"As consumers we have incredible power to make the world a better place. It’s a win-win situation as long as the customer is happy with the product or service,” says Peter Holbrook, CEO of Social Enterprise UK and keynote speaker for the Buy Social Canada Summit taking place in Vancouver on the evening of June 16 and all day June 17. Learn from initiatives across Canada and the UK, meet colleagues sharing your professional journey, meet purchasers looking for business and social opportunities, and examine innovative ways to engage with purchasers.
The sixth annual Social Enterprise Heroes and Day of Learning will once again host an impressive roster of key Vancouver business and non-profit leaders. Amongst those involved in sponsoring, judging, providing prizes and coaching are representatives from Telus, KPMG, Enterprising Non-profits B.C., Sierra Systems, JDQ Systems, YWCA Metro Vancouver and others. In a recent enp article, Derek Gent of Vancity Community Foundation notes that the Foundation's continued participation in the Heroes event stems from the evidence that supporting social enterprises results in positive community impacts. The event is also a lot of fun, he adds. Social Enterprise Heroes is taking place on April 16.
The federal and provincial governments announced a major commitment to increasing the stock of affordable housing in British Columbia. The Governments of Canada and B.C. will be investing an additional $300 million over the next five years to help individuals and families access affordable housing. The joint-funding will be delivered through an extension to the Investment in Affordable Housing (IAH) agreement. According to the press release, the IAH has helped more than 177,500 households nationally, and nearly 2,220 BC families in the past two years.
Creating Social Impact Employment in the Downtown Eastside
Social impact employment opportunities will be on the rise in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside, thanks to an innovative accelerator program. The V Prize offers access to financial capital and consulting to develop social enterprises and other social-impact businesses in the area. The program is being coordinated by Building Opportunities with Business (BOB), a Vancouver-based CED agency. Olla Urban Flower Project, a flower social enterprise in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside has already benefited from the program, and so BOB is now accepting applications from local social enterprises and social-impact businesses for this year's V Prize program.
All Aboard: Economic Benefits of Local Ferry Procurement in BC
The Columbia Institute recently launched a campaign to urge BC Ferries to consider building three new ferries locally, rather than overseas. According to the Institute, the construction of three ships would provide nearly 1,100 local jobs for three years, 135 jobs in spin-off sectors, and boost provincial GDP by nearly $380 million. Expenditures for the construction are expected to exceed $2.5 billion. Charley Beresford of the Columbia Institute notes, “The numbers add up. Building BC ferries in BC means big dollars stay home and circulate in our home economy.”
Canadian CED
Network News
Next in CCEDNet's Webinar Series: UN Sustainability Goals and Social Return Intelligence Suite
On March 28th, speakers from the North-South Institute (NSI) and the Intercontinental Network for the Promotion of the Social Solidarity Economy (RIPESS) will explore the process for developing the United Nations' post-2015 Development Agenda and the prospects for securing a greater role for the social solidarity economy in the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Then, on April 8th, we are partnering again with GlobalMeasures Initiative to present the Social Return Intelligence Suite, a powerful tool for measuring your social impact.
Manitoba Budget 2014 Responds to CCEDNet Members
Leading up to Finance Minister Jennifer Howard's budget speech on March 6th, CCEDNet's Manitoba Regional Director, Brendan Reimer, published a series of three blog posts
anticipating the budget. If we view budgets as statements of values and priorities then the Manitoba government's commitment to invest in CED and poverty reduction clearly demonstrates a desire to put people and communities first.
2014 AGM - Call for Nominations and Resolutions
In advance of the May 29th Annual General Meeting, the Canadian CED Network is seeking nominations for four positions on the Board of Directors. Members with energy and a vision for the CED movement in Canada are encouraged to submit their candidacy by
April 8, 2014. Members are also invited to submit resolutions to be presented at the AGM.
Renew Your Membership Today!
All members of the Canadian CED Network should now have received an email containing an invitation to renew their membership and a review our accomplishments in 2013. Please take a moment today to renew your membership online, if you have not already. If you were not a member in 2013 now is a great time to join a growing movement to create more inclusive and sustainable communities.
