This year’s AGM repeats the success of the last eight years by being entirely virtual and bilingual. Members are able to make motions, vote and comment in English or French, all from the comfort of their computer.
Sign up today for a CLP intro session, 2-day training, or 6-day intensive!
All programs are designed to help non-profit, community-based, and social purpose leaders, managers and organizations navigate challenge, change and opportunity successfully. This unique learning environment is intentionally designed to respond to your experience. You can expect to refine and build your leadership skills and apply what you’ve learned in new, meaningful and purposeful ways. You’ll gain tools to help strengthen your teams and encourage problem solving and creativity, so that you can collectively navigate and effectively respond to change, innovation and the current priorities of your work environment.
Find more information about each program, including registration links, below:
Leading Through Change: An Introduction to CCEDNet’s Community Leadership Program | Zoom event
To discuss the complex changes we are all experiencing in our leadership roles
To examine and reflect on the qualities of an effective change leader
To explore the importance of adapting one’s leadership style to different situations – a self-assessment will help you will better understand your preferred leadership style(s) and ideas for positive changes
To understand and discuss concrete ways to foster your own resiliency to ensure you are poised to be a great leader
For whom: This course is for those wanting an introduction to the 2-day and 6-day Community Leadership Programs and/or those who are looking to inspire and deepen their leadership practice.
Cost: Free
When: Wednesday, March 22, 2023 from 12:30PM – 3:00pm Eastern Time
Limited Capacity: Please register early as space is limited, each session will be capped to ensure each participant has an engaging and impactful experience. If the sessions are booked, please contact Adriana Zylinski to be placed on the waiting list.
Important Registration Note: This session will not be recorded. Due to limited capacity, we expect registration indicates your confirmed attendance. Thank you in advance.
Navigating Change for Leaders Training: 2-day | Zoom event
If you are leading any change elements in your organization, and need to implement major changes – this is the course for you. Organizational change is not easy. Oftentimes it has challenges and is incumbent on strategic, thoughtful leadership. How you navigate change and support others to move through it is critical. Arrive with a change issue in hand, apply leading change management principles, approaches and frameworks and leave with an action plan that will energize and best support your teams and stakeholders so together your vision for change can be achieved.
Learning Objectives:
Module 1 (7 hours):
Understand organizational change through the change curve and Bridges Transition Model; analyze the change in more detail to better inform your problem solving and response(s), develop the script and skills to participate in a change conversation based on principles of effective communication; explore the essential skills of a change leader, assess your own strengths and weaknesses and commit to an action(s) or strategy/ies to improve your capacity to lead through change.
Module 2 (7 hours):
Examine how to most effectively navigate uncertainty and ambivalence; embed resilience within your team(s) and your own leadership style; explore the context of the change to leverage strengths and opportunities and mitigate limitations, and threats; begin to map out an action plan that helps you and your stakeholders to intentionally and strategically navigate change; reflect on the posture you want to embody as a change leader
For whom: For those supporting employees through change or overseeing organizational change and looking to build a proactive response and plan through the transition.
Prerequisite: Due to the applied nature of this course you will be required to commit to approximately 1 hour of self reflection in advance of the first module and approximately 2 hours of self-reflection in advance of the second module.
When:
9am – 4pm ET on May 30 and June 9, 2023 (2 days)
Course fee:
$539 for CCEDNet members
$679 for Non-members
Limited Capacity: Please note that the course will be capped at 20 learners to ensure each participant has a high quality, engaging and impactful experience.
Experience this highly recommended Leadership Intensive! Join a community of brave, innovative and determined leaders from across Canada to examine self-leadership, leading and understanding others, and leading within an organization through 6 sessions of supported and embodied learning.
Learning Objectives:
Module 1 (14 hours): Leading and Understanding Myself
Becoming a more self-aware and confident leader, build on current skills and experience to gain greater clarity and insight into your leadership style and strengths so you can serve yourself, others and your organizations even better.
Module 2 (14 hours): Leading and Understanding Others
Enhance and build key senior leadership skills to engage and lead people so you can all contribute and thrive professionally, meet the challenge of navigating an organization and increase your impact.
Module 3 (14 hours): Leading within my Organization
Be more prepared for the opportunities and challenges that being a leader presents, build essential skills of a change leader, learn to develop teams and build team resilience, learn to lead through change and expertly communicate through courageous conversations.
For whom: The course is carefully designed to be impactful for leaders at all stages,
When: 9am – 4pm ET on Tuesdays (biweekly) from April 11 – June 20 2023 (6 days)
Limited Capacity: Please note that the course will be capped at 20 learners to ensure each participant has a high quality, engaging and impactful experience.
Accreditation: This program offers the opportunity to achieve an internationally recognized accreditation, a 10 credit SCQF Level 9 qualification in Leadership, accredited by Glasgow Caledonian University. A certificate will be awarded upon completion of the program.
Increasing ease of access for people of every identity and ability is our priority. Closed captioning will be available. But, if there is a barrier preventing you from fully joining us for these sessions, we want to help! Additional accessibility accommodations may be made available by contacting Adriana Zylinski.
Your Facilitator: Suzanne Gibson
Our Leadership programs, facilitated by Suzanne Gibson, will offer anyone who leads a team the chance to take a well-supported deep dive into leadership practices, skills, and tools.
