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CHF BC’s Group Buying programs offer significant benefits for our member housing co-ops. By participating in these programs, member co-ops can provide quality co-op housing and services to their members. At the same time you are supporting efforts to increase the capacity of your federation and the broader community housing sector in British Columbia.

Here are two programs that provide valuable financial services to our members.

Our friends at the Youth Excellence Society (YES)—best know for their summer camp programs—have some exciting news!

The have launched a brand new YES Scholarship Program. The YES believes that all youth should be able to follow their passions, and they are excited to bring this opportunity to their Alumni Participants.

While window falls can result in serious injury or even death, they are also largely preventable through simple measures that can be taken by parents, caregivers, and communities.

Do you ever wonder why some neighbourhoods are all single-family homes while others are high-rises, shops, and duplexes? Did you know you get to be part of that conversation?

Since April CityHive’s Civic Innovators, a group of youth (ages 18-30) from across the province of B.C., have been hard at work coming up with entirely new systems of governance and making recommendations on how to improve the public hearing process.

CHF BC has been advancing the co-op housing option for more than 40 years. We support almost 15,000 co-op homes in thriving, successful communities.

Here is how we are doing it.

A $500-million rental-protection fund that will help non-profit groups purchase rental buildings has opened in British Columbia.

The fund aims to help First Nations and other non-profit groups buy older “affordable” rental buildings to preserve them as low-cost rental housing.

Earlier this week, our Housing Central partners at BC Non Profit Housing Association released an updated Canadian Rental Housing Index including data from the 2021 census. 

The Index is a comprehensive database that compiles rental housing statistics for cities, regions, and provinces across Canada.

This year, co-op members in Canada will have two events to celebrate or acknowledge on July 1st. In addition to being Canada Day, this year it is also the 101st International Day of Cooperatives!

"#CoopsDay" is an annual opportunity for local, national, and worldwide governments, civil society organizations, and the general public to learn more about cooperatives.

On June 16, 2023, BC Non-Profit Housing Association, the Co-operative Housing Federation of BC, and the Aboriginal Housing Management Association submitted our Budget 2024 consultation paper.

Taken together, our proposals will ensure that British Columbians have increased access to affordable housing and that their housing is affordable, safe, and in a livable state of repair.

The first resolution members will be voting on at the 2023 CHF Canada national business meeting promotes co-op action towards the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Co-op 2030 Vision.

As a co-op member, you have a say. Encourage your co-op delegate to review the 2023 Resolutions package on the CHF Canada Annual Meeting event site, and be ready to vote June 17.

Housing Central and CHF Canada recently submitted recommendations on the financialization of housing to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities (HUMA). 

The financialization of housing is the process where housing is increasingly treated as an investment rather than someone’s home.

The National Education Committee released a Request for Proposals for a project on equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI).

This work has emerged as a priority. The goal is to support the co-op housing sector in implementing best EDI practices in co-op communities.