Welcome to another edition of the Weekly Community Events Guide for the week of October 26th 2009. Each and every Monday, we list upcoming events in the web, technology, marketing, social media, public relations and communications space in Toronto and bring them to you. Event details are provided by the simply awesome YouSayYeah Calendar and Eventbrite. Don’t see your event listed here? Get in touch with your event details.

So without any further ado, here’s what’s happening in Toronto this week:

Open Source Software Showcase for Non-Profits, Monday, October 26, 2009 from 8:30am – 5:00pm. Are you a non-profit organization looking for less expensive alternatives for productivity software? Are you skeptical of the whole “Open Source thing” when it comes to solutions for your organization? Please join our friends at the Ontario Non-Profit Network as they host an Open Source Showcase, Monday October 26th at the Centre for Social Innovation. Come for an hour or stay for the day and learn how you can get effective, reliable and scaleable solutions for your organization from some of the city’s most noteable experts in Open Source software. Free event.

Creative Leadership Workshop, Tuesday, October 27, 2009 from 6:00pm – 8:30pm. Just as the designer of a ship’s structure exerts more influence on its performance than does the captain or the crew, the structure of our thinking is the primary determinant of our actions and thereby the pattern of results we are getting in our lives. A change in how we think translates into a change in the results we are creating. Actions and results that were not possible before become possible. All that is required is changing the “life stance” we use to create results. It is that simple and that difficult. This workshop will examine a shift from a “problem-reacting stance” to an “outcome-creating stance”. The “problem-reacting” stance is driven by fear and it becomes especially insidious when our anxiety—for example in times of crisis—becomes our most important problem. As this happens, we take action to “solve” or relieve our anxiety—often times at the expense of taking the real action needed to create the future we want, and also at the expense of exhibiting real leadership behavior with our teams. $39.

Third Tuesday Toronto (#ttt), Tuesday October 27 from 6:00pm – 9:00pm. According to Forrester Research, 81% of consumers rely on online reviews when making purchasing decisions and 35% actually write product reviews. Social networks have provided an online channel that spreads consumer opinions wider and faster than ever. Customer review sites provide an ideal platform for customers and businesses to engage. So why are so few companies addressing online consumer review communities in their overall public relations and marketing strategies? The answer is easy, yet executing is not. One of the most valuable and under-used social media strategies is using customer reviews to drive sales. Our panel of experts will share their experiences developing consumer review communities and welcome your questions. $10, free for students.

Deciphering Digital Body Language, Tuesday October 27 at 6:15pm. Today’s marketers must decode their buyers’ digital body language to understand the roles, information needs, timing and buying intentions of a largely faceless and elusive target market that interacts on-line. Join us for this discussion with Steve Woods, co-founder and CTO of Eloqua, as he talks about understanding the on-line dynamics of marketing complex products and services, how to read digital body language and how to effectively maximize the volume and quality of leads. Free event

Women Piloting Innovation, Wednesday, October 28, 2009 from 7:30am – 9:15am. How do we build an innovation economy that harnesses the full capacity and creative energy of women? Will a more inclusive framework emerge, or will we see the proliferation of new businesses as more women rise into leadership positions in the innovation economy? What is the contribution of women at the forefront of breakthrough discoveries, and building knowledge-based enterprises? Free event. Breakfast will be served.

Co-Creating Cities, Wednesday, October 28, 2009 from 1:00pm – 3:00pm. Join Luigi Ferrara, director of the School of Design, for a tour of the new campus at George Brown College. Luigi will talk about the School’s collaborative approach to working with students, faculty, and professionals from the industry. He will discuss how they generate dynamic multidisciplinary teams that work in a co-creation process with communities around the city to develop design solutions that respond effectively to their needs. The presentation will showcase exciting collaborative projects currently underway, which demonstrate and reflect the School’s mandate to educate students to become designers who are problem solvers with the ability to effect positive change for humanity. Free event.