Suzanne Gibson “awakens the potential” of your organization to achieve its mandate and vision. Over the past 25 years, Suzanne has:
inspired new and established organizations to “dream big,” unite around an idea and turn those dreams into reality
uncovered creative solutions to complex social and organization problems
mobilized diverse groups into strong teams
facilitated and supported leaders, staff and volunteers to achieve their personal and collective potential
applied her entrepreneurial flair to start up innovative new ventures
equipped organizations to secure much-needed knowledge, skills and resources.
Suzanne will help you draw out the very best from your staff and stakeholders as you help create a better world.
Not a CCEDNet member? Join CCEDNet or contact Adriana at .
The Sustainable Finance Forum on Parliament Hill was a two-day event on November 2-3, 2022, and included eight sessions, over 60 speakers including CCEDNet members and partners, and more than 200 participants, including parliamentarians from across the political spectrum.
It was an opportunity for investment leaders and entrepreneurs across Canada:
to showcase the power of sustainable finance in addressing key challenges faced by Canadians,
to provide updates on significant milestones on the development of essential financial infrastructure,
to profile the creation of new financial tools and products,
to make parliamentarians aware of the challenges faced by practitioners, and
to identify opportunities for the Federal Government to further support the progress of sustainable finance in Canada.
This report represents a summary of the many sessions and discussions that were had at the Sustainable Finance Forum and outlines key recommendations for consideration by parliamentarians as they work together to build the economy that meets the challenges of today and prepares us for tomorrow, a sustainable economy, one that protects our people and our planet.
Contents
Mobilizing Capital to Fight Climate Change
Women’s Entrepreneurship
Energy Transition
Black Entrepreneurship
Mobilizing Capital to Build an Economy that Works for All Canadians
Indigenous Entrepreneurship & Reconciliation
Food Security
Affordable Housing
The Sustainable Finance Forum builds on the Social Innovation and Social Finance Strategy, a roadmap to support innovative solutions that find new ways to help communities tackle their most complex and persistent social issues.
Does your initiative support regional social ecosystem building or intersectoral network building for CED?
CCEDNet is inviting project proposals to implement regional systems building projects, focused on supporting community organizations, social enterprises, and community economic development (CED).
Picture multiple sectors that are interconnected so well that they form a social web of support and collaboration in a region. These are the kinds of networks we are aiming at.
These types of projects are sometimes referred to as “social ecosystem” building, “network weaving,” or “social infrastructure” development. We are less concerned about the terminology you choose, and more interested in what you aim to do.
Amount & Rollout:
Projects can access a $5,000 to $80,000 grant to support their initiative. Proposals are accepted until April 16, midnight PDT. Applications will be reviewed by staff with additional input from members or partners. All funded portions of successful projects must be complete, including final reporting and invoicing by March 15, 2024.
Projects in any Canadian province or territory outside of Manitoba or Alberta are eligible*
Background:
We recognize that community economic development and related fields are organized at local or sectoral levels.
Community Economic Development is all about local action. Practitioners need supportive structures, policies and programs, networks, and information systems that are tuned to their local needs and opportunities.
Provincial and local governments often have jurisdiction over important policies that affect our work.
This is why as a national organization, CCEDNet has often had projects, coalitions, or hubs operating at these regional levels.
What are social ecosystems?
Social ecosystems is the concept that new functioning systems form within local social economies when networks, organizations, and actors connect and align their work. Parts of this ecosystem might include enterprises, capacity builders or developers, funders or finance groups, researchers, or government. In a healthy ecosystem, the individual parts are functioning well and all the parts are connected and coordinated in supportive ways.
With our Regional Initiative Program, we aim to strengthen social ecosystems of support for community economic development and the social economy by amplifying local efforts to build and foster such connections in intentional and inclusive ways.
Projects could include (but are not limited to):
Environmental scans, asset/stakeholder mapping, opportunity identification, or other sector research and consultation to set regional priorities
Delivery of collaborative and region-wide projects or programs
Delivery of regional events, meetings, or networking opportunities
Convening of local communities of practices or learning hubs
Development of regional public policy priorities or awareness raising campaigns
Case studies or story development to showcase sector strength
Note: Any of these could either be supportive of existing initiatives or new initiatives
All Regional Initiatives should:
Be collaborative, with multiple partners working together or taking part
Centre the lived experience of the communities involved, particularly the leadership and perspectives of people who are Indigenous, Black, People of Colour, persons with disabilities, and rural or remote.
Include at least one CCEDNet member or groups interested in becoming CCEDNet members
Have a sound budget, which can include staff, contractors, event or meeting costs, travel, etc. They should also explore additional funding sources towards financial sustainability beyond the life of this project.
Be invested in knowledge sharing to support the ongoing strengthening of their relevant social ecosystem as a whole.
Be willing to participate in a project-end convening of partners to share lessons learned, or participate in another generative way.
Finish with a report detailing progress and next steps for ecosystem development, the ongoing nature of the relationship with CCEDNet, and sustainability of the project. CCEDNet will provide a clear and brief reporting template, and applicants are welcome to provide either written or oral reporting.
Note: we are happy to work with selected partners to try and find ways to ease reporting burden while aiming for information sharing that is generative and meaningful for all parties. This is particularly the case for applicants applying for funding below 10K.
CCEDNet’s Values:
CCEDNet’s Values are: Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Dignity, Self-Determination, Solidarity, Local Control. Our approach is intersectional, intersectoral, and collaborative.
