Through these options, you can participate in a sessions on social innovation, creative problem-solving, and Artificial Intelligence (AI).
- “AI for Nonprofits: A Board-Friendly Guide to Using AI Well” (Toby Nwabuogor – AI for Recreation Professionals)
- “Social Entrepreneurship: From the Basics to Myth-Busting to Maximizing Impact” (Brittni Kerluke – Trico Charitable Foundation)
- “Subtract: Choosing more by doing less” (Jennifer DeDominicis – Distill Coaching + Consulting)
- “Harnessing AI Agents to Drive Innovation in Non-Profit Organizations” (Adriano Leite – Motiv Innovation Group)
“AI for Nonprofits: A Board-Friendly Guide to Using AI Well“
Time: 3:00 pm
Presenter: Toby Nwabuogor – CivicPlay.ai
Description: AI is showing up everywhere in nonprofit work—grant writing, fundraising, communications, volunteer coordination, and reporting. But for boards, the question isn’t “Is AI interesting?” It’s “How do we use it responsibly, protect trust, and actually make life easier for staff?”
This 90-minute interactive workshop is designed for nonprofit board members and leaders who want a clear, practical understanding of AI without the hype or the jargon. We’ll break down what today’s AI tools are good at (drafts, summarizing, organizing, brainstorming) and what they are not good at (truth, nuance, sensitive judgment, accountability). Then we’ll walk through realistic nonprofit use cases—especially fundraising and donor communications, marketing and storytelling, grant writing support, and admin tasks that contribute to staff burnout.
Because boards are ultimately accountable, we’ll also highlight governance in plain language. You’ll learn simple guardrails you can put in place right away—without needing a full legal overhaul or a massive policy project. We’ll cover what should (and shouldn’t) go into public AI tools, how to build basic verification habits, how to think about vendor tools that quietly add AI features, and how to set clear expectations for staff use. I’ll also share a lightweight “starter toolkit” approach that boards can adapt: practical do’s and don’ts, a risk-based way to decide what’s safe to use, and a simple way to track adoption without turning it into busywork.
This session blends short teaching segments, live examples/demos, and guided discussion so participants can translate ideas into real next steps.
CivicPlay.ai is a Canadian training and advisory firm helping nonprofits and community-serving organizations adopt AI in practical, responsible ways. We help teams save time on admin work while adding simple governance guardrails for privacy, accuracy, and transparency. Our approach is board-friendly: plain language, real examples, and lightweight policies teams can follow.
To learn more about CivicPlay.ai, click on any of the links below.
“Subtract: Choosing more by doing less“
Time: 9:00 am
Presenter(s): Jennifer DeDominicis – Distill Coaching + Consulting
Description: When tackling problems, we tend to apply a more is more approach to finding solutions. What if instead of brainstorming to add, we experiment with creating capacity and new approaches by subtracting?
This workshop aims to support arts organizations explore different approaches to decision making and problem solving and create capacity to do more by doing less. Join us for an interactive workshop to practice and experiment with processes and insights for letting go and focusing your time and energy for greater impact.
Distill Coaching + Consulting partners to re-design ways of working for to realize lasting, transformative change. With experience spanning strategy, leadership, not-for-profit, arts and culture and post-secondary education, Distill’s team of established consultants, coaches, designers and facilitators use systems and design thinking to enable significant and strategic operational adaptation.
To learn more about Distill Coaching + Consulting, click on any of the links below.
“Social Entrepreneurship: From the Basics to Myth-Busting to Maximizing Impact“
Time: 9:00 am
Presenter: Brittni Kerluke – Trico Charitable Foundation
Description: This session breaks down what social entrepreneurship is, clears up the biggest myths, and shows how real business models, not just good intentions, can be used to create lasting impact. You’ll see how purpose and profit work together, not against each other. The insights shared in this session are grounded in 15 years of real-world work by the Trico Foundation, including:
- A review of 100+ leading academic papers
- 150+ attitude surveys
- A two-year field study tracking and training 10 active social enterprises with monthly data collection
The result? Clear evidence that common misperceptions are holding social entrepreneurs back, and that there is an emerging formula for maximizing real-world impact. In this lecture-style session we will dive into:
- What social entrepreneurship is, what it looks like in practice, and how it differs from other social impact approaches
- How strong business models combine with a social purpose to drive real-world impact
- The biggest myths and common pitfalls holding social enterprises back
We will finish things off with a small group activity in which we will dive into a real-world social enterprise.
The Trico Charitable Foundation seeks to close gaps in society by provoking innovation and building capacity in social entrepreneurship.
To learn more about the Trico Charitable Foundation, click on any of the links below.
“Harnessing AI Agents to Drive Innovation in Non-Profit Organizations”
Time: 3:00 pm
Presenter(s): Adriano Leite – Motiv Innovation Group
Description: We will start with AI fundamentals in plain language, then look at the current state of the technology and the different stages and types of AI-enabled products, from simple assistants and automations to more advanced copilots and agents. From there, the session will focus on what matters most for non-profits: using technology to improve delivery, not chasing hype.
A central idea of the session is that AI changes the “how,” and may create a new “what,” but it does not replace the “why.” Your mission, your community, and your decision-making process still come first. We will look at how methodologies and technologies can support existing organizational goals rather than distract from them.
Participants will explore practical applications that can be implemented with existing tools today, including content drafting, research support, program communication, administrative efficiency, knowledge organization, first-draft policy or grant materials, board support, and early workflow automation. The session will also cover best practices for adopting AI responsibly, how to stay current without feeling overwhelmed, and how tools such as ChatGPT, Claude, Lovable, and Gamma can fit into a broader workflow.
We will close with common downsides, risks, and limitations, along with a realistic starting approach for getting the first tangible results through small, well-scoped experiments and clear objectives.
Motiv is a corporate venture builder specializing in AI, innovation, and venture creation. Since 2013, we have helped build and scale transformative ventures, generating over $1.5 billion in enterprise value. We partner with organizations to develop cutting-edge technologies, launch high-impact startups, and drive innovation strategies that create measurable business outcomes. Our approach is centered on building scalable solutions that foster growth and long-term success.
To learn more about Motiv Innovation Group, click on any of the links below.