Vision Statement
People seeking social justice create change in Canada by learning practical and effective organizing skills.
Mission Statement
The Institute advances education by developing and delivering courses to the public that teach participants the tools, principles, ethics and values of participatory democracy in order to acquire knowledge and skills to be involved, and leaders, in democratic processes.
Values
Four core values inform our work:
1. Social Justice
2. Empowerment
3. Impact
4. Equity
Founded in 2016 by Olivia Chow, the Institute for Change Leaders (ICL) teaches the skills that organizers need to win social change. We believe students learn best when they practice what they learn, and are constantly engaged in small group learning. We deliver our full curriculum in regular sessions online and at Toronto Metropolitan University, and we work with organizations to deliver tailored trainings in their workplaces.
Our mission is to ensure organizers are continually developing the skills they need to transform the resources they have into the change they want. The Institute does this by teaching organizing strategies and providing a platform for the growth of a network of organizers.
Our curriculum comes from Marshall Ganz, a Harvard professor who codified the relationship-building organizational framework we teach after years of organizing with the Civil Rights and United Farm Workers movements. He was a key trainer and organizing strategist behind President Obama’s 2008 presidential campaign. The Institute offers the first accredited Marshall Ganz-based community-organizing course in Canada.
ICL is proud to be a member of the Leading Change Network, a global community of organizers, educators, and researchers founded by Marshall Ganz. ICL is a Canadian registered charity that can issue official donation receipts (no. 763310679 RR 0001).
Learn more about our impact here.
Privacy Policy
The Institute for Change Leaders is committed to protecting the privacy and information of our participants, donors, and others with whom we interact. Click here to read our privacy policy in full.
Olivia Chow
For over thirty years, Olivia Chow has been an effective and well-known public figure, serving in Toronto’s municipal politics and on the national stage as a Canadian Member of Parliament. She was voted Best City Councillor seven times by readers of NOW magazine and Best MP in 2010. Readers of the Toronto Sun voted her Top Torontonian in 2012 and Canadian Immigrant magazine named her as one of Canada’s Top 25 Immigrants. Olivia also wrote the best selling memoir “My Journey”, published in 2014.
In 2015, Olivia Chow joined Toronto Metropolitan University as a Distinguished Visiting Professor. Her work focuses on community engagement and leadership development.
As a founder of the Institute for Change Leaders, Olivia and her team of 30+ trainers have taught community and political organizing to thousands of organizers since March of 2015.
Olivia’s career has been all about creating lasting change. Olivia was born in Hong Kong and moved to Toronto with her parents when she was thirteen. She studied Philosophy and Fine Art at university and has worked as a college professor, an ESL teacher, a counsellor for new immigrants, and a sculptor.
She became an activist as a young woman, fighting for the rights of refugees and immigrants. For over 20 years, she was at the forefront of the ultimately successful campaign to achieve a national apology and redress for the discriminatory “Chinese Head Tax”. Olivia won her first election in 1985 and served on the Toronto Board of Education for six years. In 1991, Olivia became the first Asian-born woman elected as a Metro Toronto Councillor. She was re-elected to city council five times, serving with distinction for 14 years. While at City Hall, she served as Chair of the Community Services Committee and Vice Chair of the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC), among other senior responsibilities.
Throughout her career, Olivia has been at the forefront, working for progress for all. She has reached across party lines and travelled across the country, forging alliances with municipal and provincial leaders, business and advocacy groups.
Olivia married Jack Layton in 1988, and together they forged one of Canada’s most remarkable political partnerships, sharing a passion for life and a commitment to change. Jack became the leader of the New Democratic Party and Canada’s Leader of the Opposition in Parliament before he died of cancer in 2011. Since his passing, Olivia has continued the quest to make Toronto a better city and Canada a better country for all.
Our facilitation team
Our facilitation team is made up of experienced community organizers based in Toronto, Canada. Our facilitators lead the breakout sessions in our training program.
The facilitators have experiences in a range of movements in a range of progressive causes from organizing Muslim youth, labour organizing, and environmental justice organizing. Our team aspires to reflect the communities we work with.
The facilitators are responsible for taking the content of the lecture and reading material and assisting you as you implement these practices into the projects you are working on. Even once the training sessions are over, your facilitators will stimulate a close bond with your group and follow up with everyone to ensure you meet your measurable goals and timelines outside of the program.
The Institute for Change Leaders is an initiative out of Toronto Metropolitan University's Faculty of Community Services. It is a distinctly urban university supporting projects that emphasize community development and progressive change.
Land Acknowledgement
Toronto is in the Dish With One Spoon Territory, and we acknowledge with gratitude that we are treaty people on this land.
The Dish With One Spoon is a treaty between the Haudenosaunee and Anishinaabe that bound them to share the territory and protect the land.
Subsequent Indigenous Nations and peoples, Europeans and all newcomers have been invited into this treaty in the spirit of peace, friendship and respect.
