Atkinson Field Notes
Learning in Action
News, presentations and reflections from Atkinson’s Chief Executive Officer Colette Murphy and the rest of the Atkinson team.
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by Category: Community Wealth Building
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by Media:
22 Jan 18
The Atkinson Decent Work Fund is open and ready to hear from you. Since 2014, we have invested over $3 million in organizing communities to protect workers’ rights, create decent work, and share the benefits of public investment and economic growth more equitably. Read more >
25 Oct 17
On a unseasonably hot and sunny mid September morning, an Ontario-based group of community leaders travelled to Buffalo, New York. Our mission was to see first hand how organizers are building coalitions to support public policy advocacy for community benefits Read more >
12 Apr 17
These places where we live and work matter to us – or we wouldn’t be here. Nor would we put our names on ballots, put our savings on the line to start businesses, or put countless hours into our communities to make them even more vibrant than they already are. But the people with whom we live and work matter to us even more... Read more >
9 Nov 16
Like most of you, this is my first convocation. I’ve earned two university degrees but I’ve never walked across a stage like this one. Back in 1987, I dreamed about walking the landscape of my textbooks and meeting the people whose lives I studied. Before the ink was dry on my undergraduate diploma Read more >
19 Sep 16
Anchor strategies mobilize resources, deliberately and strategically, to improve the lives and livelihoods people who are not benefiting from traditional approaches to economic development. Anchor strategists are not necessarily motivated by the charity impulse. Generally, they simply want better results for their institutions... Read more >
12 Aug 16
Last month I travelled to Buffalo for a conference that brought together community organizers, advocates and academics to talk about strategies for a people and planet-centre economy. Buffalo, only two hours south of my home in Toronto, is making an ambitious comeback after a long economic decline.
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20 Nov 15
The Atkinson Foundation’s first foray into the public policy development process was to advocate for its own existence. In 1949, the Ontario legislature passed the Charitable Gifts Act to prohibit charities from owning more than 10% of a business Read more >
20 Oct 15
I’m one of the 26 Torontonians asked to provide advice to the Deputy Mayor and City staff as they assembled the elements of this strategy over the past nine months. I’m also the Executive Director of the Atkinson Foundation, your partner Read more >
25 Sep 15
You might be wondering why I’m talking about Ontario’s prosperity when you’re here to talk about its poverty problem. Michael has told me that you hope to learn today from others who are making progress and whose work can be adapted to your situation. Read more >
15 Jun 15
A movement is afoot in Toronto to ensure local communities reap the benefits of major infrastructure and housing projects. Called “community benefits”, the concept is simple: leverage dollars already being spent on major infrastructure Read more >