Call for Expressions of Interest: Balancing Act Canada’s Level UP! Initiative 2025-2026
Balancing Act, a national initiative to support parents and caregiving in the arts, is calling for applications to participate in their Level UP! Initiative!
Balancing Act’s Level UP! Initiative
Balancing Act’s Level UP! Initiative supports artists and arts organizations/collectives as they explore the development of policies and practices that create more employment opportunities and better work/life balance for artist parents and caregivers.
In this second year of Level UP! Sector Expansion, we are once again welcoming applications from the Performing Arts, Music, Visual Arts, and Screen-based Media sectors. Balancing Act continues to partner with MOTHRA: Artist-Parent Project (Visual Arts), Women in Music Canada (Music), and Women in Film & Television - Toronto (Screen-based Media Industries) for this Sector Expansion.
We invite artists and organizations to apply to become a Level UP! Partner from June 2025 to March 2026 and pilot a project that centres care and caregivers!
We prioritize applications from equity-owed, also known as equity-deserving, artists and organizations.
Within each sector, an advisory group will select ten Strategy Partners to pilot projects between June 2025 and March 2026. The call is open to organizations, companies, collectives, project-based initiatives, and individual artists across the country.
Level UP! Participation
Level UP! Strategy Partners receive:
- Financial support up to $3,000
- Complimentary Consultation (legal, HR, policy) as needed (up to 4 sessions)
- Peer Support from other artists and organizations working on similar pilots
- Templates and resources developed by previous Level UP! Partners
- Promotion of pilot project/organization
Level UP! Strategy Partners will be expected to:
- Attend four bi-monthly online Strategy Group meetings
- Participate in one public-facing roundtable event
- Engage in an evaluation process
- Collaborate on creation of templates/resources to be shared through the Balancing Act website at the end of the season
Submitting an Expression of Interest
Balancing Act invites you to fill out a Google Form under the following sectors: Performing Arts, Visual Arts, Music, or Screen-based Media Industries.
To find our Expression of Interest forms, details on Information Sessions, and for Frequently Asked Questions, please visit BalancingActCanada.com/Level-Up-Call.
You can also email us here, or find us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn.

Supporting the exploration of policies and practices that create more employment and better work-life balance for artist parents and caregivers.
Supporting the exploration of policies and practices that create more employment and better work-life balance for artist parents and caregivers.
Supporting the exploration of policies and practices that create more employment and better work-life balance for artist parents and caregivers.