Get up to $25,000 to support community-university partnerships and projects.
The Community-University Engagement Support (CUES) Fund awards up to $25,000 to support community-university partnerships that advance collaborative research, teaching, and learning across British Columbia.
Paid directly to community partners, funding removes financial barriers and prioritizes reciprocal, inclusive engagement so all communities — especially those that have been and continue to be underserved, marginalized, or excluded — can benefit. The fund is open to BC-based community organizations and UBC students, faculty and staff.
The fund helps applicants develop new or existing community-university relationships and especially welcomes applications from collaborative projects that advance:
- Research, scholarship, and/or teaching
- Community-identified needs, opportunities, or emerging priorities, including in economic development
- Reciprocal partnerships that connect UBC and communities across British Columbia
- Equity, community wellbeing, and Indigenous engagement and reconciliation
- Collaborations that leverage partner resources and create pathways for future funding or expanded impact
Administered by UBC Community Engagement with guidance from the Office of the Vice-President, Research and Innovation, CUES advances UBC’s Strategic Directions 2025–2030 by enabling the university to partner for purpose through strategic, reciprocal relationships that address critical community needs, while supporting efforts to discover and innovate for impact and enhance experiential education.
Community-University Engagement Support Fund 2026/27
- 2026–27 CUES Fund Launches September 8CUES will launch again September 8, 2026! The Notice of Intent (NOI) will be due September 28, 2026. Join us for an online information session on Wednesday, September 9 at 10 am to learn more about the fund, eligibility, the application process, and how to develop a strong application. You can register here.
The CUES Fund in action
The CUES Fund is unique in the Canadian post-secondary and research funding landscape, in that it provides funding directly to community partners. Since 2018, the fund has awarded $4,691,930 to 172 different community groups — including 55 Indigenous communities and organizations — and university partners from 19 different faculties across UBC Vancouver and Okanagan campuses.
Engagement stories
- Stories of Partnership: How Community Veterinary Outreach and UBC Are Leveraging the Bond Between People and Their Pets to Improve Health Access in the DTES
- How the Nuxalk Nation Is Working with UBC’s Museum of Anthropology to Host the First-Ever Exhibit of Their People
- Kinbrace and UBC Centre for Migration Studies Reimagine the Refugee Welcome Experience
Previous recipients
- CUES 2026: UBC supports 30 community-university partnerships across BC grounded in reciprocity and local priorities
- Meet the 2025 Recipients of UBC’s Community-University Engagement Support Fund
- UBC Awards Over $700,000 to 30 Community-University Partnerships Through the 2023-24 Community-University Engagement Support Fund
Still have questions? Contact us at cues.fund@ubc.ca.
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