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Focus Area: Community Wealth

Next Economy Conversations

Our monthly tête-à-tête with industry leaders 

Around the world, there are movements calling for systems change: a world that is sustainable, equitable, and prosperous for all. But what will that world look like, specifically? How are we each going to play a role in defining those specifics? Next Economy Conversations, our newest event series, brings the people building systems-level solutions into conversation so we can answer those questions, and learn from their successes and failures.

  • Lunch & Learn, Talk
  • Community Wealth, Social Ventures

Join us at the next Next Economy Conversation

March 27, 2023

Lunch and Learn: ABCs of Online Community Fundraising

  • Online

learn more about our past guests

employee-ownership
Why Canada Needs Employee Ownership: A Next Economy Conversation with Peter Deitz
CSI Connects, Next Economy
Employee ownership builds community wealth, improves business performance, and creates a more inclusive economy. Cofounder of Grantbook and Unwrapit Peter Deitz explains what an Employee Share Ownership Plan (ESOP) is, why he implemented one, and how this approach could disrupt the Canadian economy for the better.
Lightbulbs drawn on dusty black chalkboard
Six Big Ideas for the Next Economy
Events, Next Economy, Thought Leadership
2021 is going to be a year of recovery, and we need big, bold ideas to get us started. We’ve chosen some highlights from the Next Economy Conversations we had last year, with the leaders from across Canada who are creating a future that is regenerative, equitable, and prosperous for all.
RavenCapital_DiabetesLab
Creating a Platform for Indigenous Innovation: A Next Economy Conversation with Jeff Cyr
Programs, Thought Leadership
We sat down with Jeff Cyr to chat about barriers to innovation in government, closing gaps faced by Indigenous social enterprises, and an exciting social finance model that puts solutions back into the hands of communities.
A headshot of Jeff Cyr of Raven Capital.
Next Economy Conversations: Jeff Cyr of Raven Indigenous Capital Partners
Programs, Thought Leadership
NextEconomyConvos_maze
The Centre of the Maze: A Next Economy Conversation with Bill Young
Thought Leadership

Part of the CSI Connects Initiative

CSI Connects helps you build the relationships and collaborations to make change happen. Come to learn, share, make friends and allies. It’s as much about learning as it is about fostering belonging, cohesion and community resilience.

Homelessness & Hygiene Lab

Pipes on a white brick wall

helping those who need it most

In the months since the COVID-19 related economic shutdown, the homeless population of Toronto has more than doubled. People are reluctant to enter shelters because it is difficult to maintain six feet of physical distance from others, and they are concerned about the probability of contracting COVID-19 in such close quarters. This has led to an increase in the number of homeless encampments across the city, encampments that do not have access to washroom facilities, laundry, or clean water.

Concurrently, the measures put in place to combat the pandemic shut down most of the public spaces that people experiencing homelessness count on to access these facilities including libraries, cafes, and community centres. The City of Toronto has identified a need to provide these citizens with the hygiene facilities required to remain clean and healthy.

  • Lab
  • Community Wealth

THE CHALLENGE

We are looking to build a socially responsible, community based solution to the issue of hygiene in homeless encampments. 

THE LAB

The City of Toronto and CSI are working together to facilitate a set of meetings between homelessness experts and social entrepreneurs. These meetings will outline the challenges associated with hygiene in homeless encampments, the intersecting issues that may arise from proposed solutions, and will allow entrepreneurs to work together to develop prototype solutions that can then be implemented and tested in the community. We anticipate three lab meetings scheduled in September and early October, with prototypes ready to be presented by the end of October 2020. 

Part of the CSI Solves Initiative

At CSI, we use labs, social R&D and prototypes that identify new and improved models that can transform existing paradigms and reveal market opportunities. Learn more about our approach here.

Every One Every Day: TO

Every One Every Day

Making our neighbourhood better, one project at a time!

The CSI Institute has teamed up with Every One. Every Day. in London, England to share the Our Neighbourhood project. 

Our Neighbourhood Workshops and Project Starter Kits help you build practical projects in your neighbourhood, like planting trees or planning a community celebration. Each kit is focussed on practical project ideas, like planting trees or planning a community celebration. These projects enable neighbours to gather and learn from each other.

Download the Our Neighbourhood Program Booklet for more information.

About Our Neighbourhood Starter Kits

There are four project starter kits that you can work on with your neighbours, while remaining at a safe physical distance, and in your own home.

These kits are perfect for a group of neighbours who want to participate in something, make social connections, and work on projects that strengthen our neighbourhood.

Each of the Our Neighbourhood Starter Kits include materials, equipment, training, support, and helpful hints and tips! Materials can include anything from soil and pots, to bee hives, to seed packets.

The starter kits are a way for you to join with a mini-neighbourhood social ecosystem to plan and execute projects that will help make our community better and stronger.

There are different-sized kits for different-sized groups of people. Each of these kits have a minimum of 3 people, and can accommodate groups of up to 15 (depending on the kit). If you want to join but don’t know other people who would like to start these projects, we can help you find more people in your neighbourhood.

Kit List

Our Neighbourhood Pollinates: build beehives and plant pollinator gardens

Our Neighbourhood Reads: children’s stories and activity programming

Our Neighbourhood Blooms: beautifying our community with bulbs and blooms

Our Neighbourhood Stories: collect and share stories of our vibrant neighbourhood

Download the Our Neighbourhood Booklet now for more information!

Making our neighbourhood better, one project at a time.

Illustration of person using a laptop

Part of the CSI Solves Initiative

The CSI Institute Create helps creates labs, Challenges, and prototypes that demonstrate new models & solutions are possible. Learn more about the approach here.