Northern Participant Funding Program
Funding for Indigenous peoples and other Northerners to participate meaningfully in impact assessments and some regulatory processes of major projects in Yukon, Nunavut, the Northwest Territories. Funding may also be provided for impact assessments in the Eeyou and Nunavik Marine Regions.
On this page
About the program
The Northern Participant Funding Program assists people in meaningfully participating and having their voices heard in impact assessments of major infrastructure and resource extraction projects, as well as associated regulatory processes that are likely to affect, positively or negatively, their land, lives or livelihoods.
Indigenous governments, non-governmental organizations, individuals and, in some cases, local governments can submit funding applications for such activities as:
- technical reviews of information
- research
- data collection
- community meetings
- honoraria
- collection, translation, documentation or transmission of Indigenous knowledge or Inuit Qaujimaningit
- preparation of submissions and presentations
- preparation of witnesses
- retention of experts, including legal representation
Funding level
The total funding level for the program is $15.8 million over 5 years, from 2023–24 to 2027–28.
A recipient can receive up to $150,000 per project, per fiscal year (April 1 to March 31), depending on their application and available funding. Multi-year contribution agreements may be available if an impact assessment takes place over multiple fiscal years, and recipients can receive funding to participate in multiple impact assessments per fiscal year.
Eligible impact assessments and regulatory processes for major projects
Available funding is provided to support participation in impact assessments and regulatory processes, such as water licensing, and to support non-project specific capacity building related projects.
Major projects are eligible for funding if they are:
- large
- complex
- potentially controversial, or
- of significant interest to local communities
The program primarily targets natural resource and infrastructure projects; to date it has funded participation in impact assessments of large-scale mining, remediation and transportation projects.
Factors that determine project eligibility include:
- size and location
- potential for public concern, interest or opposition to the project
- potential for adverse environmental, cultural or socio-economic impacts
- potential for impacts on established or asserted rights
- use of new or untested technologies
- complexity and duration of the project
Funding approaches
Funding is provided by contribution agreement utilizing one of the following 3 funding approaches:
- Set contribution
- Fixed contribution
- Flexible contribution
| Fixed | Carry over of funds is possible with the department's approvalTable note 1 If carry-over is not approved, funds will be returned to the department |
Can be kept at the end of the agreement with the department's approval If keeping unspent funds is not approved, funds will be returned to the department |
|---|---|---|
| Flexible | Carry-over of funds is automatic without department's approval | Any unspent funds at the end of the agreement must be returned to the department |
| Set | No carry-over of funds between fiscal years | Any unspent funds at the end of the fiscal year must be returned to the department. |
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The Program will work with recipients to create a contribution agreement that best suits their needs. For details about each funding approach, visit Funding approaches.
Reporting requirements
The program requires 2 annual reports from recipients:
- Activity report: The purpose is for recipients to report their activities related to the funding they received, and to give feedback on the program.
- Financial report: A record of the funds and how they were spent. These can be audited or unaudited, depending on the contribution agreement.
Who can apply
- Indigenous governments and organizations
- Community groups
- Incorporated not-for-profit organizations
- Experts able to contribute specialized knowledge
- Indigenous and Northern individuals
- Other northern residents or interested affected parties
To be eligible for funding, parties must meet at least 1 of the following criteria:
- have a direct and local interest in the project, such as living, owning, or using property in the project area
- have an interest in potential impacts to related claims and rights
- have community knowledge, Indigenous Knowledge, Inuit Qaujimaningit or Indigenous perspective relevant to the assessment
- plan to provide expert information relevant to the anticipated environmental, cultural or socio-economic effects of the project
Under certain circumstances municipal governments may be eligible. For more information please email aidefinanciereparticipants-participantfunding@rcaanc-cirnac.gc.ca.
Individuals, groups or organizations that represent for-profit organizations or have a direct commercial interest in the development are not eligible for funding. Organizations that represent a level of non-Indigenous government are also generally ineligible, though an exception may be made for some municipal governments that serve a predominantly Indigenous population.
Participant funding process
When participant funding is available for an eligible project we will:
- notify the review board responsible for assessing the project
- issue a funding call through a public notice, posted on the review board's public registry
- issue a notice on social media
- post a notice online
- contact those who appear to be potentially affected by the process or are already participating in it
Organizations who have been notified of available funding are encouraged to contact the Northern Participant Funding Program inbox at aidefinanciereparticipants-participantfunding@rcaanc-cirnac.gc.ca to receive a funding guide and application form.
Application and review process
Applications are reviewed by an independent application review committee. The committee consists of at least 3 people from territorial and federal governments, Indigenous organizations or other knowledgeable persons that have no interest or stake in the project.
The committee reviews funding applications, identifies groups whose contribution is valuable to the assessment of the proposed project, and recommends a level of funding required to effectively support participation.
The program aims to have decisions made within 4 weeks of receiving applications. Because funds are limited some applicants may receive less than the amount for which they applied, or may not be awarded funding.
Initiatives funded in the 2024–25 fiscal year
| Project | Territory | Fiscal year |
|---|---|---|
| Mount Nansen Remediation Project | Yukon | 2024–25 |
Initiatives funded in the 2023–24 fiscal year
| Project | Territory | Fiscal year |
|---|---|---|
| Mackenzie Valley Highway Project | Northwest Territories | 2023–24 |
| Mary River Project Monitor Workshop | Nunavut | 2023–24 |
| Chidliak Diamond Mine | Nunavut | 2023–24 |
| Back River Project Energy Center | Nunavut | 2023–24 |
| Mary River Sustaining Operations | Nunavut | 2023–24 |
Initiatives funded from April 2018 to March 2023
| Project | Territory | Fiscal year |
|---|---|---|
| Mary River Iron Ore Mine Phase 2 | Nunavut | 2018–19, 2019–20, 2020–21, 2021–22 |
| Mary River Production Increase Proposal | Nunavut | 2022–23 |
| Whale Tail Gold Mine Pit Expansion | Nunavut | 2019–20 |
| Meliadine Gold Mine | Nunavut | 2020–21 |
| Meliadine Gold Mine Extension | Nunavut | 2022–23 |
| Diavik Diamond Mine | Northwest Territories | 2019–20 |
| Pine Point Lead-Zinc Mine | Northwest Territories | 2021–22, 2022–23 |
| Norman Wells Waste Management Facility | Northwest Territories | 2022–23 |
| Faro Mine Remediation | Yukon | 2019–20, 2020–21, 2021–22, 2022–23 |
| Coffee Gold Mine | Yukon | 2019–20, 2021–22 |
| Kudz Ze Kayah Mine | Yukon | 2019–20 |
| Casino Mine Panel Review | Yukon | 2022–23 |
| Mount Nansen Remediation | Yukon | 2022–23 |
| Eagle Gold Mine Extension | Yukon | 2022–23 |
| Brewery Creek Gold Mine | Yukon | 2022–23 |
Contact us
We are committed to improving the program and welcome input on how the program can best serve our Indigenous and Northern partners.
If you have any suggestions please contact us at aidefinanciereparticipants-participantfunding@rcaanc-cirnac.gc.ca.