Broaden your knowledge of international trade and ask our guest experts your questions.

Virtual activities and content
The speech will be delivered in English only.
Wednesday, January 26, 2022 from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m.

Topics discussed in this International Meetings webinar

Join us on January 26 at 10 a.m. (ET) for a free webinar and learn more about the ecosystem of the United Nations (UN). Every year, the UN procures a significant volume of goods and services to support missions around the world, in every sector from agriculture to sustainable energy. Most UN programs are delivered by UN country offices and are often implemented by national authorities in the recipient country. All UN aid is untied and open to Canadian entities.

Come and learn more about the criteria and principles to qualify under UN standards.

Learn more about the International Development Market

Aid agencies and the International Financial Institutions (IFIs) market provide billions in financial assistance to over 100 developing countries. This results in hundreds of projects approved annually and over $50 billion in potential business opportunities in emerging markets.

A unique opportunity to:

• Understand the UN procurement process;
• Learn about the evaluation criteria;
• Understand the vendor registration procedures;
• Identify how to find business opportunities in the various agencies of the UN.

LEARN MORE AND REGISTER HERE

2022 is your year! The upcoming Winter 2022 cohort of Evolution marks an exciting milestone – our 25th edition! Since we’ve started this program, game-changers like Milksta, BreatheSuite, & Seaformatics got their start with our 8-week accelerator. Evolution helps you to:

• Clarify your company’s unique value proposition.
• Understand your target market & potential revenue streams.
• Get connected with experienced mentors.
• Identify your first customers and early adopters.
• Learn how to pitch your idea effectively

The criteria for applying with your business idea:

• Technology-based
• Have identified a problem you want to solve and want to validate your solution
• Have less than $1M in annual revenues (pre-revenue companies are encouraged to apply)
• Have yet to develop a minimum viable product

Deadline to submit your application is January 21st, with sessions starting early February. Don’t wait, apply today!

APPLY

Heads up! The revised third intake period of the ERF Onshore Program will open next week, on January 19, and remain open until 8:00 PM (EST) on March 31, 2022.

As announced by Minister Wilkinson, the third intake period of the Program will include the following changes to pull forward high impact projects:

• Only proposed projects that fully eliminate the intentional routine venting and flaring of methane will be considered;
• Strengthened criteria to ensure that the ERF is funding projects that provide the greatest return on investment from an emissions reductions perspective; and
• Greater transparency to ensure that projects demonstrate emissions reductions that are incremental to Canada’s methane regulations.

Stay tuned to our website for more details and get ready to start reducing!

The Green and Inclusive Community Buildings (GICB) program aims to build more community buildings and improve existing ones – in particular in areas with populations experiencing higher needs – while also making the buildings more energy efficient, lower carbon, more resilient, and higher performing.

This five-year $1.5 billion program will support green and accessible retrofits, repairs or upgrades of existing public community buildings and the construction of new publicly-accessible community buildings that serve high-needs, underserved communities across Canada.

Applicants with small and medium retrofit projects to existing community buildings ranging in total eligible cost from $100,000 to $3 million will be accepted on a continuous basis and funded on a rolling intake basis.

More information

Transport Canada announced a request for proposals (RFP) on Buyandsell.gc.ca. The objective of the RFP is to solicit marine demonstration projects that will:

• advance and demonstrate the technological and/or commercial readiness of Zero Emission Propulsion Systems (ZEPS) for Canada’s domestic vessels;
• characterize ZEPS performance and benefits (e.g. fuel consumption reduction, operational and maintenance costs, potential for commercial sustainability);
• identify technical, regulatory or codes & standards barriers to the adoption of ZEPS for Canada’s domestic fleet, including associated fuel infrastructure, and recommend potential mitigations/solutions; and
• advance publicly-available science, research and knowledge about ZEPS in Canada.

More information

Through the Zero Emission Transit Fund, the Government of Canada is investing $2.75 billion over five years, starting in 2021, to support public transit and school bus operators plan for electrification, support the purchase of 5,000 zero emission buses and build supporting infrastructure, including charging infrastructure and facility upgrades.

What types of projects will be funded under the Zero Emission Transit Fund?

There are two Zero Emission Transit Fund components under which projects are eligible for funding:

• Planning and Design Projects: Eligible projects include studies, modelling and feasibility analysis that will support the development of future larger scale capital projects.
• Capital Projects: Eligible capital projects include buses, charging and refueling infrastructure, and other ancillary infrastructure needs.

Who can apply?

Eligible recipients under the Zero Emission Transit Fund include provinces and territories; municipal or regional governments; transit agencies; public bodies (e.g., school boards); private-sector school bus operators; and private accessible transit transportation providers (e.g., paratransit services).

More information

The Smart Renewables and Electrification Pathways Program (SREPs) provides up to $964 million over four years for smart renewable energy and electrical grid modernization projects.

SREPs will provide direct financial support to eligible renewable energy and grid modernization projects during the construction phase. Projects must use market ready technologies and apply workplace equity, diversity, and inclusion components.

REPs can support projects under the following streams:

• Established Renewables (examples: solar photovoltaic, onshore wind, small hydro)
• Emerging Technologies (examples: geothermal, energy storage)
• Grid Modernization (examples: micro-grids, virtual power plants, and hardware/software to enable grid services)

SREPs also offers a Capacity Building Stream to support the equitable transition to a cleaner electrical grid, helping communities and organizations acquire the knowledge and tools needed to develop renewable energy and grid modernization projects.

More information

This call for proposals under the Energy Innovation Program will target industrial fuel switching and production of clean fuels for use in hard-to-abate sectors, focusing specifically on three technology areas.

Focus area 1: industrial fuel switching

This focus area supports projects that have the potential to enable the substitution of lower carbon fuels or feedstock (including electricity, hydrogen, biomass, biofuels, and gaseous fuels) in the following industrial sectors: chemicals and fertilizers, iron and steel, smelting and refining, and cement. Completed projects are expected to achieve the following broad objectives:

• Understand properties of lower carbon fuels and their impact on existing industrial processes and systems.
• Advance innovative technologies or processes that enable the future uptake of lower carbon fuels, including retrofit or redesign required to adapt to the substitute fuels.
• Use lower carbon fuels or feedstock in existing industrial processes to reduce energy intensity and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

Focus area 2: clean fuels production

This focus area supports projects for the pre-commercial development, advancement, and piloting of technologies that reduce the capital and operating costs of producing clean fuels. Completed projects are expected to achieve the following broad objectives:

• Develop new clean fuels production processes.
• Improve the process and efficiency of clean fuels production using advanced feedstock.
• Advance the usability of waste or underutilized feedstock.

Focus area 3: hydrogen codes and standards

This focus area supports projects that advance knowledge towards the development of codes and standards related to the production, transportation, storage, and utilization of hydrogen. Completed projects are expected to achieve the following broad objectives:

• Advance knowledge towards the update, harmonization, and/or development of codes and standards for the production, transportation, storage, and utilization of hydrogen.

More information