Equal Voice has been selected for the Investment Readiness Program (IRP) through Canada’s Women Foundation. The IRP is aimed to support social purpose organizations (SPOs) in building their capacity to participate in Canada’s social finance market. Through the IRP, the Canadian Women’s Foundation aims to boost sector participation of women and gender diverse people in social innovation and social finance.
As one of the grantees through the systemic change stream, Equal Voice wants to understand how we can create social finance resourcing mechanisms and tools to ensure that women and underrepresented groups have better access to funds to participate in electoral politics. Electoral laws in Canada have important parameters in place to ensure that political financing is fair and transparent, but what innovative and unlocking capacity can be created that works within these conditions?
This exploratory work through June 2023 to March 2024 would allow for relevant stakeholders to work with us to test and validate assumptions, to plan and design potential options and scenarios and then to begin to take steps towards putting a financing platform together. With the technical expertise and support of legal researchers, by engaging with other partner organizations, we want to be able to build out viable models for a national fund and identify prospective funding partners.
Read our reports below:
Cost of Entry: Perspectives on the financial costs of running for office in Canada
Release date: January 2024
Pages: 20
This report by Dr. Kate Graham on behalf of Equal Voice explores financial costs associated with running for office in Canada.
Democracy Action Fund Briefing Report
Release date: January 2024
Pages: 8
This report provides an overview of the Democracy Action Fund, the issues it seeks to address, and how social financing can help address inequities in Canadian politics (via Samara Centre for Democracy)
