Plan Institute envisions a future where all people with disabilities are able to live good lives.  For every human being, a good life is based on five elements:

• Being supported by a network of caring family and friends
• Being recognized for the important contributions they make to society
• Having their wishes respected in the decision-making process
• Having a plan to ensure financial security
• Living comfortably in a place of their choosing

Plan Institute was born out of PLAN in order to take the values, concepts and practices used by our families and share them with other groups. So far we have developed seven affiliates across Canada, as well as inspired and established mentoring relationships with more than forty grassroots family groups around the world. We host annual retreats, publish books and manuals and offer online and in-person workshops. We’ve shared our work with interested groups such as family caregivers, people with chronic illness and seniors.

Plan Institute has been working with individuals and families from across Canada to identify the barriers that people with disabilities face every day. By exploring solutions and making recommendations for reforms to public policy, we have seen significant changes in the way in which society and government view our family members with a disability.

Being a social enterprise means that we don’t rely on government grants for our operations. Instead, we earn our income by selling our intellectual and social capital such as publications and educational training. We charge a fee for some of our products and services but do our best to keep the cost as affordable as possible while at the same time allowing us to do our work. We seek partnerships with financial institutions, law firms, trust companies, and estate-planning specialists to support and subsidize some of our programs.