Posts by Brian Iler

Toronto’s Island Airport battle: the power of community

August 13th, 2026 by Brian Iler

Dedicated activists came together to protect 210 acres of land that includes a vibrant waterfront and a public park. Will this be the last time that Doug Ford tries to bring jets to the Island Airport? Continue reading “Toronto’s Island Airport battle: the power of community”

Harnessing the power of community for live music

March 31st, 2022 by Brian Iler

Artists don’t play Massey Hall’s stage without first building their career in smaller venues with supportive audiences. That’s what Hugh’s Room is trying to build in Toronto’s east end.

Downtown Toronto’s Massey Hall. Credit: Ryan Raz / Flickr

The pandemic hit the live music industry extremely hard in Canada. Many live music venues, without income for two years, permanently closed. But even before the pandemic, many venues were struggling with increasingly unaffordable rents.

Continue reading “Harnessing the power of community for live music”

Reflections on the WE fiasco

December 18th, 2020 by Brian Iler

This article was first published on rabble.ca

I watched last summer’s WE Charity brouhaha with particular interest.

An apparently hugely successful charity and social enterprise empire, WE Charity found itself vilified in the media, resulting in the loss of donors and the eventual closing of its Canadian operation. The fallout even saw the resignation of Finance Minister Bill Morneau. Continue reading “Reflections on the WE fiasco”

Canada’s social economy about to get a boost, but problems remain

February 7th, 2020 by Brian Iler

This article was first published on rabble.ca

Canada’s social economy — those social enterprises (nonprofits, charities and co-operatives) that generate income in pursuit of social goals instead of profit — is about to get quite a boost.

Quietly, but thoughtfully and effectively, the federal government has initiated and funded, with serious money, a brand-new program creating the Social Finance Fund, to drastically expand the social economy.

This year, $50 million is flowing, and is set to quickly increase to $75 million per year for the next 10 years.

The fund is intended to address a major impediment to growth of the social economy — the shortage of investment capital.

While the private sector readily raises millions through Bay Street’s financial institutions, social enterprises don’t attract their interest. Instead, to be successful, social enterprises rely heavily on the communities they serve for financial support. And that often isn’t enough.

Hence the fund.

The creation of the fund was one of 12 recommendations in support of social innovation and social finance made to the federal government made in August 2018 by a steering group broadly representative of social economy organizations. Continue reading “Canada’s social economy about to get a boost, but problems remain”

Seniors Co-Housing:
Re-Thinking Traditional Housing Models for Canada’s Growing Senior Population

March 28th, 2019 by Brian Iler and Claudia Pedrero

This article was originally prepared for the Ontario Bar Association’s Real Property Law & Elder Law program on March 22, 2019

The Toronto Star recently featured a High Park co-housing project – Wine on the Porch. That project, its story, and a small handful of others like it, has helped spark renewed interest in co-housing (or collaborative housing) in Ontario.

That story began:

“It began half in jest — two couples enjoying their annual weekend getaway, strolling the streets of Stratford, Ont., wistfully admiring the pretty Victorians and wondering aloud about the future.

“Would it be feasible to avoid the loneliness that creeps with age by joining forces in a private home with room for shared meals and laughter and cosy nooks for private chats or reading?”

Continue reading “Seniors Co-Housing: <br/>Re-Thinking Traditional Housing Models for Canada’s Growing Senior Population”

Charities now free to engage in non-partisan political activities

July 20th, 2018 by Brian Iler

This article was first published on rabble.ca

Charities are now free to engage in non-partisan political activities.

That’s the explicit message of the Ontario Superior Court in its decision this week.

What a huge relief to those many charities that suffered through Stephen Harper’s politically motivated Canada Revenue Agency audits!

While Justin Trudeau promised reform, and suspended action on those audits, he has yet to deliver reform.

But the court did.

The application to the court was brought by a small charity, Canada Without Poverty, after Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) threatened to take away its charitable registration, alleging that virtually all of its activities involved political engagement.

Continue reading “Charities now free to engage in non-partisan political activities”