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About SmartGrant

As our sector navigates challenging financial times – reduced revenues and public support, and higher competition for available funds – the need to find new funding sources has never been greater.

And while arts grant/funding information is now widely available online, finding and understanding these resources is often challenging – many artists and arts organizations lack the time, capacity, experience, and research skills to find the resources that could be of benefit to them. The need for this information is enormous – yet with few available online resources (with most being prohibitively expensive), the needs of most Canadian artists and organizations often go unmet.

With 20+ years as a consultant and grant writer, SmartGrant founder MaryAnn Anderson has provided strategic assessment and advice for hundreds of artists and arts organizations. She has written thousands of grants, developed a deep understanding of a wide range of funding programs, and built her own comprehensive Canadian arts & cultural grants database. That work evolved into the founding of SmartGrant.ca (2025), with a vision to create a unique resource for our sector – to simplify the grant research and planning process and make it widely accessible and affordable.

Welcome to SmartGrant – we look forward to helping make your creative possible.

How it works

Land Acknowledgement

We live and work on the traditional, unceded territory of the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish) Nation. For the team at SmartGrant this means a commitment to learning the true histories of these lands and being respectful guests on them.

We are respectful of the lands and history of the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish) people, where we are honoured to live and work.

We are honoured to live and work on the traditional, unceded territory of the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish) Nation where their deep connection to the rivers, forests and mountains are evident in the beauty of these lands.

We give thanks to the people of the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish) Nation, on whose traditional, unceded lands we are fortunate to live and work.

Our Team

MaryAnn Anderson

(she/her/hers)

Founder/Principal

MaryAnn is a consultant & administrator who has worked in the BC arts and cultural community since 1989. A graduate of the University of Toronto’s Arts Administration Program, MaryAnn has worked with a variety of arts and cultural organizations over the course of her career; in addition, she was responsible for the delivery of a municipal granting program for over a decade.

MaryAnn is the founder of Little Dog Creative Consulting (2005), assisting hundreds of clients to build their fundraising capacity and grant knowledge.

With 20+ years experience as an arts consultant and professional grant writer, she has written thousands of grants and developed a deep understanding of a wide range of funding programs, providing strategic advice, building grant knowledge and fundraising capacity for over 300 clients (artists and arts organizations). In the course of this work, she has forged successful relationships with funding agencies across the country.

Steve Stakiw

(he/him/his)

Research & Communications Lead

Steve has worked in research and communications roles in multiple sectors (arts & culture, finance and natural resources) for more than 30 years. His roles have ranged from research and data collection in the production of online commercial databases, product management, and sales and communications/ marketing. Steve is focused on SmartGrant’s grant data research and also leads our community outreach, marketing and social media.

Found Creative

Design

We work with Amy Johnston of Found Creative, a full service graphic design agency. Over the past two decades, she’s worked with big and small businesses, public and private, consumer and B2B, across Canada, the US, and the UK. Design services include branding, web design, events, packaging, and graphic design.
foundcreative.ca

Serious Otters

Web Developers

Born from the vision of two brothers, Vancouver-based Serious Otters was created to harness the power of technology to make a real difference. They combine their unique personalities and expertise to build digital solutions that not only connect but also create meaningful change. For Serious Otters, it’s about more than just technology; it’s about positively impacting lives and driving purposeful innovation.
seriousotters.ca