CED Wire Updates
5 Things to Know About the New Alberta Social Innovation Endowment: Carolyn Davis of Momentum highlights what the Social Innovation Endowment means for CED | Read more >>- Twenty Years of Changing Lives, One Dollar at a Time: Brendan Reimer reflects on LITE's contributions to poverty reduction following 20th anniversary | Read more >>
- Manitoba makes wise investment in child care: Darcy Penner lauds provincial government's response to CCEDNet members' Child Care policy resolution | Read more >>
National CED News
Canada's Largest Social Innovation Endowment Created in Alberta
In the 2014 Alberta Budget the province announced that it will be creating what will be the largest Social Innovation Endowment Fund (SEIF) in Canada, with $1 billion earmarked for investment over two years. We got Carolyn Davis, Community Relations Director with Calgary-based CCEDNet member Momentum, to highlight
5 things you should know about the SEIF. The Fund will help advance Alberta's Social Policy Framework.
Impact Investing Made Possible with Community Finance Solutions
The new national initiative of MaRS Centre for Impact Investing is looking to help communities to set up a variety of impact investing funds and products. Community Finance Solutions was launched earlier this month by webinar. The online event shared the experiential knowledge of presenters Marguerite Mendell (Fiducie du Chantier de l'économie sociale in Québec) and Jane Bisbee (Social Enterprise Fund) to help inspire and guide those looking to apply for expert advisory support through the program.
CED Tool: Saving Money by Doing the Right Thing: Why 'Local by Default' Must Replace 'Diseconomies of Scale'
Public services work poorly. Every day the press carries stories of failure, waste and basic human needs unmet. Health, social care and children’s services are buckling, while local authorities cut discretionary spending on libraries, parks and other local amenities to the bone. This report shows why UK public sector organisations fail to meet people’s needs and why demand is rising. The two main causes, discovered empirically in the studies, are the belief in ‘economies of scale’ and the belief in the standardisation of services. Together, these beliefs prevent organisations from understanding and meeting people’s needs.
A Little Bird Told Us: Top Tweets of the Month
Here is a brief sampling of some of our most popular tweets from the past 30 days.
Click here to follow us on Twitter.
- Is appetite for social procurement growing in Canada? Progressive purchasing policies are emerging across the country ow.ly/uur2L
- Small grants available to Canadian #youth to implement #CED ideas for @NewEconomics. Pitch your idea today! ow.ly/umSXP
- Manitoba to develop Social Enterprise Strategy to grow more jobs! One of many reasons to be excited for Budget 2014 ow.ly/umSGT
- Madawaska Maliseet FN & Edmundston had 2-day workshop on joint #CED initiative last week thru @CandoEDO & @FCM_online ow.ly/ucxFD
- Want to know what the @CanRevAgency considers a "related" business for CDN #charity? Register now for Mar 11 webinar ow.ly/u7JUJ
- Have you seen our new video yet? Check it out - a great introduction to the world of community economic development! ow.ly/u7EZ6
"As consumers we have incredible power to make the world a better place. It’s a win-win situation as long as the customer is happy with the product or service,” says Peter Holbrook, CEO of Social Enterprise UK and keynote speaker for the Buy Social Canada Summit taking place in Vancouver on the evening of June 16 and all day June 17. Learn from initiatives across Canada and the UK, meet colleagues sharing your professional journey, meet purchasers looking for business and social opportunities, and examine innovative ways to engage with purchasers.
The sixth annual Social Enterprise Heroes and Day of Learning will once again host an impressive roster of key Vancouver business and non-profit leaders. Amongst those involved in sponsoring, judging, providing prizes and coaching are representatives from Telus, KPMG, Enterprising Non-profits B.C., Sierra Systems, JDQ Systems, YWCA Metro Vancouver and others. In a recent enp article, Derek Gent of Vancity Community Foundation notes that the Foundation's continued participation in the Heroes event stems from the evidence that supporting social enterprises results in positive community impacts. The event is also a lot of fun, he adds. Social Enterprise Heroes is taking place on April 16.
The federal and provincial governments announced a major commitment to increasing the stock of affordable housing in British Columbia. The Governments of Canada and B.C. will be investing an additional $300 million over the next five years to help individuals and families access affordable housing. The joint-funding will be delivered through an extension to the Investment in Affordable Housing (IAH) agreement. According to the press release, the IAH has helped more than 177,500 households nationally, and nearly 2,220 BC families in the past two years.
