U.S. Talent Program for the U.S. Embassy and Consulates in Canada

The U.S. Department of State's Embassy Ottawa is soliciting applications for a cooperative agreement to connect U.S. citizen subject matter experts, artists, cultural professionals, and athletes with Canadian audiences on strategic topics, with an application deadline of July 31, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. EDT. One award of approximately $100,000 to $200,000 will be made for a 24-month performance period beginning October 1, 2026.

Eligible applicants are not-for-profit organizations, think tanks, civil society organizations, and public and private educational institutions; for-profit entities are ineligible, though organizations may sub-contract with other entities provided only one nonprofit entity serves as the prime recipient. All applicants must obtain a Unique Entity Identifier and maintain active SAM.gov registration.

Programs will be conducted in-person (typically two to seven days) or virtually, addressing U.S. Mission to Canada strategic priorities in U.S. prosperity and economic security, defense, border security, freedom of speech, and artificial intelligence. Grantees must identify and recruit U.S. citizen experts and propose how to deliver programming through both in-person and virtual modalities. The U.S. Embassy retains final approval authority over all substantive and programmatic elements.

Applications are evaluated on quality and feasibility (30 points), organizational capacity and prior grant performance (30 points), project planning ability (20 points), budget (10 points), and monitoring and evaluation (10 points). Applicants must submit mandatory federal forms (SF-424, SF-424A, SF-424B), a proposal not exceeding seven pages, a detailed line-item budget with justification narrative, key personnel resumes, letters of support, proof of nonprofit status, and proof of SAM.gov registration. Recipients must comply with federal regulations including those addressing trafficking in persons, drug-free workplace, debarment and suspension, and anti-discrimination laws, and must provide quarterly financial and program progress reports with monitoring and evaluation data.

The funding is available under CFDA 19.040, Public Diplomacy Programs.