United Way is proud to share four inspiring stories of social sector innovation. The videos will be followed by a panel discussion on social sector innovation with local community leaders. Tickets are free or by donation.
Event takes place at Broadway Theatre, October 7th, 2025, from 7 pm to 9 pm. Popcorn and refreshments available from the concession.
Description
We live in challenging times. With basic needs, such as food and housing, becoming increasingly unaffordable for a growing number of people, the demand placed on social service organizations is increasing and funding hasn’t necessarily kept up with this growth. Meaning organizations serving our most vulnerable neighbours, often operating on extremely tight budgets already, are having to find ways to do more with the same or less.
This high stress environment is forcing innovation but there are almost certainly better ways to create conditions where innovation is fostered, developed, and scaled more strategically. These videos showcase a moment in time when funding, ideas, and opportunity came together with positive results, but communities can’t and probably shouldn’t rely on emergency situations to innovate and grow their social sector partners.
Panel Topic
How can we as community leaders, funders, and governments (and others) do a better job of fostering innovation in the social sector in a way that includes the interests and voices of those impacted, provides opportunities for experimentation (and failure), identifies successes, and scales (through funding and other resources) these successes quickly and effectively?
Panelist Bios
Rachel Walker (PhD) – Rachel (she/her) is a community research and storytelling specialist. She helps nonprofits, governments, and networks build bold strategies, navigate change, and turn impact into narrative. With over 15 years of leadership in the nonprofit, academic, and policy sectors, Rachel specializes in strategic planning, organizational development, fund and policy development, human resources, and community-driven research.
A skilled facilitator and systems thinker, Rachel has served as Director of OUTSaskatoon, the Sallows Chair in Human Rights, and most recently as Program Chair of Gender, Sexualities, and Social Justice at the University of Saskatchewan. She helped launch the Enchanté Network, Canada’s national coalition of 2SLGBTQ+ Centres, and has served on numerous boards across housing, sexual health, and social justice.
Gordon Martell (PhD) – Gordon’s teaching and research focus areas are Indigenous educational leadership and governance, organizational and policy development, and school leadership. Gordon has served in a variety of leadership capacities in band-controlled and provincial education. Recently, Gordon has been advising communities in the development of on-reserve First Nations education systems.
Dr. Marcella Ogenchuk – Dr. Marcella Ogenchuk is a tenured Associate Professor in the University of Saskatchewan (USask) College of Nursing. She completed her BSN and Master in Nursing at USask, and her PhD from the USask College of Education, Department of Education Administration.
Dr. Ogenchuk has over 25 years of nursing experience in a variety of settings including acute, community including rural and remote settings in Saskatchewan. The focus of her practice and research is community-led. The population that she focuses on is children and youth. Dr. Ogenchuk has been instrumental in developing pathways of care for urban elementary students using a multidisciplinary approach in the area of substance use prevention and oral health practice. She is working with communities in developing a tool for early identification of alcohol use disorder and has contributed to resources for families living with SUD.
Topics : News
