Indigenous Forestry Initiative – Natural Resources Canada (2022)

ByMaurice January 26, 2022September 4, 2022

Description:

The Indigenous Forestry Initiative (IFI) provides funding to support Indigenous-led economic development in Canada’s forestry sector. Benefits of the program include:

increased Indigenous participation in forestry-related opportunities, businesses, careers and governance.

increased engagement and economic development for Indigenous communities and peoples involved in the forest sector.

increased investment and collaboration between Indigenous peoples and other natural resource development stakeholders, including governments, industry and non-governmental organizations

Comments on Funding:

To be eligible for IFI funding, the applicant must have at least one partner who has agreed to contribute financially or in-kind to the project.

When It Ends:

Ongoing

Deadline:

Rolling deadline

Eligibility:

Applicants must be:

Indigenous communities and governments such as: band and tribal councils, governments of self-governing First Nations, local governments of Inuit communities, Métis organizations, economic development corporations, national and regional Indigenous organizations.
Indigenous (50% or greater ownership by Indigenous people) for-profit and not-for-profit corporations, businesses, joint ventures, partnerships, associations, co-operatives and institutions.
non-Indigenous not-for-profit entities working with one or more endorsing Indigenous partner organization(s) to facilitate Indigenous economic development.
provincial, territorial, municipal, and regional governments working with an Indigenous partner organization.
academic institutions and research associations working with an Indigenous partner organization.

Applications Steps:

Applicants must:

email the IFI team for the Applicant Guide;

contact a regional liaison officer to talk about their project ideas and help determine if their project fits our eligibility criteria, funding limitations and/or get tips for writing your application;

create their online profile and complete their application:
✔ register for GCKey and create a client profile (this is a one-time step);
✔ complete the online application form.

Next Steps:

The IFI will contact applicants after their submission is received. Next steps The IFI Secretariat will review applications for eligibility and completeness.

Eligible applications will be evaluated by an Expert Review Panel made up of subject-matter experts in the fields of Indigenous economic development, forestry and finance.

Evaluation will be based on the information provided in their application and the assessment criteria outlined in the applicant guide. If their application is unsuccessful, applicants will be notified and they can ask to discuss the evaluation results.

Other Things to Note:

The Indigenous Forestry Initiative (IFI) accepts applications throughout the year. Submissions are reviewed periodically, subject to the availability of funds.

Due to unexpected delays, notification of funding decisions for applications submitted before July 29, 2021, will be shared by February 28, 2022.

From the funding expansion in Budget 2019, the IFI has allocated approximately $6.8 million to projects, with approximately $6.2 million available for 2021-2023. The Program has $1 million per year available beyond 2023