Organization Activation Projects Funding

The AFA celebrates and supports diversity and is committed to creating equitable, inclusive, and accessible programs for all, free of barriers and discrimination. We recognize the unique contributions all artists make towards our community, and encourage applicants representing diverse communities including Indigenous peoples, racialized communities, women, people with disabilities, and the 2SLGBTQIA+ community.

To be eligible for funding, applicants must be one of the following:

• Not-for-profit organization, registered and operating in Alberta for at least one year, and in good standing under the appropriate legislation
• First Nation or Métis Settlement in Alberta
• Foundation established and regulated under Alberta’s Regional Health Authorities Act
• University, college, or institute as recognized under Alberta’s Post-Secondary Learning Act

Eligible organizations must also:

• Have at least 50% of the organization’s board members living in Alberta.
• Deliver public arts and cultural programming in one or more of the following areas:
  • Self-created and self-produced work for public presentation in any arts discipline
  • Artist support, development, and training
  • Artistic presentation and public participation in any arts discipline that is open and available to the general public
  • Indigenous arts, culturally diverse arts programming, and arts programming that supports traditionally underserved communities
• Demonstrate adherence to good governance principles, efficient administration practices and commitment to fiscal responsibility.
• Demonstrate financial stability, in the judgment of the AFA, for at least one year prior to application.

Partnership projects

Two or more organizations that satisfy the eligibility criteria may apply to collaborate on a project. Multiple applications from separate organizations for aspects of the same project will not be accepted. Projects involving multiple partners must be consolidated and submitted by one lead organization.

Applicants are encouraged to consider projects between different partners (e.g. urban and rural, established arts organizations with new or emerging organizations, arts organizations with health, social services, immigrant settlement services, or Indigenous communities.)

Partnership projects must demonstrate that:

• Control and responsibilities in the partnership are shared equally amongst all partners
• Knowledge and practices will be shared and exchanged for the benefit of all project partners
• The partnership results in activity that is beyond the normal programming of partnering organizations
• The project could not be otherwise completed without the existence of the partnership

Ineligible applicants

Ineligible applicants are:

• Municipalities
• Commercial enterprises or for-profit organizations/companies
• Schools
• Organizations that are not arm’s length from municipalities, commercial enterprises, or schools
• Organizations that engage primarily in competition-based activity
• Organizations that do not meet the eligibility criteria in the section above
• Organizations with overdue or incomplete accounting/reporting with the AFA or the Ministry of Arts, Culture and Status of Women

Projects for creative development and artistic presentation that accommodate and encourage diversity in the arts through projects that promote:

• equity, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility (EDIA) of artists and audiences
• innovative artists practises that blend artistic practises and disciplines in novel ways
• innovative artistic practises that bring together artists from different backgrounds

Activities that foster trust, dialogue, curiosity, and sense of belonging through the arts by projects that promote novel artistic presentation. This includes projects that:

• promote dialogue, trust, sense of belonging, and empathy among audiences
• promote opportunities for Indigenous, visible minorities, or D/deaf and disability artists to be the primary voice engaging audiences through artistic presentation
• identify and address inequities in the arts sector in terms of access, participation and outcomes

Examples include, but are not limited to, projects that:

• Create a theatre production that explores the experiences of marginalized communities
• Create a dance performance that celebrates diversity and promotes understanding
• Host a visual arts exhibition that highlights the work of underrepresented artists
• Create a concert series that showcases diverse musical genres and artists
• Host a writing workshop that focuses on the voices of historically marginalized communities
• Commission a visible minority artist to create a new piece of work
• Contract ASL or audio description services for live/streamed performances, for language translation services

Ineligible projects

• Activities eligible for funding, or already funded by, other AFA project grant programs, including programming that is part of an applicant organization's ongoing normal operations or artistic programming.
• Activities undertaken before an application is submitted to this project grant stream; projects must not start before the application is received by the AFA
• Post-secondary institution projects for curriculum-based or academic purposes
• Programs for core delivery of education, health and wellness, and social services
• Activities in the areas of applied arts (culinary, architecture, interior design, graphic arts, commercial photography, gaming, fashion design, etc.), commercial variety acts (face painting, balloon entertainers, fireworks/pyrotechnics, hypnotism, etc.), competitive performances and activities at social events
• Cultural industry activities (for example, book and magazine publishing, sound recording activities)
• Activities presented as part of primarily social events, including, but not limited to, fundraisers, rodeos, stampedes, grandstand performances, trade fairs, parades, meals, conventions, community dances, and student union cabarets

Eligible expenses

The maximum grant available will not exceed $20,000 (or $50,000 for partnerships). Applicants may apply for up to 100% of eligible expenses that are verifiable and directly related to carrying out the proposed project.

Eligible project expenses include any combination of the following:

• costs associated with the above listed activities over and above normal operations
• venue and equipment rental costs
• event or activity marketing and promotion costs
• external consultation, contract costs, commissioning fees and artist fees associated with project execution
• other expenses considered by the AFA to be reasonable and necessary

Ineligible expenses

Additional expenses and activities that are ineligible for funding include:

• permanent or existing staff positions, including prorated salaries and/or time of existing staff allocated to the project
• expenses typically associated with regular or ongoing operations or programming
• capital expenditures for the purchase of buildings or property or for capital development such as construction or renovations
• capital expenditures for purchase of office furniture and/or equipment such as computers, technology, lighting, audio, etc. that can otherwise be rented and/or has a use beyond the life of the project
• mortgage payments, amortization, and/or loan payments
• bad debt, other paper losses, or debt reduction
• expenditures already funded through other Government of Alberta grant programs

The deadline for this funding opportunity has passed.

