Hi everyone! For 2021 Cultivate is making a few adjustments to our goals to better suit the pandemic reality we are faced with currently.
We were so fortunate in Spring 2020 to have gained a small amount of funding to continue furthering our work and begin setting our sights on working within the community.During Summer 2020, we took part in SFU's start-up accelerator program where the team was able to learn more about the social innovation space and gain many useful tools to be more resilient and sustainable post-pandemic.
Our goal was to launch our pilot program in September 2020 with 3 partner employers, and 1 employment agency. Soon after that, we planned to have 10 community members sign up and work micro job shifts for the 3 pioneer businesses. Our final plan was to finish all assumptions testing, create our proof of concept and have testimonials and case study ready by January 2021. However, as we all know Covid-19 did not go away and the second wave came quick.
We faced many difficulties trying to navigate our launch. The digital nature of the pandemic decreased our ability to create meaningful connections with community members and local businesses. As well various risks came with hosting a pilot program that would bring new contacts into different areas. During this uncertain time, it is essential everyone does their job to keep society as safe as possible. We know that the community is feeling these barriers far more than we can even imagine; therefore, we still need to take action where we can.
We have made the decision to put our micro-job system to the side and move our focus to spreading positivity and advocating through our online efforts. Our goal is to shine a spotlight on current DTES organizations and the empowering work they have accomplished for the community during this difficult time. We hope to continue learning and working alongside many organizations in order to better serve the many individuals in the DTES.
We look forward to creating greater neighbourhood resiliency!