New at our Conference this Year - Site Visits!
Calgary offers a wealth of exciting opportunities to witness philanthropy in action! See firsthand how some charities are benefitting from foundation grants. With each site visit you will see the facility or program in action and have the opportunity to talk with the site host. See below for site visit details.
Space is limited and you must reserve your site visit by selecting October 30 site visits on the registration form when you register online for the conference. Some site visits are free and others are for a fee. If you selected October 30 site visits on your registration form, the conference secretariat will be contacting you to follow up regarding your choice of site visit and/or payment, depending on your choice. Your site visit ticket will be distributed at the conference registration desk starting on October 28 at 10 a.m.
About the Site Visits
(Preliminary Details)
Unless otherwise indicated there is no pre-registration required for the site visits.
Tuesday October 27 out of town all day
Alberta Oilsands Tour
(This site visit takes place the day before the start of the PFC conference - preregistration required)
Host: Suncor Energy Foundation
Join the Suncor Energy Foundation on a unique tour of the Alberta oilsands in Fort McMurray. This full day tour will include an opportunity to learn about the history, science and technology of the oilsands, tour the Suncor plant and meet with community members to discuss the social and environmental challenges and opportunities faced in the community during rapid growth and development. If time allows we will also visit Fort McKay First Nation.
The Suncor Energy Foundation manages charitable contributions to registered Canadian charities on behalf of Suncor Energy Inc. Since 1998 it has contributed more than $57million to organizations with a focus on education, environment and in Suncor's key communities. With a focus on the oilsands, the Foundation is working with community members to develop strategies to increase the capacity in the non-profit sector. April 2008 saw the opening of the Redpoll Centre, a multi-tenant non-profit centre that is already providing the seven non-profit organizations with shared services and expertise. In addition to this work, Suncor Energy Foundation is supporting a number of infrastructure programs including the new Community Leisure Centre and a Performing Arts Centre connected to a new school.
Through participation on this tour you will have a better understanding of the community and its opportunities and challenges. We hope to encourage a discussion about the unique features of this community, what can be learned from the growth here that can be applied to other communities and what opportunities might exist for corporate foundations and community investment programs to work with private and public foundations to address social and environmental issues that are arising in this and similar communities across Canada.
The tour will be hosted by Suncor Energy Foundation and will be departing from the Shell Aerocentre early on Tuesday morning. The number of participants will determine the timing of departure and the final schedule for the day.
In lieu of a fee for this tour, a charitable contribution in the range of $150-$200 to the HUB Family Resource Centre in Fort McMurray is requested. To register for this site visit, please click here.
Friday October 30 am
Cantos Museum and tour of the Kahanoff Centre
A tour of the extensive keyboard collection.
Host: Cantos Music Foundation
Participants have the option of finishing their visit at the museum or continuing to The Kahanoff Centre for a one-hour tour and discussion.
Cantos puts the magic of music in your hands with a beautiful and comprehensive collection of living instruments. As the largest collection of its kind in the world, the Cantos Music Collection comprises more than 700 artifacts ranging from a 1560 harpsichord to the Rolling Stones Mobile Recording Unit.
Our collection tells the story of music from the beginning of the human musical experience through to the modern day. As a living collection, it gives visitors the opportunity to hear and often play these significant instruments - an experience available nowhere else in the world.
Come and see Elton John’s songwriting piano, the world’s oldest square piano, a Serial #001 mini-Moog, the ARP 2500 synthesizer that appeared in Close Encounters of the Third Kind and much, much more!
Cost: This site visit is free for all registered conference participants.
The Kahanoff Centre
Host: The Kahanoff Foundation
Located in the heart of Calgary’s beltline is The Kahanoff Centre, now in its 6th year of operation. The Centre provides over 100,000 sq. ft of central, affordable office space for 20 non-profit and charitable organizations. Each floor houses a kitchen and meeting room where tenants can come together. For annual events, tenant programming and "lunch and learns", The Kahanoff Centre is more than an office building -- it is a community. On the second floor, the Conference Centre provides meeting and event space, welcoming close to 7,500 visitors in 2008. Come tour this unique centre and hear about how this affordable, attractive space enhances effectiveness and collaboration for nonprofits and charitable organizations in Calgary.
Cost: This site visit is free for all registered conference participants.
A guided outdoor walk on the Calgary Pathways system (rain or shine)
Host: Parks Foundation
In the late 1960s, Calgarians began envisioning a system of connected pathways on which they could travel throughout the city and access areas of unique natural beauty. Thanks to that shared vision and a land donation by The Devonian Foundation, a prominent philanthropic family foundation known for its significant contributions to the city of Calgary, the Pathways system was created. Although the Devonian Foundation was primarily involved in funding for parks,it also funded a number of important Calgary institutions which showcase western heritage. Although the foundation has now legally wound up, its legacy to the city of Calgary lives on.
The first completed section of the Pathway was through Confederation Park in the early 1970's. Then paths along the Bow River and Elbow River, made from crushed red shale (clinker shale from burned out coal seams), were constructed before asphalt paths replaced the shale.
Today, approximately 660 km of pathways connect along the Bow & Elbow Rivers, Fish Creek Provincial Park, Nose Creek, West Nose Creek, the Western Irrigation District Canal and the perimeter of Glenmore Reservoir. With approximately another 290 km of on-street bikeways, the city of Calgary boasts the most extensive urban pathway and bikeway network in North America.
Cost: This site visit is free for all registered conference participants.