BUILD is a free six-month program designed by, for, and with input from equity-deserving people—Indigenous folks, Black folks, and folks of colour.
Calling those who are prioritizing the health and well-being of people and the planet through system-shifting work. If you are working toward Better Futures For More Of Us by addressing your communities’ pressing social, environmental, or economic challenges, consider joining BUILD.
BUILD is a good fit for initiatives that are currently active and looking to refine their model to grow their impact. We focus on strengthening the skills and foundations of people shaping and developing their initiatives (e.g. for-profit, non-profit, co-op, mutual aid, movement building, and collectives).
BUILD is for you if you want to explore topics including how best to communicate your initiative, how to gather ongoing feedback from the people your work serves, how to explore and test key revenue and or partnership opportunities, how to use key tools and frameworks for effective operations and finances and much more.
The program offers structured yet flexible support that will adapt based on what you and your initiative need. We will balance ambitious goals with moving at a kind pace, valuing joy, rest, and process as much as products and outcomes.
Sign up for emails from the BUILD program, including what comes next, related events, and future co-work opportunities.
We invite you to apply for this emerging program if your work prioritizes social, economic, and environmental liberation.
This may be right for you if:
In learning from the cycle of seasons, good programming is attentive to both root and shoot. Though we could be carried by the excitement of this year’s success and push for rapid or continuous growth, we know this might endanger the health of the program, including the intentions, outcomes, participants, and team members.
Instead, we are making space to reflect, digest, and integrate learnings from this inaugural year of offering the BUILD program.
To stay in the loop of what comes next, including related events and future co-work sessions, sign up for our email list. You can also email questions or comments to build@radiussfu.com.
If you are keen on expanding your skills and learning in an active program, consider the Migrant Systems Change Leadership Certificate program. Applications are open until May 13, 2024.
Here are a few resources to visit at your own pace:
With a genuine love for her community, Mayra Gonzalez stands as a dedicated advocate for mental health, embodying her commitment to making a difference. When she was a law student,
Carla Carvalho, a registered clinical counsellor at Strawberries and Sunshine Wellness Collective in Port Coquitlam, B.C., has always been passionate about storytelling as a pathway to empathy and healing. Originally
“What shape is your body making right now, and how has that been influenced by choices that are made for you?” “How might we nurture a community of belonging for
Mohammed Zaqout came to Canada as a visitor in the summer of 2019, a year and a half after leaving his home in Palestine. He decided to stay, and after
Any problem you want to address is rooted in a set of connected parts that overlap, called a System.
When we talk about “Systems Change,” we refer to a process designed to alter an identified system’s dominant or ‘normal’ functions or structure with purposeful interventions. It aims to bring about lasting change by altering underlying structures and supporting mechanisms which make the system operate in a particular way (including policies, relationships, resources, routines, power structures, and values.)
Wondering what a systems change initiative might look like? Check out these case studies from alum of our other programs.
Below are hypothetical participant profiles of the types of people and teams we hope to support!
As a nursing student, Anum noticed a pronounced gap in women’s health—recognizing and understanding symptoms of iron deficiency. With a few folks in her personal and professional circles, she hosted workshops and talking groups to share knowledge, with positive feedback from folks she worked with and the people who attended. After one year of hosting these, she explored the early-stage idea in a program that helped her refine her work to the top five under-serviced health conditions for women aged 30-45. Now in her second year as a practicing nurse, her goal is to sustainably embed this community solution back into the larger healthcare system and to expand the service to be available in multiple languages. She wants to connect with expert professionals for advice and feedback and be in a group again for accountability.
Kio has worked in policy for eight years in municipal government and various organizations to lift up their community. They recently engaged in policy-focused capacity-building and consulting “on the side” and are ready to expand this as their main focus. They want to learn about Equity-Centred Design to integrate it into their work. They also want to grow their confidence in business tools and frameworks, so they can expand their relationships with organizations nationally.
What began as a common need among a group of friends who were missing the flavors of home turned into a social enterprise. The three friends started out catering fusion global potlucks, then learned that their neighborhood is classified as a “food desert”. They turned their attention to enduring solutions for food security, and changed focus to permaculture community gardens. Eager to grow and scale their idea, and have gotten feedback from accelerator programs they’ve applied to that they need to focus on getting more clear on the basics, before they are ready to scale. They want to refine their marketing and branding, while making sure they continue to centre equity and community needs. Their main focus is how to tell their story to find different revenue sources to keep this going.
