June 2026 Newsletter

Since our last edition...

• We held PFC’s Annual General Meeting, at which Board Chair Ina Gutium and President & CEO Jean-Marc Mangin shared their remarks highlighting our collective accomplishments.

• We released our Annual Report, highlighting how in 2025, PFC stepped up to guide our members in navigating uncertainty and collaborating more strategically.  

• Our Board held its Retreat in PEI and designated four new officers and new Committee Chairs. Join us in welcoming our newest Directors: Kristina Inrig (Inrig Family Foundation), Kim Ah-Sue (Max Bell Foundation), Mark Gifford (Real Estate Foundation of BC), and Naomi Racette (Future Generations Foundation)!  

• CEOs from over 35 Foundations also gathered in PEI for the 2026 CEO Retreat.

• We welcomed 200+ Early Bird registrants among grantmakers from across the country to attend our 2026 National Conference, and opened registration to organizations from the broader philanthropic sector. (See details below)

PFC Updates

Following recent Canada Revenue Agency revised guidance, PFC has published this Policy Advisory, “New CRA guidance offers charities greater clarity on charitable purposes and grantmaking flexibility” Especially helpful is the expanded list of model purposes and tips for foundations making grants to non-qualified donees, and those funding public policy work. 

PFC Programming

Network Convening Initiatives

Register Now
for PFC's 2026 National Conference!

Early Bird ticket pricing for our 2026 National Conference closed June 8 – thank you to the 200+ grantmakers who already registered! Registration is now open to the broader philanthropic sector, as well as standard ticket pricing now available for grantmakers. This includes foundations and philanthropic leaders, as well as charitable organizations, community-based groups, policy and research institutions, government, and academia. Information about our conference can be found here.

The conference will be held September 23-25, 2026, with pre-conference experiences for funders scheduled for September 22. Funder-only programming continues through September 23, with the conference opening to the broader sector at the evening plenary September 23. The venue for our 2026 conference is the RBC Convention Centre, in Winnipeg, Manitoba, on Treaty 1 Territory and the Homeland of the Red River Métis. Learn more about our programming, venue, accommodation options, and more here. 

Partnerships

Conversation on
the Evolving Landscape of AI Safety

Thursday, June 18 (Online)
12 PM AT/11 AM ET/10 AM CT/9 AM MT/8 AM PT

Forward Global, in partnership with Philanthropic Foundations Canada, invites members to an exclusive conversation with Professor Taylor Owen and AI Safety Philanthropic Advisor, August Hochman, on the evolving landscape of AI in Canada and the unique opportunities philanthropists have to help shape the future.

While the technicalities of AI can feel abstract, Professor Owen provides a uniquely accessible lens on its real-world consequences. This session will review the latest trajectories and implications of AI’s accelerating development, as it pervades every domain of society. 

Please note, this event is open exclusively to members of PFC and Forward Global.

Professional Development

The Climate Philanthropy Learning Series

Participant Report‑Back, Networking, and CPCCC Second Progress Report Sneak Peek 

Wednesday, June 17 (online) | 2-4 PM AT/1-3 PM ET/    
12-2 PM CT/11 AM-1 PM MT/10 AM-12 PM PT

This meeting is open to participants of the Climate Philanthropy Learning Series, as well as signatories of the Canadian Philanthropy Commitment on Climate Change.

Join the meeting here. 

Mission-Aligned Investing to Maximize Philanthropic Impact

Impact Measurement and Reporting  

Thursday, June 18 (online) | 2-4 PM AT/1-3 PM ET/  
12-2 PM CT/11 AM-1 PM MT/10 AM-12 PM PT

Learn more and register here.

All our events are also viewable at-a-glance in our online events calendar. 

New Members

PFC is happy to welcome our newest members to our network: 

The Craig Foundation 

The Craig Foundation's mission is to support and nurture programs, enhancements, research, and innovations at charitable organizations in Nova Scotia that work in the areas of Autism and the Arts, with the aim to foster bridges and intersectionality between the two, for the enrichment of both.

Announcements, Appointments
and Awards

• The Foundation for Black Communities was thrilled to share that Ikem Opara joined them as Chief Executive Officer. 

• Euphrosine Foundation welcomed Valerie Gobeil as Director of Programs. 

• Jennie Knopp has joined Metcalf as Environment Program Director. 

• RBC Foundation announced the recipients of the 2026 Community Spaces Grant to advance environmental sustainability and accessibility in buildings and spaces. 

• Rideau Hall Foundation Founder The Right Honourable David Johnston, C.C. received an Honorary Degree from Lakehead University. 

