Squamish ReBuild is issuing an SOS to the community in the hopes that a local organization, business, or group of individuals is willing to step in and take over the not-for-profit and return it to a financially sustainable venture.
“We need strong, new leadership with fresh energy, passion and ideas, to take over the reins by December 31,” said founder and board member Inis LeBlanc.
Established in 2011, Squamish ReBuild Society is a not-for-profit social enterprise that diverts reusable construction “waste” from the landfill and provides community members with affordable, quality building supplies. Its vision is to fundamentally change the way Squamish thinks about, and deals with, construction “waste” – saving both builders and consumers money in the long run and reducing their environmental impact.
“We are devastated at the thought of closing our doors after 11 amazing years, but we’ve reached a point where someone else needs to step in,” said LeBlanc, adding an injection of cash would also be required to pay off some debt and help in the transition to new leadership. “Without those two pieces, we won’t have any other choice but to fold.”
A number of significant challenges have led to the situation including a board of directors without future capacity, challenges finding qualified staff, site-drainage issues and a post-Covid shift in spending.
“Squamish ReBuild has played such an important role in building our community capacity over the last decade. It would be a huge loss to no longer have it, especially with the rising cost of building supplies, and the fact that the Squamish landfill is nearing capacity,” said LeBlanc.
“Squamish has always been full of tremendously passionate, community-oriented individuals who work hard and are keen to give back and help make the world a better place and we’re hopeful that Squamish will once again come through.”
Interested in helping save Squamish ReBuild? Contact LeBlanc at inis@squamishrebuild.ca.
BACKGROUND
● Squamish ReBuild has diverted more than 1,000,000 lbs from the landfill since 2011.
● Squamish ReBuild was named the Squamish Chamber of Commerce Green Business of the Year in 2011 and 2012.
● Squamish ReBuild is a social enterprise. A social enterprise is a not-for-profit or for-profit business that operates with a triple bottom line, considering the “three Ps” (profit, people and planet) in all decision making rather than the more common practice of solely focusing on generating profit, or the standard single bottom line.
● Founder Inis LeBlanc said she knew right from the start that she wanted Squamish ReBuild to be set up as a non-profit social enterprise. “Not only did this model open the door for more grant opportunities and other types of support, but more importantly, it felt right,” she said. “Squamish ReBuild was always meant to be about the greater good, it’s about making a concrete difference environmentally and providing an important service to the community.”
● Founder Inis LeBlanc opened Squamish ReBuild after reading about a similar not-for-profit organization in Portland, Oregon, in a book written by David Suzuki and Holly Dressel called ‘Good News for a Change’.
glenn says
this supports the District of Squamish objectives to extend the landfill and divert materials, there is a role here for the district to play