In this Issue
- Profile: Street Culture Kidz
- Canadian CED Network News
- Alberta CED News
- CED Tool
- National CED News
- Job Postings
Profile: Street Culture Kidz Project
Some people might dismiss face painting as child’s play. If you ask the Street Culture Kidz Project (SCK), that’s exactly what it should be. Established in 1997 as a temporary summer project in Regina’s inner city, SCK has developed into an independent non-profit and community development leader. With the goal of helping underserved youth, SCK delivers long-term programs that respond to the needs expressed by the participants themselves. Programs are often arts-based, but are more generally designed to develop employment skills, provide personal support, and encourage community contributions.
Between 25 and 40 youth participate regularly in SCK, while several hundred more pass through their doors every year. The enthusiastic support of its patrons is due to the Project’s unique youth engagement strategies; the Project follows a holistic approach to personal development. Young artists not only participate as entertainers and face artists at community events; they also plan, develop, and implement their own recreational activities.
The creative experience is enhanced by a variety of other skill development programs. These include event co-ordination; yard and building maintenance; and the Odd Job Squad. The Street Culture Catering Service, a recent expansion of the organizations' economic development initiatives, offers young people the chance to learn culinary skills while gaining valuable experience in the food services and marketing industries. While social ventures help to support the Project's many programs, it also gives SCK an opportunity to hire youth who would otherwise be considered unemployable in traditional labour markets.
“When we look at the young people we serve, we see people with enthusiasm and talent, who only require solid leadership and management," says Project CEO Kim Sutherland. All of the youth who work at Street Culture are paid employees of the organization. For many, this is their first ‘real’ job. For the community, it marks an investment through the tax base that will be repaid 10-fold over the lifetime of the young person who may have, without intervention, continued a cycle of reliance.
SCK understands that personal growth requires long-term personal support. Their Studio provides social connections through drop-in activities, help with homework, and thoughtful discussions. Upon request, staff from Street Culture will support their participants by visiting them in custody facilities and attending court proceedings. For SCK, pallets of paint, and buckets of brushes are powerful tools to provide Saskatchewan’s disenfranchised youth with a safe, confidence-boosting alternative. By nurturing artistic talents, and providing personal support and employment opportunities, SCK is building stronger and safer communities in Regina’s inner city.
For more information:
Kim Sutherland
CEO, Street Culture Kidz
streetculture@sasktel.net
Canadian CED Network News
Meet our Members
Distinctive Employment Counselling Services of Alberta (DECSA)
DESCA develops and provides services to assist individuals with employment barriers achieve paid and meaningful employment and assists employers find engaged and capable employees. As a community based, non-profit organization DECSA's programs and services include employment preparation and customized career counseling.
Cochrane Family and Community Support Services
The mission of FCSS is to encourage, strengthen and stabilize family community life. FCSS provides residents with preventative social programs that promote, encourage and facilitate the development of a strong community through citizen involvement.
CCEDNet on Facebook & YouTube
Looking for more information? Want to stay in the CED loop in between CCEDNet newsletters? Visit CCEDNet's NEW Facebook Fan Page for all the latest updates on CED events, news, and reports from around the country!
You can also subscribe to our growing YouTube Channel for great profiles on CED initiatives and informative talks with CCEDNet staff on community development issues. Our latest addition is an inspiring video which looks at the social and economic benefits of the Winnipeg-based BUILD program.
Alberta CED News
ACCA Presents Co-operative Basics Workshop
This workshop seeks to distinguish co-operatives from other business forms, clarify principles, teach about other co-operatives, identify the co-operative advantage, and the basic roles of delegates and directors.
Date & Time: January 20 – 21, 2011 (8:30am – 4:30pm)
Location: Executive Royal Inn – 480 Sparrow Dr., Leduc AB
To Register: Contact Dianne at dschoepp@acca.coop
Surveying Social Enterprises
Peter Hall and Peter Elson, in conjunction with the BC/Alberta Social Economy Research Alliance, recently released the first profile of social enterprises in BC and Alberta. The survey reveals the significant role that social enterprises play in our economies. The results are collected from 140 social enterprises, which generated over $113 million in revenue, paid over $63 million in wages, and trained more than 11,000 people in 2009.
Create Action Interns
Each year, CCEDNet member organizations hire emerging CED leaders for six month internships with the help of the CreateAction Internship Program. There are currently 40 interns working across the country with various CED initiatives, organizations, and programs.
Sofiat Akinola - Momentum Calgary Inc.
After moving to Canada in 2000, Sofiat re-located to New Orleans, then Geneva until returning to the Great White North earlier this year. She holds a B.A. in Sociology from McGill University, and a MPH from Tulane University. For the past two years, she worked as a Research associate/project assistant with an NGO in Geneva, Switzerland in the field of Migration, Health, and Development. Her experience in Geneva improved Sofiat's understanding of the complex issues facing immigrants such as cultural, language, health and employment barriers.
She is now employed as a Create Action intern with Momentum/Thrive in Calgary, where she is working closely on the Green Collar Jobs Initiative. As a Green Projects Assistant, Sofiat reviews and identifies funding sources, proposal developments, and training curriculum for green construction jobs. She also supports Momentum’s Sustainability Audit Group (SAG), which is working to reduce Momentum’s GHG emissions.
