2025 Spring Funding Timeline
Applications open: March 15th, 2025
Applications close: April 30th, 2025 at 11:59 p.m.
APPLY NOW
Green/Youth Neighbourhood Small Grants
The Spring 2025 Neighbourhood Small Grant (NSG) cycle in the Clayoquot Sound region theme is Green NSG (environment and sustainability-focused projects) and Youth NSG. The goals of the Green/Youth NSGs are to support strong, vibrant, and united cultures by promoting sustainability, celebrating diversity, and building inclusion. The goal of Youth NSG is to empower youth in the region.
Project themes could be, but are not limited to:
- Growing/harvesting and eating local food
Example: Gardening or composting workshops, berry harvesting and preservation, canning
Example: Recycling workshop, clothing swap, beach cleanup
- Celebrating Nuu-chah-nulth ways of stewardship
Example: story sharing, visiting territory and learning place-names, harvesting workshop, language event.
Example: Workshop on local plants and animals, addressing invasive species (e.g. Scotch Broom), planting pollenator-friendly gardens
- Sharing of environmental practices across generations
Example: Youth and elders event team up to create an environmental initiative
- Reducing our carbon footprint
Example: Promoting bicycling and carpooling, shopping local
- Youth-led environmental projects
Example: Youth-led wildlife survey, nature photojournalism project
- Diversity and Inclusion-focused environmental projects
Example: Queer/Ally Beach Cleanup, event for newcomers to region to build relationship with place by caring for it
- Youth Ideas- reach out if you have an idea- here are a few examples:
Example: Neighbourhood nature walks; Connecting with neighbourhood seniors (yard clean up day, interviews with seniors)
The Neighbourhood Small Grants program is guided by the following principles:
- Everyone has gifts: Anyone can offer their ideas, talents, skills, experiences, and contacts to build a strong community.
- Small is powerful: Small amounts of money have the potential to bring powerful changes in community in forms of new relationships, increased self-confidence, leadership development, stronger sense of place and creation of local traditions
- Local decisions are best: Community members from diverse backgrounds and experiences get an opportunity to make decisions on who should get the grants in their community
- Where we live matters: the grants enable anyone to team up with their neighbour and come up with a project that they can carry out within an area of where they live and based on what they think works in their community.
- We learn together: There is no single right way to build community so anyone involved in the program will have many opportunities to learn, share, reflect, exchange and capture knowledge, skills and information that they can use within and beyond the program.
- Everyone is invited: The program is accessible and inclusive to anyone living in an NSG area no matter their age, ethnicity, income, cultural background, gender, ability and sexual orientation
Terms & Conditions of the Culture Neighbourhood Small Grants Program
Who can apply?
- You must live in the Clayoquot Biosphere Region.
- You can apply for only one NSG project per cycle and you can apply within only one community.
- Registered charitable organizations and businesses are not eligible to apply. These grants are specifically for individuals and small volunteer-based neighbourhood/community groups.
- No previous connection to community organization is required.
What information do you need to know about Neighbourhood Small Grants?
- Your project must be free to attend, accessible, and welcoming to all. We encourage applications for projects that are accessible to people with disabilities and inclusive of all people.
- You may not fundraise for other projects and/or organizations during your event. However, we encourage you to seek donations or gifts in kind from local businesses to help support your project.
- Large capital projects such as building and maintenance of public assets such as playgrounds or purchasing equipment such as computers are not eligible.
- Projects involving psychotherapy and counseling support are not eligible.
- You must begin your project after the grant decision is made. Projects are not supported retroactively.
- While some projects may continue year-round, it is expected that your NSG grant money will be spent by October 30, 2025.
What do you need to think about when you are estimating your project costs?
- Grant requests for projects are expected to be under $500. However, applications that offer unique and creative ways of meeting the NSG goals may be considered for additional funding.
- Grant money may be used to pay people for services (also called honorariums) to help with the project. An honorarium is a small fee paid to someone for their in-kind skills or knowledge contributions. Examples: opening/welcome from an Indigenous Elder, or an artist sharing skills. Total honorarium(s) may not be more than $350 per project.
- You are responsible for keeping expense receipts to account for all project costs.
What do you need to know if you use a public space (for example, a neighbourhood street or park) for your NSG project?
- Projects taking place on neighbourhood streets or public spaces and/or parks must follow municipal by-laws and have proper permits.
- You must obtain liability insurance prior to your project start date.
- For more information please visit your local municipal webpages or call your municipal information line.
What do you need to think about when carrying out your project?
- Your project is expected to address one or more of the NSG program goals and objectives listed above. The primary focus should be on increasing relationships between neighbours and deepening neighbours' involvement within their community.
- Your project must take place within the neighbourhood or community where your application is processed.
- Festival-style events are expected to focus on a specific neighbourhood or community with a range of 300 attendees. Projects that are part of festivals must demonstrate an activity within the event that helps residents to develop or strengthen relationships.
What do you do after you receive the grant money?
- To help future applicants, please document your project with photos, videos or by writing a summary of your event. Share these with your local NSG Coordinator.
- Project leaders are expected to attend the NSG Celebration at the end of the grant year. Your local coordinator will invite you to the event, and you may be asked to share your project story with other attendees.
- Clayoquot Biosphere Trust should be acknowledged by displaying appropriate logos on event posters or other project promotional materials. Logos will be provided.
- After your project is complete, you must fill out an evaluation survey. Your NSG Coordinator will provide further instructions about the survey close to project completion date.
- You must return any unused grant money to your NSG Coordinator.
Curious to see what the application form looks like, CLICK HERE to see an example.
