Local organizations are in the running for project financing
The finalists for the Bourses d’initiatives en entrepreneuriat collectif (BIEC) grants have been announced, and at least six local organizations are now rallying for public support to back their innovative social economy projects.
A total of 102 projects were submitted, including those by 53 organizations now eligible to win up to $20,000 for the completion of a large-scale project. Three organizations located in the MRC du Haut-Saint-Laurent, as well as three others in the MRC de Beauharnois-Salaberry, are currently vying for votes. The winning projects will be named based on jury selection as well as votes submitted online by the public.
The Complices Alimentaires have proposed a project to build refrigerated food-sharing hubs in the Haut-Saint-Laurent, Beauharnois-Salaberry, and Jardins-de-Napierville regions. This will allow the organization to reduce its costs while ensuring its vending-machine-style freezers are easily restocked. These cold storage units will also increase the organization’s capacity to recover, process, and distribute locally grown fruits and vegetables that would otherwise have gone to waste.
The Habitations des Tisserandes is concerned about the availability and accessibility of social housing in the region, and it has proposed a project to create a new social development investment company that will increase access to affordable housing in the Haut-Saint-Laurent. The funding will help to ensure the coordination of the project.
This year marks the 160th anniversary of The Gleaner, and to celebrate this milestone, the newspaper is hoping to expand the way it delivers information through the creation of a series of podcasts featuring stories of the Chateauguay Valley community. This will offer existing readers the opportunity to enjoy the richness of the stories featured in The Gleaner from a new perspective while attracting a new audience as well. This will also open new avenues for community journalism in the region while accommodating advertisers less suited to print media.
In the MRC de Beauharnois-Salaberry, the Société de conservation et d’aménagement des bassins versants de la Zone Châteauguay (SCABRIC) wants to add stand-up paddleboards to its selection of kayaks and canoes available at the public access point to the Chateauguay River in Sainte-Martine. The Maison des Jeunes de 12-17 in Valleyfield is hoping to launch an adapted educational environment featuring a bike mechanics workspace for vulnerable or disengaged youth, and the Valspec Theatre is proposing to launch a storytelling festival in Salaberry-de-Valleyfield in partnership with the Musée de société des Deux-Rives (MUSO).
The public voting campaign will continue online until January 27 at biecmonteregie.ca. (SR)
