Rise provides

microfinancing Microfinance is a category of financial services targeting individuals and small businesses who lack access to conventional banking and related services. Microfinance includes microcredit, the provision of small loans to poor clients; savings ...

and

mentorship Mentorship is the influence, guidance, or direction given by a mentor. A mentor is someone who teaches or gives help and advice to a less experienced and often younger person. In an organizational setting, a mentor influences the personal and p ...

to entrepreneurs living with

mental health Mental health encompasses emotional, psychological, and social well-being, influencing cognition, perception, and behavior. It likewise determines how an individual handles stress, interpersonal relationships, and decision-making. Mental health ...

and

addiction Addiction is a neuropsychological disorder characterized by a persistent and intense urge to engage in certain behaviors, one of which is the usage of a drug, despite substantial harm and other negative consequences. Repetitive drug use o ...

challenges who are interested in pursuing

self-employment Self-employment is the state of working for oneself rather than an employer. Tax authorities will generally view a person as self-employed if the person chooses to be recognised as such or if the person is generating income for which a tax return n ...

. Business

loan In finance, a loan is the lending of money by one or more individuals, organizations, or other entities to other individuals, organizations, etc. The recipient (i.e., the borrower) incurs a debt and is usually liable to pay interest on that d ...

lease A lease is a contractual arrangement calling for the user (referred to as the ''lessee'') to pay the owner (referred to as the ''lessor'') for the use of an asset. Property, buildings and vehicles are common assets that are leased. Industrial ...

s, and other

investment Investment is the dedication of money to purchase of an asset to attain an increase in value over a period of time. Investment requires a sacrifice of some present asset, such as time, money, or effort. In finance, the purpose of investing i ...

s are offered depending on the stage of development, needs and capacity of each business. Rise provides business financing up to $25,000 throughout

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, with financing averaging from $3000 to $5000. The

Rotman School of Management The Joseph L. Rotman School of Management (commonly known as the Rotman School of Management, the Rotman School or just Rotman) is the University of Toronto's graduate business school, located in Downtown Toronto. The University of Toronto has b ...

and

Centre for Addiction and Mental Health The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH, pronounced , french: Centre de toxicomanie et de santé mentale) is a psychiatric teaching hospital located in Toronto and ten community locations throughout the province of Ontario, Canada. It re ...

participate in advisory functions, lending their respective expertise for business mentoring and mental health supports and services to the benefit of Rise clients. In January 2012, Rise received the

Social Entrepreneurship Social entrepreneurship is an approach by individuals, groups, start-up companies or entrepreneurs, in which they develop, fund and implement solutions to social, cultural, or environmental issues. This concept may be applied to a wide range of ...

in Mental Health Equity Award for Toronto social enterprises advancing mental health equity.

History

Sandra Rotman founded Rise Asset Development. She brought to the table the Rotman School and Management (

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...

) and Ontario's world-leading Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) for their respective expertise. Through initial funding from Sandra Rotman, Rise conducted a pilot to assist entrepreneurs living with mental health and addiction challenges to explore self-employment and build successful, self-sustaining small businesses. In 2009, the initial pilot successfully helped a small group of emerging entrepreneurs to access investment capital, business mentoring and support. The pilot confirmed that the financial assistance and supports offered by Rise could help grow small business while improving the outlook of a marginalized segment of the community. The program has allowed certain clients to graduate from Ontario Disability Support Program and become more self-sufficient. In 2012, the Ontario Ministry of Youth Services announced that they formed a new partnership with Rise to create a program that targets youth living with mental health and addiction challenges. The goal of this initiative is to work with fifty young entrepreneurs between the ages of 16 and 29 over three years. Rise will deliver the program and provide microfinancing while Ontario will finance the business training for entrepreneurs. Over the same year, Rise expanded services to Ottawa and other Ontario communities. Rise is working alongside Causeway Work Centre to deliver microfinancing in the Ottawa region with the support from Alterna Savings. The rapid success of Rise has attracted other funders, including Citi Canada (the Canadian branch of New-York based Citibank) and the Royal Bank of Canada. In addition, Rise has launched a pilot group-lending program with the help of Citi Foundation.

