Feminist Response and Recovery Fund call for proposals: How to develop your application

3. How to develop your application

It is strongly recommended that you carefully read this section while completing the application for funding. It provides important details on the information and supporting documentation that is required by Women and Gender Equality Canada to assess applications. Your application will be reviewed in terms of both eligibility and assessment criteria:

• Eligibility criteria: Basic elements that must be met in order to assess your application for funding.
• Assessment criteria: Other elements that are evaluated to determine the strength of your application. Only eligible applications will be assessed.

Where appropriate, these have been indicated in the instructions below.

Before completing your application, you are encouraged to do the Introduction to Gender-based Analysis Plus (GBA+) online course, as it will help you identify how your proposed project could be strengthened by considering how diverse groups of women, men and non-binary people may experience policies, programs and initiatives.

Section A: Organization information

Question 1: Legal name

Indicate the legal name of your organization that is associated with the certificate of incorporation or registration, or Canada Revenue Agency business number. If it is an acronym, indicate the legal name in full.

Question 2: Operating name

Indicate the operating (common) name of your organization if different from the legal name. The operating name is the most commonly used name of your organization. If it is an acronym, indicate the operating name in full.

Question 3: Legally constituted

Indicate how your organization is legally constituted.

If your organization was created pursuant to an Act, indicate which one.

If your organization is incorporated, provide your organization’s certificate of incorporation which displays your organization’s incorporation number.

If your organization is registered, provide your organization’s certificate of registration (“certificat d’attestation” in Quebec) issued from the provincial or territorial registrar which displays your organization’s registration number.

Eligibility criteria:

• The applicant is a Canadian, legally constituted organization.
• The application must be complete. It must include a valid incorporation or registration certificate.

Question 4: Type

Select your organization’s type.

All applicants under this call for proposals must be Canadian, legally constituted organizations and be one of the following:

• Not-for-profit women’s organizations and other not-for-profit organizations with experience in advancing equality for women
• Not-for-profit Indigenous organizations (that represent First Nations, Inuit or Métis interests and is controlled by members of the population it serves)
  • Where there are no Indigenous not-for-profit organizations, Indigenous governments (including band councils, tribal councils and self-government entities) and their agencies
• Research organizations, institutes and centres of expertise
• Educational institutions

For the purpose of this call for proposals:

• A women’s organization has as its primary mandate and objectives to promote equality for women in Canadian society and is led by women for women. The use of the word “Women” is inclusive of both cisgender and trans individuals. Women’s organizations include those advocating for women’s equality and promoting broader societal awareness, engagement and action on advancing gender equality.
• An Indigenous organization represents First Nations, Inuit, or Métis interests; is controlled by members of the population it serves; and its work includes advancing gender equality for Indigenous women in Canada. The use of the word “Women” is inclusive of Two-spirited, cisgender and trans individuals.
• Research institutes or research centres are establishments founded for doing research. They have a research mandate and qualified research staff or research facilities.
• Centres of expertise or centres of excellence are organizations that aim to provide leadership, best practices, research, support or training in a given field.
• An education institution is an entity that provides instructional services or education-related services to individuals and other educational institutions. Examples include: universities, colleges and CEGEPs, secondary schools, school boards and school districts.

Eligibility criterion: The applicant organization is one of the types of eligible organizations under this call for proposals.

Question 5: Organization Scope

Indicate the scope of your organization as it currently appears in your mandate:

• Local: Activities of the organization generally cover at least one community, such as a town, city or regional municipality
• Regional: Activities of the organization cover a district or region of provinces or territories
• Provincial or territorial: Activities of the organization generally cover an entire province or territory
• National: The organization’s activities generally have the potential of impact across Canada (in at least one province or territory in each of the five WAGE regions)

Questions 6 to 9: Street address

Indicate the street address of your organization.

Organizations established in Quebec

The Quebec National Assembly adopted an Act respecting the Ministère du Conseil exécutif (M-30). The provisions of this Act outlines certain conditions for organizations and Quebec government bodies that seek to enter into a contract with the federal government. Organizations should consult the provisions of M-30 to ensure compliance with the Act respecting the Ministère du Conseil exécutif (M-30).

Whenever an organization meets one of the following criteria, it is subject to chapter M-30 provisions:

• The majority of its members, board of directors or executive members, come from the Quebec public sector.
  • This includes any person appointed by the Government of Quebec: a minister, a government agency, a municipal body, a school board or another public agency.
• Its personnel are appointed in accordance with the Public Service Act of Quebec.
• If 50% or more of its financing comes from Quebec public funds – either from the Consolidated Revenue Fund, a government agency, a municipal body or another public agency.