Summarizing our new Theory of Change, we aim to:
Encourage community generated policy work, programs, and political actions.
Seek economic justice by centering communities as experts of their own experiences, particularly BIPOC communities and other folks historically excluded.
Address ecological & climate crises in ways that enhance equity.
Increase community change agents’ access to useful information, generative relationships and resources.
While A-D are core to CCEDNet’s ongoing work, we know your projects and initiatives may not touch on all of the above. We include this summary to increase transparency in an effort to build relationships that align with our values more broadly.
*Currently, there are established projects in Manitoba and Alberta as part of CCEDNet’s regional initiatives portfolio. We are therefore reserving funds to expand support to more regions. Follow the links below to view some of the projects underway:
As noted above, our values include inclusion, equity, and diversity. Many of our members work with historically excluded groups or communities facing poverty. We have recently been trying to make changes to increase clarity, transparency, and ease of applying, in hopes of reducing some of the power dynamic that exists in application and selection processes.
If you have any accessibility needs please get in touch with Melissa to make arrangements. CCEDNet accepts accommodations requests during all parts of the application process.
Interested?
Fill out our application form using the apply now button below.
Format: You will have the option to fill out a standard written form OR upload an audio/visual file to the application.
Option 1: The standard written application form will ask:
Some basic questions about your organization.
Who is included or served by you, as basic checkbox questions.
A brief 1 to 3 sentence description of your objective, in 160 words or less.
A description of your project proposal, in 500 words or less.
How you expect this project to strengthen the system of support in your region, in 300 words or less.
Option 2: If you choose to apply by uploading an audio or video file, you must still answer all of the same questions listed in the form when you record your audio/visual. Files must be either an MP3 or MP4 format, sized 1 to 5 MB or less.
If you have any questions about the application or require accommodations please contact Melissa Sinfield at . We will try to respond in 4 business days.
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Funding Source: This opportunity is supported by the federal Investment Readiness Program.
Some people have imagined this set of social connections to be similar to how different parts of an environmental ecosystem rely on each other to flourish and grow. It is an increasingly common frame of reference.
Registration for our Leadership Taster Session begins today!
We’re delighted to share the next registration dates for the popular Open Enrollment 6-day Leadership Intensive, the Leadership Taster Sessions and the NEW 2-day Navigating Change for Leaders Training.
All programs are designed to help non-profit, community-based, and social purpose leaders, managers and organizations navigate challenge, change and opportunity successfully. This unique learning environment is intentionally designed to respond to your experience. You can expect to refine and build your leadership skills and apply what you’ve learned in new, meaningful and purposeful ways. You’ll gain tools to help strengthen your teams and encourage problem solving and creativity, so that you can collectively navigate and effectively respond to change, innovation and the current priorities of your work environment.
Leading Through Change: An Introduction to CCEDNet’s Community Leadership Program | Zoom event
To discuss the complex changes we are all experiencing in our leadership roles
To examine and reflect on the qualities of an effective change leader
To explore the importance of adapting one’s leadership style to different situations – a self-assessment will help you will better understand your preferred leadership style(s) and ideas for positive changes
To understand and discuss concrete ways to foster your own resiliency to ensure you are poised to be a great leader
For whom: This course is for those wanting an introduction to the 2-day and 6-day Community Leadership Programs and/or those who are looking to inspire and deepen their leadership practice.
Cost: Free
When: 2 Session Dates Available
REGISTRATION NOW OPEN (click on link below to register):
Limited Capacity: Please register early as space is limited, each session will be capped to ensure each participant has an engaging and impactful experience. If the sessions are booked, please contact Adriana Zylinski to be placed on the waiting list.
Important Registration Note: These sessions will not be recorded. Due to limited capacity, we expect registration indicates your confirmed attendance. Thank you in advance.
Navigating Change for Leaders Training: 2-day | Zoom event
If you are leading any change elements in your organization, and need to implement major changes – this is the course for you. Organizational change is not easy. Oftentimes it has challenges and is incumbent on strategic, thoughtful leadership. How you navigate change and support others to move through it is critical. Arrive with a change issue in hand, apply leading change management principles, approaches and frameworks and leave with an action plan that will energize and best support your teams and stakeholders so together your vision for change can be achieved.
Learning Objectives:
Module 1 (7 hours):
Understand organizational change through the change curve and Bridges Transition Model; analyze the change in more detail to better inform your problem solving and response(s), develop the script and skills to participate in a change conversation based on principles of effective communication; explore the essential skills of a change leader, assess your own strengths and weaknesses and commit to an action(s) or strategy/ies to improve your capacity to lead through change.
Module 2 (7 hours):
Examine how to most effectively navigate uncertainty and ambivalence; embed resilience within your team(s) and your own leadership style; explore the context of the change to leverage strengths and opportunities and mitigate limitations, and threats; begin to map out an action plan that helps you and your stakeholders to intentionally and strategically navigate change; reflect on the posture you want to embody as a change leader
For whom: For those supporting employees through change or overseeing organizational change and looking to build a proactive response and plan through the transition.
Prerequisite: Due to the applied nature of this course you will be required to commit to approximately 1 hour of self reflection in advance of the first module and approximately 2 hours of self-reflection in advance of the second module.
When: 2 sessions available:
9am – 4pm ET on Wednesdays (biweekly) from April 19 – May 3, 2023 (2 days)
9am – 4pm ET on Tuesdays (biweekly) from June 13 – June 27 2023 (2 days)
Limited Capacity: Please note that the course will be capped at 20 learners to ensure each participant has a high quality, engaging and impactful experience.
