Skip to Content

New Briefing Document Available

Financing Public Value

Canada’s charities are on the front lines of some of the country’s most pressing challenges, from affordability to community resilience. Yet behind their impact lies a quieter issue: how they are funded.

Nearly two decades ago, a federal panel warned that government funding models needed to evolve to better support the sector. Today, many of those same challenges persist. Funding often falls short of covering true costs, arrives with tight restrictions, and operates on short timelines that make long-term planning difficult.

Our latest briefing note, Financing Public Value: How Funding Design Affects the Impact of Canadian Charities, explores how these funding structures shape what charities can achieve, and what they cannot. At a time of economic uncertainty and rising demand, the way funding is designed is not just an administrative detail but a critical lever for impact.

Reimagining funding isn’t simply about sustainability for charities. It’s about strengthening one of Canada’s key partners in delivering public value.

An icon of a saxophone

Financing Public Value: How Funding Design Affects the Impact of Canadian Charities

Briefing Note (April, 2026)

Other Briefing Notes

An icon of a saxophone

At a Tipping Point: The Trilemma Facing Canada’s Charitable Sector

An icon of a saxophone

Canada’s Social Safety Net: A Call to Reform Funding Models for Charities

An icon of a saxophone

Financing Public Value: How Funding Design Affects the Impact of Canadian Charities