Guidelines: Indigenous Cultural Connections Program 2026

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, our staff members can help you with:

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

Staff Support for Applicants

One of the options for application support is working one-on-one with a staff member to identify your needs and how we can meet them. Our team can assist you over the phone, in-person or online.

Outside Support for Applicants

You also have the option to seek personal one-to-one help from someone outside of Calgary Arts Development to help you with the application process. If this is something you need, we 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 and kinds of support needed, and to set an 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 services you can request, please review the Applicant Support & Accessibility Policy.

Staff are able to provide feedback on your drafted application if you reach out before April 13, 2026. After this date, staff cannot guarantee that your application can be reviewed based on the volume of 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.

Please review these guidelines in full prior to reaching out to program staff. If you have any questions or need help applying, please contact Community Investment Program Specialist Richelle Bear Hat at richelle.bearhat@calgaryartsdevelopment.com or 403.264.5330 ext. 125.

The Indigenous Cultural Connections Program provides one-time funding to First Nations, Métis and Inuit (FNMI) artists and artist collectives. While Calgary Arts Development’s grant programs exist to support Calgary-based artists, our Indigenous programs also accept applications from FNMI artists and collectives living and working in the Treaty 7 region.

The goal of the program is to support activities and expenses related to the preservation, caretaking and revitalization of Indigenous cultural art making and traditions.

Eligible proposals may include:

• Creation or crafting of regalia and cultural artwork (regalia, beading, tanning, carving, weaving, quillwork, etc.)
• Learning cultural practices that support and further develop artistic practices (mentorship, ceremonies, training, knowledge sharing, Indigenous cultural drumming, singing and dancing, etc.)

Applicants may apply for up to $7,500.

Total funding available for this program is $100,000.

Projects can begin but cannot be fully completed before the application deadline of April 22, 2026. Projects funded through this program must be completed by December 31, 2027.

Throughout April, we are hosting three virtual ‘open office spaces’ online over Zoom for the Indigenous Cultural Connections Program. These sessions are open to eligible artists interested in applying to this program.

Artists are welcome to log in and join at any point during these Zoom sessions to ask our program specialists questions about the program, and to listen to other artists’ questions. Folks can stay for as long as or as short as they like. There is no formal presentation — just 60 mins of Q+A!

For Zoom security reasons, we ask folks to register before attending. The Zoom link will be provided upon registration. Registering for a session confirms that you agree to our Group Agreements for this event. Be sure to read the document before signing up.

When:

• April 10, 2026, from 12 – 1 pm. Register here.
• April 15 2026, from 5 – 6 pm. Register here.
• April 21, 2026, from 12 – 1 pm. Register here.

These drop-in Q+A sessions will not be recorded.

*ASL interpretation is not currently booked for these drop-in sessions. If you are an applicant with specific access needs or require translation or interpretation services, please let us know and we will arrange to make sure you have all the support and information you need to fairly access the application process. This could include booking a one-on-one session with us instead.

We acknowledge that the land we gather on is the ancestral territory of the Siksikaitsitapi — the Blackfoot people — comprising the Siksika, Kainai and Piikani Nations, as well as Treaty 7 signatories, the Tsuut’ina Nation, and the Îyârhe Nakoda Bearspaw, Chiniki and Goodstoney First Nations. Today this land is home to the Otipemisiwak Métis Government Districts 5 and 6 as well as many First Nations and Inuit from across Turtle Island.

Calgary Arts Development is committed to the process of eliminating institutional racism, ableism and barriers in our programs, policies and practices by centring the creativity and leadership of those communities most impacted by structural inequities. Read our full Commitment to Equity statement on our website.

This program is open to First Nations, Métis and Inuit (FNMI) artists and artist collectives working in any artistic discipline.

While Calgary Arts Development’s grant programs exist to support Calgary-based artists, our Indigenous programs also accept applications from FNMI artists living and working in the Treaty 7 region.

Please review the definition for each category below before applying:

1. Individual Artists:
   • 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.
2. Artist Collectives:
   • 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 and activities. 
     • The majority of collective members must be FNMI artists living and working in the Treaty 7 region (i.e. 50 per cent or more).
     • 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 professional individual artist 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.
     • 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.  

Please note that this program cannot accept applications from arts administrators, agents or managers, production companies, registered for-profit corporations or businesses, or registered not-for-profit organizations.

