Deadline for applications:
- Monday, November 9, 2020 at 4 p.m.
One complete copy of the application must be emailed to infoculture@ottawa.ca.
The application submission must be received by 4 p.m. on the deadline date. Late or incomplete applications will not be considered.
Contact Information
Program Inquiries
For specific information on your submission, or to discuss eligibility, contact:
Marie-Christine Feraud
Cultural Funding Officer
613-818-1491
marie-christine.feraud@ottawa.ca
General Inquiries
For general information, technical issues, or to request an application form, contact infoculture@ottawa.ca
Funding for Indigenous and equity seeking communities
This program is available to not-for-profit organizations, professional collectives, and artists or cultural workers who identify with the following designated communities that have historically faced barriers to accessing support:
- Algonquin Anishinabe Host Nation
- First Nations
- Inuit
- Métis
- Francophones
- 2SLGBTQIA
- Immigrants/Newcomers
- People Living in Poverty
- People of Colour
- People with Visible and Invisible Disabilities
- Deaf People
- Rural Residents
- Seniors/Older Adults
- Women+
- Youth
Program objectives
- Supports projects that have a cultural art focus and are led or produced in partnership with a professional artist(s), community elder/culture keeper or a professional who is connected to the arts within an identified community
- Spark and support the creation, production, presentation, exhibition, and dissemination of the arts by Ottawa’s bilingual and culturally diverse community
- Support cultural education, training and services that impact and build capacity within equity seeking communities
- Promote the visibility and cultural arts practices of equity seeking communities
- Support local artists of all disciplines and backgrounds
- Support community-based artistic activities that celebrate equity and inclusion, and address the Cultural Funding Support Unit’s funding priorities for equity seeking communities
Grant writing assistance
Cultural Funding Officers are available to help you prepare your grant application in the following ways:
- Discuss the eligibility of your project, requirements of the program and answer any questions about the application and evaluation process.
- Review a draft version of your application prior to the deadline. Drafts can be emailed at any time up until Friday, October 23, 2020 to marie-christine.feraud@ottawa.ca and feedback will be provided by telephone.
- Provide peer assessment committee feedback on a previous application.
First-time applicants are encouraged to contact Marie-Christine Feraud to ensure eligibility requirements are met.
Eligibility
Who is eligible?
Individuals must:
- be 18 years or older
- be a city of Ottawa resident, Algonquins of Pikwakanagan First Nation or Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg First Nation OR be Algonquin Anishinabe and live within 150 km radius of Ottawa
- identify with an equity seeking community
- be an artist, cultural arts worker, community elder or cultural keeper recognized by their peers within their sector of specialization
- have a reasonable body of professional work
- have a history of public presentation, publication or community leadership
- receive payment for their work and be dedicated to their professional practice
Incorporated Organizations must:
- be led by, or work in partnership with, an artist(s), cultural arts worker(s) or a community elder/culture keeper
- be not-for-profit and be mandated in either the arts and/or represent/celebrate an equity seeking community
- have their office/mailing address within the limits of the city of Ottawa, Algonquins of Pikwakanagan First Nation or Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg First Nation
- have the majority of their programming and event(s) within the city of Ottawa, Algonquins of Pikwakanagan First Nation or Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg First Nation
- have a minimum of 3 members on their Board of Directors
- have at least 50% of their Board of Director members residing within the Ottawa region
Unincorporated Organizations must:
- be a group of artists and/or cultural arts workers or community elders/culture keepers contributing to a specific artistic goal or a series of common arts/cultural heritage projects
- receive payment in the name of their collective
- have their office/mailing address within the limits of the City of Ottawa, Algonquins of Pikwakanagan First Nation or Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg First Nation
- have the majority of their programming and event(s) within the city of Ottawa, Algonquins of Pikwakanagan First Nation or Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg First Nation
- have a minimum of 3 members residing in the city of Ottawa, Algonquins of Pikwakanagan First Nation or Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg First Nation
- have at least 50% of their collective members residing within the Ottawa region
What is eligible?
Eligible projects must focus on one, or more, of the following objectives:
- highlight and / or celebrate a prioritized equity community through the arts
- provide services to artists from prioritized equity seeking communities
- provide mentorship or training opportunities for artists and/or cultural workers working within the arts sector
- provide learning opportunities in the arts within equity seeking communities
and must also:
- occur in the City of Ottawa, Algonquins of Pikwakanagan First Nation or Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg First Nation
- significantly engage Ottawa’s equity seeking communities
- demonstrate support for local Ottawa artists
- be accessible to the broader public
- be singular in scope and occur within a specific period of time
Restrictions
Who is NOT eligible?
- City of Ottawa employee or an elected representative*
- for-profit organizations / ventures
- crown corporations and government agencies
- political parties
- organizations whose activities come under the jurisdiction of other levels or departments of government (school boards, hospitals, universities, social services, military programs, business improvement associations, etc.)
- organizations that receive operating funding through other programs administered by the CFSU
- organizations with an accumulated surplus greater than 100% of their total revenue (excluding capital assets)
- organizations with an accumulated deficit greater than 10% of their total revenue and exceeding $3,000 (excluding capital assets)
*City of Ottawa Recreation, Cultural and Facility Services Department staff may not hold a key position within an organization requesting cultural funding from the city. Exception: where staff participation has been approved as one of the duties of their position.
City of Ottawa staff are required to act in compliance with the City of Ottawa Employee Code of Conduct and all applicable laws and regulations. For further inquiries, please contact your Cultural Funding Officer.
What is NOT eligible?
- fundraising projects and initiatives that benefit a third party
- commercial ventures, art sales
- projects involving the manufacture and distribution of product in multiple copies
- projects where participation is conditional upon partaking in the religious activities of the organization
- activities that are solely intended for the membership of an organization
- capital purposes (i.e., purchase of land, equipment, facilities, etc.)