Bahar is a facilitator and business coach passionate about working with entrepreneurs with a mission to serve their community. She brings over 15 years of experience as an entrepreneur, program manager, and consultant. She has owned and operated a clothing store in Vancouver and worked in economic and community development with government bodies, not-for-profits, and educational institutions across BC. She immigrated to Canada with her family at the age of sixteen, living and working on the unceded territories of the Coast Salish peoples since then. As a settler and a first-generation immigrant, she is deeply interested in initiatives that centre on building inclusive communities and focusing on the common good.
Humaira believes life is bigger than we might imagine, and that kindness is always called for. She is the Lab Manager for the emerging Equity Centred Accelerator portfolio at RADIUS. The portfolio explores how to support Better Futures For More Of Us, starting with lifting up the good work folks are already doing in their communities to address the most pressing social, economic, and environmental challenges they face. Humaira brings experience from a breadth of roles across industries, including early-stage startup coach and resource navigator, college instructor, bespoke event producer, and program designer in the non-profit sector. Her most valued roles are as Auntie, sibling, daughter, partner, and friend. Humaira holds certifications in community choir leadership, Movement Flow, and community capacity building, and a Bachelor of Science from the University of British Columba. A naturalized Canadian with Bengali heritage, she continues to weave formal learning with cultural teachings and a complex historical legacy. She makes home on the lands of the Okanagan syilx with a sassy bunny, a loving partner, and a hearty appetite for potatoes.
Ilhan is a Somali-Canadian whose parents’ migration journey brought her to these unceded Coast Salish Lands at a very young age. Stemming from her family’s experience of being racialized newcomers, Ilhan has been passionate in addressing social and health inequities and developed a commitment to social justice. Having spent some time in community activism, youth work and health promotion in the Lower Mainlands of Vancouver, Ilhan then moved to Toronto to pursue her Masters in Public Health and gain a critical intersectional analysis on what promotes vulnerability to health inequities. She has recently returned to BC and is ecstatic to get involved in health equity and community work. When she’s not working, you can find her embarking on solo travels somewhere in the world.
Candice is the manager of the RBC First Peoples Enterprise Accelerator Program (FPEAP). This program works in partnership with Indigenous-led organizations to co-create entrepreneurship programming that will best serve their communities. The FPEAP is committed to delivering entrepreneurship programming with an Indigenous lens, upholding Indigenous knowledge and worldview. Candice believes that an economy that is dynamic, just, sustainable, and resilient is one that supports and is informed by the wisdom of Indigenous entrepreneurs. She wishes to centre this wisdom and strength within the FPEAP, and work with partners who do the same. Candice brings a background in social enterprise development within urban Indigenous organizations to her role, as well as an MBA in Social Enterprise Leadership from the University of Fredericton. Candice is of Secwepemc, Chinese and European ancestry. Growing up in northern BC has given her a deep appreciation for the wild parts of this province…and within herself 😉 She lives for exploring both while on her DRZ400.
Alycia is a BCom student at the UBC Sauder School of Business, specializing in Marketing with a concentration in Sustainability and Social Impact. She is energized by the idea of using business as a force for good, and building a circular economy with equity at its core. This summer, Alycia is supporting the Equity-Centred Accelerator at RADIUS with research, planning, and program delivery. She is excited to bring her prior experiences in marketing and project management to the team. Outside of RADIUS, you'll find Alycia developing new recipes in the kitchen, nurturing her house plants, or outside on a run (always accompanied by a new Spotify playlist).
Alia is a social entrepreneur and lecturer at Simon Fraser University, where she teaches Sustainable Innovation and Introduction to Entrepreneurship and Innovation. Passionate about the fields of sustainability, poverty alleviation and impact investing, Alia is the Founder of Luv The Grub, an emerging social enterprise that operates at a number of levels in the food system by capturing produce seconds that would otherwise go to waste, hires newcomer refugees and immigrants through a paid employment training program and produces delicious chutneys and spreads for the local market. In addition, Alia is also the Co-Founder of Liv & Lola, a fair trade home decor business that works with artisans in rural areas of Nicaragua, Guatemala, and Thailand where employment opportunities are scarce in an effort to lift them, their families and their communities out of poverty.
Definity Insurance Foundation; SFU’s Community Engagement Initiative; Government of Canada Future Skills Program; Vancouver Foundation; Gore Mutual; BCAA; Community Foundations Canada; RBC Foundation; Gore Mutual.
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If you have questions about the BUILD program, email build@radiussfu.com.