Spring Leadership Intensive: 6-day | Zoom event
Experience this highly recommended Leadership Intensive! Join a community of brave, innovative and determined leaders from across Canada to examine self-leadership, leading and understanding others, and leading within an organization through 6 sessions of supported and embodied learning.
Learning Objectives:
Module 1 (14 hours): Leading and Understanding Myself
Becoming a more self-aware and confident leader, build on current skills and experience to gain greater clarity and insight into your leadership style and strengths so you can serve yourself, others and your organizations even better.
Module 2 (14 hours): Leading and Understanding Others
Enhance and build key senior leadership skills to engage and lead people so you can all contribute and thrive professionally, meet the challenge of navigating an organization and increase your impact.
Module 3 (14 hours): Leading within my Organization
Be more prepared for the opportunities and challenges that being a leader presents, build essential skills of a change leader, learn to develop teams and build team resilience, learn to lead through change and expertly communicate through courageous conversations.
For whom: The course is carefully designed to be impactful for leaders at all stages,
When: 9am – 4pm ET on Tuesdays (biweekly) from April 11 – June 20 2023 (6 days)
Limited Capacity: Please note that the course will be capped at 20 learners to ensure each participant has a high quality, engaging and impactful experience.
Accreditation: This program offers the opportunity to achieve an internationally recognized accreditation, a 10 credit SCQF Level 9 qualification in Leadership, accredited by Glasgow Caledonian University. A certificate will be awarded upon completion of the program.
Course Fee:
$1250 for CCEDNet members ($250 savings)
$1500 for Non-members
Important Note on Program Accessibility
Increasing ease of access for people of every identity and ability is our priority. Closed captioning will be available. But, if there is a barrier preventing you from fully joining us for these sessions, we want to help! Additional accessibility accommodations may be made available by contacting Adriana Zylinski.
Your Facilitator: Suzanne Gibson
Our Leadership programs, facilitated by Suzanne Gibson, will offer anyone who leads a team the chance to take a well-supported deep dive into leadership practices, skills, and tools.
Suzanne Gibson “awakens the potential” of your organization to achieve its mandate and vision. Over the past 25 years, Suzanne has:
inspired new and established organizations to “dream big,” unite around an idea and turn those dreams into reality
uncovered creative solutions to complex social and organization problems
mobilized diverse groups into strong teams
facilitated and supported leaders, staff and volunteers to achieve their personal and collective potential
applied her entrepreneurial flair to start up innovative new ventures
equipped organizations to secure much-needed knowledge, skills and resources.
Suzanne will help you draw out the very best from your staff and stakeholders as you help create a better world.
Not a CCEDNet member? Join CCEDNet or contact Adriana at .
BUILD Inc is a non-profit contractor and social enterprise that provides training programs for people who face barriers to employment.CreateAction is a CCEDNet run work experience program that provides paid work placements and career-relevant opportunities for young people involuntarily not in education, employment, or training (NEET) and/or underemployed who face systemic barriers to employment. The primary goals of CreateAction are to deliver meaningful employment; improve youth well-being; provide rich resources and pathways to employment post-placement; and support and develop skills in youths with barriers to employment.
CCEDNet would like to highlight Rafael Terrain, CreateAction youth, and Sean Hogan of BUILD Inc, a CCEDNet member and CreateAction supervisor, who participated in our fourth cohort of CreateAction. We asked them a few questions to better understand the success and impact of such an important social enterprise.
What does community economic development mean to you and to BUILD INC.?
SeanHogan: I have a friend who sums up his job description as “maximizing shareholder value”. While much of Canada’s economic system is built on that concept, it can lead to an irresponsible and unsustainable approach to business. What is left out of the equation is the health of the community where the economic development is taking place. The approach that Community Economic Development takes considers both the economic opportunities, but also the community needs. To step back from shareholder value and consider stakeholder values changes the approach to any entrepreneurial endeavor. What does the community need? Will there be unintended consequences that need to be resolved? If we reduce our profit expectations somewhat, does that mean more opportunity for everyone? BUILD takes each of these questions very seriously, as we consider the health of our community a reflection of the health of our business.
BUILD Inc. is a model social enterprise and has inspired other social entrepreneurial development. How does the training program work, and what do you think makes it so successful?
RafaelTerrain: BUILD Inc. helps train up people with barriers to employment to work in carpentry, and we work mostly doing repairs in social housing in Manitoba. I think it’s so successful because the program doesn’t judge people for their barriers but helps us through them and recognizes how much we can bring to the table when we are given that support. There’s so much potential out in the community that gets wasted I feel, but social enterprises like this helps people know we can offer something and gives us those opportunities
SeanHogan: BUILD’s training program and social enterprise are two separate but intertwined business units under the BUILD umbrella, each with different approaches and revenue sources. The training program is a paid, six-week in-class experience that addresses gaps in education, hard-skills development, soft-skill shoring, and introduction to cultural teachings and support services. During the six-week intensive, trainees are given the tools to overcome the anxieties that threaten to drag them back to old habits and unhealthy behaviours, while equipping them to be successful and marketable in the competitive trades marketplace.
