The Science Communication Skills grant (pilot) supports organizations providing science communication skills training to students, fellows, and faculty in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) from Canadian postsecondary institutions. Promoting science and understanding how scientific inquiry works are critical to a vibrant science culture in Canada. Improved science communication increases science literacy, the appreciation of science in Canadian society, and the role of science in evidence-based decision making, while countering science-related misinformation.

Training supported by the pilot grant will educate students and researchers in STEM on how to effectively communicate science to the public.

NSERC encourages organizations to consider the needs of official-language minority communities in their area while developing activities, and to strive to have official documentation and promotional materials available in both official languages.

Eligible activities include

• training workshops in science communication skills
• mentorship activities
• conferences, symposia or webinars
• development of resources in tandem with delivery

Funds may be used for new activities or for improvements to content or delivery of existing activities. Training linked to course-work requirements (i.e., degree or diploma programs) is not eligible.

If you are a Canadian

• registered non-profit organization
• postsecondary institution
• non-federal museum or science centre

you can apply for the pilot grant. You should have experience in science communication skills training.

Your application must involve delivering such training to a relevant audience — students, fellows, and/or faculty in STEM from Canadian postsecondary institutions. The training in communication skills should be broad rather than restricted to a single advocacy issue.

You may request up to $20,000 in funding for a 1-year period.

You can receive funding only once through this pilot. If you are successful in receiving funding, you will not be eligible to re-apply in a subsequent competition.

You may receive additional funding and in-kind contributions from other sources, which must be detailed in the application.

Grants can be used to cover operational costs, such as salaries, travel, materials, supplies or translation, as long as these are for training in science communication skills. Travel, meals and accommodation for participants in the activity are also an eligible expense. However, grants may not be used to support research.

Submit your application electronically via the Secure Submission Site for NSERC’s Innovative Collaborations and Science Promotion Programs. Applications that are submitted by means other than the Secure Submission Site will not be accepted. For both the Program and Competition selection dropdowns, select Science Communication Skills. Combine all the parts of your application into a single document in Portable Document Format (PDF).

Material or updates to your application received separately (before or after the deadline date) will not be accepted.

Your application must include:

• Application Summary Form
• Proposal
• Budget
• Budget justification
• Explanation of any relationship and/or overlap, conceptual or financial, with other NSERC grants or federal funding held by your organization
• Proof of registered non-profit status
• Terms and Conditions of Applying Form
• Letters of support (up to two total)
• Environmental Information Form (Appendix A) (for proposals with potential environmental impact)

The proposal (up to four pages maximum) must include:

• an executive summary of up to 150 words describing the nature and goals of the activity, the target audience, and an overview of how NSERC funding would be spent
• a description of the training activities under headings corresponding to the selection criteria: Organization, Quality of the activity, and Impact and reach, with subheadings corresponding to the indicators to measure these criteria
• the planned approach for promoting participation from a diverse group of trainees (including from under-represented and disadvantaged groups) while taking into account equity in trainee recruitment and ensuring that training activities are inclusive. This should be discussed under the heading “Quality of the activity.”

NSERC is acting on the evidence that achieving a more equitable, diverse and inclusive Canadian research enterprise is essential to creating the excellent, innovative and impactful research necessary to advance knowledge and understanding, and to respond to local, national and global challenges. This principle informs the commitments described in the Tri-Agency Statement on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion.

Inclusive training consists of activities in which all people are respected and have access to the same opportunities, and where each individual — including those from under-represented and disadvantaged groups — can reach their full potential, unimpeded by inequitable practices. All organizations must commit to implementing specific actions that acknowledge and address barriers to participation (such as physical, procedural, visible, invisible, and unintentional barriers) in order to broaden access to the largest pool of potential participants and to improve the impact of training.

