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Foundation for Black Communities

Foundation for Black Communities

The Foundation for Black Communities (FFBC) is a Canadian philanthropic foundation based in Calgary, Alberta.

History

On May 7, 2021, FFBC published a post on Twitter asking "Black-led, Black serving organizations in Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver who are addressing vaccine hesitancy in their communities" to get in touch.[1]

On June 9, 2021, FFBC announced the forthcoming launch of a "COVID-19 Vaccine Literacy Campaign" in Vancouver, Calgary and Edmonton.[2] FFBC then published a post on Twitter on June 16, 2021, seeking "Black community organizations in the Vancouver area to partner with us as campaign leads."[3]

The campaign was run in partnership with the Government of Canada, the Edmonton Community Foundation, the Calgary Foundation and the Vancouver Foundation. It provided $10,000 grants to "over 15 Black-led, Black-serving and Black-focused organizations in Alberta and British Columbia" to promote uptake of COVID-19 vaccines among black communities.[4]

Specifically, the funded projects were to "support the generation and dissemination of culturally appropriate digital content on COVID-19 vaccines, public health measures, and disinformation," and to "engage key influencers and trusted voices, including faith leaders, to share content and information through communication platforms most appropriate for their respective communities."[4:1]

On May 16, 2022, FFBC published an advertisement for COVID-19 boosters on Twitter, describing it as "a message from the Public Health Agency of Canada."[5]

Organization

Name Position Notes
Eugene Lee Investment Committee member[6] Law Foundation of British Columbia, Vancouver Foundation, Real Estate Foundation of BC
Meseret Taye Staff Secondment (October 2021-July 2022)[7] Law Foundation of British Columbia, Vancouver Foundation

Funding

FFBC has received funding from:[8]

  • Black-Led Philanthropic Endowment Fund
  • Definity Foundation
  • Sun Life Financial
  • Suncor Energy
  • Walmart Foundation

  1. Foundation For Black Communities [@FdnBlkComm]. (2021, May 7). “FFBC is looking to connect with Black-led, Black serving organizations in Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver who are addressing vaccine hesitancy in their communities. Please, get in touch.” [Post]. X (Formerly Twitter). http://archive.today/2025.09.23-234008/https://x.com/FdnBlkComm/status/1390699301408591875 ↩︎

  2. Foundation for Black Communities [@fdnblkcomm]. (2021, June 9). “FFBC is launching a COVID-19 Vaccine Literacy Campaign in Vancouver, Calgary and Edmonton in the next weeks. Stay tuned to learn more about the participants, the work they’re leading in their communities, and the support we are providing.” [Post]. Instagram. http://archive.today/2025.09.23-232656/https://www.instagram.com/p/CP6MJgjFNoF/ ↩︎

  3. Foundation For Black Communities [@FdnBlkComm]. (2021, June 16). “Hey Vancouver friends! We are looking for Black community organizations in the Vancouver area to partner with us as campaign leads in our upcoming COVID-19 Vaccine Literacy Campaign. Please spread the word and reach out to us if you are interested.” [Post]. X (Formerly Twitter). http://archive.today/2025.09.23-233507/https://x.com/FdnBlkComm/status/1405179464003190790 ↩︎

  4. Vaccine Literacy Campaign. Foundation for Black Communities. Retrieved July 1, 2022, from https://web.archive.org/web/20220701023631/https://www.forblackcommunities.org/vlc/ ↩︎ ↩︎

  5. Foundation For Black Communities [@FdnBlkComm]. (2022, May 16). “A message from the Public Health Agency of Canada. COVID-19 continues to be a serious health threat. A booster dose increases the immune response and helps improve protection against severe outcomes by 90% or more...” [Post]. X (Formerly Twitter). http://archive.today/2025.09.23-234139/https://x.com/FdnBlkComm/status/1526246308675297280 ↩︎

  6. Eugene Lee. Benefits Canada. Retrieved September 29, 2025, from http://archive.today/2025.09.29-235742/https://www.benefitscanada.com/microsite/alternative-investment-conference-2025/speakers/eugene-lee/ ↩︎

  7. Meseret Taye. LinkedIn. Retrieved September 23, 2025, from https://www.linkedin.com/in/meseret-taye-50b34714/ ↩︎

  8. Jennings, M., & Abokor, L. Annual Report 2024 (p. 29). Foundation for Black Communities. Retrieved September 23, 2025, from https://web.archive.org/web/20250923234603/https://forblackcommunities.org/wp-content/uploads/Annual-Report-2024-Final-.pdf ↩︎