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Community Animator Program

Are you a social entrepreneur, an innovator, or seeking to gain new networks and community?

7 hours a week. Unlimited Hot Desk coworking access. We are recruiting our next cohort of Community Animators (formerly known as our DECA Program) for CSI Annex and CSI Spadina. Applications for the spring/summer 2024 Community Animator Program cohort are now closed. If you’d like to apply for the waitlist, please send us a note: info[at]socialinnovation[dot]ca

Are you looking for a community who values changing the world and having fun doing it? Do you love meeting new people, solving new problems every day, and making sure our spaces flow? Does the idea of engaging in community building sound right up your alley?

Would you exchange 1 day a week for a fantastic free workspace and access to an incredible community? If the answer is a resounding YES, the Community Animator Program is perfect for you.

Apply Now

WHAT IS A Community animator?

Our Community Animators (CA) used to be known as DECAs (Desk Exchange Community Animator), but we thought that this was a more accurate name to reflect our secret sauce!

CAs welcome people as they arrive and are the first faces people see when they arrive at a CSI location. They foster a welcoming culture and they set the tone for the rest of their experience. They work with our members to help build and create connection and collaboration.

You exchange your time as a CA for unlimited access to CSI’s coworking locations and full access to membership resources – a $500+ value! You are a connector of ideas and people, helping to build and foster an incredible community – you are the heart of the CSI community.

The commitment: Exchange 7 hours on a dedicated day, once per week, for a 6 and a half month term.

The benefit: Free CSI membership, including unlimited hot desking and 10 meeting room hours, and inclusion to a vibrant, innovative community. You’ll also have access to training, development, networking and events.

CAs have the opportunity to develop and experience community engagement efforts, develop and contribute skills, and deepen their connections with their cohort and the CSI community, all while learning the behind-the-scenes magic of almost two decades of social innovation and the art of animation. 

WHY BECOME A Community Animator?

No pressure, but CAs are the glue that keeps the CSI community together and the glitter that makes it sparkle. This program is perfect for anyone wanting to learn about social innovation by immersing themselves in it. CSI is a network of networks with over 2,500 members. On any given day, you could meet someone who will change your life. Some CAs have gone on to start their own companies. Others have joined organizations working out of CSI. Some have found their next big opportunity and create their own network. A handful have even become full-time CSI staff. CAs have used their experience as Animators to support their goals. Where will your CAP experience lead you? 

WHO BECOMES A Community Animator?

CAs are diverse in every way. They have varied backgrounds including race, ethnicity, gender and gender identity, age, socio-economic status, national origin, sexual orientation, ability, and religion. But they all have excellent customer service, radical hospitality, organization, communications, and problem solving skills. And perhaps most importantly, a commitment to approaching tasks and projects with sincerity, care, fun, and goodwill.