Applications

The Werklund Foundation is built upon a family's values and beliefs. The Werklund Family recognize the value of leadership education and consider investing in our youth a responsibility.

Werklund Foundation Funding Guidelines

The Foundation’s current focus is to support charities to reduce barriers and create opportunities for youth (ages 9 to 22) to obtain skills they need for their future including:

• practical skills for jobs
• life skills to prepare youth for independent living
• social and emotional learning
• leadership skills
• skills in civic and community engagement

"Youth" is best understood as a period of transition from the dependence of childhood to the independence of adulthood. We recognize that youth is therefore a more fluid category than a fixed age-group. However, age is the easiest way to define this group.  As a Foundation, we hope to inspire youth to realize their full potential at an early stage in their development and are therefore focused on young people between the ages of 9 and 22 years.

Grant Streams

 We currently offer three grant streams within our area of focus.

1. One-Year Program Grants up to $25k for existing programs working directly with youth with demonstrable outcomes.
2. One-Year Innovation Grants up to $25k for charities trying a new approach. Charities will be able to: show evidence of the need for the innovation; demonstrate the innovation is not duplicating existing work; and demonstrate the predicted outcomes of the new approach.
3. Multi-Year Impact Grants are for organizations with demonstrable and sustainable social impact.  These grants support charities to go beyond what is currently possible–to deepen their social impact or to scale proven results–not simply to maintain what has been done. The funding is unrestricted and may be used to build the charity’s capacity to deliver services and measure the effectiveness of the work.

Eligibility Criteria

All applicants for each grant stream must meet the eligibility criteria; please read through this carefully before applying.

1. Registered Charity with a CRA charitable number.
2. Work is in Alberta or, in the case of regional/national charities, offers programs in Alberta.
3. Work must meet the Foundation’s current funding priority to reduce barriers and create opportunities for youth (ages 9 to 22) to obtain skills they need for their future including: practical skills for jobs; life skills to prepare youth for independent living; social and emotional learning; leadership skills; skills in civic and community engagement.
4. Charities must be able to demonstrate social impact.

Once you have established your charity meets the eligibility criteria, application guidelines can be found for each funding program below. 

Application For One-Year Program Grants

Program grants are for existing programs working directly with youth with some demonstrable outcomes. Typically, these grants are for up to $25k per year; charities are encouraged to ask for the amount they genuinely need. The deadline for submission July 14^th 2023. Applications will be considered by the Foundation Donation Committee in November and decisions communicated to all applicants by December 1st. Charities are invited to send their applications to kathleen.newson@werklund.com

Before starting an application, please ensure that your charity meets the Eligibility Criteria. The application must provide the following information:

1. Name of organization
2. CRA charitable number
3. Contact details (contact name, address, email, telephone)
4. Brief description of organization (mission, vision, specific area of focus)
5. Link to website if applicable
6. Description of the program you are requesting funding for
7. The age and numbers of youth impacted by this work
8. Describe the outcomes of the program. If your request for funding is successful, you will be asked to report on these outcomes.
9. Amount of funding you are requesting from the Foundation and the rationale for the amount.
10. If your application is for partial funding of a program, indicate the proportion you are asking for the from the Foundation and the status of funding sought from other sources.
11. Include a bio of your Executive Director/CEO and bios of your directors (if this information is available on your website, you can provide the link).
12. Please tell us about any existing or prior relationships with any member of the Werklund family, the Werklund Foundation or the Werklund group of companies.
13. Attachments: Please include your latest financial statements and annual report.

Application for One-Year Innovation Grants

Innovation grants are for charities trying a new approach with evidence of need for the innovation. Charities will demonstrate the predicted outcomes, and that the innovation is not duplicating existing work. Typically, these grants are for up to $25k per year; charities are encouraged to ask for the amount they genuinely need.  The deadline for submission is July 14^th 2023. Applications will be considered by the Foundation Donation Committee in November and decisions communicated to all applicants by December 1st. Charities are invited to send their applications to kathleen.newson@werklund.com.

Before starting an application, please ensure that your charity meets the Eligibility Criteria. The application must provide the following information:

1. Name of organization
2. CRA charitable number
3. Contact details (contact name, address, email, telephone)
4. Brief description of organization (mission, vision, specific area of focus)
5. Link to website if applicable
6. Description of the program you are requesting funding for
7. The ages and numbers of youth impacted by this work
8. Describe how this work is different to what already exists in the field.
9. Describe the intended outcomes of this program, ideally in a theory of change.  If your request for funding is successful, you will be asked to report on your intended outcomes. We appreciate these outcomes may evolve as the work develops and we are interested in your learning.
10. Amount of funding you are requesting from the Foundation and the rationale for the amount.
11. If your application is for partial funding of a program, indicate the proportion you are asking for the from the Foundation and the status of funding sought from other sources.
12. Include a bio of your Executive Director/CEO and bios of your directors (if these exist on your website you may indicate this and insert the link).
13. Please tell us about any existing or prior relationships with any member of the Werklund family, the Werklund Foundation or the Werklund group of companies.
14. Attachments: Please include your latest financial statements and annual/impact report.

If you would like to discuss your application, please email Kathleen to set up a short conversation. Please ensure that you have read through all the information on the website to enable an informed discussion.

• kathleen.newson@werklund.com