Man sitting outside and woman in background

Community Investment

Program Eligibility Criteria

Investing In Our Community

New Gold’s Community Investment Program reflects our belief that communities should benefit from our operations in both the short and long-term. We invest in sustainable community and social development and strive to support initiatives and projects that have meaningful and long-lasting positive impacts within the communities where we operate.

We encourage applicants to carefully review the following eligibility criteria to determine whether your organization, program or project qualifies for funding from the Community Investment Program. Funding decisions are administered individually by each New Gold location. We encourage you to ensure your project falls within the location parameters outlined below.

  • New Afton – 100 km radius from site
  • Rainy River – within the Rainy River District
  • Corporate – national initiatives, with preference given to projects that have impact in host communities where New Gold operates

Applications are evaluated based on the alignment with New Gold’s areas of investment, compliance with New Gold’s eligibility criteria and the identified community need that the project is addressing. Applications that support long-term community and social development are prioritized, with the intent of supporting sustainable community impact beyond the life of our operations.

All applicants should be aware of the quarterly application deadlines when submitting their application, in order to ensure timely review and processing. Please note that the Community Investment Committee may decide to provide full or partial funding of the requested amount.

New Gold utilizes a feedback mechanism to understand the impact of funded projects. Successful applicants are requested to complete a follow-up survey to gather feedback on funded projects, as well as opportunities to continually improve the Community Investment Program.

Areas of Investment

New Gold will consider applications that address community needs that fall within our three areas of investment, in priority order:

  1. Social and Community Development New Gold supports community and social development initiatives, with a focus on initiatives that improve the quality of living in host communities, prioritizing initiatives that address community gaps with a focus on equity seeking groups and vulnerable populations.
  2. Education New Gold supports initiatives that contribute towards higher learning, with a focus on trades and science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) to support mining career pathways, as well as varying educational initiatives that support children and youth.
  3. Environment New Gold supports environmental initiatives, with a focus on projects that support wetlands, water stewardship, reclamation, habitat conservation, circular economy, and climate resiliency.

Eligibility Criteria

Applications are reviewed on a quarterly basis (the first week of March, June, September and November) by our Community Investment Committees. Only complete applications will be considered. Funding decisions are based on New Gold’s Community Investment Program eligibility criteria and are made at the discretion of the Community Investment Committee.

To be considered for funding, applications must:

  • Be aligned with New Gold’s corporate values
  • Leverage partnerships with other local organizations as much as possible
  • Set out clear objectives including key performance indicators and targets that are specific, measurable, realistic and time-bound
  • Address an identified community need
  • Have demonstrable benefits to the broader community and make a net positive contribution to sustainable community development
  • Not replace or duplicate existing programs or services
  • Be or can become sustainable (i.e. not financially dependent on New Gold as a long-term funding source)
  • Help strengthen and/or enhance New Gold’s corporate citizenship, social performance and community visibility
Projects Not Eligible for Funding


Projects that meet the following criteria are ineligible for funding through the Community Investment Program:

  • Advocacy or lobby groups
  • For-profit corporations
  • Faith-based organizations
  • Political organizations and candidates
  • Projects, programs or activities deemed to be unethical or contentious
  • Projects or events that have occurred in the past
  • Organizations or projects that have already received substantial funding from New Gold within the current fiscal year
  • Organizations or projects outside of the location parameters
  • Individual pursuits and teams, except in exceptional circumstances where there is a component of capacity building from one of the identified areas of investment
Apply Now