Once a trainee completes their time with BUILD’s training team, they graduate to on-the-job mentorship for three-to-four months, working with one of our many crews conducting interior renovation work for affordable housing throughout Winnipeg and Southern Manitoba. During their job-placement, trainees are introduced to real-life work stresses like deadlines, accountability, and work-pace, while still in a healthy and supportive environment. It is an excellent transition environment, moving them from the classroom, preparing them for the time when they leave BUILD and enter the workforce. BUILD can attribute its success to the innovative marriage of real-life work environments and an uncompromising commitment creating supportive opportunities. Also, one can not minimize the impact of the amount of courage that each and every trainee brings into our building. Ten years ago Elder Jules Lavalee held a ceremony for BUILD and gave us the name in Ojibwe “Songay Damowin”, which translated to English means “The House of Courage”. Trainees carry in with them an immense amount of bravery to face their pasts and make a better future every day that they walk through the BUILD doors. Our success is their success.
What would you like to share about your experience with CreateAction and BUILD Inc. What are some challenges you had, goals you set, and successes or insights you would like to share?
Rafael Terrain: My experience with CreateAction at my placement at BUILD Inc. was life changing. There were a lot of challenges going into my first employment in 10 years, but it couldn’t have been a better place to go through that transition. BUILD Inc. staff were all so supportive through the ups and downs of getting used to that new life and they helped me out with more than just a pay cheque, but as a community of support. They care about us as people and show up for us daily. They helped me to get into a real place to live, they helped me with my taxes, getting used to finances, helped me furnish my place, and helped me out through mental health struggles. CreateAction was an awesome group of people to check in with while everyone was going through a similar transition, so I didn’t feel alone but knew there were normal challenges to go through when going to work in a new place. The staff at CreateAction were also awesome and I could celebrate all the awesome new changes in my life with them and they helped give awesome workshops on tips to get through as well.
How can CCEDNet members support the work BUILD INC. is doing?
Sean Hogan: CCEDNet members can support the work BUILD is doing by remembering BUILD trainees when making HR policies and hiring. Also, provincially and federally, the collective voices of CCEDNet members are very powerful when reminding elected officials that workplace integration training programs like BUILD require revenue sources to provide the level of support and training required to work with multi-barriered individuals, preparing them for long-term, meaningful careers.
As you can see, BUILD Inc.’s vision of building prosperous communities, healthy families, and employed individuals through meaningful employment opportunities is what foregrounded the effectiveness of this youth placement. CCEDNet would like to offer gratitude to BUILD Inc for their membership in our organization and leadership in the social enterprise arena. CreateAction thanks you, Sean, for the wraparound system of care and labour that you exemplified throughout the placement experience. Rafael, we are proud of your growth and wish you all the best in your employment endeavours!
The community economic development (CED) principles of solidarity, cooperativism, and mutual aid have been practiced by many Black communities around the world for thousands of years. And so Black History Month is an opportunity to celebrate the ways in which Black communities have shaped – and continue to shape – contemporary CED.
However, this celebration is incomplete if we don’t also grapple with the foundational role that anti-Black racism has always played in propping up the Canadian economy, and how this has affected CED and the social sector.
Slavery was practiced in the territories that would become Canada from around 1630 until its abolition in 1834. During this period, as Robyn Maynard writes, “white settler society profited from owning unfree Black (and Indigenous) people and their labour… while exposing them to physical and psychological brutality.”
The abolition of slavery did not put an end to the exploitation of Black people or the extraction of their wealth. As Maynard explains, “first slavery, then segregationist state policies regarding immigration, labour and education put [Black people] in a lower social and economic status than white Canadians.”
State-sanctioned poverty was and is sustained by systemic racism in institutions such as healthcare, education, policing, housing, real estate, and finance. All of this serves to extract wealth and resources away from Black communities, so that those who are already privileged within our dominant economic model can continue to hoard power, wealth, and control.
However, economic injustice is not a law of nature. Dr. Jessica Gordon Nembhard reminds us that “the system of capitalism that we’re in right now” – which requires racial hierarchy and domination in order to function – “is very new on a human scale.” When we take a longer view of history, we see that “solidarity economics” is actually humanity’s first and longest-lasting economic system.
Dr. Caroline Shenaz Hossein and Megan Pearson explain that solidarity economics is based on cooperativism, equity, and social and economic democracy. They trace the roots of the solidarity economy back to Black and Indigenous communities around the world. Many practitioners locate CED within the global solidarity economy movement. In fact, Professor John Loxley credited Afro-Guyanese economist C.Y. Thomas with influencing the creation of the Neechi principles, a guiding force for the development of community economic development in Manitoba.
Sometimes, solidarity economics are a survival strategy – without sharing or mutual aid, for example, many oppressed communities will simply collapse. However, Gordon Nembhard says that sometimes these systems are also built “around a larger vision in mind for how they could really change society and bring prosperity” to everyone.
These scholars all point to the potential within the solidarity economy to transform our dominant economic system from the ground up. But anti-Black racism remains an obstacle to achieving such transformation, not only within society at large, but also within our sector. Gordon Nembhard has written about racism in the co-op movement, and Hossein and Pearson explain that Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour are often excluded within the social sector – an exclusion that “upholds racial injustice, violence, exclusion, and trauma in Canada and elsewhere.”
We may not all be oppressed by anti-Black racism, but we all do suffer under an economy that treats people and the planet as disposable commodities. If anti-Black racism stands between us and economic transformation, we should all be striving for Black liberation, even if we are not Black. Our collective liberation requires Black freedom.
