Our Peace Incubator program offers funding, mentorship opportunities, and co-working space to entrepreneurs whose ventures aim to move the needle on important peace issues. We specialize in coaching ventures through systems change and government engagement – two common competencies within the peacebuilding field. This past year, in addition to supporting start-ups in our program, the Greenhouse program at St. Paul’s University College contracted the CPA to provide government engagement training to five ventures in their program.
In exploring the unique space between the peacebuilding and social innovation fields, we have discovered that, although we are on the road less frequently traveled, we are not alone. Others in the peacebuilding field are beginning to tap into social innovation resources, and social entrepreneurs are applying systems-thinking to address complex issues that impact peace and justice.
One of the first peacebuilding organizations to bridge the peacebuilding-social innovation divide was The Tamarack Institute, a poverty reduction and community change organization founded in 2002 by Alan Broadbent and Paul Born. Based solely on their contributions to the peacebuilding field, the CPA was eager to have them join our Core Collaborators program when our centre first opened in 2014. Since then, through the CPA’s own exploration of the field of social innovation, we have discovered the extent to which Tamarack is considered a leader among social entrepreneurs. In fact, Tamarack was among those who pioneered the theory and practice of “Collective Impact,” a concept widely-used by social entrepreneurs and peacebuilders alike.
The CPA’s observations have shown us that the possibilities for mutual learning between peacebuilders and social entrepreneurs are immense, and that both fields would benefit deeply from more cross-pollination. Becoming a Core Collaborator at the CPA or joining our Incubator program are two ways that peacebuilders and social entrepreneurs have connected themselves to our growing community of what we call “peace innovators”. Connecting to one of Tamarack’s many resources is another excellent entry point. This Fall, Tamarack is offering two workshops for community change that apply social innovation tools to address issues of justice and peace within a community. The first, Human-Centred Design for Community Change, is taking place in Guelph this October and Prototyping for Community Change will follow in November.
The CPA is committed to providing, and identifying, pathways that bridge peacebuilding and social innovation in order to advance peace. We invite community members to reach out if they are eager to learn more.