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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOR-2021-22 - Community Grant Program for Black, Indigenous and Racialized Groups and OrganizationsREPORT TO:Finance& Corporate ServicesCommittee DATE OF MEETING:September 13, 2021 SUBMITTED BY:Suzanne Charles Watson,Director of Equity, Anti-Racism & Indigenous Initiatives PREPARED BY:Elin Moorlag Silk, Project Manager, Equity, Anti-Racism & Indigenous Initiatives WARD(S) INVOLVED:All Wards DATE OF REPORT:September 2, 2021 REPORT NO.:COR-2021-22 SUBJECT:Community Grant Program for Black, Indigenous and Racialized Groups and Organizations RECOMMENDATION: That the proposed grant program for Black, Indigenous & Racialized Communitiesin Kitchener, as outlined in Appendix A of COR-2021-22,be approvedwith an annual budget of $50,000for the first three years; Thatthe unused Community Grants balanceof $138,000be reallocatedto fund the proposed community grant programfor the first three years; That the Deputy Chief Administrative Officer and General Managers be authorized to execute agreements with recipients pertaining to the proposed community grant program;and That starting in the Fall of 2021,the City will begin the collection and reporting of demographic data for organizations receiving grants in all other grant streams. REPORT HIGHLIGHTS: The purpose of this report is to present, for Council consideration, a new grant program for Black, Indigenous and racialized communities in Kitchener This specialized grant will provide support for community-led programs, initiatives and events meant to decrease inequities and increase opportunities and well-being for Black, Indigenous and racialized communities The financial implications are $150,000 allocated to this grant stream over the first three yearsof the program. Community engagementconducted in the development of this grant proposalincluded ongoing consultation with members of the Mayor’s Task Force on Equity, Diversity and *** This information is available in accessible formats upon request. *** Please call 519-741-2345 or TTY 1-866-969-9994 for assistance. Inclusionand targeted engagement with local organizational leadersand racialized community membersin Kitchener This report supports A Caring Community by completing a comprehensive Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy. BACKGROUND: This proposed community grant programwas developed as one of the eight bodies of work to come out of the Mayor’s Task Force on Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion as atangible deliverableofthe Corporate Equity & Anti-Racism Strategy, as outlined in the table below. Table 1: Corporate Equity & Anti-Racism Strategy -Status of Actions The process of drafting this grant programincluded research into current best and emerging practiceslocally and across Canada, drawing on the lived experiences and expertise of members of the working group, and consultation with local organizations run for and by racialized community members. The need for this kind of funding opportunity has been developed in response to community calls for increased support for Black, Indigenous and racialized groups for their own vital community-based support systems. Recent events related to anti-Black and anti-Indigenous racism that have come to light over the past year may have been the catalyst for this community call to action, but there is ample evidence to indicate that inequities have long existed within organizations and systems, and that these inequities have had consistent, disproportionate impacts on particular groups. For instance,studies show that those with the poorest measures of health and wellbeing in Ontario identify with one or more of the following groups: African, Caribbean or Black, First Nations, Inuit or Metis, and Refugees. On May 10th, 2021 staff presented adraftoutline of this proposed grant programto members of City Council in a strategy session focused on providing a comprehensive update on the eight bodies of work undertaken by the Mayor’s Task Force on Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion. The following question was posed to members of City Council for discussion: Having reviewed the draft outline of the proposed Community Funding Opportunity for Black, Indigenous,and other Racialized Groups, what suggestions for improvement should staff consider before bringing the proposal forward for Council’s consideration/approval? The discussion generated by members of Council in response to this question was positive and supportive of the proposed grant programand comments made by members of Council helped form the current draft of the program. REPORT: The objective of this proposed granthas been identified by members of the working group as the following: “A sustained funding opportunity for groups or organizations run by Black, Indigenous and other racialized community members for the purpose of providing support for community-led programs, initiatives andevents meant to decrease inequities and increase opportunities and well-being for racialized communities in Kitchener.” When developing this funding opportunity, the working group was particularly focused on decreasing barriers, as it was acknowledged that historically, multiple barriers have been experienced by Black, Indigenous and other racialized groups in traditional granting processes, including those administered by the City of Kitchener. Some examples of barriers that were raised in the working group include the following: Traditional granting processes are often cumbersome in terms of bureaucratic requirements for organizations, to demonstrate history and capacity for doing the work –organizations who are unable to demonstrate