Research Shop

This report details the findings of informational surveys conducted with farmers in Wellington County to explore the potential for enhanced collaboration between food producers and emergency food providers. Specifically, the research aimed to determine how farmer support can help alleviate concerns from emergency food providers and, conversely, to see how a cold storage facility such as that developed by The Seed might be able to support farmers. Findings, organized into seven areas of collaboration, will inform the creation of an operational, business and sustainability plan for The Seed's cold storage and distribution center.

This report was prepared for the Guelph-Wellington Poverty Taskforce to inform the creation of an ID Bank for homeless and vulnerable clients. It summarizes information gathered through interviews with with four ID banks in Ontario and provides an overview of the monetary, operational and logistical requirements needed to initiate and maintain an ID Bank.

This report was produced to help inform the sustainability planning of the North Wellington Coalition for Youth Resiliency over the long-term. It reviews the academic and grey literature regarding program sustainability practices, and shares some real-world examples of strategies that have been used to enhance the sustainability of programs. Finally, it provides some recommendations on which strategies may be most suited or useful for the Coalition, given its mandate and context.

This report explores the ways in which not-for-profit organizations serving the LGBTQ+ community deliver their services and programming, meet the needs of the community, and adapt to change and difficulties. It summarizes the findings from informational interviews with six not-for-profits across Canada in order to inform the decision-making processes of the Guelph-based organization Out on the Shelf as they undergo organizational restructuring.

This report reviews and compares five "peer parenting" models in place in Canada, focusing on their goals, strengths, limitations, resources, and approaches to volunteer training. It was produced to support the development of a volunteer peer parenting program by the Early Years program at the Guelph Community Health Centre.

This report explores practices and strategies that are used to design websites and social media marketing approaches for the purposes of fundraising. It reviews the literature on the subject to understand what brings individuals to donate, and identifies best practices for engaging donors and sharing success stories. It was prepared to inform decisions at St. Joseph's Health Centre in Guelph with respect to the design of fundraising websites and social media marketing approaches.

This series of five fact sheets on learning disabilities was produced in collaboration with the United Way of Guelph Wellington Dufferin and the Learning Disabilities Association of Wellington County. It seeks to provide information on common learning disabilities, including dyslexia, dyscalculia, and dysgraphia, as well as tips on how to help students who experience those challenges.

This report was prepared for the Children's Foundation of Guelph and Wellington's Food & Friends Program. It shares the findings from an evaluation of student nutrition programs in Guelph, Wellington and Dufferin, which will be used to inform, support, and enhance programming moving forward. Specifically, it reports on interviews and surveys which examined the opinions and experiences of students using these programs, as well as of program coordinators, in order to better understand the value and benefits of universal nutrition programs.

This report provides key findings from an online survey seeking to better understand the needs of the LGBTQ+ community of Guelph-Wellington. It was conducted as a component of a larger collaborative project at the University of Guelph involving the Research Shop, Out of the Shelf, and the Centre for Business and Student Entreprise (CBaSE).

This report summarizes the findings from a needs assessment conducted for Community Justice Initiatives (CJI) of Waterloo Region, a non-profit organization offering restorative justice services. Through a focus group and individual interviews with members of various sectors, organizations and businesses, researchers collected information about the need for mediation services in Guelph-Wellington. The report also discusses possible obstacles to the implementation of such a service.