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Who We Fund
Black Opportunity Fund

The Black Opportunity Fund supports Black non-profit and for-profit endeavours by issuing philanthropic grants to scale up Black non-profits and produces capacity-building investments to scale up Black businesses.

Arts & Culture, and Criminal Justice Grant
Grants Program Recipients!

Celebrating the winners of the Black Opportunity Fund (BOF) grant program for Canadian, Black-led community organizations.

Through the generous support of TD Bank Group through the TD Ready Commitment and the Law Foundation of Ontario, we are thrilled to announce the winners of our grant program for organizations making a significant impact in two of BOF’s mandate areas:  1) Arts & Culture, and 2) Criminal Justice.   After careful consideration and an extensive evaluation process, we have selected 19 Black-led, Black-serving, Black-focused not-for-profits and charities (B3s) from across Canada.

“The work being done through the Black Opportunity Fund to break down barriers, address systemic anti-Black racism, and create equitable opportunities for Black and Afro-descendant communities in Canada is transformational,” says Alicia Rose, Associate Vice President, Social Impact, TD Bank Group. “Through the TD Ready Commitment, our corporate citizenship platform, we’re proud to support their efforts to advocate for inclusive change and drive progress for these communities today and into the future.”

“We’re excited to be partnering with the Black Opportunity Fund and supporting its first Criminal Justice granting steam,” says Lisa Cirillo, CEO, The Law Foundation of Ontario. “Enabling equity and justice are key priorities of our grantmaking. Our partnership allowed the Black Opportunity Fund to double the granting dollars available, increasing justice-related services and access to justice for Black communities in Ontario. We congratulate all the grantees, especially those supported specifically by the Foundation’s funding, and look forward to learning about the impact they’ll create.”

We extend our deepest gratitude to all the applicants who submitted their projects for consideration. The level of work and commitment displayed in each proposal was truly inspiring, making the selection process a challenging but rewarding task.

We would also like to thank our adjudicators and advisors who generously shared their time and expertise to identify our program recipients.   Their invaluable contribution ensured a fair and thorough evaluation process.

Congratulations to our program recipients!

Please view the full list of the extraordinary grant winners at the link below. We invite you to help to promote their organizations and programs through your networks, and to consider supporting their initiatives.

Alberta

Project Title: Sankofa Justice Initiative (SJI)

Project Description: ACCEC's SJI program empowers people of African descent by providing contextual reports for the courts, a legal directory, education and awareness programs, and healing circles using African Indigenous Knowledge systems.

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British Columbia

Project Title: Vancouver Black Library Collections

Project Description: Vancouver Black Library Collections curates materials for the BIPOC community, promoting diversity and access to education and culture through funding support for acquisitions, staff, training, and community outreach.

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Manitoba

Project Title: SCREEN PROGRAM (Supporting Counter-Radicalization Efforts by Ethno-cultural Networks)

Project Description: The SCREEN Program in Winnipeg prevents youth radicalization and violence through safe spaces, media literacy, intercultural dialogue, mentorship, sports, and outings. It promotes resilience, challenges stereotypes, and empowers youth to contribute positively to society.

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Nova Scotia

Project Title: African Diaspora Cultural and Traditional Event for Mental Health and Well-Being

Project Description: The African Diaspora Cultural and Traditional Event celebrates the contributions of the African diaspora in the Maritimes while promoting cultural heritage and supporting the mental health and integration of newcomers in Canada.

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Project Title: Empowering Black Youth: Social Entrepreneurship for Change

Project Description: This program empowers at-risk black youth in Uniacke Square, Halifax, through social entrepreneurship and community involvement, aiming to prevent criminal involvement and break the cycle of poverty while promoting mental health and community development.

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Ontario

Project Title: CaribbeanTales Cinema Screenings Therapy Program

Project Description: The CaribbeanTales Cinema Screenings Therapy Program provides therapeutic film experiences for BIPOC audiences, addressing social issues and changing narratives through authentic portrayals by Black media artists.

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Project Title: Operations Capacity Building: Board Development and Building a Sustainable Operating Model

Project Description: This initiative enables BAND's board to shift from operational to governance roles, focusing on fundraising, partnerships, and strategic priorities for sustainable growth and resource development.

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Project Title: Girl Power’d Holistic Wellness Series

Project Description: Our program offers gymnastics, cultural dance, self-esteem building, and art classes for young Black girls, fostering self-expression, confidence, and cultural belonging in an empowering environment.

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Project Title: Prosper

Project Description: Prosper offers intensive case management for young individuals with firearm-related charges, aiming to increase access to services, address systemic barriers, and reduce involvement in violence and crime.

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Project Title: CABL's Advocacy Committee and Criminal Justice Reform Subcommittee

Project Description: The Advocacy Committee and Criminal Justice Reform Subcommittee promote diversity, equity, and justice for Black Canadians through interventions, reports, and legislative influence, creating positive social change in the community.

