RFP: Field Health and Safety Policy Development

WWF-Canada: Request for Proposal

Occupational Health and Safety In-Field Policies & Processes Implementation

Introduction & Purpose

World Wildlife Fund Canada (hereinafter referred to as “WWF-Canada”) invites qualified firms and individuals to submit proposals to lead the review and implementation of in-field health and safety policies for staff. This will include:

• Review of the current in-field health and safety template and checklist;
• Recommendations for improvements; and
• Development of formal policies to be used by staff nationally. 

The revised in-field health and safety policy must follow all relevant provincial and territorial health and safety regulations across Canada. 

The documents developed by the independent contractor will be used by WWF-Canada for its future uses.

Background Information

WWF-Canada is the country’s largest international conservation organization. Guided by the best scientific analysis and Indigenous knowledge, we work to conserve species at risk, protect threatened habitats, and address climate change. Our long-term vision is simple: to create a world where nature and people thrive. For more information about our work, please visit https://wwf.ca.

WWF-Canada consists of approximately 120 employees across Canada, working in a hybrid model. We have physical offices in Toronto, Thunder Bay, Ottawa, Montreal, Iqaluit, and Victoria. Employees living in rural areas and/or not near a physical office work fully remotely.

Staff in our Conservation division may need to spend time working in the field, sometimes alongside community partners. Time in the field can vary from a couple of hours to a couple of weeks in various rural, and occasionally urban, communities across Canada. Work happens in both terrestrial and aquatic environments and may include work around heavy equipment.

Project Scope & Requirements

WWF-Canada is seeking to update and formalize our in-field Health and Safety policy for staff which should at a minimum include:

Phase 1 – Review of Current Program

• Checklist Review: Review current in-field health and safety template and checklist.
• Staff Feedback: Review previously collected internal staff feedback to understand what their in-field activities typically consist of. Virtual individual or group meetings can be arranged upon request.

Phase 2 – Update H&S Program

• Policy Development: Develop a formal in-field Health and Safety policy which meets all various provincial and territorial regulations across Canada. This policy will be shared with all WWF-Canada staff. This policy will also include:
  • Responsibility Clarification: Formalize the distinction between the responsibility of the employee, their supervisor, the Joint Health and Safety Committee (JHSC), and community partners.
  • First Aid, PPE & Other Equipment Requirements: Clarify when the use of first aid kits and PPE is required, and how to determine which PPE to use. If required, proposal of items that WWF-Canada will need to purchase (i.e. satellite phones, specific types of first aid kits, etc.).
  • Additional Training: Specify which situations staff would need to receive specific training (i.e. wilderness first aid, firearms safety course, boating license, water rescue, etc.).
  • Incident Reporting: When and how to report hazards and/or incidents in the field, specifying the responsibility of the employee, supervisor, community partner, and the JHSC.
• Risk Assessment: Develop an ‘In-Field Risk Assessment Guideline’ on what precautions need to be considered when working in the field. This will include how to assess, navigate, and formulate plans to mitigate risks, as well as identifying activities that should always be avoided.
• Navigation of common scenarios: Development of a document that provides guidance on how to navigate commonly faced scenarios such as what to do when staff:
  • Feel uncomfortable or unsafe for any reason.
  • Encounter an animal that may pose risk or harm.
  • Travel and work in the field with community partners that possess weapons for the purpose of personal protection against animals that may pose harm.
  • Other specific scenarios may be identified as part of the working group and may need to be included in this reference guide.
• In-Field Preparation Checklist: Update in-field health and safety staff checklist.
• Other: Address concerns or requirements not identified above that is either required by law, or is identified through staff feedback.

Copies of WWF-Canada’s current office and in-field health and safety policies are attached. 

Deliverables

Key expected deliverables include, but are not limited to the following:

• Project Management
  • Project start-up meeting in person or virtually.
  • Detailed project schedule approved by both consultant and WWF-Canada.
  • Regular meetings/email updates with WWF-Canada (cadence will be mutually agreed upon in the start-up meeting).
• Project Preparation
  • Review of current program, as per all items detailed above in Phase 1.
  • Identify gaps in current in-field health and safety practices to maintain legal compliance.
• Development of Health and Safety In-field Program & Policies
  • Development of all items mentioned above in Phase 2 in .docx format.
  • Documentation of the new program, related policies and standard operating procedures in .docx format.
  • Opportunity for WWF-Canada to provide ongoing feedback through the regular meetings/status update emails to suggest revisions (if necessary) on the final product.

Budget & Pricing

The maximum budget allocated by WWF-Canada for completion of this project is $5,000 (five thousand Canadian Dollars) which shall be inclusive of all applicable taxes.

The successful contractor shall be paid the agreed service fee in the following manner:

• $1,000 upon WWF-Canada’s confirmation of a vendor
• Remaining payment upon achieving all deliverables in the agreed upon manner

The payment terms mentioned above may be revised if agreed by WWF-Canada in writing.

Vendor Qualifications & References

• Experience building and implementing similar in-field health and safety policies.
• Strong knowledge and understanding of health and safety legislations across all provinces and territories in Canada.
• Vendor should be comfortable engaging and working with a small staff working group to seek clarification on in-field work.
• 2-3 relevant client references are required.

Contacts

Questions and inquiries can be sent to:
Nikki Sandhu Patel
Senior Specialist, People & Culture at WWF-Canada
hr@wwfcanada.org 

Proposal Submission Instructions

Proposals must be submitted electronically via email submission by the deadline date of November 23, 2025. Title of the email must be “H&S RFP”, sent to hr@wwfcanada.org by the deadline date.

Submissions must include:

• Cover letter OR introduction of your company and/or your team
• Resume OR summary of demonstrated related experience, qualifications, and expertise
• Proposal submission

• Summary of fees      

   

Evaluation & Selection Criteria

WWF-Canada’s evaluation criteria will include, but not be limited to, rating your responses to the information requested above under Proposal Submission Instructions. Additionally, the following metrics will also be taken into consideration:

• Vendor to deliver a project timeline (aiming for completion within 3 months of the start date), and what their requirements are from WWF-Canada to meet this timeline.
• Must be able to deliver on all the items mentioned in Project Scope & Requirements, and any other deliverables determined and agreed upon by the vendor and WWF-Canada in accordance with the project scope and timeline.
• Solutions must be legally compliant across all provinces/territories in Canada, aim to provide the necessary knowledge, tools and resources to staff to reduce risk when working in the field and improve overall in-field health and safety measures.
• The experience of the vendor/contractor.
• The performance and suitability during the RFP process and the organizational fit.
• Ability to meet deadlines and re-work on the deliverables in case of any suggestions from WWF-Canada.
• Value for the service fee proposed to WWF-Canada.
• The mandatory requirement for participants to allow for the perpetual, irrevocable, royalty-free license/ownership and distribution rights over the deliverables and any intellectual property rights arising in connection to this project without any additional monetary claims over the same in the future.

The award will be subject to an approval by WWF-Canada’s People & Culture team and execution of the contract of services.

Notwithstanding to anything contained in this RFP, WWF-Canada reserves the unrestricted right to cancel this RFP process at any time where WWF-Canada solely determines that it would be in the best interest of WWF-Canada not to award an Agreement. WWF-Canada may also amend this RFP process or issue a new RFP at any time for the same deliverables or similar requirements.

Thank you for your willingness to participate in the RFP process.