this requirement are then not able to access funding Colonial assumptions around “organizing” and rules around being registered as an organization are experienced as a barrier for many groups Capacity-building and operational funding is often needed for informal/grassroots groups, but few existing grant opportunities fund these needs Ways that success are being measured by granting agencies can be problematic The Western/colonial business model that shaped the way we do things doesn’t necessary fit with how Indigenous, Black, or other racialized groups organize themselves or want to be organized. The demographic representation of those making decisions about grants is often not representative of the community Implementation Implementation of this community grant programis outlined in the table included in Attachment A. Each element outlined has been carefully considered in relation to the barriers listed above and the feedback received from the community during the consultation process. In particular, some of the elements identified in the development process considered crucial for the success of this funding opportunity are the following: This opportunity is open to registered charitiesand not-for-profit organizations as well as new and grassroots groups who are not registered as a charity or not- for-profit organization (following the same process and systems of accountability as Love my Hood currently operates) The funding criteria is broadly defined in order to allow forcommunities to identify what it is that they need for their own well-being rather than being forced to fit into narrow categories created by the City Capacity Buildingis a funding category for groups to utilize in order to provide resources for groups to build and develop internal capacity prior to launching projects or events A selection committee representative of the communities this funding opportunity is intendedfor will be responsible for applicant selection and decision-making Starting the granting budget at $50,000 per year and then potentially growing it over time as we have more experience and local data.This is a similar approach used by the LovemyHoodgrant and proved to be a successful way to implement a newly developedgrant program Three-year review The intent of this grant programis that it become a permanent, sustained stream within City grants, starting with an annual budget of $50,000per year, with plans to review the program after three years.At the three year mark, staff willgeneratea report with recommendations which can then be brought to Council outlining the operation of this grant, and using evidence-based criteria,will thenbe able to determine demonstrated need and the potential ongoing benefit in the community this grantmay have in the long term.For instance, if more applications that meet the funding criteria are consistently submitted than what can be funded with the budgetover the three years, an increase in budget allocation may be brought to Council at this time. This strategy will also allow for a 3-year phase of the grant rollout whereby potential barriers or gaps may be addressed and changes or improvements can be made in response to community need. For context, a summary of other City of Kitchener Community grants is included in the table below. The recommendationfor this grantis that it will start as a three-year program as a stand-alone grant; and during this phase, applicants would still be able to apply for Love my Hood grant and/or Tier 2 community grants. Once the three years are up and if the program is deemed successful through the data and evidence collected, it is recommendedthat it be rolled in to the Tier 2 Community Grants program as a permanent stream whereby grant recipients would then become eligible for Tier 1 grant status after 5 years of funding, as per the current criteria. Granting CategoryAnnual BudgetMaximum granting amount Tier 1 Community Grant$1,477,797No set maximum Tier 2 Community Grant$213,391None specified Grant for Black, Indigenous & Racialized Groups$50,000 to start$10,000 to start Love my Hood$150,000$30,000 Ongoing Demographic Data Collection Starting in the Fall of 2021,it is the recommendation of staff that systematic demographic data collection for organizationsreceiving grants in all grant streams at the Citybe implemented. Currently this kind of data is not collected by the City of Kitchener within the grants programs, which means we do not know how many of our grants are being accessed by organizations supporting Black, Indigenous, or other racialized communities. By collecting this data we will gain a better understanding of which communities are accessing grants, potential barriers communities may be facing, and by using a data-driven approach we can start to look at potential changes to other grant streams in order to reach a broader and more diverse number of residents. This demographic data collection will be a component of the larger Data Collection Strategy currently under development as one of the deliverables of the Corporate Equity and Anti- Racism Strategy(as outlined in Table 1). STRATEGIC PLAN ALIGNMENT: This report supports A Caring Community by completing a comprehensive Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy. FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS: Staff propose reallocating the unused 2020 balance of$138,000in the Community Grants Programto partially fund the first three years of theIndigenous & Racial Equity Fund, given the natural affinity between these programs. Staff anticipate that there will be unused funds from the 2021 Community Grants Program due to the continued barriers of the pandemic;it is proposed that$12,000 of this positive variance be