Grant Program FAQ

Accessibility: Developing content and processes to be as accessible (i.e. as obtainable, usable and understandable) as possible, no matter an individual’s physical and cognitive abilities. Calgary Arts Development believes in eliminating systemic barriers that prevent people who encounter physical, mental, or cultural barriers to spaces, programs, and services from participating in the arts.

Accommodation: An adjustment, modification or adaptation to make something accessible.

Artist Collective: We consider an artist collective to be:

• Two or more individual artists with a shared artistic practice where each member of the collective contributes to the vision, accountability, success and completion of their proposed projects.
• A collective’s shared artistic practice should be distinct from their own individual artistic practices or personal projects.
• Each collective member must meet Calgary Arts Development’s definition of individual artist or cultural worker to be considered eligible.
• Collectives should consider having working agreements between members that outline roles, responsibilities, ownership, intellectual property and copyright, decision-making processes, etc.
• A majority of collective members must be Calgary-based artists (i.e. 50% or more).
• Collectives may partner together for a specific project or work together on an ongoing basis.
• Examples of collectives: a band or vocal ensemble, a visual art duo, a theatre or dance collective, a writing partnership (co-writers).
• An artist collective does not include for-profit organizations, incorporated businesses or non-profit organizations. 

Artist Fees: Professional artist fees are usually specific to the production of work, an outcome or a product. Artist fees are often paid as a fee for service. Examples of when you might request an artist fee (or pay others an artist fee) would be for creating work, preparing work, presenting work, speaking on a panel, running a workshop, instruction or teaching, etc. In some situations, the artist fee will be covered by the presenting or host organization, but if they are not able to or if the project is self-directed, artists may request an artist fee from a grant instead, so long as artist fees are listed as an eligible expense within the grant program.

Some disciplines have standard fee schedules that provide a suggested minimum rate for different activities related to creating, preparing or sharing work within that discipline. Examples include CARFAC (visual and media arts), CADA/West (dance), ACTRA (film), CAEA or IATSE (theatre). Other disciplines may not have standard fee schedules but may have general industry norms for valuing time and work. Whether you are referencing a standard fee schedule or calculating an artist fee using an hourly, weekly or fixed rate, the important thing is to clearly demonstrate how you’ve chosen to calculate this within your budget and ensure the rate is fair and equitable.

Artistic Discipline: The type, form, medium or intention of an artist’s work. Examples may include but are not limited to: Art for Social Change, Arts Education, Arts Service, Circus Arts, Community Art, Craft, Curatorial Practice, Dance, Deaf/Deaf Arts, Digital Arts, Disability and/or Mad Arts, Film, Indigenous Arts, Interdisciplinary, Literary Arts, Media Arts, Multidisciplinary, Music, Opera, Orchestra, Performance, Public Art, Social Practice, Sound Art, Theatre, Transdisciplinary, Visual Arts..

Artistic Practice: The ways that an artist makes, understands, develops, creates and shares their work and engages with audiences or publics.

Arts Administrator: An individual responsible for administration, operations, infrastructure, finance, human resources or communications for an arts organization through employment as a staff member or by contract.

Arts Organization: An organization whose primary mandate is the creation, preservation, development, education or sharing of artistic work. Art organizations may be formally registered as non-profit societies or charities.

Assessment: The process of reviewing applications to grant investment programs, usually to determine if they will be funded. Calgary Arts Development primarily uses assessment committees made up of artistic peers and community members to determine successful applications. Details regarding the assessment of each program will be shared in the program guidelines and terms of reference for each grant program.

Community: For the purpose of our programs, we define community as those who view, participate, collaborate, engage or benefit from your work. Depending on your project, this may include audiences, participants, students, artists, collaborators or partners, institutions or venues, mentors or teachers, neighbourhoods or specific communities aligned around shared identities or goals.

Cultural Worker: We consider a cultural worker to be:

• An individual who makes their living in the arts and culture sector and contributes to the success of an artist or organization’s artistic work in a creative or technical capacity, but who is not necessarily leading the artistic vision of the work being created. This might include production team members such as a costume designer or cutter, sound designer/operator, set designer, lighting designer/operator, etc.
• We will consider applications from cultural workers when the application is focused on their own professional development and learning or for independent projects where they are the lead artist for the creative process. The project should be focused on their own artistic practice, vision and goals.

