Funding intelligence · Alberta & Canada · June 2026

The Family
Funding Map

Every grant, loan, and program the family can realistically apply for — across books, the farm, home goods, dome homes, digital ventures, and the band — with amounts, eligibility, deadlines, and how to apply. Built around one decisive advantage: Métis citizenship.

Who can apply for what

Profiles &leverage.

Eligibility splits along a few lines in this family. Knowing which person anchors each program is the difference between wasted applications and funded ones.

Jonathan

Non-Indigenous · open programs + the band

Anchors any program open to all Canadians/Albertans, co-owns ventures, and is in the band. Strongest solo levers:

  • Futurpreneur (if under 40) — up to $75K + mentorship
  • Community Futures (rural Lakeland) — up to $150K
  • CSBFP bank-guaranteed loan — up to $1.15M
  • FCC / AFSC / CALA farm financing for land & livestock
  • Free: Business Link + Digital Economy Program

Wife & Daughter

Métis (citizenship in progress) · unlocks a second tier

Métis citizenship opens the highest-value, lowest-barrier money in the map — much of it non-repayable:

  • Canada Council "Creating, Knowing & Sharing" — up to $100K (books)
  • AFA Indigenous Arts — up to $18K, non-repayable (books)
  • Apeetogosan Métis Women Micro-Business — 40% forgivable
  • BDC Inclusive Loan + NACCA women's programs
  • Métis Capital Housing — down payment + retrofit help

⚑ The Métis citizenship gateway — read this first

Programs use two standards of Métis proof. Which one applies decides what you can pursue today vs. what waits for the official Citizen Card.

Tier 1 · Card required

Needs the Otipemisiwak Métis Government Citizen Card in hand

Métis Capital Housing programs and Otipemisiwak/Rupertsland scholarships. "Application in progress" is not accepted — finalize the card to unlock these.

Tier 2 · Self-ID / ancestry

Accept self-identification or proof of ancestry now

Canada Council, AFA Indigenous Arts, Futurpreneur, Apeetogosan. Pursue these in parallel while the card is finalized — no need to wait.

Structure any jointly-owned business 51%+ in the wife's name to anchor Métis business programs. For the band: apply under the current entity now with Brad Harapiak as named applicant — the planned name change is a marketing event, not an eligibility reset, as long as the same FACTOR Artist Profile is kept and the old name noted as "formerly."

The shortlist

Start here,by venture.

For each venture, these are the programs worth pursuing first — drawn live from the database, ordered by fit and value. Full detail for every one is below.

The full database

Every program,filterable.

Filter by venture, by who qualifies, or by what's open now. Click any card for the application process, what to prepare, and the official link.

Venture
Who
Status
Loading the funding database…
Key dates

2026 deadlinecalendar.

Dated opportunities worth putting on the calendar now. Continuous-intake programs (Apeetogosan, FCC, AFSC, CALA, BDC, Community Futures, Business Link) can be started any time.

Honest read

What's real,what isn't.

✕ There is no "land grant"

No program gives a family money to buy farmland. Land = a loan (FCC Young Farmer, AFSC Next Gen, or CALA — which guarantees 95% and explicitly allows land). Cost-share grants come after you're producing ~$25K/yr.

✕ Grants won't print a self-published book

Publisher grants exclude individual self-publishers. But Métis status unlocks Canada Council + AFA Indigenous arts grants that fund creation, production, and marketing — frame the work that way.

✕ Training grants can't pay family

The Canada-Alberta Productivity Grant (and most wage/training money) explicitly excludes owners and family members as trainees. Many arts/community grants (BCAH, CIP, YCW) require a non-profit, not an individual.

✓ Your biggest lever is free

Business Link + the Digital Economy Program give free website, e-commerce, branding, and marketing help for every venture — the replacement for the now-closed CDAP. Start there at zero cost.

✓ Métis + woman = double-qualifying

The wife qualifies for woman-focused and Indigenous programs simultaneously — BDC Inclusive, NACCA/WELF, Apeetogosan Women's Micro-Business. Structure ventures 51%+ in her name.

✓ The band can fund the album now

FACTOR Juried Sound Recording: Album is open to you today (deadline Sept 10, 2026) and pairs with AFA Music ($18K). Apply under the current name with Brad as applicant — keep the FACTOR Artist Profile through the rebrand.

The bigger build

A funding hubin five phases.

This map is the foundation. The repo is scaffolded for a Cloudflare-hosted database + application tracker, and a document repository (business plans, marketing plans, brand voice, and pre-filled applications) per venture.

PHASE 1

Funding Map + DB

66 programs researched, structured as data, deployable on Cloudflare with a tracker.

✓ Built
PHASE 2

thankyougate.ca

Business plan, marketing, brand voice, competitive landscape + drafted Canada Council / AFA applications.

Next
PHASE 3

Farm & Home Goods

Farm plan + loan packages (CALA/AFSC/Apeetogosan); home-goods brand & go-to-market.

Planned
PHASE 4

Domes & Digital

Clean-tech R&D positioning, IRAP/SR&ED framing; the digital/consulting service brand.

Planned
PHASE 5

The Band

FACTOR + AFA Music applications, release/marketing plan, rebrand strategy.

Planned