• Zero Emissions Innovation Centre (ZEIC)-hosted BC Embodies Carbon Awards Ceremony celebrated sustainable practices in BC’s built environment. 

Have any exciting news you’d like to share with our network? Let us know! 

Member & Sector Job Board

• Head, Northern - Weston Family Foundation 
• Associate Director of Finance - Canadian Race Relations Foundation

Member & Sector Insights

• Canadian Race Relations Foundation marks National Indigenous History Month 2026 reminding Canadians that recognition, celebration and learning must also move beyond awareness into action. 

• Graham Boeckh Foundation's 'Building the Conditions for Child and Youth Thriving in Canada' is a Discussion Paper on Upstream Prevention, Mental Health Promotion, and the Catalytic Role of Philanthropy. 

• New initiative created to foster connections between private funders and substance use health organizations. Catalyst Philanthropy’s The Emergency Overdose Prevention Fund was created by the Substance Use Health Funding Collaborative to provide a clear role for philanthropy in the face of recent government funding cuts, which are eliminating most supervised consumption sites across Ontario. It is a collection of 9 unique community-led projects ranging from $20k to $127k - all of which are designed to help organizations pivot to new modes of overdose prevention service delivery. The platform is designed to enable both foundation grants and individual donations. Reach out to join here. 

• WINGS and Philea launched their “Philanthropy For Climate: State of the Movement Report 2026”, capturing how 452 foundation signatories across 30 countries are integrating climate into their work in ways that reflect their own missions, contexts, and communities. Their local signatories, including from Canada, are a vital part of this movement which represents over $5 billion in annual expenditure and more than $31.8 billion in endowments. 

• Inspirit Foundation’s “10 Years Later: From 100% Fully Committed to 100% Fully Allocated” report looks back on a decade-long track record since the foundation's initial commitment to a 100% impact portfolio. It is believed to be the world's first portfolio to be exclusively dedicated to impact investments across public and private asset classes to financially outperform a traditional benchmark for a full decade. 

• Inspirit Foundation’s former Director of Finance and Impact, Jory Cohen, wrote this Opinion Piece "Renew­ables can insu­late Canada from oil shocks”. 

• Canada Revenue Agency has introduced a simplified guide designed to help organizations write their charitable purposes more quickly and easily. This new resource focuses on condensing the key elements of CRA's longer guidance in a clearer, more concise, and accessible format.

• Equality Fund published its new policy white paper, Beyond Aid: Rethinking Development Finance for a Changing World, which lays out a global opportunity to finance gender equality in a time of rapid geopolitical change and economic instability. 

• Lucie and André Chagnon Foundation-funded study headlines that books are playing a larger role in toddlers’ lives, but that there are differences between boys and girls.   

• Canadian Women’s Foundation research, which shows that more than half (53%) of respondents who experienced domestic violence said at least one abusive act happened at or near their workplace, and almost 40% said it made it difficult for them to get to work, is mentioned in "Ask for Angela: Addressing intimate partner violence with supports". 

• In "Getting Something Back from Charitable Giving", Malcolm Burrows touches on the West Coast Indigenous tradition of potlatch, which has reciprocity and social cohesion at its core. 

• According to the author of "Why Don’t Philanthropists Build Anymore?" the United States is living through a second Gilded Age. But unlike yesterday's magnates, today's billionaires prefer to write checks to existing organizations. They should instead build institutions that last. Read the article here and listen to the SSIR Author Conversation with Sarah Cone here. 

• New UBS Global Family Office Report finds governance and succession gaps—and a broadening investment focus. 

• GreenShield's 2025 Impact Report "Innovating with Purpose", featuring Greenshield Cares’ contribution, tells their story of how purpose-driven innovation is reshaping care for Canadians. 

• In WINGS' "Language Shapes Legitimacy: How Words Define Philanthropy in Asia", traditions such as Bayanihan (communal unity) in the Philippines or Seva (selfless service) in India reflect deeply rooted systems of care and reciprocity. These may not always be labelled as ‘philanthropy’, but they represent equally intentional and meaningful forms of giving. 

• Hilary Pearson reviews Glen Galaich's new book, “Control - Why ‘big giving’ falls short”, which argues for changing the mindset of institutional philanthropy, away from control and toward community engagement, away from donor-centred philanthropy to people- and community-centred philanthropy. 

• And Hilary Pearson's own blog post ‘Philanthropy’s New Mindset’ concludes that mindfulness, as in most disciplines, is what leads to better outcomes. 

• Simon Mallett, Rozsa Foundation Executive Director, writes about why the arts must make the case for a united Canada in his opinion piece "The Alberta Arts Sector can play a Vital Role in the current Referendum Conversation". 

