OPIRG MCMASTER IS AN INCUBATOR FOR STUDENT-LED SOCIAL IMPACT.

OPIRG McMaster has been supporting student advocacy and civic engagement since 1995

Our promises:

  1. OPIRG McMaster will be led by students.

  2. Students will be able to use the services provided by OPIRG McMaster.

  3. OPIRG McMaster will coordinate grants and internships for students.

OPIRG McMaster is a student-led and student-funded nonprofit with a mission to promote civic engagement by empowering the McMaster community to take action on social, economic, and environmental issues.

OPIRG collects a small undergraduate student fee each year to create services that students can leverage to take on advocacy efforts and mutual aid projects in the local community. We provide low-barrier/easy-to-access support for students who want to address the social issues they care about and make a difference.

Students with ideas for a new initiatives can meet with OPIRG volunteers to determine what support is needed. Students are then connected to OPIRG services that will help turn their ideas and enthusiasm into action.

OPIRG services that help create social impact:

  • A media team that advises your digital strategy, develops social media content, and creates engaging films.

  • Connections to like-minded students who want to volunteer.

  • A physical space on campus to meet and collaborate.

  • Specialized funding for early stage ideas and access to larger sums for established groups.

  • Event and administrative support.

  • Internship opportunities with community organizations.

We are a part of a long-standing provincial network. The Ontario Public Interest Research Group (OPIRG) is a network of eleven campus-based PIRGs in Ontario including OPIRG McMaster. The network facilitates collaboration between initiatives at each of the chapters, provides institutional memory, and administrative support.

ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE AND OPERATION

OPIRG’s core funding comes from full-time undergraduate students in a $5.69 refundable levy for the academic year. All full-time undergraduate students are automatically members. If you do not wish to support OPIRG McMaster, you can claim a full refund by opting out using our online opt-out during the three weeks after the Fall drop and add date. 

Members can access the resource library, apply for Experiential Learning positions, borrow equipment, attend workshops and events, vote at our Annual General Meeting, and are eligible to run for the OPIRG McMaster Board of Directors.

Anyone not full-time in an undergraduate program at McMaster can join OPIRG as a Community Member for a $10-20 sliding scale fee.

Every year, OPIRG McMaster undergoes a financial audit by an independent auditor, ensuring that our finances are being used and recorded effectively by generally accepted Canadian accounting principles. Find more information about us in our Constitution!

Our Values

  • OPIRG McMaster operates within an anti-oppressive framework. This means we centre our work in an understanding that achieving equity and a better future must dislodge the root causes of violence and inequality.

  • We hope to foster creative and new ideas to address important issues. We love the ideas we hear from community members and are open to chat.

  • We value cooperation and collaboration. Our groups use a consensus decision-making process.

  • We recognize the diversity on our campus and in our city. We work to promote accessibility and inclusion for all.

  • OPIRG McMaster provides resources and support to empower community members to take action.

  • We believe in the necessity of fighting to protect the land and water, hand-in-hand with fighting ongoing colonization.