Work at CSI for the day with our new Lounge Pass!
Join Us
Log In
News

Press Release: Innovation Works & CSI Announce New Approach to Bolster Ontario’s Social Innovation Ecosystem

  • Categories Uncategorized
CSI

CSI

For Immediate Release:

May 19, 2016

Innovation Works and the Centre for Social Innovation Announce New Approach to Bolster Ontario’s Social Innovation Ecosystem

(London, ON) – Innovation Works, London’s new coworking space for social innovators, has announced a first-of-its-kind affiliation in Canada with the Centre for Social Innovation (CSI), Canada’s first coworking space and a globally recognized leader in the field of collaborative communities and innovation since its inception in Toronto in 2004.

The seeds of the partnership began several years ago when Pillar Nonprofit Network, a London based organization that catalyzed the creation of Innovation Works, engaged CSI to support the development of a coworking space in London. The relationship blossomed and today’s announcement of the affiliation is intended to strengthen each organization’s offerings to their respective communities and create a bridge for new collaborations between social innovators in Toronto and London.

When Innovation Works opens in June, its co-tenants and the 2,500 members of CSI will:

  • Access shared technology platforms to enable innovators in both cities to more easily connect with one another.
  • Enable members from each organization to access each organization’s member lounges and access Wi-Fi during business hours.
  • Enjoy discounts on meeting room and event facilities.

“Having this partnership reinforces the heart behind Innovation Works,” says Michelle Baldwin, Executive Director of Pillar Nonprofit Network. “Creating intentional collisions between a variety of changemakers in the city and now across city lines is how we will address our most pressing needs.”

“We are so excited to be expanding our community of changemakers to the amazing tenants at Innovation Works,” says Tonya Surman, Co-Founder and CEO of the Centre for Social Innovation. “Working closely with Pillar, we are already agitating the status quo and giving members access to yet another cohort of ideas and people.”

This partnership has been designed to benefit entrepreneurs, students, leaders and government organizations. Innovation Works intends to further expand their partnership, as they are looking to establish similar exchanges with other spaces throughout Canada.

About Innovation Works:

Innovation Works is the only place in London, Ontario specifically designed to encourage collaboration and innovation. New innovations and cross-sector collaboration among nonprofits, social enterprises, social purpose businesses and entrepreneurs are key to turning economic, environmental, social and cultural challenges into opportunities. For more information, please visitwww.innovationworkslondon.ca

About Pillar Nonprofit Network:

Pillar Nonprofit Network supports nonprofit member organizations in fulfilling their missions in our community, while also making connections for community impact.  Pillar provides leadership, advocacy and professional development, and promotes volunteerism, networking opportunities and information sharing.  Pillar also believes fostering social enterprise, social innovation and cross-sector collaboration are key strategic priorities in building stronger and more inclusive communities.  For more information, please visit www.pillarnonprofit.ca

About the Centre for Social Innovation:

The Centre for Social Innovation is a social enterprise with a mission to catalyze social innovation. They have four locations in Toronto and one in New York City and are home to over 3,500 social innovators.

 

Media Contacts:

Innovation Works:

Michelle Baldwin, Executive Director
Pillar Nonprofit Network
mbaldwin@pillarnonprofit.ca
Office: 519-433-7876
Cell: 519-668-4456

Centre for Social Innovation:

Kevin Hurley, Special Projects Manager
Centre for Social Innovation
kevin@socialinnovation.ca
Office: 416-979-3939
Cell: 416-294-6341

Keep Reading
CSI Spadina in the ground floor kitchen, looking out towards the lounge and meeting rooms. In the foreground is a kitchen counter, with waffles, toppings, and glasses of coffees and teas. In the background, CSI CEO Tonya Surman is speaking into a microphone on the left. In the middle and on the right, a variety of people stand and sit, listening to her speak.
Who Are Our Community Animators?
Member Stories, Programs
One of the keys to CSI's magic is our Community Animator Program (CAP) and, specifically, the Community Animators themselves! Through this program, we've worked with more than 1,000 exceptional individuals who have each brought a little something different, and a little sparkle, to our spaces. And we're so glad to have had them in our community, because we've learned that each and every one of them has some exceptional talents, skills, and experiences to offer the world!  
Third floor lounge of CSI Spadina. In the foreground is a light blue loveseat sofa. In the background, we see two people working separately at coworking desks and tables. On the ceiling is a chandelier; to the right, a progress Pride flag.
What Pride Means to Us
Staff
The CSI staff team includes Pride veterans, newcomers, and everywhere in between! This year, as we celebrated Pride in our spaces and with our member community, we turned to our staff team to learn what Pride means to them. Some experienced it for the first time this year and were awash in the joy; others delighted in the fact that Pride remains such a fun celebration decades later. Others noted the increasing corporatization, which draws our attention away from the central premise of Pride - a protest.
whai header
Women HIV/AIDS Initiative on Collective Action and Community Change
Member Stories, Reports & Studies
CSI is many things - a coworking space, a non-profit organization, and a launchpad - but, first and foremost, we are a community. A community of innovators, of changemakers, of neighbours, of people putting people and planet first. And the awesome work that our members do, each and every day, never ceases to amaze us! So of course, we do our best to highlight our members whenever possible. Recently, we had the pleasure of sitting down with Molly Bannerman, Director of Women HIV/Aids Initiative (WHAI), a community-based response to HIV and AIDS among cis and trans women in Ontario. Below is an edited summary of our chat, where we discussed the work of WHAI and their latest Collective Action Community Change report.
Become A Member
Learn About Membership