Artistic Disciplines

We welcome applications from those working in all artistic disciplines and their various cultural forms. This includes, but is not limited to: Art for Social Change, Arts Education, Arts Service, Circus Arts, Community Art, Craft, Curatorial Practice, Dance, D/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, and Visual Arts.

Please review the following eligibility requirements before applying and reach out if you have any questions or need clarification:

• 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 Public Art programs. For more information, please review the Open Grant Policy.
• You may not apply to this program if you have any final reports past their due date for prior grants.
• Applicants may submit only one application per program deadline.
• Individual artists may be involved in more than one application, either as a participant in another artist’s application, or as a member of an artist collective.
• 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.
• We cannot fund the same phase of a project more than once, regardless of calendar year. Please plan larger projects in advance and clearly identify which phase of the project you are applying for. You may apply for future Calgary Arts Development grants to support the next distinct phase of the work.
• If you receive funding from another source (such as Alberta Foundation for the Arts or Canada Council for the Arts) that fully covers your originally proposed project expenses, you cannot also accept Calgary Arts Development funding for those same project expenses. You also cannot modify the original budget in your Calgary Arts Development grant application by increasing estimated costs or adding additional expenses to expand the scope or scale of your project.

Within this application, applicants will have an opportunity to introduce themselves and share their connections to their Indigenous cultural heritage, family groups, communities, settlements, land claims and self-governing bands.

This introduction is important to us and is part of our self-identification process for determining eligibility for this grant program, which is open to First Nations, Métis and Inuit (FNMI) individual artists and collectives living and working in the Treaty 7 region. This is a self-identification process is based in trust with the goal of learning who you are and understanding your Indigenous identity.

Our definitions for First Nations, Métis and Inuit are adapted from Indigenous Screen Office Policies for Eligibility in Relation to Indigenous Identity.

First Nations are status and non-status individuals who are citizens, recognized members or direct blood relatives of a self-governing band, a reserve-based community or a larger tribal group. 

Métis are individuals who have a direct line of Métis ancestry to a known Métis settlement, community or family group. This includes those who have citizenship to a self-governing Métis Nation and those who may not.

Inuit are recognized as the First Peoples of the Arctic regions of Canada, including Nunavut, Nunavik, Nunatsiavut and parts of the Northwest Territories.  

Applications to Indigenous programs will require artists to identify themselves with one or more of the above definitions and provide a written introduction stating their Indigenous cultural heritage.

For individual artists, we are looking for a clear written description of your connection to your Indigenous cultural heritage, shared in your own words. 

This may include:

• Details about your status relationship to self-governing bands, settlements and/or land claims.
• Details about your non-status connections to blood relatives, family groups and communities.

For artist collectives, we are looking for a clear written description of how each Indigenous member identifies and their connection to their Indigenous cultural heritage.

This may include:

• Information about the collective structure that outlines roles, decision making processes and shared accountability.
• How relationships to Indigenous communities are supported through your work or programming.  
• At least 50 per cent of the collective’s members must be FNMI according to the definitions above

Program specialists will have access to the information you provide. This process is about relationship building, and if program specialists have questions, they will reach out for a conversation. Your response can include as much as you are comfortable with sharing. We acknowledge that this can be a sensitive and triggering topic and there is no expectation for you to share private information.    

Our processes for determining eligibility in relationship to identity for our Indigenous grant programs are changing as we learn. If you have questions or would like to request support, please contact Richelle Bear Hat, Program Specialist, at richelle.bearhat@calgaryartsdevelopment.com or 403.264.5330 ext. 125. 

This program can fund activities and expenses related to the preservation and caretaking of Indigenous culture and traditions. This can include mentorships, training, creation or teaching regalia-making, cultural artwork, participation in ceremonies, developing storytelling skills, songs and dance.

If your project is not related to the preservation of traditional Indigenous culture or forms, please refer to the Artist Development Microgrant, the Original Peoples Investment Program or the Project Grant Program for Individuals and Collectives.

Applicants may apply to this program for one project, or one distinct phase of a project. Projects should have a clear start and end date, with a specific set of activities, processes and goals.

Please ensure that you are clear about what phase of the work you are applying for, especially for larger or longer-term projects that may have multiple stages or phases. If you have questions about your project phases, please contact a program specialist.

Projects can begin but cannot be fully completed before the application deadline of April 22, 2026. Projects funded through this program must be completed by December 31, 2027.

Applicants may apply for up to $7,500.

