The genesis of the Centre began in 2003, when we were born through a combination of serendipity and innovative thinking. Tonya Surman of the Commons Group contacted Margie Zeidler of Urbanspace Property Group, who had developed the very successful 401 Richmond community. Tonya and Margie sparked the vision of a shared space for the social mission sector. They brought in Mary Rowe of Ideas That Matter, Pat Tobin of Heritage Canada and Eric Meerkamper of DECODE, who had also been exploring the idea of creating an incubator for the social mission sector. This combination of creative energy made the perfect storm.
The Questions
The group knew that the social mission sector faces capacity and resource challenges. As a result, too many organizations were working out of isolated and substandard facilities. Our questions were: How can we improve access to office facilities, lower the cost of administration and let organizations focus on their mission? How can we tear down the silos that keep organizations apart? How can we best become a catalyst for social change?
The Answers
Part of the answer came in the form of the Robertson Building at 215 Spadina Avenue, which had been recently purchased by Urbanspace Property Group. Once the decision to go ahead was made in January 2004, the Zeidler family stepped up and offered to pay for the leasehold improvements in a 6,000 sq ft space on the first floor. The Ontario Trillium Foundation and the Harbinger Foundation stepped forward with core operating grants to help with start-up and operational costs. Tonya Surman volunteered for six months to get the project off the ground and the Centre for Social Innovation opened its doors to 14 founding tenants in June 2004.
The Results and Growth
The model worked. The members were happy. The community was drawn to the space and the small staff team now had the room to begin supporting new projects. When the opportunity to assume more space in the building came up in late 2006, the Centre took over an additional 14,000 sq ft. Since opening the new 4th floor space in March 2007, the Centre for Social Innovation has become home to nearly 100 social mission groups in sectors ranging from arts and environment to social justice and education. For them – and for us – sharing space together means more than simply being office mates. It means sharing ideas, strategies and experience. It means supporting each other. It means working together to build our profile and to connect with new communities. CSI members collaborate, learn, grow and become more resilient in ways never imagined in isolation.
The Next Steps
But the community of members is only the first step. The Centre has created a space of shared learning for the whole of Toronto’s social mission community, hosting hundreds of workshops and welcoming 10,000 visitors since opening our doors. We’ve helped launch or support a half-dozen emerging initiatives that promise to make waves across the city and beyond. We’ve only just begun to scratch the surface of what’s possible when spaces are created for social innovation to thrive.
