Reimagining Funding and Service Delivery for Newcomers: Considerations for Relational Infrastructure is a proposal to develop a community-based funding model that centres the voices of newcomers and racialized leaders within small and ethno-specific service provider organizations.

The primary purpose of this research project was to develop a funding model that is reflective of the Toronto South newcomer-serving sector. We conducted a participatory research project using co-design principles and methodologies to centre the voices of newcomers and racialized leaders within the newcomer-serving sector.

This research project was an opportunity to use a co-design process which purposefully and intentionally focuses on building relationships between participants and works to address how power and resource distribution impacts the newcomer-serving sector. Our research team has produced two reports to document the project. The first of these reports, Reimagining Funding and Service Delivery for Newcomers: Lessons from the Literature and Stakeholders, was published in 2023.

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This research is part of a larger project entitled Community Based Service Delivery and Funding: Centering Newcomer Experience, led by the Toronto South Local Immigration Partnership (TSLIP) in partnership with Social Planning Toronto (SPT) and the Department of Imaginary Affairs (DIA). Launched in 2021, this three-year initiative aims to propose a funding and service delivery model that will centre the voices of newcomers, particularly those who are racialized and marginalized, as well as organizations that work with them, in funding decisions.

The Toronto South Local Immigration Partnership (TSLIP) is a strategic community initiative focused on promoting welcoming communities and improving the social and economic outcomes of newcomers through enhanced service delivery, collaboration, and the development of partnerships. To learn more about TSLIP, visit torontolip.com

The Department of Imaginary Affairs (DIA) is a national nonprofit imagining equitable futures by seeking, centering, elevating and amplifying the voices, living experiences, stories, ideas and ideally decision-making practices of Newcomers, Immigrants, Refugees and Youth (especially those who self-identify as Black, Indigenous and People-of-colour) to co-design more empathetic programs, policies and services. To learn more about DIA, visit dia.space