MEDIA ALERT - The Hon. Bob Rae and Ian Smillie headline with "hand up" solutions to Aboriginal Peoples and First Nations, local and international poverty challenges at 5th Annual Toronto International Microfinance Summit on October 5.
TORONTO, Oct. 4, 2013 /CNW/ - Toronto International Microfinance Summit announced today that the Honorable Bob Rae, Advisor to the Matawa Tribal Council in the Ring of Fire, former Interim Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada and 21st Premier of Ontario; and Ian Smillie, Order of Canada recipient, international development specialist and author will start the conversation at its full-day event focused on domestic and international microfinance. Sponsored by Oikocredit, Alterna Savings and JVL Global Corp with The MasterCard Foundation providing financial assistance for 100 students to attend, the Summit brings together people with diverse backgrounds and views for dialogue and to foster critical thinking, innovation and action.
DATE: Saturday, October 5, 2013
TIME: 8:00 am Registration & The micromarketplace open, 9:00 am - 5:40 pm Program
PLACE: Allstream Centre, 105 Princes' Blvd (Exhibition Place), Toronto
TICKETS: $125 regular, $100 student; www.microfinanceconference.ca
Available at the door if tickets last! Media, contact us for your press pass and interview.
"We are pleased to have two accomplished and well-known keynote speakers set the tone this year," remarks Dr. Carol Golench, President of the Toronto International Microfinance Summit. "Our theme is Microfinance: Catalyst for Change. Not only will we collectively be looking at how microfinance has changed the world, but our goal is for the Summit to be a catalyst for change."
Everyone is welcome. Join microfinance, development and business leaders, social innovators, government officials, politicians, entrepreneurs, students, academics and the media. Areas covered include water and sanitation, women's empowerment, local initiatives, Aboriginal Peoples and First Nations, scale and sustainability and technology.
"We hope that conversations started at the Summit on October 5th lead to positive social and economic impact far beyond the room," adds James Louttit, Vice President of Toronto International Microfinance Summit; Chair and President of Rotarian Action Group for Microfinance and Community Development.
Opening keynote: Why Microfinancing Matters to Canada's First Nations - Hon. Bob Rae
Luncheon keynote: The Lady Vanishes: Canada and the World of International Development - Ian Smillie
Closing panel discussion: A Hand Up: Finding effective Anti-Poverty Solutions - Tavia Grant, Economics Reporter at The Globe and Mail, moderator.
Other speakers and moderators: Jannalee Anderson, Opportunity International Canada; Stewart Anderson, Vancity; Heather Broughton, 2013 Summit Co-Vice Chair & My Oral Village; Scott Brown, VisionFund International; April Davies, water.org; Isadore Day, Chief, Serpent River First Nation; Eugene Ellmen, Oikocredit Canada; Stéphanie Émond, FINCA International; Susan Henry, Alterna Savings; Anuj Jain, Coady International Institute, St. Francis Xavier University; Partricia Erb, Save the Children Canada; Dianne Fehr, Immigrant Access Fund of Canada; Dr. Khalid Hasan, World Marketing Summit Group; Nandy Heule, Oikocredit-Canada Central; Dave Kranenburg, Centre for Social Innovation; Bella Lam, Plan Canada; Betty Ann Lavallée, National Chief, Congress of Aboriginal Peoples; Dawn Madahbee, National Aboriginal Economic Development Board; Cheyenne Martin, AMEC Environment & Infrastructure; Brett Matthews, My Oral Village; John McGowan, former Consultant to Mobile Wallet; Lorna Pitcher, Children of Hope Uganda; Javed Sakhawat, 2013 Summit Co-Vice Chair & Microfinance 101 Coordinator; Jackie Scroggie, The Rift Valley Water & Sanitation Program; Mark Simpson, Business in the Streets; Michael Vasquez, Rebellium Digital Marketing; Valarie Wafer, Rotary 7070 District Governor, 2013-2014. For speaker profiles, visit http://tinyurl.com/kcbbv7c.
Follow the Summit @microfinanceTO and Facebook.com/microfinanceTO. Join the conversation at #tims2013. Visit the micromarketplace. Watch the microwalk video and interact on the microbookclub blog launching with Freedom from Want at www.torontomicrofinancebookclub.com . A half-day pre-Summit Microfinance 101 certificate course in collaboration with Coady International Institute is being held today at OCAD University from 1-5 pm. Applications are now closed.
For TICKETS: www.microfinanceconference.ca
Boilerplate
Toronto International Microfinance Summit is Canada's premier event focusing on domestic and international microfinance. Founded in 2009 and incorporated as a nonprofit in 2011, the organization was inspired by the Rotarian Action Group for Microfinance and Community Development (RAGM) and Rotary District 7070 Microfinance Committee. The Summit's signature Conference and Gala are run entirely by volunteers of diverse backgrounds and ages. Our vision is a world without poverty through microfinance. Our mission is: to educate our community on microfinance, a formidable poverty reduction tool; to create a forum for dialogue and action; and to raise profile and/or funds for organizations that make an impact through microfinance. In 2011, 40 speakers from 30 organizations on 5 continents presented at the Summit. The 2012 Toronto Microfinance Symposium was presented in collaboration with Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto. In 2013, our 5th anniversary, we explore microfinance as a catalyst for social and economic change. www.microfinanceconference.ca
SOURCE: Toronto International Microfinance Summit
For press passes and interviews contact:
Wendy Bodnoff
Co-chair, Marketing, Media & Public Relations
905 334 3660 [email protected]
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