Diversity: Describes the wide range of identities of the people that live in a community, including gender, sexuality, age, class, religion, beliefs, nation, physical, neurological, cognitive and Mad identities, etc. Calgary Arts Development believes in supporting artistic endeavors that reflect our diverse community and in supporting the work of artists of diverse backgrounds.

Equity: An approach to diversity in which differences among all people in a community are accommodated individually, and historical exclusions and systemic barriers unique to diverse peoples are considered. Calgary Arts Development believes in creating equitable access for Calgarians who have had less opportunity for philanthropic and governmental support due to systemic barriers that exist in our community.

Expenses: In our grant programs, expenses refer to any financial or in-kind resources spent. For example, costs required to undertake and complete an artistic project, or ongoing costs associated with operating an arts organization.

Expenses will vary depending on the program or what you are applying for. Always be sure to read the program guidelines for a list of eligible expenses.

Final Report: Grantees must submit a final report for each grant they receive to outline how the grant funds were spent and demonstrate how they completed the work they received funding for. Final reports allow Calgary Arts Development to understand the successes, challenges and learnings resulting from the grant investment. This helps us tell the story of the arts in Calgary and develop programs which help us serve our communities better.

Most final reports are typically submitted online through our online grant platform; however, we do offer alternative methods of reporting depending on the program and applicant needs. Please reach out to discuss.

Financial Statements: The formal record of financial activities, including a balance sheet and a statement of operations. The balance sheet is a statement of assets and liabilities for a fiscal year, and the statement of operations is a statement of revenues and expenses for a fiscal year.

Governance: The way that an organization makes and implements decisions about how it operates, manages resources and plans for the future. Many organizations manage their governance through a non-profit board or through an advisory group with clear accountabilities.

Grant: In this context, a grant is a sum of money awarded by Calgary Arts Development to artists, artist collectives and arts organizations to help them pursue their creative vision, to operate, to complete projects and share their work with the public, locally, nationally and internationally.

Unlike a loan, grants do not need to be repaid but do require follow-up reporting or other commitments in exchange for the investment.

Honorarium: A gifted payment made to a person for their voluntary services for which fees are not traditionally nor legally required. An honorarium is a gift and therefore does not constitute a contractual agreement. If payment is agreed upon between parties, this constitutes a contractual agreement and would not be considered honoraria.

Some examples of when an honorarium may be an appropriate form of payment:

• As a “thank you”, gesture of goodwill or appreciation
• Provided to a non-professional guest speaker/lecturer
• Provided to an individual for conducting a seminar or workshop
• Payment to volunteer for helping with set-up or supporting a special event

Inclusion: A sense of belonging, which allows people to engage with and contribute within a community or environment. Calgary Arts Development believes in engaging a wide variety of voices and perspectives in shaping and furthering the work that we do.

Individual Artist: We consider a professional artist to be actively pursuing a career in the arts by:

• Investing in the development of their artistic skills through specialized training, either formal (post-secondary institutions, certificate programs) or informal (mentorship or apprenticeship with a qualified practitioner, cultural knowledge transfer, community or peer-based learning).
• Investing in the development of their own artistic voice, vision, and goals (i.e. understanding what they make, how, why, and for who).
• Sharing their original artistic work publicly through exhibitions, performances, publications or other presenting opportunities and being compensated for their work in a manner that is appropriate for their practice.
• Building relationships with their artistic communities.
• Artists do not need to be working professionally in the arts full time but are active in the development of their artistic practice. 
• Artists must be 18+ years of age.

In-Kind: In-kind refers to a donation of goods or services where no monetary transaction takes place. In-kind expenses or revenues may still be captured in grant budgets and financial documents to reflect and capture the relative value of the item or service provided.

Interim Report: Reports that are submitted at midpoints during a grant investment period. Interim reports allow Calgary Arts Development to learn about the successes, challenges and learnings resulting from the grant investment and measure the risks of ongoing investments. This helps us tell the story of the arts in Calgary and develop programs which help us serve our communities better.

