The Wellesley Institute was honoured to join with senior Canadian business leaders in a private audience with HRH The Prince of Wales at Clarence House in London on Tuesday. CEO Rick Blickstead led the Wellesley Institute team, which also included Director of Housing and Innovation Michael Shapcott and Special Projects Lead April Xie.
The Wellesley Institute is operational partner with Prince’s Charities Canada for an emerging national initiative called Prince’s Seeing is Believing. Based on a UK model developed by The Prince of Wales more than two decades ago, Prince’s Seeing is Believing takes senior business leaders and engages them in critical community and social issues. The CEOs are challenged to take action both personally and with their corporations.
Prince’s Seeing is Believing, which is co-ordinated in the UK by Business in the Community, “isn’t about philanthropy,” says BitC CEO Stephen Howard. “It’s not about how companies spend profits, but how companies make profits.” The focus is on socially responsible business practices and transformative change, within the corporation and with the wider community.
The Wellesley Institute has worked with Prince’s Charities Canada to deliver two Prince’s Seeing is Believing events and also to co-ordinate parts of the Royal Visit to Canada of HRH in May of 2012. More than three dozen senior business leaders have participated in PSiB events in Canada to date, with a focus on engagement, education and employment of newcomer, homeless, at-risk and Aboriginal youth. Future PSiB events are being developed in Calgary, Regina, London (Ontario), Toronto, Vancouver and Halifax.
There were almost two dozen participants in the Team Canada delegation to London from business, government and community sectors. The group was led by Pavi Binning of George Weston Ltd and Gay Mitchell of RBC Wealth Management. The delegation spent a day with senior staff at Business in the Community to hear about their work over the years and learn from their practice.
The Canadian group was invited to be part of the Royal Report Back on January 29 with top business leaders from the UK, who delivered news about outcomes from Prince’s Seeing is Believing initiatives in the UK. The event was held at St James Palace in London. Following this event, the Canadian group, including the Wellesley Institute team, was invited to the residence of The Prince of Wales for a private audience. During this meeting, the group discussed the work to date in Canada in developing Prince’s Seeing is Believing, and potential plans for development of a new national voice for socially responsible business practices.
More information on the Wellesley Institute’s innovation and enterprise practice.
More information on Prince’s Seeing is Believing in Canada.
More information on Prince’s Seeing is Believing in the UK.