Open Sourcing Social Change: Inside the Constellation Model

The constellation model was developed by and for the Canadian Partnership for Children's Health and the Environment. The model offers an innovative approach to organizing collaborative efforts in the social mission sector and shares various elements of the open source model. It emphasizes self-organizing and concrete action within a network of partner organizations working on a common issue. Constellations are self-organizing action teams that operate within the broader strategic vision of a partnership. These constellations are outwardly focused, placing their attention on creating value for those in the external environment rather than on the partnership itself. While serious effort is invested into core partnership governance and management, most of the energy is devoted to the decision making, resources and collaborative effort required to create social value. The constellations drive and define the partnership. The constellation model emerged from a deep understanding of the power of networks and peer production. Leadership rotates fluidly amongst partners, with each partner having the freedom to head up a constellation and to participate in constellations that carry out activities that are of more peripheral interest. The Internet provided the platform, the partner network enabled the expertise to align itself, and the goal of reducing chemical exposure in children kept the energy flowing. Building on seven years of experience, this article provides an overview of the constellation model, discusses the results from the CPCHE, and identifies similarities and differences between the constellation and open source models

Jim Green Memorial Lecture 2018: The Future of Social Innovation with Tonya Surman

Social innovation is at a crossroads. How will it embrace and build on the social justice movements of the past? Will we be able to move to action while holding the space for the real conversations that need to happen? SPEAKER BIO Tonya Surman is a social entrepreneur with a passion for bringing life to world-changing projects. Tonya is the founding Chief Executive Officer of the Centre for Social Innovation (CSI), a coworking space, community and launchpad for people who are changing the world, with four locations in Toronto and one location in New York City. CSI provides its members with the tools they need to accelerate their success and amplify their social impact. Tonya has been creating and leading social ventures since 1987

Pilot Lessons: How to Design a Basic Income Pilot Project for Ontario

Produced by the Mowat Centre at the School of Public Policy and Governance, University of Toronto.In its 2016 budget, the Government of Ontario committed to conducting a basic income pilot project as part of its preparations for comprehensive reform of its social assistance programs. Taking particular note of “today’s dynamic labour market” and a need to “strengthen the attachment to the labour force”, the government pledged to work with researchers during policy development. This report represents a response to this pledge and an attempt by the authors to contribute to this important discussion. This report is informed by extensive comparative research, the authors’ varied experiences in the policy process, as well as consultations with entrepreneurs, particularly social entrepreneurs. Learning from past pilots, while also taking into account Ontario’s current economic conditions, the aim of this report is to contribute to a high-impact policy experiment that will make government programming more responsive to the needs of the labour force, especially those in the most precarious positions.Supported by the Centre for Social Innovation