On April 15th, 2025, Volunteer Toronto’s Director of Programs, Kasandra James, joined a group of thought leaders for a national conversation hosted by The Walrus Talks on Reimagining Volunteerism.

Kasandra's speech focused on prompting a new story for volunteerism in Canada—one that validates all forms of community making and civic engagement.

Read excerpts from Kasandra’s speech below:

“Volunteerism has been a winding pathway to social and economic integration for me and many others; I can trace my presence on this stage back through my story of volunteering. However, heartwarming stories of success cannot overshadow the convoluted, often broken, and sometimes harmful stories of volunteerism in the lives of newcomers, youth, Black and Indigenous communities, as well as other racialized groups, seniors and persons with disabilities..."

"Many communities practice community making in ways that look unfamiliar to someone who subscribes to the White, Anglo-colonial model of charity. Their practices don’t need formal processes or institutions, taxable donations or volunteer managers. They aren’t about the transfer of time and resources from those with more, to those with less, but rely on deep reciprocity, grounded in philosophies of “all my relations” and “ubuntu” and “collective liberation.”

"...Volunteer Toronto has been privileged to witness some of these models in recent years. In 2023, in partnership with Toronto Foundation, we were able to support 35 initiatives across the city of Toronto with $1000 microgrants. Our aim: to reduce isolation and build social connection in Canada’s loneliest city. These initiatives were led by community members who could see a need in their community and had an idea – but little to no resources. No applicants were required to have charitable number, provide a SIN number, or even be a formal organization; many groups made up their name during their application. As a result, we heard story after story of people coming together for their neighbours, their community, the stranger next door, helping the unseen to feel seen, the disconnected to experience belonging and creating opportunities to give back in meaningful ways..."

"And the lesson for us – people are ready to (re)build their communities; we just have to open the doors of opportunity. Volunteerism and philanthropy can provide the infrastructure necessary to resource and enable neighbourhood-level leadership.  If we are dedicated to championing volunteerism, we must begin the work of co-dreaming new systems of civic engagement that requires us to get out of the way of community action."

Watch Kasandra's full speech below: 

Access all of the Walrus Talks here (coming soon).