of National Aboriginal Capital Corporations Association, Béatrice Alain of le Chantier de l'économie sociale, Andrew Chunilall of Community Foundations Canada, and ??? of the Canadian Women's Foundation look on.

Jean-Yves Duclos makes the announcement on Wednesday as representatives of National Aboriginal Capital Corporations Association, the Chantier de l’économie sociale, Community Foundations Canada, and the Canadian Women’s Foundation look on.

CCEDNet’s Executive Director Michael Toye was on hand June 12, 2019, for the announcement by the Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Families, Children and Social Development of the first funding recipients who will help implement the Investment Readiness Program. The Government will be investing $50 million over two years to help social purpose organizations become investment ready and access the new Social Finance Fund, set to launch in 2020.

The Investment Readiness Program is part of the Government’s Social Innovation and Social Finance Strategy, which seeks to encourage new and innovative approaches to address the persistent and complex social and environmental challenges that make it difficult for people to succeed and reach their full potential. The program will be delivered through three types of delivery partner organizations:

Readiness Support Partners (to make available funding and supports to diverse organizations across Canada)

National Aboriginal Capital Corporations Association
Community Foundations of Canada
Chantier de l’économie sociale
Canadian Women’s Foundation

Expert Service Providers (to offer specialized knowledge to organizations to support their movement along the readiness continuum)

LIFT Philanthropy Partners
McConnell Innoweave
Social Enterprise Ecosystem Project (S4ES)
Social Venture Exchange

Ecosystem Mobilization Initiatives (to address key systems gaps)

Canadian Community Economic Development Network (CCEDNet)
McConnell Social Research and Development
Carleton Centre for Community Innovation (3ci)
Centre for Social Innovation (CSI)
New Market Funds
The Waterloo Institute for Social Innovation and Resilience (WISIR)
Imagine Canada
Startup Canada
Sauder Social Innovation Academy (UBC)

CCEDNet has been active providing input into the development of a social innovation and social finance strategy, with letters, meetings and engagement opportiunities to give voice to grassroots, community perspectives. Following the resolution passed at the 2019 Annual General Meeting, we will continue to promote approaches that are truly inclusive, locally responsive, and build on the expertise of the sector.

Further Resources

Simultaneously Announced by ESDC

Federal Social Innovation Advisory Council: Call for Applications

The Province of Manitoba is developing a new non-profit strategy.

The stated intention behind the strategy is to build capacity and promote sustainability in the non-profit sector, in order to guide future spending. It will likely lead to changes in the sector for years to come. The province’s purported goal is to strengthen the non-profit sector through greater sustainability, positive outcomes, and increased philanthropy & charitable giving.

In Manitoba, community-based organizations have led crucial work strengthening our province’s communities and have helped build local economies that benefit everyone.

Our Network membership has called for many years for a strategic approach to supporting community-based organizations and the role they play in community development and community economic development. Cutting red tape and ensuring value for provincial money through targeted, strategic investments, multi-year funding, and strong collaboration between community and government is a key ask of the non-profit sector.

A new strategy for the Province of Manitoba must uplift and centre the crucial work of community-based organizations and ensure access to resources needed to achieve essential community development initiatives.

However, the lack of involvement from the sector so far in developing the consultation process, as well as a lack of consultation and serious concerns with the new Building Sustainable Communities Program, has been very worrying.

Add your voice to the online consultation.

How to Get Involved

It’s essential that the government hear from as many community-based organization volunteers, staff, participants, and funders as possible through their consultation.
The in-person consultation in Winnipeg was held on May 9, however there are still opportunities in Brandon on June 21 and Thompson on June 25.
Online consultation can be completed in English or French. Online consultation is open until midnight on June 30, 2019.
The province will accept written submissions by email at until June 30.
Further information about the Province of Manitoba’s plan can be found in their discussion paper.
Watch for our discussion paper in the coming weeks on the direction of the province’s non-profit strategy.

Want some help filling out the survey or contributing to the consultation? Or, want to get involved in organizing around funding and community development?

Contact Michael Barkman, CCEDNet Manitoba Public Policy Coordinator, at

In May 2018, the Senate Standing Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology issued a report entitled The Federal Role in a Social Finance Fund. The Committee’s recommendations included the federal government creating and contributing to a national social finance fund. This recommendation, among others from the Committee, aligns with, for example, the social enterprise strategy of the Ontario government.

For all of the optimism percolating through the Senate report and Ontario’s strategy there is the challenge of how to reconcile two dynamics that historically have been opposed: the private interest for profit and the common interest for public benefit. Social finance is about harnessing capital and the forces of the market to solve social problems. It’s about commercializing social, environmental and cultural problems that traditionally were addressed by government as part of an overall goal of wealth redistribution and creation and protection of public goods. Social finance represents a shift: addressing these problems is an opportunity for wealth creation, as well as doing good.