- projects completed on or before the application deadline date
- an organization’s full season of programming
- projects submitted by managers, consultants or agents
- projects that are part of an academic course of study
Additional Restrictions to Consider
- The City of Ottawa will not fund 100% of the total cost of the project; the project budget must include sources of revenue other than the City’s contribution
- Applicants may only submit ONE project application per year to the following cultural funding programs: Heritage Funding Program, Diversity in the Arts Fund, Arts Funding Program
- Applicants cannot receive more than one funding allocation for the same activity
- Applicants must submit a final report before reapplying
If the final report has not been submitted by the deadline date, subsequent applications to this program will not be considered*
* In cases where projects will be completed after the deadline date, applicants agree to complete the project and submit an approved Final Report by the time funding results are announced (February 2021).
Meeting all eligibility requirements of the program does not guarantee funding.
Categories of funding
Entry to our programs and movement between funding categories must be approved by the CFSU.
Project funding
Project funding is available to individuals working in the cultural arts sector and to professional collectives and not-for-profit organizations led by, or partnering with, a professional artist, cultural arts worker, community elder or culture keeper.
Projects are to be carried out within a specific timeframe and consist of either a single activity or a series of activities.
Project grants in recent competitions have rarely exceeded $10,000. Receipt of a project grant in previous years does not guarantee subsequent funding.
Annual operating funding
Annual Operating Funding is available to established, incorporated not-for-profit organizations that have been in existence for at least two years, represent an equity seeking community, and have a cultural arts or cultural arts festival mandate.
Eligible organizations must have received two consecutive project grants through a CFSU funding program and demonstrate a history of providing regularly scheduled arts programming to the community. Recognition for strong community impact within equity seeking communities and overall financial stability must also be demonstrated.
Application process
Applicants must complete the application form and attach all required documentation. All applications must be submitted electronically at infoculture@ottawa.ca by 4:00 pm on the deadline date.
If you are a first-time applicant, please contact a Cultural Funding Officer to ensure that you are eligible for this program, and to discuss the application process.
Applicants must read the Information for Applicant found on our website.
Assessment criteria
The peer assessment committee will evaluate your funding request by looking at the overall impact your project will have on the community, the artistic merit of the proposed activities and your capacity to plan, budget and initiate the project.
The peer assessors use the following criteria to evaluate your application:
Community impact
- Creates engagement and access to under-represented communities through the arts
- Fosters support to local artists, artisans and cultural arts workers in their artistic practices
- Promotes cross cultural/community engagement with broader audiences
- Builds partnerships/relationships with the community of interest and with the broader community
- Encourages community involvement (audience participation, volunteer support, etc.)
Merit of artistic programming
- Project reflects the mandate of the organization (for organizations only)
- Artistic/cultural activities are relevant to the community of interest
- Clear and detailed artistic goals and objectives
- Qualified artistic leadership
Viability
- Skills and means to plan and complete a successful project
- Governance, leadership structure and participation of the Board/Collective (for organizations only)
- Sound fiscal planning and realistic budgeting
- Effective and appropriate marketing and promotion
- Demonstrated need for financial support
Support material
All applicants must submit support material which will be reviewed by the evaluation committee. It plays an important role in the assessment of the application as it gives the evaluators an indication of the merit of the work proposed and provides documentation of past and proposed activities.
Allocation of funding
An applicant’s success in obtaining funding depends upon the peer assessment committee’s final evaluation and the funding available within the program.
All funding is subject to the approval of the annual City budget by Ottawa City Council.
The amount requested is not necessarily the amount awarded.
Cultural funding results
All applicants will receive notification from the CFSU informing them of the results. We aim to provide results to all applicants within six months of the application deadline. We cannot share results over the phone.
All results are final. There is no appeal of peer assessors’ decisions regarding the merit of your proposed activities or the peer assessment committee’s recommendation of a funding amount. The CFSU allows for reconsideration, but only in cases where a review of the application and the committee’s deliberations reveals evidence that the application was not assessed according to the publicly stated procedure and assessment criteria.
Summary report
At the end of the year, the CFSU publishes a summary of funding results on the City of Ottawa’s website listing the names of all funding recipients and assessors.
Until this list is published, the names of successful applicants and assessors will not be revealed. The identity of unsuccessful applicants remains confidential.
If you are awarded funding
Release of funds
If you are awarded funding, your notification will include the approved funding amount, as well as conditions governing the release of funds and the terms and conditions document. Payment from the City’s Financial Services will follow.Saut de page
Use of funds
Funds shall be used only for the purposes outlined in the original application. Any changes to the project scale or activities, including changes in budget, leadership, organizational structure and programming, must be reported in writing to and receive approval from the CFSU.
Please read the terms and conditions document for more information on the use of funds.
Reporting
All funding recipients are required to submit a final report detailing how they used the funding awarded to them. This report must be submitted to and approved by the CFSU either:
- following completion of the funded activities; or
- twelve months after receipt of the funds; or
- at the time of subsequent application to the program
Without a report approved by the City of Ottawa’s CFSU, you will be deemed ineligible for subsequent funding.
To obtain a reporting form, please contact infoculture@ottawa.ca.
Acknowledgement of support
Funding recipients are required to acknowledge the support of the City of Ottawa as indicated within the official Acknowledgement of Support document which will be sent to all successful applicants.
Letter of welcome from the Mayor
If your organization wishes to request a Letter of Welcome from the Mayor to be included in your event program and/or brochure, please contact the Communications Officer, Mayor Support Service Unit, at 613-580-2424 ext. 28868.
If you are not awarded funding
Try again! If you do not receive funding, you are encouraged to try again. The program’s limited envelope cannot fund all applicants, regardless of their merit.