SCALE INSTITUTE

RESEARCH AND INNOVATION FOR THE SOCIAL CHANGE SECTOR

SCALE INSTITUTE

Providing research, development, and educational programming in the areas of social innovation, social enterprise, social procurement, and social finance.

Scale Institute supports the sector through a variety of different means: resources and toolkits, case studies, webinars and workshops, and programs.

Scale Institute is funded through a combination of grants, government funding, contracts, and sponsorships. We work on a project-to-project basis, identifying areas of innovation and developing new approaches grounded in research and tested for impact.

CURRENT PROJECTS

BUSINESS LEGACIES INITIATIVE

Business Legacies Initiative is a multi-year research and education project exploring the transition of existing businesses into non-profit ownership. Its purpose is to both maintain small business activity within local economies, as well as provide social enterprise acquisition options for non-profits.

To date, this initiative has conducted literature reviews, case studies and surveys that have helped to develop an acquisition guide and accompanying education. The initiative is overseen by a volunteer Advisory Committee of non-profit and community economic development leaders.

seCATALYST

seCatalyst is a network of organizations and community leaders building a strong and innovative social enterprise sector on Vancouver Island. seCatalyst collaborates to host a range of networking and professional development events to educate, showcase and build the capacity of Island-based social enterprises.

Since 2014, over 4000 people have attended a seCatalyst day of learning, workshop, or program. seCatalyst was initially operated as a volunteer initiative and was the impetus for founding Scale Institute.

MEET THE SCALE INSTITUTE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Joanna Buczkowska-McCumber: Chair Chief Impact Strategist at Ideas for Impact

Joanna Buczkowska-McCumber is the Chief Impact Strategist at Ideas for Impact, a full-service social impact agency specializing in social impact incubation and acceleration systems, impact-focused growth, innovative business models, and comprehensive actionable strategies to address social and environmental challenges through the business lens. Joanna believes we can create enterprises that are not only profitable but create social and environmental value in our communities through their activities and brands.

In her previous role as Executive Director at League of Innovators, she was responsible for mobilizing the next generation of leaders from discovery to acceleration.

As a public speaker, facilitator, and lecturer, Joanna focuses on the intersection of entrepreneurship, impact, youth, and future of work. She was the founding Managing Director of the Centre for Social Innovation & Impact Investing, co-creator of the award-winning Coast Capital Savings Innovation Hub, and previously steered the ship at The Next Big Thing, Canada’s only full inclusive youth entrepreneurial program.

Find her lecturing about entrepreneurship and innovation at Simon Fraser Beedie School of Business and at Emily Carr University; mentoring youth led start-ups such as SmartSweets, Blume, WizeMonkey, GrantMe; and driving conversation around social impact and innovation as the chair of the Scale Institute. Joanna’s work focuses on building changemaking ideas from concept to reality, to big impact.

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Jolynn Green, Vice-ChairExecutive Director, Community Futures Central Island

Since 2010, Jolynn Green has been Executive Director at Community Futures Central Island, where she understands the need for diversified income streams and self-reliance for non-profits. Jolynn’s hands-on experience assisting hundreds of small businesses from startup to expansion and her rich and diverse work experience combined with lifelong learning has created a business acumen steeped in human resources, project management, organizational development, and nonprofit sector management. She is an entrepreneur at heart and has been self-employed.

Her career began in the community economic development arena as a Chamber of Commerce Manager/EDO actively pursuing economic development opportunities. Motivated by the grassroots development approach and the business development aspect of Western Diversification Canada’s Community Futures Program mandate, Jolynn joined a Community Futures team in 1994 where she worked for ten years.

Seeking new opportunities, Jolynn became a Human Resource Manager of a five-star golf and casino resort. Jolynn’s work experience gave her the desire to continue to expand her knowledge base and as a result graduated with a Master of Leadership and Training, Organizational Leadership and Change Management from Royal Roads University of Victoria, BC.

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Shawn Smith, Treasurer and SecretaryCo-founder and Director at RADIUS

Shawn Smith is the co-founder and Director of RADIUS, as well as an Adjunct Professor at the Beedie School of Business and Director of Social Innovation for Simon Fraser University. Having spent the last 15 years working with, in and on social impact organizations on three continents, Shawn is also a founder at several other organizations including IMPAQTO (Ecuador), Global Agents for Change and Education Generation, co-led the ALT/Now Economic Inequality systems change program at the Banff Centre, and speaks and consults regularly on social innovation and entrepreneurship.

Shawn is a top-rated educator, Business in Vancouver top 40 under 40 recipient, and completed his MBA at the University of Oxford in 2010 as a Skoll Scholar in Social Entrepreneurship.

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Kariann Aarup, Board MemberDirector, Partnership and Program Development at Aqua Forum

Kariann has been working with AquaAction since 2017, focusing on scaling its flagship program, the AquaHacking Challenge, as well as developing new programming to further leverage young Canadian entrepreneurial and tech talent for freshwater outcomes. This has enabled Kariann to bring her deep connection to the natural world as well as her professional experience in multiple sectors to bare on freshwater.

Fueled by her childhood memories growing up on a beautiful lake in the Laurentians north of Montreal, inspired by the entrepreneurial family in which she was raised, guided by the community-focused values of her Scandinavian heritage, and equipped with the language of business from her McGill MBA, Kariann is proud to be part of a dynamic team at AquaAction, driving practical solutions for freshwater issues, in an innovative and engaging way.

Kariann lives in Victoria, with her husband and two children and is happy for the silver-lining of COVID of less travel and more hygge home-time.

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PARTNERS & FUNDERS

Scale Institute appreciates the generous support of these partners and funders: