Register for this webinar to explore Buy Social Canada's new Community Benefits in Construction: Mandate, Design and Implement Guide. The Guide supports community advocates, policy makers and project owners who want to create community benefits in construction, infrastructure, and development projects.

August 15, 2024

10-11am PT / 1-2pm ET

Online via Zoom

In addition to an overview of the Guide, speakers will share updates and best practices from current projects across the country which are implementing community benefits.

We'll hear from:

• Tim Coldwell, Énska Advisors
• Jordan Sterling, Delnor Construction
• Marcia Nozick, EMBERS Staffing

Join Buy Social Canada to share stories and progress from the social enterprise sector in Canada as we celebrate how far we’ve come, and look ahead at what’s next as we continue to build a marketplace that centres social enterprise as the business model of the future.

September 10, 2024

10am-12pm PT / 1pm-3pm ET

Online via Airmeet

This will be a free, engaging event to promote and advance social enterprise best practices. The event features insights from speakers, a new Guide to Social Enterprise resource launch, social enterprise stories, and opportunities for conversation and networking with peers.

Speakers include:

• Michael Toye, Executive Director, Canadian CED Network (CCEDNet)
• Julia Anderson, Manager of Health Services, First Light
• Tracy F. Barry, Founder & CEO, GROW Women Leaders
• Marc Soberano, Founder & Executive Director, Building Up
• Jessica Mulder, Board member and Chair, FoodShareToronto's Social Enterprise Committee

Thank you to Chandos Construction for sponsoring this event.

CLASP – Community Learning to Advance Social Procurement – brings together social procurement practitioners with access to exclusive content to power your purchasing.

Buy Social Canada Social Purchasing Partners, Engage Members, and BCSPI Members are invited to join Buy Social Canada to explore the topic “Boost your impact with social enterprise purchasing stories from across Canada.”

Tuesday, August 27th

9am – 10am PT / 12pm – 1pm ET

Online via Airmeet

This CLASP event will highlight the immense impact that can be created when you buy from social enterprises, and spotlight success stories of social enterprises which have won competitive bids and contracts with large purchasers. 

Social Purchasing Partners and BCSPI members will receive calendar invitations to join the event.

Not working with us already? Learn more about Social Purchasing Partnerships or BCSPI Membership.

The Social Procurement Professional Certificate program provide both private and public sector participants with in-depth knowledge of the fundamental components of social procurement success; how to create a social value culture within your organization; steps needed to develop social procurement policy; and how to implement social procurement practices into your current RFx processes, to leverage procurement spend to drive more social value.

The course consists of four 2-hour virtual trainings with interactive hands on activities and homework, and can qualify for continuing professional development (CPD) hours.

Read the course outline (pdf) to learn more.

September cohort dates:

September 4, 11, 18 and 25, 2024 from 10am – 12pm PT / 1 – 3pm ET

Course cost: $585 (not including tax)

A new Buy Social Canada snapshot shows the continued progress of social procurement across Canada in multiple sectors.

As part of the 2024 Buy Social Canada Social Purchasing Partner renewal process, we asked our Social Purchasing Partners and Engage Members to share updates and stories from their social procurement journey. We heard from 12 organizations about their impacts and experiences in 2023, which show continued movement along the journey to design, implement and measure social procurement goals and outcomes as they work with Buy Social Canada.

Thank you to all our partners who responded:

• Chandos Construction
• Destination Vancouver
• Explore Edmonton
• Open Door Group
• Jacobs
• Delnor Construction
• Bird Construction
• AtkinsRéalis
• Clark Builders
• Region of Peel
• City of St. Albert
• City of Brampton

BCSPI will be presenting a session at UBCM 2024 on September 17.

For local governments, inflationary pressures, tightening budgets, and complex community needs illustrate growing waves of uncertainty in our current times. Local governments spend millions of dollars annually while our communities continue to face eroding decision-making power, community well-being, and economic strength. Local governments are exhausted, and how far a dollar can go matters more than ever.

Join this session to explore how local governments can use their existing purchasing as a significant lever to support Indigenous communities, local employment, and economic and community benefits.

Speakers:

• Tori Williamson, Buy Social Canada
• Rory Kulmala, Vancouver Island Construction Association 
• Scott Hainsworth, City of Courtenay

Welcome to our newest Buy Social Canada Social Purchasing Partner: Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries Corporation. 

We're excited to recognize and work with Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries to support their social procurement journey and connect them with social enterprise suppliers across Canada. 

Welcome to our newest Buy Social Canada Community Champions!

Scale Collaborative helps organizations transform through coaching, consulting, programs - including Thriving Non Profits and the Thrive Impact Fund - and capacity building. They create system-level change by increasing access to resources and capital.

Co-operatives and Mutuals Canada (CMC) is the national member-driven association for Canadian co-operatives and mutuals. They unite, engage, and lead the co-operative and mutualist movement through advocacy, research, education and network building.

