Agenda by Day
Plan your forum experience by participating in a wide variety of workshops in our three learning streams. You might choose to focus on one learning stream or explore all three themes. Each of the learning streams has options of workshop sessions that you can choose from.
To get the most from this event, we are offering a group discount rate to bring a team from your organization to cover the various sessions. We have designed the forum to appeal to a range of people engaged in the affordable housing sector — from key decision makers to anyone involved in finance, planning, asset management, operations and more!
Pre-Conference Tour: Regent Park – Community Housing Revitalization
Come and learn about the transformation of Regent Park a community neighbourhood undergoing large scale regeneration. Regent Park revitalization is the now the gold standard for community housing regeneration in Canada and for reimagining and transforming stigmatized neighbourhoods. Hosted by Toronto Community Housing Corporation (Canada’ largest social housing provider) you will hear about the vision and strategies behind the community housing renewal of a 69-acre housing complex in the downtown east area of Toronto that began in the early 2000s. One of the largest urban revitalizations of its kind, you will have the opportunity to see first-hand how the vision has turned into the reality through its five-phase redevelopment process aimed at increasing the number of affordable housing units, and transforming the community into a mixed-income, mixed-use neighbourhood. Along with the physical redevelopment, the Regent Park revitalization project has revitalized the economic and social fabric of the community. As part of this tour participants will have the opportunity to experience the Regent Park World Urban Pavilion.
Tour Details:
- Location: Participants will meet at the Westin Harbour Castle where a shuttle will transport them to Regent Park and back.
- Time: 12:30 – 4:30 p.m.
- Note: This tour includes both indoor and outdoor walking; please dress accordingly.
- Additional Fee: Limited spaces are available. A separate ticket is required for this tour and can be purchased through the registration system.
Registration & Breakfast
Welcome & Opening Remarks
Insights from Across the Pond: Pioneers in UK Urban and Social Regeneration
Our opening plenary brings Poplar HARCA, an award-winning housing and regeneration community association in east London, UK, to provide insights into housing regeneration. Babu Bhattacherjee, Director of Communities and Neighbourhoods, will share how this progressive social housing organization has spearheaded regeneration efforts that drive economic, community, and social development. You’ll learn how Poplar HARCA has delivered homes and transformed communities through impact-led approaches.
Break
Innovative Partnerships and Asset Pooling: A Path to Scaling Community Housing
Can the community housing sector enjoy the same advantages as the for-profit sector by scaling up? Asset pooling is emerging as a transformative approach to finance affordable housing and create more homes outside the profit-driven market.
Hear about two ground-breaking initiatives in Quebec and the Atlantic provinces that are working towards boosting the power of community housing by combining the real estate assets of housing cooperatives and non-profits and scaling up through innovative partnerships.
Harnessing Design and Technology for High-Performance, Affordable Homes
This session highlights Canadian innovations in affordable housing design and technology, focusing on replicable solutions.
Hear from speakers whose organizations have intentionally integrated unique approaches, materials, and processes to deliver high-performance housing that addresses affordability, sustainability, and climate change.
Leveraging Acquisition and Rental Protection Funds to Expand Community Housing
With the recent launch of financial vehicles like Acquisition Funds, Equity Funds, and Rental Protection Funds, our sector has taken bold steps in addressing Canada’s housing crisis.
In this session, you’ll learn how these initiatives work to stem the loss of affordable housing units and why they are being used as key mechanisms to increase and leverage the community housing inventory.
Lunch
Building scale collaboratively through Mergers and Amalgamations
This session provides an opportunity to hear from community housing organizations of varying complexities about their consideration of mergers and amalgamations as a path to sustainability and financial resilience. As mergers and amalgamations become an increasing trend across Canada, speakers will discuss their individual experience with the drivers behind their corporate restructuring, the decision-making process in finding the right partner(s), and the risk factors considered in their strategy to combine and thrive.
Revitalizing Neighbourhoods: Community Building at the Heart of Regeneration
In this session, speakers will demonstrate why community building is at the heart of any regeneration development plan and essential for rethinking the planning of large-scale neighbourhoods.
