In 2018, Parliament passed the Canadian Gender Budgeting Act. The Departmental Plans and Departmental Results Reports are being used to fulfill the President of the Treasury Board’s obligations to make public, every year, analysis on the impacts of expenditure programs on gender and diversity.

Each department is responsible for conducting their own Gender-based Analysis Plus (GBA Plus).

The Policy on Results indicates that Program officials, as designated by Deputy Heads, are responsible for ensuring data collection for meeting policy requirements.

All organizations must complete GBA Plus supplementary information tables in departmental plans and departmental results reports on an annual basis.

NSERC is committed to applying GBA Plus to its policies, plans, programs and processes in order to identify and address systemic biases that hinder equitable access to its programs. In addition to maintaining the GBA Plus champion and GBA Plus focal point roles, NSERC builds and sustains internal capacity by operating a GBA Plus Community of Practice. NSERC also maintains a Coordination Table on EDI and associated Programs Subgroup to reinforce effective cross-agency communication and coordination on GBA Plus and EDI issues and initiatives.

NSERC works closely with the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) to implement ongoing initiatives in the Tri-agency EDI Action Plan. Work is governed through an Interagency Committee on EDI.

NSERC has and continues to engage with underrepresented groups to better understand barriers and to collect input on programs and workplace initiatives through the Committee on EDI, a standing committee of NSERC’s Council, as well as through employee-led equity groups. NSERC’s engagement with external committees and internal groups strengthens the agency’s capacity to conduct GBA Plus analyses and to understand differential outcomes and impacts of NSERC programs.

NSERC collects self-identification data from funding applicants and peer reviewers to enable GBA Plus and other EDI-focused analyses using disaggregated data and an intersectional approach. To report publicly on EDI in competition results, NSERC’s website presents interactive dashboards with competition statistics and aggregate self-identification data on the population applying to and receiving funds from NSERC funding opportunities.

Published in 2024, the GBA Plus in NSERC Programs: Summary report presents the main findings and recommendations stemming from GBA Plus applied to fourteen NSERC funding opportunities. It also highlights some of the actions taken by NSERC in addressing barriers identified through this work. GBA Plus helps inform the ongoing modernization of programs and peer review processes in alignment with the principles of the San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA).

NSERC has implemented mandatory GBA Plus training for all staff. This is supplemented with complementary mandatory and optional training on GBA Plus and EDI topics, including training on privacy protocols for staff who access and use the self-identification data for program delivery, analyses and reporting.

NSERC is working with CIHR and SSHRC to update training for members of peer review committees. A comprehensive update of the Bias in Peer Review training module is expected to be published in 2025–26.

An estimated 10 FTEs at NSERC will be dedicated to working on GBA Plus and related EDI and data-related initiatives during the 2025–26 fiscal year. Application of GBA Plus and EDI analysis is embedded in many functions across policy, program development/delivery and operations divisions.

Core responsibility: Funding Natural Sciences and Engineering Research and Training

Discovery Research

The Discovery Research Program collects self-identification data from applicants and reviewers in order to monitor and report the program’s impacts on different groups (i.e., application rates and award rates). To keep the public informed of research funding results, NSERC presents disaggregated data on competition outcomes for funding opportunities through its interactive dashboards.

Recognizing the evolving nature of research, NSERC remains dedicated to collaborating with the research community to strengthen research excellence in Canada. This involves using a GBA Plus lens as part of ongoing efforts to modernize programs and peer review processes, in alignment with research assessment practices and principles set forth in the San Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA).

Research Training and Talent Development

The Research Training and Talent Development Program collects self-identification data from applicants and reviewers in order to monitor and report the program’s impacts on different groups (i.e., application rates and award rates). To keep the public informed of research funding results, NSERC presents disaggregated data on competition outcomes for funding opportunities through its interactive dashboards.

NSERC will collaborate with SSHRC and CIHR to modernize and harmonize talent funding opportunities for Canadian students and researchers.

Research Partnerships

The Research Partnerships Program collects self-identification data from applicants and reviewers in order to monitor and report the program’s impacts on different groups (i.e., application rates and award rates). To keep the public informed of research funding results, NSERC presents disaggregated data on application rates and competition outcomes for funding opportunities through the Self-Identification Data Dashboard in support of equity, diversity and inclusion.

Internal Services

Collaborating with SSHRC and CIHR, NSERC will support the development of the Tri-agency Grants Management Solution (TGMS) implementation phase, including business process harmonization. This cloud-based solution will replace the multiple existing grants management systems of the three federal research granting agencies. The agencies have adopted a client-centric approach to gather user needs and requirements for the new solution through codesign activities. In addition, NSERC will continue to engage with underrepresented groups through internal committees and working groups (e.g., Persons with Disabilities Network) to eliminate barriers and to promote EDI within its workforce.