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

• 💰Event Funding
  Conditional: Up to CAD $100,000 per event, per fiscal year, through the Events component
• 💰Multi-Year Event Funding
  Conditional: Up to CAD $200,000 per application for a recurring event held once per year over two fiscal years, provided the applicant successfully organised a previous edition of the proposed event within the past two years that met all Events component eligibility requirements. Funding cannot exceed CAD $100,000 per fiscal year
• 🧾Eligible Project Expenses
  Eligible: Project-related cash and in-kind costs may be covered, including salaries and benefits; consultant fees; recruiting, training and supporting local volunteers (e.g., childcare, uniforms and transport); 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 15% of total project funding before administration costs
• 🛡️ Government Funding Stacking Limit
  Mandatory: Total financial assistance from the programme and all levels of government (federal, provincial, territorial and municipal) must not exceed 100% of total eligible event-related expenses
• 🚫Ineligible Expenses and Activities
  Not eligible: Food and beverages, capital or start-up costs, profit-making activities, international travel, religious or politically partisan activities, contingency and miscellaneous fees, and expenses incurred before Canadian Heritage receives the application

Eligibility Criteria

• 🏢 Eligible Applicant Organisations
• Mandatory: Eligible applicants include Canadian not-for-profit organisations, associations and unincorporated groups; Canadian incorporated and unincorporated municipalities and townships with populations of up to 10,000; Indigenous not-for-profit organisations representing First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities; and Indigenous governments, band councils and tribal councils
• 🎯 Event Objectives and Outcomes
• Mandatory: The event must contribute to the programme’s objectives and the Events component’s objectives and expected results
• 🤝 Community Interaction
• Mandatory: The event must create concrete opportunities for positive interaction among cultural, religious or ethnocultural communities
• 🌍 Community Participation
• Mandatory: The event must involve more than one cultural, religious or ethnocultural community, or focus on a single cultural community while providing opportunities to engage with and foster pride in its history, culture and/or identity, such as heritage months recognised by Parliament
• 🕊️ Intercultural and Interfaith Understanding
• Mandatory: The event must help foster intercultural or interfaith understanding
• 👥 Public Accessibility
• Mandatory: The event must be open to and intended for the general public
• ⚖️ Anti-Discrimination and Charter Compliance
• Mandatory: Applicants that discriminate contrary to applicable laws on prohibited grounds or based on language, advocate intolerance, discrimination or prejudice, support organisations 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 ineligible
• 🚫 Ineligible Event Types and Duplicate Funding
• Not eligible: Events that are primarily religious, political, commercial or private in nature are excluded. Activities already funded under the Projects component or other Canadian Heritage funding programmes cannot receive Events component funding for the same activities
• 📄 Application Submission
• Mandatory: Applicants must submit a complete application package during one of the scheduled intake windows. Incomplete applications are considered rejected
• ⭐ Funding Priorities
• Preferred: Proposals addressing one or both current priorities are favoured: community-led efforts to counter hate, misinformation and polarisation through dialogue, mutual understanding and civic engagement; and initiatives fostering human connection, civic participation and shared belonging through inclusive, interactive gatherings
• 📅 Multi-Year Funding Preference
• Preferred: Multi-year funding requests that meet the programme’s multi-year eligibility criteria are also given preference

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 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

Target Location

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).