Wednesday, January 22 | 1:00pm EST (1 hour)
Featured speakers: Siôn Whellens, Gerard Peron, Tom Webb

*Free to attend*

[ Register Here ]

The Measuring the Co-operative Difference Research Network invites you to this webinar to explore how co-operatives brand themselves as such and whether there is a benefit to leading with the co-operative identity. The three featured speakers will engage participants in dissecting the co-op brand and identifying how it appeals to members and the public.

About the Speakers:

Siôn Whellens from Calverts in the UK, the firm (graphic design co-op) behind the new International Co-operative Alliance identity. Siôn was instrumental engaging a worldwide survey of co-operators to inform the new co-op branding. Siôn will provide highlights from the survey that unpack ideas of co-op branding. Siôn Whellens has been a worker co-operator for 30 years. He is Client Services Director at UK design and production co-op Calverts and a member of the UK Worker Co-operative Council. Siôn served on the board of Co-operatives UK from 2006 to 2011.

Gerard Peron will speak about the ‘Certification of compliance with cooperative practices©’ a program developed out of Quebec as a way of certifying co-operatives that abide by the internationally accepted co-op principles. He will explain why the certification was developed, how it works, why it is a helpful branding mechanism and why it was not yet implemented. Gérard Perron has held management positions since 1977. His expertise is recognized in economic development (local and cooperative development) as well as in organizational development (corporate governance and project management).

Tom Webb has been a co-op practitioner and educator for many decades and as well has worked in corporate communications in the co-operative sector. Tom will respond to the first two presentations, providing a reflection on how co-op branding and identity can serve as a marketing advantage and how this can be done, providing examples from co-operatives who have done successful marketing of their co-operative identity.

*Please note we have changed our audio set-up so prepare to join via VOIP on your computer or otherwise phone a Toronto-based number*

Contact Info:

Erin Hancock
Manager of Research and Education
613.238.6711 ext 211
toll free: 1.866.266.7677 ext 211
erin.hancock@coopscanada.coop

Thursday, January 23, 2014
1-2 pm ET (noon-1 pm CT)

Join Marjorie Kelly, The Democracy Collaborative, as she shares insights on the emerging ownership revolution based on her new book. Join us!

[ register here ]

About Marjorie Kelly's Owning Our Future:

Looking around at the wreckage left in the wake of the world economy s latest crisis, veteran business journalist Marjorie Kelly noticed that some institutions were left relatively unscathed. What did they have in common? The key, Kelly realized, is seemingly obscure: ownership. Prominent among the survivors were organizations that combined the flexibility of traditional private ownership with a focus on the common good.

As long as businesses are set up to focus exclusively on maximizing quarterly returns for a limited group of individuals, the economy will be plagued by destructive boom - bust cycles. But now people are experimenting with new forms of ownership. We are in the midst of the most creative period of economic innovation since the dawn of the Industrial Revolution. Kelly calls these new forms generative: aimed at creating the conditions for life for many generations to come. They are in contrast to the dominant ownership designs of today, which can be called extractive: aimed at extracting short - term financial wealth.

To understand these emerging ownership alternatives, Kelly reports from all over the world, visiting a community - owned wind facility in Massachusetts, a lobster cooperative in Maine, a multibillion - dollar employee - owned department - store chain in London, a foundation - owned pharmaceutical in Denmark, a farmer - owned dairy in Wisconsin, and other places where an economy that works for all is being built.

Event Contact

Deb Markley
Center for Rural Entrepreneurship
919-932-7762
deb@e2mail.org
http://ruralwealth.org/page/webinars-1

What's happening in your community?  Are there needs for local investment?

Are there opportunities to support the transition of ownership from an older entrepreneur to a younger one?

Are there new businesses that are really needed?

Are there existing businesses that want to expand?

January 22, 2014
12:00 - 1:00pm
Free Webinar

Unleashing Local Capital is an innovative model for local residents within your community to support your own local community through investing in your own Opportunity Development Co-op (ODC). Through your investment, you can be actively engaged in the success of your community and the growth of your investment, using your own cash savings or your RRSPs.

Join us to learn:

• What is it?
• Where did it come from?
• How does it work?
• What are some successful examples here in Alberta?
• What can this do for you?

This free webinar that will give you what you need to gather some friends and do some really genuine and meaningful work in your community that will enhance the entire community.

What do you have to lose?  Or, what do you have to gain?

BACKGROUND

Immigrants to Canada make up nearly 20% of the population, but face significant disparities in many areas of daily life.  The income gap between newcomers and Canadian-born employees is growing, and more recent immigrants are not faring as well as those in the past. 