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Project Title: We Got You, Sis - Survivor Support Program

Project Description: The #MaybeNextTime campaign aims to address sexual violence against Black girls and women. The We Got You, Sis program offers capacity building, mental health support, and resources to encourage disclosure, empowerment, and access to necessary tools for self-advocacy and healing.

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Project Title: H2O (Help to Overcome)

Project Description: Our project aims to provide diversion programs for guilty pleas to prevent criminal convictions, reducing recidivism and empowering Black youth with better employment opportunities and support systems.

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Project Title: Restore, Reclaim & Rebuild (R3): Youth Justice System Navigation

Project Description: R3 provides culturally specific support for youth and families in the justice system. Increased funding enables expansion, professional counseling, and extrajudicial programs for Black youth, reducing recidivism and improving community safety and mental health.

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Project Title: Black Youth Diversion Program (Project Turnaround)

Project Description: The Black Youth Diversion program provides holistic prevention and intervention support for justice-involved Black youth, aiming to divert them from jails, address overrepresentation, and foster positive change through workshops and community interventions.

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Project Title: Acorn2Oak Justice Program - Supporting Racialized Youths in the Greater Toronto Area

Project Description: Acorn2Oak's Justice Program provides wraparound support for racialized youths in conflict with the law, addressing root issues, reducing recidivism, and promoting education and career prospects.

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Project Title: Fight The Power - Generation Next

Project Description: The project engages African, Caribbean, Black, and Indigenous youth through workshops led by Black legal professionals. It educates them about legal rights, develops legal skills, and includes a mock hearing and needs assessment.

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Quebec

Project Title: Festival Bon Courage

Project Description: We propose the Festival Bon Courage, an annual event highlighting the artistic and cultural diversity of communities of African descent, with the aim of combating cultural misunderstanding, promoting heritage and involving young people in Quebec society.

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Project Title: I.M.P.A.C.T Producer Career Catalyst Program (PCCP)

Project Description: I.M.P.A.C.T will launch a business accelerator program for Black Anglophone Quebecois producers, providing training, mentorship, and funding opportunities to support their career growth and promote diversity in the industry.

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Project Title: Hoodistic Justice: a restorative justice project by and for Black communities

Project Description: Hoodistic Justice, a restorative justice project by Hoodstock, aims to address systemic inequalities and overrepresentation of Black populations in the justice system. It offers alternative measures and Afrocentric workshops to rebuild identity and communities.

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#BlackFoodEnergy Restaurant Grant
#BlackFoodEnergy Grant Recipients

Congratulations to the Winners of the BOF and DoorDash #BlackFoodEnergy Grant Program for Canadian Black-owned Restaurants!

With their ongoing commitment to helping level the playing field for Black entrepreneurs, DoorDash partnered with Black Opportunity Fund to provide #BlackFoodEnergy grants of $10,000 to 13 Canadian Black-Owned Restaurants who are focused on innovation within the food industry.

We are excited to share the list of exceptional Black food entrepreneurs who are doing innovative things in communities across Canada.

Black Opportunity Fund partners strategically with community organizations, businesses, philanthropic organizations, and government to provide Black-led community organizations and Black-led businesses with the capital and other resources they need to build capacity and to fulfill their mandates.

#BlackFoodEnergy is an extension of the DoorDash Entrepreneurship & Access Program, which offers additional support for restaurants on the DoorDash platform owned by women and people of colour.

#BlackFoodEnergy specifically celebrates, amplifies and supports Black Chefs and Black-Owned restaurants and the amazing things they are serving up in neighbourhoods across Canada.

Congratulations to our program recipients!

Click the link below to watch the video :

https://youtube.com/shorts/2dFelFZmQ80?feature=share

Alberta

Project Description: Market expansion and branding

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British Columbia

Project Description: Upgrading restaurant interior

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Manitoba

Project Description: Market expansion and branding

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Nova Scotia

Project Description: Technology improvement

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Project Description: Upgrading cooking equipment

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Ontario

Project Description: Market expansion and branding

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Project Description: Market expansion and branding

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Project Description: Upgrading cooking equipment

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Project Description: Upgrading restaurant interior

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Project Description: Market expansion and branding

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Quebec

Project Description: Market expansion and branding

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Project Description: Upgrading cooking equipment

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Saskatchewan

Project Description: Upgrading cooking equipment

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2022 EDUCATION AND HEALTH GRANTS
Grants Program Recipients!

Grants for Education and Health focused Initiatives
Black Opportunity Fund (BOF) aims to help dismantle the impacts of systemic anti-Black racism by allocating resources to community organizations which undertake initiatives that impact the quality of life in Canada’s Black communities.

In 2022, we are launching our first granting cycle through a generous funding commitment from TD Bank.

