The Catalyst Grants are one of the ways the York-TD Community Engagement Centre (CEC) is working to strengthen University-Community partnerships in the Jane Finch community. Since 2014, the CEC has awarded over $100,000 in partnership projects promoting access to post-secondary education, supporting community-based research, and creating experiential education opportunities for students.
This year, the CEC theme for 2022-23 will focus on Sustainable Communities. Recognizing the opportunity to incorporate sustainability in COVID-19 pandemic recovery efforts, the CEC is calling for proposals that creatively address sustainability in the Jane Finch community, focusing on one or both of the following:
- Towards United Nation’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development: Projects that contribute towards the targets indicated in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 11: Making cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable.
- Equitable approaches to sustainability: projects contribute to increasing sustainability in a way that is meaningful to the Jane Finch community, taking a multi-disciplinary justice-focused lens.
The grant is available to any organization, non-profit, organized resident group, or resident who lives or supports the Black Creek community and is partnered with any faculty member, staff, long-standing student club or unit of York University.
Two community information webinars will be held via Zoom on. Registration is required for the following sessions:
- Thursday, July 14 at 11 a.m.
- Wednesday, July 20 at 6:30 p.m.
- Tuesday, July 26 at 6:30 p.m.
Participants are encouraged to discuss their ideas with staff at the CEC or attend one of the webinars prior to submitting a formal application.
To read the full Call for Proposals and learn about past grantees, visit https://cec.info.yorku.ca/catalyst-grants/. Grant applications must be completed and returned by Monday, Aug. 15 at 11:59 p.m.
To share ideas or be considered as a potential partner for local organizations, contact CEC community project coordinator Marierose Talla at rtalla@yorku.ca. Questions may also be directed to CEC manager Byron Gray at byrong@yorku.ca.