Make a Mark Community of Practice
About the Program
Make a Mark is a community of practice launched by The Belonging Studio. It brings together practitioners who advance belonging through community-building.
As a cohort, members gather to explore, experiment, and create alongside peers who share their commitment to belonging. Together they develop projects that support community connection, dialogue, and resilience.
2026 Applications are now closed.
For questions about the program, please reach out to us at MaM@TheBelongingStudio.com
2026 Theme: Spaces of Belonging
Spaces shape how we come together. A kitchen table, a park bench, a community center, a group chat, a classroom, a front porch, these are the places where connections take root. When we create spaces that invite people to gather, and gather often, something powerful happens: casual encounters become familiar faces, familiar faces become relationships, and relationships become the foundation for communities.
“Spaces” can include physical spaces, digital spaces, relational spaces, and the spaces in-between that aren't always named. Whether you’re building a neighborhood gathering place, an online community, a public installation, or a framework to create welcoming environments, we will collectively explore what it means to design, hold, reclaim, and reimagine spaces so that belonging can flourish.
Program Structure
Make a Mark runs from late Spring to early Fall in Toronto.
Here's what the experience looks like:
- 10 gatherings alternating between in-person and virtual. Gatherings occur every other week on Saturday or Sunday mornings (refer to the program calendar for all key dates)
- A welcome session to meet your cohort and get started
- Dedicated project development sessions where you share your work, receive structured feedback from peers, and get dedicated time to work on your projects during Studio Hour
- A learning day with guest speakers, skills workshops, and/or community tours connected to the theme
- An Open Studio at Akin Remote Gallery where you share your work with the public
- A closing celebration and retrospective to reflect on the journey together
- A window display at The Public Studio showcasing cohort work for the wider community
All gatherings are facilitated by The Belonging Studio. The first and last gatherings are always in person and all in-person gatherings and public events take place in Toronto. We offer prepaid PRESTO cards to support members with local travel, as needed.
Who Should Apply
Make a Mark is for practitioners across all disciplines who are advancing belonging through community-building. You might work in the arts, design, social work, education, urban planning, public health, facilitation, community organizing, civic engagement, or another field entirely.
You don’t need to have your project figured out. You do need to be ready to:
- Show up consistently for your cohort over the course of the program
- Develop an independent or collaborative project (big or small) that you’ll work on and present at the open studio and install in the window display
- Give generous, constructive feedback to fellow members
- Bring curiosity, openness, and a willingness to experiment
What You Receive
- A cohort of peers working on related ideas and questions across diverse disciplines
- Bi-weekly structured sessions with facilitated feedback, learning, and development
- Access to learning opportunities connected to the theme
- Project development support from The Belonging Studio
- A public platform to share your work at the Open Studio and window display
Your Project
Every member of Make a Mark creates something by the end of the program. Your project is yours to define. It can be something you develop independently or in collaboration with another cohort member.
Projects can take many forms:
- A concept or framework
- A design or prototype
- A facilitation guide or toolkit
- A digital tool or platform
- A physical object, installation, or space
- Something else entirely
The only requirement is that it’s tangible, something you can share, show, or walk people through at the Open Studio.
Program Calendar
Application Dates
- Applications Open – Monday, April 13, 2026
- Applications Close – Friday, May 8, 2026 (11:59 PM EST)
- Applicants Notified – Thursday, May 20, 2026
- Program Begins – Saturday, May 30, 2026
Session Dates
- Session 1: Welcome – Saturday, May 30 (In-Person | The Public Studio, 58 Lansdowne Ave., Toronto)
- Session 2: Project Development – Sunday, June 14 (Virtual)
- Session 3: Project Development – Saturday, June 27 (Virtual)
- Session 4: Learning Day – Sunday, July 12 (In-Person | Royal Ontario Museum, 100 Queens Park, Toronto)
- Session 5: Project Development – Saturday, July 25 (Virtual)
- Session 6: Project Development – Sunday, August 9 (Virtual)
- Session 7: Open Studio Prep – Saturday, August 22 (In-Person | Remote Gallery, 568 Richmond Street West, Toronto)
- Session 8: Open Studio – Sunday, August 23 (In-Person | Remote Gallery, 568 Richmond Street West, Toronto)
- Session 9: Closing Celebrations & Retrospective / Window Display Begins – Saturday, September 5 (In-Person | The Public Studio, 58 Lansdowne Ave., Toronto)
- Session 10: Window Display Ends – Sunday, October 25 (In-Person | The Public Studio, 58 Lansdowne Ave., Toronto)
