Gender-based analysis plus

Key actions to be taken to advance the implementation of GBA+ governance within the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) and to build institutional GBA+ capacity are the continuation of the agency’s involvement in equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) through the new Executive Coordination Committee on EDI (created in 2020-21) and the Working Group on EDI (re-mandated in 2020-21).

The Executive Coordination Committee on EDI is the principal mechanism to guide SSHRC’s implementation of the Tri-agency EDI Action Plan, endorse a SSHRC EDI Implementation Plan, and ensure alignment between external and internal GBA+ and EDI initiatives. The committee is composed of seven SSHRC associate vice-presidents, executive directors and directors (or equivalent), representing SSHRC’s four directorates.

SSHRC has reconvened its Working Group on EDI to support and implement SSHRC-specific activities in accordance with the Tri-agency EDI Action Plan and SSHRC EDI Implementation Plan, ensuring effective intra- and cross-divisional/directorate communication and coordination. The working group has one or more representatives from each SSHRC division/directorate.

In addition to these groups, GBA+ departmental capacity will be advanced through information and resources available on a new intranet page for staff (updated in the fourth quarter of 2020-21), implementation of a revised version of a self-identification questionnaire launched in 2018 for funding applicants and merit reviewers, and an annual update to SSHRC’s EDI dashboard. The questionnaire and dashboard are important sources of administrative data on the participation of underrepresented groups in SSHRC’s funding programs.

SSHRC will also continue to implement mandatory training for all staff: Introduction to GBA+; Diversity and Inclusion; and Civility and Respect. Bias in Peer Review is mandatory training for program delivery staff. In addition, new mandatory courses on workplace harassment and violence prevention will begin in 2021-22.

SSHRC administers some programs on behalf of the tri-agencies—the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council and SSHRC—through the Tri-agency Institutional Programs Secretariat (TIPS). Key actions to be taken by TIPS to advance its EDI objectives are to continue to implement and monitor the requirements of the 2019 Addendum to the 2006 Canadian Human Rights Settlement Agreement (a federal court order) for the Canada Research Chairs Program. This work includes requiring participating institutions to set equity targets principally based on Canada’s population within their allocation of chairs (50.9% women, 7.5% persons with disabilities, 4.9% Indigenous Peoples and 22% members of racialized minorities), which will need to be met by 2029. It also involves requiring institutions to implement their own EDI action plans for the program.

TIPS will provide equity training for all members of its tri-agency executive management governance committees and implement action plans related to EDI objectives from the management responses to the program evaluations for the Canada Excellence Research Chairs, Canada 150 Research Chairs and Canada First Research Excellence Fund.

1. The Insight Research program provides grants to researchers and institutions to support research and related activities in the social sciences and humanities. This program builds knowledge and understanding about people, societies and the world, as well as informs the search for solutions to societal challenges.

   Insight Research supports Pillar 1: Education and skills development and its goal, Equal opportunities and diversified paths in education and skills development, of the Government of Canada’s Gender Results Framework through supporting new approaches to research on complex and important topics; and providing a high-quality research training experience for students.

   The program also supports Pillar 2: Economic participation and prosperity and its goal, Equal and full participation in the economy, by mobilizing research knowledge to and from academic and non-academic audiences, with the potential to lead to intellectual, cultural, social and economic influence, benefit and impact.

2. Yes—Through a self-identification questionnaire completed by applicants and merit review committee members, the Insight Research program collects sufficient data for monitoring and reporting impacts (i.e., application rates and award rates) of the program by gender and diversity (persons with disabilities, Indigenous Peoples and members of visible minorities). The same data are used to monitor performance under the Departmental Results Framework, specifically, the demographic indicators found under Departmental Result 2: Canada has a pool of diverse and highly skilled people in the social sciences and humanities. CIHR and NSERC also use this harmonized form to monitor the equity performance of programs and design new measures that achieve greater EDI in the research enterprise.
3. Not applicable (N/A)—The Insight Research program collects sufficient data for monitoring and reporting program impacts by gender and diversity.
4. Ongoing initiatives to expand the program’s capacity to report on impacts by gender and diversity in 2021-22 include SSHRC’s EDI Dashboard and the annual progress report of the Canada Research Coordinating Committee (CRCC). SSHRC’s interactive dashboard, which is updated yearly and published on the website, provides detailed data on applications, awards, success rates and committee member participation for underrepresented groups. The CRCC progress report provides an update on harmonization and coordination of policies and programs across SSHRC, NSERC and CIHR and to address five national priorities, one of which is EDI in research. The report includes analyses of the agencies’ self-identification data.

