Have you ever wondered who we are? Not as individuals or even as organizations, but who we are as the ‘non-profit sector in BC .’

There is no question that collectively the 161,000 non profit organizations in Canada make huge economic and social contributions. Imagine Canada reports that each year the non-profit sector contributes 7.8% of Canada’s GDP, generates $112 Billion in revenues, and employs 2 million people. Our sector is larger than the automotive or manufacturing sectors in Canada.

Of course not-all Canadian non profits work on a scope and scale where they are large enough to be compared to a single for profit entity. But even when we remove the 1% of Canada’s non profit organizations that collect 60% of the revenues (that’s roughly 1,600 agencies earning $67 billion) the remaining agencies still contribute more than $47 billion a year to the economy – and that is significant.  

So, if non profits contribute to the economy, meet the needs of our clients and stakeholders, and help solve some of the most complex issues in communities, why is it that we are not more powerful as a community of practice?

It has been suggested that the non profit community has not sung our own praises, nor are we proactive at lobbying government for our own benefit. Few organizations spend 10% of their annual budgets allowed by CRA on advocacy. In fact many organizations report no eligible expenses spent on advocacy activities. 

Others suggest that we cannot advocate for our sector until we know more about ourselves.

SparcBC, VOCBC, and Vancity are working together on a project called New Directions – an exploration of the strengths and values that contribute to the non-profit and voluntary sector. It is their hope that we can collectively build a shared story and understanding of the role and contributions of the non profit sector in BC. 

Join the conversation on November 28th at a free event hosted by Volunteer Victoria. For more information and to register click here.