Join the Buy Social Canada Symposium online on October 18, 2022 to connect with leading social purchasers and suppliers, learn from industry experts, and celebrate trailblazers at the Social Procurement Champion Awards.

This year the Symposium theme is Broad New Horizons. Now, more than ever, social procurement is growing in popularity and application across Canada. We will explore diverse approaches to incorporating social value in purchasing, the key role community collaboration plays for success, clear best practices for implementation, and the next frontier, a strong reporting and storytelling practice to showcase outcomes.

Get your tickets now.

Early bird rate: $25 + tax (until September 23)

Regular rate: $35 + tax

NOTE: Buy Social Canada Certified Social Enterprises and Social Purchasing Partners are eligible for a 25% discount. These codes have been emailed directly to a contact in your organization, so keep your eyes peeled.

Thank you to the Symposium sponsors Buy Social Leaders SAP and Chandos Construction, and special Social Procurement Champion Award sponsor Novex Delivery Solutions.

Buy Social Canada Purchasing Partner Novex Delivery Solutions wants to recognize impact with a special Social Procurement Champion Award at this year’s Buy Social Canada Symposium for a BC-based social enterprise that is making a difference in the environment! This award reflects their leadership in environmental values over the past 20 years of courier services across the lower mainland of BC.

Novex invites eligible enterprises to learn more about Social Enterprise Certification and to apply for this Social Procurement Champion Award at the Buy Social Canada Symposium 2022.

Apply now.

The Buy Social Canada Social Value Trade Show is a free event to showcase social value suppliers in our network and connect them with potential purchasers from the construction sector. Takes place on:

Why should you come?

Purchasers, this is an opportunity to meet social enterprises, social value suppliers, diverse owned businesses, B-Corps and other organizations that meet social procurement and community benefits agreement criteria.

Suppliers, connect with each other, grow your business, and find potential contract opportunities in the construction industry.

Register for free now. We look forward to connecting with you soon.

Register now to save your space in an upcoming fall training course for purchasers or suppliers and build your capacity to buy and sell with impact.

Apply by:

We look forward to learning with you soon.

Read insightful and snappy factsheets summarizing recent international peer-reviewed research on social procurement in the Australian construction sector, shared by our esteemed colleague Martin Loosemore.

The factsheets cover a wide range of topics including subcontractor perspectives of social procurement, experiences of immigrants and newcomers, Indigenous social procurement policies, and more.

SEWF22 - the Social Enterprise World Forum - is coming up in just a few weeks from September 28-29 (depending on time zones). This is your opportunity to get answers to some of the most pressing social enterprise questions you have. Learn from social enterprise leaders, including Buy Social Canada's own Tori Williamson and Elizabeth Chick-Blount, as they address a wide range of issues affecting social enterprises globally.

Buy a Digital Pass to join the event from anywhere in the world.

Social enterprises and youth under 30 may also be eligible for a Digital Pass Bursary. Learn more and apply by September 12 to get a discounted rate on digital tickets.

Join this BCSPI webinar on September 28 from 9:30-10:30am PT to hear stories and trends from a first Annual Impact Measurement Report for 2021-2022 showing the collective impact that members have when they implement social procurement, and get an overview on two new member resources to support impact measurement and data collection.

Read this case study about how the Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) opened procurement opportunities to small businesses when they were contracting for landscaping services in the region.

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

Our Community Benefits and Partnerships Manager Niamh recently got a site tour at New St. Paul's Hospital, where there are currently 5 cranes and 550 workers on site. This project is leading the way on Community Benefit Agreement (CBA) implementation in Vancouver.

The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation is coming up on September 30. This day is also often referred to as "Orange Shirt Day." Support a Buy Social Canada Certified Social Enterprise reinvesting their profits into Indigenous communities when you buy your orange shirt from Circle of Eagles Trading Post or Skwachays Lodge Aboriginal Hotel & Gallery. Both enterprises offer online shopping and shipping across Canada.

Social enterprises, get involved and fill out a short survey that will take about 10 minutes of your time. You will be among the first to receive the study’s findings on best practices for project management in social enterprises, and you can enter for a chance to win Buy Social Canada procurement training and a copy of David LePage's book Marketplace Revolution.

Respond to the survey.

AB Seed is inviting you to join them in person for the Alberta Community Hub of SEWF22 from September 28-29, at Innovate Calgary’s Social Innovation Hub.

This 2-day in-person event will feature a curated selection of SEWF22 session recordings paired with additional activities designed to provide attendees with a chance to connect and collaboratively engage with session topics. Day two will also feature a local speaker and discussions about connecting the session topics to the Alberta context. Breakfast and lunch is included both days.

Get your ticket now to participate in SEWF22 with community.

CCC Business Solutions offers business management and consulting services to social enterprises across Canada. They specialize in Sales and Marketing, Finances, and Human Resources.

They work closely with their social enterprise clients to understand their organization's vision in order to develop winning plans that help get them where they want to go.

Schedule your free 30-minute consultation today to get started.

Soul Bite Food is a social enterprise that produces award-winning vegan comfort food for retail with traditional recipes from Eastern Europe and Middle East. They donate half of their profits to charities dedicated to fighting hunger and combating food waste.

Purpose Analytics works with non-profits to support them to become more data-informed, helping non-profits put their data to good use and connecting them with people working with data in the sector.

Lunar Inn offers temporary accommodations to clients visiting St John’s for medical reasons. Their mission is to give guests a private pocket of home while they are in the city, providing quick access to medical transportation services at First Light, making their stay as comfortable as possible.