Grants and Contributions

Through this 31-month project, She Matters will conduct research that will help improve GBV services for at-risk groups. This project will increase access to justice and enhance reporting practices for at-risk groups, specifically Indigenous women, in rural and remote communities in Yukon and northern Ontario. This project will address key barriers in accessing forensic evidence collection for survivors of sexual violence in the identified regions. To do so, the project will expand upon existing research conducted by She Matters on forensic evidence accessibility within the defined regions by engaging community stakeholders and members, conducting a literature review with emphasis on the barriers in reporting acts of sexual assault in rural and remote communities, conducting surveys, focus groups, and interviews with survivors and community stakeholders to identify systemic gaps which provide barriers in reporting acts of sexual violence. She Maters will also engage with law enforcement, crown prosecutors, and others involved in the judicial system in each region, to document current protocols around sexual assault cases, as well as evidence requirements for prosecuting sexual assault. She Matters will publish all findings digitally, including a direct link to download the full report, and highlight the findings on the organization's podcast to share information on the research findings.

The supplemental funding will be used for in-person community knowledge sharing visits in Northern BC, Northern ON, and Yukon to share preliminary findings and analysis from the project research.

Through this 31-month project, Restigouche CBDC will conduct research that will help improve GBV services for at-risk groups, specifically Mi’gmaq women, Two Spirit, non-binary and gender-diverse people in the extended region of Restigouche. It will address barriers to accessing services related to GBV in a region with intersecting vulnerabilities and needs, and with limitations in providing culturally specific and trauma-informed care. To do so, the project will include the creation of an Advisory Committee, the implementation of an action and knowledge mobilization plan, and an internal project evaluation process. Furthermore, the project will entail a comprehensive research phase which will include a review of relevant literature to identify gaps, engagement with community members with lived experience through adapted research methods, and an analysis of results to identify barriers, best practices, and recommendations. Restigouche CBDC will create products and materials that summarize project results intended for key partners and stakeholders, a knowledge mobilization campaign for the general public, and presentations to share information on research findings.

This pilot project will test the provision of free menstrual products to community organizations serving diverse low-income populations in various locations across Canada and scale up existing education and awareness activities to increase awareness of period poverty and reduce the stigma of menstruation.

Specifically, this pilot project (Phase 1) will allow Food Banks Canada to engage with private sector partners to procure menstrual products and work with its transportation partners to efficiently distribute the products through its national network of food banks and partnerships with community-based organizations including shelters, friendship centres and local food banks to various pilot sites across the country. In addition, the organization will test the provision of free reusable menstrual products in one or more communities as part of this pilot project. Food Banks Canada will also work with a consortium of menstrual equity organizations in Canada to scale up existing education and awareness activities to increase awareness of period poverty and reduce the stigma of menstruation in Canada. The organization will launch a transparent, impartial and fair process to select menstrual equity organizations for this component of the pilot. Food Banks Canada will monitor progress, collect data, and report on project activities to develop recommendations for the advancement of menstrual equity in Canada. A GBA+ perspective will be applied throughout the implementation of the pilot to ensure inclusivity of the process and a better access to the products and programming.

The supplemental funding (Phase 2) will allow Food Banks Canada to expand the distribution of disposable and reusable menstrual products to additional sites in Northern Communities, working with organization(s) working within these communities. Food Banks Canada will also distribute additional disposable products to pilot sites demonstrating the greatest need based on data collected during the early stages of implementation and provide additional funds to menstrual education and awareness organizations to expand the scope of their work. Additionally, Food Banks Canada will partner with organization(s) to test the making of reusable menstrual product within northern community(ies). Given the significant cost of disposable product in these regions, the piloting of a range of reusable product into these northern communities will be helpful to understand the challenges and key lessons of such initiatives.

The supplemental funding (Phase 3) will allow Food Banks Canada to distribute additional disposable products to pilot sites demonstrating the greatest need based on data collected during the early stages of implementation and to provide additional funds to menstrual education and awareness organizations to expand the scope of their work.

