Events component — Multiculturalism and Anti-Racism Program (MARP)

About

Canadian Heritage's Events component of the Multiculturalism and Anti-Racism Program funds community-based public events in Canada that build intercultural and interfaith understanding, address racism and discrimination, or celebrate a community's history and culture, with up to $100,000 per event per fiscal year and scheduled application intake windows for 2027-2028 events.

Benefits

• 💰Funding — Up to $100,000 per event, per fiscal year from the Events component
• 💰Multi-year funding — Up to $200,000 per application for a recurring event taking place once per year over two fiscal years (conditional: the applicant must have successfully organized a prior edition of the proposed event within the past two years that met all Events component eligibility requirements, and funding per fiscal year cannot exceed $100,000)
• 🧾Eligible expenses — Project-related cash and in-kind costs may be covered, including salaries and benefits, consultant fees, recruiting/training/supporting local volunteers (e.g., childcare, uniform or transportation), performers', speakers' and artists' fees and expenses, domestic travel and accommodation at government business rates, liability insurance, translation between Canada's official languages or where language comprehension is a barrier to access or participation, communications, publicity and promotional materials, facility rental, production and set-up costs including security, and administration and overhead costs up to a maximum of 15% of total project funding before administration costs
• 🛡️ Stacking limit — Total financial assistance from the Program and other levels of government (federal, provincial, territorial and municipal) cannot exceed 100% of total eligible event-related expenses. Not eligible for funding: food and beverages, capital or start-up costs, profit-making activities, international travel, religious and/or politically partisan activities, contingency and miscellaneous fees, and any expenses incurred before Canadian Heritage receives the application.

Eligibility Criteria

• Mandatory (applicant): Canadian not-for-profit organizations, associations and unincorporated groups; Canadian incorporated and unincorporated municipalities and townships with a population of up to 10,000; Indigenous not-for-profit organizations (First Nations, Inuit and Métis); and Indigenous governments, band councils and tribal councils. Mandatory (event): the event must contribute to the Program's objectives and to the Events component's objectives and expected results; must establish concrete opportunities for positive interaction among cultural, religious or ethnocultural communities; must demonstrate the involvement of more than one cultural, religious or ethnocultural community, or target a single cultural community while providing opportunities to engage with and foster pride in its history, culture and/or identity (such as heritage months recognized by Parliament); must help foster intercultural or interfaith understanding; and must be open to and intended for the general public. Mandatory (exclusions): applicants that discriminate contrary to applicable laws on prohibited grounds, discriminate on the basis of language, advocate intolerance, discrimination and/or prejudice, support organizations or individuals promoting offensive content or discourse, undermine Canada's Anti-Racism Strategy, or undermine the values of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the Canadian Human Rights Act are not eligible. Events of a primarily religious, political, commercial or private nature are not eligible, and activities already funded under the Projects component or other Canadian Heritage funding programs cannot receive Events component funding for the same activities. Mandatory (application): a complete application package must be submitted during one of the scheduled intake windows; incomplete applications are considered rejected. Preferred (funding priorities): proposals that include one or both of the current funding priorities — community-led efforts to counter hate, misinformation and polarization through dialogue, mutual understanding and civic engagement; and initiatives fostering human connection, civic participation and shared belonging through inclusive, interactive gatherings. Preference is also given to multi-year requests that meet the multi-year criteria.

Participation Commitments

• All recipients must submit a final activity report at the end of the event
• Recipients of a contribution must also submit a final financial report and may be required to submit interim reports; additional conditions may be included in the funding agreement
• Public events funded under the Events component must be covered by liability insurance
• Recipients must publicly acknowledge the financial support received from the Government of Canada in both English and French in all communications materials and promotional activities
• Recipients must comply with the official languages requirements set out in the application and in the funding agreement
• Recipients must take steps to respect the values underlying the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the Canadian Human Rights Act and Canada's Anti-Racism Strategy, and must take measures to create a workplace free from harassment, abuse and discrimination
• Recipients must keep records, documents or other information required for audits or program evaluations for five years; failure to maintain such records may result in repayment of amounts received. No fee, tuition or equity requirement is stated in the official guidelines.

Target Region

Applicant eligibility is limited to Canadian organizations and groups: Canadian not-for-profit organizations, associations and unincorporated groups; Canadian incorporated and unincorporated municipalities and townships with a population of up to 10, 000; Indigenous not-for-profit organizations (First Nations, Inuit and Métis); and Indigenous governments, band councils and tribal councils. The program's current funding priority language refers to inclusive and interactive gatherings across the country, and applications are submitted to the Canadian Heritage regional office covering the applicant's region (Ontario; Quebec; Atlantic; Prairies and Northern Region; West).

Target Sector

Agriculture & Food, Defense & Security, Education, Energy & Utilities, Financial Services, Government & Public Sector, Healthcare & Life Sciences, Manufacturing, Media & Entertainment, Real Estate & Construction, Retail & Consumer, Semiconductors & Electronics, Sports & Fitness, Telecommunications, Transportation & Logistics, Travel & Hospitality, Other