Canada Research Chairs Program

1. The Canada Research Chairs Program (CRCP) supports the Gender Results Framework’s Pillar 1: Education and skills development and its goal, Equal opportunities and diversified paths in education and skills development, by attracting and retaining a diverse cadre of world-class researchers to reinforce academic research and training excellence in Canadian postsecondary institutions. Through their research programs, chairholders improve Canadians’ depth of knowledge and quality of life, strengthen Canada’s international competitiveness, and help train the next generation of highly skilled people, which supports Pillar 2: Economic participation and prosperity and its goal, Equal and full participation in the economy.
2. Yes—Through a self-identification questionnaire (also a harmonized form used by the tri-agencies) given to nominees at the time of nomination, the program collects sufficient data for monitoring for potential biases in its merit review process (i.e., application rates and award rates) and to report on representation within the program in terms of participation of individuals from the four designated groups (women, persons with disabilities, Indigenous Peoples and members of visible minorities). The same data are used to:
   • report on the program’s representation on its website and in the annual CRCC progress report;
   • actively monitor whether institutions are meeting their equity targets, which are imposed by the program;
   • monitor performance under the Departmental Results Framework, specifically the demographic indicators found under Departmental Result 2: Canada has a pool of diverse and highly skilled people in the social sciences and humanities; and
   • monitor performance outcomes in the program’s Performance Measurement Strategy and TIPS’s EDI Performance Measurement Framework.
3. N/A—The CRCP collects sufficient data for monitoring and reporting on the representation of individuals from the four designated groups within the program.
4. Ongoing initiatives to continue reporting on representation in the program include changes made to the CRCP’s self-identification form in 2020-21. Changes included expanding the question on gender and collecting data on sexual orientation, in order to monitor the representation of individuals from the LGBTQ2+ community in the program and to assess potential barriers. The revised questionnaire also collects data from individuals who are white. The program will continue to implement the requirements of the 2019 Addendum to the 2006 Canadian Human Rights Settlement Agreement for the CRCP. The program will continue to monitor CRCP institutions’ progress in meeting their equity targets and in implementing their EDI action plans and meeting their respective public accountability and transparency requirements. An equity-based analysis and success rates analysis of the CRCP in 2021-22 will be used to identify potential systemic barriers in the program’s policies and practices and will provide data to further inform policy and program developments.

Canada Excellence Research Chairs and Canada 150 Research Chairs

1. The Canada Excellence Research Chairs (CERC) and Canada 150 Research Chairs (C150) programs support the Gender Results Framework’s Pillar 1: Education and skills development and its goal, Equal opportunities and diversified paths in education and skills development, by requiring that the institution’s nominee recruitment and selection processes are based on best practices consistent with the government’s expectations for a diverse set of candidates. As a result of interactions with partners, collaborators and other knowledge users, as well as the dissemination of results from the ambitious CERC and C150 research programs, individuals and organizations from outside the academic sector benefit from the research conducted, which supports Pillar 2: Economic participation and prosperity and its goal, Equal and full participation in the economy.
2. Yes—Through a self-identification questionnaire (also a harmonized form used by the tri-agencies), the programs collect sufficient data to monitor for potential biases in their merit review processes (i.e., application rates and award rates) and to report on representation within the programs in terms of participation of individuals from the four designated groups (women, persons with disabilities, Indigenous Peoples and members of visible minorities). All nominees are required to complete the self-identification questionnaire as part of the application process. Core CERC and C150 team members (e.g., faculty, trainees, other highly qualified personnel and administrative staff) also complete the self-identification form as part of the annual progress reporting requirements for the two programs. These data are used to monitor performance outcomes of the programs in their respective performance measurement strategies and in TIPS’s EDI Performance Measurement Framework.
3. N/A—The CERC and C150 programs collect sufficient data for monitoring and reporting on program representation.
4. Ongoing initiatives to expand the capacity of these programs to report on representation in the program in 2021-22 include the implementation of the management action plan in response to the fifth-year program evaluation of CERC (which also included an evaluation of the C150 program). Among other actions, CERC will continue to include design elements implemented in the third CERC competition, which build on EDI best practices including robust EDI requirements as an evaluated component of the application review process for future CERC competitions. The program will also share aggregated EDI data annually with institutions to help them monitor the representation within the CERC and C150 core teams.

