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What were the most notable events for small business in 2013? That’s the question we posed to some of the country's biggest small business organizations, including the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, Canadian Youth Business Foundation, MaRS Discovery District and Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters. Scroll through the following list to find out what they had to say.

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<font size="4"<b>CANADIAN PENSION PLAN (CPP)</b></font><br><br> "The fact that provincial and territorial finance ministers did not reach an agreement to increase Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and Quebec Pension Plan (QPP) premiums at their mid-December meeting is good news for 'all' Canadians - small business owners and working Canadians alike. <br><br> CPP/QPP premiums is essentially a payroll tax on the earnings of small employers and their employees. CFIB's own research shows that proposed increases in these premiums would lower wages and cost jobs. A recent survey of its small business members and commissioned poll also found that most did not support proposed increases, citing reduced ability to grow their business or ability to spend on essential goods and services. <br><br> CFIB is urging provinces to let the new pooled registered pensions have a chance to work to provide Canadians with another tool to help them save for their retirement. The discussion needs to shift to IF hiking CPP and QPP is the best solution to enhance retirement savings, not just WHEN and HOW MUCH." <a href="http://www.cfib-fcei.ca/english/index.html"><i><font color="99CCFF"><br><br><b>-Canadian Federation of Independent Business</b></font></a></i> <br>Cartoon by Brian Gable/The Canadian Press

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<font size="4"<b>BIG DATA AND OPEN DATA</b></font><br><br> "More companies are taking advantage of the opportunities afforded by big data, and the open data movement is bringing opportunities for startups, not-for-profits and app developers to access the increasing number of available data public sector data sets to build apps and services. <br><br> Ontarians now have access to apps to help manage their energy consumption data, thanks to a pilot program led by MaRS Discovery District, in partnership with Hydro One and London Hydro and supported by the Ministry of Energy through its Green Button initiative."<i> <a href="http://www.marsdd.com/"><font color="99CCFF"><br><br>-MaRS Discovery District</a></font></i> <br>Thinkstock Images/Getty Images

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<font size="4"<b>YOUTH ENTREPRENEURSHIP</b></font><br><br> "The <a href="http://o.canada.com/life/millennials-entrepreneurs/">recent surge</a> in millennials’ interest in entrepreneurship: 16 per cent of 18 to 33 year olds intend to fulfill their entrepreneurial dreams within a year – double that for other age groups – and they were nearly five times more likely to be motivated by the allure of charting their own course, and following a passion, than they were by money or status. <br><br> The federal government <a href="http://www.cybf.ca/cybf_press_media/federal-government-announces-18-million-investment-in-the-canadian-youth-business-foundation/">also invested</a> $18-million over two years for CYBF to help more young entrepreneurs launch businesses."<i> <br><br><a href="http://www.cybf.ca/"><font color="99CCFF">-Canadian Youth Business Foundation</a></font> </i><br>Photos by Katherine Scarrow/Canadian Youth Business Foundation

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<font size="4"<b>CANADIAN DOLLAR</b></font><br><br> "The biggest story for manufacturers this year in respect to their operations has been the lower dollar. Other headlines that were atop of our members' radars however included the CETA signing, EI premium freeze, and an extension of the Accelerated Capital Cost Allowance, to name a few."<i> <br><br><a href="http://cme-mec.ca/"><font color="99CCFF">-Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters</a></font></i><br>Photo by Gary Hershorn/Reuters

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<font size="4"<b>ON THE GLOBAL STAGE</b></font><br><br> "Canada is among the top five G20 countries in which to start a business, according to <a href="http://www.ey.com/CA/en/Services/Strategic-Growth-Markets/G20-Entrepreneurship-Barometer-2013-Overview">EY’s G20 Entrepreneurship Barometer 2013</a>. Canadian entrepreneurs benefit from relatively low start-up and labour costs, strong public policy, and access to initial funding."<br><br><i> <font color="99CCFF"><a href="http://www.cybf.ca/">-Canadian Youth Business Foundation</a> </i></font><br>Photo by Ingram Publishing

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<font size="4"<b>CROWDFUNDING</b></font><br><br> "Crowdfunding platforms can open doors for entrepreneurs because they offer access to capital without having to navigate through the complicated traditional channels such as venture capital and angel investors. In addition, crowdfunding provides entrepreneurs with a way to engage their customer base and involve them in the exciting start-up phase of their company, all the while getting their product out into the market."<br><br> We continue to see crowdfunding as a growing trend. MarS now has a partner page on Indiegogo, and some of our clients, are running crowdfunding campaigns." <br><br><i> <a href="http://www.marsdd.com/"><font color="99CCFF">-MaRS Discovery District</a></font></i><br>Screen capture from Kickstarter Canada home page

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