Bill S-279: A Proposal to Measure the Diversity of Boards of Canadian Charities

Episode 21 – Bill S-279: A Proposal to Measure the Diversity of Boards of Canadian Charities

In 2019, the Senate of Canada published Catalyst for Change: A Roadmap to a Stronger Charitable Sector. Among its recommendations was a suggested amendment to the Income Tax Act to require charities to report on the diversity of their boards in their annual filings. Senator Ratna Omidvar, co-author of the report, has since proposed Bill S-279 to amend the Income Tax Act to do just that. Join us in this episode of CharityVillage Connects, where we talk to Senator Omidvar and other sector experts to learn more about the bill, what it would mean for charities, and the current state of equity and diversity in Canada’s nonprofit leadership.

Meet Our Guests in Order of Appearance 

• Senator Ratna Omidvar, Independent Senator for Ontario, Senate of Canada
• Dr. Wendy Cukier, Founder and Academic Director, Diversity Institute
• Leslie Woo, CEO, CivicAction
• Anne-Marie Pham, CEO, Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion
• Terrance Carter, Managing Partner, Carters Professional Corporation
• Kate Behan, Managing Director, Charity Intelligence (comments are personal opinion and do not reflect the views of Charity Intelligence) 

About your Host

Mary Barroll, president of CharityVillage, is an online business executive and lawyer with a background in media, technology and IP law. A former CBC journalist and independent TV producer, in 2013 she was appointed General Counsel & VP Media Affairs at CharityVillage.com, Canada’s largest job portal for charities and not for profits in Canada, and then President in 2021. Mary is also President of sister company, TalentEgg.ca, Canada’s No.1, award-winning job board and online career resource that connects top employers with top students and grads.

CharityVillage Resources from this Episode

• CharityVillage eLearning: Decolonizing the Boardroom
• CharityVillage eLearning: DEI Best Practices for Nonprofits
• Diversity in Canada’s Nonprofit Sector (2021)

Additional Resources from this Episode

We've gathered the resources from this episode into one helpful list:

• Catalyst for Change: A Roadmap to a Stronger Charitable Sector (Senate of Canada)
• Bill S-279: An Act to Amend the Income Tax Act (Data on Registered Charities)
• Diversity of charity and non-profit boards of directors: Overview of the Canadian non-profit sector (Statistics Canada)
• Canada Business Corporations Act (Government of Canada)
• Diversity and Inclusion in Non-profit Leadership in Ontario: Are We There Yet? (Diversity Institute & Civic Action 2023)
• The 50-30 Challenge 
• BoardShift by CivicAction

Learn more and listen to the full interviews with the guests here.

What is CharityVillage Connects?

Welcome to CharityVillage Connects – a series that highlights topics vital to the nonprofit sector in Canada. CharityVillage is a resource to over 170,000 charitable and nonprofit organizations in Canada. This series, hosted by President Mary Barroll, will provide in-depth conversations with experts in the nonprofit sector. We’ll examine diversity, equity and inclusion, innovations in fundraising, the gap in female representation in leadership and many other subjects crucial to the growth and development of charities throughout Canada.