Category Archives: Conferences & Events

My book is now in print and will be launched at Winnipeg’s West End Cultural Centre on Thursday, September 19, 2013  at 7 PM. The evening will include musical entertainment by the Midnight Crash Deluxe. Everyone is welcome to attend (invite).

”This book gives an insight into personal leadership, enterprising solutions and value creation, making it as relevant to practitioners engaged in social enterprise, urban regeneration and community empowerment as it is to policy makers and students with an interest in social responsibility.”  — Gerry Higgins, Founder, Social Enterprise World Forum.

The book is available at McNally Robinson Booksellers in Winnipeg and can also be ordered directly from Fernwood Publishing

I will be giving a presentation on social enterprise to senior managers at the Fall Conference  of the Saskatchewan Association of Rehabilitation Centres (Fall Conference Brochure 2012) on October 17, 2012. The conference will be held at the Travellodge Hotel in Regina. Established in 1968, the Saskatchewan Association of Rehabilitation Centres (SARC) is a non-profit association representing community-based organizations that provide residential, developmental, and employment supports/services to thousands of individuals with disabilities. SARC Members are located in every corner of this province and employ more than 2,000 people. SARC provides a variety of supports to its Members so that they can provide a quality service to persons with disabilities

A small delegation of social enterprise activists from China will be visiting Winnipeg March 9-14 as part of their Canadian visit. The visit has been organized by Lawrie Deane, Social Work Faculty at U of M. The delegation will meet with various local organizations and social enterprises in Winnipeg including Inner City Renovation on March 13. Participants will include John Baker, ICR General Manager, Larry Morrissette, Executive Director OPK and myself .

I will be leading a workshop on marketing  social enterprise at the Winnipeg United Way Learning Centre, 580 Main St, Winnipeg, on November 3rd, from 1-4pm, as part of the CED  workshop series, “Strengthening Non-Profits.” For information or to register, contact the CED Network.

Halifax will be the site of the November 20-22 conference, “Social Enterprise: Building Communities.” Beverley Miller (Marketing, St. Mary’s University) and I will be offering a full-day workshop on marketing your social enterprise products or services. You can find registration details about the upcoming conference at the Social Enterprise Council of Canada website.

The Manitoba Community Economic Development Gathering, entitled “Enough, for All, Forever” was held in Winnipeg on October 21st. I led a workshop with over forty participants on ‘the emerging role of social enterprises in the economy.’

This conference was held October 13 – 14-15, in Quebec City, and tackled a broad range of issues. An especially exciting outcome was the launch of the North American sub-region of CICOPA-Americas, the international association of worker cooperatives – hence the theme: “cooperation without borders.” I facilitated a well-attended workshop on ‘the emerging role of social enterprises in the economy.’ Follow the links from the Canadian Worker Co-op Federation website.

Over October 11 – 13 in Quebec city, the Canadian Worker Co-op Federation and Le Reseau de la cooperation du travail du Quebec (and respective partners) held an international conference. I participated in the discussions with keen interest — succession planning being one of my current key concerns. It is critical that we offer employee ownership options in one of its forms when there is no obvious successor in private enterprise.

On September 21st, I attended the full-day conference held in Winnipeg, focusing on law, philanthropy and social enterprise. The conference brought together American, British and Canadian speakers who discussed legal and financing issues for social enterprises. It was wonderful to see the business and legal sector paying attention to our field, and it bodes well for future collaborations