Organizations subject to the Act are responsible for obtaining such authorization before any financing agreement with the Department can be finalized. This authorization may take several weeks. Additional information will be provided in due course to applicants whose project has been selected by the Department under this call. No action is required prior to the communication of funding decisions by WAGE.

If your organization’s street address is in Quebec, provide your organization’s most recent financial statements and indicate if your organization meets one or more of the criteria of the Act respecting the Ministère du Conseil exécutif (M-30). In addition, provide your organization’s most recent Ministerial Order received from the Government of Quebec, if applicable.

Question 10: Confidential address

Indicate if the street address of your organization is confidential (for example, the address of a shelter).

Questions 11 and 12: Telephone and email

Indicate the telephone number and email address of the organization.

Question 13: Preferred official language of communication

Indicate the official language in which you wish to communicate and receive correspondence.

Question 14: Mandate

Indicate your organization’s mandate as it appears in the organization’s governing documents or website. If you are applying as a not-for-profit organization with experience in advancing equality for women, please describe this experience. (maximum of 400 words)

Please note that only eligible applicants as defined for this call for proposals may apply.

Eligibility criterion: The applicant organization is one of the types of eligible organizations under this call for proposals.

Question 15: Governance

Explain the type of governance body your organization has in place, such as a board of directors, board of trustees, advisory committee, or First Nation Chief and Council. (maximum of 400 words)

Explain how your governance body oversees the work of your organization, including how often it meets, reviews and reports on the organization’s financial and human resources and its activities and outcomes.

Describe what changes, if any, there have been to your governing body or senior management in the last two years. If applicable, describe how these changes affected the organization.

Assessment criterion: The application demonstrates that the organization has the capacity to oversee the project activities and support the achievement of project objectives.

Question 16: Amounts owing

Indicate if your organization owes any amount to the Government of Canada.

If your organization owes any amount, the Department will follow up with you at a later time for the name of the Department or agency, the amount owing, the nature of the debt and if a payment plan is in place. This information should not be included in your application as this is protected information.

Section B: Primary contact person information

The primary contact person must be the person with whom Women and Gender Equality Canada can communicate regarding this application for funding. This person must be fully informed about the proposed activities.

Questions 17 to 20: Primary contact person information

Indicate the name, position title, telephone number and email of the primary contact person.

All correspondence will be sent to the primary contact person’s email address.

Section C: Secondary contact information

The secondary contact person must be the person with whom Women and Gender Equality Canada can communicate regarding this application for funding in the absence of the primary contact person. The secondary contact person must also be fully informed about the proposed activities.

Questions 21 to 24: Secondary contact information

Indicate the name, position title, telephone number and email of the secondary contact person.

Section D: Project information

Question 25: Title

Indicate a brief and descriptive project title. (maximum of 15 words)

Question 26: Anticipated start date

Indicate the anticipated start date of the project. Projects should be proposed to start no earlier than early Summer 2021.

If your organization’s project activities begin before you receive a funding decision, expenses incurred prior to approval will not be reimbursed.

Question 27: Anticipated end date

Indicate the anticipated end date of the project. Projects must be completed by March 31, 2024.

Question 28: Project reach

Indicate the reach of the project:

• Local: Project activities cover at least one community, such as a town, city or regional municipality.
• Regional, provincial or territorial, interprovincial or interterritorial: Project activities cover multiple cities; a region of a province or territory; an entire province or territory; or a few adjacent provinces and territories. In the context of this call, projects that cover one of Canada’s three largest municipalities would qualify as regional: Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver.
• Pan-Canadian: Project activities must have impact in at least four WAGE regions and be carried-out in both official languages (both official languages not required for Indigenous organizations). Pan-Canadian projects are encouraged to include engagement or partnerships with Indigenous organizations and communities.

Assessment criterion: The total amount of funding requested of the Department does not exceed the maximum limits as identified in this call for proposals, considering the proposed project’s reach.

Question 29: Activity location type

Indicate if the majority of the activities will be carried out in a rural or urban area, or both. A rural area is defined as an area outside settlements with 1,000 or more population but with less than 400 persons per square kilometre (see Statistics Canada).

If the majority of the activities will be carried out in rural, or in both urban and rural areas, indicate if the majority will take place in a remote area. A remote area is defined as an area that has infrequent flights and no roads in or out of the area, forestry truck road only, or road access in winter only.

If some activities are located in one of the three territories or in Newfoundland and Labrador, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta or British Columbia, indicate if the majority of the activities will be carried out in a northern area. A northern area is defined as one of the three territories or an area being above the:

• 50th parallel in Newfoundland and Labrador
• 54th parallel in Quebec or Ontario
• 53rd parallel in Manitoba
• 54th parallel in Saskatchewan, Alberta or British Columbia

This information can be found on the LatLong website.

