The overarching goal of our annual granting program is to identify and partner with researchers and community programmers in order to address the most critical issues faced by our aging population.
We award grants to projects that improve seniors’ health and wellness, promote social engagement for the elderly and pursue innovative research in the field of geriatrics and gerontology. Our grants also lead to the development of valuable resources and a knowledge base for all efforts focused on the building of an age-friendly society.
Priority objectives for our grant program include:
Our grants fall into three funding streams that are connected to the goals of our strategic plan:
Project completion: February 2027
Grant amount: $100,000
Grantee/partner: Carleton University
Summary: Designed to help people living with dementia remain safe while preserving their independence, this initiative addresses something families deeply value but often struggle to support. The team is developing a discreet, wearable GPS device that looks like a watch or bracelet and is designed with direct input from users to ensure comfort and ease of use.
A key strength of this solution is its reliability. With continuous connectivity and a battery life of up to three months, it removes common barriers that limit the effectiveness of existing devices. A new charging approach is also being developed to keep it powered without removal, ensuring uninterrupted protection.
Integrated with MedicAlert’s trusted national network, including its Wandering Registry, 24/7 monitoring, and first-responder connections, the device enables faster and more coordinated searches when someone goes missing.
Support from The Entente Foundation is helping bring a practical, life-changing solution closer to reality by reducing search times, easing stress for caregivers, and empowering people living with dementia to live safely and independently at home.
Projected completion: March 2027
Grant amount: $47,335
Grantee/partner: Cape Breton University
Summary: A new community-driven initiative is creating opportunities for older adults and people with disabilities to stay active, connected, and included through sport.
In Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, the team is working together with community members to design a fun, non-competitive program that reflects their interests, abilities, and accessibility needs.
Participants are at the centre of the process, helping shape everything from the types of sports offered to how programs are delivered. This approach ensures the experience is welcoming and inclusive. Beyond physical activity, the program is designed to foster friendships, reduce social isolation, and build a stronger sense of community.
Led by local partners and supported by trained peers and intergenerational volunteers, the program is built for long-term success.
The Entente Foundation is proud to support this work, helping turn community insight into action by expanding access to inclusive recreation and creating lasting social and health benefits for those who are often left out.
Projected completion: April 2027
Grant amount: $31,015
Grantee/partner: Mount Saint Vincent University
Summary: Challenging traditional perceptions of aging, this work is opening new conversations by sharing stories that spark curiosity and reduce fear. Through a new podcast series, the team will highlight ideas and experiences that show aging as a time of possibility, contribution, and connection.
Each episode will feature engaging conversations with leaders, advocates, and older adults, exploring topics such as new approaches to care and innovative ways to support aging in different communities. By amplifying these perspectives, the series aims to build a more balanced and hopeful understanding of the aging experience.
Hosted by an older adult and designed to reach listeners across generations, the podcast will encourage reflection and conversation.
With support from The Entente Foundation, these important voices will reach a wider audience, fostering a more age-friendly society where people can approach aging with confidence and respect.
Projected completion: April 2027
Grant amount: $50,000
Grantee/partner: Our Pathways Society & Hike Nova Scotia
Summary: Focused on improving health and well-being in Mi’kmaq communities in Nova Scotia, this effort makes it easier for older adults to stay active and connected.
Many seniors face increasing isolation, which can negatively affect both physical and mental health. The program encourages regular walking through community-led challenges, as participants travel between 13 Mi’kmaq communities while learning about local, culturally meaningful trails. This approach combines physical activity with opportunities to reconnect with community, culture, and place.
By promoting a simple, low-barrier activity, the initiative helps reduce isolation and build stronger social connections.
The Entente Foundation is excited to support this initiative, helping create accessible, culturally grounded pathways to better health by strengthening community ties and improving quality of life for older adults.
Projected completion: April 2027
Grant amount: $39,925
Grantee/partner: Queen’s University at Kingston
Summary: Addressing the growing digital divide, this initiative is helping ensure older adults are not left behind in an increasingly online world. As more services and information move online, many older adults face barriers that limit their ability to stay connected, access care, and maintain their independence.