Canada First Research Excellence Fund

1. The Canada First Research Excellence Fund (CFREF) supports the Gender Results Framework’s Pillar 1: Education and skills development and its goal, Equal opportunities and diversified paths in education and skills development, by helping Canada’s postsecondary institutions compete with the best in the world for talent and partnership opportunities. CFREF supports Pillar 2: Economic participation and prosperity and its goal, Equal and full participation in the economy, by helping Canada’s postsecondary institutions excel globally in research areas that will create long-term economic advantages for Canada.
2. No—Although self-identification data are collected from CFREF participants (e.g., faculty, trainees, other highly qualified personnel and administrative staff) as part of CFREF’s annual progress reporting requirements using the program’s self-identification questionnaire (also a harmonized form used by the tri-agencies), the response rate of participants is below 70%. This does not provide sufficient data for CFREF to effectively monitor for potential barriers in accessing the program and to report how funded teams include representation of individuals from the four designated groups (women, persons with disabilities, Indigenous Peoples and members of visible minorities). These data are used to monitor performance outcomes of CFREF’s Performance Measurement Strategy and TIPS’s EDI Performance Measurement Framework.
3. The program is taking action to enable ongoing monitoring and reporting by providing aggregated data on representation within CFREF to the grant-holding institutions.
4. CFREF will expand its capacity to monitor and report on representation in the program in 2021-22 by improving communication with CFREF grant-holding institutions about the importance of self-identification. A program evaluation will be completed in 2021 and will examine how to better align the program with the government’s priority on EDI.

1. The Research Training and Talent Development program attracts and retains the best and brightest by recognizing and providing support to research talent at varying career stages, including funding for graduate or postgraduate research and recognition of achievements through awards and prizes.

   The Research Training and Talent Development program supports the Gender Results Framework’s Pillar 1: Education and skills development and its goal, Equal opportunities and diversified paths in education and skills development, through supporting the best or most promising social sciences and humanities students and postdoctoral researchers; and supporting students and scholars in gaining exposure to international social sciences and humanities scholarship.

   The Research Training and Talent Development program also supports Pillar 2: Economic participation and prosperity and its goal, Equal and full participation in the economy, by mobilizing social sciences and humanities knowledge that has the potential to lead to intellectual, cultural, social and economic influence, benefit and impact.

2. Yes—Through a self-identification questionnaire (also a harmonized form used by the tri-agencies), the program collects sufficient data for monitoring and reporting on its impacts (i.e., application rates and award rates) by gender and diversity (persons with disabilities, Indigenous Peoples and members of visible minorities). The same data are used to monitor performance under the Departmental Results Framework, specifically, the demographic indicators found under Departmental Result 2: Canada has a pool of diverse and highly skilled people in the social sciences and humanities.
3. N/A—The Research Training and Talent Development program collects sufficient data for monitoring and reporting program impacts by gender and diversity.
4. Ongoing initiatives to expand the program’s capacity to report on impacts by gender and diversity in 2021-22 include SSHRC’s EDI Dashboard and the annual CRCC progress report. SSHRC’s interactive dashboard, which is updated yearly and published on its website, provides detailed data on applications, awards, success rates and committee member participation for underrepresented groups. The CRCC progress report provides an update on harmonization and coordination of policies and programs across SSHRC, NSERC and CIHR and to address five national priorities, one of which is EDI in research. The report includes analyses of the agencies’ self-identification data.

1. The Research Partnerships program provides funding to enable social sciences and humanities research collaboration with partners across the academic, public, private and not-for-profit sectors.

   The Research Partnerships program supports the Gender Results Framework’s Pillar 1: Education and skills development and its goal, Equal opportunities and diversified paths in education and skills development, through helping to stimulate leading-edge, internationally competitive research, and fostering strong and productive research collaborations with multisectoral partners.

   The Research Partnerships program supports Pillar 2: Economic participation and prosperity and its goal, Equal and full participation in the economy, by accelerating the use of research results by organizations that can harness them for Canadian economic, social and cultural development.

2. Yes—Through a self-identification questionnaire (also a harmonized form used by the tri-agencies), the Research Partnerships program collects sufficient data for monitoring and reporting impacts (i.e., application rates and award rates) of the program by gender and diversity (persons with disabilities, Indigenous Peoples and members of visible minorities). The same data are used to monitor performance under the Departmental Results Framework, specifically, the demographic indicators found under Departmental Result 2: Canada has a pool of diverse and highly skilled people in the social sciences and humanities.
3. N/A—The Research Partnerships program collects sufficient data for monitoring and reporting program impacts by gender and diversity.
4. Ongoing initiatives to expand the program’s capacity to report on impacts by gender and diversity in 2021-22 include SSHRC’s EDI Dashboard and the annual CRCC progress report. SSHRC’s interactive dashboard, which is updated yearly and published on SSHRC’s website, provides detailed data on applications, awards, success rates and committee member participation for underrepresented groups. The CRCC progress report provides an update on harmonization and coordination of policies and programs across SSHRC, NSERC and CIHR and to address five national priorities, one of which is EDI in research. The report includes analyses of the agencies’ self-identification data.

