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News
The Inclusive Communities Program no longer functions as a distinct funding stream within the Laidlaw Foundation.
Social Inclusion as both a process and an outcome is embedded in all of the Foundation's programs and activities. The Foundation will continue to post resources on Social Inclusion in relation to our other work.
Social inclusion is about people really belonging in all the economic, social, political and cultural dimensions of our society. A socially inclusive community is one in which every person can fully participate without barriers or discrimination. Working for social inclusion means working for social change.
Along with civic engagement, diversity and youth engagement, social inclusion is one of the core values of the Laidlaw Foundation. The Laidlaw Foundation promotes inclusion by challenging specific forms of exclusion. We believe that an inclusive process is essential to inclusive outcomes. We do this through:
• challenging specific forms of exclusion based on gender, racialization, ethnicity, ableism, ageism and other factors;
• supporting the participation of excluded groups to identify obstacles to inclusion and to remove barriers and reduce disparities;
• focusing on the concerns, voices and leadership of young people; and
• working for policy changes that promote youth inclusion.
Social Inclusion: Canadian Perspectives, edited by Ted Richmond and Anver Saloojee, is available through Fernwood Publishing.
Campaign 2000 - Ontario Poverty Reduction Strategy
Concern about the persistence of high rates of child and family poverty in Ontario despite strong economic growth over the past 10 years has prompted a number of social policy advocates and anti-poverty organizations to call for a Poverty Reduction Strategy – a multi year plan with targets, timetables, and financial commitments. There has recently been some increased political attention to the challenge of poverty with new measures introduced such as the Working Income Tax Benefit (federal) and the Ontario Child Benefit. These initiatives are steps in the right direction but need to be incorporated into a comprehensive plan with ambitious targets.
Based on lessons learned from success in the United Kingdom and other jurisdictions, this Campaign 2000 discussion paper outlines what a Poverty Reduction Strategy for Ontario should look like. Given Campaign 2000’s longstanding focus on child poverty, the paper concentrates on a strategy to reduce child and family poverty.
Ontario Poverty Reduction Strategy
2007 Community Use of Schools Survey Results
The province has made some good first steps, but still has a long way to go towards improving community access to schools, according to a recent survey examining the barriers to accessing school space. The Community Social Planning Council and SPACE Coalition recently released the results from their 2007 Community Use of Schools Survey.
Research Results School Boards Accessed
Atkinson Charitable Foundation launches Inclusion Task Force
The Atkinson Charitable Foundation (ACF) has a rich track record of partnerships geared towards advancing our mission of promoting social and economic justice. While they have made significant strides, they are committed to doing better and to strengthening a process whereby everything they do and everything "they are" is viewed from their definition of an "inclusion lens."
With this in mind, ACF is striking the ACF Inclusion Task Force to advise the Foundation as it seeks to promote social and economic justice through an inclusion lens. More...
Kehinde Bah appointed to Youth Challenge Fund Board
Laidlaw's Youth Liaison Officer, Kehinde Bah, was recently named to the Youth Challenge Fund Board. The Fund brings together government and privately-matched funds to improve opportunities for Toronto's young people, particularly in poorly served neighbourhoods in the city's suburban areas. The focus of the fund will primarily be the 13 priority neighbourhood areas that have been identified by the City of Toronto, in consultation with United Way of Greater Toronto. These neighbourhoods were selected based on urgent local needs and inadequate local services.
For more information on the Fund, visit www.youthchallengefund.org
Laidlaw Houses ArtReach Initiative
ArtReach Toronto is a program designed to support arts initiatives that engage youth who have experienced exclusion in under-served areas of Toronto. Over the next three years, ArtReach Toronto will provide more than $1.2 million to support arts projects that encourage creative expression through quality arts opportunities for youth.
A guiding principle for ArtReach Toronto is the idea that funding needs to be accessible to youth directly and it needs to empower youth by placing ownership of projects in their hands. ArtReach Toronto will encourage youth to take the lead in defining what art means to them and what they need from the program to achieve their goals.
ArtReach Toronto will not only benefit youth in Toronto, but also the partner funding agencies. The collaborative approach creates an opportunity for funders to be innovative in meeting the needs of excluded youth by reducing barriers to accessing funds. ArtReach Toronto will also enable funders to learn from each other, share risk, and contribute to a larger pool of funds that ultimately has the potential to have a greater impact in the city.
Laidlaw Foundation is housing the initiative (ArtReach Program Manager Shahina Sayani works out of the Laidlaw office), administering the partnership funds, providing funding to the three-year project and serving on the project’s steering committee.
ArtReach Toronto is made up of partners from all three levels of government and several funding organizations, including The Laidlaw Foundation. Violetta Ilkiw (Youth Engagement Program Coordinator) and Denis Lefebvre (Arts Program Manager) have represented Laidlaw in this unique initiative and will continue to work with ArtReach’s newly appointed Program Manager, Shahina Sayani.
For more information,visit the ArtReach Toronto website or contact Shahina Sayani, Program Manager by phone (416-964-3614 x314) or email.
Youth Leaving Care-How Do They Fare?
In September 2005, Laidlaw Foundation made a grant that enabled the Modernizing Income Security for Working Age Adults Project of St. Christopher House to commission a policy research paper on the challenges facing young people the leaving care of the child welfare system. There are more than 75,000 young people living in state care in Canada
[More... ]
In March 2006 the Foundation supported the screening of a stirring documentary, Wards of the Crown directed by Andree Cazabon. The film was co-produced by the National Film Board of Canada and CBC Newsworld, The Lens. The Foundation assembled a team to work with the filmmaker and prepared a background context piece that supports the film.
For copies of the film Wards of the Crown/Les enfants de la couronne contact NFB at 1-800-267-7710.
Friends of Wards of the Crown may contact a.cazabon@youthincare.ca
For more on youth in care you can go to the following websites: www.oacas.org or www.cwlc.ca
First National Study of Non-Profit Board Governance Practices
--Some boards achieving success, others experiencing challenges with new standards and trends--
The findings of the first national study of non-profit board governance practices in Canada were released in April 2006. The landmark study, conducted by Strategic Leverage Partners in partnership with the Centre for Voluntary Sector Research and Development, identifies the key issues facing today’s non-profit boards. It also goes an important step further and provides an inventory of proven successful practices that can be shared by organizations across the sector.
The study is available at http://www.strategicleveragepartners.com.
Toronto Community Foundation recognizes the importance of celebrating and supporting leadership that positively impacts our city. The Foundation's new Vital People program is for individuals whose leadership as a volunteer or professional in the non-profit sector is making a difference in Toronto's Vital SignsTM, but who lack financial support to fully develop their leadership potential. The program will provide flexible grants of up to $5,000 that can be used to access formal training or other informal development opportunities that enable recipients to build their skills or knowledge, apply or share their experience in different ways that will enhance their leadership contribution. The program is open to those just taking on new leadership challenges as well as those with many years of experience.
Should you have any questions regarding the program, please contact Mini Alakkatusery at 416.921.2035 x 205 or malakkatusery@tcf.ca. For more information on Toronto's Vital Signs visit www.tcf.ca.
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