Between a Rock and a Hard Place: Charities’ Biggest Concerns and Priorities in 2025
Over the past few weeks, Canada has been plunged into political and economic turmoil. The resignation of Prime Minister Trudeau and the new U.S. president Donald Trump’s tariff threats have deepened uncertainty across the country. For charities already struggling with financial pressures, these disruptions make long-term planning even more challenging. Duke Chang, CEO of CanadaHelps, recently warned that with looming tariffs, an unresolved Canada Post labor dispute, rising cybersecurity risks, and an upcoming federal election that could reshape government funding, 2025 is set to be another year of instability.
Since launching this project two years ago, we have started each year by asking charities about their outlook, top challenges, and priorities for the year ahead. As we enter 2025, their responses reflect heightened uncertainty. Compared to our 2024 survey, this year’s findings (Survey 3.02.1, February 2025) reveal a sector grappling with declining optimism, mounting financial insecurity, and growing concerns about economic uncertainty.
“It’s just madness”: Fading Optimism and an Overwhelming Sense of Economic and Political Uncertainty
The charitable sector appears to be experiencing a decline in optimism, though confidence levels remains high. In early 2024, 76% of charities expressed optimism about the future; by 2025, that number had dropped to 71%, while pessimism doubled from 5% to 10%.
Indeed, the most striking shift this year is the sharp rise in global economic uncertainty, which has emerged as the second largest challenge for charities. In just one year, concerns about global economic conditions have surged from 21% to 55%.
Some leaders remain hopeful due to strong community trust or stable funding agreements: “My outlook is optimistic relative to other cultural organizations in my region. We are in an enviable position of having core costs covered through a contribution agreement with a crown corporation that supports our flagship program. Funding is uncertain for other areas of programming, but we know we can keep the lights on.” However, for many, the outlook is increasingly grim. The majority of organizations express concerns about the economic climate, political instability, and the sector’s growing financial fragility:
- “The prospect of an ongoing trade war in an economic climate that is already leading to a cost-of-living crisis in a sector that is under-resourced… is what nightmares are made of.”
- “The rising uncertainties caused by Donald Trump and how our federal and provincial/territorial governments will respond, and the resulting future landscape for nonprofits, is a huge concern as food insecurity and poverty rise in ways we haven’t seen—at least in my lifetime.”
- “Donations are down 50% from 2022, and funding has remained stagnant. Grants supplement programs, but operating funds have not kept pace with inflation, and we have been running deficits for two years in a row. This is a worrisome trend, and now the U.S. threat of tariffs has completely taken the plot away. It’s just madness.”
“We’re caught between a rock and a hard place”: Funding Instability, Workforce Pressures and Other Concerns
The most pressing challenge for Canadian charities in 2025 remains financial instability. This year, 88% of organizations cite financial uncertainty as a major concern – an increase from 82% in 2024.
This precarious environment is also affecting workforce stability and translates into immediate operational challenges. The struggle to attract and retain skilled workers remains one of the biggest challenges facing charities. Many charities can’t offer competitive wages, leading to burnout and high turnover, particularly among frontline service providers. Some leaders note that shifting workforce attitudes and expectations around compensation are making recruitment even harder: “The biggest challenge is the need for increased funds to allow us to hire and retain qualified staff. So much of the work of government is downloaded onto charities, but we can’t offer the same wages or benefits, so we’re caught between a rock and a hard place—expected to do more with less, while struggling to keep our staff.”
Others highlight how funding uncertainty directly affects staff retention, particularly with the upcoming federal election and the potential for shifting government priorities:
- “We rely strongly on government funding, and with a looming federal election, we are uncertain of the future. Our main sourceof provincial funding […] is also ending within the next few years. We’ve never had a problem with hiring new staff, but are unable to guarantee contract extensions for them in advance due to the funding uncertainties, so retention is difficult.”
Beyond financial and workforce challenges, many organizations are deeply concerned about the broader political and social climate. Some note increasing anxieties over policies impacting equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI), immigration, and racialized communities:
- “Extremely uncertain times with attacks on EDI, immigration and all racialized people.”
- The trend to vilify and pull back from EDI is of high concern. It calls into question the credentials of people who are often marginalized and oppressed by racism, sexism, ableism, homophobia, transphobia, faith discrimination, etc.
“We have a need for multi-year secured operational funding”: Charities’ Top Priorities in 2025
Charities are focused on securing sustainable funding, maintaining programs, and strengthening community engagement. It is not surprising that funding remains the most urgent priority, with 77% of charities listing it as a top concern – an 11% increase from 2024.
A particularly striking shift this year is the greater emphasis on workforce recruitment and retention. Last year, it ranked below donor relationships and collaboration with partners, but in 2025, it has risen to the fourth top priority. As one leader notes: “Our prorities are; aiming to set our organization up financially so it’s less of a hand to mouth existance, trying to get our wages up to not lose valuable staff members (the arts is a very low paying sector), trying to fulfill the needs and the demand on theorganziation with limited access to funding and resoucres.”
Many organizations express frustration over the short-term nature of existing funding models, which make long-term planning nearly impossible:
- “Funding opportunities are too short term – organizations are constantly chasing dollars and having to constantly change services. . . we need to be given more time to strengthen programs that work rather than continuing to change them.”
- We have a need for multi year secured operational funding from all levels of government.
For many, the challenge isn’t just securing funding, but securing the right kind of funding. While project-specific grants are available, they rarely cover the behind-the-scenes costs that keep organizations running—staff salaries, infrastructure, and administrative expenses:
- “Our organization has no shortage of project funding. What we lack is access to core funding to support the administrative activities. Our directors are underpaid and overworked which taxes and hobbles the organization as a whole. We need access to solid, sustainable core funding.”
- Significant challenges securing operating funds. Donors are willing to fund projects, but projects require planning, organization,fundraising, infrastructure, administration etc.
Conclusion
What stands out in this year’s survey on charities’ future outlook is the intensified uncertainty and mounting challenges they face. Financial instability, workforce pressures, and shifting socio-political dynamics continue to shape the sector’s reality. And yet, despite these growing concerns, the majority of charities remain hopeful – even as optimism has slightly declined. This contradiction raises important questions. What factors sustain this resilience? Is it confidence in their mission, strong donor relationships, or an ingrained adaptability that keeps charities moving forward? Future analysis will explore what distinguishes those who remain hopeful from those feeling increasingly uncertain.
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