Vital Signs reveals 16 per cent of Kingston residents living below poverty line

By Vikram Varma

Kingston & Area’s 2011 Vital Signs talked about the working poor, revealing that more than one in 10 of the people using food banks have a job.

The Kingston Community Roundtable on Poverty Reduction recently released a Living Wage report for Kingston, in partnership with the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. A living wage is based on the principle that full-time work should provide families with a basic level of economic security, not keep them in poverty. It is the amount needed for a family of four with two parents working full-time to pay for basic necessities, support the healthy development of their children, escape financial stress and participate in their communities.

Executive Director Vikram Varma

In Kingston, the report calculated that a living wage amounts to $16.29 an hour, for each parent working full-time, year-round jobs. This is substantially higher than the Canadian minimum wage and almost 35,000 people in Kingston’s regional labour force have yearly incomes below the annualized equivalent of minimum wage.

We at the Community Foundation for Kingston & Area realize the minimum wage is not sufficient for Kingstonians to earn a liveable income and an equitable standard of living. As a result, 16% of Kingstonians subsist below the poverty line and about 13% of Kingstonians are identified as working poor.

The Roundtable hosted a discussion on the living wage last fall featuring well known economists Don Drummond and Jim Stanford as the keynote speakers. I was happy to hear Mr. Drummond mention that one initiative that had proven results in breaking the cycle of poverty was Pathways to Education, one of the programs for which we have helped raise funds.

Vikram Varma is Executive Director at the Community Foundation for Kingston & Area

Montreal’s Vital Signs shows city on a roll, but challenges remain

By Marina Boulos

Greater Montreal’s Vital Signs returned for a fifth year in 2011.

In five years, Vital Signs has developed a loyal following of people and organizations who await its publication. It has become a great guide for one’s philanthropic actions. In fact, 98% of our 2011 community grants are in response to a Vital Sign.

Vital Signs is a recognizable brand, and the Foundation of Greater Montreal has begun to provide presentations about it to companies, libraries, seniors clubs, as well as private clubs.

Marina Boulos, President & CEO of the FGM

In five years, one can effectively see if our city has made progress and if certain challenges continue to need everyone’s help. What improvements can we point to? For one thing, Greater Montreal is on a roll. With its high-tech industries and the predicted creation of 60,000 new jobs by 2014, Montreal has some good days ahead… its diversity is a great source of enrichment and a vehicle for advancement.

The unemployment rates amongst immigrants has declined by 18% in one year. Other good news is that the high school drop-out rate decreased by 2.8% in  the past three years. While only 48% participate in some form of physical activity, obesity declined by 4% in the last year.

What are the challenges? The cost of living has risen in Greater Montreal. In one year, the city gained almost 20 ranking spots (from 98th to 79th) as one of the most expensive cities in the world. As well, an increasing number of households with employment income are relying on food banks to feed their families, an increase of 65% in 3 years. And finding housing for families is becoming difficult as three-bedroom apartments are scarce, with a decrease in the vacancy rate of 2.1% in 2010 to 1% in 2011.

Finally, 93.5% of Greater Montreal residents are happy with their lives, almost 5% more than in 2003. That makes me happy, too.

Marina Boulos is President & CEO of the Foundation of Greater Montreal

High-impact investment program to build resilient communities in Vancouver

By Dorothy Bartoszewski

Vancity and Vancouver Foundation have launched the Resilient Capital program.

This high-impact investment program will help build resilient communities by making up to $15 million available for qualifying social enterprises. It also includes a new product for depositors who want to make a guaranteed fixed return on their money while backing social enterprises that are making a positive impact in the community.

Faye Wightman, CEO of Vancouver Foundation, says there are many philanthropists who want to go beyond simply donating money to good causes.

“The idea that they can now support local projects – with high social and environmental impact – while also making a return on their investment, is a perfect way to help them expand their support of the community,” she says.

