The Impakt Forum

The Impakt Forum The Impakt Forum The Impakt Forum

The Impakt Forum

The Impakt Forum The Impakt Forum The Impakt Forum

The Impakt Forum is a a global community for impact leadership.


A space for business , civil society and academic leaders to make a difference at a time when global social and environmental progress is under threat. 


Each year, an in-person gathering serves as a catalyst for collaboration. 


The forum also provides a space for year-round strategic discussions, thought leadership, and shared action. 


The Impakt Forum is an ongoing commitment to:

  • Co-create solutions through pilot projects
  • Sustain collaboration beyond the annual gathering
  • Illuminate new opportunities for progressive leadership
  • Leverage creativity and human connection to inspire change

About The Impakt Forum

The Impakt Forum was created to accelerate progress toward UN SDG Goal 11.1: access for all to adequate, safe, sustainable and affordable housing by 2030.  Specifically, to  co‑create, fund, and implement pilot projects that expand affordable housing for vulnerable people. Each year, the Impakt Forum will be held in a different global location leading up to 2030, the deadline for the UN SDGs. 

The inaugural Impakt Forum was held on October 22nd and 23rd, 2025 at the World Urban Pavilion in Toronto. The first gathering featured 60 invitation-only corporate, non-profit and academic impact leaders from countries including Canada, Portugal, United Kingdom, Finland, India and the United States. The second Impakt Forum will be held in London in the fall of 2026. The Forum also provides a space for year-round collaboration, thought leadership, and shared action. 

Estimated Economic Impact: 

  • Total economic activity influenced: ~$1–2 trillion annually
  • Social impact capital influenced (CSR, ESG, giving, impact investing): ~$30–50 billion annually
  • People economically affected (employment, supply chains, services): ~50–100 million globally

Reflections on the Inaugural Impakt Forum

I'm so excited that we co-created five new affordable housing initiatives.


Thank you for hosting such an informative and productive gathering of so many great leaders in the affordable housing space. I especially appreciated the event flow. The case studies on day one really set the foundation for a productive design thinking session on day two. Well done!


My mind has been racing ever since! What a fantastic and inspiring event you pulled together!  Thank you! 


I want to first thank you for inviting me to the Impakt Forum. I was honored to share ideas and learn about affordable housing in Canada and globally.  


  I would love to stay involved with the pilot and contribute whatever we can...likely space, insights and possible suggested participants as it evolves. Thanks so much for inviting me into this 


Thanks to you and your and your amazing team for creating the Impakt Forum.  You brought together a beautiful group of people. 


Thank you once again for the privilege of participating. I felt more like a learner than a contributor throughout the experience. I would be honoured to continue engaging in this worthy endeavour. 


Such an inspiring, purposeful and a great conference. I want to  thank you so much you and your team about this conference. It was truly special and a very successful one! I thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to participate.


Thanks for the great session last week.  In terms of feedback - it was a great mix of people! Great conversations and idea sharing! I found the content on the first day to be varied and interesting with some new perspectives. I thought the second day was very well facilitated and moved along well, and I appreciated the focus on action. I look forward to hearing more about the pilot project - great to set out a plan, as it can be challenging to maintain momentum on shared projects. Thanks again for including Toboggan Flats - it was great to renew some relationships and meet so many interesting new people. 


We had such a wonderful time at the Impakt Forum and were so impressed with the Regent Park walk, powerful agenda, and variety of interesting and engaged participants.


I thoroughly enjoyed the conference and I would be excited to join the pilot working group and remain involved in this initiative (and happy to bring some ‘south of the border’ perspective to the Canadian conversation). 


I want to thank you and the entire Impakt Foundation team for organizing such an inspiring and action-driven inaugural Impakt Forum for Social Change . It was an honor to participate and contribute to the discussions on affordable housing, inclusive design, community development aligning with UN SDG 11.1.


Transforming Affordable Housing

Transforming Affordable Housing is a new discussion paper designed by Abdiaziz Ali a refugee entrepreneur currently experiencing homelessness in Toronto.

As Ali says " This isn’t just a document. It’s a piece of my journey, a reminder that home is more than a place. It’s a foundation for everything we dream to become." It’s also an important reminder that the best solutions come from those who’ve lived the problem.

Transforming Affordable Housing was the theme of the inaugural Impakt Forum which took place at the World Urban Pavilion in Toronto on October 22nd and 23rd, 2025.

Thanks to the following leaders who informed the development of this new paper.

Scott Arbuckle, Business Unit Director, Arcadis
William Bedrossian, President & CEO, Covenant House International
Mitchell Cohen, CEO, The Daniels Corporation
James Ehrlich, Director, Compassionate Sustainability, Stanford University School of Medicine (CCARE)
olene Livingston, Founder & President, Partners for Affordable Housing
Angie Peters (Draskovic) President & CEO, Yonge Street Mission
Alice Shobe, Global Director, Amazon Community Impact
Tracee Smith, President & CEO, Keewaywin Capital

Frequently Asked Questions

The Impakt Forum was created in 2025 by Paul Klein founder of Impakt and the Impakt Foundation For Social Change as a way to harness the ideas and impact of the remarkable corporate, non-profit and academic impact leaders that made contributions to his impact leadership articles for Forbes. 


The Impakt Forum is an invitation-only community but feel free to contact us to share your experience as an impact leader.


The 2026 Impakt Forum will take place in London in the fall of 2026.


The Impakt Foundation For Social Change  is a charitable organization established in 2019 that exists to improve lives for refugees and other newcomers to Canada


You can make a charitable contribution to the Impakt Foundation For Social Change  in support of its work to improve the lives of refugees in Canada - including the need for more affordable housing. Click here to donate: Donations


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