The membership of the Salt Spring Island Community Economic Development Commission (SSI-CEDC) consists of the CRD Regional Director and eight appointed Volunteer Commissioners.
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The CEDCCommissioners
Francine Carlin
Francine first fell in love with Salt Spring in 1996 while biking with her husband Richard across the island. Fortunately they were able to plant roots in 2004. Francine brings over 30 years of business experience in marketing, public affairs and organizational leadership including certification as a Family Business Advisor to her position as CEDC Chairperson.
A highly energetic and proactive volunteer her service includes 5 years as a Governor on the Royal Roads University Board. A strong supporter of teamwork as the means for realizing initiatives, she has been instrumental in the creation of the CEDC website – opportunitysaltspring.ca, and in facilitating efforts to establish a Destination Management and Marketing Organization for the Islands of the Salish Sea. During her leisure time Francine enjoys gardening in the sunny South End of Salt Spring Island.
Randy Cunningham
Randy loves community. In his younger years, he enjoyed an exhilarating career in international shipping and trading. After 25-years in this career, and living in multiple countries, Randy and his wife wanted a community where they could work and play together. In 2001, he changed direction and moved to Salt Spring and began a career in tourism.
With exceptional personal and customer service as the foundation, Randy and Cathie successfully invested in and operated accommodation-focused businesses. Randy is the past President of Salt Spring Recreational Holdings Ltd, home of the Salt Spring golf and racquet clubs. Through CEDC Randy hopes to encourage newcomers to come home to Salt Spring where they can live and work in balance and health.
Jason Griffin
Jason and his wife Yael moved to Salt Spring Island because they feel it is an ideal community to raise their daughters. Before moving to the Island, Jason was employed as Economic Development Officer for a tourism and arts driven municipality. His volunteer work includes serving as director of numerous organizations, including marketing, arts, tourism, and economic boards. He has also been instrumental in the formation of several non-profit organizations.
As owner and operator of Tour Salt Spring, he has unique insights into the daily front-line workings of the Island’s tourism industry, cultivating close connections with other tourism businesses, artists and farmers. Moreover, Tour Salt Spring is committed to operating as a green business and has already achieved Green Tourism Canada’s ‘Gold’ rating. The business collects and uses waste vegetable oil as fuel, and utilizes home-based solar generation to power EV tours. Together Jason and Yael own Avivamay Farm using organic and permaculture techniques to make their farm environmentally sustainable.
Janice Harkley
When Janice mentions that she's been a chartered accountant, (now CPA) for 41 years, you can almost hear the yawns. But if she talks about being the Co-founder of Salt Spring Winery the conversation flows. Her newest entrepreneurial venture is Salt Spring Mercantile, a specialty foods, bakery, and rural agency BC liquor store that greets visitors arriving in Fulford, and serves as a gathering spot for south-enders.
Janice has also been a Royal Roads University Associate Professor, teaching entrepreneurship. Being a Certified Executive Coach and accredited as a Certified Financial Planner, her skills are often sought after on SSI. When she’s not baking muffins- Janice and her husband estimate they have made over 10,000 muffins over the 25 years that they have run bed and breakfasts.
Holly MacDonald
Holly is a modern-day dynamo who runs a custom training company Spark + Co, which provides management and training solutions to clients around North America. Holly embodies a balance between savvy-business person and grounded community member. Most recently she is the architect of CEDC’s Rural Business Accelerator program and now the Vice-Chair of the Commission. Additionally, Holly also volunteers with Connecting Generations and Salt Spring Digital.
She moved to Salt Spring in 2008 from Vancouver for the “slower pace of life” and since then the entire family has found themselves involved in many community organizations. Holly also tweets about the island economy as @sparkandco and manages the social media presence for CEDC. Holly loves to kayak, sail and hike and can be found walking her dog on local trails, rain or shine.
Daniel Wood
Daniel moved to Salt Spring Island from Toronto when he was a small child. Wanting to raise their children in a more idyllic location, his parents started a small business, and six years later opened the Salt Spring Island Cheese Company. Leaving the island to continue his education, Daniel received a BA from the University of Victoria and a MA from the University of Saint Andrews. But there’s no place like home, so he moved back to Salt Spring in 2010, and is now the General Manager of his family owned business.
Being passionate about business and how it shapes communities, Daniel hopes to be a small part in a wider effort to support businesses on Salt Spring. Harnessing the opportunities and overcoming the challenges of living on an island, he looks forward to contributing to building and to maintaining the beautiful place where we live, work and call home.
