Funding for supporting community-based science 

Overview

The goal of the Great Lakes Freshwater Ecosystem Initiative (FEI) is to target the most significant environmental challenges affecting Great Lakes water quality and ecosystem health by delivering on Canada’s commitments under the Canada-United States Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement (GLWQA).

The public plays an essential role in restoring and protecting Great Lakes water quality and ecosystem health. Enhanced community and public awareness and knowledge of Great Lakes issues support Canadians in making personal choices and taking individual actions that help restore and protect Great Lakes water quality and ecosystem health. The Canada Water Agency (CWA) is working to enhance community-based science within the Great Lakes, focusing on efforts to address priority science issues, including water quality (nutrients and toxic chemicals), nearshore ecosystem health, and climate adaptation and resilience, as well as increase the value of community-based science in decision-making within the Great Lakes.

An objective of the Great Lakes FEI is to promote community and public engagement in Great Lakes protection through community-based science to address priority science issues; improve the sharing, quality and use of data produced; advance stakeholder and public awareness and knowledge; and, enhance the broader application of new technologies.

Eligibility

Eligible recipients

Applicants may include:

• Conservation Authorities
• Indigenous organizations, governments, individuals, boards, commissions, communities, associations, and authorities
• Canadian municipal and local governments
• Canadian not-for-profit organizations, such as charitable and volunteer organizations, professional associations, and non-governmental organizations
• Canadian research, academic and educational institutions
• Canadian local organizations such as community associations and groups, seniors’ and youth groups, and service clubs

 Individuals and provincial government agencies are not eligible for funding.

Eligible projects

Projects that support community-based science to address identified Great Lakes science priorities, including projects that support the development and use of innovative technologies and the use of open data to enhance the understanding of Great Lakes water quality and ecosystem health.

Project applications must:

• increase the number of people participating in Great Lakes community-based science activities
• engage citizens in a manner that increases their knowledge of Great Lakes issues
• collect and make available useful scientific information about a Great Lakes science priority, including water quality (nutrients and toxic chemicals), nearshore ecosystem health, and climate adaptation and resilience
• support decision-making or research
• focus on the Canadian Great Lakes waters (shorelines, nearshore, offshore areas)

The following projects and activities are ineligible:

• projects or activities already underway and ongoing programs and activities (note: expansion of existing programs to new areas or new scope can be considered)
• projects focused primarily on beach cleanups or litter collection
• projects focused primarily on the purchase of capital assets and/or vehicles
• core organizational functions (for example: meetings, maintenance and administration)
• attendance at general conferences
• lobbying, advocacy or fundraising activities or activities that can be perceived as such

Eligible project costs

Only costs which can be directly attributed to carrying out the project will be eligible for funding, including:

• human resources, including salaries and benefits
• management and professional services costs, such as accounting, communications, liability insurance costs, official languages translation, audit and legal charges
• travel
• materials and supplies
• printing, production and distribution costs
• training
• database management and/or required software
• equipment purchases or rentals
• vehicle rental and operation costs
• a reasonable share of overhead and/or administrative costs (for example: rent, utilities) that are directly attributed to project delivery
• any GST/HST that is not reimbursable by Canada Revenue Agency and any PST not reimbursable by the provinces
• other incremental expenditures directly related to the project (as pre-approved by the CWA)

Ineligible project costs

Costs, other than those herein allowed, are ineligible unless specifically approved in writing by the Minister of Environment and Climate Change or his/her representatives at the time of project approval. For all costs, only those deemed to be a reasonable share for completing the project shall be considered eligible. Note that the Great Lakes FEI does not provide funding for capital or operating costs of municipal infrastructure or land acquisition.

Funding 

Funding details

• The minimum amount available for any one project is $40,000.
• The maximum amount available for any one project is $1,000,000.
• Projects may be multi-year in nature, with a recommended maximum duration of four years. For multi-year projects, first year of funding is intended for project initiation and will be limited.
• Projects may be funded up to 100% of the project costs; however, applicants are strongly encouraged to seek other sources of funding and/or in-kind project support*.

*In-kind support may include:

• expertise from project partners or consultants
• volunteer time for project activities, coordination, or professional services
• any goods or services that contribute to covering the costs of the project, such as equipment, materials, office space, etc.

The value of existing data sets or previously purchased software cannot be included as an in-kind contribution.

Application process

Description of the application process

The CWA requires that applications to the Great Lakes FEI be submitted online via the Grants and Contributions Enterprise Management System (GCEMS). The GCEMS is accessed through the department’s Single Window system.  For additional information on accessing the GCEMS through ECCC’s Single Window system, please see Appendix A.

The online Application Form for the Great Lakes FEI: Supporting community-based science stream includes nine sections:

• Section 1: Tombstone Data
• Section 2: Project Summary
• Section 3:  Great Lakes FEI – supporting community-based science (program-specific section)
• Section 4: Project Budget
• Section 5: Project Work Plan
• Section 6: Evaluation Plan and Performance Measures
• Section 7: Other Supporting Information
• Section 8: Official Languages
• Section 9: Certification

In Section 1: Tombstone Data, provide basic information about your group as well as contact information for the individual leading the application.

