Grants for Private institutions of higher education - International Development

A. PROGRAM DESCRIPTION The U.S. Embassy Skopje Public Affairs Section (PAS) of the U.S. Department of State is pleased to announce that funding is available through its Public Diplomacy Small Grants Program. This is an Annual Program Statement, outlining our funding priorities, the strategic themes we focus on, and the procedures for submitting requests for funding. Please carefully follow all instructions below. Purpose of Small Grants: PAS Skopje invites proposals for programs that strengthen people-to-people ties between the U.S. and North Macedonia through cultural and exchange programming that highlights shared values and promotes bilateral cooperation. All programs must include an American cultural element, or connection with American expert/s, organization/s, or institution/s in a specific field that will promote increased understanding of U.S. policy and perspectives. Examples of PAS Small Grants Program programs include, but are not limited to: Academic and professional lectures, seminars and speaker programs Artistic and cultural workshops, joint performances and exhibitions Cultural heritage conservation and preservation programs Professional and academic exchanges and programs Programs focused on entrepreneurship and innovation Programs focused on diversity and empowerment of youth and underserved communities Programs focused on democratic processes and values Programs focused on gender issues Programs focused on human and equal rights Programs focused on media literacy Programs focused on strengthening resiliency against disinformation; and malign influence Programs focused on environment protection Programs that support North Macedonias Euro-Atlantic integration process Priority Program Areas: The objectives of the Public Diplomacy Grant Program are to promote positive relations between North Macedonia and the United States; to reinforce shared values; and to connect North Macedonias emerging leaders to the American people. We fund projects that: Help North Macedonias youth build and develop skills to improve their potential through innovative science (especially environmental and health awareness), technology, engineering, arts, and math (STEM) programs, as well as through entrepreneurship programs and vocational training. Focus on educating youth and publics about current environmental issues, including crafting creative solutions to environmental challenges, green energy initiatives and energy conservation, climate change adaptation strategies, as well as action plans to deal with water scarcity exacerbated by climate change and urbanization. Encourage North Macedonias youth to participate in civic life through social entrepreneurship, volunteerism, and community engagement. Strengthen understanding of U.S. values and institutions; highlight US culture, including American Studies, English language teaching/learning, and study in the United States; as well as support diversity through the acceptance of minority groups, including individuals with special needs or handicapping conditions, and other areas of mutual interest. Participants and Audiences: US Mission North Macedonia encourages not only diverse applicants to apply to our grants programs but would also like to see diverse target audiences and trainers. Diversity can be defined by different geographic regions, ethnicities, religious orientations, gender, physical disabilities including visual, hearing, speech, and other physically handicapping conditions. The following types of programs are not eligible for funding: Printing or promotion of books or manuscripts Travel to the United States for professional development Promotion of local arts scenes Projects that are inherently political in nature or that contain the appearance of partisanship/support to individual or single-party electoral campaigns Charitable or development activities Construction programs Programs that support specific religious activities Fund-raising campaigns Lobbying for specific legislation or programs Scientific research Commercial or trade activities Individual travel to conferences and meetings Social welfare projects Programs intended primarily for the growth or institutional development of the organization Ongoing salary costs and office equipment Paying to complete activities that were begun with other funds or Programs that duplicate existing programs

This funding opportunity is designed for Uruguayan nonprofit organizations and educational institutions to manage a small grants program that promotes U.S.-Uruguay relations through collaborative projects.