1. The New Frontiers in Research Fund (NFRF) suite of programs supports the Gender Results Framework’s Pillar 1: Education and skills development and its goal, Equal opportunities and diversified paths in education and skills development, by providing research funding to researchers to conduct high-risk, high-reward and interdisciplinary research; providing large-scale support for Canada to build strength and leadership in interdisciplinary and transformative research; and enhancing opportunities for Canadian researchers to participate in research with international partners. NFRF supports Pillar 2: Economic participation and prosperity and its goal, Equal and full participation in the economy, by mobilizing social sciences and humanities, health, and natural sciences and engineering knowledge that has the potential to lead to intellectual, cultural, social and economic influence, benefit and impact.
2. Yes—Through a self-identification questionnaire (also a harmonized form used by the tri-agencies), NFRF collects sufficient data for monitoring for potential biases in its merit review process and reporting on representation of individuals from the four designated groups in the program (women, persons with disabilities, Indigenous Peoples and members of visible minorities). The same data are used to report on the program’s representation on SSHRC’s interactive dashboard and in the annual CRCC progress report. These data are used to monitor performance outcomes of NFRF’s Performance Measurement Strategy.
3. N/A—NFRF collects sufficient data for monitoring and reporting on program representation.
4. Ongoing initiatives in 2021-22 to expand the program’s capacity to monitor for potential barriers and report on representation in the program include contributing self-identification data to the annual CRCC progress report and NFRF’s interactive dashboard. The program will also continue to implement the revised tri-agency self-identification questionnaire to improve its data collection on gender and sexual orientation to monitor for barriers to the participation of individuals from the LGBTQ2+ community in the program and to also collect data from individuals who are white.

1. The Canada Research Continuity Emergency Fund (CRCEF) is a temporary program established in 2020-21 to help sustain the research enterprise at Canadian universities and health research institutions that have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The program supports the Gender Results Framework’s Pillar 1: Education and skills development and its goal, Equal opportunities and diversified paths in education and skills development, through helping to reduce the negative impacts of the pandemic and ensure that the benefits of significant investments to date in universities and health research institutions are protected. The CRCEF supports Pillar 2: Economic participation and prosperity and its goal, Equal and full participation in the economy, by helping to maintain or restore Canada’s international competitiveness in the global, knowledge-based economy, and to contribute to Canadians’ health and their social and cultural life, as well as the health of Canada’s natural environment.
2. Yes—While the program does not collect self-identification data from participants, the use of funds by recipient institutions is conditional on their meeting the CRCEF EDI requirements of the program. Institutions are required to report on their public-facing websites the internal decision-making/governance process used to distribute the program funds within their institutions and, as an application requirement, institutions must implement processes that follow the CRCEF EDI requirements. Institutions were required to post the information on their public-facing websites by August 31, 2020, and to keep it publicly available for a minimum of three years.

   In addition to the publicly available EDI information, the program will be requiring recipient institutions to provide self-identification information, as available, at the institutional level as part of final grant reporting requirements.

3. N/A—The CRCEF has put in place public accountability requirements for monitoring and reporting on whether institutions are meeting its EDI requirements.
4. There are no additional initiatives to expand the program’s capacity to report on impacts by gender and diversity in 2021-22 as the program expired on March 31, 2021, and will be phased out in the first quarter of 2021-22.

1. The Research Support Fund (RSF) supports the Gender Results Framework’s Pillar 2: Economic participation and prosperity and its goal, Equal and full participation in the economy, by helping Canadian research institutions ensure that their federally funded research projects are conducted in world-class facilities with the best equipment and administrative support available.
2. No—Due to the nature of the program, self-identification data are not collected for the RSF.
3. Actions are being taken to enable future monitoring and reporting of the program’s contributions to improved EDI levels in the research enterprise by including questions in the annual outcomes report about whether and how the funds are used to address institutional EDI objectives.
4. Ongoing initiatives to expand the program’s capacity to report on the program’s contributions to improved levels of EDI in the research enterprise in 2021-22 include: improved communication to institutions through the RSF website that the funds received through the RSF grant may be used to contribute to implementing institutional objectives related to EDI and the CRCP EDI requirements from the 2019 Addendum to the 2006 Canadian Human Rights Settlement Agreement; and additional support to eligible institutions for projects through the Incremental Project Grants stream of the program, including projects that address one of the stream’s priority areas: equity, diversity and faculty renewal (in the context of equity, diversity and inclusion).