Applicants can only apply to one program stream, not both. Please select the stream that best fits the core goal and purpose of your activities. Below are descriptions for each of the two program streams, along with a list of eligible activities that fall within each:

Stream 1: Regalia and Cultural Artwork Creation

This stream is for activities related to the creation or crafting of regalia and cultural artworks. Activities may take place online or in person — locally, nationally or internationally.

Eligible activities in this stream may include:

• Mentorships/training: This refers to learning how to create specific techniques or types of regalia, cultural objects, or cultural artworks. This includes finding training for yourself or offering training for others through one-on-one mentorships or workshops. This can also include learning how to bead, tan hide, carve, weave or work with quills, etc.
• Creation: This refers to the making of regalia, cultural objects or cultural artworks for yourself, family or community members. This can include materials and equipment related to beading, tanning, carving, weaving, quillwork, etc.
• Research: This refers to accessing knowledge and time to further your understanding and/or connection to the making of regalia, cultural objects or cultural artworks.

Stream 2: Cultural Practices Development

This stream is for activities related to the development of your artistic practice through mentorship and participation in ceremonies, training and knowledge sharing. Activities may take place online or in person — locally, nationally or internationally.

Eligible activities in this stream may include:

• Mentorships/training: This refers to learning specific ceremonies or Indigenous cultural drumming, singing and dancing training that is important to your artistic journey. This includes finding training for yourself or offering training for others through one-on-one mentorships.
• Travel: This refers to accessing specific training or mentorship opportunities in your home communities from family, friends or community members. This can include airfare, gas milage, accommodations and honorariums for mentors.
• Research: This refers to accessing knowledge and time to further your understanding and/or connection to ceremonies, traditions, Indigenous cultural drumming, singing and dancing.

If you have questions about other potential project activities, please contact our program specialist(s) to discuss before applying.

Ineligible Activities:

Funds from this program are not intended to support the following:

• Activities that do not comply with or respect cultural protocols. 
• Activities that use or present Indigenous cultural material, traditional knowledge or stories without express permission from the community and/or clear connection to the originating community. This may include an applicant’s own Indigenous community or another that may not be their own but closely tied to the project.
• Activities or individuals that willfully or in bad faith promote intolerance, hatred or hate speech to incite violence or harm.
• Activities that are illegal or contravene provincial or federal law, or municipal bylaws.
• Contests and competitions.
• Fundraising activities (e.g., undertaken to raise funds on behalf of a political party or charity). 
• Activities related to campaigning for a specific political candidate or party in an election. 

Eligible expenses

Please ensure that your project is eligible for this program, then refer to the list below for guidance on eligible expenses. Any expense requested must be directly related to the completion and success of your proposed project.

• Accessibility expenses (e.g., interpretation, translation, support workers, aid devices or tools such as screen readers)
  • You may only request the purchase of accessibility equipment and software and/or request a support worker if it is directly related to carrying out the activity. You must specify the accessibility equipment you wish to purchase, the support worker’s role, why it’s needed, and what it costs.
• Artist fees
• Professional fees (e.g., fees paid to individuals offering professional services such as web design, publicity or marketing, financial, accounting or legal services)
• Technical fees (e.g., web service fees, licensing fees, subscription fees — for the duration of your proposed activity)
• Elder and Knowledge Keeper fees (fees paid to an Elder or Knowledge Keeper who provided their time and expertise)
• Honorariums (a gifted payment made to a person who provided their services in a voluntary capacity)
• Materials & Supplies
• Course fees (for courses that do not count toward the pursuit of a credit, diploma or degree-granting program)
• Documentation (e.g., photography, videography, audio)
• Marketing, promotion, publicity or outreach (e.g. ad purchases, printing promotional materials, hiring a marketing company)
• Travel expenses (e.g., airfare, gas mileage or ride services)
• Per diem (a daily rate for meals and incidentals while not at your primary residence)
• Accommodation (e.g. hotels or short-term rentals while not at your primary residence)
• Subsistence expenses (living expenses for your primary residence which may include housing, food, internet, dependent care – up to $3,000 per month)
  • You may only request subsistence if it is necessary to complete your activity. The amount requested should directly correspond to the duration of your proposed activity and the time commitment required to undertake it.
• Rental of space (e.g. rehearsal, venue or studio space for the duration of the project)
• Rental of equipment
• Purchase of equipment (including hardware and permanent software)
  • You may only request the purchase of equipment if it is necessary to complete your activity. You must specify the equipment you wish to purchase, why it’s needed, and what it costs.

