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Louie and Bruno: What Would You Do?

I was in a board meeting in the Operation Friendship drop in centre. I was positioned so I could see out of the windows into the courtyard. During the meeting I noticed Louie walking slowly toward the rooming house door. Louie was a short, slender man, about 65 years of age. I turned my attention back to the meeting but it was soon again diverted when I heard a hoarse voice shouting profanity.

Louie had stopped and turned and he was angry, yelling at someone that was out of my line of sight. I stood up as Louie reached into his pocket and pulled out a blade. I said nothing to my colleagues as I headed toward the door. I wasn’t really thinking to be honest.

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Online Tools to Help You Get to Know Your Stakeholders!

Do you ever wonder what attendees from your latest community event enjoyed most? Or what they would like to see done differently next year? Are you trying to find out what your community's greatest needs are, or whether your programs are meeting those needs? Want to know how you can better engage, acknowledge and celebrate your volunteers? Or maybe you're interested in finding out how you can increase your funders support and dedication to your cause?

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A Community with Intent | Creating the Neighbourhood You Want

I recently met a new friend in Guelph, Ontario who shared her story of how she helped nurture an amazing neighbourhood. Mary-Kate Gilbertson is well known in Guelph as a community leader, who has a passion for her community and the environment. She and her partner Mike Craig are at the helm of numerous exciting projects in Guelph; all working to support their community and spreading goodness far beyond their own backyard.

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Making Your Collaborative Work a Little Easier

"Collaboration is nothing new. The social sector is filled with examples of partnerships, networks, and other types of joint efforts. But collective impact initiatives are distinctly different. Unlike most collaborations, collective impact initiatives involve a centralized infrastructure, a dedicated staff, and a structured process that leads to a common agenda, shared measurement, continuous communication, and mutually reinforcing activities among all participants." - John Kania & Mark Kramer

Collective Impact initiatives require a new way of thinking about and approaching collaboration.

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Collective Action, Impact, Intelligence (and Stupidity)

Collective impact is based largely on the concept that we can do more together than apart, which holds true under the assumption that we can coordinate, organize and execute as a unit. This assumption doesn't always hold true and the implications for getting it wrong require serious attention. 

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How Visible is Your Organization Online?

In their most recent Internet Use Survey, Stats Canada reported that 83% of Canadian households have access to the internet and 69% of connected households use more than one type of devise to go online. The number of Canadians that are online, and the amount of time they spend online, is growing each year. 

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