1:00pm to 2:30pm Eastern Time

Toronto Renewable Energy Co-operative (TREC) and the Federation of Community Power Co-operatives (FCPC), invite you to join a presentation on the economic impact of community-owned renewable energy projects in Ontario. TREC recently completed a comprehensive economic modelling assessment to quantify the impacts of the community power sector in the province and the results present more compelling arguments for directly including co-ops, First Nations and other community groups in the development of a low carbon energy system.

Register for the Economic Impact of Community Renewable Energy in Ontario webinar

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.

RATIONALE

Besides its compelling environmental benefits, renewable energy also presents a major economic opportunity. Studies have shown that it is significantly more jobs intensive than conventional oil and gas development and, with the world racing toward a trillion-dollar renewable energy marketplace, demand for renewable energy is soaring.

But when it comes to maximizing the economic benefits and public support for clean energy sources like wind and solar, community ownership matters. Past studies from the United States, the U.K., and Germany have shown that community-owned renewable energy projects are effective tools for community wealth building and expanding public awareness and support of clean energy projects.

To illustrate the economic benefits of community-owned renewable energy in Ontario, TREC commissioned an economic analysis of SolarShare, one of the largest community power co-operatives in North America with a portfolio of 35 projects. This webinar will share the findings of the study entitled "The Power of Community: How Community-Led Renewables can help Ontario create a powerful economic advantage". The full report will be circulated to participants a few days before the webinar.

AGENDA

1.00 - 1:10:  Welcome and Introductions
1:10 - 1:30:  Economic Impact Assessment Findings (Dr. Judith Lipp)
1:30 - 1:45:  Methodology (Dr. Brett Dolter) 
1:45 - 2:00:  Q&A, Discussion
2:00 - 2:20:  Rocky Mountain Institute: Economic Potential of Community-Owned Solar - TBC
2:20 - 2:30:  Q&A, Discussion 

If you have any questions or comments, please direct them to Derya Tarhan at derya at trec.on.ca or simply reply to this e-mail.

About TREC 

TREC is a social enterprise that develops community-owned renewable energy projects, supports the Community Energy, Aboriginal Power and Social Finance sectors and advocates for a 100% renewable energy future. TREC has been developing community-led renewable energy projects, assessing its impacts and advocating for essential policy needs since 1998.

About FCPC

The Federation of Community Power Co-operatives (FCPC) is a province-wide umbrella organization for community power co-ops in Ontario that are developing grid-tied renewable energy projects. The FCPC was created by co-ops for co-ops to enable co-operation and mutual support within the sector. 

10:00am to 11:00am Eastern Time

Good, affordable housing is a critical first step to successful refugee reception, settlement, and integration. In today’s urban migration context, that means cities are under increasing pressure to provide affordable and dignified housing options. Getting housing right also promotes urban resilience in times of shock or crisis.

In the city of Cleveland, welcoming refugees may also be the solution to the problem of vacant homes in a sagging rust-belt economy. Danielle Drake of US Together will discuss how Cleveland is re-thinking its social housing model for refugees as part of a larger strategy to re-vitalize local neighbourhoods and improve living conditions for all residents.

Fifteen years ago, the city of Münster rejected typical temporary, camp-like refugee housing models and embraced a humanitarian strategy which improves living standards, while helping normailize the settlement experience for everyone, turning strangers into neighbours. Today, that foresight is helping cities like Münster accommodate an unprecedented wave of Syrian refugees to Germany. Jochen Köhnke joins the conversation to share challenges and successes from Münster’s refugee housing model.

Register for Breaking Ground

Speakers:

Danielle Drake, Community Relations Manager, US Together, Cleveland (United States)
Jochen Köhnke, Councillor for Migration and Intercultural Affairs, City of Münster (Germany)

Technical Requirements:

No cost to participate. You will need a computer with internet access and speakers. Pre-test System Requirements. Adobe Connect requires the Flash Player plugin, download version 11.9 or above to run. Unable to attend? Register now and receive an email notification when archived presentations are online. Questions? Contact gdx at ryerson.ca.

11:30am to 12:00pm Eastern Time (Optional pre-webinar group discussion)
12:00pm to 1:30pm Eastern TIme (Webinar)

Is your organization interested Collective Impact? Are you considering collaborating with other organizations to change population level outcomes on an issue that is important in your community or region? If so, you may be interested in attending an upcoming Introduction to Collective Impact webinar, on Thursday June 23rd.

