Derek proudly leads Vancity Community Foundation, an arms-length public charity including 110 + donor advised funds and a core endowment associated with the members of Vancity Credit Union in BC. For more than 20 years, the Foundation has modeled a progressive approach to investing the assets, making grants and directly delivering collaborative programs with a focus on sustainable development rather than aid. Building on the values, tradition and capacity of the relationship to a $16 billion, 480,000 member financial cooperative, VCF has pioneered a number of innovations in Canadian philanthropy and impact investing. Before joining the Foundation in 2008, Derek helped build and manage an investment portfolio of non-profit social enterprises, co-ops, aboriginal ventures and green businesses as part of the venture capital arm of Vancity and served as the first manager of Social Responsibility at Coast Capital Savings, where he initially started as front line staff at a branch. He has an MBA from Queen's, and has worked in management consulting, also gaining international experience in Bangladesh, Brazil, and northern Italy. He currently serves on the national policy committee of Imagine Canada, and several boards, including Cooperators Foundation, the Social Investment Organization, and a local advisory council for Aga Khan Foundation Canada.

Pearl joined Vancity in 1986 and was employed in various branches and departments until she became the Office Coordinator at VCF in 2005. In this capacity, she oversees facilitating the day-to-day administration of the Foundation offices. This position also provides administrative support to facilitate efficient tracking, reporting, funding, and distribution of Foundation and enp grants.

Cherlyn joined VCF in 2011 as our Accountant, after having worked in Accounts Payable and Accounting in Vancity's Finance Division since 2007. As our accounting consultant, Cherlyn is responsible for providing financial systems advice and support while maintaining accounting records. Cherlyn has a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from UBC and a Diploma of Technology from BCIT in the Professional Accounting program and received her CGA designation in August 2011.

Sandra joined VCF in 2009 as Philanthropic Services Coordinator of the Donor Advised Funds Program and is now the Housing Coordinator for the Surrey Homelessness and Housing Fund, which grants to projects that make a difference in the lives of peoples who are homeless or at-risk of homelessness in Surrey. Before joining VCF, Sandra worked as a mortgage lender at the Vancity Member Services Centre. She graduated from UBC in English, Fine Arts, and Education.

Lisa is the Team Manager for the Homelessness Partnering Strategy (HPS) project which is a partnership between VCF and Metro Vancouver that will provide funding to agencies addressing homelessness in the region. Lisa has worked in government and non-profits in a wide variety of areas. She has an educational and professional background in criminology having worked with youth involved with the criminal justice system, women in the downtown eastside dealing with addictions and housing issues and adult offenders in federal and provincial institutions. Prior to joining Vancity Community Foundation, Lisa oversaw a portfolio at Jewish Family Service Agency which included: Financial Assistance/Case Management, Housing assistance and advocacy, a food bank, Mental Health Outreach, The World in Garden urban agriculture project, Special Needs related to families with children living with a disability as well as specialized holiday and prison outreach programs.

Joanne is pleased to be leading the Women Entrepreneurs Financing and Growth Project on behalf of Vancity Community Foundation. Prior to joining the VCF team, Joanne was the founding Director of Social Returns at Social Capital Partners (SCP), a national, privately financed non-profit organization founded in 2001. SCP facilitates growth financing and advisory services to businesses that integrate a community hiring model into their HR strategy. Joanne worked with portfolio management teams to develop and execute on their social mission strategy and led the SROI (social return on investment) portfolio analysis of all SCP investments.

Before joining SCP, Joanne worked domestically and internationally on behalf of organizations such as the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), Canadian Business Resource Centre and the Canadian Youth Business Foundation. Joanne has also worked as a business consultant and trainer for startup entrepreneurs. She has written and published on issues concerning employment, entrepreneurship, tourism and gender relations.

Joanne is the President of Deer Crossing the Art Farm -- a non-profit organization founded on traditional Squamish territory north of Gibsons, B.C., is a member of the SROI Canada Network planning group and former Vice president of World Literacy of Canada.

Joanne has an MA in International Development Studies from the University of Guelph and a BA in Sociology from the University of Victoria.

Emily Beam joined Vancity Community Foundation in 2012, bringing a depth of experience supporting, investing in, evaluating, and directly leading social enterprises and impact organizations across a range of sectors and contexts. She started her career as the very first paid employee at Fairware Promotional Products, moving from there into roles supporting microenterprise in Ghana through West Africa AIDS Foundation, sustainability initiatives in coastal communities with Ecotrust Canada, and then impact investments across BC with Vancity Capital. During the past couple of years, she has served as General Manager of Street Youth Job Action, an employment based social enterprise of Family Services of Greater Vancouver, where, among other things, she took a new enterprise from idea through to launch.

