Social finance’s ‘tipping point’: the inside story of how Canada’s ecosystem evolved, and what needs to come next

Author Jack Graham
A decade after Canada’s social finance task force, its members say COVID-19 is a wake-up call

Why It Matters

Ten years ago, a concerted effort began to accelerate Canada’s social finance ecosystem. In 2020, this ecosystem faces the most significant social challenges yet – but is it ready? We spoke to those who helped build it, alongside international experts, to find out how far Canada has come, and what must happen next. This story is in partnership with MaRS.

var TRINITY_TTS_WP_CONFIG = {"cleanText":"Social finance\u2019s \u2018tipping point\u2019: the inside story of how Canada\u2019s ecosystem evolved, and what needs to come next. \u201cWell, I\u2019m very flattered but I just have one question: what\u2019s social finance?\u201d That was Tim Jackson\u2019s response 10 years ago when he was asked to join the Canadian Task Force on Social Finance. He had been practicing \u2018social finance\u2019 by funding social impact businesses in his venture capital job in Waterloo, Ontario, but had not used the label. Jackson became one of 10 experts to join the task force. A global movement had been growing to find ways of utilizing private capital for public good, from social entrepreneurship to impact investing. Ottawa wanted to understand what Canada should

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