Connecting Canada’s
Social Innovation Ecosystem
Social Innovation Canada (SI Canada) is an initiative to connect social innovation practitioners, build the capacity of the sector, and to elevate this work in Canada and beyond.
Stories from the network
Moving Forward Together
This week, I joined a circle with over 1000 people to honour the 215 Indigenous children found on the grounds of the Kamloops (Tk’emlups) Residential School. It was the fourth and final gathering being hosted by Reconciliation Canada, the theme was “Moving Forward Together.”
Introducing: Binoojiinyag gaa-bi-giiwejig, The Children Who Came Home
After a provincial apology from the Children Aid’s Society left the local community feeling a lack of acknowledgement of their unique situation, the community and local CAS came together in the spirt of designing something by the survivors for the survivors. Binoojiinyag gaa-bi-giiwejig-Children who came home initiative was formed by engaging the community in education sessions and by forming a group of survivors to design what needed to be done.
Ten Ethical Questions for Social Designers
While social innovation and design can foster healing, it can also cause harm to the very communities we mean to serve. George Aye shared ten ethical questions to consider as designers in the social sector.
“A robust, connected, social innovation ecosystem will inspire new efforts to illuminate relationships between social innovators, bringing together key parts so they can combine to create a much greater whole.”
– 2017 Feasibility Study Participant
Upcoming events
Next Economy Conversations: Kalen Taylor of Purpose Construction
Meet Kalen Taylor: the co-founder of three social enterprises tackling local problems with community-led solutions. About this event As we look to recover from the…
Climate Compatible Community and Affordable Housing Solutions / Solutions de logement communautaire et abordable compatibles avec le climat
Le français suivra. Join us on Wednesday, June 23, 2021 from 1:00-2:30 PM ET to learn about sustainable community design and how you can apply…
Our work
Data and Stories
We are building a platform to aggregate data and stories that help social innovators demonstrate evidence of their impact. With a solid collaborative infrastructure in place, we can experiment with the UN Global Goals as an organizing framework to help align these stories
Navigation, Wayfinding, and Connection
By creating pathways into the social innovation field, we make it easier for social innovators to find each other and build connections. We're mapping the sector using taxonomies relevant to social innovation.
Capacity Building
SI Canada wants to ensure the social innovation community has the information and assets they need to implement systems of social innovation and social finance. We create the conditions for social innovators to build multi-sectoral collaborations, test and experiment with new ideas, pool resources, and attract new donors and investors.
Aligning for Action
We enable social innovation organizations and funders to collaborate on approaches to social problems that are proven or promising, develop better products and services, scale their impact and evaluate progress. This is where we see a fundamental shift to collaboration and impact.
Our regional partners
Our six nodes are organizations actively building social innovation ecosystems in their provinces. With deep roots in the communities, they are committed to support and connect innovators in the local and national levels.
