Clean Resources Continuous Intake 2025-2026

Eligibility

Applicants:

• Post-secondary institutions are permitted as Lead Applicants.
• The Applicant Representative (Principal Investigator) must be an eligible project holder according to university policies.

Projects:

• Projects can be for either innovation-commercialization or knowledge generation.
• Projects or portions thereof that have received funding or funding approval from other programs at Alberta Innovates may not be eligible for continuous intake programs funding.
• Support can be requested for a new phase of development or demonstration that builds on and sufficiently advances a previously funded project.
• Priority is afforded to technology or knowledge development projects. Technology projects should demonstrate an advancement along the Technology Readiness Level (TRL) scale and are typically within TRLs 3-7. Knowledge projects will be expected to demonstrate potential contributions to improved best practices, operations or policy.
• All projects must demonstrate a clear and justified value proposition in Alberta.

Partners:

• Partners are not required; however, technology development projects must clearly demonstrate that a market exists for commercialization of the technology and knowledge generation projects must clearly demonstrate the value proposition for the end user of the knowledge solution.
• Applicants with strong end-user partnerships and/or funding from other organizations are preferred.

Summary

Clean Resources helps technology developers and industry clients accelerate technology development and deployment, grow their businesses, and enhance the competitiveness of the resource sector. We provide scientific and technical insights to the Government of Alberta (GOA) on energy and natural resource development, agriculture, economic diversification, emission reduction, and water/land policies.

The following technology portfolios/focus areas utilize this continuous intake process:

• Advanced Hydrocarbons: Cleaner Hydrocarbon Production; Innovative Hydrocarbon Products (including Bitumen Beyond Combustion)
• Clean Technology: Bioenergy and the Circular Economy; Carbon Capture, Utilization and Sequestration (CCUS) and Hydrogen; Critical Minerals and Emerging Technology; Renewable and Alternative energy
• Environmental Innovation: Land and Biodiversity; Water Innovation

In addition to specific focus areas, Clean Resources supports projects that can help contribute to progress towards Alberta’s 2030 targets as identified in the Alberta Research and Innovation Framework.

Funding requests are split into two types at the Full Application stage: (i) Low Dollar - projects $200,000 and under; and (ii) High Dollar - projects over $200,000. Evaluation of Low Dollar projects will take approximately 3 months. Evaluation of High Dollar applications will take approximately 4-6 months.

Funding Considerations

• Project funding can be up to and typically does not exceed $2 million per project. The continuous intake programs normally support 25 – 50% of total project costs, with remaining funding from other project partners and other funding agencies (including cash and in-kind support).
• The Clean Resources Continuous Intake Process encourages co-funding of projects with other funding agencies and does not limit the amount of stacking towards the applicant’s contribution.
• All applicants are expected to provide a portion of the funding towards a project, which can include cash and in-kind contributions from project partners or other sources of funds.

Submission Process

This is a continuous intake competition.

There is a two-stage process consisting of an Intake Form/Expression of Interest (EOI) and Full Proposal, which is by invitation only. RSO review and RMS submissions are not required for the EOI stage. Only the Full Proposal stage of this competition will be part of the Research Management System (RMS), and approvals will be obtained electronically. 

1. Intake Form

You must first contact a Clean Resources Project Advisor. To locate the correct Advisor, use the program links provided in Table 1 of the Program Guide.

You must log into the Alberta Innovates online portal to complete the Intake Form/EOI. RSO review and RMS approval are not required at this stage. 

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 at least 3 business days (at 12:00 pm) ahead of submission to Alberta Innovates. 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.

Do not submit to Alberta Innovates until RSO's approval has been granted in RMS. Once this institutional approval has been obtained, the Principal Investigator will receive an automated message from RMS to their @ucalgary email address. You can then proceed with submitting your application via the Alberta Innovates online portal.

Program Resources

• Clean Resources Continuous Intake Program Guide
• Clean Resources Continuous Intake Application Guide

Overhead

Not applicable. Alberta Innovates does not permit overhead and/or indirect costs.

Application deadlines

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 Application