Culture Days Hub Sponsorship

SaskCulture offers sponsorships to communities and cultural groups that form a Culture Days Hub during Culture Days in Saskatchewan, which takes place over three weeks every September- October. Culture Days Hubs bring together two or more community partners to host free participatory cultural activities.

The Sponsorship aims to:

• Raise the awareness of cultural activity throughout the province;
• Support Hub partnerships in celebrating Culture Days in their communities;
• Support Hub partnerships in engaging community during the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation; and,
• Reach as many communities in the province as possible.

Culture Days is a national celebration of arts, culture and creativity that takes place each Fall. Its aim is to raise awareness, accessibility, participation and engagement of Canadians in the arts and cultural life of their communities. With the support of volunteer groups at the national, provincial and local levels, hundreds of thousands of artists, cultural workers, organizations and groups, volunteers and supporters self-mobilize to host free participatory public activities that take place in hundreds of cities and towns throughout the country each fall. Visit skculturedays.ca for more information.

Sponsorships of up to $5,000 will be determined by community size, the strength of community partnerships in the Culture Days Hub and the quality and extent of programs/activities offered.

Priority will be given to applications that:

• Include activities and programming that advance Truth and Reconciliation as part of September 30, the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, will be prioritized.

The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation takes place on September 30, each year. This day honours the lost children and survivors of residential schools and their families, and endeavours to acknowledge and better understand the history and harms done. Public commemoration is a vital component of the Reconciliation process, and Culture Days is committed to marking = this important day.

The CDHS accepts applications from:

• Incorporated non-profit organizations in Saskatchewan. All incorporated non-profit organizations must:
  • Must have a primarily cultural mandate in Arts, Heritage, Multiculturalism or Cultural Industries as defined by SaskCulture’s Cultural Policy, or otherwise demonstrate significant engagement in cultural activity. If the organization does not have a primarily cultural mandate, the project must be cultural in nature and must engage a wide audience (cannot be internal to the organization).
  • Must be in good standing with Information Services Corporation (ISC) and SaskCulture.
• Unincorporated non-profit organizations or community groups. All unincorporated non-profit organizations:
  • Must have a primarily cultural mandate in Arts, Heritage, Multiculturalism or Cultural Industries as defined by SaskCulture’s Cultural Policy, or otherwise demonstrate significant engagement in cultural activity.
  • Should have a Canadian bank account in the organization’s name: if approved, the grant payment will be paid to this account (a void cheque will be required for confirmation and setting up Electronic Fund Transfer (EFT). If the organization does not have their own bank account, they will need to open an account or partner with a sponsoring organization as described below.
  • Must provide a liability waiver signed by at least two Board/Committee/Decision Makers; and
  • Alternately, an unincorporated organization can partner with a sponsoring incorporated non-profit, First Nation, Tribal Council, Municipality or Métis local who is eligible. Please contact the consultant for more details.
• Urban or rural municipalities, First Nation or Tribal Councils, Métis Locals or Métis Regions in Saskatchewan. (Examples: urban municipality applicant -Town of Kipling; rural municipality applicant - RM of Livingston).
• Museums in Saskatchewan
• Libraries in Saskatchewan.

If you are unsure whether your proposed Culture Days initiatives fits the purpose of this sponsorship, please contact the consultant, and check the list of successful applicants and project descriptions.

Applicants that cannot apply to the CDHS are:

• Organizations receiving Annual Global Funding
• Individuals (Individual artists or cultural workers can be partners in a Hub application); and,
• Schools and post-secondary institutions are ineligible for this grant program. However, schools can be partners in a Hub application.

The arts, heritage and cultural activities must directly address the objectives and priorities of this sponsorship program. All funds are to be used for the benefit of cultural development in Saskatchewan and for residents in the province.