The challenge arises because social finance operates at the cross‑roads of business and philanthropy. The promise of social finance is that the market and capital will, necessarily, result in social benefit; the expectation of social finance, though, is to generate profit for those who invest in the activities undertaken to solve social problems.

How can regulation help to distinguish truly socially or environmentally driven businesses from their conventional profit-oriented counterparts, in order to tame the tendency for profit-seeking to overwhelm social benefit? Two areas of law come to mind: securities regulation and corporate legislation.

In June 2013 the Ontario Securities Commission approved the establishment of a social stock exchange (SSE) called Social Venture Connexion (SVX). In addition to Ontario’s SVX, SSEs of various stripes have been established in the United Kingdom (Social Stock Exchange), in Singapore (Impact Investment Exchange), South Africa (South African Social Investment Exchange). SVX presents itself as a “one-stop-shop for impact investing” — an online platform that provides social enterprises with access to interested impact investors.

SVX’s ability to regulate is strictly private, governed by the contract that it enters into with social enterprises listed with it, as well as the contract with investors who are permitted to invest through it. To be listed (and maintain its listing) on SVX, a social enterprise must satisfy a number of requirements. These include achieving a satisfactory company rating through the Global Impact Investment Rating System (GIIRS), providing SVX with an annual update of its GIIRS rating and, in terms of governance, evidence of “relevant expertise” among management and the directors of the social enterprise. Presumably, though not entirely clear from the language of the contract, “relevant expertise” refers to areas related to social and/or environmental impact. SVX’s enforcement mechanism is to suspend the listing of a social enterprise, including obtaining a court injunction against such an enterprise prohibiting it from engaging in activities in breach of the contract or requiring it to comply with the contract.

In terms of legislative regulation, two provinces in Canada have enacted legislation aimed at corporate social enterprises — British Columbia and Nova Scotia. The B.C. legislation is part of the Business Corporations Act and came into effect on July 29, 2013; the Nova Scotia legislation came into effect on June 15, 2016.

Each province’s legislation aims to create a hybrid corporation that combines characteristics of a for-profit business with a social mission. These hybrid corporations, called “community contribution companies” in B.C. and “community interest companies” (CICs) in Nova Scotia, have some or all of the following features. They:

engage in activities with a profit purpose,
are established with share capital,
must have a community purpose (that is, for the benefit of society at large or for a segment of society),
are restricted as to the amount of dividends they may declare annually and the amount of interest they may pay on the debt they issue,
must have at least three directors,
are prohibited from transferring their assets for less than fair market value unless the transferee is a qualified entity (e.g., non‑profit, registered charity),
on dissolution, may only distribute their assets to one or more qualified entities established for a similar community purpose,
must provide their shareholders with a report (approved by their directors) about their most recent fiscal year and the manner in which their activities benefited society or advanced their community purpose (and, under the B.C. legislation, the annual community purpose report must be posted to the corporation’s website).

A significant difference between the Nova Scotia and B.C. regimes is in their regulatory oversight. Nova Scotia has a Registrar overseeing CICs, who has the power to determine whether or not a corporation qualifies to be designated as a CIC, and can withdraw the designation from any corporation that ceases to meet the qualifications.

The issue of how to guard against mission drift among social enterprises, if the promise of social and environmental impact is to become a reality, is critical. These are still early days in the evolution of social finance and social enterprises. The expectations for financial and social/environmental return that impact investors and social enterprises have are not homogeneous. If the market for social/environmental return is to realize its promise, there must be criteria to distinguish it from the conventional market driven exclusively by profit. This is of particular concern when businesses are seeking to profit from social and environmental problems. To that end, regulatory regimes have a role, whether private and voluntary, such as SVX, or state sanctioned, such as the corporate legislative reforms that Nova Scotia and B.C. have enacted.

Photo: Dusty Hoskovec/Northern Spark/Flickr

Edward Hyland is partner at Iler Campbell LLP, Toronto, Ontario. Iler Campbell LLP is a full service law firm serving co-opertives, not-for-profits, charities and socially-minded small businesses and individuals in Ontario.

Pro Bono provides legal information designed to educate and entertain readers. But legal information is not the same as legal advice — the application of law to an individual’s specific circumstances. While efforts are made to ensure the legal information provided through these columns is useful, we strongly recommend you consult a lawyer for assistance with your particular situation to obtain accurate advice.

SOURCE: Published via Rabble.ca on June 28, 2018

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