Assessment criteria if additional costs are requested based on remoteness:

• The application demonstrates the need to consider increased costs due to activities being delivered in remote or northern area.
• The work plan includes activities that are delivered in a remote or northern area.
• The budget includes costs that reflect activities delivered in a remote or northern area.

Question 30: Type of project

Check the box or boxes that most closely correspond to the type of project you are proposing.

Projects must focus on changing systems to accelerate progress on women’s equality and to tackle persistent or emerging barriers for women amplified by COVID-19 by:

• Undertaking new projects for systemic change
• Scaling up past projects that have led to demonstrable systemic change, including:
  • Building on past successful initiatives to accelerate change
  • Growing a past initiative to increase impact and the number of women who benefit
  • Replicating or adapting a past successful initiative in a new context to achieve change for a different target population

Question 31: Elements of the system to be changed

Check the box or boxes that most closely correspond to the element(s) of the system your project will be working to change. Follow the link to a definition of each element of a system.

Question 32: Type of activities

Check the box or boxes that most closely respond to the type of activities your project will deliver. These types of activities align with systemic change.

Question 33: Needs to be addressed

Describe the need that your project will address, including any considerations resulting from your Gender-Based Analysis and the evidence to support the existence of the identified need. This includes referencing evidence and explaining how and the extent to which the element(s) of the discriminatory system in question impact the target population of your project. (maximum of 300 words)

Before completing their application, organizations are encouraged to do the Introduction to Gender-based Analysis Plus (GBA+) online course.

GBA+ is an analytical process used to assess how diverse groups of women, men and non-binary people may experience policies, programs and initiatives. The “plus” in GBA+ acknowledges that GBA goes beyond biological (sex) and socio-cultural (gender) differences. We all have multiple identity factors that intersect to make us who we are. GBA+ also considers many other identity factors, like race, ethnicity, religion, age, and mental or physical disability.

Assessment criteria:

• The application includes information supporting the existence and relevance of the identified need.
• The application demonstrates that a GBA+ has been conducted and its results considered.

Question 34: Objectives

The application must show how the project is aligned to the objective of the call for proposals which is to fund eligible organizations to support a feminist response and recovery from the current impacts of COVID-19, particularly for underrepresented women, through systemic change projects across the Women’s Program pillars:

• Encouraging women and girls in leadership and decision-making positions
• Improving women’s and girls’ economic security and prosperity
• Ending gender-based violence

Objectives are statements of desired change that describe what should be accomplished, and provide the context in which progress can be monitored and success can be measured.

Project objectives should be clear and practical, described in terms of measurable goals to be achieved through the project.

Indicate the project objectives by: (maximum of 350 words)

• Providing a detailed description of how the project objectives contribute to the objective of the call for proposals, including reference to the needs or issue the project will be addressing
• Stating the measures your organization will use to determine whether the intended outcomes were achieved
• If you chose “scaling up” in question 32, ensure the project objectives are aligned with this type of project.

Assessment criterion: The application demonstrates that the project objectives are aligned with the objective of the call for proposals.

Questions 35: Population that will benefit from the project

The population that will benefit from the project should align with the objectives of the call and with the proposed project. Recall that priority will be given to projects that will address barriers to gender equality for underrepresented women including those who are: Indigenous, racialized, newcomers, members of official language minority communities (OLMCs), seniors, young women and girls, women who are members of LGBTQ2 communities, low income, live with a disability and in a rural, remote or northern community. Indicate which population groups will benefit from the project.

Indicate the gender of the population group that will benefit from the project. A person's gender may differ from the sex a person was assigned at birth. The categories ‘All genders’, ‘Men’ and ‘Women’ below are considered inclusive of both cisgender and transgender individuals. If the project is focused on benefitting another gender, indicate it using the ‘Other’ category. (maximum of five words)

Indicate the age group of the population group that will benefit from the project (up to a maximum of two).

Indicate the identity factors that best describes the population group that will benefit from the project. If there is a primary target audience for your project, please select only one. If the target audience for the project is broad, select those that apply. (up to a maximum of three)

If the project is focused on benefitting Indigenous people, indicate whether the majority identifies as First Nations, Inuit, Métis, or unaffiliated (up to a maximum of two), if applicable. Subsequently, indicate whether the majority identifies as urban Indigenous. In addition, indicate if the project is focused on benefitting First Nations off reserve, First Nations on reserve or all First Nations people.