In developing the Resilient Capital program, Vancity and Vancouver Foundation each provided $1.75 million in first-loss revenues. This $3.5 million commitment has already attracted an additional $6.85 million via long-term Vancity deposits made by 12 individuals and organizations:

• Vancity Community Foundation
• Tides Canada Foundation
• Illahie Foundation
• The Grain Workers Union
• PosAbilities
• Bealight Foundation
• Carol Newell
• Fraser Wilson
• Lundin Foundation
• The J.W. McConnell Family Foundation
• United Steel Works District Three
• an anonymous investor

There is now $10.35 million of capital available through this program. Vancity intends to build on this strong base with support from additional impact-focused depositors, potentially growing this patient capital program up to $15 million through additional five- to seven-year deposits.

The Resilient Capital program can help accelerate the growth and impact of emerging social enterprises and provide much-needed equity capital and loans, with flexible repayment terms. Resilient Capital Program investee enterprises include Save-on-Meats, Atira Property Management and Corporate Knights.

For more information about the Resilient Capital program and Resilient Capital term deposits, click here

Dorothy Bartoszewski is Communications Coordinator with Vancouver Foundation 

Amazing support, response, feedback for Powell River’s first Vital Signs

By Jan Gisborne

We in the Powell River Community Foundation in BC were astonished by the positive reaction to our very first Vital Signs report this fall.

We kicked off the project this summer by conducting a community survey, and that quickly became one of the highlights of our effort. With a total of 685 surveys completed, from a total population of 20,000, we have high confidence the survey ratings truly reflect our community.

In addition to the Vital Signs research areas, we also added a twist: the survey had room for suggestions and feedback on 14 issues, to give us new insights about the community we live in. We received an outpouring of constructive comments in all of the report areas – quality of life, strengthening the local economy, the environment, safety and security, and so on. The enthusiasm, commitment and quality of the responses was simply amazing.

We hope and expect that community groups and elected officials will use the survey and the suggestions to develop innovative ideas to help build a stronger community. We did not expect the immediate reaction we got from local businesses. They have told us that they find the information incredibly useful to assist them in strategic planning for future business decisions and, of course, to guide their charitable giving.

This Vital Signs report has special importance for us, because it puts the spotlight on the Powell River area. Since we are a small community, research reports often lump our data together with neighbouring areas. But Powell River is a unique community geographically, and the residents need to evaluate its specific challenges. People read the Vital Signs and say, “Here is a report that I can relate to – that speaks about what is really happening in Powell River.”

And because we are a small community, we had to line up backing well in advance to be able to proceed. The support of local governments and businesses made this report not only possible but also a great success.

It’s exciting that our Vital Signs report is helping us accomplish our mission of giving leadership to the nonprofit and charitable community.

Jan Gisborne is a member of the Board of Directors of Powell River Community Foundation

Accelerating social enterprise at The Calgary Foundation

By Taylor Barrie

The Calgary Foundation’s work is focused on strengthening the philanthropic sector,  and recently the Foundation’s work in the area of social enterprise determined that nonprofit and for-profit companies are coming together to achieve a connection between social and economic growth.

An initial report, Money and Mission, commissioned in 2009 by The Calgary Foundation, the United Way of Calgary and Area, and The City of Calgary revealed that Calgary has a strong appetite for innovation and growth in the area of social enterprise.

In March 2011, in partnership with Social Venture Partners Calgary (SVP), the Foundation completed a comprehensive 10-month pilot project, detailed in the recently published  Accelerating Social Enterprise Growth in Calgary.

The six-month pilot project provided business expertise to two selected nonprofits to prove out their social enterprises in the marketplace and link them to new sources of social investment. The two organizations selected were: Hull Child and Family Services, with their new Hull Psychological Services program to reduce adolescent drug abuse, and Women in Need Society with their sales of collectible items culled from their thrift store donations.

The key learnings from the pilot component of the project were:

• There are investors in Calgary outside of the traditional granting stream who are receptive to social enterprise opportunities
• Nonprofits demonstrated demand for an initiative to accelerate social enterprise
• The benefits of social enterprise go beyond diversifying the revenue base for nonprofits. Benefits include mission fulfillment, staff retention, internal capacity building, operational efficiencies, and leveraging of grant-funded programs against the marketplace

The full Accelerating Social Enterprise report is available online here.

