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Grand River Pride, the Preston Heights Community Group and Rhythm and Blues Cambridge are among dozens of organizations across Waterloo region sharing $2.89 million in "upstream funding" to support various initiatives this year.
The groups gathered at the yearly launch event to hear firsthand how the "upstream funding model" has changed lives.
“The Rohingya Centre helped me stand on my feet,” said Omar, a newcomer who left Bangladesh nearly a year ago to build a life here with his wife. The centre, a 2022 recipient, supported Omar in finding housing, learning English, and finding work in his field.
“They were the light in my life,” said Omar in a video shared at the launch event. “I have freedom. I found family here. I’m earning my money. I can now feel that I am alive.”
“To improve safety and wellbeing for all, we need to focus on the factors that impact it: income, education, employment, cultural needs, a sense of belonging,” says Regional Chair Karen Redman in a press release.
“Despite their resilience, many people continue to face barriers in these areas, especially within racialized and other historically marginalized communities. This funding and the work of these organizations helps to remove those barriers and provide opportunities.”
Since 2021, nearly $12 million in regional funding has supported 116 initiatives focused on reconciliation, land-based teaching, culturally safe programs and services, building skills for employment, youth leadership, and more.
This year Grand River Pride received $38,920 to hire a community engagement coordinator to help organize and promote celebrations of diversity, love, and acceptance for the 2SLGBTQIA+ community.
Preston Heights Community Group received $77,840 to provide programs to involve youth that are geared towards providing valuable volunteer experiences and fostering skill development and community engagement.
While Rhythm and Blues Cambridge received $116,760 this year and will receive $110,922 in 2025 to hire a Black researcher to conduct a needs assessment in Cambridge and the surrounding area to better focus programming and collaboration efforts. The group says it will also "grow its organizational capacity by recruiting new board members, writing bylaws, implementing ongoing leadership training for Black women in Cambridge, and incorporating as a non-profit."
Overall, the funding builds on the priorities the community identified in the Community Safety and Wellbeing plan.
The reach of the fund continues to grow, with a record 160 applications received in 2024, indicative of ongoing and changing community needs.
The Community Change Committee uses a vigorous community-led process to make decisions that align with the priorities in the Community Safety and Wellbeing plan. Priority goes to grassroots groups that traditionally face barriers to accessing funding.
A recent evaluation by Wilfrid Laurier University researchers found that the funding model meaningfully supports equity deserving groups towards sustainability and growth. The report stated that a “strength of the upstream model is its ability to challenge the status quo… it’s about empowering communities to become architects of their own future.”
View the list of 2024 recipients.here
