Funding for Programs that Empower and Support Youth in Ontario (Canada)
GrantID: 73939
Grant Funding Amount Low: $2,500
Deadline: Ongoing
Grant Amount High: $250,000
Summary
This funding opportunity offers multi-year support to collaborative teams within a Canadian province aiming to transform service systems that impact youth and families. Designed for regions where Indigenous, Black, and equity-deserving communities experience systemic barriers, the initiative focuses on improving areas such as education, justice, child welfare, cultural services, employment, housing, and health systems. It is structured to enable systemic solutions rather than isolated projects.
Eligible applicants include nonprofit organizations, Indigenous governance bodies, or coalitions led by youth-serving groups. Both established agencies and informal networks can participate, provided they demonstrate shared leadership, community engagement, and commitment to addressing structural inequities. Small businesses are not directly eligible, but partnerships involving private-sector expertise may be acceptable if led by nonprofit or Indigenous governance entities.
The intent of the funds is to support collaborative planning, capacity building, systems analysis, policy co-development, and youth-engaged redesign of legacy service delivery frameworks. The initiative encourages activities such as mapping service gaps, integrating voice of lived experience in systems change, testing promising practices, and establishing new coordination processes or governance models that advance equity.
Grants are offered at up to $250,000 per year, with projects running from two to five years, depending on scope and anticipated impact. Total funding can range from $500,000 to $1.25 million per collaborative endeavor. Awards are distributed annually through a structured intake process that includes an initial expression of interest followed by full proposals.
This opportunity is part of an annual funding cycle and supports scalable initiatives that drive enduring change in how youth-serving systems operate within regions of high need.
To find more grants, visit The Grant Portal and use the Search Grant tool to find your next grants.
If you are located in Ontario and working in the area of Community Development & Services, this funding opportunity may be a good fit. For more relevant grant options that support your work and priorities, visit The Grant Portal and use the Search Grant tool to find opportunities.
Eligible Regions
Interests
Eligible Requirements