Ben Losman
Ben manages communications for CCEDNet. He has also helped implement and manage projects such as CreateAction and Community Leadership Program.
Prior to joining CCEDNet, Ben did communications and programming for a number of social purpose organizations across the U.S., Canada, and India. His professional perspective is shaped by his studies in social justice education and his experiences in the world of anti-colonial activism and popular education.
Ben’s ideal community is built around the principles of Indigenous sovereignty, ecological justice, prison abolition, free and wonderful public transit, and abundant access to great local food.
Outside of work, Ben loves exploring the world with his kids, participating in movements for love and justice, and reading.
CCEDNet and the federal Investment Readiness Program (IRP)
CCEDNet is the convener of program partners, co-building the social finance / social innovation ecosystem of support, including partners who raise awareness, develop expert services, consider how diverse demographics can get connected to this field, and the ‘readiness support partners’ who disburse Investment Readiness Program (IRP) funding to Social Purpose Organizations. Our role is to co-create and maintain a support system to connect the IRP partners as a network of expertise, grounded in equity, diversity, and inclusion – we convene them in meetings, work with WISIR on a principles-focused evaluation and systems map, with Startup Canada on digital infrastructure, and are delivering a small fund to bring additional partners on board who fill gaps in the ecosystem. Most of this round’s IRP funding (IRP 2.0) is already flowing through the Readiness Support Partners to grassroots organization Social Purpose Organizations. Now we are entering into a new phase of seeing how IRP funding has resulted in impacts, outcomes and enhancing the organizations doing work in their communities to get investment-ready.
Last calls for applications:
National Association of Friendship Centres (Feb 13) & Chantier de l’economie sociale (Feb 9)
Don’t miss your chance to apply for IRP funding: the Readiness Support Partners who still currently have open calls for applications. National Association of Friendship Centres funds urban-based Indigenous Social Purpose Organizations and all NAFC-member Friendship Centres and Provincial / Territorial Associations are eligible to apply for the IRP, with a deadline of February 13th. Chantier de l’économie socialefunds Quebec-based Social Purpose Organizations – their deadline is officially February 9th (with the application form open to waitlisted projects until February 28th).
IRP success stories
Now that most of the IRP 2.0 funds have been disbursed, we are seeing the impact that this funding has had on organizations and communities. Check out some of the success stories such as the Spotlights on our IRP blog, the NAFC’s IRP-funded projects from their previous 2022 round of IRP 2.0 funding, and success stories from co-ops which have received funding from Cooperatives and Mutuals Canada.
Susanna Redekop
Susanna Redekop is the Project Manager for the Sustainable Finance Forum on behalf of CCEDNet. The Sustainable Finance Forum returns to the Shaw Centre in Ottawa on November 28th-29th 2024, bringing together thought leaders, policymakers, and innovators at Canada’s premier event on sustainable finance.
The Canadian Community Economic Development Network is excited to announce our fifth invitation for organizational members to apply to employ youth through the CreateAction: Inclusive Social Innovation work experience program. Not already a member? Check out how you can join the network (including barrier-free options) by visiting CCEDNet’s membership page. (Note: you only need to become a member if selected; you don’t need to be a member to apply).
About CreateAction
The purpose of CreateAction is to provide employment and career-relevant learning opportunities to youth involuntarily not in education, employment or training (NEET) and/or underemployed -AND- facing barriers to employment. These placements will take place under the terms and conditions of a contribution agreement between the Canadian CED Network and Employment and Social Development Canada as part of the Youth Employment and Skills Strategy.
All work experience placements will support youth to further their career interests in community economic development, social innovation and/or off-reserve Indigenous service delivery infrastructure and provision of culturally enhanced programs and services to urban Indigenous residents.
This call for proposals is for placements taking place from May 1 to October 27, 2023 (26 weeks). The CreateAction program will provide youth with a wage of $21/hour for 37.5 hours/week. Employers may volunteer to increase their youth’s wages at their own expense. The deadline for submitting applications is February 26, 2023 at 11:59pm Pacific Time.
“The CreateAction program allowed us to create new positions temporarily to see how they fit into our organizational structure, and they both were very successful. We were able to build our capacity to keep these new positions permanently, and the youth in each placement were the perfect fit, so we offered the positions to them, and both accepted. Really grateful for the opportunity CreateAction has provided us to build our capacity.”
– Heidi Dixon, Operations Coordinator, First Light St. John’s Friendship Centre.
*Please note that only one placement will be granted per employer.
Employers will be selected according to the following criteria:
Organizational capacity to recruit youth facing barriers to employment
ability to recruit youth who are involuntarily not in employment, education, or training (NEET) and/or underemployed
demonstrated ability to recruit people who are Indigenous, Black, racialized, LGBTQ2S+, newcomers to Canada, and/or live with disability;
Organizational capacity to support youth facing barriers to employment
commitment to supporting and accommodating the needs of youth facing barriers to employment and a willingness to increase organizational capacity accordingly;
have a position available that aligns with the level of a youth facing barriers to employment, and be willing to adapt the position based on the skills/abilities of the engaged youth;
commitment and organizational capacity to assist youth with their daily work, providing coaching and career development support;
Organizational capacity to engage in a community of practice
commitment to participate in a peer support network of employers;
dedication to supporting the youth in leveraging the work experience into full-time employment or study; including youths’ short-term career goals post-placement
capacity to adequately support skills development for youth, with additional support from the CreateAction partners;
relevance of proposed work experience to community economic development, social innovation, and/or off-reserve Indigenous service delivery infrastructure and provision of culturally enhanced programs and services to urban Indigenous residents (visit NAFC’s website).