The Supplemental funding (Phase 4) will allow Food Banks Canada to enhance the financial support allocated to menstrual education and awareness organizations to pursue the expansion of their activities.

Through this 7-month project, Out Jasper will develop community-informed solutions to key barriers and gaps to address the rural experiences of the LGBTQ2 communities in the West Yellowhead Region of Alberta. This will be achieved in partnership with Options HIV West Yellowhead by conducting focus groups in Jasper, Hinton, Edson and Whitecourt in Alberta to identify unique issues facing each town that will form a LGBTQ2 advisory committee to explore and develop practical solutions and guide our project, decreasing barriers for the LGBTQ2 community of each rural town through education, building community through creating alliance groups and implementing LGBTQ2 focused events and improving access to services for all through intersectional analysis, and increasing local visibility and awareness. They will also facilitate advisory committee meetings and work with committee members to implement proposed solutions to the rural LGBTQ2 communities and will develop and coordinate Safe Space training in collaboration with local LGBTQ2 members and will offer training to local businesses and agencies in order to facilitate a welcomeness towards diversity at the community level.

Through this 24-month project, Mannawanis Native Friendship Centre Society will increase its capacity to prevent and address gender-based violence (GBV) against Indigenous women, girls, or 2SLGBTQIA+ community members. This will be achieved by collaborating with community partners, conducting research, and engaging with elders, families, and victims of gender-based violence. The organization will facilitate Indigenous circles to identify gaps, compile research, strategies and develop recommendations to advance best practices, create GBV focused tools and a manual, train staff and community partners and host an engagement session to share the results.

By the end of this project, Mannawanis Native Friendship Centre Society will have strengthened its capacity to prevent and address GBV against Métis women, girls, and 2SLGBTQQIA+ individuals, with a focus on creating a manual that exemplifies best practices for empowering Indigenous women, girls and 2SLGBTQI+ communities.

Through this 30-month project, NDMS will conduct research that will help improve GBV services for at-risk groups. It will address the gap in GBV knowledge about disabled Inuit women and girls in Nunavut, as no literature currently exists. The project will also provide a space for participants to share their lived experience, something that has never been an order to this group, which will result in new ways of understanding GBV through an intersectional lens. To do
so, the project will include sharing circles with people with lived experience across all three Nunavut regions. NDMS in collaboration with community partners and an advisory group will draft a formal report to share information on the research endings. The report will be translated, offered in plain language and will be available to anyone interested.

Through this 31-month project, Equality Insights Lab will conduct research, in collaboration with Ottawa Muslim Community Services and Queen’s University, to improve gender-based violence (GBV) services for at-risk groups in Ottawa’s Muslim Community with a focus on immigrant, newcomer and refugee women. This mixed methods research will assess GBV risks, protective factors, and access to and utilization of GBV services and their intersection with Islamophobic attitudes and behaviors. To do so, the project will: develop a research protocol and identify community stakeholders; hold a series of workshops and discussions with the Muslim community to refine the research methods, and collect disaggregated data on GBV, including intimate partner violence and patterns of support-seeking. The data will be validated through open dialogue sessions with the community and a series of recommendations will be co-created to increase accessibility, cultural sensitivity, and utilization of services and to improve coordination and cross-sectoral collaboration with community stakeholders. Recommendations will also inform GBV prevention and bystander interventions. Dissemination activities will be conducted with the community and key stakeholders to share findings and recommendations. Results will also be published in a scientific journal.