Per diem: A daily rate for meals and incidentals while not at your primary residence. For example, if you are attending a residency out of town and need support to cover daily meals and small incidental costs such as tips/gratuities, laundry services, transportation or baggage handling fees, etc.

Project: A project is defined as a sequence of tasks or activities that must be completed to attain a certain outcome or objective. In our grant programs, we fund artistic projects, or discrete phases of an overall larger project. Projects, or project phases, should have a clear start and end date, with a specific set of activities, processes and goals.

Revenues: In our grant programs, revenues refer to any financial or in-kind resources gained. For example, other resources that are being used to fund an artistic project or support the ongoing operation of an arts organization.

Revenues will vary based on the grant program or project being applied for, but some examples might include earned revenue (such as ticket sales), sponsorships, donations, in-kind goods or services, other grants, personal contributions, etc.

Subsistence: Subsistence expenses are considered living expenses for your usual/primary residence and can include monthly ongoing expenses such as housing (rent, utilities), food, internet, dependent care (childcare), etc. Some grant programs may have restrictions on when subsistence may be included and/or the maximum amount that may be requested per month. Some programs may have a maximum cap on the amount of subsistence you can request per month (i.e. $3,000 per person/month max).

Applicants might request subsistence support for longer-term projects that are more difficult to calculate an artist fee for, or put a dollar value on, such as the time it takes to research and write a manuscript. Subsistence support may also be required for an artist to fully access a professional development opportunity, such as a four-week intensive residency in Calgary for example. If an opportunity takes place away from home, you could instead request travel, accommodation and per diem expenses.

When calculating subsistence expenses, it largely depends on the project’s length and the applicants’ personal living expenses (and whether those expenses are split with someone else like a significant other or roommate). Subsistence expenses will vary from artist to artist, so we ask that you determine how much you need based on your specific circumstances and the amount of time you will be actively spending on that aspect of the work. For example, if you were working full time on creating a new body of work over three months, you could request three full months of subsistence. This might be halved if you share those expenses with a roommate. In grant applications, make sure you clearly break down what your subsistence request includes and the duration of time you’re requesting support for.

 

HOW DO I KNOW IF I’M ELIGIBLE FOR A GRANT?

Calgary Arts Development primarily offers grant programs for arts organizations, individual artists and artist collectives in Calgary. Eligibility criteria will vary by program. Please review the full program guidelines and glossary to see if you are eligible.

If you are unsure about eligibility, please contact your program specialist before applying.

I’M NOT BASED IN CALGARY. CAN I APPLY?

While projects can take place anywhere, Calgary Arts Development’s granting programs exist to support applicants who are based in Calgary. This means you maintain a permanent residence within Calgary and live at that address for at least six months of the year.

There are exceptions for artists that are away, attending a formal program of study or temporarily touring, exhibiting or presenting their work nationally or internationally. Staff ask artists who are away six (6) months or more of the year to please contact program staff to discuss eligibility before applying.

Calgary Arts Development will consider applications from artists living outside of Calgary city limits within surrounding communities if they can demonstrate:

• That the majority of their work is accessible to Calgarians
• That they have a meaningful and ongoing relationship with the city of Calgary and its artistic communities (including Calgary artists, groups, organizations, venues, audiences, etc.)

Staff will determine eligibility on a case-by-case basis which may require following up with applicants for more information. Staff may also contact out of town applicants in future years to ensure that eligibility requirements are still being met.

I AM A NEWCOMER TO CANADA. CAN I APPLY?

You do not need to be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident in order to apply to our programs. We must issue a T4A form for income tax purposes for all grants to individuals, so you must be able to report income to the CRA.

If you do not have a Canadian Social Insurance Number (SIN) you can apply for an Individual Tax Number (ITN). Please contact the CRA for more information about the ITN process.

For more information about artist grants and taxes, please see below.

DOES CALGARY ARTS DEVELOPMENT HAVE A STANDARD DEFINITION FOR ‘EMERGING ARTIST,’ ‘MID CAREER ARTIST’ OR ‘ESTABLISHED ARTIST’?