Learn with ACCA
The Alberta Community and Co-operative Association is hosting several training and learning events in the coming year. The workshops will cover topics such as co-op basics, financial analysis and planning, parliamentary procedures, and agricultural tax information. These learning events begin on January 20, with the last workshop taking place on March 4, 2011.
Click here for more workshop descriptions and registration information
Whip Your Social Enterprise into Shape
The Social Enterprise Fund is now accepting registrations for its Social Enterprise Boot Camp. Sharpen and strengthen your social enterprise idea/plan in just one weekend. You will work intensively for 3 days to improve and develop your social enterprise idea/plan. Comprehensive seminars on: Identifying and understanding your target market, Defining and defeating your competition, The financials and understanding the deal, Marketing and business development, Developing the pitch – tell it and sell it.
Date: April 7, 8 and 9, 2011
Fee: $250 + GST per participant
More Information: Social Enterprise Fund website
The Role of Credit Unions in Social Economy and Rural Community Re-investment
This study is a research project by BALTA (BC/Alberta node of the Social Economy Research Project) that examines the role of credit unions in supporting the social economy, and more deeply at the role of credit unions in rural community re-investment. The research involved an examination of four credit union case studies, two each in large municipalities and smaller centres.
Community-Owned Renewables Fact Sheet
The Alberta Acts on Climate Change group created this excellent, easy-to-use fact sheet to help you understand the issue of community-owned renewable energy options. When owned by a community, renewable energy facilities create local jobs and revenue with less environmental impacts than conventional energy options. This reference paper goes on to state that communities which own a renewable energy facility keeps most of the profit, controls the facility’s operation and contributes to a healthier environment.
CED Tool
Developed by Enterprising Non-Profits, this toolkit has been designed to help you understand the fundamentals of marketing, and to apply them in your social enterprise. It's divided into four modules, each of which is presented in a video. During each module, you'll be invited to complete exercises, either yourself, or with your team, and a series of worksheets are included to help you. The videos are most useful when viewed in sequence, but you can come back to any or all of them to refresh your memory, or to dive more deeply into some of the exercises.
Click here for all four video modules and an easy-to-use workbook to help you through the exercises.
National CED News
Deconstructing Dinner Podcast
Follow this link for a podcast featuring an interview with Joel Salatin, sustainable farming advocate and author of The Omnivore’s Dilemma. Also included in the episode is a lecture by Judy Rebick, in which she encourages farmers to embrace a bottom-up and community-centred approach to begin better serving consumer needs
Impact! Youth Conference for Sustainability Leadership
This free, bilingual conference is now accepting registrations from university and college students from across the country. In September 2011, 165 students will gather together to explore real sustainability solutions and develop lasting networks with national business and sustainability leaders.
Date & Time: September 15-18, 2011
Location: Guelph, Ontario
More information: Visit the Impact! Website
Non-Profits Making Profits
On May 10, 2010, the Social Enterprise Council of Canada presented the first in a series of webinars entitled "Nonprofits Making Profits: Social Enterprise and Legal Issues in Canada". The webinar put into context the current legal issues surrounding nonprofits and social enterprises, and discussed what types of incorporation structures are currently legal and in use in various parts of Canada. Source: enp December Newsletter
Click here to view the webinar
Tips for Merchandising NGOs
Fairware is a Vancouver-based provider of promotional products that sources social and environmentally responsible products. To satisfy a common customer demand, the company recently published 10 pointers to help non-profits in launching branding strategies. The tips are designed for organizations considering merchandise sales - either directed at end consumers (retail sales) or directed at internal buyers. Source: enp December Newsletter
The 10 tips are available on Fairware’s blog
jobsHere – An Economic Plan for Nova Scotia
The Nova Scotia Government produced the jobsHere report as a roadmap to economic growth in the province. The document cites the need for business innovation and skills development in order to remain competitive in the global market place. More specifically, the report acknowledges the role of that social enterprises must play in ensuring a healthy, sustainable, and prosperous economy, and states that the government will work to improve business environments to foster social enterprises. Source: enp December Newsletter
Click here to download the full report
Social Finance Task Force Report
The Canadian Task Force on Social Finance has called for action to give social enterprises - including co-operatives - greater access to investment capital and a favourable regulatory and tax environment. In its report, the Task Force makes a number of recommendations aimed at strengthening Canada's social enterprise sector. They included the creation of tax incentives for social enterprise investors, expansion of government-sponsored business development programs to include social enterprises and the development of new "bond-like instruments" to channel capital into effective social and environmental interventions.
Click here for the full report
Procurement Policy Across the Pond
As Canada continues to explore multi-bottom line purchasing policies, the United Kingdom has drawn one step closer to adopting a unique public service procurement bill. The British government recently announced that it will support a private member’s bill – the Social Enterprise and Social Value Bill - which will require public sector contracts to factor in social outcomes alongside price and an organisation’s ethical track record. The Bill aims to strengthen the social enterprise business sector and make the concept of 'social value' more relevant and important in the placement and provision of public services. The Bill has passed through its second reading, and is heading to the Committee Stage in the new year.
Job Postings
For the latest CED postings visit the National and Regional job pages on CCEDNet's website
National | AB | SK | MB | North
Positions to post? Send them to breimer@ccednet-rcdec.ca