The focus areas for the 2022 BOF Grants Program will be Black-led, Black-serving and Black focused not-for-profits and charities leading impactful initiatives in the areas of Education and Health, which are two of BOF’s key priority areas.

Congratulations to our program recipients!

Alberta

Project Title: Completion of Meech's Pint Size APP to develop a Blood Donation Culture in Alberta's Black Community

Project Description: To complete the blood donation culture research project.

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British Columbia

Project Title: Atlanthos Box Project

Project Description: Creation of a STEM curriculum to use at Ethos Lab that can be replicated to be used in schools and other educational settings, as well as design and delivery of STEM virtual workshops.

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Manitoba

Project Title: Restorative Change for Racialized BIPOC Youth Vulnerable to Incarceration

Project Description: Training community advocates in case management to serve as connectors for people seeking to break the cycle of being in the crimminal justice system, creating the connections and relationships with police, Crowns and all diversion programs.

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Nova Scotia

Project Title: CONNECTING THE DOTS "the Big Picture"

Project Description: Chrome books for digitial access and learning to black community members, mentorship programs, education resources and all culturally focused programs.

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Project Title: Graduate to Employment Pathway

Project Description: Culturally relevelant skills coaching and mentorship to recent graduate Black women to support them on their transition to full-time employment in their field.

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Ontario

Project Title: ACCPI'S Strides to Success Support Program

Project Description: Culturally sensitive approach to career preparation, financial literacy and wellness support to Black High School students.

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Project Title: This Way Up

Project Description: Increasing exposure and awareness on STEM career pathways for Black children and Youth through a combination of facilitated and self-led experiences, hands-on learning and mentorship.

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Project Title: Experiences of anti-Black racism in the Canadian healthcare system

Project Description: A research project on the experiences of Black people in Canada’s healthcare system, and strategies of resistance and wellness, to address experiences of anti-Black racism.

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Project Title: FBC x Black Can: Civic Engagement Campaign

Project Description: Advocacy in Black communities on elections, elections process, important dates, how and why to get involved.

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Project Title: Period.

Project Description: Creating public awareness of period poverty, menstrual equity, the health effects of inorganic menstrual products.

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Project Title: Here For You

Project Description: A Peer-to-Peer support program for people newly diagnosed, living with or at risk of HIV/AIDS.

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Project Title: Culinary Training Program for Black High School Youth

Project Description: Culinary Training for Black Youth to allow them to gain employment in the fast-food industry.

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Project Title: Wellness Connect

Project Description: Provide a safe space and mental health support and resouces for Black youth and artists to learn and talk about mental health/wellness.

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Project Title: Nobellum Innovator Program

Project Description: Skills Building Series incubation program to provide training, mentorship and skills development for Black youth, students and entrepreneurs.

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Project Title: The T.E.A.M Project [Teach. Empower. Affirm. Mentor]

Project Description: Provide a culturally competent coaching program for vulnerable racialized youth who are in need of learning, enhancing, or supporting life skills to effectively transition into adulthood.

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Project Title: Mentorship Program for the Black college and university students and recent graduates in the Onyx Initiative Scholars Program.

Project Description: Mentorship program to provide participants with greater access to job opportunities and a nurturing environment that will enable them to thrive.

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Project Title: Omo Africentric Virtual Campus

Project Description: A virtual Campus that will give students access to virtual drop-in free tutoring, educational tools, and other culturally relevant resources through an Africentric lens.

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Project Title: REST Black Youth Matter Support Line

Project Description: Culturally sensitive counseling, mentoring, coaching and referrals services to eliminate black youth homelessness.

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Project Title: Success Beyond Limits Summer Program

Project Description: Summer Program for Black youth in Life Skills, Literacy and Numeracy.

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Project Title: Expanding the 'Tiny Tales' Illustrated Books Collection

Project Description: The project will increase its collection of illustrated reading books offered to Black parents free, as they teach their children to read and help them develop the foundational reading skills.

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Project Title: INSPIRE HIRE

Project Description: Black Youth outreach in aviation industry awareness.

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Quebec

Project Title: Ressources à proximité

Project Description: Supporting Black youth with appropriate and accessible educational resources that allow them to succeed academically, regardless of the environment in which they live.

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Project Title: Youth Financial Empowerment Project

Project Description: Youth Financial Literacy.

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Project Title: Black Education Excellence Enrichment Program

Project Description: Culturally adapted activities for Black children such as Summer camps, high school entrance exam preparation, and supporting parents through their children's transition to high school.

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2021 CILAR Black-led Business
Grants Program Recipients!

CILAR Black-led Business Grants Program
In partnership with CILAR and Pitch Better, Black Opportunity Fund is providing cash grants, funded by Facebook Canada, in response to the ongoing impacts of COVID-19 on Canada’s Black-led business community. At Black Opportunity Fund, we recognize the importance of responding to urgent community needs, while taking a long-term approach to building pathways to greater business sustainability.

Congratulations to our program recipients!