From Fragmentation to Coherence: Innovation and Community Resilience

10-11.06.2027 at McGill University in Montreal

Call for Workshop and Panel Proposals

Communities across Canada face increasingly complex challenges that cut across sectors, jurisdictions, and traditional policy domains. While innovative solutions and initiatives continue to emerge, many remain disconnected from one another, limiting their collective impact.

For its fifth edition, the Canadian Forum for Social Innovation will explore the role of science and innovation strategy in increasing coherence across institutions, sectors, policies, knowledge systems, and community initiatives to strengthen resilience and enable lasting systemic change. Sessions drawing immediately on the outcomes of the Strategic Science and Innovation Leadership Initiative (SSIL) will be prioritized .

Learn more about the SSIL

Keynote Speaker: Sir Geoff Mulgan, Professor of Collective Intelligence, Public Policy and Social Innovation at University, College London

Building on the Forum’s tradition of deliberative dialogue and collective sense-making, we invite proposals for interactive workshops and panel discussions that move beyond diagnosis to support greater alignment, coordination and collective action.

We welcome proposals addressing themes such as:
  • Building coherent local and regional innovation ecosystems
  • The role of mission-oriented innovation policy in resilience and prosperity
  • Community resilience in the face of economic, social, environmental, or demographic change
  • Cross-sector collaboration and collective impact
  • Indigenous leadership and community-led innovation
  • Social finance and innovative financing models
  • Place-based approaches to development and regeneration
  • Knowledge mobilization and innovation intelligence
  • Bridging policy, research, practice, and lived experience
  • Governance models for systems change
  • Strengthening social infrastructure and the capacity for innovation in the social sector
Session Formats

Workshops (60 minutes) Interactive sessions designed to engage participants in dialogue, problem-solving, strategy development, or collaborative learning.

Panels (60 minutes) Curated conversations that bring together diverse perspectives on key challenges, emerging practices, and opportunities for action.

Selection Criteria

Proposals will be assessed based on:

  • Relevance to the conference theme
  • Potential to generate actionable insights or partnerships
  • Diversity of perspectives and sectors represented
  • Contribution to strengthening community resilience and ecosystem coherence

We particularly encourage submissions that showcase collaborative initiatives involving community organizations, governments, researchers, funders, Indigenous organizations, social enterprises, and citizens.

Join us in exploring how Canada’s innovation ecosystems can move from fragmentation to coherence, creating the conditions for communities to thrive in an increasingly complex and interconnected world.

Submission opening in December 2026.

The Canadian Forum for Social Innovation is a collaboration between the Canadian Collaborative for Society, Innovation and Policy and the Canadian Science Policy Centre