Through this 31-month project, the National Association of Women and the Law (NAWL) will develop and put in place a promising practice for intersectional feminist legal reform: a collaborative GBV-responsive law reform model, which will strengthen the GBV sector. It will address the legal needs of divorced and divorcing victims and survivors of GBV, and work to specifically address the needs of Indigenous, Black and racialized women, immigrant, refugee and newcomer women, women with disabilities, members of the 2SLGBTQI+ community, and women in northern communities, which may not have been sufficiently addressed by the recent amendments to the Divorce Act. To do so, the project will include a preliminary needs assessment involving consultations with legal experts and stakeholders, a review of existing data and research on the current state of the family justice system’s intersections with GBV, consultations with legal experts, stakeholders, and relevant organizations, and conducting a law reform methodology case study(ies). NAWL will also develop a law reform backgrounder, which will be used to increase partners’, legal experts’ and stakeholders’ understanding of the law reform process and ability to advocate for women’s rights within the family justice system. Through consultations with stakeholders in 4 of the 5 WAGE regions and adopting an approach of collaborative GBV-responsive feminist law reform, NAWL will develop a law reform position paper and a plan to advocate for GBV-responsive family law related to the Divorce Act, which will include an awareness-raising campaign, as well as the creation of materials to raise awareness among lawyers and the general public. An external evaluator will measure and assess the impact of the promising practice. NAWL will be working collaboratively throughout the project with a number of GBV-sector organizations who will be consulted and provide feedback on key project processes and outputs. The law reform position paper and the external evaluation will be shared with partners, supporters, and/or decision-makers. NAWL will also develop, publish, and share recommendations for legislative amendments to the Divorce Act, in the form of a position paper, memorandum or brief, to share information on the promising practice with others so that they may replicate it or expand upon it.

Through this 30- month project, Elmwood Community Resource Centre and Area Association Inc. will scale the “Still I Rise” gender-based violence program (based on tree of life model) to strengthen the GBV sector. It will scale to better meet the needs of South Asian, Black and Arab women in Manitoba. It will address the root causes of GBV in a culturally sensitive way for Black, South Asian and Arab individuals who often are at high risk for GBV. To do so, the project will include working with Manitoba Association of Women’s Shelters (MAWS) to engage with at-risk and underserved populations and developing measurement tools and indicators grounded in culturally relevant practices. The organization will work to share the information from scaling this promising practice widely with partners and others so that they may replicate it or expand upon it.

Through this 31-month project, VIDEA will scale the Shared Wisdom promising practice project to strengthen the Gender Based Violence (GBV) sector. This approach will be introduced to 8 Indigenous communities - Iqaluit, NU, Nunatsiavut, NL, Fort Vermilion, AB, Thorhild County, AB, Lytton, BC, Lil'Wat, BC, Whitehorse, YT, and Yellowknife, NWT. It will address the root causes of GBV against Indigenous women, girls and 2SLGBTQ+ people. This will be achieved through the identification of systemic barriers and the development of interventions strategies and tools to strengthen the GBV sector. This work will be done by youth leaders and their communities to better support Indigenous people to heal from, address and prevent GBV. This project will be developed in partnership with Indigenous youth and their communities.

To do so, the project will support Indigenous youth leaders to develop processes to engage their communities in culturally-relevant prevention, healing and wellness activities - especially for men, boys and 2SLGBTQ+ people - to identify systemic barriers and community-informed solutions to GBV.

Indigenous youth leaders will begin with developing and delivering an accessible, intersectional, culturally-relevant community-needs assessment and baseline surveys to better understand strengths and barriers related to GBV.

This will guide youth leaders as they develop and implement comprehensive, intergenerational community engagement strategies that include Land-based learning and healing, community events, creative spaces and Indigenous wellness and healing activities, especially for men and boys, and 2SLGBTQ+ community members.

VIDEA will support the youth-led development of innovative resources to share information on the promising practice with others so that they may replicate it or expand upon it.

The supplement funding will allow the project to add two new communities: Thorhild County, AB and Whitehorse, YT, and to expand programming in the third Northern community already included in the project, Yellowknife, NWT. This supplement will provide boys and men with a culturally relevant, land-based healing and leadership experience grounded in knowledge, identity, and intergenerational learning.