Updated: September 2024
UTM has established the Black, Indigenous, and/or Racialized Scholar/Research Grant Program to help researchers study and suggest ways to address the historic and contemporary effects of racism and racial disparities in all aspects of society.
Grants will seed exploratory research and collaborative endeavors that address questions of racial inequity, social justice, and/or advance UTM’s commitment to Answering the Call: Wecheehetowin, the University’s response and commitment to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s final reports. This program is designed to support two groups of researchers at UTM: (1) Black, Indigenous, and/or racialized researchers regardless of research area; (2) any faculty member with research that addresses racism, social justice, and/or decolonization. Established in 2021, this program emerged through a collaboration of leaders from the Black Research Network; the Office of the Vice-Principal Academic and Dean; the Office of the Vice-Principal, Research and Innovation (OVPRI); UTM’s Indigenous Centre; and UTM’s Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Office.
Funding Opportunities:
Projects should last 12 months or fewer. Proposals may be submitted in one of the following tiers:
•Research Seed Funding: up to $10,000, suitable for works of research, research creation, or program development with pilot implementation at the UTM campus and/or in a community setting.
•Workshop/Outreach Grants: up to $2,000, suitable for organizing workshops, symposia, visiting scholars/artists; exhibitions of creative works; and/or community conversations addressing the themes of the program.
Eligibility Guidelines:
To be eligible for these funds, applicants must be faculty members with a full-time continuing status appointment (tenure or teaching stream) at UTM. These funds must be administered through a UTM unit; in the case of applications involving faculty groups, the lead applicant must be a UTM faculty member. Successful applicants will be eligible to reapply for funding 24 months following the competition deadline in which they were successful. Candidates can indicate which funding stream they are applying for on the cover sheet (see link below).
Proposals that are similar in nature cannot be submitted to the Research and Scholarly Activity Fund (RSAF), Pedagogical Research Fund (PRF), and/or Black, Indigenous, and/or Racialized Scholar/Research Grant, at the same time. The Office of the Vice-Principal, Research and Innovation (OVPRI) will notify PIs in cases in which similar proposals are submitted to more than one funding program.
Adjudication Process:
Applications to this award opportunity will be adjudicated by an interdisciplinary group of University of Toronto faculty researchers with subject matter expertise and who have training in unconscious bias. To be successful, applicants must write their applications for non-specialist reviewers. Proposals written in a highly specialized or technical prose are likely to receive a lower ranking.
Application Timeline:
September 2024: circulate call for proposals
Thursday, December 12, 2024: applications due for research seed funding grants
March-April 2024: awards announced for seed funding grants
Applications for workshop-based grants may be submitted on a rolling basis.
Evaluation Criteria:
•For Research Seed Funding applications: clarity of prose; clarity of articulation of the research problem and project goals; clarity of methodology; significance of the research in relationship to the program goals in anti-racism, social justice and/or supporting Black, Indigenous, and/or racialized scholars; appropriateness of budget. Standard Tri-Council expense eligibility requirements will apply. The adjudication committee may recommend a lower amount of funding than requested.
•For Workshop/Outreach Grant applications: clarity of prose; clarity of articulation of project goals; engagement of any other proposed participants; significance of the activity in relationship to the program goals in anti-racism, social justice, decolonization and/or support for Black, Indigenous, and/or racialized scholars; benefit to UTM community; appropriateness of budget.
Application for Research Seed Funding:
A complete, maximum 4-page application (or 5 pages with bibliography) must be submitted by the competition deadline as a single PDF document. All text must be in 12pt Times New Roman font. Margins must be set at a minimum of 3/4 inch (1.87cm). The application package must include all the following materials in the order as listed below:
- Cover Sheet (1 page).
- Funding Proposal: must comprise a maximum 2-page single-spaced Project Description that includes the following elements: (1) an explanation of the project, situated in relation to relevant scholarship; (2) a brief discussion of methodology; and (3) a short statement of how the research addresses the goals of this funding opportunity. The applicant must summarize the proposed research or scholarly activity using language suitable for a multi-disciplinary audience. The Project Description must clearly explain the significance (e.g., scholarly and/or community-based impacts, knowledge transfer and exchange impacts) of their project. Research involving Indigenous peoples in Canada must comply with chapter 9 of the Tri-Council Policy Statement (2018) on Indigenous research. This chapter also provides a very useful guide to best practices regarding respect, collaboration, meaningful participation, and non-extractive methodologies in the context of community-based or community-engaged research.
- Budget & Justification (1page maximum).
- Bibliography/References (optional; 1 page maximum).
Applications for the next competition are due by 11pm on Thursday, December 12, 2024 (firm deadline). Please submit proposals in a SINGLE pdf file via an online application form by this date.
File name should be: 2024-25_BIRSRG_Applicant's Last Name_Applicant's First Name.
Application for Workshop/Outreach Grants:
A complete, maximum 4-page application (or 5 pages with bibliography) must be submitted as a single PDF document. All text must be in 12pt Times New Roman font. Margins must be set at a minimum of 3/4 inch (1.87cm). There is no set application deadline for this opportunity; applications are accepted on a rolling basis. The application package must include all the following materials in the order as listed below:
- Cover Sheet (1 page).
- Funding Proposal: must comprise a maximum 2-page single-spaced Project Description that outlines the workshop or outreach endeavor and its location(s); explains the significance of the proposed event(s); describes the engagement of other participants, including any community partners; and provides a timeline for the proposed events. UTM should play an anchoring role in any events planned for a university location. Research involving Indigenous peoples in Canada must comply with chapter 9 of the Tri-Council Policy Statement (2018) on Indigenous research. This chapter also provides a very useful guide to best practices regarding respect, collaboration, meaningful participation, and non-extractive methodologies in the context of community-based or community-engaged research.
- Budget & Justification (1page maximum).
- Bibliography/References (optional; 1 page maximum).
Please submit proposals in one SINGLE pdf file via an online application form.
File name should be: 2024-25_BIRSRG_Applicant's Last Name_Applicant's First Name.
Competition Results:
Results will be emailed to the applicants by the Office of the Vice-Principal, Research and Innovation (OVPRI). Individual scores/rankings cannot be provided, but if reviewers provide comments in their adjudication documents, that feedback can be shared with applicants upon request.
Post-Award Details:
Successful awards will be transferred to the UTM faculty member’s commitment fund centre (CFC) following the receipt of any necessary certifications (see below).
Certifications: University certifications for research using human subjects, animal subjects, or biohazards are required (as necessary) before funds can be transferred. Certifications need not be appended at the time of application; funding cannot be released, however, until confirmation of the necessary certification is received by the OVPRI.
Final Report: The grant recipients must submit a 1-2 paragraph final report describing the impact of the award on the recipient's research program. This statement could also briefly describe what was accomplished with the funding and how the funds were expended and should be sent to the OVPRI no later than one year following a successful application. Failure to submit a final report could result in funds being withheld in a subsequent grant competition for which you are applying.
For Additional Information:
For questions relating to the program, eligibility, etc., please contact the Associate VP Research, at avpr.utm@utoronto.ca. For questions relating to the application process, deadlines etc, please contact Rong Wu at funding.ovpri.utm@utoronto.ca.