Social Development Centre Waterloo Region

We're Hiring! Two Eviction Prevention Workers

Do you have lived experience of housing challenges and/or an eviction? A passion for social justice, tenant rights, and helping people? Strong time management, data collection, and advocacy skills? We'd love for you to join Our Eviction Prevention Team!

We are recruiting for two, full-time Eviction Prevention Peer Support Workers who will be providing support to individuals and families facing an eviction in Kitchener-Waterloo, particularly those who face barriers to accessing services.

If interested, please review the job posting for more details, share in your networks and apply by midnight on September 2, 2024.

We're Hiring! Community Research Coordinator

Do the values of the Social Development Centre (SDC) resonate with you? Come and join our team

We are recruiting for the position of a Community Research Coordinator who will be responsible for developing research projects, setting up a community based research advisory table, and ensuring appropriate community engagement and research ethics for applicable programs.

If interested, please review the job posting for more details and apply by midnight on August 13, 2024.

Ask Council to Pass the Rental Replacement Bylaw

On Monday, June 17 Kitchener City Council will vote on a new rental replacement bylaw prepared by City staff with community input. A rental placement bylaw is an anti-displacement strategy that helps to maintain affordable housing stock and protects buildings and communities from mass displacement. The bylaw places expectations on landlords and building owners to behave ethically - and it empowers municipalities to enforce these expectations. Keep reading to learn how you can help.

The LEWG Needs Your Help

Collage of moments from the 2024 LEWG Video The Lived Expertise Working Group (LEWG) has made critical contributions to the City of Kitchener's awareness, understanding, and approaches to addressing homelessness - but there's still so much left to do. After working alongside the LEWG for the past 2 years, City staff know this firsthand.

On Monday, June 17, City staff will be presenting a proposal to Council to extend this work with the full support and resources it requires from the City. Keep reading to learn how you can help.

The 2023 Annual Report is Here!

From celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Festival Neighbourhoods, to welcoming 17 new grassroots groups to the CivicHub, to launching the Lived Expertise Prototyping Cohort inside the Plan to End Chronic Homelessness...we were really growing through it in 2023!

We're thrilled to share our latest Annual Report and hope you'll enjoy reflecting on the past year with us. A sincere thank you to everyone who helps make this work possible - the funders, agency partners, City and Regional staff, and most importantly, the lived experts, grassroots organizers, and community allies whom we are guided by and honoured to learn from every day.

Read the 2023 Annual Report

Join Us: Rental Replacement Bylaw Workshop

Interested in tenant rights and advocacy? Please join us for a free workshop on the new Rental Replacement Bylaw that will be going to Kitchener City Council in a few weeks!

Date: Monday, May 27, 2024
Time: 6:30pm - 8pm
Location: SDC Office (73 Water St. N,
Kitchener - enter off Duke St.)

Click below for more info

Growing through it: 2023-24 Annual General Meeting

Please join our 2023-24 annual general meeting to learn about the different ways SDC has grown this past year. PLUS: take in a thought-provoking play on housing precarity, brought to you by KW Kaleidoscope Collective (a proud member of the Civic Hub).

Thursday, June 13, 2024
5:30pm - 7:30pm
23 Water St. N, in Kitchener (enter off Duke St.)

RSVP to reserve your spot today!

Remembering Charles Nichols (1961 - 2024)

It is with a heavy heart that we share the passing of our colleague, friend, and Board member Charles Nichols. As we grieve Charles' passing, we also wish to celebrate his life and the dedication with which he fought for those on the margins. Please join us at the SDC office for a Celebration of Life on Friday, May 10 (5-7pm).

View the invite

Lived Experts Weigh In: Plan to End Chronic Homelessness

Announcement: Lived Expertise Prototyping Report Now Available The Lived Expertise Prototyping process was started in 2023 so that staff and Council at the Region of Waterloo could learn and benefit directly from the insights and knowledge of those with lived or living experience of homelessness and housing instability.

It has been an honour for the Social Development Centre to facilitate this ongoing process, and today we are pleased to share the final report outlining the recommendations made by the Lived Expertise prototyping cohort for addressing homelessness in Waterloo Region.

Read the full report | Read report highlights

You're Invited: SDC Open House!

We can't wait to welcome you into our space again at this year's open house on Tuesday, March 26 (4-7pm)!

Come meet the new faces on our team. Socialize with others who share your values. Learn how you can strengthen grassroots and community connections. And bring a copy of this flyer for a chance to win one of our door prizes!