Basis for the CNPIN Project

The Canadian Non-Profit Innovators Project has two overarching objectives:

 1.       To reinforce and accelerate the spread both of innovative ideas, practices, strategies, and approaches as a necessity of the world of today, and particularly in the context of the economic crisis and its impact on the operating capacities of non-profit organizations; and,

 2.       To grow and enhance sustainable connections and supports that operate nationally, regionally, and locally to help non-profit organizations respond more quickly to urgent challenges and genuinely support local non-profit innovators to take creative and innovative ideas and implement them into concrete actions.

 These two objectives speak to both the “what” and “how” of what this project aims to achieve.  In essence the project will foster an enabling environment for innovation within non-profit organizations (the “what”), one that not only identifies opportunities, but provides appropriate supports and connections to other innovators and resources to test out new ideas and actually implement what works (the “how”) to help non-profits be more viable and sustainable.

 Non-profit organizations in communities across Canada are providing a countless number of important programs to serve the needs of Canadian families.  Some of these services help meet the very basic needs of children, vulnerable populations, and Canadians struggling through difficult times.  These are difficult times for all, and efforts to improve operating efficiencies or innovative ways to deliver services or share resources is an important part of ensuring the continuation of vital services and programs.

Activities

 Canadian Non-Profit Innovators is a project designed to reinforce and accelerate the spread both of innovative ideas, practices, strategies, and approaches as a necessity of the world of today and tomorrow by building a sustainable network (that operates nationally, regionally, and locally) to help non-profit organizations respond more quickly to urgent challenges.

 The project is designed with the belief that the readiness and motivation for change and innovation needs to come from the community level.  Building connections and supports at the regional and national levels to nurture this innovation will create a sustained, energized, and collaborative network of innovators.

This project will undertake a number of activities in the following key areas:

1.       Engage with communities and non-profit organizations around innovation by empowering regional non-profit innovators with the tools to hold outreach and engagement activities in their communities that identify where innovative ideas are starting to germinate;

2.       Develop regional nodes of innovation (i.e. devise mechanisms for knowledge transfer that embrace innovation – in order to help community and non-profit organizations turn their innovative/collaborative ideas into concrete actions) by growing the capacity of regional partners to connect with resources, allied professionals, effective non-profit consultants, and research and development tools; and,

3.       Establish, nurture and sustain a national network of non-profit innovators that balances regional and local relevance and variability with national access to a generative environment for knowledge transfer that embraces innovation so that non-profit leaders can expand their capacity and capability to be creative and innovative on an on-going basis.

Expected Results

Expected key results to grow and enhance sustainable connections are:

1.       A Network of Non-Profit Innovators has been established;

2.       The network has a growing number of active participants; and,

3.       Six regional nodes of non-profit innovation are established.

Expected key results to reinforce and accelerate the spread of innovative ideas are:

1.       A number of non-profit organizations or groups contemplating innovative ideas are connected to regional nodes of innovation for support;

2.       More non-profit organizations or groups are actively engaged in concrete actions to implement their ideas;

3.       A growing resource of knowledge, best practices, and experiences are gathered and accessed; and,

4.       A growing number of investors and funders are supportive of this work.

 Partners

Fraserside Community Services Society, (FCSS), B.C

United Community Services Co-op (UCSC), B.C.

CCCDC

Kootenay Boundary Regional Resources Co-operative (KBRRC), B.C.

Calgary Chamber of Voluntary Organizations (CCVO), Alberta

Manitoba Federation of Non-profit Organizations (MFNPO), Manitoba

Ottawa Chamber of Voluntary Organizations (OCVO), Ottawa

Federation of Community Organizations (FoCO), Ottawa

cSc