The official playbook of a top-10 Canadian Foundation.
The Barrett Family Foundation (BFF) is one of the ten largest foundations in Canada by annual giving. But it was built upon the belief that how you give is just as important as what you give.
That's why BFF has spent the past thirteen years developing strategies that create more meaningful and more lasting change.
'Giving for Lasting Change' offers unprecedented access to the playbook of a top-10 Canadian foundation, documenting and analyzing every lesson learned in this evolutionary journey. Readers will find innovative and practical ways to improve collaboration with nonprofits, fund sustainable solutions, minimize administrative costs, and much more.
This book was co-authored by BFF's executive director, Alister Mathieson, and Barrett family member, Emilio Elia. Together they shared a vision: to make effective, strategic, and cutting-edge philanthropy more accessible at a time when it is most needed.
Indeed, the critical issues facing Canada—and our understanding of them—are rapidly evolving and interacting in complex ways, presenting numerous daunting demands upon our philanthropic sector. These demands are not only financial—they are also strategic. Traditional methods of philanthropy are failing the moment, while innovative strategies that emphasize greater collaboration, greater trust, longer-term commitments, and systems-thinking are succeeding.
BFF has proven that you don't need a foundation of fifty employees to meet these demands. It has only one full-time employee. It maintains a small volunteer board of family, friends and colleagues. Yet, it contributes tens of millions of dollars per year and has been recognized by some of Canada's most prestigious nonprofits for its innovative approach, including World Vision Canada and the Rideau Hall Foundation.
BFF has spent more than thirteen years learning how to give for lasting change. With this book, you won't have to!
All proceeds are donated to BFF to support its nonprofit partners.
Testimonials
“This remarkable piece of work speaks to a shining star of contemporary Canadian philanthropy.”
— Right Honourable David Johnston, 28th Governor General of Canada
“At World Vision, we are inspired by the Barrett Family Foundation’s thoughtful philanthropy. Their approach is broad, tackling big challenges; deep, by strategically addressing root causes; and generous, launching innovations that make a real difference…”
— Michael Messenger, Former CEO, World Vision Canada (2015-2025)
About the Authors
Alister is the executive director of the Barrett Family Foundation. He was first introduced to Bob Barrett and the Barrett Family Foundation in 2014. At that time, he was a vice-president at Humber College in Toronto and led a team of educators to establish a partnership with BFF that resulted in the creation of the Barrett Centre for Technology Innovation, which is outlined in Chapter 2. During this time, he was introduced to BFF’s progressive approach to philanthropy and witnessed firsthand the inspiring impacts of their donations. When he retired from Humber, Bob asked Alister to come and work with him at BFF. Without a second thought, Alister jumped at the opportunity.
Alister is an internationally recognized author of academic books in tourism and several children’s books on Canada. His academic books, written between 1982 and 2006, have been described as seminal works in the discipline of tourism studies. His six children’s books have been described by the Globe and Mail as “must reads” and have received endorsements from notable Canadians including former Governor General, the Right Honorable David Johnston, Wheel in Motion activist Rick Hansen, and broadcaster Peter Mansbridge.
Alister and his family recently moved to British Columbia after living in Ontario for nearly 40 years.
Emilio is an entrepreneur, filmmaker, author, and proud grandson of Bob Barrett. He is a graduate of Economics and Management (BA) from the University of St. Andrews and a Co-Founder of Argon Prototypes Inc., a precision manufacturing company in Toronto. In 2024, Bob invited Emilio to study his philanthropic journey and to sit on BFF’s board in an observational role. The following year, Emilio and Alister began co-authoring this book.
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