Funding Options

Financial Support for Co-Op Students

Ontario Co-operative Education Tax Credit

Ontario Ministry of Revenue – Co-operative Education Tax Credit

Name of Grant: The Co-operative Education Tax Credit

Description:

The Co-operative Education Tax Credit (CETC) is a refundable tax credit. The CETC is available to employers who hire students enrolled in a co-operative education program at an Ontario university or college. The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) administers the program on behalf of Ontario through the federal income tax system.

Financial Support:

The CETC is based on salaries and wages paid to a student in a co-operative education work placement. The maximum credit for each work placement is $3,000. Most work placements are for a minimum employment period of 10 weeks up to a maximum of four months.

Eligibility Criteria:

Ontario businesses that hire students enrolled in a post-secondary co-operative education program are eligible for the CETC.

Contact:

The MES Program Co-operative Education Office will contact you at the end of the co-op work term to provide you with the documentation required.

 

Magnet Student Work Placement Program

The Magnet Student Work Placement program brings together employers, students, and post-secondary school stakeholders to create quality work-integrated learning (WIL) opportunities.

The program provides employers with wage subsidies to hire post-secondary students for paid work experiences. Students, in turn, benefit from quality work experience so they can secure employment in their chosen fields of study.

The program is expected to generate up to 20,000 paid student work placements yearly across Canada by 2021-22.

Employer applications are now being accepted.

BioTalent Canada - Student Work Placement Program

Name of Grant: Student Work Placement Program (SWPP)

The Student Work Placement Program (SWPP) is an initiative to increase the job-readiness of students registered in STEM, healthcare, business and all other programs at Canadian post-secondary institutions.

The program gives employers the freedom to:

  • Gain access to funds to hire students
  • Leverage a pool of workers eager to enhance their skills
  • Develop new talent for future recruitment needs

Program description

The program’s wage subsidies help knock down that cost barrier, by covering the cost of a student’s salary by 75% up to a maximum of $7,500.

The program enables you to bring on an eager-to-learn student for a special project – and at the end of the placement end up with a skilled candidate already oriented to your company who could meet your future recruiting needs.

ECO Canada Co-op Funding

ECO Canada Co-op Funding

Name of Grant: ECO Canada Co-op Funding

Welcome to ECO Employment Programs! Working with the federal government as part of Canada’s Work Integrated Learning Strategy, we work with employers and post-secondary partners to help students kick-start their career path in the environmental sector.

We will cover up to 50% of a student’s wages to $5,000 when employers hire the brightest minds in Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Math (STEAM) and Business.

  • Funding is for paid work terms. Work terms can be full time or part-time from 6 – 16 weeks.
  • Students gain valuable on-the-job experience
  • Employers increase the future talent pool and resource availability
  • Students and Employers are required to find their own co-op placement
  • Three sessions per year: Winter (January-April), Summer (May-August), Fall (September-December)
  • Applications open 3 months prior to the start of co-op session

Additional funding may be available for employers who hire a student from one of the following groups:

  • Women in STEM
  • Indigenous People
  • Persons with Disabilities
  • First-year Students
  • Recent Immigrants (Permanent resident or refugee status)

Host organizations may complete multiple applications for funding in the upcoming semester. Submit your application early to secure your funding. Once your funding is secured, you can begin your search for qualified, talented students to fill the position.

If you have not received contracts for your current approved placement please contact us at coop@eco.ca and we will complete the process.

Mitacs - Accelerate

Name of Grant: Mitacs - Accelerate

How it Works:

  1. A partner organization and academic researchers develop a research project
  2. Applicants submit their completed proposal via a Mitacs representative
  3. Partner funds are combined with government funding to support projects.

Who is eligible?

  • Eligible for-profit corporations in Canada and not-for-profit corporations in Canada
  • For-profit businesses operating outside Canada
  • Under the Accelerate Entrepreneur initiative, eligible intern-owned start-ups at approved incubators. Contact accelerate@mitacs.ca to confirm your start-up’s eligibility
  • Not-for-profit corporation eligibility and project economic orientation must be assessed prior to proposal submission
  • All sectors

Timelines

  • Apply anytime
  • Six- to eight-week peer review
  • Projects can be as long as you need, starting at four months

Project Funding

EcoAction Community Funding Program

Name of Grant: EcoAction Community Funding Program

Description:

EcoAction Community Funding Program (EcoAction) is a national program that funds local action-based projects that produce measurable, positive effects on the environment.

