Here at BOB, we are committed to connecting our clients with businesses that realize how important a

nd beneficial it is to hire locally.  It is especially exciting for the Supported Employment Team when a client we have placed goes above and beyond at the workplace. This month, we have highlighted the story of David, who is one of those exemplary employees.

David is working at Calabash Bistro

Read more about David’s work at Calabash Bistro here:

SEPNewsletter – Sept 2010.

Other stories this month include:

• Employer Profile – Calabash Bistro
• Urban Farming Workshops
• Event Listings
• Job Postings

Last night at the beautiful Westin Bayshore Hotel, the YWCA held its 26th annual Women of Distinction Awards. As was noted in a previous post BOB’s very own Shirley Chan and BOB board member Linda Coady were both nominated for awards, Shirley in the non-profit leadership category and Linda in entrepreneurship and innovation.

Well, both won!

Congratulations to you both Shirley and Linda for being recognized with this distinction. I was talking with Shirley this morning and she expressed how honoured she felt:

“The YWCA is special. It’s there to support women through all stages of their life, from when we are young children to later in our lives, and it was an amazing evening. I’m honored to be recognized with such distinguished women and to receive the award and join the ranks of the many, many, women leaders in our community whom I admire.”

The team here at BOB are honored too, and thankful that we have such distinguished and capable women leaders whom we admire within our organization.

The recipients of the YWCA Women of Distinction Award for 2010 Shirley Chan flanking the group on the far left and Linda Coady on the far right

This image is from the Waterloo SPP

Social enterprise along with social purchasing directories, portals, green directories and other platforms represents  a new consumer psychology and a new way of socially responsible economic thinking. Products and services in these directories cost no more than their average competitor, in fact they are most often a more competitively and attractively priced option! But they have a distinct advantage in that they directly contribute to the economic, environmental and social health of our communities. New research has shown that consumers will even sacrifice luxury or performance in favor of the perceived social status of green products. While some might think this is somewhat shallow, it truly shows that the pendulum has swung in our time. Buying responsible, sustainable products is COOL! And pretty soon it will likely be beyond cool, as it becomes the status quo. To help us fully make this transition we have a growing number of  directories or portals offering us environmentally and socially minded options  Here are some examples:

Australian organization Social Traders is working with numerous partners for a directory of Australian social enterprise while in China a social purchasing directory created by the group Collective Responsibility, provides socially and environmentally responsible choices for citizens and companies there.  Some major cities with large urban economies to themselves have their own directories and portals like London, England’s SEL (Social Enterprise London). Several Canadian cities including Ottawa, Winnipeg and Kitchener-Waterloo also have active portals that they are building and improving upon as well.

In Vancouver, the Social Purchasing Directory hosted by Building Opportunities with Business is the most comprehensive and accessible directory of its kind in our city and possibly Canada. Other guides like Vancouver’s Green Zebra Guide and the Greater Vancouver Green Guide offer comprehensive lists of businesses, buildings, parks and even projects that are environmentally sustainable.

Vancouver inner-city business Eclipse Awards International and social enterprise Tradeworks Training Society, have strong sustainability and social objectives and make top quality products with reclaimed or FSC certified wood

As our urban economy continues to grow, BOB’s directory will be updated and managed to meet the needs of businesses and individual consumers looking for competitively and attractively priced goods and services from innovative,  socially and environmentally responsible companies or social enterprises.

More than ever people have realized that what we purchase has a powerful impact on the environment, on cultures, regions and on ourselves. The new research shows it now has a powerful effect on our identities now as well. I believe the rise of social purchasing directories social purchasing portals and of green directories and guides for those looking f or  sustainable products that benefit our communities demonstrates a real shift in consumer psychology. “We vote with our dollars” is a quote that sums it up nicely as the world we live in is shaped by the leadership we democratically choose and the producers of goods and services we support with our purchases.

Vancouver's Olympic Village is the world's most sustainable community and was built largely with goods procured from businesses on the Social Purchasing Directory hosted by Building Opportunities with Business

We also say what kind of people we are through these actions, and I would wager to say that most people enjoy being seen as good people who support good businesses and want a better world for themselves and for future generations. It took us a while to see the damage that our old products and systems created and some time for producers of better options to reach economies of scale, but now we have a huge selection of quality products and services- healthy and responsible options-at our fingertips.

So next time you’re looking for a socially responsible gift, a sustainably made product, or an environmentally friendly cleaner, look first to social purchasing and green directories available to you in your city.