Creative Spacemaking, Wednesday, October 28, 2009 from 2:00pm – 4:30pm. Learn about Artscape’s collaborative approach to creative spacemaking on this 5 stop bus tour to existing and future Artscape projects in the Distillery District, West Queen West, Liberty Village and St. Clair/Wychwood. The tour will highlight the evolution of thinking and design for creative space provision, from basic workspaces to multi-dimensional platforms for collaboration. Free event.

Startup Drinks Toronto, Wednesday, October 28, 2009 at 6:00pm. Announcing the arrival of Startup Drinks 4! We’re continuing to keep the spirit of the startup community alive, one pint at a time on Wednesday, October 28th, 2009. It’s a simple concept: a grassroots effort to make sure startup folks get in touch and stay in touch. All it took was for Raymond Luk of Flow Ventures (http://www.flowventures.com/blog/) (a moving force behind Montreal Startup Drinks) to recruit Toronto all-round-instigator David Crow (http://davidcrow.ca/) who was on board immediately. Now, with Bryan Watson of the National Angel Capital Organization (http://www.angelinvestor.ca) and CEO Fusion (http://www.ceofusion.org) stepping up to help out, we are looking forward to an even better Startup Drinks Toronto 4! Free event.

Social Media Experts Series @ Rotman: Gary Vaynerchuk (#garyveeto), Thursday October 29 from 5:00pm – 7:00pm. Have you ever wanted to meet one of the most influential and passionate men? Here is your chance to meet and hang out with the one and only Gary Vaynerchuk. Gary will be right here in Toronto promoting the launch of his brand new book: “Crush It“! $29.95. Includes a free copy of Gary Vaynerchuk’s book.

Creative Leadership, Friday October 30 from 8:00am – 8:00pm. If creative leadership is the answer to the workforce of the future… what will inspire our current workforce and motivate the leaders of tomorrow? This conference will address creative leadership capacity building within organizations and how this impacts on the health, growth and sustainability, not only of the organization, but the city. Hosted by the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board, join Lyall Thomson, Director of Education, OCDSB for a day of dialogue on what leadership means for organizations and communities and how we can further develop the leadership talent. $70 for students, $325 for non-profits, $375 for business/government.

IAB Canada Intensive, One-Day Course in Social Media Marketing and Web 2.0, Friday October 30 from 8:00am – 5:00pm. The Interactive Advertising Bureau of Canada’s Intensive, One-Day Course In Social Media Marketing, is a full 8-hours long, and is designed to simplify and demonstrate the many new channels of marketing, advertising and communication that make up the Social Media and Web 2.0 space. Attendees will learn about Online Social Networks, RSS, Social Bookmarking/Tags, Consumer Generated Content, Blogs/Microblogs, Pod/Vidcasting, Social Applications, Widgets, Mashups and Wikis – and more importantly, how to leverage these marketing channels for optimal results. $400 for IAB members, $500 for non-members.

Toronto Design Nerds, Friday October 30 from 7:00pm – 10:00pm. Initiated to foster multidisciplinary collaboration between designers and artists of all persuasions, the Design Nerd Jams are a forum for creative people to discuss their projects and ideas. They can refresh existing projects, bring people together for new ones and be fun creative meanderings that refresh and excite. Check out the Vancouver Design Nerds (http://bit.ly/1NYdp4) to see what they’ve been jamming on. Other than food, drink and people with a penchant for group brainstorming, ideas and projects are at the heart of a Nerd Jam. We can jam on a project you’re spinning your wheels overs, a design competition you’d like to find a team for, an installation you’d like to create for a festival, or simply a crazy idea you’ve had roaming around in your head. Free event.

Possibly Related Posts:

• Video Clips: Scott Stratten, “Social Media Trends in 2010 and Beyond”
• Weekly Community Events Guide: Jan 25-Jan 29 2010
• Weekly Community Events Guide: Jan 18-Jan 22 2010
• Weekly Community Events Guide: Jan 11-Jan 15 2010
• Weekly Community Events Guide: Jan 4-Jan 15 2010