THUNDER BAY – PARO Centre for Women’s Enterprise has formed a collaborative partnership with a variety of “purpose-driven agents” to create what it calls the Blueprint for Social Enterprise in Northern Ontario.
“Those coming to the table today want to lead the way in doing better business,” said PARO Executive Director, Rosalind Lockyer.
“It’s all about businesses that make a difference in the community. Social enterprise is a growing part of the wider economy and it means fundamental changes in how we do things. SENO Costarter for Change will inspire community drive through learning and creating social entrepreneurship.”
Included in the partnership is the Thunder Bay Community Economic Development Commission, Northwestern Ontario Innovation Centre, Sault Ste. Marie Innovation Centre, Nordik Institute, BDC and RBC.
Together those organizations announced the establishment of the Social Enterprise Northern Ontario Costarter for Change, a new program that is considered the blueprint for a bigger and stronger social enterprise in this region.
Start-up funding has been identified as a major challenge when establishing social enterprise. SENO Costarter for Change will provide support through engaging community and private funding sources.
SENO Costarter for Change participants will partake in an application development program that officially starts today until September. During this time, they will have access to mentors and one-on-one counselling to develop their business idea to its fullest potential.
“The program will help applicants throughout the entire process,” said SENO CoStarter for Change Program Manager, Melissa Cook.
“After a series of workshops, participants will submit their completed application form to the review committee and successful funding recipients will be selected by the end of September.”
Social enterprises are broadly defined as organizations that make money and deliver social or environmental benefits.
“No single organization can solve society’s most difficult challenges on its own,” Cook added.
“It’s about thinking about big problems and how we can use social enterprise as a tool to move forward. It’s about jobs for young people, recycling, helping those in need, rejuvenation and much more. Our goal is to create a vibrant social enterprise ecosystem and build a mass of successful social enterprises that supports the fostering of social and public partnerships”.
In conjunction with Wednesday’s launch, SENO Costarter for Change is also hosting a special Change Makers Café event in Thunder Bay, featuring two successful local social enterprises -- Habitat for Humanity Restore and Bullyguard.
Representatives from those organizations will share their knowledge and experiences in how they turned social and environmental challenges into opportunities through entrepreneurial activism.
For more information about the Social Enterprise Northern Ontario (SENO) Costarter for Change visit paro.ca.