To address this, the Centre for Studies in Aging and Health at Queen’s University is leading a national effort to better define what digital literacy means for older adults. This work will create a shared understanding that reflects their needs, experiences, and realities.
The project will develop practical tools, including a national best practice guide and training resources to help communities and organizations better support older adults
Through The Entente Foundation’s support, this work is turning research into action by expanding access, strengthening inclusion, and ensuring older adults can fully participate in today’s digital society.
Projected completion: February 2027
Grant amount: $45,000
Grantee/partner: Volunteer Canada
Summary: Reframing volunteering as a source of connection and purpose, this initiative highlights how older adults remain active and engaged. Through a national awareness campaign, it will showcase the meaningful contributions older adults make in their communities while challenging outdated stereotypes about aging.
Through storytelling and targeted outreach, the campaign will present volunteering as more than a civic duty. It will emphasize its role in supporting mental and physical well-being, while reinforcing the value of older adults as active, vital members of society.
The project will also create practical tools that organizations across Canada can use to reach diverse communities. By aligning with the United Nations’ International Volunteer Year 2026 and incorporating an intergenerational perspective, the campaign is designed to build momentum and extend its impact over time.
The Entente Foundation is pleased to support this effort, helping strengthen community connections, promote healthier aging, and ensure older adults are recognized and supported as essential contributors to community life.
Projected completion: March 2027
Grant amount: $50,000
Grantee/partner: Yonge Eglinton Community Centre
Summary: Bringing together people across generations, this initiative builds connections, shares knowledge, and supports healthy living. Located in midtown Toronto, this series of community kitchen workshops invites older adults and young families to cook, eat, and learn together in a welcoming environment.
Older adults play a central role as mentors, sharing their skills and experiences while building meaningful relationships with children and families. Participants gain access to affordable, healthy meals and a supportive, welcoming space that addresses both social isolation among seniors and the need for accessible family programming.
By combining food, culture, and connection, the program creates opportunities for learning and belonging while celebrating the diversity of the community.
By investing in this initiative, The Entente Foundation is helping reduce isolation, strengthen intergenerational ties, and create lasting benefits for both older adults and families.
Date: 2023-2025
Grant amount: $50,000
Funding stream: Geriatric research, Social engagement, Health & wellbeing
Grantee/partners: Trent University
Summary: An intergenerational classroom was created to connect students and older adults through shared learning. By working collaboratively on weekly projects, participants built meaningful relationships while challenging stereotypes and deepening mutual understanding. The classroom fostered empathy, respect, and connection across generations. It also offered students a more grounded understanding of aging and created space for shared insight. Its success led to a second iteration and a commitment to continue the program on an ongoing basis, extending its impact over time.
Date: 2024-2025
Grant amount: $49,903
Funding stream: Seniors’ health & wellness
Grantee/partners: Sinai Health and University Health Network (UHN)
Summary: Bringing together older adults living with HIV and health care providers, the initiative improved understanding and quality of care. Using a co-design approach, the team identified key priorities directly from participants, including the need for more holistic, stigma-free, and identity-affirming care. The project produced two research papers grounded in the experiences of older adults, along with a practical educational pamphlet for primary care providers. By translating lived experience into actionable guidance, the initiative helps equip providers to better support the complex needs of older adults living with HIV.
Date: 2024-2025
Grant amount: $17,500
Funding stream: Seniors’ health & wellness
Grantee/partners: Heartland Forest Nature Experience
Summary: Using Heartland Forest’s trail system, older adults, particularly those with health restrictions or disabilities, are encouraged to become more active and socially connected through accessible nature experiences. Participants build confidence, improve well-being, and foster greater independence. In partnership with Brock University nursing students, the project developed the Active Agers Nature Challenge Journal, with seasonal versions for fall and winter. More than 150 older adults used the journal, with additional reach achieved through partnerships with local senior programs that helped promote and distribute the resource.