allocated tothe Indigenous & Racial Equity Fund for the remaining budget needed for the first three years. Administration and support of this grant will be provided by the Equity, Anti-Racism and Indigenous Initiatives team withintheCorporate ServicesDepartment. COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT: INFORM –This report has been posted to the City’s website with the agenda in advance of the council / committee meeting. COLLABORATE –This grant programwas developed in collaboration with a working group of the Mayor’s Task Force on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, which is predominantly comprised of community members, whose lived experiences and expertise in a wide variety of areas directly informed thedirection, scope and contents of the proposed grant. In addition to this, consultation was done with local organizations run for and by racialized community membersas early drafts were being developed. PREVIOUS REPORTS/AUTHORITIES: CSD-21-4Task Force on EDI Update th Special Council Strategy Session, May 10, 2021 APPROVEDBY: Victoria Raab, General Manager of Corporate Services Michael May, DCAO and General Manager of Community Services ATTACHMENTS:Attachment A –Proposed grant program for Black, Indigenous & Racialized Communities; current working title is “Racialized and Indigenous Support for Equity” Fund (RISE) Attachment A –Racialized & Indigenous Support for Equity (RISE) Fund:Proposed Grant Program for Black, Indigenous & Racialized Communities ComponentDetails of Funding Opportunity Objective/ A sustained fundingopportunity for groups or organizations run by Black, Indigenous and Visionother racialized community members for the purpose of providing support for community- led programs, initiatives or events meant to decrease inequities and increase opportunities and well-being for racialized communities in Kitchener. Criteria for Open to formal and informal organizations, community groups in Kitchener, whether the 1 Applicantsgroup is newly formed for the purpose of a specific project, or is a pre-existing group undertaking a project. Applicants must demonstrate that their organization/ group: Is led byand forBlack, Indigenous or racialized individuals/groups in Kitchener Has a project budget outlining how they propose to use funds Has a bank account to receive grants over $1000, or has an agreement with an organization to sponsor them financially as a third party Agrees to report back upon completion of the project, including accountability of all revenues, expenses and proof of purchases. Criteria for Project Criteria Projects/ The project/initiative/event will contribute to the well-being of Black, Indigenous or other Potential racialized community members in Kitchener. funding categoriesPotential Funding Categories Capacity building Core operational costs –with a specified 3 year granting limit for this category Project funding Event funding Other (at the discretion of the granting authority and City solicitor) Application Applications will be done through a simple online form consisting of questions relating process directly to the criteria. Demographic data collection will be consistently collected with all applicants and grant awardees and tracked over time in order to identify potential gaps, barriers & areas for improvement Templates of any required documents will be provided, such as budgetsand tracking tools for trackingexpenses. Paper versions of the application will be available upon request. Applications will be accepted on a quarterly basis, following the same application deadlines as Love my Hood. Staff support will be available for applicants. Granting Maximum grant amount = $10,000 amounts Minimum grant amount = $1000 Events eligible for $5000 Selection TheEquity & Anti-Racism Advisory Committee willserve as the selection committee for Process this grant. This committee will be comprised of 12 community membersrepresenting a diversity of voices who have been historically underrepresented or excluded: specifically those who are Black, Indigenous, racialized, 2SLGBTQ+ identified, people with disabilities, 1 It was very important to the working group members that it will need to be made clear that this funding is not intended for white-led organizations to hire a Black, Indigenous or racialized person to run a program within their organization. ComponentDetails of Funding Opportunity religious minorities, and the intersections of these identities. Facilitative and administrative support specific to the grant selection process will be provided by one member of City staff. Additional City staff will be consulted based on need for expertisein the selection process, following a similar process used for Love my Hood applications. Grant TheDeputy Chief Administrative Officer and General Managers are authorized to execute Administrationagreementswith recipients pertaining to the City’s Indigenous & Racial Equity Fund.The agreements will be used to outlinethe roles and responsibilities related to grants including, if applicable, safety, liability insurance, maintenanceand project ownership. Staff withinthe City’sEquity, Anti-Racism and Indigenous Initiatives team will oversee the grant program under the leadership of the Directorof this Division. Annual Budget This grant program will be launchedwith an annual budget of $50,000for the first three & Program years of operation.At the three year mark, staff willgenerate a report with Durationrecommendations which can then be brought to Council outlining the operation of this grant, and using evidence-based criteria, will then be able to determine demonstrated need and the potential ongoing benefit in the community this funding opportunity may have in the long term.