As summer kicks off, we invite you to plan ahead for the fall and register early to save your spot in one of our three training courses at new early-bird rates.

For purchasers in the private and public sectors, we offer the Social Procurement Professional Certificate course, which may qualify for Continuing Professional Development (CPD) hours.

This course is for you if you are:

Learn more and apply now.

Next scheduled cohorts: September and November 2022.

Course cost per participant:

Join Procurement for Social Value Suppliers to become bid ready, and learn to take advantage of government and large purchaser contract opportunities. This course consists of four two-hour sessions, hosted on Zoom.

Next scheduled cohort: October 2022. Apply now.

To become an impactful storyteller, register for Storytelling for Social Value Suppliers. At the end of this three week online course, you will have created a short digital video to promote your work or tell your organization's story.

Next scheduled cohort: September 2022. Apply now.

Course cost is the same for both:

Join this free webinar on July 21 to learn about changing perspectives on Community Benefit Agreements (CBAs), and key takeaways from new research.

As the number of social procurement practices and CBAs increase, the shared and common language and learning also evolves across government policy and construction sector practices. We may be witnessing an evolution of positive positions and attitudes of the construction sector regarding CBAs.

Register for free now to learn:

Project Director, Aecon

Jamie is an experienced Project Director with a strong commercial background and a demonstrated history of working in the construction industry, the past decade of which has been spent in the water & wastewater sector with a primary focus in the alternative project delivery model.

Jamie was project manager for Aecon, the General Contractor on Comox Valley Regional District's recent wastewater treatment project which had a Community Employment Benefit requirement.

Executive Director, Buy Social Canada

Elizabeth coordinates and connects Buy Social Canada’s work with public and private sector purchasers including all levels of government, SAP and Chandos Construction, to design and implement Social Procurement and Community Benefit Agreement policies and practices. Elizabeth worked with the City of Vancouver on the development of the CBA implementation strategy and is currently working with PCL construction on the implementation of the CBA on the New St. Paul’s hospital development, Westbank and Peak Construction on the 150 West Georgia Street project, and Chandos Construction on the implementation of a voluntary CBA on the 1st & Clark project.

Are you a social enterprise, diverse-owned business or social purpose organization who needs financial support to take advantage of a contract opportunity? We have established the Seal the Deal Fund to support with legal or consulting fees, equipment or other capital purchases, and other needs.

These non-repayable grants are meant to support enterprises to directly connect or conclude a supplier relationship with a social procurement opportunity.

Learn more and apply today.

The Black Business Association of BC presents The Ultimate Procurement Trade Show. This event is being held virtually on July 15, 2022, and is designed to bring suppliers and purchasers together. They will be featuring Black owned vendors in their networks and will include many opportunities to network and build relationships.

This event is designed for:

The event is free and provides extensive opportunity to diversify your supply chain.

Register now to save your spot.

The New St. Paul’s Hospital (NSPH) project broke ground in spring 2021 and we have gathered the first year’s data on the community benefit agreement targets.

Read this blog post to learn more about how the project is currently exceeding targets, and other stories of impact as CBA implementation creates community economic development and other social value outcomes.

A new case study looks at a recent contract from the City of Victoria, which was used to ensure anyone working for the City was paid a living wage, and that the proponent delivered other social value through their business practices.

Read the case study to learn more.

Sign up for the BCSPI newsletter to stay informed about social procurement resources and events.

In Canada, there are nearly 645,000 individuals with disabilities aged 25-64 who are able to work, but not currently employed (Statistics Canada).

Social enterprises working with disabled persons are a vital part of bringing vibrancy, economic development, and support to communities across Canada. Many enterprises have taken up this work, while providing a wide range of goods and services to purchasers.

Read the full blog to learn more.

One of the benefits of being a Buy Social Canada Certified Social Enterprise is finding new business opportunities. Our team does a daily scan of multiple bid sites and passes them along to the appropriate social enterprises. Here are a few recent responses: 

Get certified now to take advantage of bid matching and other supports.

The Ampersand Cafe opened in the Halifax Public Library on June 13 to create employment and training opportunities for the public. The coffee shop is owned by Buy Social Canada Certified Social Enterprise MetroWorks, an organization with the goal of creating training programs for people looking to learn and work in different trades. 

Read more from CityNews.

Certified Social Enterprise Compost Winnipeg was recently featured in an article in The Narwhal, for their efforts to address Winnipeg's compost problem, reducing waste and addressing climate change.

Read the article to learn more.

Purcell Preschool and Daycare is a social enterprise based in Kimberly, BC. Their goal is to create accessible and inclusive early-learning and childcare programs in a safe, respectful, and engaging environment.

Sewa Ventures is a social enterprise which operates the PICS Employability Training Center (ETC) based in Surrey BC, offering employability skills training courses which help job seekers enter or re-enter the Canadian workforce with required skills, preparing them for success in their career.

Profits made from these fee-based short-term occupational certifications go toward social impact projects in the community, led by Progressive Intercultural Community Services Society (PICS).

The Dollar Detectives is a

youth-focused, not-for-profit social enterprise based in Alberta. Their primary vision is to deliver fun, experience-based financial life lessons which enhance youths' (age 13-25) financial confidence, leadership and sense of self-determination.

100% of profits generated by The Dollar Detectives goes towards offering free community events and supporting

in-house mental health programs.