Mental Health and Addiction & Self-Employment

Health Canada estimates that 1 in 5 Ontarians will experience serious

or a

substance abuse Substance abuse, also known as drug abuse, is the use of a drug in amounts or by methods which are harmful to the individual or others. It is a form of substance-related disorder. Differing definitions of drug abuse are used in public health, ...

issue in their lifetime. In 2007–08,

spent more than $2.5 billion on mental health and addiction services. Employment has been identified as a leading component in promoting positive mental health and supporting a fulfilling life in the community. Individuals who return to work demonstrate significant improvements in

self-esteem Self-esteem is confidence in one's own worth or abilities. Self-esteem encompasses beliefs about oneself (for example, "I am loved", "I am worthy") as well as emotional states, such as triumph, despair, pride, and shame. Smith and Mackie (2007) d ...

and

symptom Signs and symptoms are the observed or detectable signs, and experienced symptoms of an illness, injury, or condition. A sign for example may be a higher or lower temperature than normal, raised or lowered blood pressure or an abnormality showin ...

management when compared with those who do not work. For most people, meaningful employment is a key element in their economic, social and personal lives. However, individuals living with mental illness and addictions face many barriers in finding and maintaining employment. Stigma is often the most prohibitive. In 2001, a group of 149 unemployed clients with severe mental illness received vocational rehabilitation and were assessed on the effects of work on psychiatric symptoms, quality of life, and self-esteem at 6-month intervals throughout the 18-month study. Participants were classified into 4 groups: competitive work, sheltered work, minimal work, and no work. The competitive group showed significantly higher rates of improvement than the other groups. The larger body of research on employment for people with mental illness leads us to a multitude of studies confirming this finding.

Self-employment Self-employment is the state of working for oneself rather than an employer. Tax authorities will generally view a person as self-employed if the person chooses to be recognised as such or if the person is generating income for which a tax return n ...

can be an appropriate employment strategy to overcome the high unemployment rate among this population.

Entrepreneurship Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value. With this definition, entrepreneurship is viewed as change, generally entailing risk beyond what is normally encountered in starting a business, which may include other values th ...

can also facilitate the generation of supplementary income to assist people living with mental illness and addictions improve their quality of life and economic well-being. 54% of persons in self-employment had held their job for over 12 months compared to 35% of people in employment through an employer, and people in self-employment more closely mirrored the general population in terms of the job sectors in which they work.

Program

Rise provides loans, leases, and lines of credits and other financial products. The term of the loan is up to 3 years. The average loan size is $3000 to $5000. Rise also provides their clients with a business

and support. The program is targeted towards people with mental health and addiction challenges who cannot get loans through traditional means due to bad credit history or lack of funds. In June 2012, Rise launched its Youth Small Business Program which targets young adults between the ages of 16 and 29. This business training program is offered to individuals living with a mental health or addiction challenge and provides a $500 start up grant for their businesses. Upon completion of the program, entrepreneurs may be eligible for traditional Rise financing. Rise strives to add dimensions to the often 'single story' of people with mental health and addiction challenges. With that in perspective, Rise Asset Developments will commit over $200,000 in financing to entrepreneurs living with mental illness and addictions throughout Ontario (Canada) in 2013. Rise will scale its model to three new cities within Ontario, grow its mentorship program across the province, build a targeted youth program and pilot a group lending product targeting transitional homes, community housing and existing peer mental health or addiction support groups.

Mission

Recognizing the interdependency of financial well being to one's overall quality of life, Rise works to empower business owners with access to financing and business support. Rise is committed to improving the lives of people who are unable to secure employment due to mental health or addiction challenges.

Future

Having proved that people with mental health challenges can run viable businesses, Rise is expanding its program across the province. Rise has launched its operations in Ottawa through the Causeway Work Centre.

External links

Rise Asset Development

Rotman School of Management

Centre for Addiction and Mental Health

References

{{Reflist Microfinance organizations Financial services companies of Canada Companies based in Toronto