It’s time to continue the work we began at #PolicyTalk in June, identifying the policy issues that matter to you, and collaborating to have them represented in London’s developing multi-year budget. And we’d like you to join in, whether or not you attended the June event.
Pillar hosted a #PolicyTalk event at Innovation Works London June 28, where Pillar staff outlined the opportunities available to engage in the City’s multi-year budget process, participants began to identify points of interest in the City’s Strategic Plan, and we talked about potential next steps. We heard that there’s a desire to convene again, to do more than we’ve done in the past, and to work together on shared policy goals. So we’re getting together August 10, in time to develop strategies to have positive impacts on the development of London’s budget priorities and the allocation of resources. A full report of the June meeting and subsequent consultation will be shared with participants and the community by the end of July to inform our August event.
In the June event, we found that one of the greatest short-term barriers to meaningful engagement with the multi-year budget was identifying the ‘right’ policy issues for each organization and the ways that our missions are connected to encourage collaboration.
Among our supports for this process, Pillar staff are offering to:
-
‘Map’ each participating organization’s mission to the City’s Strategic Plan
-
Identify potential issue areas for advocacy
-
Use the framework of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), we will also identify points of connection between organizational missions to help spark productive collaborations
If you would like Pillar staff to identify potential points of interest in the City’s Strategic Plan for your organization and connections to other organizational missions, contact Grace Estrada at bgestrada@pillarnonprofit.ca. (If you cannot attend #PolicyTalk August 10 but would still like us to help with this work, please feel free to contact Grace.)
WHO SHOULD ATTEND?
This is an especially important conversation for nonprofit CEOs/EDs, managers, board members, and advocates, but everyone is welcome to attend who wishes to build nonprofit advocacy for thriving communities. If there is more than one person in your organization whose work touches on public policy and advocacy, please consider bringing them all. This is work we need to do together.
If you missed the first session you are welcome to join in now. We would encourage you to review the materials shared at the June 28 meeting, which include the City of London’s Strategic Plan.
---PILLAR’S COMMITMENT TO POLICY AND ADVOCACY---
Public policy touches on every aspect of private and public life, and policy change can make real changes in people’s lives ─ for better or for worse – and directly affect the ability of nonprofits to serve their communities and achieve their missions. Pillar seeks to support social purpose organizations to engage productively in public policy, to amplify their insights, and build their own capacities for advocacy.
In this moment, some of our work is at the local level, convening conversations about how social purpose actors can build on successful advocacy in the development of the City of London’s Strategic Plan to have meaningful influence on the development of the City’s multi-year budget. We are continuing these conversations on Thursday, August 10 in person at Innovation Works London, when we’ll convene issue-based working groups, and we invite you to join.
WHY THIS MATTERS
-
The public sector, including our City, relies on nonprofits and social purpose enterprises to deliver on government priorities but doesn’t necessarily understand the impact, urgency, or full costs of our work. A strong, mutually supportive nonprofit network can inform policy-makers and help them support thriving communities and sustainable development.
-
The earlier we engage in any process, the bigger impact we can have. At the local level, there’s no better time to get organized than the beginning of the multi-year budget.
-
Time and again it’s been identified that the nonprofit sector needs to ‘build its policy muscle.’ We’re in if you’re in.
WHAT WE BRING
Pillar is genuinely curious to hear what the community needs most from us now. We’re arriving with:
-
A commitment to help in co-designing our next steps as a policy community;
-
Capacity to track and share key opportunities for advocacy and intervention in public policy, including Pillar staff time to map connections between organizational missions and the City of London Strategic Plan. (To take advantage of this opportunity, contact Grace Estrada at bgestrada@pillarnonprofit.ca.)
-
Network connections to sector advocacy at the regional, provincial, and national levels;
-
An understanding of broad nonprofit sector-wide issues that may be felt differently across sub-sectors and micro-sectors;
-
Expertise in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and other frameworks for connecting our goals, missions, and visions;
-
Expertise in community development and engagement; and
-
Space for this work to happen
Thank you to our 2023 Learning & Development Sponsors:
Western Continuing Studies and Fanshawe Employment and Student Entrepreneurial Services/Corporate Training Solutions