Date: 2024-2025
Grant amount: $25,160
Funding stream: Social engagement
Grantee/partners: H’art Centre
Summary: Building on inclusive arts practices, the work produced the first draft of the MixAbilities Inclusive Arts for Older Adults training module, designed to expand access to arts programming for older adults, including those who are hard of hearing or living with disabilities. The module provides artists and educators with practical guidance on creating inclusive, accessible experiences with a focus on empathy and participant-centered approaches. It covers key topics such as disability and aging, inclusive workshop design, and the role of the arts in supporting well-being. By building knowledge and capacity among facilitators, the project helps ensure more older adults can participate fully in arts programming.
Date: 2024-2025
Grant amount: $34,540
Funding stream: Seniors’ health & wellness
Grantee/partners: Alzheimer Society of Ontario
Summary: Through a collaborative approach by the Alzheimer Society of Ontario and the Murray Alzheimer Research and Education Program, this project successfully created the co-designed Toolkit for Youth Engagement. Developed with input from people living with dementia, care partners, and youth, the toolkit provides accessible education about dementia along with practical ways to challenge stigma. By equipping young people with knowledge and tools to offer meaningful support, the project helps foster greater understanding and inclusion of older adults living with dementia. It also lays the groundwork for a new generation of informed and compassionate dementia champions.
Date: 2025
Grant amount: $50,000
Funding stream: Social engagement
Grantee/partners: East Cumberland Lodge
Summary: Located in Pugwash, Nova Scotia, this project challenges common misconceptions about long-term care while creating more inclusive, engaging experiences for older adults with dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, and mobility challenges. Through activity-based programming and community participation, it fosters a stronger sense of belonging. A key outcome was the launch of the Connecting Generations program, established in partnership with a local high school. Eleven students contributed 375 volunteer hours, building meaningful relationships with seniors and supporting a more inclusive, intergenerational community.
Date: 2025-2026
Grant amount: $50,000
Funding stream: Senior’s health & wellness
Grantee/partners: The University of British Columbia
Summary: Geroscience is the study of how aging increases the risk for chronic diseases and how we can intervene in that process. Scientists in this field focus on the biology of aging to develop strategies that may help us stay healthier for longer. This project developed accessible tools to help older adults better understand geroscience and its role in healthy aging. Through a series of webinars, a public-facing website, and an animated video, it translated emerging research into clear, practical information. By making this knowledge more accessible, the project empowers older adults to take a more active role in supporting their health and independence as they age.
Date: 2024 -2025
Grant amount: $40,000
Funding stream: Geriatrics research
Grantee/partners: The University of Western Ontario
Summary: This proposal presents the development of a point-of-care multiplexed biosensor patch as a minimally invasive, cost-effective, and rapid diagnostic tool for the early detection of osteoporosis and osteopenia. We propose a skin-mounted biosensor array for multiple biomarkers associated with bone metabolism, enabling simultaneous detection and quantification through a single microneedle patch. This approach leverages the minimally invasive nature of microneedles, which penetrate the stratum corneum and extract interstitial fluid without reaching nerve-rich regions, ensuring a painless experience. The rapid detection and diagnosis of osteoporosis can lead to early treatment options and reduce mortality & morbidity due to fracture associated with minor falls in older Canadian populations.
We have conducted preliminary studies on microneedle fabrication and deployment to demonstrate its feasibility. The anticipated outcome is a single-use, painless, user-friendly diagnostic tool that can be deployed directly in a home setting, significantly improving early diagnosis rates and enabling timely interventions.
Date: 2025-2026
Grant amount: $49,915
Funding stream: Social engagement
Grantee/partners: Wilfrid Laurier University
Summary: This initiative has created a documentary film that enables communities across Canada to replicate its model and develop their own intergenerational choirs for the benefit of their communities. Through the completed documentary, which captures the methods and best practices of the Circle of Music, communities across Canada are now equipped to develop their own inclusive and adaptable programs that reflect local needs. The initiative highlights the importance of accessible programming that helps seniors stay connected, maintain their well-being, and feel valued and respected. An accompanying website provides practical tools and resources to support the development of successful intergenerational choirs. By documenting and sharing effective approaches, the initiative promotes intergenerational social engagement and offers clear guidance for implementation, including facilitation techniques, student training, and considerations for securing appropriate community spaces that foster meaningful participation for seniors.