No! These definitions can be completely different based on artistic discipline, type of practice and individual experiences. Our programs are open to artists at any stage of their artistic career, so long as they meet our current definition of ‘individual artist’ (see glossary above).

If you would like to discuss the best way to share your experience and how you work as an artist, please contact your program specialist.

WHAT TYPE OF ARTISTIC DISCIPLINES DOES CALGARY ARTS DEVELOPMENT FUND?

We accept applications from professional individual artists, artist collectives and arts organizations working in all artistic disciplines and their various cultural forms, including but not limited to:

• Art for Social Change , Arts Education, Arts Service, Circus Arts, Community Art, Craft, Curatorial Practice, Dance, Deaf/Deaf Arts, Digital Arts, Disability and/or Mad Arts, Film, Indigenous Arts, Interdisciplinary, Literary Arts, Media Arts, Multidisciplinary, Music, Opera, Orchestra, Performance, Public Art, Social Practice, Sound Art, Theatre, Transdisciplinary, Visual Arts.

If you would like to discuss your artistic discipline and where it fits, please contact your program specialist.

HOW MANY GRANTS CAN I RECEIVE PER CALENDAR YEAR? CAN I APPLY MULTIPLE TIMES?

Application eligibility varies by program. Please review the program guidelines in full before beginning your application.

General rules are as follows:

• You may not apply to a grant program if you have any final reports past their due date for prior grants. (find more information below)
• Applicants may not have more than two open grants with Calgary Arts Development. An open grant refers to any grant that you have not submitted a final report for. This does not include open projects in Calgary Arts Development’s Public Art programs or Calgary Arts Development’s Operating Grant programs. For more information, please review the Open Grant Policy.
• Applicants may submit only one application per program deadline.
• We will not accept more than one application from the same account in the online grant platform. This means that individual artists must apply using their individual account, artist collectives must apply using their collective account and organizations must apply using their organizational account.
• A project may only be submitted by one applicant per program deadline. This means that multiple members of a group cannot submit for the same project to the same program deadline.
• Calgary Arts Development cannot fund the same phase of a project more than once (regardless of calendar year) so please ensure you are planning larger projects ahead of time and clearly outlining the phase of work you are applying for in each grant program.
• Applicants who are not successful in their application may reapply for the same project to other Calgary Arts Development grant programs, if the project still meets eligibility requirements.

CAN I APPLY FOR A GRANT IF I HAVE A FINAL REPORT TO COMPLETE?

In order to apply for and receive a grant from Calgary Arts Development, you must be in good standing. This means that you are not in breach of any Investment Agreement you currently hold with Calgary Arts Development, and you have successfully submitted any reporting required for previous grant investments. If you have overdue interim or final reports, you may not apply for any grant program or receive grant payments until you complete your reporting.

If you have an interim or final report assigned to you, or reporting required for a previous grant:

• If your report due date is BEFORE the next grant program deadline, the report must be submitted before you submit your application.
  • For example, the next grant program you plan to apply to has a deadline of June 30. You have a final report due for another grant on June 1. In order to apply for the upcoming deadline, the final report must be submitted prior to the application. If you do not submit the final report by the due date, you are not considered to be in good standing, and you may not apply.
• If your report due date is AFTER the next grant program deadline, you may apply.
  • For example, the next grant program you plan to apply to has a deadline of June 30. You have a final report due for another grant program on August 1. You are considered to be in good standing, and you may apply.

Please note that the Deadline Extension Policy applies to reporting deadlines and application deadlines. If you are not able to meet your reporting deadline, please contact grants@calgaryartsdevelopment.com to discuss your circumstances and request an extension.

If you have received an extension to your report deadline, you will generally be considered to be in good standing. However, at their discretion, program specialists may request that you complete any outstanding activities related to your previous grants and submit your final reports before submitting any additional applications for funding.

 

DO I NEED TO PAY TAXES ON GRANTS I RECEIVE FROM CALGARY ARTS DEVELOPMENT?

If you are an individual (or receiving a grant on behalf of a collective of artists) and you receive a grant from Calgary Arts Development, we must issue a T4A tax form for the full grant amount(s) that you received within that calendar year.

