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NETWORK NEWS

July 31, 2019

The ONN: A network of nonprofits advocating for sector-wide public policy improvements that help to create thriving communities.

This month:
Inside ONN
Policy Updates
Network Updates

Blog: Bracing for the budget impact

This year’s provincial budget may require organizations to make some hard decisions. It’s important to make informed decisions before acting, and consider the impact on staff, leadership, and community. Read more in this important update from the law firm Carters Professional Corporation.

Last call to complete the Sector 360° Survey

We need your input! Help us gather accurate and in-depth Ontario-wide data that could help your government relations and advocacy work. You can also enter to win a free pass to Nonprofit Driven 2019.
Get started here.

Empowering women through decent work

We’re expanding the way in which we think about women’s economic empowerment in the nonprofit sector and beyond. Read about our three big ideas for decent work for women in The Philanthropist this month.

ONN membership: good for you; good for the sector

Joining ONN gives you countless opportunities to build your nonprofit muscle. Our members get access to services and benefits tailored to their needs, while building a stronger sector. Don’t just take our word for it; read what our members have to say:

“As a start up organization, we were thrilled to learn of the Ontario Nonprofit Network and its increasing resources and voice for the sector. We also look forward to the other benefits of ONN, such as the office supplies, printing, and wireless services programs. As our programs and funding grow, we are excited about participating in group benefits and pension programs to attract and retain highly knowledgeable and skilled employees."

Erin Ingard Rau
Associate Director
Adopt4Life

Connectors

Be part of building a strong and resilient nonprofit sector by becoming an ONN Connector and join dozens of other organizations showing their sector leadership, like these two Connectors:

As the largest non-government funder of community services in the GTA, United Way Greater Toronto reinforces a crucial community safety net. United Way’s network of agencies and initiatives in neighbourhoods across Peel, Toronto and York Region works to ensure that everyone has access to the programs and services they need to thrive today. Mobilizing the network and other community support, United Way tackles #UNIGNORABLE issues linked to poverty. United Way’s work is rooted in ground-breaking research, strategic leadership, local advocacy and cross-sectoral partnerships committed to building lasting solutions to the GTA’s greatest challenges.

The mission of The George Cedric Metcalf Charitable Foundation is to enhance the effectiveness of people and organizations working together to help Canadians imagine and build a just, healthy, and creative society.

Modernizing EI maternity and parental benefits

Increase the benefit rate, eliminate the waiting period, and incentivize employers to provide maternity and parental leave benefit top-ups. These are some of our policy recommendations to modernize EI maternity and parental leave benefits. Read our policy brief.

Making child care affordable for all

Because we believe in Decent Work for Women, ONN is supporting child care advocates by endorsing The Affordable Child Care for All Plan. The federal government must ensure that all families in Canada have access to affordable high-quality early learning and child care by 2030. Learn more about the plan.

Federal election: a chance for nonprofits to speak out

There’s a federal election coming up on October 21! It’s a great time for nonprofits and charities to share their stories and get the issues and priorities of our communities on the public policy radar. Although ONN works primarily on provincial policy issues, we speak out on federal issues if they have a critical impact on our provincial network of nonprofits working for public benefit. In addition to Imagine Canada’s priorities for federal parties, ONN has identified three key federal recommendations that we encourage our network to promote:

Promote gender equality through labour market measures intended to support women-majority sectors like the nonprofit sector.
Support the nonprofit sector’s mission-focused work by providing an enabling legal framework for public benefit nonprofits.
Recognize the role that public benefit nonprofits play in building inclusive local economies.

Read more about ONN’s recommendations and find tools and resources for your organization.

Data strategy and privacy legislation

In the works for over a year, the Administrative Data Policy Coalition (co-convened by Powered By Data and ONN) held our inaugural coalition meeting on June 18 to discuss governance, guiding principles, and how we’d like to work together. The coalition includes advocacy groups, service providers, and funders. This work is particularly timely because the Ontario government is consulting on Ontario's Data Strategy, focusing on public trust and confidence in the data economy; creating economic benefits via the data economy; and enabling better, smarter, more efficient government. Not coincidentally, there are major changes coming to privacy legislation such as the Freedom of Information and Privacy Protection Act (FIPPA), which was amended as part of the Ontario Budget implementation bill (read our summary of Bill 100 here). “Data integration units” will be created to allow for administrative data sharing between ministries and programs. S ign up for Ontario Data Strategy updates.

Join the conversation on impact investing

Do you have insight and experience into how social finance can better support nonprofit and cooperative enterprises in Canada? The Government of Canada is launching a Call for Applications for a Social Innovation Advisory Council of stakeholders to help advance and oversee the implementation of Canada’s Social Innovation and Social Finance Strategy with the aim of making real progress towards the achievement of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. It is critically important that the voices of the nonprofit and cooperative sectors be represented on this group to bring the voices of communities to discussions about social finance and investment in communities. The deadline to apply is September 2. Read more here.

Ontario's community wealth building movement is growing

More and more communities are addressing the wealth leaking out of their local economies by trying out community wealth building strategies, like community land trusts, community finance, anchor institutions, and cooperative, nonprofit, and other locally-owned enterprises. You can see examples of community initiatives in action on our website.

ONN is planning to convene nonprofits again later this year; meanwhile we are developing resources to enable this movement over the summer, including a Community Wealth Building 101 and a Community Finance Policy Framework. If you know of related work in other Ontario communities, please get in touch via liz@theonn.ca.

Navigating changes to employment and training

Like the health care and child care sectors, Employment Ontario programs are undergoing a massive shift as the Province engages new “service system managers” - nonprofit, public, or private sector - to manage local delivery of employment and training programs. Beginning Fall 2019, the new employment services model will launch in the Regions of Peel, Hamilton-Niagara and Muskoka-Kawarthas. Employment services across the rest of the province will move to the new system starting in 2022. The sector is having to adjust rapidly to the new landscape in the midst of cuts to programs and the transfer of employment supports for people with disabilities being moved over to Employment Ontario. ONN encourages nonprofit service providers in the prototype regions to use your networks (including ONESTEP, FirstWork, and ODEN) to collaborate in advance of the procurement process opening up this fall.

Common Approach webinar on impact measurement

The Common Approach to Impact Measurement is hosting a series of webinars on building a better way to measure social impact. The next webinar, “Common Foundations,” provides nonprofits and cooperatives with a common set of tools, resources, and training to help improve the quality of reporting and analysis of their overall impact. August 8 at noon. Register here for the webinar.

ONN members qualify for registration discounts! Click here to ask for your conference code.