| A Partnership to Support Women's Success THE WOMEN AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CONSORTIUM |
Trillium is proud to be one of the founders of a new ground-breaking national partnership of corporations, public and private foundations, and the cooperative sector launched in November to boost the economic success of women in Canada. The Women and Economic Development Consortium will spend $2.3 million over the next five years to support the best ideas of women's organizations working to help low-income women move forward with viable business initiatives leading to economic self-reliance. Of particular interest are projects that support women in developing cooperative or community-based firms in scientific, technical, or other growth areas of the economy. "The record shows women are an impressive driving force in the Canadian economy. But the full potential of women's contribution is not being realized, because many low-income women face significant barriers to economic participation," said Sharon Clarke, Trillium Board member and representative to the Consortium. "The Consortium gives us a chance to tap that potential by working with women's organizations to find and support the best ways to enable low-income women to start new businesses." "This consortium is a first in Canada," said Pat Baxter (vice president, Grants) for the Canadian Women's Foundation. "Never before have such diverse players joined together in support of a cross-sectoral economic initiative like this. We expect that a minimum of 500 low-income women will participate in model projects and new ventures funded by the Consortium. The ripple effect will be far greater." Trillium was the lead donor with its commitment of $150,000 for each of five years. Other partners are the Atkinson Charitable Foundation, Bank of Montreal, the Canadian Women's Foundation, the Kahanoff Foundation, Nancy's Very Own Foundation, Levi Strauss & Co., and the Canadian Alternative Investment Cooperative. Building on five years of experience with organizations working with low-income women, the Canadian Women's Foundation will also act as the Consortium's administrative partner. "The Consortium illustrates our commitment to working collaboratively with others," said Betty-Lou Souter, Chair of the Trillium Board. "Through the Consortium, we are helping women reach their full potential." Several thousand Consortium applications have been mailed to women's groups all over Canada. As well, the full Request for Proposals and information on how to apply can also be found on Trillium's Web site, or the Canadian Women's Foundation site at http://www.cdnwomen.org/. |