Taylor Barrie is Communications Assistant with The Calgary Foundation 

Community investing: Hamilton Community Foundation takes it to the next level

There’s much talk these days about community investment, and Hamilton Community Foundation is putting its money where its mouth is.

Canadian charities have historically had difficulty finding financing for expanding services and facilities, and this lack of funding for core operations, growth and diversification inhibits what they can accomplish.

That’s why the Community Foundation has launched the Community Investment Fund, putting aside $5 million from its unrestricted fund to invest in local charitable projects – instead of the stock market. . This amount includes $2 million available as loans to the non-profit sector, through a partnership with the Community Forward Fund, an innovative loan and investment fund that provides loans to nonprofits and charities.

The new Hamilton Artists Inc. facility was completed with help from a loan by HCF's Community Investment Fund

“We expect community investment to go beyond traditional granting and fill an important gap and go a long way to strengthening the charitable sector and the city,” says Terry Cooke, President & CEO.

The first loan was issued this summer to Hamilton Artists Inc., a long-standing artist-run centre that supports and reflects the diverse environment of the community. It means the group can complete a building project that will contribute significantly to downtown revitalization and a burgeoning arts scene.

“It’s a stunning transformation at one of Hamilton’s most visible corners,” says Cooke. “They will be able to complete their project on time while awaiting the promised financing that has been delayed.

“I’m thrilled that HCF is able to use more of its assets in unique ways to support positive change in the community.”

Socially responsible investing – big dollars, big change

Will socially responsible investing ever really catch on? I asked that question when I conducted a study for Vancity Credit Union on the future of socially responsible investing (SRI) five years ago.

Today, the answer is “thumbs up.” Pretty well every prediction from that study played out, particularly the mainstreaming of SRI. Check out these numbers:

• $200 trillion – the estimated size of global capital markets
  800 – the number of asset managers around the world who have signed on to the UN Principles for Responsible Investment, which commits them to take environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors into their investment decisions
• $22 trillion – the assets under their management
  530 – the number of institutional investors who have signed on to the Carbon Disclosure Project, to increase disclosure on how their investments manage carbon and energy use
• $64 trillion – the assets under their management

From my vantage point, that’s great progress. More than 10 per cent of the global capital market is now aligned with ESG factors. So what can we do to continue to catalyze this progress?

Malcolm Gladwell says, “The theory of the tipping point requires that we reframe how we think about the world.” So we’re on the right track. A big driver of this capital markets shift is a reframed definition of socially responsible investing.

More than 20 years ago as a Vancity Credit Union board member, I was a founding trustee of Ethical Funds Inc., the first family of socially responsible mutual funds in Canada. Back then, SRI was all about values-based investing: no nuclear, no tobacco, no weapons, etc.

Today, SRI is more broadly defined as the integration of environmental, social and governance factors into investment decisions. It may or may not include sector exclusions on the basis of social or environmental factors. It often includes shareholder engagement where asset managers dialogue with their investee companies to seek improved ESG performance. It can also include targeted investments in community-based initiatives or clean technology.

SRI’s financial performance also gets a “thumbs up.” Investments which take social and environmental factors into account can do as well as, or even outperform, traditional investments. For example:

• The Jantzi Social Index (JSI), which measures a basket of SRI investments, outperformed the S&P/TSX over a decade. Since its inception on Jan. 1, 2000 through Jan. 31, 2010, the JSI achieved an annualized return of 5.01%, while the S&P/TSX Composite and the S&P/TSX 60 had annualized returns of 4.98% and 4.83% respectively.
• A review of 160 socially responsible mutual funds in the US in 2009 found that the majority of the funds (65%) outperformed their benchmarks in 2009, most by significant margins. These SRI funds topped benchmarks across nearly all asset classes, including balanced, large cap, small cap, and global funds, as well as bonds.

With this progress, I wonder what it will take to reach the tipping point.

A good strategy is to introduce SRI principles to new sectors such as foundations; to encourage them to reframe how they think about the power of their investments. Recently I worked with Community Foundations of Canada (CFC) and Philanthropic Foundations Canada, to help inform, train and build the capacity of foundations to consider SRI in their investment policies.

