Holiday shoppers have the power to make real impacts in their community. This season, consider social enterprises and co-operatives when purchasing gifts for friends and family. Social enterprises across the country are helping to build stronger communities by providing basic needs for underserved populations, creating employment and training opportunities, and shifting our economy to more socially and environmentally sustainable practices. By shopping locally and socially, you’ll find unique gift ideas and support important capacity-building initiatives in your community.
For help finding social enterprises near you, visit the Canadian Social Enterprise Marketplace. For local shopping ideas in Calgary, visit Momentum's directory of graduates from their employment development program here.
Alberta CED News
Evaluating Community Impact: Capturing and Making Sense of Community Outcomes
Measuring success and evaluating outcomes is an ongoing challenge in the CED and community development sector. This three-day workshop is designed to increase the capacity leaders in the community development field to demonstrate the value of their work and calculate the effectiveness of their projects. This interactive learning event, hosted by the Tamarack Institute, is taking place in Calgary from January 29-31.
>> Read more
A Co-operative Family Reunion in Red Deer
Described as a ‘long-overdue family reunion’ The Gathering of Alberta Co-operatives brought 150 co-operative leaders, members and supporters last month in Red Deer. The conference provided an opportunity to celebrate the sector’s successes in 2012 and plan for the future. As part of the event, participants shared their dreams for what would be happening with Alberta co-ops in 2017, Canada’s 150th Anniversary.
Find out how co-operatives across Alberta celebrated the International Year of Co-operatives with this special insert by ACCA.
The Sangudo Opportunity Development Co-operative Story
Like many rural Albertan communities the hamlet of Sangudo was in a slow state of economic decline. In this video, some of the community members who were instrumental in developing the Sangudo Opportunity Develoment Coop, discuss how they created the organization that raised the capital to invest in local businesses.
A look back and ahead to 2013 for the social enterprise sector
It's that time of year again when we look back on the last 12 months and reflect on our accomplishments. In the spirit of this season, SEE Change Magazine has put together a Cross-Canada Social Enterprise Check-Up in which sector leaders share how the field is evolving in their region, what they are working on, and what’s on the horizon for 2013. David LePage (CCEDNet member) highlights the 11 recommendations developed by the Social Innovation Council and the Social Enterprise World Forum 2013 in Calgary as major accomplishments. Brendan Reimer (CCEDNet's regional director) and Marty Donkervoort (CCEDNet member) also contributed to the piece, who sees government procurement and better support for social enterprise start-ups as key to growing the sector.
The International Year of Co-ops may be drawing to a close, but Canada’s co-op sector is already thinking about the future. Three Canadian co-op organizations recently pledged their founding support for a new Co-operative Investment Fund. The Fund, which will launch in 2013, will support the development and expansion of co-operatives through loans and subordinated debt sourced from the co-op sector. To date, financial support has been pledged by Vancity, The Co-operators and the Canadian Worker Co-op Federation. >> Read more
CED Book Club - Community Economic Development: Building For Social Change
Having made major gains in practice and having built local capacities through innovation, Community Economic Development practice now stands at a crossroads. In Building for Social Change, Eric Shragge, Michael Toye and colleagues from across the country offer a timely critical examination of CED practices and debates.
The goal of this book is to describe and analyze CED practice, primarily in Canada, but also the U.S. and Kenya, through a wide range of subjects, the evolution of its definitions and economic dimensions.
The Pembina Institute advances clean energy solutions through research, education, consulting and advocacy >>
Kitikmeot Inuit Association is mandated to defend, preserve and promote social, cultural and economic benefits to Inuit of the Kitikmeot Region of Nunavut >>
Holiday shoppers have the power to make real impacts in their community. This season, consider social enterprises and co-operatives when purchasing gifts for friends and family. Social enterprises across the country are helping to build stronger communities by providing basic needs for underserved populations, creating employment and training opportunities, and shifting our economy to more socially and environmentally sustainable practices. By shopping locally and socially, you’ll find unique gift ideas and support important capacity-building initiatives in your community.
Measuring success and evaluating outcomes is an ongoing challenge in the CED and community development sector. This three-day workshop is designed to increase the capacity leaders in the community development field to demonstrate the value of their work and calculate the effectiveness of their projects. This interactive learning event, hosted by the Tamarack Institute, is taking place in Calgary from January 29-31. 
Like many rural Albertan communities the hamlet of Sangudo was in a slow state of economic decline. In this video, some of the community members who were instrumental in developing the Sangudo Opportunity Develoment Coop, discuss how they created the organization that raised the capital to invest in local businesses.
It's that time of year again when we look back on the last 12 months and reflect on our accomplishments. In the spirit of this season, SEE Change Magazine has put together a Cross-Canada Social Enterprise Check-Up in which sector leaders share how the field is evolving in their region, what they are working on, and what’s on the horizon for 2013. David LePage (CCEDNet member) highlights the 11 recommendations developed by the Social Innovation Council and the Social Enterprise World Forum 2013 in Calgary as major accomplishments. Brendan Reimer (CCEDNet's regional director) and Marty Donkervoort (CCEDNet member) also contributed to the piece, who sees government procurement and better support for social enterprise start-ups as key to growing the sector.
The International Year of Co-ops may be drawing to a close, but Canada’s co-op sector is already thinking about the future. Three Canadian co-op organizations recently pledged their founding support for a new Co-operative Investment Fund. The Fund, which will launch in 2013, will support the development and expansion of co-operatives through loans and subordinated debt sourced from the co-op sector. To date, financial support has been pledged by Vancity, The Co-operators and the Canadian Worker Co-op Federation. 
Having made major gains in practice and having built local capacities through innovation, Community Economic Development practice now stands at a crossroads. In Building for Social Change, Eric Shragge, Michael Toye and colleagues from across the country offer a timely critical examination of CED practices and debates.