-Wes-

It was just announced that Steve Cole of Sacred Heart Tattoo will be doubling his prize giveaway at Kaleidoscope from $160 to $320 dollars worth of tattoo time!! And with that I’ll launch into a quick reminder that Kaleidoscope, a celebration of art, culture and entrepreneurial spirit in the DTES is happening this Saturday at the Rickshaw Theatre, 257 E 4th Ave from 7:00 pm to 10:00 Pm. Other prizes include a georgeous gift basket from Saul Good Gift Co. an Award for the Coolest Person in Vancouver 2010 form Eclipse Awards International and a $250 gift card from Fluevog (Vancouver’s favorite shoemaker)

A reminder that tix are $10 and are available at Red Cat, Scratch and Zulu records or you can pay by donation at the door.

WHY DID WES AND HIS FRIENDS FRASER AND LEX DO THIS? Well…let me be disarmingly personal for a moment if I may. In the 3 months that I’ve been with Building Opportunities with Business I have been so impressed by the work that goes on here, by the office culture, the leadership that the management team shows and the work ethic that the staff have. The projects and people that I’ve been introduced to have inspired me and given me hope. The Canadian Mental Health Association and many other organizations at work in Vancouver’s inner-city help people who are most at risk of losing their livelihoods and ending up in a self destructive cycle. Mental health, is  a serious issue and one that has impacted the DTES (particularly in light of one particular mental health facility closing down some 20 years ago).

Why a celebration of entrepreneurial spirit in the DTES? Because as important as it is for our government leaders to address these social issues and help to improve our communities it is also up to us. Entrepreneurs who take a chance on inner-city neighbourhoods, who put their creativity, their elbow grease and their cash into a venture in the inner-city deserve to be recognized; they too can have a powerful positive impact on the community through their actions, and through their success. They show leadership and take initiative, they create opportunities for residents and other businesses here in the DTES. Those are the kinds of people who strengthen community capacity. So by having these companies donate a prize it’s a way to promote them and recognize them, by having the proceeds go to non-profits and charitable organizations we recognize the work that goes on from that end too. We celebrate them both and celebrate art, music and life along with them!

So naturally a combination of the two made sense, and that is what Kaleidoscope is all about. That, and having fun listening to great bands and enjoying a drink with friends in a cool venue. If this sounds like something you might enjoy then come on down this Saturday 7pm to the newly reopened Rickshaw Theatre at 257 E. Hastings. We would love to see you there.

Wes

Last night Brian Smith, Business and Social Enterprise Developer at Building Opportunities with Business was honored at the Business in Vancouver 40 under 40 awards reception held at the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver. I can imagine he’s already getting tired of being repeatedly congratulated and lauded for the recognition of his work in this city but from all of us at BOB, CONGRATULATIONS BRIAN!!

There were a few 40 under 40 winners who traditionally may not have been included in years past as it is an award given out via Business in Vancouver, to business people. I’m glad to see that the judges have now begun to recognize social entreprise, non-profits and even the medical profession in their body of candidates though. It made me think about how much our collective business culture and business philosophy has changed over the past 20 years alone. Brian has worked with a range of people in the DTES to create and manage what many believe is the best social purchasing directory in Canada. The directory is a comprehensive list of businesses in Vancouver’s downtown eastside and inner-city neighourhoods that offer socially responsible and environmentally sustainable goods and services. Many of these companies create jobs for local residents that may have been hard to employ. And he wasn’t the only winner last night who was doing something that was not only good for business but good for communities, the environment and those in need of help. To me it really seemed like what was once on the fringe of business culture had really become central to it.

If one tries to think objectively about the history of business and industry since the industrial revolution we have to remember that all these great challenges within economics, environment, society and culture are byproducts of an incredible and sudden explosion of productivity and change. To put it in perspective, it’s like a few hundred years ago we opened a pandoras box, and only 50 years ago did the revolution in chemistry offer us a chance to create plastics and other materials and with them the effluents, gasses and other byproducts that quickly accumulated. And while the environmental challenges mounted a host of socioeconomic challenges also grew in tandem with rising population and shrinking space and resources.   When considering the age of human civilization this literally happened in a blink of an eye. And all things considered, though we could’ve reacted faster, we’ve reacted pretty fast. 20 years ago was your office recycling or composting? did your building have a green roof? Was it LEED certified? Were green enrepreneurs being honored along with captains of technology and industry?

The fact that business leaders are also being recognized for being environmental leaders and socially responsible leaders is exciting. While some may say it’s just a fad and that when the chips are down we’ll do things cheap and dirty I firmly believe that we’re beginning to leave behind the days when all that mattered was the bottom line. Yes there still exists greed and excess, there are still the Gordon Geckos of the world, but if the recipients of the 2009 BIV 40 under 40 awards were any indication they’re becomming eclipsed by the new breed of socially and environmentally responsible business leaders like Brian. So once again congratulations to him and to all the winners of the 2009  BIV 40 under 40 awards.

Adam Smith would approve of this year's BIV 40 under 40