Research and Action Groups
A Research and Action Group is a collective or group we have signed a contract with to provide ongoing financial support (currently $600 provided at the beginning of September, January and May for a total of $1800 per year). Groups could be developed in collaboration with LSPIRG or be pre-existing. They are made up of students and community members are rooted in grass roots organizing / initiatives. If you have an idea for a Research and Action group or are currently working on an initiative or project that you would like funding and support for, click below.
Check out all of our current Research and Action Groups below. Groups are always looking for more volunteers, so feel free to reach out to the contact information provided for each group.
Waterloo Research and Action Groups
Food Not Bombs
Food Not Bombs cooks and serves meals for free (with donations from Central Fresh Market, Full Circle Foods and Grainharvest Breadhouse). Why? Because food is a right, not a privilege. Because the food we access would otherwise be thrown out and wasted. Because when we are hungry, we have the right to get what we need. Because poverty is a form of violence neither necessary nor natural. Because capitalism makes food a source of profit, not a source of nutrition. Because food does grow on trees. Because we need community, not control. Because we need homes, not jails. Because we need FOOD NOT BOMBS!
The free community meal serving happens at 1:30PM every Saturday in front of Kitchener City Hall (200 King St W.). Before that, we cook our soup at the Working Centre, which is located at 58 Queen St S. (just a few blocks away). Our leftover produce and soup is then driven to the House of Friendship in downtown Kitchener. We are always in need of volunteers to help cook, transport, and serve food!
Contact: fnb.kitchener@gmail.com and follow them on Instagram here
KW Urban Harvester
KW Urban Harvester’s initiative is to transform urban green spaces in the Kitchener/Waterloo Ontario area into anything sustainably edible. We seek to educate ourselves and others on how to grow food in urban settings, preserve the harvest, and save the seeds.
Our primary focus for the season is planting, maintaining, and harvesting the Northdale plot on the WLU campus. We also welcome the opportunity to work with community members who have yard space to share and transform into edible landscapes. Other initiatives within our group include forest gardening, urban foraging, and fruit tree harvesting as well as any other interests in urban agriculture that members would like to explore.
Contact: kwurbanharvester@gmail.com
ShamRose for Arabic-Speaking Community
ShamRose is a non-for-profit active in building the Syrian and Arabic speaking communities since 2012. In recent years, we have focused on responding to the Syrian Refugee Crisis, on a local level. Our main venues of work include: assisting refugee sponsors during pre-arrival period, share knowledge with individuals and groups interested in sponsoring refugees, Arabic School, fundraising, and community events.
ShamRose Refugee Support Center opened its doors in January 2016, to assist in resettlement and integration of Arab-speaking refugees and newcomers.
Contact: shamrosesyria@gmail.com
The Excavators’ Co-op
Founded in 2023, Excavator Arts Collective is a community arts non-profit org based in Waterloo. We are a small collective of artists, musicians, and people sharing what we love to do. Our goals are to challenge and subvert barriers that impede the accessibility and enjoyment of the arts, to prioritize the experience of people who are often left behind in community programming (including but not limited to queer, trans, neurodivergent, and disabled people), and to allow experimentation and play to guide our projects. In 2024, we officially incorporated as a non-profit organization! Fun Fact: "Excavators" are birds that excavate (dig out) a hole instead of constructing a nest. Excavation represents how our community must carve out spaces instead of only accepting what is available or offered.
Contact: theexcavatorscoop@gmail.com
Follow The Excavators Co-op on Instagram here.
Brantford Research & Action Groups
Revitalizing Our Sustenance Project
Revitalizing Our Sustenance Project was created in Summer 2020 to help educate and learn sustainable food systems and practices. ROSP is youth-led and driven to build a positive community surrounding the Six Nations Reserve. The main objective of the program is to create educational opportunities and on-the-land learning for Haudenosaunee & non-Indigenous youth. We aim to create an inclusive positive space in learning & revitalizing our relationship with food and Haudenosaunee agricultural systems.
Contact: revitalizingoursustenance@gmail.com
Follow the Revitalizing Our Sustenance Project on Instagram and Facebook.
A publication to learn more: https://www.cbc.ca/news/indigenous/six-nations-garden-project-miller-1.5745018
