Grant Info

Freedonia awards grants on an annual basis. The number of grants awarded each year varies (usually between 10 and 20) depending on a variety of factors, including Freedonia’s financial situation, number of applicants, and broader socio-political context. The grants vary in size, and fall into two general categories: 

• Small/Medium Grants ($2000 – $8,000)
• Large Grants ($8,001 – $20,000) 

As a general rule, the larger the grant the more competitive the process. We predominantly award small/medium sized grants, and may only award 1 to 2 large grants in a given year.

To be eligible to apply, groups and/or projects must be based in Canada and engage in work compatible with Freedonia’s mission and values. Within this context, we support projects which: 

• Generate, explore, analyze, and promote practical democratic social and economic models;

• Demonstrate or test models of democratic economic and/or political organization;

• Demonstrate or test approaches to implementing anti-authoritarian social change;

• Enhance ability to generate anti-authoritarian social change through development and expansion of skills, tools, and participation; 

Enhance practical co-operation among groups that share Freedonia’s vision.

All applications are reviewed by the Board of Directors and evaluated based on a predetermined set of criteria. The specific criteria we currently use are as follows: 

• Planning and Approach – The application demonstrates thoughtful planning on how to do the work and the resources required. The project’s approach makes sense for the context, e.g. trying something new or building on something that works.

• Impact – Project demonstrates a positive impact during project and/or after the project ends.

• Community Involvement – The degree to which you are engaging other groups working around similar issues and engaging the broader community.

• Solidarity – The extent to which the group or project centres the people most affected by the problem you are trying to address. The extent to which the project addresses internal barriers to participation.

• Financial Context – The extent to which it is possible for your group to access other sources of funding. Freedonia prioritizes grants that may not otherwise have access to funding.

• Group Capacity – Demonstrating that your group has the skills, ability and capacity to successfully implement the proposed project.

• Compatibility with Freedonia’s Mandate – The extent to which your project builds non-hierarchical, anti-capitalist ideas, approaches and/or infrastructure, challenges oppression and colonialism, and/or builds toward environmental justice.

Additional factors may be considered, including the amount of funding requested, the type of funding requested, and a group’s prior project history, especially projects carried out with Freedonia funding.

Freedonia reviews proposals and awards grants on an annual basis. 

1. Application forms can be downloaded as a Word Document or PDF (standard or fillable), and should be completely in their entirety. Applicants that do not fully complete their application may not be considered for funding. 
2. Applications must be submitted electronically. Please email your complete application to: freedonia@protonmail.com. If for whatever reason it is not possible for you to submit electronically, please email us to make special arrangements.
3. We will send you an acknowledgment that your application form was received, and your application will be directed to the Board of Directors to review. If you do not receive a confirmation of receipt, please get in touch with us.
4. The review and evaluation process takes approximately 3-4 months, and once the process has concluded we will reach out to notify you of the outcome (whether or not your specific application was successful). Due to the volume of applications we receive, we cannot provide individualized feedback or explanations of funding decisions.

Available Downloads:

If you have any questions, please contact us.