Office spaces offered to budding entrepreneurs

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CommAlert, a crisis communications and software company, is offering young Indigenous entrepreneurs and artists the opportunity of a lifetime in downtown Edmonton.

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In a hybrid and remote work environment, the company is offering the next generation of great thinkers one of the hottest commodities: space.

In late 2021, CommAlert, led by CEO Tim Carwell, who grew up in Sherwood Park, launched Project Goodwill, inviting local businesses to apply for a chance to take over their quarter-million-dollar office space completely free of charge.

The decision to offer the office space came after Carwell and her team chose to pivot their operations to remote working for good following the first waves of lockdown. With a strong social enterprise foundation guiding their decision, CommAlert extended the invitation to the community, receiving 70 applications. A judging panel of local businesswomen heard from the hopeful applicants in Dragon’s Den-style interviews and in January 2022, the successful applicant, RUNWITHIT Synthetics, took over the fully furnished Jasper Avenue office space.

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Now, two years later, the Goodwill Project winner has outgrown the available space, and with just a few months left on the prepaid lease, CommAlert has decided to offer the community again, this time in hopes of supporting Gen Z startups.

“We want to hand the keys to the next generation and then not get in their way,” Carwell said.

While the initial search for occupants resulted in the space being allocated to an organization, the latest call for applications is aimed at creating more of a collaborative work environment. The office can accommodate about 50 people, and there are very few strings attached to the arrangement. In addition to welcoming young entrepreneurs and change-makers, CommAlert plans to reserve a portion of the space for Indigenous artists to create, teach and inspire.

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“It’s very important that people are empowered,” he said. “They can take anything that’s not fixed to the ground.”

An advocate for the Indigenous community, he is a citizen of the Beaver First Nation and attributes his approach to life to the ways of knowing and cultural practices of Indigenous communities. While Carwell and his wife, Tanis, have made altruism a guiding principle in all their endeavors, being recognized for their philanthropy is the last thing on their minds.

“I often tell people that I’m not trying to be a magician, but rather to show the magic that’s all around us. There are some very special people who live in Strathcona County and Edmonton, and they usually walk quietly and do good work,” Carwell said.

“We can’t wait to see how young innovators and creators will use this special space! All we ask in return is feedback on what worked well and what didn’t. This is an exercise in trust with the next generation of leaders.”

Those interested in occupying the coworking space, available until the first weeks of September and including internet services, are invited to contact David French at [email protected].

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