According to the Canada Revenue Agency’s guidelines, artist grants are entered in Line 105 of the T4A tax slip.

When filing your taxes, you may deduct all reasonable project expenses incurred in the year (to fulfill the conditions of receiving your art production grant) from the total grant amount. When determining reasonable project expenses, please refer to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) guidelines. Some expenses may not be considered deductible by the CRA, such as personal living expenses while at your usual place of residence or expenses for which can be reimbursed.

In general, you will enter your net income from your grant on Line 13010 of your tax return. Please note that this may vary depending on whether you are self-employed or not. Please refer to the links below for more information.

Calgary Arts Development does not offer tax advice. We recommend that you consult a tax professional or accountant when planning your grant applications and preparing your taxes each year. Calgary Arts Development is not responsible for any taxes owed on grants made.

WHAT IF MY PROJECT OCCURS OVER MULTIPLE YEARS?

According to the Canada Revenue Agency guidelines, you may only deduct expenses which have been incurred in the calendar or tax year that you received your grant payment in. The T4A tax slip must be issued for the entire grant payment for that calendar year.

If your project occurs over multiple calendar years and you have grant-related expenses in multiple years, you will only be able to deduct the expenses you have incurred so far. The remaining grant amount will be considered income. You may file an adjustment in the following tax year to claim the remaining expenses using form T1-ADJ.

When you are preparing your grant application and are planning a project which will occur over multiple years, or will not begin until the following tax year, it is important to plan your timeline, budget and expenses to account for any potential tax implications.

Calgary Arts Development has developed a formal Instalment Policy for individual and collective artist grants to help ease some of the potential financial burden of multi-year projects. Please note that not all grant programs and payments are eligible under this policy. Please review the policy in full for more information.

CAN I INCLUDE MONEY FOR TAXES OWED IN MY BUDGET?

Income tax payments are not an eligible expense. If you are earning income from a Calgary Arts Development grant program, whether as a self-employed artist or not, it is your responsibility to claim that income to the Canada Revenue Agency, and pay any taxes owed. Your grant request also cannot include funds to cover taxes owed on grant income when your project expenses will be incurred over multiple years.

HOW DO I PROVE EXPENSES?

It is your responsibility to maintain proper financial records and documentation of all expenses related to your project to claim them against your grant amount when you do your taxes.

Keep all receipts, invoices, proof of payments, and correspondence for any grant-related expenses. If you are paying other artists, ensure you have written documentation of the agreed upon amounts, and evidence that the payment was made.

Grantees are responsible for providing Calgary Arts Development information about the usage of grant funds and copies of any relevant financial documents related to grant funds upon request.

TAX LINKS

Line 13010 – Scholarships, fellowships, bursaries, and artist project grants
Artists’ Project Grants
Income Tax Folio S4-F14-C1, Artists and Writers
(Example 7 outlines the process of calculating your income from the project grant)
How to file a tax adjustment using form T1-ADJ

 

HOW SHOULD I DECIDE HOW MUCH MONEY TO ASK FOR?

It is up to you to make the best case for funding in your application, so do your research and be realistic in your request. What will it actually cost to do what you are proposing to do? What do you need in order to achieve your vision? Start by calculating your expenses, rather than just subtracting from the maximum request amount. If you need assistance, reach out to your program specialist.

It is not necessarily helpful to ask for more than what you need and hope to get less. If your project can be scaled, make sure to explicitly state where you could cut expenses or provide an alternate budget. Assessors won’t be able to guess!

Assessors also cannot recommend an amount higher than what you requested, so we also don’t suggest asking for less than what you need, as that might not show the greatest potential for impact or the most feasible planning. In most cases, we encourage the assessment committees to recommend full funding requests, unless they see a major concern or an ineligible expense.

CAN I PAY MYSELF WITH A GRANT?

Always check the program guidelines for the grant program you are applying for to see what kinds of expenses are eligible. That said, for most grants either artist fees and/or subsistence expenses may be eligible, along with other forms of payment such as professional fees, technical fees, honorariums, etc.

