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National Tenant Organizing Fund
What the Fund Supports:
- Campaign materials & printing
- Equipment & small capital items
- Room & space rental
- Event support costs such as food, AV & childcare
- Research and data infrastructure that supports organizing
- Digital tools & communications infrastructure
- Cross-municipality/province campaigns
- Training & Leadership development
- Short-term stipends or coordination roles
Conditions on Coordination Honorariums & Stipends
The Fund prioritizes capacity building, recognizing that paid labor can be necessary for effective organizing while remaining attentive to the risks of over-professionalization and permanent administrative structures.
- Short-term stipends or coordination roles may be funded
- Funding is not intended to sustain long-term salaried positions
- Paid roles must:
- Directly support the organizing activity outlined in the application
- Be proportionate to the project scope
- Avoid replicating NGO-style service delivery models
What the Fund does not support:
- Long-term salaries or administrative costs not tied to organizing
- Government, landlord, or institution-led projects
- Individual legal cases
- Service delivery projects that are not connected to organizing, such as:
- Ongoing provision of housing services, case management, or individual supports
- Programs focused primarily on referrals, counselling, or crisis response without a collective organizing or power-building component
Who Can Apply
Eligible applicants must meet the following criteria:
- Be a tenant union, tenant-led group, or tenant organizing collective;
- Demonstrate active tenant organizing
- Operate independently of landlords, governments, or institutions;
- Have a minimum of three active members.
Notes on Size and Capacity:
- Smaller or emerging groups are welcome to apply.
- Membership size is not used to exclude applicants, but may be considered relative to the scale of funding requested.
- Larger funding requests may be assessed against demonstrated organizing capacity.
Application Process
The National Tenant Organizing Fund will use a simple, accessible application process designed for tenant-led groups actively organizing in their communities.
Applicants will be asked to complete a short written application that focuses on:
- The tenant organizing work you are currently doing
- How the requested funds will support building tenant power
- The size and capacity of your group in relation to the amount requested
- Any collaboration with other tenant groups or housing justice networks
The application does not require formal grant-writing experience. We prioritize clarity, accessibility, and alignment with organizing goals over polished language or technical proposals.
The application portal will open February 15th.