The AFA only accepts applications through the Front Office portal of the Grant Administration Tracking and Evaluation (GATE) online application system. The AFA must receive online applications no later than 11:59 p.m. Mountain Standard Time on the deadline date, unless the deadline falls on a statutory holiday or a weekend when it will be extended until the next working day. Please give the system time to process the submission so the AFA receives notification before the deadline closes.

The AFA does not accept:

• applications received after 11:59 p.m. on the deadline
• incomplete applications
• applications for projects or activities that commenced prior to submission
• more than one application from an organization per deadline, either solely or as a partnership
• multiple applications from separate organizations for aspects of the same project; projects involving multiple partners must consolidated and submitted by one primary organization

GATE Front Office username registration

First-time applicants will require a GATE Front Office username and password. Requests must be received at least five business days prior to the application deadline.

Please complete the GATE Front Office Registration form and email it as an attachment to registrationAFA@gov.ab.ca, quoting the funding opportunity or grant program to which you are applying.

GATE Front Office usernames and passwords will be sent to the email addresses provide on the registration form.

What to include in the application

For detailed step-by-step instructions, please download the GATE Front Office user guide.

GATE Front Office online forms

• list of primary, secondary, and signing authority contacts for the application
• applicant address and mailing/delivery address (when applicable)
• organization information including registered name, Alberta Registration number, CRA number (if applicable), incorporation date, and fiscal year end
• brief project title (20 words maximum) indicating the nature of the project and project start and end dates
• Applicant Agreement with duly authorized official with legal signing authority of behalf of the organization
• current board list
• project budget detailing expenditures and non-AFA revenues in Canadian dollars
  • The difference between expenditures and revenues will comprise the grant request to the AFA and cannot exceed $20,000 (or $50,000 for partnerships)

Attachments

The GATE Front Office attachment section indicates that not all attachments are required for submission as they may only be required for certain types of projects (e.g. marketing plan for a marketing project). It is the applicant’s responsibility to ensure all relevant attachments to their project proposal are submitted with the application.

The applicant will be required to complete and upload the following attachments:

• A detailed description of the project, including an outline of the objectives, planned activities, and timelines.
  • An explicit explanation the benefits resulting from this funding is strongly encouraged as part of your detailed description.
• The organization’s most recent annual financial statements with balance sheet, statement of revenues and expenditures and statement of cash flows.
  • For partnership projects, the lead applicant must collate financial statements from all participating organizations. These must be uploaded as one file into the attachments.
• When applicable:
  • itineraries and travel confirmations
  • marketing plan
  • partnership agreement, contract of letter of memorandum indicating the responsibilities of each partner, and the knowledge, resources and experience that each will contribute
  • additional support items that may assist in the assessment process including, but not limited to, promotional literature, programs, or newsletters

Should you wish to submit audio-visual support material, please contact the Arts Development Consultant responsible for this program for detailed instructions.

Staff convene an expert panel to consider all eligible grant applications submitted. The expert panel assesses the merit of each application both on its own terms and in relation to all other applications received for a given deadline.

Assessment of a project is based on the following general criteria

• The relevance of the project on the organization’s ability to support equity, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility in and through the arts
• Long-term impact of the project and how it enhances the capacity of the applicant(s) to encourage diversity and promote dialogue among audiences
• Appropriateness of the project budget, including evidence of in-kind and/or financial contributions from the applicant(s)
• Ability of the applicant(s) to carry out the proposed project, including programming and achievements of the applicant(s) to date

All expert panel recommendations are reviewed by the AFA and all decisions are final.

Funding is not assured for any project.

Applicants will be notified in writing of the result of their application within four months of the application deadline.

Funding is intended for the purposes described in the application. By accepting funding, the organization agrees to undertake the project as proposed in the original project description.

If the organization does not receive the full grant amount requested, it is still required to complete the project as proposed if the organizations accepts the grant.

The organization must return grant funds if the project cannot be completed as proposed.

If the organization requires a change to the project including outcomes or an extension to the final report due date:

• it must submit a request in writing for approval by the AFA
• the request must be submitted to the consultant responsible for this program PRIOR to the change being made and/or before the project completion date
• the AFA will consider a single extension per project

Funding recipients are responsible for informing the AFA of how funds were spent and outcomes of the project:

• the organization must return funds if reporting requirements are not met
• the organization must return unused portions of funding to the AFA

Any grant recipient who does not fulfil any conditions associated with a grant will be made delinquent and may be ineligible for further funding from the AFA for a period of three years from the time the delinquency is resolved.

The AFA will retain all materials submitted with grant applications.

The AFA or its authorized representative may examine a grant recipient's financial and other records to ensure that the grant has been used for its intended purpose.

The AFA does not provide advances for any grant.

Funding acknowledgement

Organizations must acknowledge the AFA for financial support in any publicity prepared in relation to the project, including electronic, print or visual material.

Download versions of the AFA logo and guidelines for usage on our website.

Failure to satisfy the AFA recognition requirements may result in the cancellation of the grant and the requirement to return all of the funding.

The AFA requires a complete and satisfactory final report submitted through GATE Front Office that demonstrates funding awarded was spent on the activities described in the application.

The final report is due on the date noted in the successful notification document, 60 days from the project completion date set by the applicant.

The final report must include:

• A completed statistical information form, containing information about the project.
• A completed project outcomes report.
• A complete and accurate financial accounting for the project based on the original budget submission.
• A description of the results of the project, with an evaluation of its success in relation to the original objectives and outreach as stated in the application.
• Copies of promotional materials related to the project, such as posters and programs. Funding credit to the Alberta Foundation for the Arts must be shown where appropriate.
• Any reviews, publications, invitations and/or catalogues in which the project is mentioned.

Visit the Help and Resources section of our website to download the GATE Front Office User Guide.

• review frequently asked questions for this grant program

Learn more about the AFA and EDIA

• browse EDIA resources