Approved projects submitted as part of the 2021 call for proposals

We’re delighted to announce that 25 new projects submitted as part of the 2021 call for proposals were approved for investment.

We received 67 proposals from museums and heritage organizations across the country. A total of 42 proposals were submitted for Medium and Large Investment funding and 25 proposals were submitted for Small Investment funding.

The 2022 call for proposals opens June 15.

Medium and Large Investments

(Note: Project titles may change)

Investigating Sustainable Forestry: An Examination of Sustainable Forest Management Practices on Vancouver Island

British Columbia Forest Discovery Centre
The fascinating story of Vancouver Island forests is told in many ways by many people. As they explore forest management practices from pre-contact to the present day, visitors will learn about sustainability — what it means, its values, and its practices — and how interconnected economic, social and environmental values affect the sustainability of forests over time. This virtual exhibit is designed to promote informed decision-making towards a sustainable future, from multiple points of view.

Photographer Marie-Alice Dumont (1892–1985)

Musée du Bas-Saint-Laurent
This virtual exhibit focuses on the work of Marie-Alice Dumont, a noteworthy photographer whose career spanned four decades, from 1925 to 1961. Considered one of the first professional photographers in Eastern Quebec, Dumont left behind an invaluable record of the Kamouraska region and, more broadly, of Quebec society itself. The exhibit draws upon the Musée du Bas Saint Laurent’s Marie-Alice Dumont collection and introduces visitors to Dumont’s world in an immersive and interactive way.

Three Timelines in History: Women Artists in the Musée d’art de Joliette’s Collection

Musée d’art de Joliette
This exploration of the Musée d’art de Joliette’s collection, from 1942 to the present day, features works by women artists across three timelines. In addition to showcasing the artistic, social and political advances made by women in this country, the exhibit explores their contributions to the Museum’s own institutional history through significant works from the end of the 19th century to the present day.

Songs and Stories of Forgotten Wartime Service: The Newfoundland Forestry Companies and the Newfoundland Overseas Forestry Unit

Grand Falls-Windsor Heritage Society
This online project celebrates Newfoundland and Labrador foresters who served in the United Kingdom during the First and Second World Wars. Focusing on songs and stories from foresters and others, visitors are treated to a rich, multimedia experience about foresters, war brides, and the socio-cultural and political contexts of the times. The website highlights historical backdrops, wartime contributions, and cultural legacies, and offers insight into this little-known service.

Headwaters to the Salish Sea

Fraser River Discovery Centre
This online project explores the Fraser River, from its headwaters to the Salish Sea. Through videos, audio and images of the Fraser River, visitors will learn about its environmental, cultural and economic significance as one of the world’s largest salmon-bearing rivers. The related learning guide is suitable for students in grades 5 to 9.

Inventing the Sprocket Track: A Matter of Perseverance

Musée de l’ingéniosité J. Armand Bombardier
In his Valcourt, Quebec garage, Joseph-Armand Bombardier devoted ten years of hard work and perseverance to developing the sprocket track system — an invention that would revolutionize transportation. This interactive comic book shows the inventor’s many trials and errors on the way to his ultimate success. The project features an original and captivating approach to teaching young people about the passion that drove Bombardier, while also inspiring them to pursue their own dreams.

La vache! La vache! – Tracking the Métis Buffalo Brigades

Manitoba Métis Federation
This project offers an in-depth, interactive and multimedia exploration of the complexity and importance of the Métis Buffalo Hunt to Canada’s political and economic development. Visitors can also use this virtual exhibit as a tool to enhance their knowledge of the culture and heritage of the Red River Métis.

Being Punjabi: The Unfolding Canadian Story

Museum of Surrey
This project presents the history of Punjabis, in Surrey and across Canada, through raw and compelling stories of struggle and success. The interactive exhibit offers an evolving dialogue of both historical information and ongoing individual contributions, and invites visitors to explore what it means to be Punjabi in Canada – in the past, present and future. In addition, shared experiences will help create an understanding of how Punjabis and other immigrants stood strong against adversity and how, through determination, they changed Canada for the better.

Tse’K’wa: Dane-zaa People from the Ice Age to the Digital Age

Tse’K’wa Heritage Society
This virtual exhibit takes visitors on a journey through 12,000 years, from the earliest occupation of this archaeological site to the present day. Visitors will learn about the Dane-zaa people as they explore the Tse’K’wa landscape. Each stop along the way offers a different type of interaction — listening to ancient stories, seeing artifacts, downloading traditional recipes, and learning the language — allowing visitors of all ages and backgrounds to explore the rich heritage of Tse’K’wa and Dane-zaa culture.

The Digital Guide to Sḵwxwú7mesh Art and Culture

Gibsons Public Art Gallery
The Digital Guide to Sḵwxwú7mesh Art and Culture is designed to educate residents and visitors on the beautiful territory of the Sḵwxwú7mesh, the second largest First Nation in British Columbia. The guide features contemporary Sḵwxwú7mesh art, animations and a series of short videos sharing language, culture and guidance for treating these lands and waters with respect and care.

The Herbier Extraordinaire

Les Amis des Jardins de Métis
Created for elementary school students, the Herbier Extraordinaire is a fun and interactive digital botanical folio that can be completed and coloured on computers, tablets and smartphones. Throughout its pages, students will explore botany, as explained by three of Canada’s most prestigious horticulturalists and botanists, each presenting “their” garden. All content is optimized for easy use in a school setting.