LEARN about how a Collective Impact approach can support work across sectors to move the needle on urgent and complex community issues

EXPLORE the types of issues and conditions best suited to a Collective Impact approach, and learn when this approach is not the best fit

HEAR ABOUT lessons and insights from groups and collaboratives working with Collective Impact in BC and beyond

Register for the Introduction to Collective Impact Webinar

In addition to being an open learning opportunity, this webinar is a pre-requisite for collaboratives interested in participating in Collective Impact workshops and coaching to be offered in fall 2016 by BC Healthy Communities and Innoweave.

This session has been scheduled as a "lunch and learn" and we recommend if possible to use this as an opportunity to gather with your partners to learn and engage together. We suggest completing Innoweave's Collective Impact self-assessment and coming together as a group to discuss, prior to participating in the webinar from 12:00-1:30pm (Complete Innoweave's Collective Impact self-assessment).

**We recommend that you and your partners read the following before the webinar commences: Collective Impact, by John Kania and Mark Kramer.

OPPORTUNITIES AFTER THE WEBINAR:

Once you have attended the webinar, if you determine that collective impact is a fit for your issue and community, you can apply to participate in a supported Collective Impact process offered in partnership by BC Healthy Communities and Innoweave.

This process helps groups of different community organizations apply the Collective Impact approach to a shared population-level impact goal. The process includes two workshops staggered over a 4-8 month period, allowing organizations time in between the two sessions to build additional community support, and refine their shared outcomes goals.

Following each workshop, groups may also request Collective Impact coaching support. To access coaching, organizations should be clear on the goals that they hope to achieve with Collective Impact and the assistance that they require to develop their strategy for impact, build their collaborative and get ready to implement. 

Collective Impact Workshop 1 will be offered in fall 2016. This workshop is designed to help teams of leaders from at least 4-5 different community organizations committed to working on a common issue start to:

Articulate and refine population level outcome goals that they wish to achieve;

• Develop a hypothesis of the activities required to begin achieving those outcomes (e.g. a theory of change);
• Identify how they will test (and improve) their theory of change;
• Build a community engagement strategy that ensures key stakeholders and other leaders are part of the change process;
• Develop a 4-6 month strategy to deepen engagement on the issue, and advance activities to test a collective hypothesis.

If you have any questions, please contact Celeste Zimmer at celeste at bchealthycommunities.ca 

12:00pm to 1:00pm Eastern Time

What is social isolation? How do loneliness, social exclusion, and disconnection from community affect people at different stages in their lives? What forces are pushing people into more insular lives?  And what is being done to connect people back to one another, to healthy food and safe spaces? 

More than ever before, Canadians are living alone, and nearly one quarter describe themselves as lonely. Socially isolated adults face worse health as they age, and are less likely to participate in society. For populations facing marginalization and stigma, the sense of isolation and inability to access resources can be even greater.

In this one hour webinar,  André Picard, The Globe and Mail’s esteemed public health reporter and Wellesley Institute researcher Laura Anderson, will tackle this vital issue. Join the discussion on how to fight social isolation and restore a sense of connectedness to communities — from grassroots interventions, such as those community food security organizations are building on the ground, to broader policy solutions. CFCC’s Chief Operating Officer, Kathryn Scharf, will moderate the conversation.

Register for Setting More Places at the Table

Can't Attend? As with all Community Food Centres Canada's webinars, this one will be posted to The Pod Knowledge Exchange along with a host of downloadable resources a week or so after the event. Visit The Pod to stay in the loop about this webinar and others yet to come.

About the Panelists:

André Picard is a health reporter and columnist at The Globe and Mail, where he has been a staff writer since 1987. He is also the author of three bestselling books. André is an eight-time nominee for the National Newspaper Awards, Canada's top journalism prize. André has also been honoured for his dedication to improving healthcare. He was named Canada's first "Public Health Hero" by the Canadian Public Health Association and as a "Champion of Mental Health" by the Canadian Alliance on Mental Illness and Mental Health. André lives in Montréal.

Laura Anderson is a Researcher at the Wellesley Institute. She holds an MPH in Public Health Nutrition from Emory University and a PhD in Medical Anthropology and Global Health from the University of Toronto. Prior to joining the Wellesley Institute Laura was a Postdoctoral Fellow in Food Insecurity Policy at the Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary. Laura’s research focuses on the social determinants of health in Toronto, including the intersections between health and employment, access to and utilization of health care and social services among immigrant populations, and household food insecurity.