Priority will be given to organizations that provide social supports for adults or youth as part of their mandate (e.g. organizations serving or supporting newcomers, refugees, survivors of violence or people escaping abuse, formerly incarcerated people, and people experiencing/overcoming mental health challenges, substance use disorders, precarious housing, etc). We will also consider geographic diversity in our selection (e.g. rural, remote, northern, francophone communities outside of Quebec, and urban disadvantaged communities with recent immigrant populations).
Employers will:
actively seek out youth candidates from diverse backgrounds with barriers to employment;
hire a youth who is the best fit for the CreateAction program;
identify candidates by April 21, in order for work experience youth to start placements on May 1;
become a member of the Canadian CED Network after selection, if not already a member.
Build a culture of support and connection
offer a meaningful 26-week employment opportunity;
provide youth with an orientation to the employer;
develop, at the beginning of the placement, a Learning Plan to provide sufficient support services to enable youth to succeed at their placement;
provide sufficient resources and time to effectively supervise and mentor work experience youth;
provide, with support from the CreateAction program, career advice, regular feedback and guidance to youth and assist youth in laddering into further career-relevant employment or education at the end of the placement and post-placement;
Engage in a community of practice
participate in employer community practice including virtual sessions with the Canadian CED Network and other selected organizations;
set aside a minimum of:
six (6) hours per month for the youth to participate in peer learning activities, and
three (3) working days for the youth to participate in an in-person or online learning event.
contact the Canadian CED Network for support and guidance if ever there are issues that you or the youth are experiencing and whenever the youth might be absent from work;
work with the CreateAction program evaluators on youth and employer evaluation-related activities, such as activities involved with a midterm check-in and a final evaluation;
CreateAction partners (CCEDNet, NAFC and SRDC) will:
Provide a meaningful and enriching workplace experience
pay youth directly at a rate of $21/hour (though employers are welcome to top up the amount) and cover MERCs (mandatory employment-related costs);
provide, in concert with employers, tailored wraparound supports for youth including supporting the capacity of employers in their ability to provide social support for youth;
work with employers to offer mediation support or resolve disputes arising with work experience youth; including any decision to terminate the work experience placement as a last resort;
conduct baseline, end-of-placement, and 3-month follow-up surveys with youth and an end-of-placement survey for employers to monitor progress, track youth learning, and capture youth outcomes, career expectations and satisfaction.
Coordinate employer and youth communities of practices
provide a robust peer learning and peer mentoring work experience for youths’ ongoing professional development for the duration of the placement;
coordinate the youth community of practice that will include weekly drop-in video conference calls for youth to learn, share experiences, and network;
coordinate the employer community of practice that will include employer video conference calls for employers to share experiences and network
To participate in the CreateAction program, eligible youth must be:
involuntarily not in education, employment or training (NEET) and/or underemployed;
a youth experiencing barriers to employment;
between 15 and 30 years of age (inclusive) at the start of placement;
Canadian citizens, permanent residents, or protected persons as defined by the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act;
legally entitled to work in Canada;
legally entitled to work according to the relevant provincial/territorial legislation and regulations.
If you require an offline application, please contact Beatrice Anane-Bediakoh at the coordinates below. The deadline for submitting applications is February 26, 2023, at 11:59pm Pacific Time.
Youth interested in the program should apply directly to the employers.
For more information, please contact Beatrice Anane-Bediakoh, Program and Engagement Manager, at .
The creation of the Council was one of the 12 recommendations in the Social Innovation and Social Finance (SISF) strategy, Inclusive Innovation.
After nearly 15 years as Executive Director of CCEDNet, I’ve led more than my fair share of meetings, but not many where a federal minister is a participant! So chairing this first meeting of the Council had me a bit more nervous than usual – the establishment of the Council is a very important and long-awaited step in this ambitious agenda for change.
The strategy was released at the end of August 2018, after nearly a year of engagement and deliberations by a co-creation Steering Group. The government moved quickly to provide funding for the Social Finance Fund and the Investment Readiness Program just a few months later in the 2018 Fall Economic Statement. But since then, we’ve had two elections, two new ministers, and a pandemic, slowing progress considerably.
CCEDNet has been advocating for action on all 12 recommendations since the report was released. The creation of the Council is a key step, because as the OECD Recommendation on the Social and Solidarity Economy and Social Innovation recognizes, an institutional architecture that facilitates stakeholder engagement, including under-represented groups, in the design and implementation of public policies is central to ensuring their relevance and success.
The OECD Recommendation also says that the institutional framework is ideally co-created with the stakeholders such as umbrella organizations of stakeholder groups that are part of the wider ecosystem. The SIAC is not a co-creation body, it is an advisory council to the government, but it is an important mechanism for feedback.
As part of the Council’s role to provide stakeholder feedback to the government, we will rely on social purpose organizations, social innovators, and sector leaders to continue to tell us what’s needed.
CCEDNet has convened the People-Centred Economy Group for over a decade for just that reason: because for Social Innovation and Social Finance to be successful, it requires sector coherency as the foundation for effective government partnerships.
