About Us
Our role in the voluntary sector
Over the past decade, the crucial work of front-line service organizations has become increasingly difficult due to the changing funding environment. With the downloading of services and government funding cutbacks throughout the 90s, there has been tremendous strain on the non-profit sector. The tendency for funders to support short-term projects rather than core operational costs has aggravated the situation. The end result has been shrinking revenues for Canadian charities.
By 1995, 80% of Canadian charities were reporting revenues under $250,000.* Many face challenges such as refinancing their operations on a yearly basis. And the strain of doing more with fewer resources reduces the effectiveness of many of the 900,000 Canadians who are employed in the voluntary sector.*
CWF works to generate resources for these organizations. Program staff and community experts, from across Canada, research and select organizations that are using the most promising approaches to address the challenges facing women and girls. These organizations are then granted program or capacity funding
CWF also brings together organizations for skills training and knowledge exchange, and we work with them to develop evaluation tools that reveal the most promising practices for helping women and girls.
And through donor education initiatives, publication of our research findings, and the development of national philanthropic strategies, we are increasing knowledge and providing leadership in our field.
By supporting CWF's work to provide stable funding and share knowledge, you have a direct and positive impact on the ability of organizations, across Canada, to prevent violence, move low-income women out of poverty and build resiliency in girls.
*Source: “Funding Matters: The Impact of Canada's New Funding Regime on Non-profit and Voluntary Organizations” by Katherine Scott for the Canadian Council on Social Development in collaboration with the Coalition of National Voluntary Organizations