Our Work:
Environment

Our Funding Objectives

The Catherine Donnelly Foundation seeks to foster a diverse and inclusive climate justice movement, where communities and voices that are under-served lead the path forward to a climate-safe, resilient, caring, and socially-just future.

Our Approach

Our Environment funding strategy is aimed at promoting climate justice and supporting initiatives that mobilize to accelerate the transition to a post-carbon world. Our approach recognizes an inseparable bond with nature, intersections with other social movements, and a desire to address the root causes of climate change. We are committed to building an inclusive society where no one is left behind, upholding UNDRIP, respecting inherent Indigenous rights, and to reconciliation with First Nation, Inuit, and Métis people.

We have particular interest in projects that:

• Arise from or engage with communities and voices that are under-represented and excluded such as racialized, low-income, Indigenous, and youth in building greater climate stability and resilience.
• Are Indigenous-led, to better sustain the health of the land, waters, climate and community and to advance climate and environmental justice in ways determined by Indigenous leaders and communities.
• Support capacity within First Nation, Inuit and Métis communities and sharing their worldview of an interconnected relationship with nature as a foundation or model for building a sustainable future.

(read more about CDF’s commitment here)

Our Priority Areas

We support initiatives that address climate change and climate justice through a wide range of approaches and disciplines, including: community ways and knowledge, civic engagement, law/policy reform, finance/economics, ecosystem health, communications, and working alongside labour and other social movements to build power.

What We Fund:

• Support for climate justice leaders and innovative initiatives that build a diverse and inclusive movement;
• Projects that demonstrate to people in positions of decision-making power that there is an appetite for fast action on climate solutions.
• Projects that inform and seed public opinion and/or support public engagement and mobilization, including grassroots or organizing work.
• Creation and sharing of positive and empowering narratives that offer hope and a vision for how we want to live together in a post-carbon world.
• Broadening a collective power base through collaboration and mutual learning across diverse communities, sectors, disciplines, geographies, and messengers.