First Nations Environmental Contaminants Program for communities and organizations south of 60th parallel

For the 2024 to 2025 submission

Important:

1. Knowledge integration and risk communication proposals cannot be combined with a primary research proposal component.
2. Only 1 proposal per First Nation will be accepted.
3. No more than 2 proposals from the same principal investigator or research team will be accepted.
4. FNECP funded projects that are still in progress cannot apply for new or additional funding for the same or similar project until its conclusion, and the project report on the analysis of results has been submitted and approved by the program.

1. Chemical hazards

Below is a list of contaminants identified as of particular concern for the FNECP. Other environmental contaminants of potential health concern to First Nations communities not outlined here may also be included in FNECP research projects if there is documented evidence of these substances being a hazard to human health:

• Persistent organic pollutants monitored under the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (2004-2020).
  • Aldrin
  • Chlordane
  • Chlordecone
  • Dieldrin
  • Dicofol
  • Decabromodiphenyl ether (Commercial mixture, c-DecaBDE)
  • Endrin
  • Heptachlor
  • Hexabromobiphenyl (HBB)
  • Hexabromodiphenyl ether and heptabromodiphenyl ether (c-decaBDE)
  • Hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD or HBCDD)
  • Hexachlorobenzene (HCB)
  • Hexachlorobutadiene (HCBD)
  • Alpha hexachlorocyclohexane (α-HCH)
  • Beta hexachlorocyclohexane- (β-HCH)
  • Lindane
  • Mirex
  • Pentachlorobenzene
  • Pentachlorophenol and its salts and esters
  • Polychlorinated naphthalene
  • Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB)
  • Technical endosulfan and its related isomers
  • Tetrabromodiphenyl ether and pentabromodiphenyl ether (commercial pentabromodiphenyl ether)
  • Toxaphene
  • DDT
  • Perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) and, its salts and perfluorooctane sulfonyl fluoride (PFOSF)
  • PFHxS
  • Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), its salts and PFOA-related compounds
  • Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDD)
  • Polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDF)
  • Short-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs)
• Heavy metals monitored under the Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution Protocol on Heavy Metals (1998–2012) (cadmium, lead and mercury) as well as arsenic.
• Agricultural chemicals such as pesticides, herbicides, insecticides, fungicides, rodenticides, algicides, and fertilizers.
• Pharmaceutical residues in drinking and surface water or traditional/country foods.
• Naturally occurring toxins, such as aflatoxins, mycotoxins and marine biotoxins (in shellfish)

2. Radiological hazards

Radon is a radioactive, colourless, odourless gas occurring naturally as an indirect decay product of uranium or thorium.

Important: Primary research projects focusing on radon exposure assessment and monitoring should provide a letter of support from the Director of Housing supporting the project and expressing a commitment to request and provide funds for radon remediation in homes with radon levels exceeding the Health Canada radon guideline (200bq/m²).

Note: The FNECP program generally does not accept drinking water quality research proposals because drinking water quality is monitored systematically and on an ongoing basis in all First Nations communities by First Nations communities and Indigenous Services Canada. Only very novel and innovative state-of-the-art research project proposals that aim to contribute to the publishable body of knowledge, which cannot be achieved through the existing surveillance structure, may be considered.

1. Mandatory criteria review

Indigenous Services Canada's role is to assess the merit of the proposal against the criteria provided below. All criteria below must be met in order for proposals to move onto the next step in the evaluation process (for example, science peer review).