If the project is focused on benefitting individuals who identify as LGBTQ2, indicate if it specifically aims to benefit bisexual, gay lesbian, queer, trans or two-spirit individuals (up to a maximum of five). If the project is focused on benefitting another LGBTQ2 population, indicate it using the “Other” category. (maximum of five words)

If the project is focused on benefitting racialized individuals, indicate which population group it specifically aims to benefit (up to a maximum of two). If the project is focused on benefitting another racialized population, indicate it using the “Other” category. (maximum of five words)

Question 36: Representation

Please indicate whether your organization’s leadership reflects the population that will benefit from the project. For the purpose of this call for proposals, leadership includes your organization’s governance body identified in question 15 or members of the organization with decision-making authority.

This information may be used to prioritize applications that:

• Propose systemic change projects that will address barriers for underrepresented women including those who are: Indigenous, racialized, newcomers, members of official language minority communities (OLMCs), seniors, young women and girls, women who are members of LGBTQ2 communities, low income, live with a disability and in a rural, remote or northern community
• Are submitted by organizations representative of the population they serve; including Indigenous organizations that propose distinction-based solutions to reflect the unique cultures and experiences of the First Nations, the Métis Nation and Inuit (initiatives that are culturally safe, relevant and appropriate)
• Address any other gap, such as geography, as deemed a priority by the Department

Question 37: Work plan

The purpose of the work plan is to provide the Department with information regarding the key activities and timelines for your project. While an organization often relies on a detailed work plan for project management, for the purposes of your proposal you are encouraged to only include the key activities that have a direct impact on the project objectives. It should not include all the administrative steps your organization will take to deliver the project, such as the tasks necessary to hire a project coordinator or related to reporting on your project. If your project is approved for funding, the eligible activities you include in your proposal will be included in your funding agreement with the Department and in all subsequent reporting. Only providing key activities and related sub-activities will limit the burden on your organization throughout the project lifecycle.

The key activities you propose need to:

• be realistic in terms of project duration and funding available
• be listed in a chronological order
• be well-defined and linked to project objectives and deliverables or outputs
• include timelines that are feasible and reflect the requirements of the activities being proposed
• include information to demonstrate how the project outcomes will be sustained beyond the duration of project funding
• include the involvement of partners or stakeholders, if applicable

Compare the activities to your budget to ensure you have the resources required to carry-out the project activities.

Consult the Activities section for more information on eligible and ineligible activities.

For activities that are pan-Canadian in scope, translation, simultaneous interpretation or other supports should be included in the work plan.

Eligibility criteria:

• The application is complete. The work plan is complete.
• The proposed activities are eligible and consistent with the objective of the call for proposals.
• The proposed activities seek to alter, reorient or connect the elements of a system in order to accelerate systemic change.

Assessment criteria:

• The application provides a clear description of each activity.
• The application demonstrates how the activities are relevant to the project objectives.
• The application provides clear and feasible timelines that are aligned with project activities.
• The application demonstrates how the project outcomes will be sustained beyond the duration of the project funding.

Question 38: Partners

Indicate the project partners, their type of organization as well as the role they will play in the project, if applicable. (maximum of 300 words)

A project partner generally has expertise and a vested interest in the issue being addressed. Although the partner’s role can vary, a project partner is not accountable for the project outcomes.

If your organization has previously partnered with the organization, describe the role it played in the previous partnership.

Project partners are particularly important in the context of a call for proposals focussed on systemic change. You are encouraged to engage with the relevant partners involved in the element of the system you will be working to change prior to submitting an application.

Question 39: Project description

Summarize the project’s objectives, partners, key activities and duration (in months). (maximum of 200 words)

Your project description will be used as a summary of your proposed project. As such, provide concise information about key activities and expected outcomes and include your organization’s name and the project duration in number of months.

Here is a suggested template:

Through this [insert number of months]-month project, [insert organization name] will help advance women’s recovery from the current impacts of COVID-19 through systemic change. Specifically, the project will address systemic barriers within [insert element(s) of the system] by [insert key activities].

Question 40: Official-language minority community

Indicate if the project benefits or involves members of an official-language minority community (OLMC).

An OLMC is either a French-speaking population living outside of Quebec, or an English-speaking population living in Quebec. A list of all OLMCs can be found on the Treasury Board Secretariat website.

Your organization can ensure the project benefits or involves members of an OLMC through activities and mechanisms such as:

• inclusion of OLMC members during the development and implementation of the project
• reserving a seat for an OLMC member or representing organization on a project advisory committee
• adapting project activities to the needs of OLMC members to ensure their participation

Please note that translation of existing documents or project documentation is not sufficient to identify as involving an OLMC.