Strategy Made Simple exists to help social businesses create more social good by helping them create more value, grow responsibly and market confidently. They do this through coaching, classes, consulting, and connections.

We applaud the Paris 2024 Olympics implementation of social procurement and the many contracts made with social enterprise suppliers.

As the Pioneer's Post reports: "Social enterprises are everywhere in the Paris 2024 Olympics: 500 businesses from the social and solidarity economy are delivering a total of 750 procurement contracts for the Games – including delivering services, providing construction materials or catering equipment, recycling sports items and managing waste. This is the result of Paris 2024’s active strategy to support social enterprises’ access to procurement contracts for the event."

Buy Social Canada believes that games and events have massive potential for social procurement, as the Paris 2024 Olympic G ames shows. Currently, we are collaborating with others to advocate for inclusion of social enterprises and other social value suppliers at the upcoming FIFA events in Toronto and Vancouver. You can learn more about our work to champion social procurement in games and events in this blog post.

It is a common misconception that public purchasers cannot practice local procurement. New policy updates in the Isle of Man allow government buyers to prioritize local businesses on contracts under £100,000. For contracts under that threshold, local businesses will have to be invited to bid first, and only if no suitable bids are received will it go out to broader bid. Changes to the Fair Trading Act approved by their legislature last month mean local firms can be prioritized without it amounting to anti-competitive practice.

For guidance on what is allowed under trade agreements in the Canadian context, read Buy Social Canada's Trade Agreements Local Briefing Note.

Apprendre en français sur le site de Buy Social Canada.

Sur la page:

• Apprenez en davantage sur Buy Social Canada
• Qu’est ce que les achats socialement responsables et les entreprises sociales
• Découvrez la certification d’entreprise sociale
• Trouvez des ressources et des articles de blog en français

From June to July 2024, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) lead public consultations in collaboration with Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) to explore legislated procurement targets in Canada for small- and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) and "innovative firms."

Here is some of what Buy Social Canada advocated for in our response to the consultation:

"To date social enterprises have very often faced exclusion from public procurement processes. We were very glad to see social enterprises explicitly named in the PSPC Social Procurement Policy. The policy also includes an opportunity to “create social procurement programs…and social procurement small business set-aside programs for underrepresented/disadvantaged groups" (4.4.1). 

"While it is encouraging to see the inclusion of social enterprise, co-operatives and social purpose organizations in policy, it will be crucial to ensure recognition of the specific barriers faced by and explicit reference to social enterprises, co-operatives and other social purpose organizations in the implementation of any set-asides or programs for Canadian small and medium sized enterprises.

"Buy Social Canada believes it is important to ensure that specific recognition of social enterprises, co-operatives and social purpose organizations is included in any legislated targets or targets enshrined in policy."

We continue to advocate for: access to business skills and capacity development programs; tools and training for government employees and SMEs to understand implementation and reporting requirements; engagement with current and potential suppliers; and regular and public reporting against the targets.

Thriving Non-Profits, an initiative of Buy Social Canada Community Champion Scale Collaborative, now offers a Social Enterprise Acquisition online course that offers a clear pathway for acquiring and transforming a business into a successful social enterprise.

This course is for nonprofit leaders, managers, board members, and funders who are looking to explore innovative fundraising approaches and diversify their revenue streams through social enterprise. With expert guidance, practical tools, and real-world examples, you'll gain the confidence and skills needed to successfully acquire and transform a business.

Also included in the course is a workbook on the Pathway to a Successful Business Purchase, adapted for non-profit and charitable organizations.

Aki Energy

Aki Energy is an Indigenous-governed enterprise based in Winnipeg that primarily works with rural and remote First Nations communities in Northern Manitoba. They install heat pumps, which are environmentally friendly and reduce costs for those living in remote communities.

Through the installation of heat pumps they create training and employment opportunities for local Indigenous people.

Soap for Hope Canada

Soap for Hope Canada is a Victoria, BC based organization that runs three social enterprises focused on waste diversion and poverty-reduction:

1. Soap for Hope is a waste diversion collection service that takes unused hygiene products and linens from hotels and the moving industry throughout BC, which they divert and repurpose into a range of free and paid products.

2. Second Hand Hope is a thrift store in Victoria, BC that sells clothing.

3. Salish Sea Soap Pebbles are beautiful soaps made from high-end discarded soap ends. 

The Get REAL Movement

The Get REAL Movement is a national non-profit organization whose mission is to combat 2SLGBTQ+ discrimination, racism and bullying in schools, summer camps, and workplaces. 

They offer workshops and online learning focused around diversity, equity, and inclusion, combating unconscious bias, and fostering inclusive workplaces of support; consulting; corporate partnerships; and merchandise.

Pinnguac Association

Pinnguac Association is a national non-profit with a mission to deliver Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math (STEAM) programs that inspire those in rural, remote, and Indigenous communities to cultivate digital skills.

They work with public and private sector purchasers and offer consulting, education, tools and resources, and IT development including websites, applications, video games, and online learning platforms.