• At the recent May AI for Social Impact Gathering, Chenayi Mutambasere, Strategic Director at the Africa Centre for Economic Justice, made a presentation on “AI, economic justice, digital inclusion, data poverty, data sovereignty, and community power”, in which she invited participants to think more deeply about who is represented in AI systems, where data is stored, who benefits from it, and how communities can move beyond access toward real ownership and influence. 

• PhiLab's summary of its webinar “The rise of limited-life foundations: insights from the Ivey Foundation experience”, finds that sunsetting a foundation is not a simple endpoint but a highly structured and strategic process that touches every dimension of organizational life and that limited-life philanthropy is not simply about spending down resources, but about aligning mission, timing, and relationships in a way that seeks to amplify impact while preparing for organizational exit. 

• With feminist movements facing a perfect storm of interconnected threats, how philanthropy responds – or not – is a political choice, as discussed in The Philanthropist Journal's "Feminist philanthropy: What it stands for – and what it’s up against". 

• Outgoing PFC Board Treasurer, Amanda Mayer, reflected on Outaouais Philanthropy's first Vital Signs Report (in French Signes Vitaux) which Fondation Choquette-Legault helped fund. 

• PwC Canada's Philanthropic Advisory Services believe that the organizations defining the next chapter are those willing to treat people sustainability as a strategic priority, modernize compliance infrastructure before enforcement catches up, embrace AI with governance and not just enthusiasm, and elevate cyber security from an operational concern to a board-level conversation in "Resilience, Readiness & Reinvention: Key Takeaways from Our 2026 Not-for-Profit Business Update". 

• In “Taxer les riches : une idée solide et rigoureuse” (Taxing the Rich: A Sound and Rigorous Idea), Claire Trottier of the Euphrosine Foundation and the Trottier Family Foundation argues that while philanthropy can achieve remarkable things, we cannot rely solely on the voluntary generosity of the wealthy to solve societal problems, adding that private donations cannot replace democratically made budgetary decisions. 

• In “Choisir l’environnement, c’est choisir l’économie” (Choosing the Environment Means Choosing the Economy), Karel Mayrand, President and CEO of the Trottier Family Foundation, believes that pitting the economy against the environment creates a false dichotomy, because the data is clear: protecting the environment also means protecting the economy. 

• Joël Paré-Julien, Executive Director of the Fondation de la FMSQ, describes the foundation’s new role as a key player working to tangibly improve the lives of family caregivers, in support of a more humane and supportive healthcare system, in “De bailleur de fonds à catalyseur d’innovation : Le repositionnement de la Fondation de la FMSQ face à la crise de la proche aidance au Québec” ( From Funder to Catalyst for Innovation: The FMSQ Foundation’s Repositioning in Response to the Caregiving Crisis in Quebec) published in PhiLab’s L’Année Philanthropique. 

Upcoming Member & Sector Activities

• Annual ONN Survey - ONN’s 2026 State of the Sector survey - is now open! Nonprofit data is crucial for understanding current realities amidst a rapidly changing environment and building strong advocacy tools for nonprofits across Ontario. Help ONN tell our sector's story. 

• Tuesday, June 16, 2 - 3 PM EDT | Let's Talk: Getting Funders and Nonprofits on the Same Page | According to research from the Chronicle of Philanthropy and Mission Partners, more than half of nonprofit leaders and more than three-quarters of foundation leaders say they’re concerned about a growing disconnect between funders and grantees. Register here. 

• Wednesday, June 17, 1 PM - 2 PM EDT | Sector Signals - Trends Every Nonprofit Leader Should Know: Mid-Year Pulse - Join Bruce MacDonald, President & CEO of Imagine Canada, for a mid-year pulse check on the forces shaping the charitable and nonprofit sector. Together with Janice Stein, Founding Director of the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy, who will help understand the broader social and economic landscape influencing the sector at home and abroad, they’ll assess how the landscape is changing, and surface what sector leaders should have on their radar for the months ahead. Register here.

• Thursday, June 18 - 2:00 PM ET | Trust-Based Philanthropy Meetup for Canadian Grantmakers, hosted by Graham C. Lount Family Foundation. This is a space to get to know one another and explore how to advance trust-based practices in the Canadian philanthropic sector. Register here.

• Thursday, June 18 (5:30-7:30 PM ET) | Carleton University's MPNL In-person event to celebrate Philanthropy and Democracy. How can philanthropy in Canada create, sustain or revive civic spaces that foster community connection and trust? Does philanthropy itself need to be democratized? Learn more and register here. 

