Current Projects
Durham Non-Profit Network
A project which was initiated to determine how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted Durham Region’s Non-Profit sector, and how we can collectively plan for the future.
The Living Wage in Durham is part of a greater movement across Canada which calculates what it takes for a family or an individual to earn a decent living. In 2016, CDCD conducted its first Living Wage study. The 2023 Durham Living Wage report is now available.
Learn how a Living Wage benefits Employers, Workers, and our Community.
Click here to visit the Ontario Living Wage Network website.
Click here to visit the 2021 Durham Living Wage website.
Homelessness in Durham – Hope In Our Community website
The Homelessness in Durham – Hope In Our Community website is a unique virtual gathering place for those who wish to understand the nature of homelessness and homelessness services in the Region of Durham. Here you will find information on the nuances of homelessness in Durham, our challenges, and what we are doing as a community to end homelessness.
We hope this space will educate Durham residents about the complex systems involved with homelessness and help unite our community in ending homelessness in Durham Region.
Visit Homelessness in Durham – Hope In Our Community to learn more.
The S3 Project
The S3 project is intended to bring together diverse immigrant seniors (55+) (established and newcomers) to engage in discussions of issues and challenges facing immigrant seniors, learn about available services, tips for a healthy life-style, reducing social isolation, and build relationships between service providers and seniors, among others.
Meeting with local politicians and policymakers to learn of the vision, plans and initiatives for the senior population in Durham is also a key part of the program, as one of the deliverables of the Project is the formation of a Seniors Advisors Council which will advocate, advise, inform and coordinate effort around issues related to older adults.
Past Projects
Point in Time Count
Visit the CDCD Point in Time Count webpage to download the 2021 report.
A PiT (Point in Time) Count provides an estimated snapshot of the extent and nature of homelessness in the Durham Region. CDCD has published Durham’s first two PiT Count reports and has now released the third for 2021.
What is the PiT count?
The PiT Count provides an estimated snapshot of the extent and nature of homelessness in the Durham Region. It gathers information on both the number of persons/families experiencing homelessness, as well as their demographic characteristics and service needs. It is done during 24 hours to reduce duplication and to make it as cost and resource-effective as possible. There will be an approximate three-hour timespan surrounding midnight when the actual count will take place. It is scheduled for when most people will be off the street if they have somewhere else to go, and people will be more likely to be settled down where they are planning to spend the night.
Why is the PiT Count important?
This is the third PiT Count in Durham Region. It provides estimates on how many persons/families are homeless. By comparing our results over time we will be able to gauge if homelessness is increasing, decreasing or staying the same, and if our community is making any progress towards addressing homelessness.
Findings from the PiT Count demonstrate housing and service needs specific to Durham Region. It also provides information to aid organizations, funders, and all levels of government to plan for the funding and service needs for homeless persons/families in the Durham Region.
What is Registry Week and why is it important?
The Registry Week is a comprehensive check‐in across our communities to not only count but to identify as many people as possible who are experiencing homelessness. A short health and housing survey will be completed with all people experiencing homelessness who are willing to participate (including those who are staying in emergency shelters or on the street). The community will then work to support those identified as most vulnerable to access housing outreach services as quickly as possible.
We conducted our 2020/2021 PiT Count on October 20 & 21, 2021.
For more information, please contact Alison Baxter, Manager, Social Planning and Research at
905 686 2662 ext 138, abaxter@cdcd.org
Elections 2022
CDCD wanted to support its clients and Durham residents in staying informed about the 2022 Ontario Election. We facilitated 2 Vote Pop-Ups at the Ajax Welcome Centre and Pickering Welcome Centre to demystify the voting process. We also presented to newcomer clients and students on the importance and process of voting.
To view CDCD’s presentation on voting in the provincial election, click on this link: Ontario Election 2022 Voting Information.
The HIFIS Report aims to provide a snapshot of those experiencing homelessness and housing instability in Durham Region. This report will only focus on clients served by HIFIS-using agencies in 2020 and will highlight several key demographic attributes.
The HIFIS Annual Report is the first of its kind in Durham Region! To view the full report, click on this link: HIFIS Annual Report (2020)
For more information please contact our Social Planning and Research Manager Alison Baxter at abaxter@cdcd.org
Elections 2015
CDCD wanted to help Durham residents stay informed about their candidates in the 2015 federal election. So we reached out to each candidate from the four major parties in each Durham Region riding. We asked each candidate the same four questions and released their answers two weeks prior to the election.
Rural Durham Needs Assessment
This report provides a social profile of Durham’s rural communities using recent statistical information and Geographic Information System (GIS) technology. It also summarizes the feedback gathered from focus groups and interviews conducted with local agencies and community members on the needs and expectations for social planning and research in North Durham and Clarington. The Needs Assessment revealed a number of organizational strengths, assets and opportunities for gathering information about community needs, collaboration and partnership development.
Ajax Pride House
Ajax Pride House is a temporary location offering a safe space for the LGBTQ community, newcomers, visitors, athletes, volunteers and allies to watch the Pan Am Ajax Games, and celebrate sports and culture.
Discover Your Durham Newcomer Bus Tour
The Discover Your Durham Newcomer Bus tour was a way for newcomers to become familiar with their community while celebrating our heritage through Canada 150 activities.
The goal of this project was to create barrier free community events for newcomers that positively impact their road to settlement.
This report attempts to unpack the gaps and barriers within Durham Region’s services and resources for the LGBTQ community through an analysis of the data gathered from the Prideline Durham Online Survey. This report provides direction in developing best practices for improving the quality of positive spaces and services for the LGBTQ community.
Poverty In Durham
Beginning in 2009, the Community Development Council Durham set out to better understand poverty in the Region of Durham by moving beyond the available quantitative data and statistics to examine the qualitative experiences of those who live in poverty. The purpose of this project was to develop a local assessment of the experience of poverty in Durham in a way that could inform local policy and service practice while also contributing to provincial and federal dialogue on poverty amelioration and eradication.
Diverse Voices
The CDCD in partnership with the Durham Local Diversity and Immigration Partnership Council (LDIPC), undertook community re-search, in the form of individual interviews, to find out about perceptions of and experiences with immigration by immigrants, non-immigrants and local social service delivery organizations.
Immigrant Services
Integrated settlement service delivery may be very important in the initial stages of settlement, when a newcomer may be relying more on formal human services, but the delivery of these supports effectively at that stage also offers opportunity to help newcomers make connections and build bridges to other social networks that will facilitate the third stage of their settlement.A longer-term perspective on the settlement process emphasizes even further the importance of more coordinated or integrated support systems.