One outcome of this effort is the launch of the first SRI online resource for foundations in Canada, sponsored by CFC. I also put together a how-to tool for asset owners who want to hire an SRI oriented fund manager, Responsible Investment Questions for Fund Managers, also funded by CFC.

Growing foundation interest in Canada has the potential to swing $34 billion to SRI principles. If foundations around the world reframe their investment principles, we might just reach that magical tipping point.

Coro Strandberg, principal of Strandberg Consulting, is an influential sustainability strategist and thought-leader. This commentary first appeared on her own blog. Find out more about Coro and her work at www.corostrandberg.com.

Community Foundations exploring responsible investment to leverage assets

OTTAWA (Nov. 2, 2009) – Community Foundations of Canada is today launching www.responsible-investment.ca, the first phase of its new website devoted to sharing its growing collection of Responsible Investment (RI) resources with foundations and other funders.

The website is part of CFC’s Responsible Investing Pilot Project, which is assisting community foundations across the country to: start or advance their journey along the path of mission-based investing; adopt appropriate investment policies and programs; and increase the percentage of their assets that are aligned with their mission.   The pilot project is supported by the U.S.-based Ford Foundation and The Co-operators Group Ltd.

“Responsible Investment offers community foundations and other funders many opportunities to leverage our assets. We’re just beginning our journey but we’re eager to share what we’ve learned to date with others,” said Monica Patten, President and CEO of Community Foundations of Canada (CFC), the membership association for more than 160 community foundations from coast to coast.

Interest in responsible investing (also known as mission-based investing or socially responsible investing) is growing as community foundations consider ways to have an even greater impact on the issues that matter most to their communities.  Community foundations collectively hold more than $2.4 billion in assets and provided $169 million in grants in 2008.

“The market turmoil of the past year has underscored the importance of finding the most effective ways to use foundation assets. Many long-term investors – including foundations – are also re-examining their investment beliefs and philosophies to take into account environmental, social and governance factors,” said Patten.

CFC’s pilot project is guided by an advisory group of experts in the RI field, including Michael Jantzi (Jantzi Research Inc.), Robert Walker (Northwest & Ethical Investments LP ), Peter Chapman, (Shareholder Association for Research and Education), Derek Gent (VanCity Community Foundation), and Tim Draimin, Social Innovation Generation, and Eugene Ellmen (The Social Investment Organization). CFC is also working with other funders such as Philanthropic Foundations of Canada on developing and sharing specific RI resources.
 
“It’s important for foundations to invest their assets in a way that respects their work in social responsibility and sustainability,” said Eugene Ellmen, Executive Director of the Social Investment Organization. “Donors count on it, and local communities expect it. This new resource is the first step in a long-term process to align the investment and granting of foundation assets.”

Community Foundations & Responsible Investment

Although community foundations are relatively new to the field of responsible investing, several foundations have stories to tell about their growing commitment.

Edmonton Community Foundation: The foundation’s $5-million Social Enterprise Fund, launched in partnership with the City of Edmonton and the United Way, is supporting new social enterprises and affordable housing. Its initial loans are all current, returning 5% to 6.5%, or paid in full so the foundation is now adding other financing products to its mix.   

Osprey Community Foundation: Serving the community of Nelson, British Columbia, the Osprey Community Foundation currently has 15% of its capital placed in a Socially Responsible Investment Fund, held by Vancouver Foundation. In addition, all of the foundation’s new donations will be invested in this fund. The foundation says on its home page that its plans to “gradually move all of the foundation’s endowment capital into socially responsible investments.”

Community Foundation of Ottawa: The foundation has established a task force to review their investment policy and incorporate responsible investing.  The foundation is interested in adding ESG factors as well as the potential for community investments. This process will include web-based policy development with a wider group including other community foundations and Canadian RI experts. 

Vancouver Foundation: The largest community foundation in Canada, and one of the oldest, currently has a $12-million Socially Responsible Investment Fund in which donors can opt to place their donation. The foundation is also exploring potential options around community investment funds with economic and social returns. 

Available at www.responsible-investment.ca
CFC’s RI website currently offers visitors an overview of RI approaches and a comprehensive list of RI resources including:
•    Primers on responsible investment
•    Reports on research and trends
•    Information on financial performance and fiduciary issues
•    A directory of consultants and asset managers as well as organizations and websites to follow

This is the first phase of the site’s development and CFC plans to add to it over time.

