Workshop information is now available! Check out what workshops you can attend in the following conference streams:
Workforce Development
Community Enterprise
Community Building
Early Bird deadline has been extended until: March 18th!
National CED News
CCEDNet and Members Submit Pre-Budget Recommendations
The Canadian CED Network's Policy Council submitted a response to the federal government's invitation for pre-budget submissions for the 2016 Federal Budget, and Executive Director Michael Toye presented it to the Standing Committee on Finance on February 16th. The submission focuses on how the government can implement the measures it has already committed to undertaking in the election and the Ministerial mandate letters in ways that will maximize their success and value for communities.
Private Member's Bill on Community Benefits Agreements
Toronto MP Ahmed Hussen has introduced a private member's bill that would allow the federal government to require information on the community benefits generated by construction, maintenance or repair contracts for public works or federal properties.
The inclusion of community benefit agreements in social infrastructure spending planned by the federal government was one of the recommendations made by Michael Toye, Executive Director of the Canadian CED Network, in pre-budget consultations last month.
Share Your Ideas and Stories with Beautiful Solutions: Toolbox for the Future
Beautiful Solutions is collecting stories to spotlight the most powerful strategies for creating the world we want. These stories demonstrate that another world is not only possible — it is already happening. The focus is on visionary groups of people from around the globe who are driving the shift to a democratic, just and sustainable future — creating tools so that everyone can build solutions in their own communities.
Canada-Wide Social Enterprise Sector Survey to be Released at ECONOUS2016
In 2014 and 2015, the Social Enterprise Sector Survey collected impact data from non-profit social enterprises in all provinces and territories of Canada (except Quebec, where the Comité sectoriel de main d’oeuvre économie sociale et action communautaire conducted a sector survey).
The full report on these surveys will be released on May 18th at the ECONOUS2016 Conference in Montreal.
New Employment Program Launched in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside
Knack, a new initiative of Potluck Café Society, was launched last month. Knack's mission is to create flexible, part time employment opportunities for residents of Vancouver's downtown eastside.
Using figures provided by the Ministry of Social Development and Innovation, Knack calculates that there are currently a total of 383,000 work hours per month currently going unused from the 7,000 DTES residents who collect social assistance, representing $56 million a year.
The Co-operators Announce $120,000 in CED Funding
The Co-operators have announced eight donations totalling $120,000 to organizations across the country that are working to enhance the self-reliance and employability of marginalized youth and people with mental health challenges. The funding is being provided from The Co-operators Community Economic Development Funds.
More Bang for the Buck: The Impact of CFDC Lending on Ontario’s Economy
Every dollar of lending through the Community Futures Program results in as much as $4.50 added to real GDP.
A new report by the Conference Board of Canada, More Bang for the Buck: The Impact of CFDC Lending on Ontario's Economy, assesses the economic impact of the lending services provided through the Community Futures Program. The report was funded by the Ontario Association of Community Futures Development Corporations, a member of the Canadian CED Network.
CED Blogs
Practical Ways to Foster More Inclusive Community Planning and Design
Blog by Ariana McBride
Cities and towns of all sizes struggle with how to involve the most representative sample of their population in their community design efforts. This post specifies practical ways to engage groups who are typically underrepresented in community efforts.
These processes require patience, flexibility, and resolve. All are achievable particularly if you work with other community partners. And remember that when you make participation work for more marginalized populations, you are creating better opportunities for all people to take part in your effort.
Social Equity in Green Cities
Blog by Jessica Knowler
For Women Transforming Cities, the present-day economic reality is one of increasing inequality that has disparate outcomes for marginalized communities. This is to say that economic inequality tends to fall along gendered and racialized lines (to name only two). Such inequality is echoed in the Canadian labour force, which is still arranged along these divisions, and gendered and racialized arrangements closely coincide with our focus on non-renewable natural resource extraction--an industry that largely employs men with access to good wages, benefits and entitlements, and one that we know heavily contributes to climate change.
All members are encouraged to post blogs on their experiences, lessons and successes. If you're interested, contact us.
CED Resources
The Prosperous Province: Strategies for Building Community Wealth
This paper explores Comunity Benefits Agreements (CBAs) attached to large-scale real estate or infrastructure developments. It situates CBAs firmly in the Ontario context. It looks to the experiences of practitioners in other jurisdictions for lessons and cautions. It also considers how community organizers, public servants and developers can adapt this approach to their current realities.
The paper examines the structure of CBAs and the process for developing them. It will describe the leading examples, the current provincial landscape, and related strategic considerations before drawing some conclusions and identifying next steps.
Study Guide to the Cooperative Movement
While an increasing number of people are discovering cooperatives, it’s not always clear how or where to learn more about them – whether you want the fundamentals or to dig in deeper with specifics.
That’s why the TESA Collective put together a study guide for the cooperative movement. This guide – while not a complete and total list – provides tools, activities, videos, readings, and more to help you brush up on your cooperative skills and knowledge. Some of these resources are free, some of them have a cost. But all of them will help you better understand what a cooperative is, how to practice cooperation, and the power of the cooperative movement.
Making the Case for Linking Community Development and Health
This report is a "resource for those working to improve low-income communities and the lives of the people living in them." Despite growing recognition that social and economic conditions are the primary drivers of health, the fields of community development and public health remain siloed. This new report from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Build Healthy Places Network outlines specific opportunities to integrate the two fields and overcome barriers to collaboration. It also includes recommendations on how to measure the impact of cross-sector collaborations and refine programs accordingly.
Michael Toye Presents to the Standing Committee on Finance for the 2016 Pre-Budget Consultations
The Canadian CED Network's Policy Council submitted a response to the federal government's invitation for pre-budget submissions for the 2016 Federal Budget, and Executive Director Michael Toye presented it to the Standing Committee on Finance on February 16th
If you'd like to join CCEDNet, don't delay! In addition to free access to CCEDNet's webinars, members receive discounts on events and contribute to a national movement for sustainable and inclusive communities. For any questions about membership,contact us.
Thank you to our members, funders, and sustaining members such as
and many others all across Canada who make our work possible. Join CCEDNet.
CCEDNet Members Can Now Submit Events, Tools, Blogs & Jobs Directly to the Website
Great news for CCEDNet members: you are now able to submit CED-related events, toolbox resources (e.g. research reports, case studies, books, videos, etc.), blog posts, and jobs directly to the CCEDNet website to be viewed by thousands of of people from across Canada and beyond!
To get started, all you need to do is sign in; then click on "Post Content" under the User Menu at the top of the right column on the website.
Workforce Development
CCEDNet and Members Submit Pre-Budget Recommendations
Private Member's Bill on Community Benefits Agreements
Share Your Ideas and Stories with Beautiful Solutions: Toolbox for the Future
New Employment Program Launched in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside
The Co-operators Announce $120,000 in CED Funding
Study Guide to the Cooperative Movement
Making the Case for Linking Community Development and Health 
