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Compilation of useful research and reports related to young artists from equity-deserving communities in Toronto Highlighted Reports Visions: Future of Funding (2025) Investigating the Impacts of COVID-19 Among LGBTQ2S Youth Experiencing Homelessness (2021) Canada’s First State of Youth Report: For Youth, With Youth, By Youth- The Government of Canada (2021) National Arts and Culture Impact Survey (NACIS) (2020) I Lost My Gig: Impacts of COVID-19 on Canadian Artists and Independent Cultural Workers (2020) Unfunded: Black Communities Overlooked by Canadian Philanthropy- Network for the Advancement of Black Communities and Carleton University’s Philanthropy and Nonprofit Leadership program (2020) What is the Evidence on the Role of the Arts in Improving Health and Well-Being? (2019) Unequal City: The Hidden Divide Among Toronto’s Children and Youth (2017) The Opportunity Equation in the Greater Toronto Area: An Update on Neighbourhood Income Inequality and Polarization (2017) First Peoples, Second Class Treatment: The Role of Racism in the Health and Wellness of Indigenous Peoples in Canada (2015) Transforming Communities Through the Arts by TAF (2013) The Youth Arts Landscape in Toronto (2013) Arts Engagement and Quality of Life by Sketch (2013) Letting Youth In- Youth Workers Talk Space by the City of Toronto (2013) Self Care DIY (2012) New Connections- Arts and the Settlement Process in Toronto by NAN (2011) Emergence of the Youth-Led Sector (2010) The Art of Social Innovation (2010) The Nonprofit Starvation Cycle by Stanford University (2009) Cultivating Demand For The Arts (2008) GYC- From the Roots Up Report (2006) Under-Voiced Voices Report (2006) GYC- Youth on Youth Report (2005) Research Developers and Databases The Fraser Institute Social Planning Toronto Maytree Foundation The Wellesley Institute Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives Tamarack Institute United Way City of Toronto Research and Reports TDSB Research, Reports, and Links Ontario Creates Research Library Focus on Youth- Arts Programmi ng and Policy Research and reports

ArtReach is a community-based arts organization that provides grants, workshops, mentorship, and resources to artists and cultural leaders aged 13-29 from equity-deserving populations in Toronto serving Toronto's emerging artists and cultural leaders gran ts worksh ops resou rces Blog instagram

Get to know us! Meet the ArtReach staff and grant review team and read their bios Allie Harvey (she/ her) Director renato sologuren (he/ him) program manager Staff Email Email grant review team The Grant Review Team (GRT) reviews applications for funding and makes the funding recommendations for ArtReach. The GRT is made up of a group of qualified volunteers with extensive experience in youth engagement through the arts, and includes young artists and community workers from across the City experienced in a wide variety of artistic disciplines. GRT Members profiled below adjudicate our Community Arts Programming grants. Members of our Artist Creation Projects team are not publicly shared. Sylvie Stojanovski Krish Dineshkumar Vaishnavi Panwar Saif Khan Desiree Mckenzie Camila Salcedo

Each month, ArtReach releases a list of the month's upcoming grant deadlines for funding related to the Toronto arts sector. Looking for more? Check out our full Grant Deadline Calendar resource here ! APRIL 1 Government of Canada, Canada Arts Presentation Fund- Presenter Support Organizations Government of Canada, Canada Arts Presentation Fund- Professional Arts Festivals and Performing Arts Series Presenters Toronto Arts Council, Creative Communities Multi-Year Operating Toronto Arts Council, Dance Multi-Year Operating Grant Toronto Arts Council, Theatre Multi-Year Operating Toronto Arts Council, Visual and Media Arts Multi-Year Operating APRIL 6 City of Toronto, StreetART Toronto - "Just us" Art Call APRIL 7 Toronto Arts Council, Community Music Making APRIL 8 Canada Council for the Arts, Arts and Cultures of First Nations, Inuit and Métis Peoples, Short-Term Projects Ontario Arts Council, Touring and Circulation Projects Grant APRIL 10 Kiwanis Club of Toronto, Arts and Culture Grant Kiwanis Club of Toronto, Community Impact Award Kiwanis Club of Toronto, Mentorship and Leadership Grant APRIL 12 Community One Foundation, Rainbow Grants APRIL 13 Ontario Creates, The IP Fund – Interactive Content Stream Toronto Arts Council, Newcomer and Refugee Artist Mentorship Toronto Arts Council, Newcomer and Refugee Arts Engagement APRIL 14 Ontario Arts Council, Literary Organizations Projects Grant APRIL 15 Canada Council for the Arts, Arts Across Canada & Abroad: Foreign Artists Tours Canada Council for the Arts, Supporting Artistic Practice: Literary Publishing Projects Ontario Trillium Foundation, Youth Opportunity Fund, Family Innovations Scale Grant Expression of Interest deadline Ontario Trillium Foundation, Youth Opportunity Fund, Family Innovations Test Grant Expression of Interest Deadline Ontario Trillium Foundation, Youth Opportunity Fund, Youth Innovations Scale Grant Expression of Interest Deadline Ontario Trillium Foundation, Youth Opportunity Fund, Youth Innovations Test Grant Expression of Interest Deadline APRIL 21 Ontario Arts Council Music Recording Projects Grant Ontario Arts Council, Artists in Communities and Schools Projects Ontario Creates, The IP Fund – Linear Content Stream APRIL 22 Canada Council for the Arts, Arts Across Canada & Abroad: Public Outreach Canada Council for the Arts, Arts Across Canada, Translation APRIL 23 Ontario Arts Council, Indigenous Artists in Communities and Schools Projects Ontario Arts Council, Indigenous Arts Projects Grant APRIL 30 Indigenous Youth Roots, Youth Empowerment Stream Indigenous Youth Roots, Small Project Stream Government of Canada, Building Communities Through Arts and Heritage- Festivals Ontario Arts Council Northern Arts Projects Grant