About Community Foundations
Canada’s 168 community foundations are local charitable foundations that help Canadians invest in building strong and resilient places to live, work, and play. They are one of the largest supporters of Canadian charities, providing $169 million to local organizations in 2008. Find out more at www.cfc-fcc.ca.

Young workers highly vulnerable in our unsettled economy

Throughout the month of October the Vital Signs Canada blog will feature guest bloggers who are experts on various aspects of community vitality. Today’s contributor is Dr. Sharon Manson Singer, President and CEO of Canadian Policy Research Networks.

Collaboration between public and private sectors the key to enhancing youth employment

The recent Community Foundations of Canada (CFC) Vital Signs report on youth unemployment highlights that young workers (ages 15-24) are particularly vulnerable when economic times get tough.  According to the report, the youth unemployment rate stands at 16.3% — a staggering figure which is expected to grow faster than unemployment in the general population.  For those youth lucky enough to be employed, the average work hours per week (a meager 23.4) are the lowest in more than 30 years. 

Youth have always been some of the most vulnerable workers in our society and often get left behind in policies and programs designed to enhance job skills, training and employment.  Last year, Canadian Policy Research Networks (CPRN) published a series of research papers entitled, Pathways for Youth to the Labour Market  which examines how young people in Canada navigate from school to the labour market, and the outcomes associated with taking different paths.  Our research found that Canadian youth often take a non-linear route to the labour market, taking time off from their studies or switching educational programs – a reality our government and school training and employment-readiness programs do not always accommodate. 

CPRN research confirms that graduates of post-secondary education (university, college and trades programs) are more likely to be employed and earn more than those who only have a high school diploma, high school dropouts, and even those who temporarily take a break from high school (but later graduate).  This means that the link between education and employment is critical, and that career development programs and services that can increase educational attainment for Canadian youth, and help ready young people for the jobs that match their interests and skills, are paramount. 

Unfortunately we found that career development services for youth in Canada are (with some notable exceptions) largely fragmented, inconsistently funded, piecemeal and difficult for young Canadians to access.  We also found that much more needs to be done to encourage an emphasis on a vocational curriculum in high schools, and to enable partnerships between schools (secondary and post-secondary) and employers, and to strengthen co-operative and apprenticeship programs in the public and private sectors.

Our research series highlights opportunities for schools and governments to expand and coordinate resources between regions to enhance learning pathways for Canadian youth, and highlights the need for a national career development strategy for youth or national standards for service quality and provision.  But governments are not the only players. 

CPRN research also highlights the important place of business and the labour movement in career training and guidance.  In our Youth Dialogue on learning and work, more than 140 youth from across Canada told us that they feel they did not have the appropriate information about the array of careers open to them.  They called for more, and better, information on both employment and educational opportunities, including entrepreneurial paths and the trades.  Canada falls well below other developed countries on employer investment in workplace learning – so there is an opportunity here. The private sector in partnership with schools and governments could work together to help accommodate this need and better prepare Canadian youth for the labour market. 

Canada will soon experience a significant inter-generational transfer of employees with a large outflow of baby boomers from the labour force; at the same time, Canada will require a highly skilled labour force to compete in today’s global markets.  Increasing resources and attention to targeted youth education, training and employment programs will have lasting benefits for the Canadian economy as a whole.  If we are to increase our productivity as a country we cannot afford to let this generation drift off.  This is not just about their future, but our future as well. 

Dr. Sharon Manson Singer is the President of Canadian Policy Research Networks (CPRN), a leading non-partisan think tank providing socio-economic policy research and engagement to Canadian leaders.  Follow CPRN on http://twitter.com/CanadianPolicy. 

www.jobquality.ca

To assist youth, and others, to navigate through the labour market, CPRN runs the website  JobQuality.ca which is sponsored by governments, labour and the private sector alike, and provides information on the quality of jobs in Canada.  Site information includes news articles and reports, interviews and online surveys, as well as job quality indicators on such issues as work-life balance, job security, job design, pay