Emily has a degree in Mathematics and Business from University of Waterloo and is an active volunteer with the Olympic Village Food Scraps Drop Spot, Battered Women's Support Services, and Crossroads International.

Bryn works to enhance the capacity of VCF, Vancity Credit Union and community-based organizations to strategically plan, manage and communicate the value of their work, and in particular the measurement of social and environmental impact. Bryn has over 15 years experience working in impact assessment and cost-effectiveness analysis. Prior to joining VCF, Bryn worked as a consultant and researcher at SFU, leading numerous projects for government, private sector and non-profit organizations. Bryn holds a B.A. from Carleton University and a Masters of Resource and Environmental Management from Simon Fraser University.

Vera holds a B.A. in Liberal and Business Studies and has been working with community organizations for over 20 years, primarily in program design and development, women's programs, employability programs, and poverty reduction. For the past three and a half years she has assisted with the management of the Surrey Homelessness and Housing Fund, working with the Surrey Homelessness and Housing Society board to grow and distribute the fund, develop and launch a granting program, and lead community initiatives aimed at reducing homelessness and increasing access to housing. In her role as Manager, Community Projects, Vera will supervise our various community programs and partnerships.

Calvin joined VCF in 2008 after an extensive career in the private wealth management industry in Canada and the Cayman Islands. A former Senior Trust Officer with Scotiatrust, Calvin led the national administration and support team for the Aqueduct Foundation, a public charitable planning foundation, and helped acquire over $163,000,000 in donations while administering grants to qualified recipients. As manager of VCF's Philanthropic Services team, he is responsible for assisting donors with the tax and estate planning aspects of their charitable gifts and with the establishment of donor advised funds.

Jackie graduated from the University of Guelph with a Bachelor of Applied Science. After a year teaching English in South Korea, she set roots in Vancouver and in 1998, started working at Vancity, joining the VCF team three years later. She attended the CAGP Banff course on Gift Planning, successfully completed BCIT's Essentials of Fundraising and Simon Fraser University's certificate in Community Economic Development. In addition to being responsible for providing support to the current donor advised fund portfolio, she manages internal and external communications for the Foundation.

Amrita joined VCF in 2011 as our Philanthropic Services Coordinator, responsible for coordinating and developing the administrative support systems of the Donor Advised Funds' growing program. Amrita has worked with Vancity since 2006 so she brings internal knowledge and understanding to the team. Amrita has previous fundraising experience working with Canadian Red Cross and BC Children's Hospital Foundation and obtained an education in Sociology and Psychology from SFU.

Allison is a Project Officer for the Homelessness Partnering Strategy, a partnership between VCF and Metro Vancouver that provides short-term funding to homelessness service providers in Metro Vancouver. Allison has experience in government and the non-profit sector working on social planning and community development issues. With an MA from UBC, her educational background is in political economy and urban planning with a focus on affordable housing and homelessness. Prior to joining Vancity Community Foundation, Allison coordinated the provincial emergency shelter program with BC Housing that funds 62 emergency shelters and drop-in centres in BC.

Josu joined VCF in 2011 as Project Officer for the Homelessness Partnering Strategy (HPS) project which is a partnership between VCF and Metro Vancouver that will provide funding to agencies addressing homelessness in the region. Josu has worked as a social researcher, social educator, and participatory process facilitator, both in governmental as well as non-profit environments. Prior to joining Vancity Community Foundation, Josu's work experience involved local (both Canadian and Spanish), national (Spanish), and European projects encompassing a wide variety of areas including community development, strategic planning, accessibility, disabilities, harm reduction, citizen participation, and youth participation. Josu holds a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology, a Post-Graduate Diploma in Citizen Participation and Sustainable Development from the Autonomous University of Barcelona, and a Post Baccalaureate Diploma in Sustainable Community Development from Simon Fraser University.

Jose is a Project Officer for the Homelessness Partnering Strategy project, which provides funding to local agencies addressing homelessness in the Metro Vancouver region. Jose holds an MSc in Community and Regional Planning and has an extensive experience working with non-profits, private and public sectors in North America and Asia in a wide array of projects, ranging from environmental restoration and education to creating initiatives for sustainable community economic development. Prior moving to Vancouver, Jose oversaw Community Economic Development and Natural Resources Management projects at the Ministry of Urban Development and Environment in the State of Yucatan (Mexico) which included: funding allocation and technical support to eco-tourism initiatives, collaborative research, community engagement, and public consultations with indigenous communities in Natural Protected Areas. As a professional planner, Jose aims to bring sustainable planning principles into community development practices.