Small investment

(Note: Project titles may change)

Hot Pot and Parking Lots: Immigrant Food Businesses in Agincourt, Scarborough

Toronto Ward Museum
The concentration and emergence of cuisines in the Scarborough neighbourhood of Agincourt reveals century-spanning stories of migration, settlement and survival. The histories of restaurants and other food businesses across this ethnoburb reflect immigrant settlement patterns, as well as the choices and barriers faced by some immigrant groups. From parking-lot shawarmas to hot-pot gatherings, every bite tells a story.

Early Canadian Oncology: Montréal’s Institut du Radium

Atelier d’histoire Mercier-Hochelaga-Maisonneuve
At the beginning of the 20th century, public health measures were sought across Canada to deal with the growing problem of cancer. This virtual exhibit explores the history of Montréal’s Institut du Radium, and early government efforts to combat the disease.

A Look Back at Grantham Hall

Société d’histoire de Drummond
This virtual exhibition allows us to discover the main periods of occupation and the remains of the Grantham Hall estate. By taking an interest in this site, we discover the first decades of the Drummondville colony, when this colonial-style manor house — built between 1843 and 1846 — was frequented by the Canadian bourgeois elite until 1922, the year of its destruction in a fire.

Alone Among the Stars: Aviation in Harbour Grace, NL (1919 to the present day)

Conception Bay Museum
On August 26, 1927, the Pride of Detroit landed at the Harbour Grace airstrip to a welcoming crowd. Local townspeople constructed the airstrip in a mere 20 days specifically for the plane’s landing, and over the coming decades, Harbour Grace would cement its legacy in aviation lore, hosting 20 transatlantic flight attempts. This virtual exhibit tells the story of aviation in this area through archival records, oral histories, and artifacts.

Parc-Falaise: Birth of a Building Project

Société d’histoire de Sillery
Parc-Falaise in Sillery (now a Québec City neighbourhood) was part of an innovative urban plan developed by a team that included Pauline Roy-Robillard, Quebec’s first woman architect. This virtual exhibition explores the history of the 1948 project, designed to help middle-class families become homeowners. Today, Parc-Falaise is a garden city featuring modest homes, a community centre, recreational paths, and parks.

Lured to the Line: Assembling Diversity in Windsor’s Community Neighbourhoods

Canadian Transportation Museum and Heritage Village
Immigration, diversity and culture helped build Windsor-Essex. Automotive jobs attracted workers from far and wide, all hoping for a place on the line and enough money to support a family. Immigrants contributed significantly to the community; today, however, as automotive jobs disappear, immigrants seeking those same jobs face new challenges.

A Century of Arts and Culture: Artists Make History at Val-David

Centre d’exposition de Val-David
Many remarkable artists and artisans have called Val-David home, while also helping to shape a unique cultural community. From the town’s early European exiles to creatives from across Canada and abroad, to local arts organizations and businesses, this virtual exhibit explores the past, towards understanding the present and looking ahead to the future.

The Underground Railroad to St. Catharines: Harriet Tubman’s Canadian Legacy

York University
This virtual exhibit explores Harriet Tubman’s ties to St. Catharines, Ontario, and her influence on Canada’s early Black settlements. Following the 1850 enactment of the Fugitive Slave Act in the United States, Tubman guided freedom-seekers to St. Catharines. Archival photographs, documents and the voices of descendants offer glimpses into the lives of those who arrived on the Underground Railroad and settled in Ontario.

Pandemic Portraits

Fernie & District Historical Society
The years 2020 and 2021 will forever be marked by memories of the COVID-19 pandemic. See the faces of front-line workers within a small British Columbia community, and learn their stories of hardship, triumph, grief and camaraderie during an unprecedented time.

The Giants of Lindsay: William and J.D. Flavelle

Kawartha Lakes Museum & Archives
During the 19th and 20th centuries, towns owed their growth in large part to the actions of dedicated community members who volunteered their time to create better opportunities. This virtual exhibit offers insights into the contributions to Lindsay from one of the town’s wealthiest families, and highlights both the economic strength of rural Ontario and the importance of volunteering.

The Butte à Mathieu ‘’Boite à chansons’’

Société d’histoire et du patrimoine de Val-David
From 1959 to 1976, during the Quiet Revolution, the Butte à Mathieu — the premier coffeehouse outside Montréal — attracted top musical talent to Val-David. From Félix Leclerc to Plume Latraverse, and Clémence Desrochers to Diane Dufresne, Quebec’s biggest stars often got their start at the Butte à Mathieu, before going on to conquer the world.

Family Histories: An Agri-Food and Culinary Legacy

Musée québécois de l’agriculture et de l’alimentation
Every family has a story — a story coloured by tradition and their unique food innovations. This virtual exhibit offers a look at the multifaceted heritage (territory, products, know-how and artisans) of today’s Quebec society, through the foods and culinary practices of its families and cultural communities.

Sharing the Innu Language of Pessamit

Fondation Tekkie-Mamu
The goal of this project, launched by the Fondation Tekkie-Mamu in 2019, is to share knowledge and the Innu language of Pessamit. Within an immersive environment, the Pessamiulnus will be taken on a virtual exploration, in Innu, of memories, stories and the traditional practices of community Elders.

A History of Sport in London, Ontario (working title)

John P. Metras Sports Museum
Following the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 — where London-born athletes took four of Canada’s six gold medals — Mayor Ed Holder declared London the Sports Capital of Canada. This history of sport in London shares images and first-hand accounts from the men, women and organizations involved in all facets of the city’s fabled athletic history.