About uS

A territorial acknowledgement is an important way of honouring the land on which our successes have been built, and the Indigenous people who have been living on and caring for this land for thousands of years.

We offer this acknowledgment an act towards reconciliation between non-Indigenous Canadians and Indigenous peoples in Canada. We also continue to mourn the many children who died at residential schools across Canada, and the ongoing trauma of the residential school system. We will continue to work alongside our partners in supporting change, and we commit to listening, learning, and unlearning. We also commit to looking deeply at and altering our own practices that harm, reinforce systemic racism, and contribute to the ongoing legacy of colonialism.

We acknowledge that the land on which we live and work is the traditional territory of the Haudenosaunee (Ho-den-oh-show-nee), the Anishnaabe (Ah-nish-naw-bay), and (Chi-nawn-ton) Chonnonton People.
We acknowledge the enduring presence of the Indigenous people with whom we share this land, their achievements and their contributions to our community.

We want everyone who visits our website to feel welcome and find the experience rewarding. We want our website to be a positive place for everyone and we’ve been working hard to make our content accessible for people with disabilities, and user friendly for everyone… continue reading.

We recognize that improving the lives of everyone in the communities we serve means we must explicitly focus on removing barriers for those most harmed by them. Harm has been done through our history of colonialism, systemic racism, and other intersecting oppressions. It has resulted in persistent barriers, exploitation, and limited access to opportunities for Indigenous, Black and other marginalized groups over generations causing long-term social, economic and health disparities.

In our work we address the belief systems, attitudes, systems, policies and practices that privilege some and oppress others. It is only through this intentional work that we can aspire to create the conditions that allow everyone the opportunity to thrive.

We are committed to doing the work that removes barriers, which means changing our organization’s policies, processes and practices that systemically exclude or disadvantage these groups.  And it means working in closer partnership with the people and communities that our work is intended to benefit.

We can and will use the principles of reconciliation and equity to make clear and measurable changes to eliminate systemic racism and discrimination from our work.  In doing this, we will continue to demonstrate commitment to fighting poverty in all its forms.

Philanthropy is based on voluntary action for the common good. It is a tradition of giving and sharing that is primary to the quality of life. To assure that philanthropy merits the respect and trust of the general public, and that donors and prospective donors can have full confidence in the not-for-profit organizations and causes they are asked to support, we declare that all donors have these rights… continue reading.

United Way Waterloo Region Communities is committed to protecting the privacy of individuals, corporations and clients by complying with all applicable privacy legislation as it affects its employees, volunteers, donors and agencies… continue reading.