A space to think differently and make ideas happen.

 
 

Rent the Action Lab

One of Edmonton’s most unique venues that can be rented for private events, workshops, meetings, and strategic planning.

Action Lab is a social enterprise of Skills Society, a not-for-profit disability rights and service organization in Edmonton that has always been committed to innovation in supporting marginalized community members to find belonging and lead rich, inclusive lives.

When you work with Action Lab, you also support the employment of people with disabilities, change initiatives of Skills Society, and subsidize community groups who can’t afford our full rates.

 

Workshops & Facilitation

The Action Lab space was designed for hosting diverse collectives who need to tap into the deep knowledge in their community, look at issues from unique perspectives and generate strategic possibilities. The Action Lab experience promotes creativity, offers tools to help tap into collective wisdom and helps people and systems to prototype proposed solutions. Our skilled, creative team is ready to help you steward your next project, strategic planning workshop or deep dive system change exploration.

 
 

Social Innovation

A social innovation lab is a collaborative problem solving approach that helps a diverse collective make sense of root causes of a complex challenge and then generate possible solutions that can be stress tested with real world people and systems who are affected. A powerful byproduct of social innovation labs is that they tend to generate rich relationship building of participants, and deeper shared understanding of complex problems- all essential ingredients if trying to make real systems change.

Our skilled facilitators are ready to steward you and your team through a social innovation process that dives deep into a complex challenge and results in promising solutions co-designed with your community.

Examples of our work

Our Impact

3000+ leaders

 engaged in the Action Lab

15+ sectors

have accessed the

Action Lab and our services

4 Deep Dive: Multi-year Social Innovation Labs

around complex social problems

40+ people

with disabilities

have found meaningful

employment

through Action Lab

100+ workshops sprints small labs

supporting creativity, social innovation

and systemic design

9 publications

from the Action Lab

But remember, impact is more than numbers

Learn more here…

Sustainable Development Goals 

As part of Skills Society, the Action Lab is committed to social change. Our mission is to support marginalized community members in finding belonging and leading rich, inclusive lives. The Action Lab contributes to the following United Nations SDG’s:

SDG 1: No Poverty

The Future of Home Lab addresses the need for affordable and inclusive housing, contributing to poverty reduction.

Read more about the Future of Home Lab →

SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth

Action Lab's commitment to providing meaningful employment to individuals with disabilities aligns with the goal of promoting decent work.

Learn more about our amazing hosts →

SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities

Action Lab's focus on marginalized communities, including individuals with disabilities and the Bhutanese community, contributes to reducing inequalities.

Learn more about Skills Society →

Learn more about the Design by Doing project →

SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

The Curbside Accessible Parking Project aims to improve accessibility in urban areas, aligning with the goal of creating inclusive and sustainable cities.

Learn more about the Curbside Accessibility Parking Project →

SDG 16: Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions

The Shift Lab's focus on anti-racism efforts, community-based strategies, and indigenous epistemologies contributes to creating more just and inclusive institutions.

Learn more about the Shift Lab →

SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals

Action Lab's commitment to multi-stakeholder collaboration and its partnerships with various organizations demonstrate a dedication to fostering partnerships for sustainable development.

Learn more about SDX →

Who We’ve Worked With