The maximum EcoAction funding is $100,000 per project; the minimum funding amount request is $25,000 per project for a maximum duration of 36 months. A minimum of 50% of the total project value must come from sources other than the Government of Canada.

Eligible Organizations

  • environmental groups
  • community groups
  • youth and seniors groups
  • community-based associations
  • service clubs
  • Indigenous organizations

The following groups are not eligible but are encouraged to partner with non-profit organizations to support a project proposal:

  • businesses
  • educational institutions
  • individuals
  • municipal, provincial, territorial, federal governments

Eligible Projects

Projects must always address the environmental priority of the call for proposals and clearly demonstrate that activities are:

  • measureable
  • provide opportunities for community members to take action
  • produce a positive environmental impact

As indicated in the program's list of performance indicators (available via Grants and Contributions Enterprise Management System GCEMS), all projects must include:

  • at least one environmental indicator
  • at least one capacity-building indicator

Eligible Costs

The following project costs are eligible under EcoAction:

  • human resources, including salaries and benefits
  • contract and professional services (e.g., accounting, audit, liability insurance costs that are directly attributed to carrying out the project, monitoring, legal or other professional fees)
  • travel and field expenses (based on Government of Canada rates)
  • materials and supplies
  • printing and production costs
  • communication and distribution costs
  • equipment purchases or rental fees
  • vehicle rental and operation costs
  • translation fees
  • a reasonable share of overhead and/or administrative costs and rent that is directly attributed to program delivery

For more information on eligible projects and activities, to be added to our distribution list or for any inquiries, please contact your regional office.

Habitat Stewardship Program for Species at Risk

Name of Grant: Habitat Stewardship Program for Species at Risk

Description

The Habitat Stewardship Program (HSP) was established in 2000. It provides funding for projects submitted by Canadians that contribute directly to the recovery objectives and population goals of species at risk listed on Schedule 1 of the Species at Risk Act (SARA) and prevent others from becoming a conservation concern. Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) administers HSP funds that support terrestrial stewardship projects while Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) is responsible for administering the HSP for aquatic stewardship projects.

Applicants wishing to pursue aquatic HSP projects should contact the appropriate aquatic regional coordinator at DFO.

Objectives

The overall objectives of the Habitat Stewardship Program are to:

  • Support habitat projects that benefit species at risk and prevent others from becoming a conservation concern;
  • Enable Canadians to become actively involved in stewardship projects for species at risk which will result in tangible and measurable conservation benefits; and
  • Improve the scientific, sociological and economic understanding of stewardship as a conservation tool

Expected Results

The expected results of the HSP are:

  • Canada’s wildlife and habitat is conserved and protected
  • Canada’s species at risk are recovered; and
  • Indigenous Peoples are engaged in conservation

Eligible Recipients

  • Canadian non-governmental organizations
  • community groups
  • Indigenous organizations and communities
  • individuals
  • private corporations and businesses
  • educational institutions
  • provincial, territorial and municipal governments
  • provincial Crown corporations

Federal departments, federal agencies, and federal Crown corporations are not eligible to receive HSP funds.

Geographic Location

Project Activities must take place on:

  • private land
  • provincial Crown land
  • lands under the administration and control of the Commissioner of Yukon, the Northwest Territories or Nunavut, or Indigenous land across Canada

Eligible Projects

In order to be eligible, the proposed projects must target the following species:

  • species listed on Schedule 1 of SARA (except those listed as extirpated), and/or
  • species that have been assessed by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) as endangered, threatened, or of special concern but have not yet been listed on Schedule 1 of SARA

Up to 20% of the available funds will be directed towards projects targeting species that are not listed on Schedule 1 of SARA but assessed by COSEWIC as Endangered, Threatened or Special Concern. The majority of program funds (i.e., at least 80%) will be directed to projects targeting species listed on Schedule 1 of SARA. Priorities within these eligible species are listed below. Please consult this list to determine if your proposal could have a higher chance of success.

Activities eligible for funding include:

  • habitat protection and securement
  • habitat improvement
  • species and habitat threat abatement
  • conservation planning
  • surveys, inventories, and monitoring
  • project evaluation
  • outreach and education

Activities other than those listed above may be considered subject to approval.

Environmental Damages Fund

Description:

The Environmental Damages Fund (EDF) is a specified purpose account, administered by Environment Canada, to provide a mechanism for directing funds received as a result of fines, court orders, and voluntary payments to priority projects that will benefit our natural environment.

Objectives

The purpose of any contribution to the EDF is to restore the environment and conserve wildlife and habitats in a scientifically sound, cost-effective, and technically feasible way. 

