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Agents of Change: City Builders

Engaged and active citizens make great cities

These are types of people who insist on rolling up their sleeves to make their city a better place. We teamed up with 15 outstanding partners to create 2015 Agents of Change: City Builders program, giving these dreamers, doers and innovators a helping hand.

Over 12 months, the selected startups in the Toronto cohort achieved a 461% increase in revenues, and 214% increase in paid staff.

Headshot of Azeeza for Women Agent of Change

Azeeza for Women is a social enterprise designed to address the issue of violence against women through health and fitness training.

Photo of founders of Building Roots

Building Roots is an emergent initiative of Food Forward, a grassroots non-profit organization, where Torontonians meet to create a better City through food.

Headshot of Marc Soberano, Founder of Building Up

Building Up is a non-profit social enterprise that will install energy and water efficient retrofits in low income housing, while training and employing the marginalized residents of these buildings to carry out the work.

Headshot of Farah N. Mawani, Founder of Farahway Global

Building Roads Together/Farahway Global reduces mental health disparities and promotes inclusion and empowerment by building capacity for people to lead peer walking groups.

Headshot of Darryl Brown, Founder of The Drop Distribution

The Drop Distribution is a cargo cycle fleet operating year-round bringing the best of the city to consumer’s door stoops.

Photo of Lucas Simon Medina (Founder and Executive Director) and Chad A. Craig (Administrative Director)

Five/Fourteen is a social service agency providing services and support to lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans*, queer and otherwise gender-non-conforming youth and young adults in and from foster care in Ontario.

Headshot of Jason Logan

Toronto Needs a Creative Director is a project to establish an office of Creative Direction within Toronto’s City Hall.

Photo of the Shape My City team

Shape My City brings the power of networks to people, ideas, projects, and organizations, helping to build a better Toronto.

Headshot of Luke Anderson, Founder of StopGap Foundation

StopGap Foundation is helping communities discover the benefit of barrier free spaces and providing support to create them through their Community Ramp Project outside storefronts across Toronto.

Photo of the Storefront Theatre team

The Storefront Theatre is a performance space in the Bloorcourt area in Toronto, born out of a vacant storefront and converted into a thriving theatre venue.

Photo of Techsdale team

Techsdale is helping Rexdale youth learn web, app and game design and development, in order to maximize their capacity for creative self-expression, their employability and their sense of agency.

Videos

Our Agents are making lasting impacts on their communities. See for yourself.

StopGap Foundation

Building Up

Part of the CSI Accelerates Initiative

At CSI, we support entrepreneurs with solutions that drive change through acceleration and incubation. Learn more about our approach here.