Bolstering the Reach & Impact of Our Global Work
HelpAge Canada believes that protecting the well-being of older people is a shared global responsibility that works best through international collaboration and local leadership.
That’s why our work extends beyond Canada’s borders: to build trusted partnerships, influence global policy, and deliver direct support in communities facing conflict, disaster, or systemic exclusion.
As a founding member of the HelpAge Global Network, we help advance locally led humanitarian response and development. Older people are often excluded from traditional aid models yet are among the most at risk during crises and recovery. We work to ensure they are not left behind.
Our global work supports Priority 2 in our Strategic Plan →
Canadian Care & Connection
Many Canadians maintain strong ties to family, friends, and communities around the world. It’s a privilege when people reach out to ask, “How can I support older people back home through HelpAge Canada?”
That trust and compassion is something we honour deeply and act on.
Whether it’s funding food, healthcare, and cultural programming in underserved communities, speaking out for human rights at the United Nations, or delivering rapid relief during natural disasters, please know your donation helps more older people thrive, at home and abroad.
Our HelpAge Global Network
With 208 members in 99 countries, our HelpAge global network is a locally rooted worldwide alliance standing together for the rights of older people. We are a founding member of this global network, united by one major goal: creating a world where older people can live safe, healthy, and dignified lives.
Deepening Global Partnerships
- HelpAge International: Our global network partner, operating in 80+ countries
- Global Affairs Canada: Collaborating on emergency response and global development
- International Longevity Centre of Canada: Sharing research, resources and leadership expertise and co-hosting international policy discussions
- INGO and UN agencies: Working to advance the rights of older adults globally
Community Development
Removing barriers that prevent older persons from leading healthy and dignified lives
HelpAge Canada partners with community-based seniors’ services (CBSS) organizations across Canada and abroad to improve the quality of life of older persons in their communities. The growing network of frontline organizations have increasing needs for funding and support to better respond to those facing challenges as they age. HelpAge Canada uses its reach to better support organizations providing critical services to older people.
Introducing GrandConnect
Meet GrandConnect, the evolution of Sponsor a Grandparent, HelpAge Canada’s flagship global sponsorship program. With your support, we’re shifting from sponsoring individuals to strengthening entire communities of older adults through locally led collective care.
Why Support GrandConnect?
- Help more older adults in need
- Support dignity, independence, and respect
- Reduce loneliness and isolation
- Address ageism, abuse, and neglect
- Improve access to health care, food, and essentials
- Build connections across generations
- Create lasting change in people’s lives
Current countries we support: Bangladesh | India | Jamaica | Kenya | Pakistan | Sri Lanka
We select countries where we have trusted, established partners and teams on the ground, able to respond to local community needs. Your donations help provide healthcare, shelter, nutrition, and social connection. GrandConnect empowers communities to determine their needs, set their own priorities and lead the way forward.
Shift Your Gift: We’re deeply grateful to our longtime supporters of Sponsor a Grandparent. Your generosity built the foundation of trust and opportunity for this next chapter. When you donate or shift your gift to GrandConnect, know you’re helping even more older adults and transforming entire communities. You’ll continue to receive an annual update showing the impact your support.
Your support through GrandConnect or a general, unrestricted donation, is a personal way to make a global difference.
Expanding Support for Humanitarian Response
In times of crisis, older people are often left behind. Whether in war zones, disaster sites, or refugee camps, they are among the least likely to receive food, shelter, healthcare, or protection, and often need it most.
We work with trusted local partners to respond quickly when emergencies strike. We launch fundraising campaigns on trusted online platforms, so Canadians can donate quickly and securely. Our response efforts are rooted in dignity, safety, and the long-term well-being of older people and their communities.
We focus on:
- Emergency aid in conflict zones (e.g., Ukraine, Gaza, Ethiopia, Pakistan)
- Relief during natural disasters (e.g., floods, earthquakes, wildfires)
- Community-led recovery (prioritizing inclusion, resilience, human rights)
Stories of Impact
- Ukraine: 7,700+ older adults and families supported while fleeing war zones
- Ethiopia: 84,000 older refugees received emergency food and healthcare
- Pakistan: Rapid-response aid such as shelter and hygiene supplies, delivered after severe flooding
These impact outcomes are only possible because of donors like you.
Over $3.8 million committed to humanitarian projects that safeguard the health and safety of older people in over a dozen countries
We’re proud to do this work alongside HelpAge International, Global Affairs Canada, and other leading partners, working through a strong and trusted global network that places older people at the heart of humanitarian action.
In times of crisis, your donations help us deliver urgent care and essentials when older people need them most.
Advocating for the Well-Being of Older People Globally
We raise the voices of older people at global forums and policy tables. In April 2025, the United Nations moved forward with a global convention on the rights of older persons. For more than a decade, HelpAge Canada was there in support.
We also participate in global thinktanks, such as:
- Asia-Pacific Regional Conference on Population Ageing (Indonesia, 2024)
- Human Rights Council sessions (Geneva, 2025)
- Indo-Pacific Strategy Dialogue (Toronto, 2024)
These global gatherings allow us to share Canada’s experiences, advocate for older women facing intersecting discrimination, and shape international action on ageing.
Your generosity helps us shape global policies to uphold the rights of older people.
Join Us! Help Power Global Change for Older People
You can make a meaningful difference in the lives of older people around the world. HelpAge Canada’s global programs rely on donor support to deliver food, healthcare, housing, and human connection, when and where the need is greatest.
We welcome support from:
- GrandConnect community sponsors
- Foundations and philanthropic networks
- Diaspora communities in Canada
- Corporate partners and global donors
Your generosity brings essentials like food, care, and connection, to older people globally. Every donation big or small matters and helps extend our reach.
Be Part of the Change: Support Global Well-Being of Older People
Your support upholds the rights of older people here in Canada and around the world and helps them thrive in their own communities.