Eligible Expenses include:

• Wages, honorariums, and contract agreements for cultural resource people who are offering their skills and expertise for the term of the project. Sponsorship funds do not replace wages for the core job responsibilities of existing staff.
• Travel expenses for program participants. This includes gas, rental of vehicles, bus transit and airfare. While the primary cultural activities must take place in Saskatchewan, travel outside of the province is eligible if it is to bring resource peoples in locally to conduct work that cannot otherwise be conducted by someone in Saskatchewan;
• Material expenses related to the cultural activity;
• Venue and equipment rental if not provided in-kind;
• No more than 20% of the total sponsorship awarded can support food expenses that are a part of the cultural experience that is being offered for participants. A strong rationale would need to be provided to exceed this amount; and
• Promotional costs;
• All expenses must fall within the indicated start and end date of the grant. Expenses incurred before or after the grant period will not be eligible.

When submitting a proposal, please ensure that only eligible expenses are included. If you are unsure whether your project fits the purpose of this sponsorship, please contact the Culture Days Consultant, and check the list of successful applicants and project descriptions.

The following items are not supported through the CDHS:

• Capital expenses, such as construction, renovations or repairs or purchase of major equipment such as computers, video camcorders, power tools, etc.;
• Cash prizes, gifts, medals, trophies, charitable donations, or the purchase of alcohol;
• Sponsorships, fundraisers or award ceremonies;
• Activity that exclusively promotes definable religious or political viewpoints;
• Contributions of volunteer hours;
• Food or food-related costs are generally ineligible. However, up to 20% of the grant may be used for nutrition if these costs can be directly attributed to the cultural activity;
• Allowances, wages or personal expenses for program registrants and participants;
• Out-of-province travel expenses for initiative participants to attend competitions, festivals, award ceremonies, etc.;
• Contracts with out-of-province cultural workers (unless there is no one in Saskatchewan providing that service);
• Salaries and expenses of existing staff of the applicant organization – except when they are hired to perform the duties of a cultural worker;
• Office and administration fees including utilities, rent and/or rental of an applicant organization’s facilities; and,
• In-kind contributions (donations for food, goods, services, equipment, waiving rental fees, etc.) do not replace eligible expenses.

Contact the Consultant if there is any uncertainty on what is eligible and ineligible.

Applications must be submitted via the Online Grant Platform (OGP) by the deadline.

• SaskCulture will review applications to confirm that basic criteria for the Sponsorship have been met. If a submission does not meet the CDHS criteria, the applicant will be notified. Early submissions can get feedback to help improve unclear aspects in advance of a deadline, but this is not a guarantee of either feedback or funding.
• Only complete, signed and submitted applications will be considered. It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure that their application is successfully submitted.
• As a sponsorship, the applications are reviewed by a staff team working to deliver Culture Days in the province. Applications are reviewed on a first-come, first-served basis prior to the deadline or the Sponsorship fund is depleted. Distribution of funds throughout the province is a key objective of the sponsorship.
• Applicants can expect to be informed of the results within four (4) weeks of their application submission. Dissatisfaction with the results of a sponsorship assessment, either with the denial or with the amount of funding awarded, does not constitute valid grounds for appeal.
• Successful applicants receive 100% of their total sponsorship allocation upon approval.

Once your organization has been approved for a grant, applicants will:

• Use the funds for the funded project as part of the three weeks Culture days celebration.
• Hubs are asked to submit a simple Follow-up Report within 45 days of the end of Culture Days. This information helps SaskCulture report on the use of Culture Days Sponsorships funds each year.
• The Follow-up Report Form is available in the Online Granting Platform once the applicant has received the automatic system notification.
• Recognize Culture Days, using the Culture Days logo, as well as Sask Lotteries as the funder where appropriate.

Example:

Logos and promotional materials are available to successful applicants. More information can be found using the following link: https://www.saskculture.ca/programs/funding-programs/logos-and-acknowledgement.

You will receive correspondence stating that your application has been denied funding for this particular funding program. While all decisions are final, this news should not deter you from applying for future funding opportunities.

• Review the funding program criteria and determine how your application might better address the priorities. If your project’s objectives do not line up with the criteria of the funding program, take the opportunity to explore other options.
• Check your project budget and ensure that your costs are realistic based on your intended outcomes.
• Connect with the Culture Days Consultant to discuss ideas and/or changes needed for success. If the Consultant feels your project still has potential, adjust your application and try again at a different deadline or for a different fund.