The primary way that artists pay themselves through a grant is by requesting an artist fee (a fee for artistic work/services) or by requesting subsistence support (funds to cover living expenses for your primary residence which may include housing, food, internet, dependent care). Depending on the project or activity being applied for, one may be more appropriate to request than the other.

Full definitions for ‘artist fees’ and ‘subsistence’ are shared in the Glossary section above.

It is important to remember that both artist fees and subsistence expenses are usually considered taxable income by the Canada Revenue Agency. Please consult the CRA guidelines for artist grants when you are planning your budget.

We cannot support lost wages, meaning we cannot replace lost income from taking time off your other jobs to undertake a project, so please do not calculate or frame a subsistence request or artist fee as lost wages.

HOW DO I GET HELP ON MY APPLICATION?

We understand that our programs and processes create barriers to access for many artists and organizations who want to apply. Help is available for applicants even if they choose not to apply for the program.

If you experience accessibility, cultural or language barriers, Calgary Arts Development staff members can help you with:

• Checking if you are eligible to apply
• Finding the right grant program for your project
• Creating and submitting grant applications
• Providing project updates 
• Submitting a final report

You can find more information on accessing help for your application here.

Staff Support for Applicants

One of the options for application support is working one-on-one with a staff member to develop accommodations through conversation and check-ins. Our team can assist you over the phone, in-person or online. Please review program guidelines in full prior to reaching out to program staff.

Applicants may request feedback on their drafted applications before applying. Program specialists can only guarantee feedback up to 7-10 business days before a grant application deadline (depending on the program) but will do their best to respond to any last-minute questions or requests. Please keep in mind that requesting staff feedback is optional and does not guarantee success within a program; however, it may help ensure your application is generally clear, eligible and complete.

Outside Support for Applicants

You may wish to seek out personal one-to-one assistance from someone outside of Calgary Arts Development to help you with the application process. If this is something you need, Calgary Arts Development may be able to directly pay that external support person for the hours they spend helping you with your application. It is up to the applicant to determine the amount of time, kinds of support, and hourly rate with whoever they choose to work with. If you are new to grant writing, it may be helpful to seek support from someone who has applied for an art grant before or is familiar with writing grants or essays.

To learn more about the kinds of support we offer and the services you can request, please review the full Applicant Support & Accessibility Policy.

If you have questions about this policy, please contact grants@calgaryartsdevelopment.com.

WHAT IF I DON’T THINK I CAN SUBMIT MY APPLICATION BY THE DEADLINE?

We have a Deadline Extension Policy for our programs outlining the circumstances in which we will offer a deadline extension. Deadline extension requests must be received by Calgary Arts Development staff (via phone, voicemail or email) before 9 am MT on the day of the deadline. If approved, we will respond in writing and outline your new deadline and terms.

We suggest opening a draft of your application in the online grant platform and reaching out to your program specialist as early as possible to ensure that you are prepared. However, we understand that sometimes things come up. We may consider granting an extension on the day of the deadline if you are able to provide a compelling explanation of why you are not able to submit your application on time.

CAN I FAX, MAIL OR EMAIL MY APPLICATION?

We only accept applications through the online grant platform. If you experience any challenges or barriers with creating an account or applying online, please reach out for support. You can contact grants@calgaryartsdevelopment.com or 403.476.2031 to ask questions or discuss available accommodation or alternative ways of applying, as outlined in our Applicant Support & Accessibility Policy.

Please note that you must apply to grant programs using the correct account. For example, if you are applying for an individual artist grant, please login and apply using your individual artist account. If you are applying as an artist collective, please submit through your collective’s shared account. If you are applying on behalf of an arts organization to one of our organizational grant programs, please use your organization’s account.

I JUST APPLIED FOR A GRANT. WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

Your program specialist will review all grant applications for basic eligibility and completeness. They may contact you if there is something missing, or if they need clarity. Please ensure that all your contact information is correct in your online profile so they can reach you if needed!

Once your application is reviewed, it will be moved to assessment. Please review the program guidelines for specifics about the assessment process and expected timeline for notifications.

Applicants will be notified of their results by email. Notifications will be sent to the email address listed in your profile. Please ensure that grants@calgaryartsdevelopment.com and donotreply@smartsimplemailer.ca have both been added to your contact list and check your spam folder as sometimes these emails get filtered.

