The Role of Grantmaking Foundations in Restructuring Ontario’s Philanthropic Action: Throughout and Beyond the COVID-19 Crisis

Justification of research project

The PhiLab Ontario Hub Regional Conference 2021 brought together researchers, grantmaking foundations, and community organizations to examine the challenges and priorities facing Ontario’s philanthropic sector during and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic. The three-day virtual event served as a platform for dialogue, knowledge sharing, and planning, with a focus on transformation, equity, and collaboration. The sessions highlighted structural inequities, the adaptability of community organizations, and the need for more inclusive, flexible, and trust-based funding models. Discussions emphasized the importance of rethinking philanthropy’s role in systemic change, supporting community leadership, and developing a collective research and development agenda for the region. The event concluded with a call for deeper academic-sector collaboration and a redefinition of philanthropic governance in Canada.

Research question

How can philanthropic institutions contribute to systemic transformation rather than reinforce existing inequalities?

What priorities should guide Ontario’s philanthropic research and action agenda in the post-pandemic era?

Research purpose

PhiLab’s Ontario Hub hosted a three-afternoon regional virtual conference with the purpose of bringing together established and emerging scholars, grantmaking foundations, and philanthropic organizations to develop a common understanding and direction on the challenges and priorities of philanthropic action in Canada and Ontario. Isidora Gievski-Sidorovska was the conference organizer in collaboration with Manuel Litalien and François Brouard, co-directors of Philab Ontario.

Research approach

• Day 1: Sector analysis & community-level challenges post-COVID

  • Focus on administrative costs, equity gaps, and digital divides

• Day 2: Foundation responses & funding restructuring

  • Exploratory case studies and Delphi studies

  • Discussions on operational support, flexibility, and leadership

• Day 3: Joint R&D agenda development

  • Roundtables with scholars, foundation leaders, and community orgs

  • Strategy sessions on collaboration, training, and data-sharing