Date: 2022-2024
Grant amount: $25,000
Funding stream: Social isolation
Grantee/partners: Nipissing University
Summary: The researchers at Nipissing investigated common routes to social isolation and loneliness for someone living with dementia in northeastern Ontario. The outputs of the project include educational resources for professionals and families to both recognize social isolation and loneliness, and implement coping strategies for care partners and people living with dementia.
Date: 2023-2024
Grant amount: $43,000
Funding stream: Social engagement, Health & wellbeing
Grantee/partners: Compassionate Communities Kingston Canada
Summary: Modelled after the successful U.K. Project, Health Connections Mendip (known as “the town that found the cure to loneliness”) involved the community in a central role to increase feelings of dignity, respect and improved social relationships. Citizens were trained to become community connectors who “signpost” people to the health care and informal community-led services (educational, social, recreational) that are available, but many people don’t know about. Community connectors helped identify and share services not listed in current directories and helped identify gaps in services that need to be filled.
Date: 2023-2024
Grant amount: $50,000
Funding stream: Geriatric research, Social engagement, Health & wellbeing
Grantee/partners: The Dementia Society of Ottawa and Renfrew County
Summary: This project developed an audit tool (in collaboration with those affected by dementia) to assess both the age- and dementia-inclusiveness of their communities. To do this, an innovative approach was used whereby participants were trained as “citizen scientists.” Here, they assisted in testing an app-based audit tool accessed through a smartphone or paper-based booklet that allowed data to be collected simply, quickly and in real-time. This entailed participants recording audio and photos to identify the facilitators and barriers they encounter while ageing in place. This project will result in more age- and dementia-inclusive communities where older adults can be fully engaged.
Date: 2023-2024
Grant amount: $50,000
Funding stream: Social engagement, Health & wellbeing
Grantee/partners: Sheridan College
Summary: Working with students from multiple faculties at Sheridan College, the team created and evaluated a new app (Artfull) that offered five arts engagement opportunities to participants every month, with outcomes gathered monthly. This initiative helped provide older adults with opportunities for connection and self-expression, address social isolation and loneliness, contribute to overall quality of life, and create a sustainable love for the arts. With support, the team was able to identify and overcome specific barriers to participation in the arts for this age group, including financial constraints, technological challenges and physical/cognitive limitations, which will help older adults to live with dignity and participate in creative activities.`
Date: 2023-2024
Grant amount: $15,000
Funding stream: Social engagement, Health & wellbeing
Grantee/partners: Canadian Organic Growers – Senior Organic Gardeners
Summary: Senior Organic Gardeners (SOG), in partnership with Just Food and Root in Nature, provided small garden tools, soil, compost, seeds, and seedlings to isolated seniors in community housing and in their homes. Online seminars on health, wellness and gardening were held. Garden coaching was led by the volunteer garden coach, and health and wellness seminars were led by a nutritionist. Seedlings were supplied to community housing residents in five areas of the city. The network of isolated housebound seniors was broadened for those who wished to garden and connect online with other gardeners. Vegetable planters were installed to enable seniors to grow vegetables in small spaces while standing. Seniors also had the opportunity to visit schools that are participating in Growing Up Organic.
Date: 2023-2024
Grant amount: $5,000
Funding stream: Social engagement, Health & wellbeing
Grantee/partners: Société Alzheimer Society Sudbury-Manitoulin North Bay
Summary: The Friendship Circle fostered a welcoming community for older adults living with dementia, creating meaningful opportunities for connection and engagement. Participants took part in a range of safe, stimulating activities designed to support social interaction and well-being. Over 12 months, the program delivered 15 social, physical, and educational experiences across the Sudbury-Manitoulin North Bay region. Up to 40 participants engaged in activities such as trivia nights, bowling, community outings, and seasonal celebrations. Participants reported increased social connection and new friendships, highlighting the program’s positive impact and the value of inclusive, community-based supports.
