How Pearson’s Uplift Fund boosts careers and community
Being a good neighbour means giving back to the community – and Toronto Pearson’s Uplift Fund does exactly that. It supports community programs that help job seekers find meaningful careers and build new skills to excel in the Canadian job market.
On June 3, Toronto Pearson President and CEO Deborah Flint visited Malton Youth Hub to reveal the 11 organizations that will share $1.57 million in funding from Uplift this year. Their projects will help more than 2,000 people across the region with individual support such as job placements, training and mentorship. With the airport gearing up for its ambitious Pearson LIFT infrastructure investment program, Uplift has also introduced a new funding stream specifically for organizations that are helping to grow the skilled trades workforce, where there are acute talent shortages.
Over the past three years, Uplift has provided more than $5 million to good causes. Ruba Al-Nazer, Associate Director of Social Impact, says recipients value the flexibility of Uplift funding. “We come to them with more than money. We support them with Toronto Pearson’s network of connections and the expertise we have in our staff.”
With this year’s projects getting under way, here’s a look at two organizations Uplift has supported in the past – and the difference the funding has made.
Helping jobseekers get a foot in the door
Organization: ACCES Employment
Support received: $75,000 for newcomer assistance and a speed mentorship program
For 37 years, ACCES Employment has been helping people find work and building an inclusive labour force.
“We’re like a broker,” says Anita Carroll, ACCES Employment's Senior Vice President of Corporate and Stakeholder Engagement. “We help people bridge gaps, gain key skills, understand the nuances of the Canadian workplace, and apply for work.”
The organization supports 56,000 underserved Canadians each year, including newcomers. Each job seeker is matched with a counselor who tailors support — from coaching and mentoring to interview prep and English classes — to improve employment outcomes.
In the past, Uplift has provided funds to support ACCES Employment’s program for Ukrainian newcomers and its Speed Mentorship offering, which matches job seekers and executives for rapid, focused conversations that provide an opportunity to make contacts and connect.
“To build a fully inclusive labour force that reflects the diversity, skills and experience of Canada’s population, removing barriers and providing access to professional networks is key,” says Carroll.
This year, ACCES Employment will receive $150,000 from the Uplift Fund to support its Connecting to Construction Trades program for youth and refugees. The program uses virtual reality technology to create immersive experiences for young people across Peel and Etobicoke and ignite interest in the skilled trades.
Tackling period poverty, one pad at a time
Organization: Help a Girl Out
Support received: $40,000 to fund reusable menstrual pads
More than 500 million women and girls lack access to menstrual hygiene products globally, often resulting in them missing school or work.
To tackle this, in 2018 Yanique Brandford started Help a Girl Out, a Brampton-based non-profit that distributes reusable and disposable menstrual products and offers workshops about uterine health, menstruation and anatomy.
Help a Girl Out received an Uplift Fund grant to support its 5,000 Reusables Project, which mobilized 250 volunteer sewers to produce reusable pads for low-income Canadians and refugee organizations.
“It's a game changer, and not just for individuals experiencing period poverty,” says Brandford, who received a Canada’s Hero Award from Global Citizen in 2020. “It reduces waste to landfills and it’s an environmentally sustainable solution to period poverty — these pads last up to seven years.”
Brandford grew up in Jamaica, where her mother would make sanitary pads out of newspaper and toilet paper because they could not afford to buy them. Other girls had to skip or drop classes because they did not have period products, which Brandford considers an unspoken barrier to many girls' academic success.
“The support that this project received from the Uplift Fund helped us grow,” says Brandford. “We’ve grown four or five times in size, and it’s all because of their belief in our mission at the start.”
