New Century, New Risks: Challenges for Social Development in Canada - November 18-19 2004

Breakout Session 4B: The Role of the Voluntary Sector and the Social Economy

Moderator: Fraser Valentine, Income Security Programs Branch,
Social Development Canada

Dianne Bascombe, National Children's Alliance

Dianne Bascombe began by suggesting that the conference should be renamed either "Desperately Seeking Social Development," or "Everything Old is New Again." Speakers at the conference pointed out that there is a lack of tools to address place-based problems with place-based solutions. "Labour market policy alone is not going to produce the solution," she said. There has not been enough dialogue on how to create and sustain place-based solutions. Social development requires discussion about issues such as social justice and human rights. In a knowledge-based economy, there is a need to look at collective risks. Data on the low wage economy suggests that people are moving up just one notch out of poverty. This data should be examined more comprehensively. "When we're looking at jobs in 11-month cycles, that doesn't look like stability," she said. "The social economy isn't just about getting vulnerable people into the labour market."

Bascombe said there is no excuse for the current levels of poverty. "There's no excuse not to think of poverty beyond social economic status." Her research work takes her to the community level, where there is the least development and the least data. When looking at children's needs, the influences of family, community, and public service spaces must be considered. This involves human capital objectives. There is, she said, "a huge disconnect between reality, what's on the ground," and what government sees. "The critical component is our capacity for inter-sector collaboration. How do we get that?" she asked. The most exciting initiatives across Canada most often occur by accident, not by design.

"The government and the private sector cannot do what the voluntary sector can," said Bascombe. "Do we have the capacity to deliver? We don't necessarily. We haven't reached a place in policy programming where we have the kind of support we need." The FTP (federal/territorial/provincial) process mitigates against this.

The meaning of "accountability" for community outcomes must be considered, said Bascombe. "This has come to mean very specific outcomes for very specific groups, and that mitigates against our possible successes." Leadership at the community level is needed. "Neither the feds nor the provinces can bring everyone to the table. For us to act as brokers and as risk takers we have to rethink accountability measures. We are not nimble enough to respond to needs, because we have to respond to restrictive outcome measures."

There is a need for funding and flexibility. "A lot has happened despite—not because of—the way the sector is supported," thanks to the enormous efforts of volunteers, and to executive directors who are on the front lines, delivering services.

Nancy Neamtan, Chantier de l'économie sociale

Nancy Neamtan described the Chantier de l'économie sociale as a working group of networks of networks, covering a broad range of groups and issues: housing, non-profit co-operative home care agencies, and revitalization of urban and rural communities, among others. Issues addressed go beyond economic growth. The origins of the group are in the labour groups of the 1980s, when it was recognized that "the problem with economic development was that it was creating more and more disparities." For a while, the social development model of the 1960s worked, "but, with globalization, there has been a fundamental paradigm shift."

The economy should not be seen as the hegemony of the private sector, said Neamtan. Health and education are important resources. The private economy and the social economy work simultaneously, producing goods and services. "Combining all those different actors, we can respond more effectively to issues." Communities face challenges—the aging population puts stress on the health care system, for example. In Québec, past programs made use of welfare recipients who worked on short grants. This did not work: they were not getting decent jobs; the elderly were not getting good care. The government has since invested in community resources that allow elders to stay home—6,000 jobs, $35 million dollars. The Daycare program is based on same principle, as is a network of non-profit recycling businesses.

With the current paradigm shift come new ways of doing things that involve risk taking and examining how investments can open new opportunities.

Discussion

An audience member commented that the new economy would exclude people with disabilities from job opportunities. She asked how the social economy would ensure opportunities for people with disabilities. Neamtan referred to a network of non-profit enterprises in Québec that is offering jobs to 3,000 people with disabilities. "They are getting proper wages. The image of sheltered workshops is not the reality," she said. The question is, how can the private sector be convinced? There are programs that help deal with physical adaptations. The role of the social economy is to show the way. It is possible to produce interesting job opportunities.

Asked about the "possible dangers" when the government formally becomes involved in informal movements, Neamtan rephrased the question, "What can the government do to screw up a bottom-up process?" She acknowledged, "One size doesn't fit all. The Québec experience is our experience in a particular context and culture." The situation in other parts of Canada will be different. But there have been positive results on the east coast. What researchers call "the co-production of public policy" should be produced by those who will enact the policy. She cited an international trend, in Europe, Brazil, Argentina, and Britain that sees the role of government policy as a support for partnerships and networking.

Bascombe said there is a need for substantive public investment. "We need to rethink accountability in ventures.... The challenge is to rethink what we mean by accountability and push the envelope of quantitative and qualitative evaluations." Neamtan stressed that the role of government should be to support partnerships.

"The social economy is more and more an economic power," commented a participant. "Daycare is now both non-profit and profit. There is competition between public and private organizations. How do you overcome this issue?" Neamtan responded that people say the economy needs a strong public and private sector. She asked whether health care should remain in the public sector. Regarding daycare, "all international studies show that non-profit daycare delivers the best services. In housing, it depends on what your needs are." With healthy public and private sectors, "there's room and need for all options." Municipalities are finding that non-profit options in recycling allow them to keep jobs and resources in local communities. With daycare, "People want to know it can't be bought and sold. Same with elder care." That does not mean that all ventures should be public. "We're not going to start building airplanes!"

An audience member commented that new partnerships tend to threaten the people in the old partnerships. "People in the voluntary sector feel threatened." Will they have to compete with the commercial sector—will they have to make sales pitches? Neamtan brought up a debate that took place in Québec. "Are you going to ask a victim of violence to pay? The issue is not are you charging fees or not. If there is a service offered, and the government needs it, they'll buy it. The social economy combines voluntary resources and market resources." It is a question of what percentage of the cost the government will pay.