Date: 2021-2023
Grant amount: $83,039
Funding stream: Social engagement
Grantee/partners: Living well research team from the University of Alberta, Simon Fraser University and Memorial University
Summary: This project analyzed existing research on mental health support strategies and conducted a nationwide survey with older Canadians, including RTOERO members, about older Canadians’ strategies to reduce stress, fear, anxiety, and loneliness. Findings were summarized into a recipe book for RTOERO members and the general public that outlines what older adults can do to support their wellbeing, drawing in the advice from older Canadians involved in the study. The cookbook features anxiety-lessening strategies, sage advice and simple, healthy comfort food recipes. Recipes were designed by a research chef from the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology. The Cooking up calm recipe book is now available.
Date: 2019-2023
Grant amount: $25,000
Funding stream: Social engagement
Grantee/partners: Family services of Peel, in collaboration with the Peel Elder Abuse Prevention Network (PEAPN), made up of 50 community support organizations across the region
Summary: This project aimed to reduce social isolation, improve system navigation, and engage immigrant seniors through the development of a Senior Connector Program in Peel region. Peel Senior Connector volunteers provided seniors, their families, and caregivers with information about resources and services available to them. It involved members of Peel region’s large immigrant communities where language is a barrier to accessing community services.
Date: 2020-2023
Grant amount: $25,000
Funding stream: social engagement
Grantee/partners: Schlegel-UW Research Institute for Aging (RIA) at the University of Waterloo
Summary: The goal of the project is to train frontline workers and community members to recognize isolated caregivers and isolated seniors, and to provide practical assistance and intervention strategies. This project created a community conversation guide to be used by residents and caregivers in Woolwich, ON. The guide is a practical resource for other neighbouring municipalities in Waterloo Region and beyond.
Date: 2018-2022
Grant amount: $50,000
Funding stream: Social engagement
Grantee/partners: National Institute on Ageing (NIA), Ted Rogers School of Management, Ryerson University
Focus area: Policy Development
Summary: The aim of this project was to:
Learn more: Social isolation and loneliness: what’s the difference, and what can we do?
Date: 2018-2019
Grant amount: $50,000
Funding stream: Geriatrics research
Grantee/partners: Regional Geriatric Program of Toronto, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre
Summary: This project utilized the Senior Friendly 7 framework – delirium, mobility, nutrition, polypharmacy, pain, continence and social engagement -to create and disseminate tools that are tailored to meet the specific needs of Personal Support Workers (PSWs) who provide most of the frontline care to frail seniors.
Date: 2018-2019
Grant amount: $25,000
Funding stream: Geriatrics research
Grantee/partners: University of British Columbia
Summary: The project provided a novel approach aimed at helping healthy older adults with urinary incontinency (UI) who live in the community identify the problem early and get help.
Date: 2018-2019
Grant amount: $24,900
Funding stream: Social engagement
Grantee/partners: University of Western Ontario, in collaboration with Neighbourhood Watch London, Meals on Wheels London, London Middlesex Housing Corporation, Queen’s University
Summary: This project engaged residents of a London seniors’ housing building to define issues, plan, take action and evaluate outcomes. Key elements included participant photography, resident meetings and community idea sharing events.
Date: 2017-2019
Grant amount: $50,000
Funding stream: Social engagement
Grantee/partners: Hamilton Council on Aging, in collaboration with St. Joseph’s Home Care, Able Living Service, Thrive Group, Gilbrea Centre on Aging, Wellesley Urban Ministries, YWCA
Summary: The project aimed to measurably reduce the rates of seniors’ social isolation, where risk factors for isolation – such as living alone, disability, poor health, language barriers, poverty, and lack of access to services and supports – are most prevalent. The Social Participation Fund, which supported direct costs of seniors to participate in community programs and was paramount in successfully engaging isolated seniors.
