Author: Kenzie Love

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Worker Co-op Summit

9 am – 5 pm:  Keynote, Plenary discussions, and break-out sessions. Evening: Networking Reception Maison de la coopération 155 Boulevard Charest E, Québec This Worker Co-op Summit will be an unparalleled opportunity for learning, networking, and being inspired –  aimed at members of co-ops associated with CWCF and/or the three Quebec worker co-op federations:  the Quebec ” Reseau COOP” or Network of Worker Co-operation, as well as the Federation of Paramedic Cooperatives of Quebec and the Quebec Federation of Forestry Co-ops.  Highlights include: Sessions of practical interest to worker co-operators, with a focus on Governance issues in worker co-opsVideo of Keynote Presentation by Noam Chomsky (!!!)Presentation  by US FWC Executive Director Esteban Kelly  Roll-out of CWCF’s exciting new Strategic Plan. Simultaneous interpretation, French and English, will be provided.   This Summit will take place on the day before the start of the Congress of Co-operatives and Mutuals Canada (CMC) (https://canada.coop/en/events/cmc-congress-2019-quebec-city), on June 18-20, also in Quebec City.  We encourage people to consider…

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Bringing Our Strategic Plan to Life

Since its founding in 1991, CWCF has had a vision of growing and strengthening the Canadian Worker Co-op movement, and in recent years, we’ve decided to take it to the next level. At the 2017 CWCF conference, members asked the Board and staff for a bold strategic plan, one that went beyond the status quo. As a result, a team led by Russ Christianson of Rhythm Communications conducted extensive consultations with CWCF’s members and others on their vision for the future of Canada’s worker co-op movement. In the consultation process, one participant came up with the idea of a bicycle as a metaphor for the movement – a bicycle on a sunny day, propelled by a tailwind. It’s an apt metaphor for our state of affairs, for we believe the future of the worker co-op movement in Canada is bright, provided we can harness our members’ energy behind it. CWCF’s…

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Procurement and Investment Readiness Fund

The Procurement and Investment Readiness Fund (PIRF) is a fund for revenue-generating social enterprises in Ontario to assess their procurement and investment readiness, and to access the services and capacity building supports necessary to successfully compete for procurement and investment opportunities. The Fund is administered by the Canadian Community Economic Development Network (CCEDNet) in partnership with key leaders from the social enterprise sector. Available grants Capacity stream: (i) Assessment Grant (up to $5000); leading to the (ii) Capacity Building Grant (up to $50,000) Social enterprises that need help to assess their level of investment or procurement readiness can choose to apply to the Capacity stream for a preliminary Assessment Grant. If successful, the social enterprise will be eligible to apply for a larger Capacity Building Grant to build that required capacity. Catalytic stream: (iii) Catalytic Grant (up to $100,000) Organizations that have identified an investment or procurement which they are…

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Toronto Foundation’s social impact investment: open call for proposals

Toronto Foundation has long been dedicated to supporting positive social and environmental change to make life more equitable for everyone. Now, for the first time in its history, it is offering Social Impact Investments to the public through an open call for proposals. *** THIS IS NOT A CALL FOR GRANTS. INVESTMENTS MUST BE REPAID *** These one-time investments, made in partnership with MaRS Centre for Impact Investing, will range from $250,000 to $1,000,000 and will go to approximately five Ontario-based organizations that are creating positive social and environmental change for people across Ontario. A total of approximately $1.6M will be invested. The 2019 Social Impact Investment call for proposals is now open and will close at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, February 20, 2019. Access the submission guidelines and application form.  The following organizations are eligible to apply for social impact investments: Incorporated not-for-profit organizations For-profit organizations with public benefit clearly…

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CWCF Arts and Cultural Granting Program Seeking Submissions

The Canadian Worker Co-op Federation’s past president Mark Goldblatt died of an apparent heart attack in 2015, a great loss to the Canadian co-op community. Thanks to Mark’s bequest, however, his legacy lives on in the form of small grants, up to $1000, to help pay for arts and cultural projects to promote co-operatives, (preferably worker co-operatives). The project must be youth-generated (individual or a group/organization) and take place within Canada during the year following the application deadline (between May 1 to April 30). Eligible projects include visual art, music, a video, theatre, a cultural event, etc. Go to http://canadianworker.coop/co-op-world-music-project/ for examples of projects involving video and music, especially projects 3 and 4, which were created by youth. The deadline for application is March 22nd each year, and the successful applicant will be notified by April 30. CWCF will publicly share the project description, and eventually the project. If you or…

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