What is the EDI Student Initiatives Fund?

The EDI Student Initiatives Fund at the Faculty of Information supports recognized student groups with facilitating equity-based initiatives and projects to help advance EDI within the Faculty for the betterment of the student community and the Faculty as a whole.

Student initiatives and/or projects may be eligible for up to $2,000 in funding.

Examples of past initiatives and/or projects include:

  • Black Digital Humanities Speaker Series: a speaker series aimed at showcasing projects working within the intersection of Black Studies and technology
  • Dis/Usability: a speaker series on tech and disability justice
  • iConference 2023: a conference focused on information activism, or, more broadly, the role that activism can take in shaping information spaces and GLAM (Gallery, Library, Archive, and Museum) institutions

Eligibility

  • Any student currently registered at the Faculty of Information is eligible to apply
  • Accessibility, Black, Indigenous, racialized, LGBTQ+, and faith-based groups will be prioritized

How to apply

Complete the Student Event/Initiative – Funding Request Form to submit your proposal to the Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Unit.

Deadlines

Applications must be submitted by either of the following deadlines:

  • November 14th of each year-Fall Semester Deadline
  • February 28th of each year -Winter Semester Deadline

Late or incomplete applications will not be considered.

Post-initiative impact report and record-keeping

Confirmation of budget approvals, along with a full budget report, must be submitted with all payment requests. For all expense reimbursement requests, award holders are responsible for keeping and submitting original itemized receipts for all expenditures incurred.

Fund grantees are responsible for submitting a post-initiative impact statement no later than 30 days after the initiative to EDIU.ischool@utoronto.ca. The impact statement/ summary/reflection should not exceed 300 words and could include the following:

  • pictures
  • participant feedback
  • any other forms of documentation that captures the impact of your initiative and/or project

Student work and initiatives

On occasion, the Faculty of Information will share, use, exhibit, display, broadcast, and distribute images/stories of student work completed in an initiative/event/symposium etc. in connection with the activities of the Faculty for promoting, publicizing, or explaining the activities of the school. Should you wish to ‘opt out’, please contact EDIU.ischool@utoronto.ca. Otherwise, your participation in this initiative grants the Faculty permission to publish such images in PR/promotional materials such as marketing, advertising, fundraising, and any other Faculty-related publication. These images may appear in a wide variety of formats including not limited to social media, website and print.

Questions? Please contact us by email at EDIU.ischool@utoronto.ca