Funding Categories

Fines directed to the EDF are used to fund projects that focus on the following four categories in order of priority:

  • restoration
  • environmental quality improvement
  • research and development
  • education and awareness

Geographic Location

Projects must be undertaken within Canadian provinces and territories. Fund Use Requirements accompany each available fund and may include prioritized geographic regions. For examples of previously funded projects, see our EDF project map.

Eligible Applicants

Eligible groups include:

  • non-governmental organizations
  • universities and academic institutions
  • Indigenous organizations
  • provincial, territorial and municipal governments

Individuals, businesses, or other federal departments or agencies are not eligible for funding but are encouraged to partner with eligible groups to apply. Offenders are not eligible to apply directly or to partner with eligible groups, for fines or monetary payments they have made that were directed to the EDF.

Eligible Projects

Priority is given to projects that restore the natural environment and conserve wildlife, followed by:

  • environmental quality improvement initiatives
  • research and development on environmental restoration and improvement
  • education and awareness on issues affecting the health of the natural environment

There is no maximum project duration. The average length of a project is approximately two years. EDF funding is available for projects that meet the following criteria:

  • address one or more of EDF’s four priority areas noted above
  • satisfy all Fund Use Requirements
  • are scientifically sound and technically feasible
  • are cost-effective in achieving goals, objectives, and results
  • can measure results using EDF performance indicators
  • show that the environment will benefit from the project
  • demonstrate that the applicant possesses or has access to the necessary partnership, experience, knowledge and skills required to undertake the project

While matching funds are not required, evidence of other funding sources such as matching contributions and the respective amounts, or demonstration of the applicant’s ability to raise funds from sources other than the federal government in a past project will be considered as an asset at the proposal evaluation stage. Ineligible projects and activities include:

  • those activities required by law and/or mandated by other levels of government
  • containment and clean-up of environmental spills
  • restoration of contaminated sites
  • infrastructure, particularly related to municipal, provincial and federal government program areas
  • lobbying or advocacy activities
  • recreation and tourism projects or beautification initiatives
  • preparation of formal curriculum materials
  • core organization functions and activities such as meetings, maintenance and administration; however, project-specific administrative support is eligible
  • annual or regular organization events/campaigns
  • expenses to attend general conferences and workshops
  • projects and activities underway
  • continuation of projects previously funded by the EDF
  • projects outside of Canada

Please note that this is not a comprehensive list. If you are unsure about any of the examples listed above or the eligibility of your project and activities, please contact your regional office.

EDF funding is a competitive process; please clearly explain all details and expected results. The level of detail provided in your application must support the complexity of your project.

In addition, your project must include at least one of the EDF’s performance indicators.  The EDF Applicant Guide contains the complete list and explanation of indicators and is available upon logging into
Environment and Climate Change Canada’s Grants and Contributions Enterprise Management System (GCEMS).

Eligible Project Costs

Costs related to the following types of expenses are eligible under the EDF program:

  • human resource costs, including salaries and benefits
  • travel costs not to exceed Treasury Board approved rates
  • material and supplies costs
  • printing and production costs
  • communications and distribution costs
  • equipment rental or purchase per Government of Canada omnibus stipulations
  • vehicle rentals and operational costs
  • translation costs
  • liability insurance costs that are directly attributed to carrying out the project
  • a reasonable share of overhead and/or administrative costs and rent that is directly attributed to carrying out the project, as negotiated with the Regional Community Programs Office
  • any GST/HST that is not reimbursable by Revenue Canada and any PST not reimbursable by the provinces

Please refer to the National Joint Council’s website for your provincial/territorial kilometric rates.

Available Funding

Available funding varies according to the number of court awards and voluntary contributions directed to the EDF. In its sentencing decision, the court may recommend the recipient, location and scope of a project funded by the fine. This information is considered in the assessment of the fine and in the definition of the appropriate Fund Use Requirement. Details on available funds and Fund Use Requirements can be found in GCEMS.

Climate Action Fund

Introduction

Since 2018, the Climate Action Fund (CAF)  has awarded $3 million per year to support innovative ideas. The objective of projects funded under the program is to raise awareness of climate change and to build capacity in order to increase climate actions that contribute to Canada’s clean growth and climate change plan (the Pan-Canadian Framework on Clean Growth and Climate Change).

Two-step Application Process

Step 1: Read the applicant guide. The Climate Action Fund Applicant Guide provides details on program eligibility and other key information

Step 2: Apply for funding through the Grants and Contributions Enterprise Management System (GCEMS). Please refer to GCEMS to complete the Climate Action Fund online application form