CAN I CALL TO RECEIVE THE RESULTS OF MY APPLICATION?

No, Calgary Arts Development staff cannot inform you of program results by phone. Formal notifications are sent by email. To find out specifically when your results are expected, please review the program guidelines. Please ensure that your email address is correct in your application.

CAN I GET FEEDBACK ON MY APPLICATION AFTER THE PROGRAM HAS BEEN ASSESSED?

We offer post-assessment feedback for some programs, but it may depend on the volume of applications received that year and staff capacity at the time. Please check the program guidelines and check in with the program specialist to see if it is possible to receive feedback.

MY APPLICATION WAS NOT SUCCESSFUL. CAN I APPEAL THIS DECISION?

Calgary Arts Development’s investment programs are competitive. Assessment committees work to make funding recommendations fairly and thoughtfully through the stated program criteria, scoring mechanisms and facilitated assessment meetings.

In many cases, applications that were not successful would have been funded if there had been enough money in the pool. For this reason, one-time funding programs such as Project Grants do not have an appeals policy. Only programs that distribute dollars through multi-year agreements such as the Operating Grant, which may affect an organization’s ongoing operations, have an Appeals Policy through the Fair Notice Policy.

 

We accept applications through an online grant platform. If you don’t already have an account with us, you will need to create an account and set up your user profile before you can apply. Please follow the instructions below for creating an account. If you are not sure whether you have an account, or you need assistance, please contact grants@calgaryartsdevelopment.com.

CREATING AN ACCOUNT

Visit the Calgary Art Development website and click on ‘Apply for Grants, Artist Calls & Funding’ located in the menu bar on the left side of the home page. This will take you to our Grant Investment Programs page. From there, click on ‘How to Apply/Login’. This will take you to a page with instructions on where to either Login or Create an Account.

After selecting Create an Account, you will be asked to select from one of the following options, depending on the type of profile you require:

• Not-for-Profit Arts Organization with a CRA Business Number
• Not-for-Profit Arts Organization without a CRA Business Number
• Contact of an Existing Registered Arts Organization
• Individual Artist
• Artist Collective

If you are new to your organization or taking over from a previous account holder, select the ‘Contact of an Existing Registered Arts Organization’ option. You can search for the organization and register a profile to it. The primary contact for the organization will need to approve your account. If you are replacing the primary contact, or are the only contact for the organization, please contact us to ensure that we can approve and validate your profile.

For help, contact us at grants@calgaryartsdevelopment.com.

HOW DO I START AN APPLICATION?

Log in to Calgary Arts Development’s online grant platform.

Click the ‘Open Opportunities’ icon on the top menu and then click on the program you are applying for. Programs will only appear under Open Opportunities once the program has opened, and application forms are available.

Remember to save your work as you go. When you return to continue working on your application, you will see your new draft application on your home page under ‘Drafts’.

Ensure your profile is up to date before you submit any applications.

HOW DO I ACCESS OLD GRANT APPLICATIONS?

As of February 2022, we moved to a new online grant platform. We did not migrate the content of historical grant applications to the new system. If you would like to retrieve any of your previous applications (prior to 2022), please reach out to grants@calgaryartsdevelopment.com and we will check if they are available.

CAN I SAVE A GRANT APPLICATION AND WORK ON IT LATER?

Yes. There is a ‘Save Draft’ button at the bottom of each application page. Please save your work frequently, as there is no auto-save feature. Many people prefer to work in a word processor outside of the grant platform and then copy the contents of their application into the application form before submitting. Give yourself adequate time to do this before the deadline. This is especially important as some parts of our applications may require applicants to select from drop-down options, fill out templates directly within the application form itself (such as the budget) or upload external documents (such as support material).

HOW WILL I KNOW YOU RECEIVED MY APPLICATION?

Once you click the submit button, the grant platform will state that your application has been submitted. The dashboard on the home screen should then list your application as submitted, not as a draft. You will also receive an automated email from the online grant platform confirming your submission. That said, if you are unsure, please contact grants@calgaryartsdevelopment.com to confirm.