Entrepreneurship can be a strategy to overcome income disparities, but many immigrants have difficulty accessing mainstream business development supports.  The Edmonton Mennonite Centre for Newcomers and the Montréal Community Loan Association have specialized in entrepreneurship supports for immigrants, and their successful programs have generated some unique insights. 

This session presents the lessons from these two effective models of community services for immigrant entrepreneurship and consider the implications for improving immigrant settlement and integration in Canada. 

SPEAKERS

• Dennis Chute, Wildman Institute
  Serial entrepreneur, Dennis is CEO of Wildman Enterprises, where he created and is the lead facilitator of a training program for immigrants who want to start their own companies. The Entrepreneurship for Immigrants program is offered in partnership with the Edmonton Mennonite Centre for Newcomers and has graduated approximately 120 students, with more than 50% in business.  Dennis also serves on the board of several non-profit organizations and teaches board development and leadership training. 
   
• Jacqueline Bazompora, Montréal Community Loan Association
  Jacqueline is Coordinator of the Cercles d’emprunt de l’Ile de Montréal (CEIM), delivering business plan writing courses and coaching students through their business start-up process.  Building on the well-established loan-circle model, in its first year the CEIM has trained 41 participants in six loan circles, with five businesses started. 

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

• Edmonton Mennonite Centre for Newcomers http://emcn.ab.ca/
• Wildman Institute http://www.wildmaninstitute.org
• Montréal Community Loan Association http://www.acemcreditcommunautaire.qc.ca/en
• Case Studies of Immigrant Social Enterprises across Canada, Canadian CED Network, 2010
• Immigrant Entrepreneurs: Creating Wealth for Canadian Communities, Maytree Foundation, 2012
• DIY: Immigrant Entrepreneurs are Doing it for Themselves, North York Community House, 2013
• Catalogue of Immigrant Social Enterprises across Canada, Canadian CED Network, 2010
• Immigrant Self-Employment and Entrepreneurship in the Greater Toronto Area, Maytree Foundation and Metcalf Foundation, 2011
• Creating Opportunities, Optimizing Possibilities: Immigrant and Refugee Co-operatives in Canada, Canadian CED Network, 2004
• Upholding the Canadian Promise: Recommendations for a CED Approach to Settlement Challenges, Canadian CED Network, 2007

BACKGROUND

The start of a new year is often a time for looking back and looking forward.  But 2014 also marks a major turning point in the lives of three long-time Canadian leaders in the fields of co-operatives, social enterprise and CED.

Over many years of dedication, Lynne Markell, David LePage, and Walter Hossli have played an integral role in the growth and development of CED in Canada.  So we wanted to start our 2014 webinar series by sharing some insights from these three leaders on their experience and vision for the future. 

In this session, moderated by CCEDNet Emerging Leaders co-Chair Marianne Jurzyniec, we reflected on the biggest changes our presenters have seen over their careers, the most important lessons they’ve learned, and where they see exciting opportunities in the field today. 

PRESENTERS

• Walter Hossli
  Walter has been Executive Director of Momentum since it was founded in 1991.  Under his leadership, Momentum has won the Community Achievement Award from the City of Calgary, been recognized by the Tides Canada Foundation, by Charity Intelligence as one of the most effective organizations in Calgary and named one of Alberta's top 50 employers. Walter is a founding board member of CCEDNet, and he helped establish Vibrant Communities Calgary, an organization dedicated to fighting poverty.
   
• David LePage
  David is a Principal with Accelerating Social Impact CCC, Ltd., one of Canada’s first hybrid corporations,created to serve the emerging blended value business and social finance sectors. Until recently, David was the Team Manager of enterprising nonprofits BC and played a lead role in the development of enp-Canada.  His many involvements include Chair of the Social Enterprise Council of Canada, a member of the Social Enterprise World Forum Steering Group, the Canadian CED Network Policy Council, Imagine Canada’s Advisory Committee, and BC’s Partners for Social Impact.
   
• Lynne Markell
  Until her retirement in December, Lynne had been at the Canadian Co-operative Association for more than 10 years, focused on government affairs, public policy and co-op development.  Prior to CCA, Lynne had a long experience in the community economic development sector, was a former CCEDNet Board member, has been active on CCEDNet’s Policy Council. 

LOGISTICS

• Date: January 21, 20114
• The session begins with brief presentations by Walter, David, and Lynne, followed by an interactive question and answer period facilitated by CCEDNet Emerging Leaders co-Chair Marianne Jurzyniec.
• This session is in English. 
• You will need speakers or a headset on your computer to participate.  To ensure your system will be compatible with our webinar platform, try this connection test or look at the Adobe Connect quick start guide prior to the session.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

• Momentum https://momentum.org/
• Social Enterprise Canada http://www.socialenterprisecanada.ca/
• Canadian Co-operative Association http://cdfcanada.coop/