History
Coady Institute is located in Mi’kma’ki, the ancestral and unceded territory of the Mi’kmaq People, on the campus of St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish, Nova Scotia.
Inspired by the Antigonish Movement’s vision of economic and social justice, Coady’s roots trace to StFX’s Extension Department, established in 1928. Our namesake Father Moses Coady summed up the Movement through this quote: “They will use what they have to secure what they have not.”
Working with communities across Atlantic Canada, the Extension Department advanced adult education, cooperative development, and citizen-led action. Building on this foundation, StFX established Coady International Institute in 1959 to share these approaches with communities around the world. In 2021, Coady International Institute and StFX’s Extension Department merged to form the Coady Institute which works both close to home in Atlantic Canada, across the country, and internationally.
Coady Institute is proud and grateful to actively engage with our global network of more than 11,000 changemakers in over 150 countries who have gone on to influence millions of others through asset-based community development (ABCD) approaches.
