Team Community Organization Partners

B.C. Sustainable Energy Association, has an Okanagan chapter that brings together committed volunteers to support the sustainable production, distribution and consumption of energy in BC and beyond. They collaborate with various groups and think tanks to engage the public in their goals of accelerating our province’s transition to a lower-carbon economy. If Goals #7, 11 and #12 are your jam, then they would love to work with you!

Elizabeth Fry Society is focused on supporting survivors of domestic & sexual violence in our community. We envision a world where women, youth, and all individuals are safe, empowered and achieving healthy families. We move towards this goal (Goals #1, #3, #5, #11 and #16) through implementing several programs, including youth preventative programs like Girls United & Tough Guise, where we teach youth self esteem, relationship building skills, boundaries, self confidence and leadership skills. We also offer trauma counselling for sexual assault, and specialized victim assistance to provide crisis response, risk assessment, safety planning, court support and emotional support to adult and youth victims of family and sexual violence. If you have any ideas or plans on how to empower assault survivors, decrease instances of assault or create a future where all individuals can live a safe and healthy life then this is the organization for you. If you’d like more information, feel free to check out their website at www.coefs.ca or their new #SPEAKOUT campaign at www.speakoutokanagan.com

Food for Thought is all about Goal #2 and #3. Feeding over 1600 school-aged children in 29 schools in the Okanagan through breakfast programs, backpack programs, living salads and fruit preservation, they are committed to eliminate hunger one child at a time. An umbrella group of Hope for the Nations, Food for Thought relies on its amazing volunteers to build a strong sense of community by supporting and empowering students to live to their full potential with a full belly and happy heart! They welcome an SDC team to work alongside them in ending hunger in our city.

Green Okanagan is the home for Okanagan sustainability. Focusing on Goals #11, #12 and #13, they use a social media platform to share ideas and solutions for those seeking to make changes in their own lives by living the zero waste model. They have a following of like minded citizens who are interested in learning about how to change mindsets on what it means to live sustainably. Their passion is infectious and they are ready to collaborate with Plan B and Arts for Social Change participants ONLY

By building affordable homes for families in the Okanagan for over 25 years, Habitat for Humanity Okanagan is creating strong and sustainable communities (Goal #11) They believe in human dignity, partnership, diversity and inclusivity and they model this in their collaborative approach to home building. They believe every family should have safe, decent and affordable housing. Their ReStore program models Goal #12 by keeping household items out of the landfill and selling them at their volunteer run store. Their work is local and impactful for families. If you care about Goal #10, Reduced Inequalities and have new ideas for them, they would be happy to work with a Challenge team to grow their non profit housing organization with your sustainable project. See their work www.hfhokanagan.ca

Haiti in My Heart strives to relieve poverty in Haiti primarily by providing access to free education to enable children to pursue opportunities for higher learning. Focusing on Goals #1 and #4 they are looking forward to finding a youth to help them support the communities they care about. Ready to go with some great project needs ie: a chicken coop for sustainable food source and a school garden- they would like to partner with an SDC team to work together to find sustainable solutions.

With a strong focus on Global Goals #5 and #4, Her International empowers women and girls in Nepal and Canada through education. By providing educational opportunities for people living in poverty in Canada and abroad they are able to promote a better life for the females they help and in turn develop the entire family and community. Through various innovative programs, they are fighting for gender equality for the female heroes they work with. They are wanting to hear what youth teams would do to enhance their work.

Hope for the Nations is involved in 45 projects around the world and here in the Okanagan. With the Sustainable Development Goals as their guide they work with various organizations to bring global solutions and peace and prosperity for all people and the planet. They have worked with youth teams in the past and appreciate the enthusiasm and fresh ideas they bring. Currently focusing on projects ranging from Goal #2 Zero Hunger, #3, #4, #6 and Goals #7 Clean Energy, using solar panels in Mexico and Malawi.

ISEE Solutions is a Kelowna based NGO that seeks to empower youth, especially girls with sexual health education primarily in Uganda. They provide safe and sustainable sanitary kits that bring dignity and health to girls during their menstrual cycle. This keeps them in school and helps them take control of their fertility. This organization believes that youth teams could bring new enthusiasm and a fresh perspective to their work and they are happy to work with an SDC team to find more solutions! Goals #5 and #3

The Ki Low Na Friendship Society provides for the health and well being (Goal #3) of all peoples through the development of community based services while encouraging the community to preserve, share and promote Aboriginal cultural distinctiveness. Health and wellness, family services, child development, homeless and housing support, central green housing and English language services are some of the areas their work focuses on targeting Goals #1, #2, #4, #8, #10 #15-#17!. They are happy to work with youth who have a desire to better their own community with creative and sustainable solutions.

Mamas for Mamas, founded in 2015 in Kelowna, is a grassroots organization that wants to change the landscape of poverty by creating innovative strategies to remove financial barriers faced by struggling families. A huge and enthusiastic team of volunteers have impacted thousands of families in our city through their volunteer run farm, at risk services program and their Karma Market to name a few. They would love to welcome a passionate team on board who care about Goal #1- No Poverty, Goal #3, Good Health and well being and #11 Sustainable Cities and Communities.

Metro Central is the daytime “home” for some of Kelowna’s most vulnerable people. Metro believes in the value of every person and encourages dignity, safety, respect and acceptance by promoting a sense of relationship and community. With Goal #3 Health and Well Being as their focus, they are committed to finding creative and sustainable solutions to ease the issues their clients face on a daily basis. Youth teams will find a variety of opportunities to come alongside this passionate organization to make real change in their own city.

St. Vincent de Paul Society is a lay Catholic organization who is active in Social Justice works in Kelowna working with Ozanam Recovery House: a home for men struggling with addictions and mental health issues and Invincible Housing: a rent subsidy program. They sit on the board of the Journey Home taskforce. They are excited to work with youth on their initiatives.

The Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association (TOTA) is a non profit organization whose goal is to ensure our region becomes a world class destination by developing authentic and quality tourism experiences. Having recently won awards in sustainability, they are focused on building relationships within our community that facilitate environmental, cultural and economic sustainability. Goal #11 is at the heart of their work and they want to encourage youth to be a part of the decision making for the future of our beautiful Thompson Okanagan region. If you are passionate about impacting your local environment and helping to create solutions that will leave a legacy for future generations, then TOTA would like to hear from you.

The United Way is targeting several Global Goals right here in the Okanagan. They are improving lives locally by moving people from poverty to possibility, helping kids be all they can be and building strong and healthy communities- (Goals #1, #3, #10, #11 and #17) By using creative and diverse approaches to tackling issues like poverty, mental illness and social isolation, this organization is able to affect change. Their NEW campaign #unignorable is a cutting edge program that highlights the need to identify, talk about and act on those things in our society we often ignore. If you have creative ideas that are aligned with their mission and programs, then they want to meet you! See their campaign #unignorable