Attendees will take away best practices and approaches for building resilient neighbourhoods and communities as they plan their next development or regeneration project.
Unlocking Affordable Housing: The Growing Impact of Community Land Trusts
In our own backyard, we are witnessing a renaissance of Canada’s Community Land Trust (CLT) movement. The restructuring of the sector around its consolidated property assets is slowly gaining momentum. This session explores community land trust initiatives from across the country that are making significant strides in addressing the need for more affordable housing.
Attendees will learn about CLTs, their advantages, how they operate, and the outcomes they achieve, as well as valuable lessons learned.
Break
Indigenous Solutions: Tackling Housing On and Off Reserves
This plenary brings together a panel of leaders to discuss their perspectives on coordinating Indigenous housing both on and off reserves. They will provide insights into how the sector can work to eliminate barriers and achieve housing outcomes through Indigenous solutions, highlighting the critical importance of this approach.
Networking Reception
Breakfast
Pushing Boundaries to Achieve Meaningful Change
The community housing sector is making significant strides in driving progressive change, despite constraints within the current social and budgetary environment. This session features a dynamic group of leaders who embody passion, energy, and expertise.
Discover how they are leading the charge with a ‘get it done’ attitude, pushing boundaries to advance social and affordable housing in their local communities, and influencing change across the sector.
Break
Creating Impact: Strategies for Collaboration with Partners Across the Public, Private, and Non-Profit sector
Explore how two organizations are leveraging social purpose real estate and housing development to create lasting community impact. This session will highlight their approaches to integrating affordable housing with broader community-building efforts. Speakers will discuss how they consciously focus on building vibrant communities, measuring the resulting impact, and attracting investors to support these transformative projects.
Lessons Learned from Canadian Regeneration Projects
Regeneration of community housing has been taking place for the last decade. In this session, you’ll hear about approaches to undertaking regeneration and partnership models of varying designs and scale. Speakers will discuss best practices for implementation and lessons learned through their experiences.
Exploring Asset Transfers: Insights on Canadian Initiatives
In this era of community housing transformation, we’ve seen several cases of government-owned community housing real estate assets being moved to local housing providers through asset transfer programs. Does this shift make a difference to the system? Join this session to hear from Provinces that have implemented these initiatives and the difference it made within their communities.
Learn how these approaches can be replicated and gain insights into the process, key takeaways, and lessons learned.
Lunch
Economic Impacts of Community Housing
What is the impact of community housing on productivity in Canada? CHRA, Housing Partnership Canada, and sector partners recently released an economic study on this topic – the first of its kind for Canada. The study’s findings point to a causal connection between the proportion of community housing within the overall housing stock and gains in economic productivity. In this session, you’ll hear more about the key findings and policy recommendations from the thought-provoking study.
Scaling Up Deliberately
This session showcases three distinct Canadian organizations—a public agency of the Government of Nunavut, Indigenous owned private capital financing organization, and a non-profit housing provider—that have successfully scaled their efforts through strategic partnerships and resource investments. Explore how each has taken a deliberate approach to growth and maximizing impact through thoughtful collaboration and resource investment.
Approaches to Non-Market Housing Development
This session explores approaches to non-market housing development. Speakers representing different regions in Canada will share their methodologies, processes and implementation strategies to building new supply, while achieving social purpose goals and ensuing the financial formula is feasible.
Bringing New Partners into the Fold: Navigating the Pros and Cons of Private Investment in Community Housing
Engaging private investors in community housing presents both opportunities and challenges. In this session, we’ll explore the potential benefits of partnering with the private sector to expand housing solutions, while also addressing the risks and complexities involved. Learn from our own sector examples of successful collaborations and gain insights into the trade-offs and considerations that come with bringing new partners into the fold.
Break
Elevating the status of Community Housing
Join an engaging conversation with sector leaders from across the country in a thought-provoking panel discussion that frames the big picture for community housing. They will explore whether, why and how we must continue to level up and elevate the status of community housing, aiming to achieve a 20% share in Canada’s housing system.