If the project will benefit or involve members of an official-language minority community, describe how your organization will include and engage these members. (maximum of 250 words)

Section E: Budget

The information provided in this section will be used to assess the overall cost of the project as well as the general nature of the expenditures to be covered by all anticipated sources of funding. Projected expenditures should easily align with proposed activities as outlined in the work plan activities.

Question 41: Budget

Attach the completed Excel template for this section. Please note that only project expenditures requested from the Department for Women and Gender Equality Canada are to be included in the budget. A separate tab called “Sources of revenue” is included for you to list all other sources of funding for your proposed project.

Only project expenditures requested from the Department for Women and Gender Equality Canada are to be included in the budget. It is not mandatory for projects to have financial or in-kind contributions from other sources. However, if contributions are part of the project, a separate section called “Sources of revenue” is included for you to list all other sources of funding for your proposed project.

Organizations can apply for funding for the following maximum amounts (per project):

• Up to $300,000 in total for projects with a local reach, where project activities cover at least one community, such as a town, city or regional municipality
• Up to $500,000 in total for projects with a regional, provincial/territorial reach or interprovincial/interterritorial reach, where project activities cover multiple cities; a region of a province or territory; an entire province or territory; or a few adjacent provinces and territories. In the context of this call, projects that cover one of Canada’s three largest municipalities would qualify as regional: Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver.
• Up to $700,000 in total for projects with a pan-Canadian reach, where project activities must have impact in at least four WAGE regions and be carried-out in both official languages (both official languages not required for Indigenous organizations). Pan-Canadian projects are encouraged to include engagement or partnerships with Indigenous organizations and communities.

The Government of Canada recognizes the additional costs of living and travelling in northern or remote areas. Consequently, you may be eligible to apply for an additional 25% whenever activities are delivered in these areas (see question 29 for definitions). Should you be eligible, the maximum funding amounts would be up to $875,000 for projects with a pan-Canadian reach, up to $625,000 for projects with a regional or provincial/territorial reach, and up to $375,000 for projects with a local reach.

Provide a brief description and breakdown of proposed expenses for each category of expenditure and indicate the amount requested. If your project extends over more than one fiscal year, you must also break down the estimated expenditures by fiscal year (2021-2022, 2022-2023, and not later than 2023-2024). Fiscal years start April 1 and end March 31.

Compare your budget and work plan to ensure all expenses including human resources and materials required to deliver each activity are included. Expenses not clearly linked to activities may be removed. If approved, the Department will fund only those expenses and activities deemed eligible and directly related to your project.

Definitions, examples and the level of detail required can be found in the Guidelines on Eligible Expenditures.

Eligible expenditures are those considered necessary to support the purpose of the project and are costs incurred after the signature of the agreement. There are two types of eligible expenditures:

• direct delivery expenditures: expenses related to the implementation of the project and easily traced to specific activities
• administrative expenditures: expenses related to an organization’s ability to administer and support project activities

Administrative costs will not be approved where they are higher than 20% of the total funding requested from the Department.

Listing direct delivery expenditures under administrative expenditures, or vice versa, could automatically result in cuts to the amounts requested under both categories. Therefore, ensure that descriptions are clear and detailed enough to avoid confusion.

All budget costs must be rounded to the nearest dollar.

Financial contributions offset expenditures related to the project. Examples include, but are not limited to, funding provided by other levels of government and funding provided by private-sector organizations or foundations.

In-kind contributions are non-monetary goods or services provided instead of cash. For the project’s budget, a reasonable monetary value should be applied to in-kind contributions. Examples include, but are not limited to, staff and volunteer time, services, programs, office space and administrative services necessary for the proposed project that would otherwise have to be purchased. Organizations cannot request reimbursement for in-kind contributions.

The Department reserves the right to conduct reference checks with your funding partners.

Eligibility criterion: The application is complete. The budget is complete.

Assessment criteria

• The budget effectively itemizes and details expenditures and demonstrates that these are reasonable (in other words, costs are aligned with regional standards and other related norms).
• The budget demonstrates how project expenditures are directly linked to the activities as described in the work plan.
• The budget includes the required resources to deliver the project or demonstrates that the organization has the capacity to deliver based on the listed in-kind contributions.
• The total amount of administrative expenditures does not exceed 20% of the total funding requested from the Department.
• The total amount requested from the Department does not exceed the allowable funding level based on the project reach.

Section F: Declaration

The application must be signed electronically by the official representative(s) of the organization. By signing the application, the representative(s) confirms reading and understanding the applicant guide.

Eligibility criterion: The application is complete. The application is electronically signed by an official representative of the organization.