Work Integration Social Enterprises in BC

The BC Centre for Employment Excellence would like to invite you to join our Learning Community in BC for managers of Work Integration Social Enterprises (WISEs) - Social Enterprises that have a significant focus on employment and livelihood outcomes for their employees / participants.  

We have WISE’s involved from regional clusters in the Fraser Valley and the Gitxsan Territory in the Northwest.  They are involved in a long term action research project on participant and community outcomes funded by Employment and Social Development Canada.  

We would now like to extend the Learning Community to other WISEs in BC and over twenty have joined in 2020.  Our focus is on peer learning related to challenges and strategies for success, and on policy development to create a more enabling environment for our work.  We:

• Meet by Zoom / teleconference every three months for 1.5 hours.
• Provide peer learning opportunities  
• Examine challenges to, and strategies for, success.
• Circulate resources of interest to participants from various jurisdictions.
• Support public policy development to support our work.  
• Share action research outcomes to-date.

To date, the Learning Community has shared strategies for employer engagement, procurement and support to Indigenous youth.  It has also engaged BC Government Ministers on the role of Social Enterprises in Poverty Reduction, and Federal Officials on Social Enterprises' role in Employment and Social Development.

Get Involved

If you would like to participate please let us know, we can follow up with more information.

Feel free to call or email

• Rupert Downing, redowning@me.com, 250-727-5475
• Shawn de Raaf, sderaaf@cfeebc.org, 604-601-4077 at the BC Centre for Employment Excellence .