Donors and alliance members meet to find solutions to the challenges of funding TSÉ – A Look Back at the 6th TEC Collective Day

View the summary of the day

Last March, it was reported that Solon, an organization recognized as a leading player in TSÉ in Montreal, would be closing its doors due to a lack of funding. The news sent shockwaves through the community: Since the issue had already been on the alliance members’ radar for some time, the alliance’s 6th collective day served as an opportunity to turn words into action and bring together expertise from across the funding system to identify concrete solutions. With more than 75 participants, the event took place at Les Petites Mains, a social integration organization located across from the vibrant Jarry Park.

Morning: Realities and Limitations of Donors and Organizations, and a Shared Understanding of the Causes of the Problem

Amid pastries and hot coffee, the day began with a presentation by Sidney Ribaud, director of the City of Montreal’s Office of Ecological Transition and Resilience, to kick off the series of presentations on the challenges and opportunities for financing the green transition. Nicolas Girard, Executive Director of the Quebec Action Fund for Sustainable Development, then presented on the evolution of transition financing over the past 25 years.

Two key points emerge from these presentations:

• Across Montreal, the funding and investments currently available are not sufficient to meet the challenges and ambitions of the transition

• There are positions of influence to be secured, and coalitions like TEC have a key role to play

Sylvain Lefevre, a researcher at UQÀM’s Center for Research on Social Innovations (CRISES), accompanied by master’s student Amélia Picard, and David Grant-Poitras, a Ph.D. student, then presented the findings of their most recent research on funding, revealing the results of interviews conducted with some twenty organizations and foundations.

Funding is project-based, so we have to constantly reinvent ourselves; we can’t build on what we’ve achieved. That’s another challenge: we need mission-based funding to build on our achievements and improve existing initiatives in the neighborhoods. We can’t keep reinventing ourselves and then starting from scratch—it doesn’t work.

– An organization that participated in the research

The end of the morning was devoted to a group workshop in small subgroups. Participants sought to identify the underlying causes of the transition’s funding problem. Among those identified, in addition to the overall lack of funding, were a mismatch between the funding priorities of calls for proposals and on-the-ground needs; the difficulty in gaining recognition for the TSÉ as a priority investment area; the difficulty in collectively influencing programs; and the status quo of organizations’ financial dependence on the philanthropic and governmental systems.

Afternoon: Exploring possible solutions to the identified causes of the problem

Since the morning was spent developing a shared understanding of transition financing, the second half of the day was devoted to identifying potential solutions.

Eight potential solutions were discussed during these exchanges:

• Create an Endowment Fund for the Socio-Ecological Transition in Montreal

• Develop a plan for adopting new mobility infrastructure

• Pool subsidy funds

• Help Update Montreal’s Participatory Budget

• Strengthen the community and regional roots of public and community-based financial institutions

• Adapt donors’ practices and approaches to foster shared responsibility and greater commitment

• Focusing on Municipal Environmental Taxation

• Influencing provincial programs at an early stage

What now?

The April 30 meeting confirmed a shared commitment to move into a new phase of climate action in Montreal. When asked who would lead the mobilization around these solutions, the alliance was almost invariably identified as the ideal actor. However, recognizing the alliance’s limitations, the final agreement was to commit to dedicating the coming months to prioritizing these avenues, mobilizing the alliance’s key players, and taking concrete steps to turn these ideas into drivers of change. The work has only just begun, and much more is to come!

We’re leaving this group session with a clearer understanding of the tasks ahead, but also with renewed energy, born of an open dialogue among the participants.

Thank you to everyone who contributed, whether directly or indirectly, to making this day a success.