The budget should include:

• projected revenues for your activity (break down income by source: for example, NSERC, federal government, provincial government, private sector, foundations, self-generated, postsecondary institution, etc.)
• anticipated expenses of your activity (break down expenses by expenditure: for example, salaries, equipment, materials and supplies, travel costs, publicity, etc.)
• estimated in-kind contributions (salaries, equipment, space, etc.), clearly indicated and included as a separate category
• justification for each budget item (indicate any priorities for funding) — one page maximum
• explanation of any relationship and/or overlap, conceptual or financial, with other NSERC grants or federal funding held by your organization — one page maximum

For further details on the eligibility of expenses, see the Use of Grant Funds section of the PromoScience Grants Guide, which will be used for this pilot. The information in this guide may change without notice.

You must submit proof of non-profit status, which may be a certificate of incorporation, audited financial statement or notification of registration. Such proof is not required for applications from postsecondary institutions.

Before you submit your application to NSERC, you must read and agree to the terms and conditions listed on the Terms and Conditions of Applying Form. It is your responsibility to retain a copy of the agreed terms and conditions for your records.

Your organization may provide up to two letters to support your application and demonstrate the need for the activity. These may include:

• Letter(s) from the organization/group hosting the activity (e.g., postsecondary institution) to confirm the need for the proposed training
• Letter(s) of commitment to confirm funding agreements or in-kind contributions from outside sources and/or from the host organization (e.g., postsecondary institution)

• If your proposal could have an environmental impact, you must complete the Environmental Information Form (Appendix A). For more information, consult NSERC’s Guidelines on Environmental Review and Assessment.

• Your application must conform to general presentation guidelines set by NSERC. Applications that are incomplete or do not meet the presentation standards may be rejected or be at a disadvantage in the competition. Where page limits are stated, extra pages will be removed. The selection committee will receive only the documents requested by NSERC.
• Do not include link to websites in application documents, including in letters of support. Committee members will ignore any links in documents received.
• Encourage persons providing letters of support to use the presentation guidelines as well. If support letters are not readable, the application may be at a disadvantage in the competition.

All eligible applications will be peer reviewed by the PromoScience/NSERC Awards for Science Promotion Selection Committee. Members are from the science and engineering communication, promotion, and education communities. They are selected on the basis of their stature and expertise, and according to NSERC’s Guidelines Governing Membership of Selection Committees.

The following describes the criteria that the Selection Committee will use to evaluate your submission. Your submission must clearly demonstrate how your proposal meets each specific criterion. Address all indicators and provide all requested evidence in your application.

In your application, use the criteria and indicators as headings and subheadings to structure your proposal.

• Ability of organization and its staff to deliver the proposed activity successfully
• Relevant background of the organization
• Experience of staff in delivering training in science communication skills
• Impact of previous training activities
• Networking
• Examples of sharing best practices with others involved in training in science communication skills
• Financial status
• Realistic budget and justification
• Letter of commitment from outside sources, if applicable
• Ability to raise funds from non-federal sources
• Evidence of sustainability

• Activity design
• Objectives consistent with those of the Science Communication Skills grant (pilot)
• Description of training activity and how objectives will be attained
• Use of evidence-based science communication strategies
• Suitability for intended audience
• Plan for recruiting a diverse target audience
• Approach to ensuring that training activities are inclusive
• Originality/creativity
• Differences from existing activities

• Impact and reach of proposed funding
• Demonstrated need for the activity (including, if applicable, letter(s) from the organization/group hosting the activity (e.g., postsecondary institution))
• Explanation of the added value or benefits that funding will bring to the organization, its activities and, ultimately, its participants
• Quality of the activity interaction(s) and planned participation (number of participants)
• Plan to equip participants for sustained learning and/or practice

NSERC will notify you of the results of the competition by the end of July. Notification is by electronic means; NSERC will not provide results by telephone. Grantees can expect to receive their instalment by mid-August.

You must provide NSERC with a final report on the funded training activities. NSERC will also ask you to administer a survey to participants that will be used in the evaluation of the pilot. You will receive an outline of reporting requirements when you are notified of your grant.

Email: promoscience@nserc-crsng.gc.ca