Each month, ArtReach releases a list of the month's upcoming grant deadlines for funding related to the Toronto arts sector. Looking for more? Check out our full Grant Deadline Calendar resource here ! MARCH 2 Toronto Arts Council, Theatre Projects MARCH 3 Ontario Arts Council, Media Arts Projects MARCH 4 Ontario Trillium Foundation, Capital Grant MARCH 5 Laidlaw Foundation, Indigenous Youth & Community Futures Fund MARCH 9 TO Live, Explorations Grant MARCH 11 City of Toronto, StART, Concrete Barrier Program City of Toronto, StART, Outside the Box MARCH 12 Ontario Arts Council, Dance Projects Grant Ontario Arts Council, Multi and Inter-Arts Projects Grant MARCH 16 Government of Canada, Aid to Publishers, Community Newspaper Government of Canada, Aid to Publishers, Digital Periodical Government of Canada, Aid to Publishers, Magazines Toronto Arts Council, Creative Communities Project Grant Toronto Arts Council, Dance Projects Toronto Arts Council, Literary Projects Toronto Arts Council, Music Projects Toronto Arts Council, Visual and Media Arts Projects: Presentation Grant MARCH 17 Ontario Arts Council, Media Artists Creation Projects Grant MARCH 18 Ontario Arts Council Music Creation Projects Grant MARCH 24 Ontario Arts Council, Dance Organizations: Operating Grant Ontario Arts Council, Operating: Literary Organizations Grant Ontario Arts Council, Operating: Visual Arts Organizations MARCH 25 Ontario Arts Council Music Production and Presentation Projects Grant MARCH 26 City of Toronto, Outdoor Mural & Street Art Program Grant MARCH 31 Metcalf Foundation, Performing Arts Internships Grant Ontario Arts Council, Music Organizations Operating Grant Ontario Arts Council, Operating: Media Arts Organizations Ontario Arts Council, Operating: Multi and Inter-Arts Organizations Grant Ontario Arts Council, Operating: Theatre Organizations Grant

Youth Engagement Scarborough (YES) is a grant program that supports young leaders in creating community-driven arts projects in Scarborough. Participants receive project funding, one-on-one mentorship from a working artist, and hands-on project management training. The program will culminate in an exciting YES Showcase, where you’ll have the opportunity to share your project with an audience in a way that is meaningful to you and your community. Deadline: Friday February 27th @ 11:59pm. Learn more and apply here! Are you part of the 2026 Fringe Festival, age 15-30, and have a connection to Scarborough? You may be eligible for a YES performance grant. Learn more here! Cohort 5 – Performance This cohort supports performance-focused projects. Projects involving getting on your feet and developing a show, or running performance-based workshops should apply to this cohort. Your project may include writing elements, but the primary goal should be to create something that lives in performance. What You Get A grant between $1,000 – $5,000 to fund your project Mentorship from a professional artist Hands-on project management and creative training sessions A chance to engage your community & connect with other young artist leaders A showcase to share your artistic project What is the YES Showcase? The showcase is an event produced by Guild Festival Theatre to celebrate, present and even pitch you and your project alongside other YES participants and invited guests. There will be minimal lighting, sound, technical, and staging elements available. There will be no rehearsals in the space, just a simple tech the day of the event. You can share up to 15 minutes of work—this could be an excerpt, a full piece, or a work-in-progress showing, etc. Any related costs (e.g. actors, props, costumes, materials, etc.) should be included in your grant budget. If you choose to produce your own event (reading, show, cabaret etc), you will still be required to present at the YES Showcase. Please include the associated costs to your event (rentals, directors, technical needs etc.) in your grant budget. Application Timeline Application Deadline: Friday February 27th @ 11:59pm Funding Released: Early April Project Period: January 26 – August 24, 2026 Skills-Building Workshops: TBD (One evening in April and one in June) YES Showcase: Week of August 24, 2026 (One Full Day TBD) Who Can Apply? Youth (ages 15-30) with a connection to Scarborough Canadian citizens, permanent residents, and youth with a granted refugee status Performing Arts-based projects that engage multiple youth in the community No prior professional creative or project management experience needed—just passion and creativity! Priority will be given to: Indigenous youth Visible minority/racialized youth Youth with disabilities 2SLGBTQ+ youth Newcomer youth Youth from official language minority communities (OLMC) Youth living in rural or remote areas Youth from low-income households Not sure if you qualify? Contact at outreach@guildfestivaltheatre.ca with any questions!