Systems Change Granting Program

Award Amount: Grants were part of $18.75 million distributed across 112 projects

Geographic Scope: British Columbia

Focus Areas:

• Projects addressing root causes of systemic problems
• Systems change and policy work
• Projects led by First Nations or Indigenous-led organizations
• Arts non-profits advancing reconciliation and increasing representation of racialized artists
• Environmental non-profits prioritizing Indigenous voices and leadership
• Clean energy development with First Nations leadership
• Home retrofit projects in Indigenous and rural communities
• Language revitalization and decolonial approaches
• Cultural integration in education for Indigenous students
• Anti-racism and representation work

Eligibility:

• Charities and non-profits
• Preference for Indigenous-led, racially diverse, and community-centered organizations

Funding Features:

• 95% of dollars granted as multi-year project funding
• One-time distribution of entire year's granting budget
• Released to allow Vancouver Foundation to pursue internal systems change work (2021-2022)

Program Philosophy:

• Focus on understanding root causes of problems
• Implementation of systemic solutions
• Critical for pandemic recovery

Application Process

Status: Program no longer accepting applications (one-time distribution in May 2021)

Note: No detailed application information provided in source materials. The $18.75 million was distributed across 112 Systems Change projects in a single grant cycle in May 2021. The foundation stated it would not be offering this program again in 2021 and distributed its entire year's granting budget at once to pursue internal systems change work.