The Chiefs of Ontario Women’s Initiatives sector is seeking proposals for the design and development of two online training (e-learning) modules. The modules will provide a supplementary learning aid to facilitate access to a First Nations toolkit on safety and risk in intimate partner relationships. The successful proponent will work collaboratively with the Chiefs of Ontario Women’s Initiatives sector and the First Nations Women’s Council to develop the two e-learning modules based on content from a recently completed toolkit entitled: First Nations Safety and Risk in Intimate Partner Relationships: Intimate Partner Violence Learning Guide, Safety Assessment and Risk Management Tools (“the Toolkit”).
The purpose of the e-learning modules is to promote the use of the Toolkit among First Nations victim services workers, shelter workers and first responders and to support them as they apply the Toolkit in conducting safety assessment and risk management with First Nations survivors/victims of intimate partner violence (IPV).
Please note that the deadline to submit is: January 22, 2026, at 5:00 PM EST
A proposal must be submitted as a PDF file to Chiefs of Ontario. The proposal must be received by Chiefs of Ontario no later than the deadline date. A proposal submitted in any other manner or late may be disqualified.
The proposal shall be irrevocably open for acceptance and binding on the applicant for fourteen (14) days after the Submission Deadline date.
Download the full RFP and submission details here
The interested candidate’s proposal must include the following:
- Experience in developing user-friendly online instructional modules to assist learners in navigating through content to facilitate application of tools and checklists
- Expertise in creating e-learning content using plain language, graphic images and/or animation platforms to facilitate First Nations accessibility to the Toolkit
- Understanding of and experience working with sensitive content
- A work plan in alignment with the project deliverables within the provided timeframe from January 27, 2026 to February 18, 2025
- A proposed budget for the completion of the work with a budget schedule in alignment with the completion of each project deliverable
BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT
The Chiefs of Ontario office supports all First Nations in Ontario as they assert their sovereignty, jurisdiction, and their chosen expression of nationhood. The Women’s Initiatives sector of the Chiefs of Ontario promotes the safety, well-being and empowerment of First Nations women, girls, and Two Spirit, LGBTQQIA+ people and communities, and supports the First Nations Women’s Council in its advisory role to Ontario First Nations leadership on strategic approaches to end gender-based violence in First Nations communities.
Intimate partner violence (IPV) has reached epidemic levels in Ontario. Indigenous women experience disproportionate rates of IPV, higher than any other group of women in Canada. Legacies of colonialism, dispossession, patriarchy, and the economic and social marginalization of First Nations women and 2SLGBTQQIA+ people have resulted in a significantly increased risk of IPV. The widespread nature of IPV and the consequent need for efforts to prevent it have led to the creation and proliferation of specialized IPV risk assessment instruments. However, most mainstream risk assessments have not been validated for use with Indigenous people and neglect to acknowledge the increased vulnerability of First Nations people to violence.
In 2022, the Chiefs of Ontario Women’s Initiatives Sector and the First Nations Women’s Council initiated a project to identify intimate partner violence risk indicators unique to First Nations women and 2SLGBTQQIA+ folks and to create a First Nations-specific violence assessment toolkit reflective of those risks. Using a community-based participatory research framework, nearly 300 service providers working in and/or serving Ontario First Nations communities were engaged through training, surveys, and focus groups. This led to the creation of a First Nations Intimate Partner Violence Learning Guide, Safety Assessment and Risk Management Toolkit. The Toolkit employs gender-neutral language, an intentional decision, so it can be used to support people of any gender identity who are experiencing or are at risk of experiencing intimate partner violence. The project is First Nations-led and community-driven. The objective of the project has remained the same since its inception: to improve the safety and well-being of First Nations people, families, and communities.
For the purposes of the Toolkit, IPV is defined as physical, sexual, emotional, psychological, financial, and/or spiritual abuse that a First Nations person experiences within a marriage or a romantic relationship. The Toolkit is intended to help service providers assess the level of danger the survivor/victim (and any children or dependents they may have) may be in, what they need to be supported, and to develop a plan to empower them to move forward towards safety and security.
PROPOSAL REQUIREMENTS:
All submissions must include the following:
- Cover Letter;
- Detailed work plan with all deliverables accounted for;
- Completed fee schedule of estimated budget in alignment with deliverables;
- CVs and References.
RECEIPT OF PROPOSALS
Packages to be clearly marked: “FN-SARM Training Development Proposal” by January 22, 2026 at 5:00 PM Eastern Standard Time (EST).
Please submit electronically to Rebecca Timms, Rebecca.Timms@coo.org. Submissions received after the stated deadline will not be accepted.
