The Canadian Unity Council is an independent organization that designs, develops and administers educational, exchange, research and information programs that have a national reach.

The Canadian Unity Council is a private organization. It was established more than 40 years ago by a group of citizens with diverse political views but a common desire to promote a better understanding of Canada and its institutions while fostering a greater sense of national belonging among Canadians.

The Canadian Unity Council is a non-partisan organization. Its Board of Directors, Governors, friends, and supporters from different federal and provincial political parties form a broad coalition whose diverse political views give added strength to their shared interest in national unity.

The Canadian Unity Council is an organization funded from three sources. It receives federal grants or contributions authorized by the House of Commons from various departmental budgets. It solicits and obtains contributions from the private sector. Lastly, it generates its own revenues through the administration of its youth and exchange programs.

The Canadian Unity Council is officially recognized as a charitable organization by virtue of the educational nature of its youth programs, exchange programs, and research activities, and because it is a rallying force for all citizens interested in the evolution of Canadian society within the federation.

Why solicit support from the private sector?

1 - Because the Council is obligated to do so.

It is obligated to do so by virtue of its funding agreements with the federal government, which believes that the private sector must not be indifferent to Council initiatives that seek to build a sense of belonging to Canada that transcends regional differences.

It is also obligated to do so by virtue of its own desire to maintain a balance in its funding structure that ensures it complete freedom of action in carrying out its educational mission.

2 - Because the private sector benefits from political and social cohesiveness

It is in the private sector's best interest to operate and grow within a country that is in every way diverse, but whose citizens share common values. In this respect, Canadian unity is in the Council's view -- a view reflected in its activities -- a constant work in progress. Beyond the threat of political secession, other issues threaten the country's cohesion. These have always have been of equal concern to the Council. Some examples:

• the impact of globalization and international organizations on Canadian domestic policy;
• achieving the free movement of goods, services and people among all the provinces and regions of Canada;
• the value of immigration in the evolution of Canadian citizenship;
• the status of Aboriginal peoples in Canadian society;
• fair distribution of national wealth among the country's various regions;
• etc.

The private sector benefits in that the Council, through its research and information activities, youth and exchange programs, and many roundtable discussions, either directly or indirectly addresses all of these issues, thereby helping to create a more enlightened citizenry.

Indeed, the Council believes that a solid understanding of Canada and its institutions better prepares people to perform effectively in the knowledge-based economy in which Canadian enterprises compete.

3 - Because the private sector, through its contributions, reaps very tangible benefits from the Council's activities

The Summer Work Student Exchange program raises the profile of hundreds of participating employers among young people and their host families. It allows employers to introduce thousands of potential future professionals to labour market realities and the cultural differences that define the country's regions.

Every year, private sector financial support of the Encounters with Canada program allows more than 3,000 youths from all over the country to travel to the Terry Fox Centre in the nation's capital to learn about Canada's principal political, economic, financial, scientific and cultural institutions.

The Council's roundtable meetings in every part of the country allow business people, along with other community leaders, to acquaint themselves with, and discuss, studies conducted by the Centre for Research and Information on Canada (CRIC). The research, including polling, in conjunction with the conferences organized by CRIC and the publications it produces on such topics as immigration, Aboriginal peoples, globalization, equalization, and domestic free trade, can be helpful in corporate decision-making.

Summing Up

The Council's continuing mission to foster greater national cohesiveness in a way that respects the country's diversity is of vital importance to the private sector.

Although modest, the Council's national goals of building a more knowledgeable civil society through a better understanding of institutions, and by identifying and explaining the tensions inherent in the federal system, are entirely realistic.

The Council's programs achieve excellent results:

• Its student exchange initiatives are appreciated not only by the young participants and their parents, but also employers, contributors and the many parliamentarians who support them.
• To date, its youth programs -- to the great satisfaction of parents, educators, and private sector supporters -- have introduced more than 60,000 young Canadians, from 2000 high schools across the land, to the workings of the country's major institutions,
• CRIC's highly credible research, information and citizen participation activities are widely praised for their value. They are increasingly popular with university students, professors, the media, as well as opinion leaders in the political, economic and social policy spheres.

The Canadian Unity Council is a unique organization, in terms of its mission and programs, with solid roots in the country's main regions.

Contributions to The Canadian Unity Council are an obvious first choice for good corporate citizens.