In Section 2: Project Summary, provide basic information about the proposed project, including the name and location of the project, the project start and end date, the project goals/objectives, a brief general description of the proposed project, the experience of project team members and the financial and management capacity of the organization submitting the project applications. If your project is approved for funding, the summary description you provide in your application may be made available to the public.

In the Project location box, use the central location of the site for longitude and latitude. If the location is a larger area, please identify the broader area in the Project Description box.

In Section 3: Great Lakes FEI - Community-based Science (program-specific section), provide information about various aspects of the proposed (community-based science/innovative technology/data platform) project, including information on the results of the project, the engagement and communication used for the project, as well as details related to performance management and the project budget.

Results: Describe how the proposed project will fill an information gap; how the proposed project will assist with decision-making or be used by a scientist;  how the proposed project will be useful to increase knowledge and understanding of one or more Great Lakes priority issue including water quality (nutrients or toxic chemicals), nearshore ecosystem health, and climate adaptation and resilience); and, how the proposed project will manage and make data available. The project should provide letters of support to highlight how the data will be used by a researcher, scientist, other groups, etc.

Engagement: Describe how the proposed project will engage and recruit people (including marginalized and under-represented communities) to do community-based science activities; how the proposed project will provide training and support to the volunteers; how the proposed project will encourage other community members (who haven’t volunteered) to take action based on the information gathered through community-based science activities; or describe how the data platform project will engage community-based science projects, and support easy upload and access to data.

Communication: Describe how the project will communicate, share and visualize results with program participants as well as the community at large (including marginalized and under-represented communities). 

Project budget: Indicate whether or not other sources of support (financial and/or in-kind) have been obtained. Include information on other sources of support in Section 4: Project Budget. Also, identify if there is a plan in place for the sustainability of the project beyond the time of CWA funding expiration. If yes, please describe the sustainability plan as the last item in Section 5: Project Work Plan.  

In Section 4: Project Budget, provide the total amount of CWA funding that is being requested for the proposed project, outline the project’s budget and give an estimation of its forecasted expenses organized according to a set of pre-defined cost categories (such as salaries and wages; management and professional services; communication and printing, production, and distribution; and travel). The estimated cost of all project expenditures should reflect fair market values at the standard rate for that product or service in your area.

In this section, you are also required to provide details regarding the project's fiscal year breakdown. Determine the number of years of support from the CWA that your project requires (up to a maximum of 4 years) and indicate how the total amount of support requested will be allocated on an annual basis.

Disbursement of funds - Identify if your project involves the further disbursement of funds. 

Finally, in this section you are required to indicate other funding sources for the project if applicable. Provide letters of financial/in-kind support for the project in the Other Supporting Information section.

In Section 5: Project Work Plan, provide details on the activities that will be undertaken for the duration of the project.

In Section 6: Evaluation Plan and Performance Measures, provide details on how the expected results and successes of the project will be measured. Performance measures are not limited to, but should directly align with how you will monitor the number of new citizens engaged, how you will engage under-represented groups, how the information collected will support decision-making, how you will fill a science or research gap, how many communities will be supported by the proposed project and other measures designed to assess the project’s performance and include targets for each performance indicator along with the unit being measured (e.g., new citizens per year) where possible.

In Section 7: Other Supporting Information, provide further information relevant to the project that was not captured elsewhere in the application if needed. This may include scientific publications and letters of financial/in-kind/scientific support for the project.

In Section 8: Official Languages, provide information related to the need to accommodate official language minority communities with respect to the proposed project’s activities.

In Section 9: Certification, certify that information provided in the Application Form is accurate and that you, as the applicant, have authorization to sign on behalf of the group.

Other instructions

Applicants are encouraged to provide the details necessary to give a full response to each section of the Application Form but should be as concise as possible. Content included in any field that goes beyond the purpose of the field will not be considered or included in the evaluation of that section.

Please ensure that all sections of the Application Form are complete prior to submission. Incomplete applications will not be reviewed.

Applicants may include additional information or documents with their application (such as examples of possible products, photographs, maps, letters of support, etc.). If submitting additional material, it must be clearly marked and referenced accordingly in the relevant section of the application. All such material must be submitted in accordance with the instructions found online in the Other Supporting Information section.

Applicants are encouraged to identify any additional partner funding and/or in-kind project support that has been obtained and/or that is being sought. Please note that while this is not a requirement, applications demonstrating other sources of financial and/or in-kind support will be scored favourably when evaluated on value for money.

Note: if you are unable to complete and submit your application via the online application portal and wish to discuss options, please contact GreatLakes-GrandsLacs@cwa-aec.gc.ca.

Deadline and submission instructions

Closed for applications.

Selection and Evaluation Process

Selection process

Project applications will undergo a two-stage review process:

1. administrative review by the CWA to ensure applications are complete and meet program eligibility requirements
2. project evaluation by the CWA against evaluation criteria. The CWA may seek advice on application submissions from external advisors with knowledge and expertise relevant to the application; however, approval decisions will be made by the CWA.

