Funding Application Deadlines
View current funding deadlines for BC First Nations grants, scholarships, clean energy, education, food security, and more through New Relationship Trust.
Upcoming funding deadlines for First Nations grants, scholarships, and clean energy initiatives. Apply for available funding before deadlines close. The New Relationship Trust offers continuous intake for new applications based on the following Funding Deadlines:
Grant Name
Status
Closes
Nation Building Grant
Opens: May 13, 2025
Closes: December 05, 2025 (or when funds are exhausted)
Declaration Act Engagement Grant
Opens: May 15, 2023
Continuous intake
Youth, Elders, Language Grants
Opens: May 13, 2025
Closes: December 05, 2025 or until funds are exhausted – whichever comes first.
BC Indigenous Clean Energy Initiatives
Closed
Closed: April 16th, 2025
Community Energy Diesel Reduction
Opens: June 3, 2024
Closes: CEP & DSM Streams: November 29, 2024 (or when funds are exhausted)
REG Stream: July 15, 2024
K-12 Education Grants
Opens: May 13, 2025
Closes: December 05, 2025 or until funds are exhausted – whichever comes first.
Indigenous Cannabis Business Fund (ICBF)
Open
Continuous Intake
Student Scholarships & Bursaries
Opens: May 13, 2025
August 01, 2025
Indigenous Food Security and Sovereignty
Opens: May 13, 2025
Closes: May 20, 2025
Indigenous Co-operative Initiative
Open
Continuous
Indigenous Labour Market Fund
Opens: January 15, 2024
Labour Market Funds remain open until funds are exhausted
Guardians and Stewardship Training Initiative (GSTI)
Opens: July 2025 – exact date TBD
Closes: Date TBD
First Nation Funding Grants
Nation Building Grant
The Nation Building program provides funding opportunities to First Nations and Tribal Councils in British Columbia to support their nation-building activities according to their self-determined priorities. A project or initiative meant to strengthen the institutional, governance, and community capacities in reclaiming and rebuilding resiliency, self-determination, and sovereignty, within each Nation’s own context is considered an eligible project.
Youth Grant
The Youth Grant program provides funding opportunities to youth groups in First Nation communities in British Columbia to support inclusiveness, belonging, physical, well-being, cultural, traditional, creative, entrepreneurial activities all geared towards giving First Nation youth the tools, experiences, confidence, motivation, and teachings to be secure in their First Nation identity.
Elder Grant
The Elder Grant program provides funding opportunities to elder groups in First Nation communities in British Columbia to improve access and the quality of elder experiences and activities for maintaining inclusion, belonging, cultural, emotional, mobility, health, and physical well-being.
Language Grant
The Language Grant program provides funding opportunities to First Nation communities in British Columbia for initiatives that revitalize First Nation languages and supports activities that build capacity to encourage and create new fluent speakers.
K-12 Education Grant
The K-12 Education Grant program provides funding opportunities for First Nation Kindergarten to Grade 12 classes in British Columbia to support learning environments that give First Nation students the best chance to transition to healthy, engaged, and productive young adults and support them to aspire to and experience greater opportunities for higher educational outcomes. Projects should create connections to First Nation culture and traditions that builds capacity, confidence, and motivation for students to be secure in their First Nation identity.
Equity Matching Grant
The NRT has partnered with the various B.C. Aboriginal Financial Institutions (AFI’s) to offer an equity matching initiative intended to assist B.C. indigenous entrepreneurs and First Nation Businesses with equity-matching funds to support, modernize or expand a business in B.C.
Declaration Act Engagement Grant
Declaration Act Engagement Fund (DAEF)
The Declaration Act Engagement Fund (DAEF) provides multi-year (4 year) non-repayable funding contributions to First Nations to support their capacity and participation in engaging and consulting with the Province of B.C. in the Implementation of the Declaration Act Action Plan and the work and involvement in the alignment of Provincial laws with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in British Columbia.
Clean Energy Grants
Indigenous Clean Energy
The British Columbia Indigenous Clean Energy Initiative (BCICEI) provides support and capacity-building funds to Indigenous communities working on the development of clean energy projects.
Community Energy Diesel Reduction
The CEDR Program provides non-repayable funding contributions for clean energy initiatives to eligible remote communities that are off-grid residential regions that rely on diesel fuel for electricity generation. British Columbia has approximately forty-four (44) remote communities, most of which are governed by First Nations. Many of these remote communities are served by BC Hydro, while some own and operate their own diesel generators. In 2019, the remote communities consumed at least 19.1 million litres of diesel, emitting 51,784 tonnes CO2e.
Not For Profit Funding Grants
Indigenous Resiliency & Recovery Grant
The Indigenous Resilience and Recovery Grant (IRR Grant) provides funding to Indigenous non-profit organizations that have been disproportionately impacted by COVID-19 and continue to face funding and operational challenges in their post-pandemic recovery. For indigenous led non profit organizations, these challenges are even more pronounced in the context of pre-existing barriers and inequities that inhibit growth, funding certainty, and program & service delivery.
Student Funding
Scholarship and Bursaries
The bursaries and scholarships program provides financial support to First Nation students to assist them in achieving success in their post-secondary journey. (status or non-status) member of a B.C. First Nation Community and planning to attend an accredited post-secondary institution on a full-time basis anywhere in the world.
Grant Reporting
I Have A Grant – Reporting
If you have received a Grant from NRT and are seeking changes or a deadline extension, seeking advice, or want to provide an update on the status of your project, please contact the program specialist for your grant. We are flexible with all project deliverables and reporting timelines and are available to work with you to reschedule timelines as needed.