Communities today are facing challenges that cannot be solved by working harder at what we've always done.
Whether the issue is housing affordability, climate transitions, youth wellbeing, food security, belonging, poverty, or community safety, many of our most pressing challenges are complex, interconnected, and constantly evolving. Traditional approaches often improve existing systems, but they rarely create the breakthroughs needed to transform them.
Community innovation offers another path.
This course introduces a practical, place-based approach to innovation that helps communities create, test, adapt, and scale new solutions that are rooted in local context and developed with the people most affected by the challenges. Rather than searching for one perfect answer, community innovation builds the capacity to learn, experiment, collaborate, and evolve solutions over time.
Grounded in Tamarack Institute's two decades of experience supporting communities across Canada and internationally, this course combines theory with practical tools and proven approaches that participants can immediately apply in their own communities.
Whether you're launching a new initiative, strengthening an existing collaboration, or exploring how to create systems-level change, this course will help you develop the mindset, skills, and strategies needed to innovate with confidence.
At the heart of Sonja's work is the belief that the people closest to a community's challenges are also closest to its solutions. She combines community wisdom with systems thinking, creativity, and innovation to help people turn ideas into meaningful action.
As Consulting Director of Community Innovation, Sonja has supported hundreds of communities to strengthen local leadership, build collaborative capacity, and create the conditions for lasting change. Her work spans community engagement, collective sensemaking, innovation, collaborative strategy, and learning design.
In this course, Sonja draws on her global experience and Tamarack's two decades of learning alongside communities to introduce Community Innovation as a practical, relational approach to creating meaningful change.
This foundational course is designed for anyone who is curious about community innovation and wants to build a strong understanding of its core concepts, principles, and practices. Whether you're just beginning your learning journey or looking to develop a shared language with your team, this course provides an accessible introduction to community innovation.
This course is ideal for:
No previous experience is required. All you need is a curiosity about creating positive change and a willingness to learn alongside others.
This course serves as a starting point for deeper learning and provides the foundation for applying community innovation principles in your own work and community.
By the end of this course, you'll be able to:
Explain the core concepts and principles of Community Innovation.
See complex community challenges through a place-based and systems lens.
Understand the conditions that help innovation flourish in communities.
Use foundational frameworks and practical tools to support innovation in your own context.
Build confidence in fostering collaboration, experimentation, and learning.
Identify opportunities to strengthen your community's capacity to respond to change and create lasting impact.
Explore the growing complexity facing communities today and discover why community innovation is essential. You'll be introduced to Tamarack's place-based approach and the foundational concepts that shape this course.
Build a foundational understanding of community innovation, what makes it different from traditional approaches to problem-solving, and why place, relationships, collaboration, and experimentation are at the heart of creating meaningful change.
Discover the mindsets and capacities that support innovation, including curiosity, experimentation, collaboration, and continuous learning. Reflect on how these qualities can strengthen your own approach to creating change.
Learn practical tools and frameworks for exploring complex community challenges. Develop a systems perspective, engage diverse voices, and identify opportunities for innovation before moving to solutions.
Explore collaborative approaches to generating ideas, co-designing with community members, and transforming insights into creative, community-centred solutions.
Learn how to prototype, test, and refine new ideas through experimentation. Discover how small-scale action, reflection, and adaptation can lead to more effective and sustainable innovation.
Explore inspiring examples and lessons from communities putting innovation into practice. Reflect on how you can apply these approaches in your own context and continue your community innovation journey.
The course costs $249 for single registration with a group rate of $199 per registrant for groups of 3 and above. These rates include access to the online course platform, the course workbook, and Q&A sessions. Scholarships are available for individuals lived/living experience of poverty. To inquire, please reach out to Stephanie.
For more information about the course or issues accessing the course, please contact Ruté for more information.
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