In the 25 years since CharityVillage was launched, Canada and the world has faced many threats and challenges. This past year, though, has been especially arduous — and perilous — for nonprofits and charities.  The pandemic disproportionately impacted the Canadian nonprofit sector while increasing the demands on its programs and services amidst massive challenges in traditional fundraising leading to budget shortfalls, layoffs, and closures — leaving its remaining professionals and volunteers overworked and struggling with mental health and burnout.  The challenges in 2021 have been daunting even while the stakes have increased.  The confluence of the pandemic with multiple incidences of racial injustice, heightened awareness of historic and current discrimination of Indigenous peoples, BIPOC, LGBTQ2+ and persons with disabilities, financial uncertainty, and record-shattering extreme climate events have exposed the deepest fissures in society’s foundations and compelled us to call upon our strength and resilience like never before.

It is during this extremely difficult year that I’ve been honoured to commence my role as President of CharityVillage, in the hope that we can add to, improve and enhance the services we offer to the sector and the extraordinary people who’ve committed their lives to it.  I’m proud to share that CharityVillage — like many nonprofit organizations we serve — didn’t just survive this past year, but emerged stronger, more resilient, innovative and relevant to the sector.  We took our cues, and our inspiration, from you!  Early in the pandemic, we recognized the critical need for massive digital transformation of the sector and the operations and fundraising strategies of nonprofits.  Rather than just try to survive, we decided it was time to double down on our investment in the sector to launch new digital services to support nonprofit organizations in this challenging and historical transformation accelerated by the ongoing crisis of the pandemic.  In the past twelve months we’ve launched a plethora of new services to assist in the digitization of all aspects of nonprofits’ operations, from recruitment to professional development; from management and operations to fundraising.  Here are just a few:

We also believe that now, more than ever, CharityVillage is called on to step up and use our reach across the sector and the country to bring nonprofit professionals together to share best practices and celebrate excellence among us.  In November we were proud to launch our inaugural virtual CharityVillage National Conference and Awards where we brought together thought leaders and subject matter experts to discuss the most challenging topics facing the sector, such as: Mental Health & Burnout; the need for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion; Youth Engagement; and Innovations in Digital Fundraising.  The response from the sector was beyond our wildest expectations!  With nearly 1000 Conference attendees, we were delighted to receive over 500 applicants for our Awards celebrating excellence and impact in these key areas of influence and welcomed 20 subject matter experts to preside as judges for finalists and winners.  You can check out all the winners here and listen to their stories in Episode 2  of our new podcast series, CharityVillage Connects.  Our new podcast series, also launched in 2021, is designed to tackle some of  the toughest challenges facing nonprofits in Canada with advice from subject matter experts on issues such as: fundraising; mental health; diversity, equity and inclusion; and many more pressing topics so don’t forget to subscribe with your favourite podcast player on iTunes, Spotify, Amazon, and more, for 2022 episodes to help you navigate the months ahead.    

I’m sure all of us will be relieved to see the end of 2021, but with Omicron spreading like wildfire across the globe, we are not yet out of danger and have a long fight ahead.  As part of efforts to support the sector, we will be launching a 10-part E-Learning Certificate Course on Mental Health in the Workplace and new E-Learning Courses to help you Make your Workplace and Board more Diverse, Equitable and Inclusive, among many other timely subjects.  Stay on top of our new e-learning, podcast, and webinar offerings for 2022 by subscribing to our weekly Village Vibes newsletter. 

As we have witnessed over the past year, the Canadian nonprofit community has demonstrated astonishing resilience, perseverance, and resourcefulness along with compassion, courage, and even heroism beyond our greatest expectations.  I am confident that the community will marshal its resolve yet again to face whatever comes in 2022 and CharityVillage wants to be there with you all to lend our support every step of the way.  I want to end by expressing my sincere admiration for, and deepest thanks to, all the professionals and volunteers who make up the nonprofit community that CharityVillage is proud to serve, and to wish you all a festive and healthy holiday season and a happy New Year!  See you in 2022!