Please note that eligible expenses for this program (such as artist fees or personal living expenses like subsistence) may not be considered deductible project expenses by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA). Please consult CRA guidelines as needed when creating your budget.

Ineligible Expenses

Funds from this program are not intended to support any of the following:

• Lost wages or salaries.
• Debt or loan repayment.
• Tuition or other costs related to the pursuit of post-secondary degree or diploma educational programs, or artistic work related to those educational programs.
• Purchase of, or financial contribution towards land or buildings.
• Purchase of any equipment not directly related to an eligible activity.
• Any other expenses not directly related to the project.
• Expenses fully supported by another funding source.

Please note that the eligible and ineligible expenses listed are given as examples and are not exclusive. If you are unsure about expenses, please reach out to discuss before applying.

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.

Individual artists must apply using their individual account, and artist collectives must apply using their collective account. These must be distinct accounts that use a unique email address when registering.

The application form for this program will become available in the online grant platform at 9 am on March 16, 2026. You will find it under ‘Open Opportunities’ when you login.

Please contact grants@calgaryartsdevelopment.com for help with any questions or technical issues.

Complete Your Profile

In the online grant platform, you will need to ensure your profile is complete and up to date before you submit your grant application.

Some of your profile information will be automatically transferred to your grant application, such as your artistic resume or curriculum vitae (CV) and artistic practice statement.

Complete Your Application

Once you have created or updated your profile, log in to the online grant platform and select ‘Open Opportunities’. There you will see any grant programs that are currently open. Once available, select this program and begin a draft application. As you work on your application, remember to save your progress regularly.  Once your application is complete, please ‘submit’ before the stated application deadline. You should receive an email confirming your submission. If not, please call or email us to confirm.

The application form will ask for the following information:

• Indigenous Self-identification
• Project Name
• Brief Description (25 words or less)
• Funding Request (up to $7,500)
• Project Start and End Date
• Primary Discipline
  • Select the artistic discipline that is most relevant to this application.
• Program Steam
  • Read the definitions and select the program stream that best fits the core goal and purpose of your application: (1) Regalia and Cultural Artwork Creation or (2) Cultural Practices Development.
• Project Description and Timeline (500 words max)
  • Question 1: Describe what you want to do with this grant, including what will happen or has happened, when and where activities will take place and who is involved.
  • Question 2: Describe your goals and why this activity or opportunity is important to you at this stage of your practice/career.
• Community Connections (500 words max)
  • Question: Describe any relationships with mentors, collaborators, or anyone who is supporting your project. Describe why you want to work with them and how you are going to support them in the project.
• Project Budget
  • Fill out the budget template with all relevant project expenses and revenues.
  • Use the notes section to describe each item in detail and show your calculations. Please be specific wherever possible and break down your expenses for clarity.
• Support Material (up to 10 uploads — pdf or audio/visual files)
  • Support Material is mandatory to include. Please upload additional material that will help assessors understand more about your artistic practice, project or planning. There are options to include PDFs, images, videos, audio files, links, etc.
  • Assessors will only be asked to review up to 10 minutes of support material for each application. Please only provide information that is directly relevant to your activities and budget.
  • Feel free to combine multiple PDFs into one upload area.

Below are examples of what you can include in either your budget support materials or other support materials to support and strengthen your application:

Program Considerations

The following program considerations are what your application will be scored and evaluated on:

1. Artistic Impact 
   • The applicant shows a clear understanding of their artistic practice. They have outlined their artistic goals and how this project will develop their skills and knowledge. They have described what success will mean to them in relation to their development and goals.
2. Community Connection 
   • The applicant shows a clear understanding of the community relationships connected to their project. They have outlined their community-related goals, and described what success will mean for them. The applicant has appropriately acknowledged any Indigenous specific teaching being received, sought the rights or has been gifted the rights to share information about traditional knowledge (such as creation stories, protocols or ceremonies). Applicants acknowledge relationships with Indigenous communities that may not be their own but are closely tied to the project.
   • 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 elders, audiences, participants, students, artists, collaborators or partners, institutions or venues, mentors or teachers, neighbourhoods or specific communities aligned around shared identities or goals.
3. Planning
   • The applicant has included enough information to clearly show what they want to do and how they will do it. This is shown by a clear, realistic and well-supported application (for example, the applicant has enough relevant experience and/or necessary support in place, a realistic timeline and budget, suitable partners/collaborators/mentors, etc.).

