City of Brampton compiled list of federal and provincial funding opportunities for local businesses to take advantage of for economic support during COVID-19 pandemic.

Downtown Kingston BIA provides resources regarding the local businesses and how they are adapting and how to support businesses that remain open in some capacity.

As Canada’s first and only values-driven bank, VCIB is committed to driving positive social and environmental change within the communities in which it operates. Investments raised through VCIB’s Unity GIC will provide vital loans or financial relief to businesses and non-profits affected by COVID-19 to help them stay financially resilient at a time when they need it most.

Three Chairs has a simple idea: help the elderly combat loneliness by connecting them with others who share the same interests, over the phone, for a friendly chat. COVID-19 has changed everything. The next few months have lots of unanswered questions, but one certainty is that social isolation and loneliness will affect more people- the young, the old, the rich, and the poor; it will affect everyone. While our service is not finished, it is finished enough to help.

Milner Group, a construction and disposal company that runs a recycling centre west of Nanaimo, decided to offer community residents two yards of “premium” soil for free as a way of encouraging people to stay home and take up gardening during the COVID-19 pandemic.

When the province of Ontario announced a shortage of Personal Protective Equipment, this Brampton business stepped up to produce surgical-grade fabric masks to help in the fight against COVID-19. Their goal is to produce 78,000 masks in an attempt to bolster the country’s dwindling mask supply

Stella’s Circle offers housing, counselling and employment services to people who face many barriers to fully participating in their community. One of the initiatives of the organization is through its social enterprise, the Hungry Heart Cafe, which employs Stella’s Circle participants, providing them with food services training and experience. Customers of the Cafe have been invited to add $2 to their bill which goes towards a program referred to as Meals Squared. Individual, nutritious meals are then made available at no cost for participants. During the Stella’s Circle response to the pandemic, 1000 meals have been distributed to date. Stella’s Circle is also putting tech in the hands of homeless clients, in an effort to bridge the digital divide

Shape My City has adapted their platform to map grassroots initiatives that are responding to COVID-19.

A community-built website, http://neighbouring.org features a network of neighbours organizing to check on and take care of each other by telephone, text, email, doorstep deliveries, etc. Also includes tools for starting pods.

To support older adults and caregivers during the COVID-19 pandemic, the STAR Institute (Science and Technology for Aging Research) is compiling practical technology resources and information that the wider community may find helpful. These range from simple guides for using technology to services that can help with activities of daily living. The resources and information are organized according to a number of key areas as well as locations to help people find them easily. Please note these resources are for information purposes only and we do not specifically endorse any of the products, services or companies listed.

The initiative supports residents growing their own vegetables in their garden, which could help prevent person-to-person contact by allowing residents to make fewer trips to the store, as well as help social programs that are in need of donations, such as local food banks.To get started, residents can request free supplies—such as soil and seeds—by email, and those looking for tips on growing their own produce can view some tutorial videos on the City’s website.

The Toronto COVID-19 Action Fund supports projects at UofT and its hospital partners across the Toronto Academic Health Science Network, with the potential for rapid results and direct impact on the health of individuals, communities, and on the front lines of care. The COVID-19 Emergency Student Bursary Fund helps to provide emergency bursaries for graduate and undergraduate students with urgent needs, supporting requirements for food, shelter, emergency travel, and internet access to complete their course work.

After weeks of lobbying, and examples set in Montreal and other cities, officials are moving to “pedestrianize” some of Ottawa’s streets for people out on essential trips. That should include bikes and all sorts of active transportation.

The site is slated to launch in the near future and will offer social and medical supports for homeless COVID-19 patients, ensuring that residents are fully recovered before returning to Toronto’s shelter system. MSF will provide “consultative and supportive advice”. The provincially-funded Recovery Site marks MSF’s first-ever operation in Canada, given the organization does not typically focus on countries with well-functioning healthcare systems.

Residents and businesses can help by contributing donations of personal protective equipment, non-perishable food, other goods and services, and financial gifts. Residents can also use the DonateTO portal to find out about volunteer opportunities in their community.

The City of Calgary, together with local partners, has created a “buy local” campaign to support local business. #SupportLocalYYC, is creating connections, sharing resources and tools, and highlighting positive stories to inspire the community and spark further innovations that can benefit those in need.

The City of New Westminster has installed porta-potties in the downtown and uptown neighbourhoods, some which are wheelchair accessible. This is to ensure access to bathrooms for vulnerable populations, who may otherwise not have them, given all of the businesses being shuttered and otherwise.

The BC Centre for Disease Control currently considers farmers’ markets low risk for COVID-19 transmission because they are usually held outdoors and can limit the number of people in assigned areas. Additionally, a new public health order bans all non-food and merchandise vendors at the markets.

All curbside regulations in New Westminster remain status quo, including paying for parking, permit parking and time regulated parking

Studying pinch points, the City is studying the situation and acting to “ensure people have safe spaces to walk and cycle – away from motor vehicles while also allowing social distancing to occur,”

The Calgary Herald is compiling a local directory of businesses in Calgary and area that are continuing to serve their communities organized by sector: Food & Beverage; Health & Wellness; Business and Professional Services; Transportation; Home and Garden; Misc. The document also provides businesses an opportunity to be added to the directory

Two versions of this resources exist — a google map https://bit.ly/2RG9thL and a google doc https://bit.ly/2RTM6l1

The Housing Job Match website will connect British Columbians looking for work with non-profit housing and shelter organizations that need help.

A Phoenix-based organization is offering grants up to $10,000 to local small businesses experiencing economic distress and sudden loss of revenue due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Relief grants are intended to help for-profit small businesses keep employees on payroll and meet other necessary operating costs. Preference is given to small businesses owned by veterans and underrepresented groups located in economically distressed areas of Phoenix.

Online platform inviting people around the world to send a sound recording about how things are in that location.  Visitors to the site can listen to sounds and read the stories collected on a clickable map

The new grants empowers local community organizations across Canada to ensure food makes its way to Canadians who need it most. The donation platform connects businesses with food surpluses to charities and non-profits in their own communities.

The Quinpool Road Mainstreet District Association launched an online version of the street’s shops and services at www.quinpool.shop. The site includes links to many Quinpool shops, services and restaurants that have transitioned their businesses into online sales, deliveries and arranged pickup.

A new initiative has been created to help larger brands use their influence and social followings to lend support to small businesses. Small businesses impacted by the crisis are being asked to add the hashtag “#LikeALocal” to an Instagram post to signal that they are willing to participate. Big brands search the hashtag on Instagram or by using one of their social listening tools to find a local business they’d like to support, reposting their post and explaining why. From there, the brands are encouraged to get in touch with the small business directly to find out if there are other forms of media they might be able to donate.