History

Cooperation Canada, formerly the Canadian Council for International Cooperation, was established in 1968 in Ottawa with a clear and mighty mission statement: to end global poverty and to promote social justice and human dignity for all.  

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The organization focused on establishing clear networks with the government and membership partners through publications, meetings and consultations. Activities concentrated on events run by the humanitarian agencies of the United Nations, as well as public engagement. The goal was to engage the government delegations who attended those conferences through direct lobbying on site, while running public advocacy campaigns in Canada. 

CCIC faced a major financial crisis in 2008 and 2009 when the newly elected government withheld funding of civil society organizations and stopped supporting environmental and human rights projects. During this period CCIC was deprived of its primary source of revenue and halted the majority of its programming. 

To recover, a total restructuring took place, which included the establishment of a new membership system that prioritized member services and permitted full operational independence from government funding.  

In 2018, CCIC applied for creative agency McMillan’s Betterful project, which awards a non-profit organization with pro bono rebranding work. Selected as a recipient for this program, CCIC launched its new name and branding: Cooperation Canada in October of 2020.