The Foundation's goal for our Canadian North programme is:
To support research and education projects that enhance Northern peoples' ability to participate in and help shape public policy at any level - local, regional, national or international.
***Please note that the Foundation is no longer considering new or unsolicited grant requests.
The support we provide through the Canadian North Programme has 3 objectives. Projects that deal with one or more of these areas:
- Modern Treaties and
Governance Innovation:
To support northern Aboriginal communities in sharing knowledge, collaborating and designing new laws, regulations or communication tools that flow from or contribute to the development of their modern treaties. - Sustainable Northern
Communities:
To support community-driven research that places local people at the centre of decision-making relating to cultural, economic, environmental or social sustainability. - Emerging Community-builders
and Decision-makers:
To support young northern Canadians, either individually such as through the Jane Glassco Arctic Fellowships or through youth-led organizations, in developing their leadership potential.
By "Canadian North" we mean Nunavut, Yukon and the Northwest Territories, though we will also consider proposals from Northern Quebec (Nunavik) and Northern Labrador (Nunatsiavut).
Additional criteria:
We give preference to projects that meet most or all of these criteria. Funded projects should:
- Be led by northerners;
- Be independent of government;
- Be responsive to identified needs;
- Include traditional (indigenous) knowledge;
- Be inclusive of local people in concept, design, implementation, and communication;
- Be collaborative, ideally involving innovative partnerships and ways of sharing;
- Be publicly available and disseminated; with a commitment to communicate project results broadly, both inside and outside of the local region;
- Be a new and unique initiative, or else build on and enhance an existing initiative;
- Include a capacity building component, ideally involving youth and recognizing knowledge-holders in communities.
Why focus on public policy?
The Gordon Foundation believes there is a direct connection between effective public policy and healthy, sustainable communities. We believe the best way to use our limited resources is to help Northern citizens participate in the policy process.
When we say "public policy" we refer to rules or decisions that govern the day to day lives of communities. Public policy includes our system of laws, regulations, government funding priorities, treaties, agreements, guidelines, or court decisions.
Federal, territorial, and municipal governments develop and implement public policy. International organizations too, including the Arctic Council and United Nations. Increasingly, Aboriginal governments and now hybrid Aboriginal-public governments develop and implement policy.
Public policy affects our everyday lives. It affects how we develop, use and distribute money, people, natural resources, products and services. For example, public policy guides how we educate our children, take care of our land and water, develop our economy, and help poor or sick people.
The Walter and Duncan Gordon Foundation wants to help ensure the following:
- There is broad understanding of Northern public policy issues;
- Northern citizens themselves determine which issues are important; and
- Northern citizens are actively involved in forming public policy - especially citizens whose voices are not normally heard.
The Context
Nunavut, the Northwest Territories, and Yukon have changed profoundly in the past 20 years; and continue to change as:
- Territorial governments take on more province-like powers.
- Aboriginal peoples settle land claims and move towards self-government.
- Northerners participate directly in resource development.
- Aboriginal and Northern public governments have some influence over policies across the circumpolar world.
- Governments in Whitehorse, Yellowknife, Iqaluit, and local communities make more of their own policy decisions, instead of decision-makers in Ottawa.
- Communities increase their capacity to decide their own futures.
- Groups come together under different co-management and joint regulatory systems within and across jurisdictions.
- The NWT and Nunavut Territorial Governments base their decisions, in principle at least, on consensus.
The Gordon Foundation wants to support Northern people and communities in this democratic shift. We see 3 main ways to offer support:
- To support northern Aboriginal communities in sharing knowledge, collaborating and designing new laws, regulations or communication tools that flow from or contribute to the development of their modern treaties.
- To support community-driven research that places local people at the centre of decision-making relating to cultural, economic, environmental or social sustainability.
- To support young northern Canadians, either individually or through youth-led organizations, in developing their leadership potential.
Advisory Circle
The programme benefits greatly from an Advisory Circle, which includes mostly residents north of 60, most of Aboriginal ancestry and all very familiar with public policy issues in the Canadian North.