Deadline: 2-Nov-22
Are you a Canadian youth, aged 13-19 and enrolled in grades 9-12, looking to make a positive difference in your school? Do you have a passion for healthy living? Are you looking for an opportunity to build your skills in teamwork and leadership? If so, this is the opportunity for you!
The Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) is offering grant funding for youth like yourself who have ideas to develop a youth-driven project to improve healthy living in your school. For the purpose of this grant, healthy living is defined as the practice of health-enhancing behaviours, or simply put, living in healthy ways. Healthy living refers to practices that are consistent with supporting, improving, maintaining and/or enhancing health. These practices can include adequate physical activity, limited sedentary time, sufficient sleep, activities that promote mental health, and healthy eating. Healthy living also includes having the physical, mental and spiritual capacity to make healthy choices. In many instances, these three capacities are closely linked, so that a change in one directly affects the other.
Priorities
The Pan-Canadian Joint Consortium for School Health (JCSH) was established by provincial, territorial, and federal governments in 2005 as a means of bringing together two large systems – Education and Health – across the country in order to combine strengths for the wellness and achievement of children and youth in the school setting.
The aim of the School Health Grant for Youth is to support the following four PHAC and JCSH priorities:
- Substance use and related harms.
- Positive mental health and well-being.
- Healthy eating and nutrition.
- Physical activity.
Healthy living projects developed using grant funding must focus on one or more of the above priorities.
Objectives
The objective of this grant is to encourage healthy living through youth-driven and youth-inspired projects that address one or more of the above four priorities. The goal of the funded projects is to help youth gain knowledge, tools and resources to support healthy living. By providing direct funding to youth like yourself, you will be able to define your own goals, develop projects or initiatives that appeal to your peers, and address health issues within your particular school context and environment. This opportunity can also empower you to put your ideas into action while gaining valuable life skills such as leadership, project planning and giving back to your community.
Funding Information
- You can apply to one of three levels of grant funding: $1500, $2500, or $3500.
Guiding Principles
All Applications to the School Health Grant for Youth should be guided by the following principles:
- Youth-driven: Your project must be designed and led by a group of youth. Youth know best about the health and well-being issues that concern and affect them, and have the right to actively participate in identifying emerging health issues that involve themselves and their peers.
- Health Equity, Accessibility, and Inclusivity: Your project should demonstrate how you will take health equity, accessibility, and inclusivity into consideration. Issues related to health and well-being can affect all youth, but may not affect all youth equally or equitably. Health equity means that all youth have a fair and just opportunity to be as healthy as possible. Your projects should be inclusive and accessible for youth who may face systemic barriers to their health and well-being, who have diverse needs, and who may be underrepresented in similar programs.
- Focused on your school: Your project should be designed with your school’s unique realities and needs in mind. For instance, a school in a rural area will have different needs compared to a school in the downtown core of a major city. A school with little to no recreation equipment for students’ use may benefit from a different project compared to a school with a variety of recreation equipment.
- Fun and rewarding: While projects designed through this grant opportunity should focus on healthy living, gaining knowledge, and providing helpful tools and resources, the process should be rewarding and enjoyable for everyone involved – that includes you and your team!
Eligibility Criteria
- Youth who received an invitation to participate in this targeted grant opportunity via a notification from their Government of Canada Youth Council and/or youth-focused organization.
- Youth between the ages of 13-19 and enrolled in grades 9-12.
- Youth must be a Canadian citizen, or be a permanent resident in Canada.
- Youth must not be a federal government employee at the time of applying.
- In order to receive funding from PHAC, youth must have a valid bank account under their name.
- If the youth applicant is below the age of majority in their province or territory, their parent or guardian will need to sign the Application on their behalf.
- Youth who receive funding from PHAC are encouraged to work with a mentor to provide guidance on the proposed project, although this is not mandatory.
For more information, visit https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/health-promotion/childhood-adolescence/programs-initiatives/school-health/grant-youth.html