• Tuesday, June 23 (11:00 AM to 12:30 PM ET and 2:00-4:30 PM ET; Monday, July 27 (2:00-4:30 PM ET); Monday, August 24 (2:00-4:30 PM ET | Carleton University MPNL - Call for Participants for the "Trust and Accountability in Canada’s Charitable, Philanthropic and Regulatory/Public Sectors" Research Project led by Nathan Grasse. To register, email him here. 

• Tuesday, June 23 (1:00 - 2:00 PM ET) | Community Foundations of Canada's Foundant and Data webinar - Join the team from Foundant Technologies in this session to help utilize data in the grant making process. Register here. 

• 28–30 September - WINGSForum in Montreal | ACT - Activate, Collaborate, Transcend. Now is the time to act. Learn more and register here. 

Members in the News

• MakeWay, Trottier Family Foundation, Raven Indigenous Outcomes Funds are quoted and mentioned in The Philanthropist Journal's "What Canada’s climate leaders need now".

• Donner Canadian Foundation grant is mentioned in "West Bank-Set ‘House Of Hope,’ ‘Saigon Story: Two Shootings In The Forest Kingdom’ Among Big Winners At Hot Docs". 

• RBC Foundation donation, made through the University Hospitals Kingston Foundation, which will allow major hospitals to have greater access to training, is highlighted in "$500k grant will help Kingston health-care workers access more simulation training". 

• Rideau Hall Foundation grant, which recognizes exceptional young Canadians who demonstrate creativity and problem-solving in science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics, is highlighted in "Belleville student feted for groundbreaking "SafeRider" project". 

• Weston Family Foundation grant towards clinical trials that will test ‘poop pills’ to improve immunotherapy for lung cancer, is mentioned in "London at forefront of largest ever Canadian clinical trial". 

• Black Opportunity Fund investment to support Black restaurants and food purveyors is highlighted in "ByBlacks Restaurant Week reflects the growth of Black culinary entrepreneurship in Canada". 

• Calgary Arts Development grant, which helped produce a unique music album, is mentioned in "Cowessess First Nation Artist (Uncle) Trent Agecoutay Releases Moving New Single “The Foundation”. 

• Hilary and Galen Weston Foundation grant to researchers hoping to use gene therapy to cure a handful of rare, usually fatal genetic disorders that can be diagnosed at all stages of life, is highlighted in "Queen's researchers working on gene therapy answer to rare, fatal genetic disorder". 

• Azrieli Foundation's philanthropic support to the One Child Every Child research initiative, which works to improve the lives of children, their families, and maternal health across Canada, is mentioned in “Brain–computer interface technology is enabling children with physical disabilities to play video games with their minds” and in "Strengthening the data-to-policy pipeline for children with ADHD and autism". 

• Calgary Arts Development-hosted event, which also honoured recipients of the Cultural Leaders Legacy Arts Awards, awarding cash prizes to support artists and organizations for future projects, is mentioned in "Calgary artists takes centre stage at city’s Celebration for the Arts". 

• Trottier Family Foundation grant which makes the Canada-Wide Science Fair possible, is mentioned in "A New Perspective on the Universe, a Breakthrough in Medical Equity: Top Honours at the 2026 Canada-Wide Science Fair". 

• J.P. Bickell Foundation’s philanthropic support, which is helping personalize skin grafts that match each patient's skin for targeted, long-term treatment, is highlighted in "Carleton Researchers Rethink Treatment for Epidermolysis Bullosa". 

• Real Estate Foundation of BC was an event partner of David Suzuki’s 90th birthday benefit concert to help protect nature. 

• Canadian Race Relations Foundation's President & CEO, Mohammed Hashim, was among the panelists at "Together Against Hate Ottawa Forum: Community Learning, Dialogue and Action". 

• The Foundation for Black Communities, which is among the philanthropic contributors to the Black Artists’ Networks in Dialogue (BAND) Gallery, is highlighted in "BAND Gallery Expanding Black Artists' Hub in Parkdale". 

• Northpine Foundation grant, that helps sustain ‘The Rural Innovation Hub’ which serves as a collaborative space where health-care professionals, researchers and community partners work together to develop forward-thinking solutions, is highlighted in "Grand Opening of NL Health Services Rural Innovation Hub: Advancing Health-Care in Rural Communities". 

• Canadian Race Relations Foundation-funded survey, which seeks to measure how racism in Nunavut is experienced by Black people, Indigenous people and people of colour, is explained in "Anti-racism survey seeks input from each Nunavut community". 

• Vancity Community Foundation grant to help build capacity and remove the barriers non-profit housing providers face, is highlighted in "$500,000 invested into East Kootenay non-profit community housing projects". 

