The Woodnote Solidarity Cooperative is a groundbreaking project that was started at Concordia through investments from the CSU. This investment was initially managed by UTILE, which delivered on the financing and construction of the building, after which management was handed off to the Woodnote. Woodnote’s model is planned by UTILE to be replicated into other universities, building from the example  established at Concordia. It represents a rare systems-level means of addressing and combating student housing insecurities and neighborhood gentrification. However, our opening had an unfortunate alignment with the COVID-19 pandemic. This severely muted a crucial step in the foundations of the Woodnote: the establishment of a community and culture of sustainability within the building. For the Woodnote to actualize as a social-economy project, such an essential piece of its identity cannot be overlooked.

This project is part of the board’s strategic directions in building community at the Woodnote through empowering the resident community. An Internal Coordinator will be hired to help lay the administrative groundwork for the board while the board engages in three major endeavors: Launching a composting program, the organizing of workshops on anti-oppression and sexual assault prevention, and the hosting of community events that bring together the tenants of the Woodnote to foster dialogue and solidarity.