Strong communities start with strong, knowledgeable leaders. In rural and northern Manitoba, municipal officials, community leaders, and economic development champions are often at the forefront of driving growth, investment, and job creation. Yet many of these leaders lack formal training in Community Economic Development (CED)—a critical framework for creating long-term resilience and sustainability. Recognizing this need, Community Futures West Interlake and Community Futures Heartland, in partnership with the Economic Developers Association of Manitoba (EDAM), launched the Community Edge Municipal Capacity Building Project in 2023.
This innovative project consists of training workshops that equip community leaders with the practical skills and tools needed to build vibrant, sustainable communities. The training provides foundational knowledge of CED principles and strategies, empowering participants to lead initiatives that integrate development readiness, business development, investment attraction, and job creation into actionable plans.
PrairiesCan’s Support: Ensuring accessible and inclusive training for Manitoba’s leaders
With $257,000 in PrairiesCan support through the Rural Opportunities Fund (ROF), the Community Edge Municipal Capacity Building Project has significantly expanded its accessibility, reach and impact. The funding allowed for the recruitment of 15 new trainers, many of whom are Community Futures staff with significant regional expertise. These trainers now deliver regionally tailored workshops in more locations, thus reducing barriers for prospective participants such as travel and accommodation costs. Because of this, municipalities can now send more team members to benefit from this training.
Additionally, ROF funding facilitated the development of an Indigenous CED module and added northern development context to the training, ensuring the program is inclusive for all community stakeholders and relevant to the diverse governance models that exist across Manitoba.
Measurable results and lasting impact
The Community Edge Municipal Capacity Building Project has already delivered 1,200 training sessions, reaching over 300 Manitoba community leaders and municipal officials. Feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, with measurable outcomes reflecting the value of the training:
- 95% agree that investing in CED supports growth in their community.
- 86% support increased investment into CED projects.
- 79% support hiring Economic Development Officers to drive local job creation.
As one participant noted, “This program made me realize I didn’t even know what I didn’t know. Absolutely valuable for anyone involved in a municipality at any level.”
These sessions are inspiring communities to take control of their economic growth, with local hubs now coordinating future training sessions and advanced modules. This momentum is expected to increase CED certification rates, further equipping leaders with the expertise to drive meaningful change in their local communities.
A foundation for the future
The Community Edge Municipal Capacity Building Project is setting rural and northern Manitoba up for long-term success. By empowering leaders with critical skills, encouraging collaboration, and building capacity for strategic decision-making, the project ensures communities have all the tools to thrive.
As project leader Lana Cowling-Mason for Community Futures West Interlake shared, “The funding made available by PrairiesCan via the Rural Opportunities Fund is supporting grassroots economic development by helping our community leaders create an environment for growth. Without that support, our reach and access to communities would be significantly reduced.”
Manitoba’s leaders are now better equipped to shape a resilient and prosperous future, ensuring that communities across the province can take charge of their own economic potential.
Manitoba Community Edge Municipal Capacity Building Project (length: 2:15 minutes)
Transcript: Manitoba Community Edge Municipal Capacity Building Project
Text on screen: communityedge (Manitoba’s CED Certification Program) - Manitoba Community Edge Municipal Capacity Building Project
[Music]
[Video begins showing eight students in a classroom smiling and facing forward]
Text on screen: Ken Reimer – General Manager (Community Futures Heartland & White Horse Plains)
[Video transitions to Ken Reimer sitting in front of a neon green wall, speaking to camera]
Ken: The project is a series of 10 training sessions that are completed around the province aimed at training municipal leaders and economic development officers in the field of community economic development.
[Video montage of a student adjusting a workbook on desk, an instructor writing with red marker on a paper easel pad in a classroom, students seated and facing the front of the classroom, and the instructor continuing to write on the easel]
Ken: We feel this training should be made available to all elected officials across the province in the hopes that it would become mandatory for a municipal official to be trained in community economic development while they serve their municipality.
Text on screen: Lana Cowling-Mason – General Manager (Community Futures West Interlake)
[Video transitions to Lana Cowling-Mason sitting in front of a neon green wall, speaking to camera]
Lana: This project's making a difference by increasing the ability for our elected officials and our leaders to access training they need to improve the lives of their community and to help support economic development within their area.
[Video shows clips of the classroom full of students with an instructor pointing at a paper display board with a slideshow projected on the wall, and then students sitting at their desk flipping through booklets]
[Video transitions to Lana Cowling-Mason sitting in front of a neon green wall, speaking to camera]
Lana: Funding this project is made possible through the rural opportunities fund delivered by Community Futures Pan West and supported by PrairiesCan, and it is a contribution that will allow the training to be available across our province in the communities that need it.
[Video clips of students facing each other working together in a classroom, and students writing in their workbooks on a desk]
Text on screen: Joe Masi – Councillor (Portage la Prairie)
[Video transitions to Joe Masi sitting in front of a neon green wall, speaking to camera]
Joe: The training has really benefited me as now that I'm an elected official to really try to understand the importance of economic development for our community.
[Video montage of Joe sitting with other students at a desk in the classroom, a shot from the back of the class of students and the instructor with a projected presentation displayed at the front, and finally students working at their desks and writing with pens]
Joe: It's something that I ran on, and I think it's something our council is very committed to so I thought the training would be excellent for me to take to become even more knowledgeable about economic development.
Text on screen: Dwayne Germain – Board Member (West Interlake Community Development Corp.)
[Video transitions to Dwayne Germain sitting in front of a neon green wall, speaking to camera]
Dwayne: The training has been awesome.
[Video shows students speaking while writing in their workbooks on a desk, then the instructor flipping the paper easel pad to a page with “SMART Goals: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Time Based” written on it]
Dwayne: It's given me the ability to move forward being productive doing things properly. Without the training you're kind of lost at sea, and the training kind of keeps you on track.
Text on screen: Inem Adeniyi – Administrative Assistant (Portage Regional Economic Development)
[Video transitions to Inem Adeniyi sitting in front of a neon green wall, speaking to camera]
Inem: So, when you talk about Community Development, they are talking about when the people of the community come together to talk about ways of improving their community.
[Video shows clips from above course workbooks on a desk with a student writing on a pad of paper, students facing the front of the class sitting at desks and smiling, an instructor speaking at the front of the class, and students looking at the instructor who is pointing at information on the paper easel pad while the camera pans around the classroom]
Inem: Then when you talk about economic development, you're talking about when those talks by the members of the community impact on the economy of the community. So, when you merge those two things together, you come up with the CED.
Text on screen: Natashia Lapeire – Councillor (RM of Taché)
[Video transitions to Natashia Lapeire sitting in front of a neon green wall, speaking to camera]
Natashia: So, the training has been fantastic.
[Video shows a montage of students sitting and working at a desk with instructors supervising, a student writing in a workbook at a desk, and a clip from the back of the classroom showing students seated while an instructor points at the paper easel pad while the other instructor observes]
Natashia: I think as a municipal official we are bombarded with expectations for budget and planning and development and all those kind of tasks, and I think the training really offered an opportunity to learn a little bit more in depth and give us a tool of how to plan and move forward with our development in our community.
[Video transitions to a graphic with a white background displaying logos of sponsors]
Text on screen: Manitoba Community Edge Municipal Capacity Building Project Funded By: Prairies Rural Opportunities Fund 2.0 (Strengthening Our Communities) and Prairies Economic Development Canada. Project Partners: Community Futures Heartland & White Horse Plains, Community Futures West Interlake, and EDAM (Engaging in Opportunity).
[Music ends]
