Strategic Innovation Fund: Grow Grants

Activities: What can I apply for?

Eligible activities

Any project activities required to implement, optimize, scale up and expand an existing innovation project for greater sectoral or cross-sectoral impact.

To be eligible, the project must address complex issues in the arts sector, by responding to at least one of the following key strategic areas:   

• Strengthening the resilience and sustainability of the arts sector, including new business and revenue models   
• Advancing social justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion in the arts   
• Increasing the accessibility of arts and culture for people who are Deaf or have disabilities   
• Decolonizing the arts sector    
• Creating a greener arts sector    
• Stimulating the digital transformation of the arts sector   
• Improving the health, wellbeing, and financial security of artists and arts professionals   
• Building networks and partnerships to strengthen the arts ecosystem and the role of arts in society   
• Amplifying the benefit of the arts for thriving communities

Projects must also:

• be successfully developed, tested, prototyped and/or piloted, with demonstrated impact 
• stretch beyond a personal gain or benefit to your group or organization 
• demonstrate the potential to be transformative for the Canadian arts sector 
• be collaborative: undertaken by organizations in partnership and joint governance with other organization(s), collective(s) or group(s) within and/or outside the arts sector.

Ineligible activities

• regular and ongoing operating activities  

The Strategic Innovation Fund is not designed to support artistic creation. Projects that primarily focus on creating, producing, programming or presenting artistic work should seek support through the Council’s regular funding programs.   

Activities related to content creation, artistic creation, media production and equipment or software acquisition will be considered if you demonstrate that they are necessary to achieving the project’s objectives and are within the acceptable range of eligible expenses. 

You can’t apply for activities that occur before the deadline date, those that receive funding from another Canada Council program or those on the general list of ineligible activities.

Application process

The Stage 1 portal application consists of:  

• a description of your existing project, the sectoral or cross-sectoral challenge(s) it addresses, and what you have achieved so far  
• your plans to scale or enhance the project, and how this will be transformative for the sector  
• information about your partners, the project governance, and estimated timeline. 

Applicants – Who can apply?

Your application must identify an eligible lead applicant. The lead applicant must be a Canadian organization who is eligible to apply to the Fund, as determined by their validated profile created in the portal.

Types of potential lead applicants to the Grow component:

• artistic organizations
• First Nations, Inuit and Métis organizations

Grow only supports collaborative projects that are undertaken in partnership with one or more organization, collective or group. Project partners do not require a Canada Council profile.

Organizations presently receiving core grants are eligible to apply to this component.