According to a Jan. 22 news release, the 2SLGBTQIA+ Community Impact Grant program “will provide flexible funding to help strengthen the capacity, stability and long-term impact of community-based organizations … that serve 2SLGBTQIA+ Nova Scotians.”
The new funding program is part of the province’s 2SLGBTQIA+ Action Plan, which was released earlier this month. The plan will address equality issues, as well as confront the community’s lack of trust in the province’s justice system.
Under the funding program, community-based organizations can apply for up to $25,000 per project, “with $150,000 available in total.”
“The grants will support core and administrative costs, helping recipients do their work, grow sustainably and better serve underrepresented and underserved communities, including those in rural areas,” states the news release.
To be eligible, an organization must be a registered charity or not-for-profit; have a “primary mandate or sustained focus” on serving 2SLGBTQIA+ communities; have 2SLGBTQIA+ leadership at the staff or board level; show that the funding will strengthen its community impact; and demonstrate collaboration or “intersectional approaches” to equality and inclusion.
Nova Scotia Justice Minister and Attorney General Scott Armstrong said the investment “reflects [the province’s] commitment to moving from planning to action.”
“By supporting the organizations that serve and advocate for 2SLGBTQIA+ communities, we are helping to build a province where everyone feels safe, respected and able to fully belong,” said Armstrong, who is responsible for Nova Scotia’s Office of Equity and Anti-Racism.
As for the 2SLGBTQIA+ Action Plan, it has been described as a “co-ordinated road map to advance equity, improve access to services and supports, and build safer, more inclusive communities.”
The 2SLGBTQIA+ community includes those who are gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, two-spirit and who identify as queer or use other terms related to gender or sexual diversity.
The action plan is the result of responses from 448 survey participants, as well as more than 200 who took part in engagement sessions. Among other things, they reported facing barriers to accessing justice services in the province. With this, the plan commits to advancing training for police, corrections officials and victims’ services staff in efforts to “reduce bias and improve safety.”
According to a past provincial government news release, 2SLGBTQIA+ people made up somewhere between 10 and 20 per cent of the province’s population as of 2023. A Statistics Canada report from 2022 found Nova Scotia, Yukon and B.C. to have the highest proportions of transgender and non-binary people in the country.
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