(Ottawa, O.N. – July 13, 2026) The Canadian Coalition of Women in Engineering, Science, Trades and Technology (CCWESTT) is pleased to announce funding received through the Canadian Women’s Foundation and Women and Gender Equality Canada (WAGE) to advance gender equality.
The Canadian Coalition of Women in Engineering, Science, Trades and Technology: Building Capacity, Accelerating Collective Impact and Sustainable Change project is a strategic initiative that focuses on strengthening CCWESTT’s organizational infrastructure and long-term sustainability. This will ensure the coalition is fully equipped to meet the rising national demand for systemic change programming and strengthened advocacy.
Strengthening the Sector
This funding comes at a critical time. Women’s rights organizations throughout Canada are addressing urgent needs while advancing long-term systems change.
The capacity-building grants focus on four priority areas:
- Justice
- Leadership
- Sexual & Reproductive Health and Rights
- Gender-based Violence
Priority was given to national, rights-based organizations working to advance gender equality through systems change—particularly those facing barriers to sustained funding.
For more information on the feminist collaboration used in the selection, please read the Canadian Women’s Foundation’s news release.
Through this project, CCWESTT will support its continued growth and focus on optimizing how the organization functions, leads, plans, and collaborates across Canada.
CCWESTT will be able to maximize the coalition’s administrative efficiency and empower its leadership teams. Objectives include:
- Strengthening Governance and Operational Systems: Enhancing leadership and decision-making processes, updating foundational organizational policies, and modernizing digital infrastructure to optimize workflow, data integration, and administrative efficiency.
- Cultivating Financial Resilience and Sustainability: Developing robust strategies to expand self-generated revenue, exploring innovative membership and sponsorship frameworks, and assessing alternative structural models to unlock diverse funding streams from corporate partners, foundations, and government sectors.
- Advancing Evaluation and Strategic Advocacy Frameworks: Implementing comprehensive data-collection and impact-measurement tools to better communicate organizational achievements, while mapping networks and collaborating across the ecosystem to coordinate sustainable, long-term advocacy action.
This work will strengthen CCWESTT’s foundation, ensure long-term sustainability and operational excellence, and significantly amplify the collective impact of its national partners to create a more inclusive, equitable SETT sector across Canada.
Grant Recipients
A total of 34 organizations were selected to receive grant funding.
Over the coming year, they will strengthen their sustainability, expand their impact, and adapt to a changing sector. Collectively, their work will help shift laws, policies, and systems, advancing meaningful, long-term progress toward gender equality in Canada.
CCWESTT is honoured to be named among these organizations we deeply respect.
Action Canada for Sexual Health and Rights / Action pour la santé et les droits sexuels
Alliance des femmes de la francophonie canadienne
Amautiit, Nunavut Inuit Women’s Association
B.W.S.S.: Battered Women’s Support Services Association
Canadian Association of Elizabeth Fry Societies | L’Association canadienne des Sociétés Elizabeth Fry
Canadian Center for Women’s Empowerment | Centre canadien pour l’autonomisation des femmes
Canadian Council of Muslim Women | Le conseil canadien des femmes musulmanes*
Canadian Research Institute for the Advancement of Women (CRIAW) | Institut canadien de recherches sur les femmes (ICREF) *
Canadian Coalition of Women in Engineering, Science, Trades and Technology (CCWESTT) | Coalition canadienne des femmes en sciences, ingénierie, métiers et technologies (CCFSIMT)
Child Care Now | Un Enfant Une Place
Ending Sexual Violence Association of Canada | L’association canadienne contre la violence sexuelle *
Canadian Feminist Alliance for International Action (FAFIA) | L’Alliance féministe pour l’action internationale (AFAI)
Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women Canada (GAATW Canada)
Les Femmes Michif Otipemsiwiak
Mothers Matter Canada | Les mères comptent Canada
National Association of Women and the Law (NAWL) | L’Association nationale Femmes et Droit (ANFD) *
Native Women’s Association of Canada (NWAC) | L’Association des femmes autochtones du Canada
Woman’s Legal Education and Action Fund (LEAF) | Fonds d’action et d’éducation juridique pour les femmes (FAEJ)
Women in Urbanism Canada (WiUC) | Femmes en urbanisme Canada (FeuC)
Women’s National Housing & Homelessness Network
Women’s Shelters Canada | Hébergement Femmes Canada *
*Reference Group member organizations’ proposals were reviewed only by Canadian Women’s Foundation staff using the same criteria and were not discussed at the Reference Group’s deliberation and recommendation meeting. Each funded proposal fell within the highest tier of reviewed proposals.
About CCWESTT
Established in 1992, the Canadian Coalition of Women in Engineering, Science, Trades and Technology (CCWESTT) is a voluntary, non-profit national coalition of individual members and groups from across the country who advocate for a diverse and inclusive Canadian Science, Engineering, Trades and Technology (SETT) workforce. We collectively support over 500,000 people in our network.
CCWESTT strives for inclusion, compassion, respect, cooperation, trust and integrity in our partnerships and collaborations. The long history of the coalition, shared core values, collaborative efforts and significant regional and national activities of member groups have provided a firm base from which CCWESTT has built a national voice for women and gender diverse people in SETT to change, build, and lead policy and practice for a diverse workforce.
This project has been funded by Women and Gender Equality Canada.
