Unlike their more visible counterparts in the United States, Canadian philanthropists tend to work quietly. But amid growing wealth inequality and concern about the role of private wealth in public life, that low profile comes at a cost. Foundations can seem mysterious, their purpose unclear.
Canadian foundations, especially larger, more visible ones, can no longer be shrinking violets. They’re navigating a landscape where even well-intentioned donations give rise to questions about who’s doing the giving, and why.
In an era when private foundations increasingly fund everything from hospitals to university chairs, questions about donor intent are inevitable. In this environment, communication isn’t about visibility for its own sake. It’s about clarity and trust. Foundations need to explain not only what they do, but who they are and what they value.
Hilary Pearson, former president of Philanthropic Foundations Canada and chancellor at Brock University, says many foundations struggle to communicate because they have never fully defined their own purpose, even to themselves.
“There’s a step in advance of communicating,” says Pearson, “which is to ask yourself: ‘Do we have a strategy? Do we have a purpose? How much do we want to say about that, and then how do we want to say it?’”
Pearson notes that many Canadian foundations are small and operate more as private vehicles for giving than as public-facing institutions. According to data from Imagine Canada, most hold less than $1 million in assets. Pearson says many of them have few or no staff, and they haven’t felt the need for organized external communications.
Foundations can often be seen as mysterious and opaque.
Jane Rabinowicz, CEO, McConnell Foundation
“Most foundations in the country are really just vehicles for private giving by individuals. They happen to be using a foundation. So they don’t put up a website, because they’re not really thinking of it as an organization that has its own strategy or purpose.”
But as registered charities, Pearson points out, private foundations have obligations to the public, regardless of how the founders see themselves. Their staffing and financial details are publicly available on the CRA’s website. And organizations like Imagine Canada create an even more comprehensive database which they sell as a directory.
“As a foundation, it makes sense to put up your own webpage, as opposed to just relying on the CRA to share all that information. But I think that you have to see yourself as more than just a grantor and as an organization that has a purpose.”
Some organizations are leading the way.
At the Montreal-based McConnell Foundation, CEO Jane Rabinowicz says her team embraces both formal and informal communication channels to achieve its goals. Alongside a comprehensive website and formal reporting tools such as its annual “Year in Review” and impact investing reports, the foundation uses social media and shares informal reflections from the CEO in a recurring monthly newsletter column called “Jane’s Corner.”
This mix is intentional, Rabinowicz says. “Foundations can often be seen as mysterious and opaque. Philanthropy is about supporting the public good, and this includes being transparent about how we do it.”
McConnell’s impact investing report, which outlines its goals of building a fully impact-aligned portfolio and reaching net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, has been used in academic and professional settings, including university courses and CFA Society discussions.
Done well, [communications] build trust, invite collaboration, help others learn and encourage more people to get involved.”
Aneil Gokhale, lead for Philanthropic Advisory Services, Toronto Foundation
For the McConnell Foundation, communication is clearly more than just a reporting exercise. “They are thinking of themselves as knowledge creators and disseminators,” says Pearson. “They want to share what they’re learning and contribute to public discourse to improve the field for everyone.”
Experts emphasize that great communication doesn’t begin with channels or content, but with clarity of purpose.
Aneil Gokhale, lead for Philanthropic Advisory Services at the Toronto Foundation, says his organization works with partners to help them clarify their values through a series of explorations into motivation, money messages and philanthropic principles. The goal is alignment between values and action.
“It helps people understand how their mission and values connect to the impact they want to have,” Gokhale says.
When foundations clearly define their focus, Pearson says, the benefits extend beyond messaging. Clear positioning makes it easier for potential partners to understand whether alignment exists and lays the groundwork for more organic collaborations. She points to examples such as the Daymark Foundation, where a clearly defined focus on women’s mental health and bipolar disorder helps guide partnerships and funding decisions.
Once purpose and identity are established, communication tools like websites, annual reports and case studies become more effective. Pearson says case studies, in particular, remain underused in Canada despite their ability to demonstrate impact in practical terms.
Social media is more complicated. While some foundations are cautious about entering public debate online, Pearson says platforms such as LinkedIn can offer a controlled environment for sharing ideas and building professional networks.
Philanthropy is about supporting the public good, and this includes being transparent about how we do it.
Jane Rabinowicz, CEO, McConnell Foundation
If more and better communication helps foundations explain themselves, it also helps them connect with one another. The resulting collaborations lead to situations where “one plus one equals three” and collaborators see results beyond what any single organization could accomplish alone.
Gokhale shared an example of how communication and networking helped a partnership grow beyond expectations. The executive director of the Counselling Foundation of Canada used his connections to introduce other philanthropists to one of their grantees, the Visions of Science, which supports STEM in schools. Those introductions and conversations led to a significant multi-year, unrestricted grant. But the deeper outcome went beyond dollars raised.
“Their support included funding, but also relationships, introductions, credibility and social capital,” says Gokhale. “It’s a reminder that philanthropy isn’t just about the financial capital.”
That, to him, is where communications can be powerful. “Done well, they build trust, invite collaboration, help others learn and encourage more people to get involved.” When foundations communicate with clarity and purpose, they build the trust that makes collaboration possible. And, as Gokhale suggests, that’s often where the most meaningful work begins.
Cindy McGlynn is a Toronto-based writer and editor who frequently writes about business, culture and the arts. In addition to holding communications roles at tech startups and writing for consumer and B2B publications, Cindy has edited two national magazines and served as a long-time columnist for the Toronto Star’s Eye Weekly magazine. She has been contributing to Canadian Family Offices for four years.
The Canadian Family Offices newsletter comes out on Sundays and Wednesdays. If you are interested in stories about Canadian enterprising families, family offices and the professionals who work with them, you can sign up for our free newsletter here.
Please visit here to see information about our standards of journalistic excellence.