Canada Environmental Science Opportunity – Stream 3: Research & analysis to support Canada’s path to net zero │ Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC)

Funding under Stream 3 is available through the Climate Action and Awareness Fund which is administered by the Environmental Damages Fund (EDF). More information regarding eligibility, past projects, and the EDF is available here.

Theme 3A: Identifying future considerations of GHGs and air pollutants in achieving net zero

Funding: Applicants must request between $500,000 to $2 million (over a maximum of 5 years) from ECCC in the application budget to be eligible.

Eligibility: Eligible applicants must be Canadian not-for-profit organizations and must fall under one of the following categories:

• Non-governmental organizations (e.g., think tanks and research-based institutions, including registered charities, Indigenous research organizations, environmental community groups, etc.)
• Universities and academic institutions (e.g., community colleges, Indigenous Institutes, CÉGEP)

Research

For projects related to advancing research and development related to future GHG emissions and air pollutants’ impacts on climate, air quality, and achieving net zero in Canada.

Priority

Priority will be given to projects that:

• Examine trends of GHG emissions and air pollutants and their cross-influences on climate and air quality
• Improve simulations of climate impacts from disturbance-related emissions (e.g. forest fires, permafrost thaw, land-use changes)
• Inform our understanding of how atmospheric chemistry in urban and background or rural sites will change in the future, particularly with the impact of climate forcers on air quality

Theme 3B: Examining impacts of technologies and obstacles on pathways to reach net zero

Funding: Applicants must request between $500,000 and $2 million (over a maximum of 5 years) from ECCC in the application budget to be eligible.

Eligibility: Eligible applicants must be Canadian not-for-profit organizations and must fall under one of the following categories:

• Non-governmental organizations (e.g., think tanks and research-based institutions, including registered charities, Indigenous research organizations, environmental community groups, etc.)
• Universities and academic institutions (e.g., community colleges, Indigenous Institutes, CÉGEP)

Research

For projects that advance research and development related to mitigation actions, technologies, and overshoot pathways on the road to net zero in Canada.

Priority

Priority will be given to projects that examine the efficacy of different technologies, actions, and practices (including the development and testing of measurement tools) for achieving net zero. The results should aim to enhance the understanding of viable actions and technologies to reach net zero in a Canadian context.

Priority may also be given to projects that identify and assess risks of multiple overshoot pathways, or the scale and feasibility of necessary Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR).

Theme 3C: Enhancing emissions data to evaluate net zero progress

Funding: Applicants must request between $500,000 to $2 million (over a maximum of 5 years) from ECCC in the application budget to be eligible.

Eligibility: Eligible applicants must be Canadian not-for-profit organizations and must fall under one of the following categories:

• Non-governmental organizations (e.g., think tanks and research-based institutions, including registered charities, Indigenous research organizations, environmental community groups, etc.)
• Universities and academic institutions (e.g., community colleges, Indigenous Institutes, CÉGEP)

Research

For projects related to advancing research and development related to enhancing measurement, monitoring, reporting, and verification (MMRV) of GHG and air pollutant emissions to support national inventories and/or evaluate progress towards Canada’s emission reduction goals.

Priority

Priority will be given to projects that explore methods to improve the quantification of emissions from: sectors such as oil and gas, waste, and healthcare; agricultural practices; human management of natural landscapes (e.g., forest management); or refrigerants. The results should aim to enhance the quality of information used to estimate and report Canada’s national inventories of GHG sources and sinks.

Priority may be given to projects that address gaps in emissions data, such as providing emission factors for biofuels.