Building a High Speed Future funding program

Project Evaluation Criteria

1. Participation in Planning for a High Speed Future workshop

The project must have emerged as a priority following the completion of Planning for a High Speed Future workshop by a group from the community.

Funding proposals from community groups that have not participated in a workshop will not be considered.

2. Proposal funding requirements

There is no minimum funding requirement. The maximum funding available to a proposal will be $25,000. Project partners should provide at least 25% of the proposal’s costs in matching funding/in-kind funding.

For example, if the proposal will cost $15,000 to implement, then community partners should provide at least $3,750 in matching funding/ in-kind funding and submit a proposal requesting no more than $11,250 in funding.

3. Proposed activities

Funding proposals will be accepted for projects that undertake one or more of the following activities:

• Build leadership and collaborative capacity to use broadband to achieve community goals – e.g. build partnerships, develop a collaborative strategy, undertake research
• Develop local online content and services – e.g. develop interactive web content, undertake online networking activities, develop local online services
• Identify Internet-related training needs and provide training opportunities for specific community groups – e.g. business, tourist operators, seniors, young people, new community members, professional groups

4. Evaluation Criteria

Proposals under consideration for funding will be evaluated and scored out of 100 points, in the following way:

• The proposal must demonstrate a community-based, collaborative approach to project implementation. Each proposal will be awarded points for the strength of that collaboration – i.e. for the number of partners, the level of their involvement, and for partner commitments to provide matching funding/ funding in kind - up to 30 points (proposal must score 20/30 points to be considered for funding)
• The proposal should have a clearly defined purpose that meets an identified community need, and its project outcomes should be measurable – up to 20 points
• The proposal should take an innovative approach to solving community challenges using broadband applications – up to 15 points
• Proposal should demonstrate how learning and applications from the project will transfer to other communities – up to 10 points
• The proposal’s objectives and activities should demonstrate alignment with some or all of Nova Scotia’s principles of community development – up to 10 points
• The proposal’s value for money will be a key consideration – up to 10 points
• The proposal’s lead organization must demonstrate a good track record of management in publicly funded projects, and be willing to manage funding and administration requirements for the project – up to 5 points