The Canada Life Literacy Innovation Award honours innovation in the creation and delivery (or in the development, implementation and delivery) of adult literacy or adult-integrated family literacy programs delivered by a community organization in Canada. The adult-focused literacy program makes a positive contribution to the lives of the participants as well as the community and could serve as a model for other organizations to adapt.
There is one (1) top award of $20,000 and up to two (2) honourable mention awards in the amount of $10,000 each. The awards as granted can be invested into the program and/or applied to operating funds.
Organization:
Further Education Society of Alberta, Calgary, AB
Program:
Cooks with Stones (CwS) celebrates the unique, traditional teachings of the Iyarhe Nakoda Eyithkabi, which means Mountain people of Nakoda (also known as Stoney Nakoda). The program builds literacy skills and supports meaningful job placements with any employer partner through traditional Stoney Skills and teachings and demonstrates how they relate to workplace success. CwS was created with the community as part of FESA’s Going the Distance Project to address the under representation of Indigenous populations in the labour force by supporting businesses in Tourism and Hospitality.
CwS builds the capacity of employer partners to recruit, mentor and retain Indigenous employees by building their cultural competencies, their understanding of mentorship, Indigenous culture in relation to the workplace, and of the role of literacy and essential skills (LES) in the workplace. The program is a collaborative effort to remove barriers to employment for Stoney youth and creates opportunities for employment in the Hospitality and Tourism sector in the Stoney region. Through CwS, participants not only improve their literacy and essential skills, but they also start with a foundation of Stoney culture, traditions, history, and learning from the land, and then are shown how their skills are transferrable to a non-Indigenous workplace.
Organization:
Pinnguaq Association, Iqaluit, NU
Program:
Inclusive Futures: Skilled Workforce Development in Nunavut
Organization:
Stella’s Circle, St. John’s, NL
Program:
Stella’s Circle Adult Basic Education Level 1 (ABE)
The 2022 award is now closed. Thank you to everyone that applied.
In each of these webinars, we discuss one topic that is important and relevant to the literacy field in 2022.
Who are we missing?
Watch the recording
Read the summary report
Preparations and planning for post-COVID programming
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Read the summary report
Measuring program impact: how do we define success?
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Taking flight with your pilot project: best practices for supporting innovation and experimentation
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Read the summary report
Canada Life has been a major supporter of ABC Life Literacy Canada since 1999. Through their involvement with ABC Life Literacy Canada and other national literacy programs across the country, they are helping promote literacy and lifelong learning – key needs in helping many Canadians realize their potential at work, at home and in the community.
As an Imagine Canada Caring Company, they’ve supported the principles of corporate citizenship and benchmarks for community investment established by Imagine Canada for more than three decades. In this time, they’ve contributed over $200 million in support of Canadian non-profit, charitable and community organizations.