The need for the sector to lead on policy advocacy has been described as a moral imperative, yet it often faces criticism that it has lost its sense of urgency and become too content as a service-delivery vehicle. Contributor Tim Harper looks at policy institutes across Canada that are teaching the pragmatic skills of building support, refining a policy “ask,” and having bureaucratic and political doors open.
With volunteering in Canada in decline, contributor Yvonne Rodney looks at the data and talks to sector leaders to ponder the way forward. The solution, she writes, includes acknowledging the impact of the pandemic, understanding generational differences, and convincing funders to do more to help organizations.
“Future people count. There could be a lot of them. We can make their lives go better.” These statements capture the essence of the argument made by the author of What We Owe the Future. William MacAskill is widely known as the primary exponent of effective altruism, an approach to “doing good,” in his words, that has as much impact as possible on the well-being of people across the world.
The meaningful participation of people and communities with lived experience is key to a human-rights-based approach to poverty. Storytelling is a start, but it is only one side of the process, says Maytree’s Elizabeth McIsaac. We need to think deeply about how we receive those stories and incorporate people’s expertise into decision-making, she says, and we will improve our practice if we admit that we have lots to learn.
In the midst of Canada’s housing crisis, there’s a strong narrative that housing is a commodity rather than our right. Bonnie Mah, strategic narrative lead at Maytree, considers the opportunities and challenges of rights-based framing and talks about how she and her colleagues are trying to shift the conversation on housing in Canada.
Toronto Foundation’s Nicola Hives reflects on her organization’s three-year learning journey via the Trust Collective, a group of women philanthropists and community organizations serving women and girls. “We made a lot of mistakes,” she says, but they also learned some important lessons. First and foremost: “We can’t let our ambition to make a difference get the better of us. Thoughtfulness and partnering with community are everything.”
Grassroots organizations are an integral part of the non-profit sector, responding to needs and shaping how communities care for each other. This profile, the fourth in a series, looks at how two sisters, starting with a podcast aimed at amplifying Indigenous voices from across Turtle Island, followed by a meal program to help the residents of a homeless encampment in Regina, are helping urban Indigenous youth reclaim their culture.
With a patchwork of laws across Canada governing the investment of charitable funds, and a lack of clarity and CRA guidance around impact investments, charities that operate in more than one province must spend considerable time and money on ensuring compliance – resources that would be better directed toward their charitable work.
