Vancouver's LEDlab: Leveraging Mitacs Partnerships for Social Change

The Local Economic Development Lab is a three-year university-community partnership modeled on social innovation labs around the world. This ‘think and do’ initiative is concentrated on understanding the conditions required for inclusive and sustainable economic development in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside, and building ground up solutions engaging stakeholders from across the system.

LEDlab leverages a Mitacs Accelerate Research Grant to incorporate 30 living wage, four-month, full-time graduate internships over three years. Graduate interns provide actual human capacity, research and prototyping support to under-resourced community organizations to advance innovative ideas. We use a cohort model for projects, students, and community partners to develop shared skills and knowledge, collaborate, and change the economic system in support of the local community over time.

This webinar aims to share the LEDlab program model in hopes that it will have relevance in other contexts and jurisdictions.

Participants will learn:

• What the LEDlab is and how it serves as model for community-university partnerships;
• The goals of Mitacs partnership model, what activities fall under its mandate, and how to apply;
• Overview of the lab process and our annual cohort program; and
• A look under the hood at LEDlab budget allocations and fundraising strategy.

Please note the webinar takes place at 12:00PM EST / 9:00AM PST.

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