Building a healthy, sustainable and prosperous Niagara for all

Buying Canadian is a great first step. But we can do more.

For Immediate Release: St. Catharines, February 4, 2025

A recent directive issued by Frank Campion, Mayor of Welland, under the Strong Mayor Powers of the Municipal Act, 2001, mandates the immediate development and implementation of a temporary procurement policy putting Canadian goods first.

We understand that in these chaotic times, protecting Canadian jobs is important if not vital. However, as good as this sounds, Niagara cities and municipalities can and should go further.

We can help build vibrant communities by simply asking procurement to level the playing field so that qualified small, local businesses will benefit along with larger Canadian corporations.  We can ask procurement to include in their qualifications employers who pay a living wage or participate in training programs that bring new, less traditional candidates into the workforce.

Every purchase has a social, economic, cultural, and environmental impact. Social procurement is about using our existing purchasing to capture those impacts to achieve overarching institutional, governmental, or individual goals that help shape inclusive, vibrant, and healthy communities.

“Let’s ensure that Canadian businesses, large and small, benefit from the economic opportunities that buying Canadian will bring to Niagara communities,” said Martha Tatarnic, Chair of Niagara Community Benefits Network. “This is a great opportunity to unite the citizens of Niagara and use our purchasing power to provide the greatest benefit to all.”

Social procurement policies have been adopted by cities and small municipalities across Canada.  Last year, Niagara Region councillors unanimously voted to direct the Region to adopt social procurement principles for the over $500 million spent by the Region each year. The City of St. Catharines has instructed staff to launch a social procurement pilot in the coming months.

Buying Canadian has never been more important, and rightly so. We need to protect Canadian jobs. But in doing so we now have an opportunity to focus this energy to benefit and grow our qualified small business, bring new skilled workers into the workforce, and reward companies that pay a fair wage and are mindful of their environmental footprint.

We all need to be aware of where we invest our purchasing dollars. The Niagara Community Benefits Network believes we can ensure that the great economic profit of our municipal purchasing decisions include investment in Canada while building the Region we all need.

For media inquiries, please contact:

Alice Degan
Executive Director
Niagara Community Benefits Network

alice@niagarabenefits.ca

A lasting imprint for generations to come

Every infrastructure project in Niagara will leave a lasting imprint on our cities for generations to come.  Millions will be spent on projects over the next 10 years, and we can be intentional about what that imprint is. With citizen-led Community Benefits Agreements, we can ensure that the great economic profit of these projects includes investment in building the city we all need: 

  • providing affordable housing
  • creating equitable and inclusive employment opportunities
  • considering environmental sustainability
  • growing local business
  • breaking the cycle of poverty

We need your voice.

Our Purpose and Mission

Economic Capital
+
Social Capital

  • Equitable Development

    To unite the citizens of Niagara and their community-based organizations to achieve equitable development that provides the greatest benefit to all. 

  • Quality of Life

    To leverage public and private investments in communities to create decent work, affordable housing, and social infrastructure that improves the quality of life for all community members.

  • Community Investment

    To insist that true economic profitability must include investment in the community we all need.

A Community Benefits Network:

  • Ensures that residents benefit from the economic opportunities that large infrastructure projects will bring to the community.

  • Actively engages stakeholders from business and non-profit organizations, the community, school boards and labour unions to create a Community Benefit framework which represents the voices and concerns of our city.

  • Works with decision makers to negotiate development and infrastructure agreements that advance the priorities of our whole community.

WHAT IS A COMMUNITY BENEFITS NETWORK?

Representing the concerns of our city

What is a Community Benefits Agreement (CBA)?

Community-driven
Collaborative
Accountable

CBAs aim to achieve better outcomes from building projects for the community. These are legal agreements between residents, community groups, developers and government. CBAs exist in North America and around the world and are a proven model to ensure that development projects are community-driven, collaborative and accountable.

Examples of benefits achieved from CBAs are affordable housing, childcare facilities, health and social services, decent work, and sustainable transportation and energy.

GET INVOLVED

The power to make change is in your hands