Grant and Funding Programs Offered by Women in Leadership Foundation (WIL)

The Women in Leadership Foundation (WIL) is a national non-profit organization dedicated to advancing inclusive and equitable leadership across Canada. Founded in 2001, WIL builds a community of women professionals and allies through programs, research, and partnerships that help women gain skills, confidence, networks and access to real leadership opportunities.

While WIL is best known for its programming and community-building, it also plays a direct role in financing access to leadership development. Within its flagship Mentorship Program, the organization regularly offers scholarships that reduce or waive participant fees, targeting youth, Indigenous youth, women of colour, 2SLGBTQ+ communities, and other underrepresented groups. Corporate sponsorship packages explicitly include mentorship scholarships in the sponsor’s name, illustrating that WIL channels both philanthropic and corporate funds into funded program seats for individual participants.

Beyond individual scholarships, WIL administers several multi-year, publicly funded projects that support organizations and communities. Initiatives such as the Emerging Leaders Placement Project, Transforming Workplace Opportunities Project, Bridge to Gender Equality Project and the Indigenous Leadership Circle are financed in part by federal partners like Women and Gender Equality Canada and the Canada Service Corps. Through these projects, WIL designs and delivers funded placements, training, tools and resources that benefit youth volunteers, Indigenous women leaders and employers seeking to transform workplace culture.

WIL’s work centres on women and gender-diverse people at all career stages, from students and early-career professionals to senior leaders. Special emphasis is placed on equity-deserving groups, including Indigenous women, Black and racialized women, youth, and members of 2SLGBTQ+ communities. The Emerging Leaders Placement Project connects hundreds of youth aged 14–30 with meaningful volunteer roles in more than 50 nonprofits, while mentorship cohorts pair mentees with experienced leaders for five-month intensive development journeys supported by webinars, coaching and national networking.

At the systems level, WIL works directly with employers through the TWO Employer Program and resources like the Bridge to Gender Equality reports and organizational guide. These initiatives provide evidence-based recommendations, DEIB tools, and facilitated sessions on inclusive hiring, reconciliation, psychological safety and pathways to placement for women into leadership roles. Although these offerings are primarily in-kind support rather than cash grants, they are structured as funded programs backed by major institutional partners.

Since its creation in 2001 by founder and president Maya Kanigan, WIL has grown to a network of more than 200,000 women and 10 active chapters across Canada. The foundation is governed by a volunteer board of directors and supported by project teams and advisory committees that include Indigenous leaders, DEIB experts and corporate partners. Major funders highlighted on the site include Women and Gender Equality Canada, the Canada Service Corps, Vancouver Foundation and other public and private sponsors.

Through this combination of scholarships, funded placements and employer-focused equity projects, the Women in Leadership Foundation occupies a distinctive place in Canada’s funding ecosystem: it converts institutional and corporate grants into direct learning, leadership and career opportunities for women and youth, while equipping workplaces with the tools to sustain long-term change.