Work at CSI for the day with our new Lounge Pass!

CSI Supports: How to get financial support during COVID-19

UPDATE: Applications for the Canada Emergency Response Benefit are now open! Click here to see our walk-through of what the application process looks like!

As COVID-19 is increasing economic uncertainty and insecurity across the country, we want to make sure that everyone gets the support they need. So we are sharing the most recent information we have about how to make this happen.

First and foremost, if you are eligible for Employment Insurance you should apply as soon as possible. You can get details about eligibility requirements here, and you can start an application here. (Before you begin, make sure you have all of these documents handy.)

For those who don’t qualify for EI, the Government of Canada has announced the Canada Emergency Response Benefit. This taxable benefit would provide $2,000 a month for up to four months for workers who lose their income as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. (The CERB is a simpler and more accessible combination of the previously announced Emergency Care Benefit and Emergency Support Benefit.)

Applications will begin in early April, and Canadians would begin to receive their CERB payments within 10 days of application.

You will be able to apply for these benefits starting in April 2020, in one of two ways:

  1. Via CRA MyAccount
  2. Via My Service Canada

To access these funds, you must have an account set up in one of those places; do this now. That way, money can be deposited straight to your account without delays in April. You should also make sure you have online banking already set up as you will need this for the registration of your account.

Additionally, the Government of Canada has shared a number of resources for small businesses during this time:

Also applicable to small businesses:

We will update this page as new information becomes available. Best of luck, everyone.

Keep Reading
CSI Spadina in the ground floor kitchen, looking out towards the lounge and meeting rooms. In the foreground is a kitchen counter, with waffles, toppings, and glasses of coffees and teas. In the background, CSI CEO Tonya Surman is speaking into a microphone on the left. In the middle and on the right, a variety of people stand and sit, listening to her speak.
One of the keys to CSI's magic is our Community Animator Program (CAP) and, specifically, the Community Animators themselves! Through this program, we've worked with more than 1,000 exceptional individuals who have each brought a little something different, and a little sparkle, to our spaces. And we're so glad to have had them in our community, because we've learned that each and every one of them has some exceptional talents, skills, and experiences to offer the world!  
Third floor lounge of CSI Spadina. In the foreground is a light blue loveseat sofa. In the background, we see two people working separately at coworking desks and tables. On the ceiling is a chandelier; to the right, a progress Pride flag.
The CSI staff team includes Pride veterans, newcomers, and everywhere in between! This year, as we celebrated Pride in our spaces and with our member community, we turned to our staff team to learn what Pride means to them. Some experienced it for the first time this year and were awash in the joy; others delighted in the fact that Pride remains such a fun celebration decades later. Others noted the increasing corporatization, which draws our attention away from the central premise of Pride - a protest.
whai header
CSI is many things - a coworking space, a non-profit organization, and a launchpad - but, first and foremost, we are a community. A community of innovators, of changemakers, of neighbours, of people putting people and planet first. And the awesome work that our members do, each and every day, never ceases to amaze us! So of course, we do our best to highlight our members whenever possible. Recently, we had the pleasure of sitting down with Molly Bannerman, Director of Women HIV/Aids Initiative (WHAI), a community-based response to HIV and AIDS among cis and trans women in Ontario. Below is an edited summary of our chat, where we discussed the work of WHAI and their latest Collective Action Community Change report.
Become A Member