Administrative review

To be considered eligible for funding, project applications must meet the following requirements:

• the applicant is eligible to receive funding
• the proposed project increases the number of citizens participating in Great Lakes community-based science; engages citizens to increase knowledge about Great Lakes issues; collects and makes available useful scientific information; and/or advances broader application of new technologies and use of open data for the purposes of improving or sharing community-based science data
• the proposed project focuses on the Canadian Great Lakes shorelines, nearshore areas and/or offshore areas
• all application sections are complete

Project evaluation

Eligible project applications (for community-based science projects, innovative technologies or data platforms) will be assessed on the extent to which applications meet the following evaluation criteria:

Results

• the proposed (community-based science/innovative technology/data platform) project fills one or more information gaps
• the proposed project aligns with Canada-U.S. Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement priorities, such as water quality (nutrients and toxic chemicals), nearshore ecosystem health, and climate adaptation and resilience
• the proposed project will collect information that will be useful in increasing scientific knowledge and understanding of one or more Great Lakes issue
• the proposed project will collect information that will be used to inform decision-making or be used by a scientist to inform a science need on one or more Great Lakes priority issues
• the proposed project has a clear and well-developed approach to managing data and making data/information available, including geospatial data

Engagement

• the proposed (community-based science/innovative technology/data platform) project has a well-developed approach to engage a large number of people in citizen science activities, including marginalized and under-represented communities (as appropriate)
• the proposed (community-based science/innovative technology/data platform) project has a well-developed plan for training and/or supporting community-based scientists/projects
• the proposed (community-based science/innovative technology/data platform) project has a strategy to recruit and engage other citizens in action based on the information gathered through community-based science activities

Communication

• the proposed project has a well-developed plan to communicate/share/visualize project results with participants and the community, including marginalized and under-represented communities

Project Feasibility / Likelihood of Success

• measurable goals and objectives are clearly stated and there is a well-developed plan to track project success
• the project work plan and timeline are realistic and achievable and will lead to the stated outcomes
• the project proponent has demonstrated the capacity and experience to plan and manage the project
• the proposed project should identify as a concept, a pilot, or a currently in-use project

Value for Money

• the proposed project represents good value for dollars invested
• the proposed project includes cash and/or in-kind contributions from other sources
• the proposed project has a plan for sustainability of the activities beyond the agreement

Notification

Once departmental approvals in principle have been confirmed, all applicants (both successful and unsuccessful) will be notified in writing. If your project is approved in principle, you will be contacted to negotiate a Contribution Agreement, which outlines the terms and conditions of funding. Please note that the letter of notification informing that your project has been approved in principle will also be shared with relevant federal MPs. We will work towards completing this process within 40 working days. Please note that meeting this standard for the development of a Contribution Agreement is a shared responsibility and largely depends on you submitting all required documentation to CWA officials in a diligent and timely fashion.  

Project implementation can begin after formal notification of project approval, pending the execution of project agreements or contracts where applicable.

If a Contribution Agreement is signed, expenditures made by your organization towards the project after the date of official notification and before the Contribution Agreement is signed may be considered for reimbursement.

For clarification on any of the above, please do not hesitate to contact greatlakes-grandlacs@ec.gc.ca.

Appendix A: Online GCEMS application process

Environment and Climate Change Canada requires that applications to the Great Lakes FEI: Supporting Community-based Science funding stream be submitted online via the Grants and Contributions Enterprise Management System (GCEMS). The GCEMS is accessed through the department’s Single Window system.

To sign in to the department’s Single Window system select your language preference on the welcome page and when prompted to choose a sign-in method, select the GCKey sign-in option. If you already have a GCKey username and password enter them in the appropriate spaces.

If you do not have a GCKey username and password proceed through the sign-up process to obtain your username and password.

New users to the Single Window system will then be prompted to enter their email address and guided through a process to create a user profile.

In order to gain access to the link that will allow you to navigate to the GCEMS, you must add an organization to your profile. On the menu select “Organizations” and follow the instructions on the web page that opens. Note that when entering the organization’s business number you may use one of the following; business number; GST number; charitable number/non-profit organization registration number; or First Nations Band number. Once you have added your organization, select “Home” on the menu to navigate to the webpage that contains the link to the GCEMS.

Once you have accessed the GCEMS site, click on the link “View funding opportunities” on the left hand side of the GCEMS “My applications” webpage. On the “View funding opportunities” webpage, locate the Great Lakes FEI in the “List of opportunities” table and view the funding opportunity information by clicking on the associated link in the “Action(s)” column. On the “View funding opportunity information” webpage, click on “Apply” to open the online application process for the Great Lakes FEI: Supporting Community-based Science funding stream.

Information on how to access and use ECCC’s Single Window system.

For technical assistance with ECCC’s Single Window system, please contact gigu-swim@ec.gc.ca.

Information on how to access the GCEMS.

For technical assistance with the GCEMS, please contact sgesc-gcems@ec.gc.ca.