2026-2027 TERM

Step into collective ownership of Toronto's most vital housing platform.

Help us shape resilient community tools. Open opportunities and leadership roles across data architecture, open governance, product strategy, volunteer operations, and community activation.

Help us build a sustainable technical and operational bedrock of Toronto Home Zone and the Toronto Housing Society. We are seeking sharp, curious contributors across all backgrounds—from new grads and self-taught tinkerers to seasoned professionals—to help us upgrade our data architecture, rethink moderation workflows, and design sustainable volunteer systems.

Toronto Home Zone (THZ) and the Toronto Housing Society (TOHS) are highly visible, internationally recognized community tools. Joining this effort means rolling up your sleeves on a platform thousands rely on daily, while securing the long-term infrastructure of a vital Toronto cornerstone service.

OPPORTUNITIES

These are volunteer positions. Appointments begin upon recruitment (immediate) to March 31, 2027 with a preference for those who wish to extend.

Whether you want to help guide strategy or build a highly visible portfolio piece—from facilitating design workshops and renter focus groups to architecting clean, decoupled databases—we encourage you to submit an Expression of Interest.

These appointments run on two distinct tracks. You are welcome to submit to both.

  • A core steering group to take ownership of roadmap execution, governance, and team alignment as leadership transitions to a decentralized model.

    You will steer oversight and volunteer momentum in one of three lanes: Open Governance Enablement, Platform Systems & Product or Service & Community Ops.

  • Hands-on builders, researchers, and designers taking on three primary tracks: Open Governance, Platform Systems & Product and Service & Community Ops.

THE AS-IS

An Operations & Systems Brief on how TOHS and THZ currently operate, the systems used, and our data architecture will be available here by August 22, 2026. This brief will be emailed to all those who apply in advance of that date.

System Challenges

Over the term, teams will investigate these 6 core challenges, test high-impact prototypes, and deliver validated blueprints ready for spring implementation:

  • 01

    VOLUNTEER OPERATIONS

    How do we design an operational rotation model and onboarding playbook that keeps THZ community moderation coverage consistent while preventing volunteer fatigue?

  • 02

    DATA ARCHITECTURE & MIGRATION

    What needs to happen to secure and improve the current Posts database? How do we create a secure buffer between moderator inputs and our core database so live tools maintain zero downtime during migrations?

  • 03

    PARTICIPATORY GOVERNANCE & COMMUNITY SAFETY

    How do we build an open governance framework with structured feedback loops so members can influence key decisions? How do we design transparent reporting workflows and escalation pathways that protect member safety and swiftly address community harm?

  • 04

    MODERATOR WORKFLOWS

    How do moderators input clean data into a new schema without adding friction to their daily operations? What tools exist—or can be built or integrated—to streamline this process?

  • 05

    UNLOCKING INSIGHTS

    What additional insights can we generate for the community through the data we collect? What structural changes are required in our database to support deeper impact tracking?

  • 06

    COMMUNITY ACTIVATION

    How can we leverage the platform’s visibility, data, and reach to directly support emergent local housing initiatives, mutual aid, or policy advocacy when needed?

term mission & outcomes

  • The social impact of Toronto Home Zone (THZ) and TOHS is proven to work and work well—its operations do not.

    The goal of this term is to reimagine our core infrastructure—specifically our community operations and data architecture—to ensure long-term sustainability. By transitioning from founder-led oversight into a resilient, community-owned engine backed by open governance and secure systems, we will build a strong foundation for drop-in contributors while allowing future partnerships, events, content generation and expanded impact.

  • Term runs from moment of onboarding until March 31, 2027.

    October 2026: Strategy Lab — Community-wide session to align scope, kickoff teams, and catalyze initial ideation. In advance of this session, all attendees will receive the as-is documentation to how TOHS currently operates.

    Phase 1: Discovery, Strategy & Design (Now – January 2027)

    Phase 2: Testing & Light Implementation (February – March 2027)

  • Time Commitment: ~2–3 hrs/wk (Board Leads) | ~1–2 hrs/wk (Working Group Contributors).

    Sync Schedule: Bi-weekly virtual syncs on Wednesdays, 6:30 PM – 7:30 PM EDT, with lightweight Slack updates between sessions.

    Data Privacy & Safety: Team members may occasionally handle sensitive community data that directly impacts housing or employment outcomes. To protect member privacy and maintain platform safety, a signed Confidentiality Agreement is required for all participants.

  • Co-Designed Teams: Board Members guide the direction and keep momentum going for Working Teams. Working Team members align on specific milestones based on individual strengths and technical interests, recruiting additional contributors as needs arise.

    Decentralization: Everything we build—from API specs to operational playbooks—will live in open repositories (GitHub and Google Drive) except where sensitive personal data (PII) is concerned, establishing a plug-and-play foundation for future stewards.

Expressions of Interest are now open for submission.

READY TO CONTRIBUTE?

Strategic Board EoI
Working Groups (Gov/Sys/Ops)