Please note that your program specialist may send revision requests for your application. You will be notified of this by email and given a deadline to re-submit. Your returned application will be located under ‘My Applications’ in the ‘Revisions’ tab, click on ‘Open,’ follow the instructions on the top of your application to make the revisions. Once you have made the changes, you must click the ‘submit’ button.

 

HOW CAN I VOLUNTEER TO SIT ON AN ASSESSMENT COMMITTEE?

Calgary Arts Development takes public nominations for its assessment committees throughout the year. If you are interested in nominating yourself or someone else, please complete the assessor nomination form.

HOW CAN I FIND OUT WHO HAS PARTICIPATED ON AN ASSESSMENT COMMITTEE IN THE PAST?

We publish a list of individuals who served on a peer assessment committee each year as part of our Accountability Report.

WHY ARE YOUR PROGRAMS PEER ASSESSED?

Peer assessment committees ensure that Calgary Arts Development is fairly and responsibly distributing public dollars to artists and organizations on behalf of the citizens of Calgary. Our peer assessment committees bring their experience, knowledge, skill sets and perspectives through assessment meetings to identify the best opportunities for the arts sector. They help our staff deepen their understanding and view of the sector.

For more information about assessment processes and committee makeup, please review the Terms of Reference for the specific program you are applying to.

 

MY APPLICATION WAS SUCCESSFUL! HOW WILL I RECEIVE FUNDING?

If your application is awarded funding, you will receive an automatic notification with instructions to complete an ‘action item’ assigned to you in the online granting platform. Once you login and complete the action item (usually this will involve filling out a ‘detailed information collection form’ and submitting it for staff review and approval), you will then be sent an investment agreement outlining the terms of your grant. This investment agreement must be reviewed, signed, and returned to us within 30 days of receiving it.

Your grant will then be released into your account via electronic funds transfer. Please keep in mind that it may take up to a few weeks for funds to be released into your account after receipt of your signed agreement.

CAN I RECEIVE MY FUNDING IN INSTALMENTS?

Only individual artists and individuals accepting grants on behalf of an unregistered artist collective may be eligible for the Instalment Policy, which is not applicable to all programs. Organizations are not eligible for instalments. Please review the full policy for details. Please review the full policy for details.

AFTER I RECEIVE FUNDING, IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE I HAVE TO DO?

All grant programs have a final reporting process, which we typically accept through the online grant platform. Please review the program guidelines and investment agreement for your reporting requirements and reach out if you are seeking alternative ways to report on your grant due to accessibility barriers.

Organizations, collectives and individuals that receive funding must acknowledge Calgary Arts Development’s grant contribution by correct use of Calgary Arts Development’s name and logo wherever the Recipient recognizes sponsors and supporters (such as marketing materials). These logos are available for download on Calgary Arts Development’s website: https://calgaryartsdevelopment.com/about/media/logos/.

We also ask grant recipients to submit any public programming resulting from a grant investment to Calgary Arts Development’s online event listing (yycwhatson.ca). Calgary Arts Development can provide grantees with speaking notes, images, or logos for yycwhatson.ca on request by emailing events@calgaryartsdevelopment.com.

WHAT IF I AM NOT ABLE TO COMPLETE MY PROJECT OR GRANT ACTIVITIES?

We understand that sometimes things shift in your timeline or circumstances, and your project or activities may not be able to be completed as outlined in your application.

If you are still going to be able to complete all or most of your project as proposed, but with some shifts or changes, or with an extended timeline, please reach out to discuss these with your program specialist. We are generally able to approve most changes and extend your reporting deadline to reflect the new timeline, within reason.

If the shifts or changes to your project are so significant that it no longer reflects what was written in your grant application, you may be asked to return a portion or all your grant investment.

If you are no longer able to complete your project in any form, you will be asked to return your grant investment.

Please contact your program specialist as soon as possible to discuss potential changes. We endeavour to be as flexible and understanding as possible and can only be of assistance if you reach out in advance. If you do not notify us of any changes to your circumstances and do not complete your project or activities and your required reporting accurately and honestly, you will be considered not in good standing, and will be unable to apply for future programs until the situation is resolved, which may include returning grant funds or resubmitting reporting.