• Vancity Community Foundation, which is among a policy group who has calculated that one in three Kelowna workers earn less than a “living wage”, is mentioned in "Monday's minimum wage boost still below "living wage", groups say". 

• RBC Foundation grant, that will help fund physical accessibility improvements in 40 Canadian cities, is highlighted in Press Release "Rick Hansen Foundation, RBC and RBC Foundation Announce 40 Recipients of the RBC Barrier Buster Grants Program". 

• RBC Foundation's Barrier Buster Grants Program, that will help eliminate physical barriers and upgrade accessibility across public facilities, is mentioned in "City Hall, arena, and outdoor pool upgrades coming to Enderby via national grant". 

• RBC Foundation funding to improve access and safety, helping older adults and people with disabilities enter and navigate the space more safely and easily, is highlighted in "YMCA of Oakville receives $100,000 donation for accessibility upgrades". 

• RBC Foundation’s Community Spaces Grant, that will help build accessibility features in new waterfront gallery, is highlighted in "The Thunder Bay Art Gallery: creative, inclusive, and always moving forward". 

• RBC Foundation grant to support construction costs of new health care facility is mentioned in "RBC Foundation donates $400,000 to Maskwa Medical Centre". 

• Wubs Family Foundation matching grant, to help Covenant House Vancouver deliver their mission of care to vulnerable youth, is highlighted in "Decisions Can Have a Lasting Impact with Covenant House Vancouver". 

• Rideau Hall Foundation grant, which is a legacy initiative that supports culturally grounded care in northern and remote communities, is highlighted in "Ottawa announces $5M for Mary Simon mental wellness initiative". 

• Calgary Arts Development grant, which has helped 50 newcomer families and launched a Central Asian cultural dance stream to help youth stay connected to their heritage, is highlighted in "Two Calgary students awarded 2026 Terry Fox Humanitarian scholarship". 

• National Sixties Scoop Healing Foundation of Canada-funded play Rattle, which was awarded the best full-length play award in Theatre BC’s Canadian National Playwriting Competition, is highlighted in "Finding family, finding truth - New play unfolds in the shadow of ’60s Scoop". 

• Azrieli Foundation-funded Idea Pitching Workshop for artists, creatives, and cultural workers in live/performance arts, is highlighted in "Kultura Collective: The Spring Pitch Session for Jewish Artists". 

• Rideau Hall Foundation's Ingenious+ program, that recognizes exceptional young Canadians who demonstrate creativity and problem-solving in science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics, is mentioned in "Hastings and Prince Edward District School Board students excel at national science fair". 

• Peter Gilgan Foundation grant, that helps York Region Food Network to work in partnership with Inno-Hive to engage youth in agri-tech, sustainable farming and food security, is highlighted in "'Embedding hope:' Newmarket students put green thumbs to use at community garden" and in “Newmarket students dig in to design, plant community garden”. 

• Calgary Arts Development-funded Arts Reimagined Event, which is focused on getting more children to participate in the arts, is mentioned in "Youth aimed arts day takes centre stage at Calgary’s Werklund Centre". 

• Canadian Women's Foundation's Mitzie Hunter speaks of the importance of allowing policymakers to make the necessary investments to protect women in "Gender-based violence declared an epidemic in N.L.". 

• Rideau Hall Foundation's newly created Mary Simon Catalyst for Mental Wellness program, designed to bolster community mental-health services in the Arctic, is highlighted in "Louise Arbour meets King Charles while Mary Simon bows out as Governor-General". 

• Azrieli Foundation recognized as a new Families of Alberta for Conductive Education Leadership Circle Donor. 

• Azrieli Foundation gift, which will help fund a youth tutoring program which was on the verge of being discontinued, is mentioned in "Fort Nelson Community Literacy Society recognized organizations for $132K contributions". 

• Weston Family Foundation, which is funding a Task Force that will work to co-design a set of recommendations to better integrate dementia care in Ontario, is mentioned in "New Task Force to Develop Roadmap for Dementia Care Coordination in Ontario". 

• Canadian Race Relations Foundation-funded “Together Against Hate Durham” initiative, which helped sociology students at Trent Durham GTA gain career experience developing public policy initiatives, is highlighted in "Trent Durham students collaborate with Durham Region to develop policy recommendations for Together Against Hate Durham". 

• Northpine Foundation-funded 'Connecting Futures' program, which aims to improve educational participation and long-term outcomes for youth in and from care who have left traditional education systems, is highlighted in "Kids in care struggle to graduate high school but new program is changing that".

Get in touch!

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