Scoring Process

Committee members will review applications and rate the level to which they agree or disagree with each of the program considerations listed in the section above, based on the information provided in the application. The four ratings are: Strongly Agree, Agree, Disagree or Strongly Disagree.

Each program consideration will be weighted equally. The score assigned to each rating will be consistent (for example, ‘Strongly Agree’ will always equal the same number of points).

Applications to the program will be reviewed by an independent assessment committee made up of First Nations, Métis, and Inuit artists and arts administrators. The membership of the committee will be chosen through public nominations and staff expertise.

Anyone can ask to participate on a Calgary Arts Development assessment committee by completing the assessor nomination form or by emailing grants@calgaryartsdevelopment.com. 

Assessment committees are chosen to represent the broad diversity of Calgary and its artistic communities, including artistic discipline, gender, sexuality, age, religion, beliefs, nation, physical and neurological identities and more.

• Committee Size: The volume of applications received will determine the number and size of committees required to assess the program.
• Committee Membership: Indigenous individual artists and arts workers with experience and knowledge from a variety of artistic disciplines and practices, who actively participate in, experience and advocate for the work of the arts community.

Assessment committees are responsible for reviewing and scoring the applications assigned to their committee online, and meeting to discuss applications together and make recommendations. Calgary Arts Development staff will review these recommendations and finalize the funding list. Partial funding may be allocated.

In the final 10 per cent of funding, if there are applications that are tied but not enough funds in the grant budget to support all tied applications, priority may be given based on the following considerations:

• Projects from artists who have not received a Calgary Arts Development grant before, or within the past two (2) years.

For more detailed information about the assessment process, please review the Assessor Terms of Reference.

Calgary Arts Development reserves the right to adjust assessment processes and the program timeline due to application volume. Applicants will be notified if significant changes occur.

Applicants will be automatically notified of their results via the online grant platform to the email address indicated in their profile. Please add the email address donotreply@smartsimplemailer.ca to your contact list to minimize delays in receiving notifications from us.

If you have not received an email notification by June 26, 2026, please check your junk/spam folder before reaching out to grants@calgaryartsdevelopment.com.

Successful applicants will receive an automated notification through the online grant platform with instructions on how to accept their grant and receive funding.

Successful applicants will be required to provide the following information via a ‘Detailed Information Collection Form’: legal name, current mailing address, and a direct deposit form with your banking information. We use electronic fund transfers to make grant payments. This ‘Detailed Information Collection Form’ will be made available in the online grant platform under “My Action Items” when you login.

Once that form has been submitted and approved by a staff member, successful applicants will be sent an investment agreement via DocuSign and must sign and return the agreement within 30 days to receive funding.

Calgary Arts Development will provide a T4A tax form to successful grantees for the full grant amount received during a calendar year. This includes the primary applicant receiving grant payment on behalf of an artist collective. Please note that you must have a valid Canadian Social Insurance Number or Individual Tax Number to receive this grant.

If you have any questions about tax requirements for artist grants, it is a good idea to discuss these with a tax professional or consult Canada Revenue Agency guidelines. There is additional tax information in our Investment Program FAQ.

Final Reporting

Successful grantees will be required to complete a brief final report to share an update on their completed activities, any learnings and how the grant benefited their practice, along with an updated budget with actuals.

Final reports are due within 60 days of the stated ‘project end date’ in your application. If you need to request an extension, please reach out to discuss this with program staff before your current reporting deadline.

Final reports are assigned in the online grant platform and can be found under “My Action Items” when you login.

Successful applicants may also be invited to participate in optional surveys, research and peer-to-peer learning.

Applicants who are not successful may re-apply to this program or to another Calgary Arts Development grant program, with the same project, or a different project, as long as the project still meets all eligibility requirements.

Program staff may provide feedback on unsuccessful applications, although this will depend on volume and staff capacity. We also welcome any feedback you may have on the application process at any time.

To find other opportunities at Calgary Arts Development, visit All Opportunities at a Glance. If you would like to know more about other opportunities in the arts ecosystem, including other arts funders, you are welcome to reach out to any of our program specialists.

Policies

Applicant Support & Accessibility Policy
Deadline Extension Policy
Disclosure of Grant Information Policy
Open Grant Policy

Other

Terms of Reference
Group Agreements
Frequently Asked Questions
Assessor Nomination Form