• Request for funding per proposal for a primary research project must not exceed $125,000 over 2 years (April 2024 to March 2026).
• Knowledge integration and risk communication proposals must not exceed $25,000 per project over 1 year (April 2024 to March 2025).
• Projects must be community-based (that is, First Nations must be the lead on the project).
  • The community, through its representatives, must be involved in the project design, implementation and throughout all stages of the project.
• The lead of the primary research project must partner with a PhD or MSc -level scientist(s) who has a strong background in chemical/biological/radiological exposure assessment, environmental epidemiology and human biomonitoring^{Footnote 4}, and a track record of peer-reviewed publications in the field of the proposed project.
• The lead of the knowledge integration project must have at least a Bachelor's degree in environmental sciences, health sciences or education.
• The lead of the risk communication project must have or partner with an academically trained expert(s) (at least a BSc or MSc -level) with proven experience in conducting risk communication in the field of the proposed project.
• Project outcomes must be linked to the human health impacts or mitigating human health impacts on community members (for example, use results to develop recommendations for health promotion and disease prevention or to support mitigation measures, such as radon remediation). This requirement applies to primary research, knowledge integration and risk communication streams.
• Primary research project proposals must include conventional research methodologies recommended by Health Canada that assess human exposure and body burden of contaminants^{Footnote 5Footnote 6} through an appropriate combination of the following (knowledge integration/risk communication projects are exempt):
  • Sampling of traditional foods, water, indoor air or soil (soil sampling must not pertain to a site risk assessment)
  • An appropriate human health exposure assessment methodology that would enable the examination of a link between environmental contaminants and human exposure. This link is essential to assess potential impacts of environmental contaminants on human health. For example, human exposure assessments focused on traditional foods would require dietary surveys through the administration of a 24-hour dietary recall and a food frequency questionnaire or biomonitoring where appropriate.
• Project must include the integration of local and traditional knowledge.
• A project that has previously received funding from the FNECP must include a summary of the analysis and results from the previous project(s) and, if appropriate, needs to demonstrate how the new proposal builds on previous project results.
• Project proposal must demonstrate how it will report on the implementation and results of the project.
• Project proposal must state which accredited laboratory will be used to analyze samples (knowledge integration/risk communication projects are exempt from this requirement).
• Project proposal must include a letter of support from the leadership of the organization or the community that is applying (for example, Chief, Chief Executive Officer). If 2 or more communities participate in the research project, the partnering communities must provide a letter of support acknowledging the partnership.
• Projects seeking additional funding from external sources must provide a letter of commitment from the funding organization(s).
• Primary research projects focusing on radon exposure assessment and monitoring should provide a letter of support from the Director of Housing supporting the project and expressing a commitment to request and provide funds for radon remediation in homes with radon levels exceeding the Health Canada radon guideline (200bq/m²).
• Project proposal must include all elements outlined in the Proposal template. 

2. Science peer review

If the proposal passes mandatory criteria review, it will then undergo an external science peer review, which will cover the suitability of project design, project team expertise, research methodology, timeframe, budget, etc.

The science peer reviewers will use the following criteria to evaluate each eligible proposal.

3. Community-based merit review

Once the science peer review is completed, a First Nations-led selection committee who have a strong background in environmental monitoring and First Nations health and community issues, will review and assess aspects in the proposal that include community involvement, strengthening capacity, training, traditional knowledge, etc.

The selection committee uses the following criteria to evaluate each eligible proposal.

Once proposals have been evaluated, they will be ranked and funding recommendations will be communicated to the FNECP Secretariat of the Environmental Public Health Division (EPHD), First Nations and Inuit Health Branch (FNIHB) and ISC.

Cover Page

Plain language summary

(Maximum 1 page)

• Give an overview or a story that explains what you want to research.
  • Introduce the question(s) that the project will answer.
  • Why is this important to your community?
  • How is this project linked to environmental contaminants?
  • How is this project linking environmental contaminants to the health of community members?
  • How will the anticipated results of the project help your community?
• What activities are you proposing to do to answer these questions?
  • Who will be involved (for example, youth, males, females, hunters, etc.)?
  • Where and when will the project work be done?
• What are the expected outcomes or results of the project?
• How can the information from this project be useful to others?

Table of contents

Create a table of contents with page numbers. This is a list that includes all the major sections in your proposal. The sections should be the ones in the column to the left.

Community background

(Maximum 2 pages)

This is an opportunity to share information about the community and why this project is important. Please include the following information in this section:

1. Some information on the history of your community (for example, population information, main activities of community members, history of the presence of environmental contaminants, etc.).
2. Explain what makes your community vulnerable to environmental contaminants (for example, past and present industrial activities, dependence on country foods, pesticide use, etc.).
3. How does your community's exposure to environmental contaminants potentially impact health issues in your community (for example, food safety, access to safe drinking well water, altered lifestyles/cultural activities, etc.)?
4. Are environmental contaminants and their effects on health an issue for members of your community (for example, Elders, women, children, etc.)?

