Best Philanthropist: Arlene Dickinson

Arlene Dickinson

Perhaps best known for her role on CBC Television's Dragons' Den, Arlene Dickinson is also a successful entrepreneur, a mother and a generous philanthropist. As the president and CEO of Venture Communications, Arlene's creative and strategic approach helped turn a small Calgary-based agency into one of Canada’s largest independent marketing firms. She is also a general partner of District Ventures Capital, a three-time best-selling author, and an accomplished speaker.

Along with the rest of the city, Arlene was greatly affected by the pandemic. With some clients shutting down their market spending and others flourishing during this time, one of Arlene's businesses was keeping up with the demand, while the other was making sure to create new demand. As an individual who is constantly travelling and networking, staying home and socially distancing was a challenging but productive time for Arlene. Instead of placing her focus within, she partnered up with Mayor Nenshi and managed to help raise over $500,000 for Calgary food banks with just one tweet, furthering her philanthropic reach throughout the city.

During this time, you can support Arlene Dickinson by supporting your local businesses, neighbours and community. She regularly promotes local businesses in the city and asks you to do the same, whether that means buying or spreading the word. She has also recently started a new podcast series called Reinvention. Having lived through major business disruptions throughout her career and then reinventing both her business and herself, Arlene speaks from her own journey as well as with a variety of industry leaders to give advice and provide tips on the process.

FIRST RUNNER UP: JIM BUTTON

SECOND RUNNER UP: LOURDES JUAN