Social Enterprises

Creating economic opportunities by helping remarkable youth recognize their unique skill sets to apply towards projects within their communities.

🔥 Hot Shoe Productions: A Youth-Led Creative Agency with Community Roots

Hot Shoe Productions is a youth-owned video production company offering high-quality, professional services at accessible rates for non-profits, community groups, and private sector clients.

Originally founded by Youth Ottawa and supported by the Social Planning Council of Ottawa (2018–2024), Hot Shoe was designed as a next step for youth who participated in our Youth Active Media program to give young people in priority neighbourhoods hands-on experience in digital storytelling, production, and client management.

In 2024, Youth Ottawa proudly transferred full ownership and operations to the talented young creatives who helped build the brand. This marks a major milestone in our mission — not only empowering youth with skills, but enabling them to become entrepreneurs, storytellers, and leaders in their own right.

Today, Hot Shoe stands as a fully independent youth-led business, continuing to deliver polished, impactful video content—while staying true to its roots in community empowerment.

🔗 Visit their website to learn more and see how they can help you tell stories that spark.

Our clients

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Trivia 4 Tomorrow

A Social Enterprise Innovation by Youth Ottawa

Where Trivia Meets Technology, Community and Purpose.

Empower’em is an organization run by Women of Colour (WOC) to help WOC build confidence through personal and professional growth. Nayaelah Siddiqui was part of our 2020 Summer Amplified cohort after noticing a gap in the services offered in her community for Muslim women like herself. Soon, the organization would grow to include all women of colour.

Cuts for kids was created by Ibrahim Musa, who was inspired by his experiences growing up as a refugee and feeling different from his peers. From taking the scissors to his teddy bear’s fur and then his own hair, to creating this organization that provides young kids from low-income families with haircuts free of charge, he aims to help kids feel confident in themselves no matter what.

Run by another Summer Amplified alum, Abdul Muse, Woke Studios is a music company that provides Afro-diverse artists with opportunities to develop their skills, produce and promote their work.

As an award-winning Afro-soul artist known as KAR33M, Abdul creates narrative-style music inspired by his favourite genres like Afrobeat, Hip Hop, R&B and Soul.

Hope is Famous is created by one of our most recent Summer Amplified Fellows, Nathan MonPremier. The organization aims to spread a message of hope through their clothing, and has since partnered with the Salvation Army and has been recognized by the Orleans Star.

Along with Nathan, Drayton Mulindabigwi Jabo is another one of our 2022 Summer Amplified Fellows. He began 20today20tomorrow in the hope of creating a better future for communities through creating a positive and inspiring environment for youth to learn and flourish.