Project description

Workplan and timelines

Prepare a table with a list of each activity of the project with an assigned activity number, the timelines for each activity and any factors that might affect timing (for example seasons, availability of resources, migration patterns, etc.).

Project team and partners who will do the work?

• This table should include all individuals who will be involved in the project including their name, affiliation, role within the project and the associated activity number (from the work plan) in which they will be participating. Be sure to list all the partners that will be involved in this project (for example, First Nations, government, agencies, groups, associations, academics, professionals, financial contributors, etc.).
• All scientific project team members and the community project manager/lead/coordinator must provide their resumes or CVs along with a list of relevant publications.

Important: Principal investigator(s) are required to be committed to complete the project. If they have to leave the project because of unforeseen reasons, they must notify the community project manager/lead/coordinator and the FNECP secretariat, find a replacement with the same expertise/experience and provide an addendum to the proposal. The replacement must be acceptable to the community.

Communication and dissemination plan

• Describe in detail how the results will be communicated to the community throughout the project (for example, Facebook, newsletter, a community bulletin, etc.).
• Describe how the results will be communicated or disseminated to other interested parties and decision-makers (for example, funding organizations, other First Nation communities, governments, etc.).
• Describe how the project's results will be communicated regionally, nationally or internationally (for example, peer-reviewed publications, presentations at conferences, etc.).

Note: The FNECP secretariat has to be informed about upcoming scientific publications prepared of funded projects' results.

All scientific publications submitted to peer-reviewed journals, as well as conference presentations, have to acknowledge Indigenous Services Canada (FNECP) as a funding program.

Important: Think of how you will report sampling results (for example, hair, blood, etc.) to research participants. This should protect the confidentiality of individuals.

Project evaluation

• Indicate how the project will be evaluated and by whom. How will you determine the successes and lessons learned?
• For suggestions on how you might structure your evaluation please see the information at the end of this document Suggestions for developing your project evaluation.

Budget

Provide a detailed budget breakdown for core expenditures, administrative/management costs and funding/support from other sources for each year of the project, as well as a total budget for the duration of the project. You should feel free to remove or add budget categories based on your own needs.

Research ethics review

Every human health research project involving First Nations will be required to obtain an approval certificate from at least one ethics review board or committee before receiving funding approval from the FNECP (for example, University research ethics board).

The research ethics review does not need to be completed at the time of application but will be needed before funding can be provided. Your project team will be responsible for this part of the review.

Letter(s) of support from a mandated authority

• Letter(s) of support by a mandated authority (Chiefs, Chief Executive Officer of the First Nations organization or community, etc.) for each community involved in your project should be included in your submission. The letter(s) should be on official letterhead and be signed by an authorized person.
• All successful projects are required to provide a Band Council Resolution from the community leading the project at the time of funding.
• Successful projects might be asked to provide certification documentation for their organization (for example, letter of incorporation, registration number, bylaw, audited financial statements etc.). It is therefore recommended that applicants keep these files nearby in case the project is funded. Communities are encouraged to communicate with their appropriate authorities/community representatives to obtain any approvals needed for their proposed research.

References

Include reference to any documents, publications, or third-party information that you used in writing your proposal. This is a very important part of your proposal as it shows that your research would build on existing knowledge.

Appendices

This could include the following:

• relevant background information (if available)
• relevant project materials that you may have ready, such as interview questions, questionnaires, laboratory quotes, consent forms, etc.

Resumes/CV for each project team member

• Resumes or CVs are required to show that the person conducting the research and the research team members have the knowledge and skills required to successfully run this research project.
• All scientific project team members and the community project manager/lead/coordinator must provide their resumes or CVs along with a list of relevant publications

Sample consent forms

Suggestions for developing your project evaluation

(Not mandatory but very useful)

Example of the social, health and lifestyle questionnaire

The social, health and lifestyle questionnaire below is derived from the First Nations Food, Nutrition & Environment Study (FNFNES), and can be used/modified as needed.