The Leadership Table: How SVP is Building Stronger Nonprofits for Children & Youth

Strong organizations start with strong leaders, but too often, nonprofit leaders are expected to give endlessly without having a place to reflect, connect, and grow. As we shared in our October 2025 snapshot, our nonprofit leaders are stretched thin. 

This is why SVP Vancouver launched The Leadership Table. An event built on the belief that when leaders are supported, their organizations thrive — and that ripple of strength extends to every child, youth, and family in their care.

To shape the event, SVP staff Selma and Jocelyn co-created the agenda alongside nonprofit leaders, grounding every element in what would be most valuable to them. On October 27th, we brought together 18 nonprofit leaders from across our network for a half-day, peer-led session to discuss the challenges that most define their work: Fundraising, Board Governance, and People & Culture. 

“The chance to connect and share experiences with other non-profit leaders was amazing. Being able to share common issues and to come away with some practical, quick ideas was great!” – The Leadership Table Participant

One theme truly stood out: leaders are craving time to connect meaningfully and build solutions with peers who understand their realities.

Early results show the event delivered exactly what participants hoped for:

• Almost 90% of respondents rated the event Excellent or Good overall
• 100% would recommend The Leadership Table to other leaders.
• 100% expressed interest in future small-group sessions for leaders

New partnerships formed throughout the day. As one leader shared with us after the event. “I connected with peers at Fresh Roots and Mom2Mom—we can already see ways to collaborate. In addition to continued learning, I’m grateful for those new relationships.” 

By the end of the morning, flipcharts were filled with ideas and commitments, but the real outcomes were less visible: renewed confidence, shared insight, and reinvigorated a network of leaders supporting B.C.’s children and youth. 

The Leadership Table is one example of how SVP invests in strengthening the sector and organizations that serve B.C.’s children and youth. Each year, a portion of our grantmaking goes toward capacity-building initiatives that help nonprofit leaders and teams deepen their skills, resilience, and impact.

These investments take many forms, including:

• Leadership development — coaching, peer learning, and professional growth opportunities for executive directors and senior staff.
• Organizational strengthening — projects that enhance governance, evaluation, fundraising, and people and culture practices.
• Strategic collaboration — connecting leaders and organizations to share learning and work together toward common outcomes for children and families.

“As we navigate wild times (but not for the first time), we have so many strengths and so much resiliency in our sector’s leadership. Thank you for supporting us and bringing us together!” – Nonprofit Leader to Selma

We are deeply grateful to the nonprofit leaders who shared their time, energy, and insight with us — and to the SVP Partners whose support makes this work possible. Funding the programs is just the beginning; we’re investing in the people and organizations that create meaningful change for children and youth across B.C.