Date: 2017-2018
Grant amount: $25,000
Funding stream: Geriatrics research
Grantee/partners: GERAS Centre for Aging Research, McMaster University
Summary: A stand-alone series of nine high-quality instructional exercise videos tailored to the varied needs of frail older adults with cognitive and physical impairments. The videos were developed and piloted with program members and YMCA instructors, as an accessible learning tool for dissemination of the GERAS DANCE program.
Date: 2017-2018
Grant amount: $25,000
Funding stream: Geriatrics research
Grantee/partners: Baycrest Health Centre, in collaboration with University of Toronto, Meighen Manor, Rekai Centres (Sherbourne Place & Wellesley Central Place)
Summary: This project investigated the benefits of using cognitive stimulation with elderly long-term care residents during friendly visits by volunteers. The project’s aim was to show that the use of cognitive stimulation exercises used in conversation with residents will lead to improved behaviours, mood and quality of life.
Date: 2017-2018
Grant amount: $25,000
Funding stream: Social engagement
Grantee/partners: Prince Edward County Community Care for Seniors, in collaboration with local first responders, letter carriers and libraries.
Summary: Working with multiple community partners, this project resulted in the coordination of efforts with organizations connecting with isolated seniors, to identify socially isolated seniors, promote and enhance the rural mail couriers alert program, and review the feasibility of re-establishing the Home Alone Program. Read more about the outcomes of the project.
Date: 2017-2018
Grant amount: $25,000
Funding stream: Social engagement
Grantee/partners: Ottawa Council on Aging, Ottawa Chinese Community Service Centre, Ottawa Senior Pride Network, United Way
Summary: The project focused on diversity in Ottawa to capture the story of older adults on film and share with others to learn and benefit from their experiences.
Date: 2017-2018
Grant amount: $24,989
Funding stream: Geriatrics research
Grantee/partners: Ryerson University, in collaboration with the Association for Gerontology Education, McMaster University
Summary: The project aimed to build students’ capacity to support patients with dementia who display challenging behaviours with non-medical intervention. The project results were shared at the following conferences: 32nd Annual Conference of Alzheimer’s Disease International, Kyoto, Japan; 19th Biennial Conference, Canadian Gerontological Nursing Association, Ottawa; 46th Annual Scientific and Education Meeting of the Canadian Association on Gerontology, Winnipeg.
Date: 2017
Grant amount: $25,000
Funding stream: Social engagement
Grantee/partners: St. Joseph’s Health Centre, Everdale Environmental Learning Centre
Summary: The project aimed to reduce social isolation for seniors and youth by creating an urban farm that empowers all participants to work together to create positive community change and personal growth. Everdale Environmental Learning Centre, a farming incubator, partnered with St. Joseph’s Health Centre to identify seniors who were vulnerable due to isolation and engaged and empowered them to work with a group of students to plant, harvest and prepare meals together.
Date: 2016-2017
Grant amount: $24,655
Funding stream: Geriatrics research
Grantee/partners: Mount Sinai Hospital, University of Toronto
Summary: This mandatory orthogeriatrics rotation aimed to strengthen geriatric competencies among orthopedic trainees, leading to a new generation of orthopedic surgeons better equipped for the care of our growing older adult population.
Date: 2016-2017
Grant amount: $24,750
Funding stream: Geriatrics research
Grantee/partners: Northern Ontario School of Medicine, University of Guelph, University of Ottawa and Lakehead University
Summary: The objectives of the project were to promote and enhance awareness of the unique needs of older adults who identify as LGBTQ+ as they enter late stages of life, and to develop an interactive training and educational tool to assist healthcare providers to provide inclusive, safe and comprehensive care. The project incorporates both research and training and will benefit LGBTQ+ seniors across Ontario – in urban, rural and remote communities.
Date: Ongoing
Grant amount: $2,500,000
Funding stream: Geriatrics research
Grantee/partners: University of Toronto; Women’s College Hospital
Summary: An endowment to the University of Toronto to create the RTOERO Chair in Geriatric Medicine. The chair and their research group conduct ongoing research into medications for older adults and differences in aging experience between men and women, including gendered ageism. Learn more about the endowment.