Community Foundations of Canada Jane Humphries Peaceful Networks Community Foundations of Canada Jane Humphries

CFC Consultation on Foundations and Social Justice: Moving Beyond the Traditional Charitable Roles Role of philanthropy in society has broadened from supporting charitable works to supporting social change Our work in Social Justice began 12 years ago We believed the role of philanthropy in society had broadened from supporting charitable works to supporting social change. Our CFs were being challenged to move beyond short tem, direct service to a longer term, institutional change approach. Issues such as poverty, gender equality, environmental sustainability and human rights required longer-term, collective action to effect social change. We started by surveying our members to explore and assess CF’s activities and interest levels in supporting social justice projects, findings revealed: A strong appetite for exploring and supporting social justice activities CFs have a leadership role to play on social justice issues Some confusion on the definition and interpretation of social justice We then held a consultation which led to a guiding document being created for CFs that wished to integrate a social justice focus into their work We invited presentations from Christopher Harris on the work the Ford Fdn was supporting on Philanthropy in the Peace and Social Justice Program and Avila Kilmurray. Results of this consultation included: collaborative research on social justice issues; key CFs forming a learning circle; collaborations and partnerships explored with private foundations, government and the faith community; further sessions and dialogue at CFC events

Social Justice Forum To explore the role community foundations have in advancing social justice issues in their communities After the consultation CFC hosted a two day forum with CF leaders and social justice practitioners – it was a pivotal gathering for CFC and our members – a turning point in how CFs explored what issues they would tackle and how they might tackle them. Great optimism Almost Unlimited Potential Community foundations have the potential to act in a variety of ways to strengthen and contribute to social justice work. They can: Take calculated risks Provide seed money and enabling funding Support new organizations and help “incubate” new ideas Model new kinds of relationships that include money but that aren’t necessarily built on money Support research on social justice issues Make the link between neighbourhood realities and longer-term solutions; link the micro picture to the macro picture; make the link between service and policy Seek endowments and other funding to build a capital base for this kind of work Pool resources nationally Work together, with your community and with the rest of the world The limits to community foundation potential are largely limits of will and imagination.   CFC’s Role – how could we as their association help? What Community Foundations May Need To move the focus on social justice forward, community foundations are likely to need some of the following: A few people willing to move this agenda forward A mandate from our Boards Boards that have knowledge about community needs, an understanding of their root causes, and knowledge about who is working on them Good information, data from research, and analysis about community issues (yesterday’s session about the value add CFs can bring because they can interpret and analyse the date) A strategy about how much and what to take on, and who needs to work with us A clear understanding of our legal limits Perhaps some compelling new initiatives – to push the limits of what’s possible – both within the foundation and in the community New contacts and new ways of involving people to broaden/diversify our network Time/ patience / creativity / commitment / courage Willingness to do things in new ways

Social Justice Continuum Grantmaking Strengthen capacity Advance learning /Support awareness initiatives Inclusive Community Leadership Contribute / Assume a lead or collaborative role Promote awareness/demonstrate commitment Advocacy Engage in the advocacy work of others Spearhead initiatives / promote to broader public Next we developed a Social Justice Continuum so CFs could see themselves in this work – we focused on three areas GRANTMAKING Strengthen the capacity of those most affected help meet basic and immediate needs basic training and development operating costs of groups supporting those most affected community economic development initiatives   Build the capacity for mobilisation around social justice issues leadership development programs for affected or underrepresented individuals promotion of inclusion of underrepresented or affected groups technical assistance to strengthen groups’ capacity for social justice work community mobilising initiatives among existing and emerging grass roots social movements initiatives that build cross-sector connections, collaborations and networks Advance learning about social justice issues and work social innovation that addresses root causes research into root causes evaluation and dissemination of social justice projects Support advocacy and awareness initiatives learning about influencing legislative agendas and policy makers raising public awareness about social justice issues engaging and influencing elected officials INCLUSIVE COMMUNITY LEADERSHIP Contribute to the work of others participate in community forums and think tanks around social justice issues facilitate connections between groups working toward a similar goal locally, regionally, and nationally engage donors and other funders in discussions about social justice funding Assume a lead or collaborative role in advancing social justice work convene dialogue, think tanks, study sessions with grass roots/ social justice groups lead or collaborate with others on social justice research and evaluation hold information sessions on influencing policy makers and legislative reform spearhead special projects in support of social justice change Promote awareness of social justice issues share information and learning broadly with community groups, policy makers, elected officials, donors, media, and others “champion” other groups who are working toward policy change in support of specific justice issues tell stories to celebrate successes inspire the broader community with “what is possible” ADVOCACY Demonstrate commitment to social justice establish board and committee recruitment policies and practices that ensure inclusion of underrepresented groups ensure hiring policies and practices support diversity ensure investment policies include ethical investing seek out minority suppliers Support and engage in the advocacy work of others share knowledge and information about influencing policy change lend voice to the work of other groups and networks engaged in advocacy facilitate exchange of views between grassroots groups and policy makers participate in public consultations “campaign” for change with others Spearhead advocacy initiatives on behalf of broad based community issues identify a social justice issue that requires leadership identify and bring together those who are concerned about the issue determine what policy change is required and build alliances for change build a “case “ for policy change approach key opinion shapers who can get the issue on the legislative agenda provide input into bureaucratic level consultations meet with legislative representatives to influence their views in favour of change Promote the need for advocacy with the broader public develop key messages in support of policy change “campaign” for change by informing the public of the need for policy change and ways that they can participate celebrate successes and acknowledge the contributions of others

