Since our goal with Funder Profiles is to keep you informed of Canada’s greatest change-making funding bodies, it’s prudent that we feature The J.W. McConnell Family Foundation. Better known simply as the McConnell Foundation, it is one of Canada’s largest, most progressive and most venerable philanthropic institutions.
Founded in 1937 by Montreal businessman John Wilson McConnell, the McConnell Foundation “envision a future in which our economy and social systems promote the thriving of all people, and in which the natural environment is stewarded for generations to come”. To that end, its Directors currently are dedicated to supporting initiatives, partnerships and collaborations that address climate change, advance reconciliation, and employ innovative approaches to solving social issues and strengthening communities.
Specifically, the Foundation directs the bulk of its funding to solutions that address the following areas of concern for all Canadians:
Communities
The McConnell Foundation supports organizations that undertake projects that aim to address the root causes of inequity in their community at a meaningful level. It primarily achieves this by investing in two different types of action:
Encouraging partnerships among community organizations to address barriers to social and/or economic inclusion, and;
Advocating for policy changes that advance social justice and remove barriers to participation.
Climate
The Directors are “dedicated to tackling the climate crisis and supporting communities coast to coast to coast in transitioning to net-zero carbon”.
Reconciliation
The McConnell Foundation “fund projects that advance a reconciliation economy where wealth and resources are equitably shared and sustainably stewarded for this generation and those yet to come, in relationship with both Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples”.
Types of Funding Partnerships
When the McConnell Foundation approves a grant application, it enters into a formal “partnership” with the organization that it monetarily invests. Below are descriptions of the various types of partnerships in which they engage:
Responsive funding: Refers to funding provided in response to unsolicited proposals submitted by prospective partners (constitutes the majority of its funding allocations);
Program Development: McConnell provides program development support for projects closely aligned with one of our focus areas;
Proactive Partnership Development: Involves calls for proposals with specific partners;
Funder collaboratives: The Foundation collaborates with other funders to support a specific initiative, and;
Opportunity funds: Foundation provides relatively modest amounts of $50,000 or less to partners to support unique and time-sensitive needs or opportunities.
At its year end in 2022, the McConnell Foundation had assets of $652,099,086 and generated $35,271,248 in revenue. The McConnell Foundation disbursed a total of $22,927,905 in grants to 250 projects across Canada.
To learn more about the McConnell Foundation, please visit their website at https://www.mcconnellfoundation.ca/ .
