FORMERLY INCARCERATED PERSONS

January 10, 2026

New Beginnings in the Trades for Formerly Incarcerated Persons

Canada faces a skyrocketing need for skilled trades workers, with thousands of jobs opening up as retirees leave and construction grows.

March 31, 2026

Masonry Training and Employment for Formerly Incarcerated Persons

Even as Canada's tech sector seeks more talent in QA, design, and AI, eager and willing formerly incarcerated people often hit roadblocks to accessing these opportunities.

March 15, 2026

Nuclear Training and Employment for Formerly Incarcerated Ontarians

Canada has an urgent need for workers in growing sectors including the nuclear energy industry. The Brilliant Catalyst initiative at Ontario Tech University aims to train

March 31, 2026

Tech Career Pathways for Formerly Incarcerated Canadians

Even as Canada's tech sector seeks more talent in QA, design, and AI, eager and willing formerly incarcerated people often hit roadblocks to accessing these opportunities.

About This Portfolio

The challenges faced by people leaving incarceration are well known, yet rarely addressed together, if at all. Finding stable housing, securing meaningful employment, accessing healthcare, and in many cases rebuilding a life from the ground up. These realities hit the second they step outside, and they’re usually ill-equipped to manage them, and often end up back in prison as a result.

We invest here because the gap between what people leaving incarceration need and what they are typically offered is wide, and because closing that gap produces impact that goes far beyond the individual. People who find stable footing after incarceration don't just rebuild their own lives. They strengthen the families and communities around them.

Our Investees

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Impact Team

We are a small, dedicated team of people, with our impact leaders embedded in the areas they serve, working to change what's possible for our communities across Canada.

Our Approach

We back organizations delivering supports across housing, employment, health, mental health and education, through the first few months and years that determine whether someone finds stable footing or falls back. We invest to demonstrate improved models for outcomes-driven post-incarceration supports. Our aim is that the evidence from the interventions we invest in influence policy, because we believe that there is room for improvement in the system itself.

What We Fund

Integrated programs addressing housing, employment, health, mental health and education for formerly incarcerated persons
Initiatives with the potential to influence policy and drive systems-level change
Non-profits, charities and for-profits at any stage, with clear measurable evidence of impact
Skilled trades training and employer-connected employment pathways, including support for employers becoming second chance employers
Innovative stable housing models, including pathways to homeownership for people typically excluded from such opportunities
Substance use treatment and recovery supports integrated with housing, education or employment

Investee Highlights

Browse updates and media coverage of our investee partners, showcasing their work and impact.

September 9, 2025

Stella’s Circle Recognized for Education Programs

Stella’s Circle has received a Council of the Federation Literacy Award for its education programs. The award celebrates “exceptional achievement, innovative practice, and excellence in literacy.”

August 27, 2025

Housing project looks to keep former inmates in the classroom and out of jail

Elizabeth Fry New Brunswick says filling housing, career gaps for people leaving jail can help prevent crime

February 18, 2026

Skilled Trades College and Northpine Foundation Joint Effort to Create Career Pathways for Individuals Impacted by the Justice System

Skilled Trades College (STC) announces a new, one-year initiative with the Northpine Foundation designed to expand access to life-changing skilled trades training.

February 12, 2025

COMEBACK CATALYST SET TO LAUNCH ACROSS CANADA

Social justice initiative Comeback Catalyst has secured an investment to launch its inaugural program, a free 12-week virtual course designed to help the formerly incarcerated bring their business ideas to life.

February 8, 2026

Will a new $9.6M program be able to target crime through employment?

The Calgary John Howard Society aims to target crime through its new employment hub, which a criminal justice expert says could help keep people from becoming repeat offenders.

March 23, 2026

A look inside Canada’s prison book clubs

Every month across the country in federal prisons, inmates get together for bookclubs. It may not look like the typical club, but the connection, community and stimulation are all there.