92. Chad Park on Creating Financial Security for Individuals and Communities

Purpose and Profit with Kathy Varol

Chad Park is the Vice President, Sustainability & Citizenship for Co-operators, a leading Canadian insurance and financial services co-operative with more than $62 billion in assets under administration. Co-operators is a holding company for a number of entities with one common goal: creating financial security for Canadians and their communities. Because they are a co-operative, their business decisions are guided by their values of inclusion, and responsible and sustainable development.

Chad leads the co-operative’s efforts to embed and integrate sustainability principles throughout the organization, including in its investment strategy and underwriting practices. He also oversees Co-operators nation-wide community investment and partnership programs, including the Co-operators Community Funds.

In this episode, we discuss:

● What a co-operative business structure means

● The impacts of climate change on the insurance industry

● Canada’s Reconciliation Journey

Key Takeaways:

1. Reconciliation - Facing the Past to Create a New Future: It’s easy to brush off past generations’ actions as their responsibility alone—and yes, they were responsible. But here's the thing: we’re responsible for what we do now with that legacy. We can’t keep building on a rotten foundation and expect a solid future. The real challenge—and opportunity—is to take accountability, even retroactively, for the wrongs that were done. We have the power to dive headfirst into the messy work of deconstruction and build something better together. While daunting work, there is true liberation in taking radical accountability to break free from the past and create a new path forward that we’re proud to hand down to the next generation.
2. Reimagining How We Protect Our Communities: It seems that for as long as governments have existed, they've handled public goods—our roads, parks, and water systems (to name a few). But just because it’s been done a certain way forever doesn’t mean it’s the best way to keep doing it. I’m excited about how Co-operators is challenging the old way of doing things by developing new models to build climate-resilient communities. They’re taking what’s traditionally been the government’s job and updating it for today’s challenges. It’s great to see organizations innovating new ways to protect our future.
3. Balancing Risk and Resilience: Co-operators has an interesting dual focus: investments and insurance. On the insurance side, climate change is driving up risks and premiums, but there’s only so much people can pay before insurance becomes unsustainable. That’s where the investment side comes in. They’re investing in making communities more resilient to climate change, which in turn helps keep insurance premiums in check. How cool is that? It’s a holistic approach that puts the financial security of individuals and communities at the heart of their strategy, prioritizing their organization's purpose.

References:

● Connect with Chad on LinkedIn

● Co-operators

● ICLEI Canada

● Green Economy Canada

● Official page for the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada

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