A New Way to Fund Change: Participatory Granting in Action
How participatory granting and Free to Play are transforming community impact for children and families
Yesterday, we held the first of two sessions for our Free to Play initiative, bringing together seven incredible local organizations, all united by one shared goal: helping kids (ages 0–14) spend more time outside, engaged in unstructured, imaginative play. It was inspiring to watch some amazing ideas begin to intersect and evolve through collaboration.
Because free play matters. It’s how kids explore, create, build confidence, and connect with the world around them. And yet, opportunities for that kind of play are becoming harder to access. Free to Play is about changing that by removing barriers and opening up more spaces, programs, and moments where kids can simply be kids.
This work is part of a broader initiative led by Community Foundations of Canada, who are helping to reimagine how communities invest in themselves. Through initiatives like Free to Play, they’re supporting local foundations across the country to test new approaches that put communities at the centre of decision-making.
What makes this initiative even more meaningful is how the funding is being decided.
This is a participatory granting process. Instead of organizations competing against one another through a traditional application model, they’re sitting at the same table, sharing ideas, listening to each other’s experiences, and working collaboratively to decide how the funding can have the greatest impact.
It’s about trusting local expertise, shifting from competition to collaboration and creating solutions that are shaped by the people closest to the work.
Participatory granting has the potential to transform the way we fund community work. By redistributing decision-making power and valuing lived experience alongside professional expertise, it can lead to more equitable, responsive, and impactful outcomes. It challenges us to think differently about our role, not just as funders, but as partners in community change.
Over the coming weeks, these organizations will continue to learn from one another and co-design projects that will bring more opportunities for outdoor, unstructured play to children across our community.
We can’t wait to see what comes to life.
Stay tuned—this is just the beginning.