June15

Media Release

June 15 , 2006

The Community Foundation of Ottawa announces a new series of youth grants

(OTTAWA) – Summer in the city always brings its share of youthful activity, but the coming season will also be abuzz with a terrific new series of youth-led projects that will help to improve the community for us all. The Community Foundation of Ottawa is pleased to announce that more than 12-thousand dollars in funding will be awarded to support nine initiatives for its first Youth-led Community Action Grants Program. The Foundation's new 16-member Youth Advisory Committee selected and recommended projects for funding to the Board of Directors, which were all unanimously approved.

Projects to be funded include a leadership camp for Muslim youth, a social group for youth living with HIV/AIDS, a multicultural festival for a low-income neighbourhood in Ottawa, and a one-day, city-wide conference to promote queer youth leadership and activism strategies through art. The Youth-Led Community Action Grants Program, a partnership initiative with the department of Canadian Heritage and Community Foundations of Canada, was developed to fund projectts proposed, selected and implemented by youth. A part of the Foundation's new Ottawa Youth in Philanthropy (OYIP) program that engages young people in the world of community philanthropy, the program provides grants of up to $2500 for projects that are initiated and carried out by local youth.

The Community Foundation of Ottawa is a public, non-profit organization created by and for the people of Ottawa . It connects donors who care with causes that matter and serves as a trusted resource for addressing issues and leveraging opportunities in the community. It attracts and manages a growing endowment, the invested earnings of which provide grants to charitable organizations. The Foundation's role is as neutral broker in support of all charitable causes that contribute to the community's quality of life. With its growing profile, the Community Foundation of Ottawa has built an enviable reputation for astute financial management, high-quality donor services, strategic grantmaking and innovative partnerships.

2006 Youth-Led Community Action Projects

The Aids Committee of Ottawa's youth volunteers will create a social group for youth, aged 15-21, living with HIV/AIDS. The grant will assist in connecting and creating resources for this group of young people living in Ottawa.

The youth leadership group at Britannia Woods Community House will organize a summer Hip Hop dance class for the Britannia Woods youth community. The grant will help the youth put on a final performance at an end-of-summer community event.

Youth staff and volunteers of Child and Youth Friendly Ottawa will collect and distribute 1500 fully-equipped backpacks for students in need. The grant supports an increase in the number of backpacks collected to resond to an increased need.

The youth leadership team of the Muslim Association of Canada will organize a camp to help Muslim youth develop leadership and social skills, and to support newcomers' integration within Canadian society. The grant will support the participation of five youths who would not normally be able to afford to attend the camp.

The YOUCAN Team Ottawa, a local chapter of the Youth Canada Association, will organize a community event to raise awareness of the positive actions taken by youth in our city. The grant will help raise the profile of young people in a community negatively affected by a recent arson incident.

The Rainbow Youth Advisory Committee of the Youth Services Bureau of Ottawa will organize a one-day, city-wide conference to promote queer youth leadership and activism strategies through art. The grant will support the promotion and planning of the event.

Christie Lake Kids' Leaders in Training will host a multicultural festival in the Caldwell community located in Ottawa's west end. The grant will raise awareness among youth of the positive nature of diversity in their community.

The Academy of Heru Auset and the Ottawa Community Immigrant Services Organization will create a bilingual mobile display about African-Caribbean heritage for exhibition in schools and community centres. The grant will support the collection and promotion of the display.

The Michelle Heights Youth Advisory Committee of the Youth Services Bureau of Ottawa will organize a youth awareness night to highlight the contributions of the community's young people. The grant will support the planning of the event.