Building Capacity for Social Justice Jane’s Notes – pull out sections of the guide that illustrate how CFC was supporting and encouraging the work of CFs Then we developed A Social Justice Discussion Guide for Community Foundations – Pick a story from the guide – give a couple of examples? SECTION ONE: Exploring Social Justice and Our Vision SECTION TWO: Turning Concern into Action – Grantmaking through a Social Justice Lens SECTION THREE: Turning Concern into Action – Donor Engagement and Asset Development through a Social Justice Lens SECTION FOUR: Turning Concern into Action – Community Leadership through a Social Justice Lens SECTION FIVE: Walking the Talk – Governance and Administration through a Social Justice Lens

We're using data to drive action and to dig deeper. Vital Signs is an annual community check-up conducted by community foundations across Canada. Researches quality of life trends in our communities. In 2013, twenty-three community foundations released local reports. So, where are we now – a dozen years later… We're using data to drive action and to dig deeper. Vital Signs is one of the initiatives that CFC has supported for the past 8 years - we provide training and resources for CFs that want to participate in VS. CFs have been using VS to help them better direct their granting so that it works on root causes rather than just treating the symptoms. More than 40 CFs have participated in the program which uses community data to provide critical information about quality of life in Canadian communities. The results have been dramatic! Examples: In Victoria, the CF has used the statistics from their Vital Signs reports to re-orient their granting so that it reaches more deeply into issues like homelessness and food security. In Guelph, Vital Signs revealed that food security and hunger were key issues in at least six neighbourhoods – the Guelph Community Foundation responding by initiating collective kitchens and planning community gardens to improve access to healthy food. In Vancouver, Vital Signs was used to connect with 3,500 youth living throughout metro Vancouver. The result was a snapshot of youth experiences across the entire region – key indicators for the Vancouver Foundation to focus community granting and support. CFC also release a report entitled Fertile Ground: Sowing the seeds of change in Canada’s food system, which highlighted how food is at the epicenter of Canada’s most pressing issues and how communities can mobilize locally for change. This report followed on the heels of our 2012 report about the complex issues facing today’s youth in a report we called #GenerationFlux.

Building Capacity for Social Justice We're tackling key issues. Right now community foundations across Canada are building what we're calling Smart & Caring Community Funds in the lead up to our country's 150th Birthday celebration in 2017. Each CF is using these funds to address local priorities. In 2002, the Hamilton Community Foundation’s Board of Directors made a landmark decision to focus on poverty reduction and prevention in the city – knowing that addressing poverty would get to the root cause of many other community issues. Since 2004, close to $10 million in grants have been made through the Tackling Poverty Together initiative – co-convening the Hamilton Roundtable on Poverty Reduction to address policy level, community-wide change while the foundation focused more on local interventions. The strategy has yielded impressive results – block-by-block improvements in some of Hamilton’s most challenged neighbourhoods, stronger community leadership, resident participation, and meeting local needs such as healthy food access and youth programing. From this work the City of Hamilton has partnered with HCF to place community developers in focus neighbourhoods in Hamilton’s core - helping resident teams in each neighbourhood create and implement Action Plans for their communities.

Building Capacity for Social Justice Following the devastating Southern Alberta Floods in June 2013 which displaced people and damaged communities, The Calgary Foundation established the Flood Rebuilding Fund to support long-term rebuilding and recovery efforts.  Kicking off the fund with a $1million grant, Calgarians quickly responded with a wave of donations to increase the fund to over $2 million. These are just a few examples of how our association helped our members think and act about social justice issues…

Social Justice Resources www.cfc-fcc.ca/publications