National Anti-Racism Fund (NARF) Projects Grants 2025-2026

Eligibility

This funding opportunity is limited to one application per eligible organization. If you are interested in applying, please contact Katie Cupello (katie.cupello@ucalgary.ca) no later than August 1, 2025.

Since organizations are limited to a single application, an internal selection process will be implemented if more than one UCalgary principal investigator wishes to apply.

Summary

The Canadian Race Relations Foundation (CRRF) works to strengthen the social fabric of our society by supporting, enabling and convening community groups and organizations through our grants, services, and network of public, research, and community partners. One of the most important ways that the CRRF fights racism in Canada is through our National Anti-Racism Fund (NARF). NARF supports the CRRF's commitments to build a national framework for the fight against racism in Canadian society by strengthening the capacity of racialized communities, religious minority groups, and Indigenous people to carry out their own work to combat racism and create opportunities for meaningful dialogue, learning, and sharing with the broader public.

The CRRF’s strategic priorities – Catalyst for Policy Change and Community Capacity and Knowledge Mobilization – facilitate systemic change that enables all people in Canada to benefit from a society free of racism and mobilizes communities to respond to racism. This includes shifting public policy at the federal, provincial and municipal levels, within the criminal justice and education systems, and other institutions in ways that align with this vision. While a public policy focus is not a mandatory requirement for NARF Projects funding, the CRRF is particularly interested in projects that address gaps in current public policies, offer viable alternatives or solutions that address gaps in public policy, or seek to implement new public policies aimed at dismantling systemic racism and the structural barriers faced by Indigenous, Black, and other racialized communities, as well as religious minority groups.

Projects must be implemented between April 1, 2026, and March 31, 2027.

Program Resources

• NARF Projects Grants Webinar - slides and recording

Submission Process

**Please do not create an individual applicant account in the CRRF application system (SurveyMonkey Apply). As this is an institutional grant, Research Services is responsible for the submission to the funding agency on behalf of the university. We will submit from a central account.

If you are interested in applying, please contact Katie Cupello (katie.cupello@ucalgary.ca) no later than August 1, 2025.

1. Expression of Interest (EOI)

Since organizations are limited to a single application, an internal selection process will be implemented if more than one UCalgary principal investigator wishes to apply. Research Services will provide additional information if needed.

The EOI, plus approval in the Research Management System (RMS) via a Pre-Award/Letter of Intent record, must be submitted to the RSO by August 18, 2025 at 9:00 a.m. Please be sure to select 'Submitted for approval' (under Save & Progress) in RMS in good time to allow for approvals from your Department Head and/or ADR prior to the RSO internal deadline. Consult your department and faculty for more information on their approval processes and timelines.

2. Full Application - by invitation

The Full Application, plus approval in the Research Management System (RMS) using a Pre-Award/Application record, must be submitted to RSO by December 16, 2025 at 9:00 a.m. Please be sure to select 'Submitted for approval' (under Save & Progress) in RMS in good time to allow for approvals from your Department Head and/or ADR prior to the RSO internal deadline. Consult your department and faculty for more information on their approval processes and timelines.

*Creation of a new Pre-Award/Application record in RMS is not necessary. You can automatically generate an Application record from the existing LOI record by changing the status of the LOI record to 'Invited to full application' (under Save & Progress).

Overhead

15%

Pre-application deadlines

RSO internal deadline

Pre-application program deadline

Application deadlines

RSO final internal review deadline

Program application deadline

NOTE: Consult your Faculty Associate Dean (Research) (ADR) regarding Faculty-specific deadlines and submission processes.

Principal Investigators: Complete a Research Management System (RMS) record, including a copy of your complete application, and submit this for approvals in RMS.

Postdocs, students, and trainees: For fellowships and externally-sponsored research training awards or opportunities, you must complete the Research Funding Application Approval (RFAA) Trainee PDF form, and submit it, along with a complete copy of the application, to Research Services at rsotrainee@ucalgary.ca. Trainees should not use RMS at this time.

Approvals: The University of Calgary requires that all funding applications be approved prior to submission. Approval requires signatures via either RMS or the RFAA Trainee form, in the following order:

• Principal Investigator
• Department Head
• Faculty ADR/Dean
• Research Services (on behalf of the Vice-President Research)

Read the Meaning of Grant Signatures policy to understand what your approval means. Please see the agency guidelines for details about which signatures are required on your application, as it may differ from internal requirements.

Late submissions: Late submissions will only be accepted in cases of medical or family emergencies, or other exceptional circumstances. If you submit your RMS record to Research Services after the internal deadline has passed, you must secure additional approvals. Please read: Late Applications Process.

RESOURCES  

Reminder: The sooner the researcher engages with Research Services, the more help we can be! 

Contact the following Research Service units for support with: 

Projects Involving Indigenous Research:
Support with incorporating wise practices in Indigenous research, community engagement, and Indigenous data management is available through the Indigenous Research Support Team (IRST). 

Applicants can reach out by email to IRST at IRST@ucalgary.ca in advance of the RSO internal deadline. For more information about IRST, please visit the IRST webpage. 

Knowledge Mobilization, Research Impact Assessment, DORA:
Support for knowledge mobilization/engagement/translation, community partnerships, research impact, responsible research assessment (DORA), and open science, is available through the Knowledge to Impact team.  

Applicants can reach out by email to the KI team at knowledge.impact@ucalgary.ca.  
For more information and access to resource archives, please visit the KI team webpage. 

Research Data Management:
For information on research data management plans, processes, or best practices for your research program, please contact research.data@ucalgary.ca.    

EDI in Research:
RSO can provide resources and support to research teams on the integration of equitable and inclusive practices in research design and research practice.  

Contact edi.rso@ucalgary.ca for more information. 

Research Security:
The Research Security Division is available to ensure researchers adhere to research security guidelines and policies, including the National Security Guidelines for Research Partnerships (NSGRP) and the policy on Sensitive Technology Research and Affiliations of Concern (STRAC). 

Visit the Research Security website to learn more or contact researchsecurity@ucalgary.ca.  

Pre-Award Submissions: 
RMS: Creating a Pre-Award LOI 
RMS: Creating a Pre-Award Application