From Alberta Tourism, Parks and Recreation:

The Festivals and Events Tourism Growth Program aims to increase tourism revenues and visitation in Alberta by investing in established festivals and events demonstrating potential for tourism growth.

Organizations will be selected through a competitive application process to receive funding of $25,000 to $40,000 each to hire a third-party consultant. The amount will be determined by the scope and location of the festival or event. The consultant will work with the organization and its stakeholders to evaluate the event, identify tourism growth opportunities, and develop a Festival/Event Tourism Growth Plan.

As result of the program, Alberta festivals and events with high tourism growth potential will commit to meeting targets, for the following year, to increase attendance by 10%, increase revenues by 10%, and enhance the quality and quantity of programming by 20%.

Application deadlines are:

• April 5, 2012
• September 21, 2012
• February 15, 2013

The details of the program are provided in the program guidelines. The application form can be completed electronically and submitted by email, fax or by mail.

The grant application contains interactive form fields and is best viewed with the most recent version of Adobe Acrobat Reader. Download from Adobe.

For more information, please contact a Tourism Development Officer at 780-638-3350 or festivalsandevents@gov.ab.ca