The focus of the Social Innovation and Social Finance strategy is on social purpose organizations (SPOs), the diverse range of organizations including charities, non-profit organizations, co-operatives, and private businesses advancing a social or environmental mission.
There are a lot of them in Canada, and the legal structures we’re talking about when we refer to SPOs are mostly not new (although there are some newer ones, like Community Contribution Companies, Community Interest Companies, or multi-stakeholder co-operatives). But they are under-recognized as business models, and too often face structural or awareness-related barriers to accessing capital, business development programs or other opportunities that can help them grow.
When they are successful as businesses, they do a miraculous thing: they shift the purpose, incentives, and accountability in the economy towards what we need in the 21st century: more equitable prosperity and more sustainable well-being.
That’s what social innovation and social finance are about — breaking out of the silos we find ourselves in, to correct the systems that create exclusion and environmental destruction, and to empower Canadians to take action in their communities for our shared benefit.
At the Sustainable Finance Forum on Parliament Hill last November, Prime Minister Trudeau said that the strategy will empower individual Canadians and community-level organizations to have an even bigger impact in defining the future of Canada, so we can all build an economy that works for all Canadians.
That’s my aspiration for this Strategy and the Council.
Minister Gould has said that she believes this is the economy Canadians want, but we need to do a better job making people aware of it. I think she’s right, and it’s a call to action for the sector to engage the public and build support. That’s how we’ll catalyze the real force for change — which isn’t government, it’s people.
Let’s continue to build momentum for a successful social innovation and social finance strategy in Canada.
Michael Toye
Executive Director
Canadian CED Network
Mike Toye (he/him) lives in the traditional territory of the Abenaki and Wabanaki Confederacy in south-central Québec. His involvement with the Canadian Community Economic Development Network started in 2000, and he has been Executive Director since 2008. He has been a consultant on community economic development and the social economy in two worker co-operatives he co-founded, author of numerous articles and reports, co-editor of the book Community Economic Development: Building for Social Change, lecturer, researcher and Policy Analyst for the Library of Parliament.
CCEDNet’s Executive Director, Mike Toye, has been named SIAC’s first Chairperson. Together, Mike and the six other Council members will provide advice to the government on the ongoing implementation of the SI/SF Strategy.
Employment and Social Development Canada published a press release about the launch of SIAC. Read it in full below.
News release
February 1, 2023Gatineau, QuebecEmployment and Social Development Canada
The Government of Canada is taking steps to encourage innovative approaches to address persistent social inequalities and environmental challenges faced by Canadians. The Social Innovation and Social Finance Strategy aims to provide better support for community organizations working to achieve positive solutions to persistent social problems, including those faced by marginalized populations.
Today, the Minister of Families, Children and Social Development, Karina Gould, announced the appointment of seven members to the Social Innovation Advisory Council, which is a foundational element of the Social Innovation and Social Finance Strategy. The members of the Advisory Council are leaders, practitioners and subject matter experts in the social innovation and social finance sector from across Canada. They offer a diverse range of skill sets, knowledge and experiences.
The Social Innovation Advisory Council will provide strategic advice and subject matter expertise to support Canada’s social innovation and social finance approaches and the growth of social purpose organizations. It will provide an important perspective from within the stakeholder community, and it will provide feedback to the Government of Canada on the current initiatives and future direction of the Social Innovation and Social Finance Strategy, as well as on emerging issues facing the sector.
Quotes
“The launch of the Social Innovation Advisory Council is a significant step forward in implementing the Government of Canada’s Social Innovation and Social Finance Strategy. Each member of this council will provide a unique perspective and add valuable insight about the challenges being faced by communities, social purpose organizations, and the social innovation and social finance sector. By investing in Canada’s social innovation and social finance potential, the Government of Canada is helping to create the kind of economy that Canadians want.”
– Minister of Families, Children and Social Development, Karina Gould
“Social innovation and social finance represent a game-changing agenda for equitable prosperity, to create an economy that works for everyone. The formation of the Social Innovation Advisory Council, one of the 12 recommendations made by the Social Innovation and Social Finance Strategy Co-Creation Steering Group in their report Inclusive Innovation, will be an important mechanism to continue advancing this bold agenda. In my role as chair, I look forward to working with social innovation and social finance stakeholders from across Canada and with social purpose organizations who are building a future where everyone sees opportunities for themselves and for future generations.”
– Michael Toye, Chair of the Social Innovation Advisory Council
“The recommendations made by the Social Innovation and Social Finance Strategy Co-Creation Steering Group in their report Inclusive Innovation feel even more relevant at this point in time. The pandemic has held an ongoing spotlight on many societal issues around the world, and the need to act is critical. By continuing to support the development of the social purpose landscape across Canada, we have the opportunity to demonstrate ways of creating a more just and inclusive economy: one that serves both people and the planet. Collaboration and strong relationships will be instrumental in moving this work forward into the future.”
– Lauren Sears, Vice-Chair of the Social Innovation Advisory Council
Quick facts
The Government of Canada appointed members to the Social Innovation Advisory Council through a public call for applications in 2019. Members were selected to ensure that the Advisory Council represents varied skill sets and knowledge of Canada’s social innovation and social finance sector.
The Social Innovation Advisory Council members have been appointed for three-year terms, with the possibility for renewal.
Government officials will provide secretariat support to the Social Innovation Advisory Council and will serve as observers and resource people at Advisory Council meetings to provide policy, program, legislative and regulatory expertise.
