Festival of Literary Diversity Celebrates
$133,600 OTF grant from Ontario Government
June 13, 2025
Brampton, ON – The Festival of Literary Diversity (FOLD) today hosted a special virtual event to mark the 10th anniversary FOLD, and to celebrate a $133,600 Resilient Communities Fund grant they received from the provincial government’s Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF).
“Our government is proud to support initiatives across the province and right here in Brampton that nurture the potential of our future generations,” said Prabmeet Sarkaria, MPP for Brampton South. “I would like to congratulate the organization on their tenth anniversary and continued success, and I look forward to future collaboration.”
The event specifically celebrated the Ontario Trillium Foundation’s generous support of FOLD through a $133,600 OTF grant delivered over the past 24 months which allowed FOLD to successfully recover and build its resiliency following COVID-19. Receiving the grant enabled the FOLD to hire a specialized Volunteer and Audience Engagement Coordinator to rebuild core partnerships, update the festival’s volunteer management strategy, and to restore and grow audience attendance.
“Since the pandemic, every arts organisation and book festival has had to change their approach to programming and audience engagement,” said Jael Richardson, Founder and Executive Director of the Festival of Literary Diversity. “This remarkable support from the Ontario Trillium Foundation’s Resilient Communities Fund not only supported FOLD in a crucial rebuilding period, but also allowed us to grow our programming, welcome new audiences, and be in the place today where we can proudly celebrate our tenth anniversary with a full slate of incredible events, and robust audiences both online and in person.”
The FOLD Foundation is a registered Canadian charity that celebrates underrepresented and marginalised authors and storytellers from Canada and around the world through two annual festivals–the Festival of Literary Diversity each May, and the FOLD Kids Book Fest in November–as well as through a number of literary programming initiatives held throughout the year. Visit thefoldcanada.org for more information.
The Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF) is an agency of the Ontario government with a mission to build healthy and vibrant communities across the province. Last year, OTF invested nearly $105M into 732 community projects and multi-sector partnerships. Projects aim to enhance economic well-being, foster more active lifestyles, support child and youth development, provide spaces for people to come together and connect, and create a more sustainable environment. Visit otf.ca to learn more.
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For further media information, please contact:
Katie Saunoris | KSPR | katiesaunoris@gmail.com
The FOLD Admin