The Department of Forestry and Fire Management – Urban and Community Forestry program is excited to announce the next round for the Tree Resource Enhancement and Engagement (TREE) Grant Program! This program is open ONLY to currently recognized Tree City USA, Tree Campus USA, and Tree Campus K-12 program participants and community organizations directly serving recognized Tree Cities and Campuses. The purpose of this program is to support the management, improvement, and/or conservation of community forests by recognized Tree Cities and Tree Campuses. Funds may be used to promote and enhance the quality of Arizona's urban and community forests, and may also be used for engaging decision-makers through urban forest management initiatives. The goals of this program are to: Assist recognized Arizona Tree Cities and Tree Campuses in initiating or significantly improving their efforts to care for the community forest, including assistance for achieving canopy cover goals Encourage recognized Tree Cities and Tree Campuses to develop and maintain a sustainable, balanced, and comprehensive community forestry program that is based on a current tree inventory and managed with the guidance of a community forestry professional Promote community forestry benefits through the proper management and care of trees in Arizona's recognized Tree City and Tree Campus communities, including through harvesting programs Eligible activities, listed in order of priority, are: Development and adoption of a written community tree management plan or community readiness plan Tree planting projects as part of a comprehensive management program to meet state, county, or community canopy coverage goals Community tree inventory support Removal of hazardous trees Pruning according to American National Standards Institute (ANSI) A300 specifications (without topping) Municipal tree ordinance development by a certified forestry professional Training of city employees and volunteers to improve community forestry practices Initial costs of certification for in-house employees by the International Society of Arboriculture Other activities that meet needs identified in the Arizona Forest Action Plan All projects involving tree planting must include a five-year maintenance plan. All trees purchased must meet the American Standard for Nursery Stock and Arizona Nursery Association standards. Planted trees must be guaranteed for one year after planting. All hazardous trees must be identified by a certified arborist, forester, or similarly qualified person. Eligible costs include personnel/labor, operating costs and supplies, travel, contractual services, equipment, and indirect costs. Eligibility is limited to currently recognized Tree City USA and Tree Campus USA program participants or community organizations directly serving Tree City/Campus participants. Financial Notes: Match Notes: Applicants must provide at least 50 percent of the total project cost via nonfederal matching contributions. Matching contributions may include: Cash Services Volunteer time at the local market rate Equipment usage In-kind contributions For projects involving tree planting, a five-year maintenance plan must be funded by the applicant's own resources. Matching funds may not be provided by other funding programs administered by the federal government. Funds used to match another program may not be used.   Funding Notes: An estimated $8,000 is available to support awards ranging from $1,500 to $8,000 through this program. Awards typically range from $2,000 to $4,000. Funding will be provided on a reimbursement basis. Project periods will begin on September 1, 2024 and end on June 30, 2025. Final reimbursement requests must be submitted by July 31, 2025. Planted trees must be guaranteed for one year after planting. Award notifications are expected to be issued after August 6th, 2024. Up to 10 percent of funding may be used for indirect costs, inluding overhead/administrative costs. Funds may not be used to purchase capital equipment costing over $5,000; however, funds may be used to rent equipment. Funds may not be used for: Ordinary operational expenses Purchasing food or beverages Previously funded projects Projects that have already started or are ongoing

This funding opportunity supports alumni of U.S. government-sponsored exchange programs in creating innovative community projects that address global challenges and promote U.S. partnerships, particularly in celebration of the 250th anniversary of American independence.

The U.S. Embassy of New Zealand Public Diplomacy Section (PDS) of the U.S. Department of State announces an open competition for organizations and individuals s to submit applications to carry out projects that will strengthen media capacity, provide media training, and/or provide substantive benefit to media networks in New Zealand and the Pacific by increasing and refining their ability to provide independent, accurate, and fair coverage of topics of importance to the Pacific to their audiences in New Zealand and the Pacific nations. Priority Region: New Zealand and the Pacific. Program Objectives: This funding opportunity aligns with the United States goal to strengthen democratic institutions, protect human rights, and accelerate the fight against disinformation. The second Summit for Democracy affirmed the commitment of the U.S. Government to support free and independent media around the world. Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers. One of the key purposes of the U.S. Department of States Bureau of Cyberspace and Digital Policys Democratic Roadmap; Building Civic resilience to the Global Digital Information Manipulation Challenge is to recognize that building information integrity can be consistent with freedom of opinion and expression. The Roadmap states, access to fact-based information is essential for citizens to form opinions and exercise their rights, a fundamental principle of democracy. Without access to fair and balanced media coverage, which starts with a resilient and informed media with the capacity to identify and counter disinformation, the democratic values that we share with our neighbors in the Pacific region will be at risk. This Funding Opportunity aims to provide assistance to organizations and/or individuals committed to the ideals of a media free from interference from outside sources of any kind.

The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) is offering the International Medical Graduate Career Guidance and Support Program to address barriers faced by international medical graduates (IMGs) in becoming licensed and practicing medicine in Minnesota. This initiative aligns with the broader mission of strengthening the state's healthcare workforce, expanding access to care, fostering healthy communities, and providing culturally responsive care to underserved populations. The program aims to integrate the potential of IMGs into Minnesota's health system, recognizing their significant contributions. The primary beneficiaries of this grant program are immigrant international medical graduates who are seeking to enter the Minnesota health workforce. The program's impact goals are centered on supporting these IMGs through career guidance and support services, ultimately facilitating their licensure and practice in the state. By doing so, the program contributes to a more diverse and robust healthcare workforce capable of meeting the diverse needs of Minnesota's communities. The program's priorities and focuses include awarding grants to eligible nonprofit organizations and postsecondary educational institutions. These organizations must be located in Minnesota, be in good financial standing, and demonstrate strong experience in working with immigrants and refugees, working with IMGs, and providing health care career guidance and support. This ensures that the awarded funds are channeled through organizations with proven capabilities in supporting the target population. Expected outcomes include an increase in the number of IMGs successfully integrated into the Minnesota health workforce. Measurable results will be tied to the number of awards distributed (estimated one or two awards) and the range of funding provided ($100,000 to $400,000 per award, with an estimated total of $400,000-$500,000 available). While specific quantitative metrics for IMG licensure are not explicitly detailed, the success of the program will be evident in the enhanced support and guidance offered to IMGs, leading to their increased participation in the state's healthcare system. The program's strategic priority is to address a critical workforce gap and promote equitable access to healthcare for all Minnesotans.

This funding opportunity provides financial support for not-for-profit organizations and educational institutions to bring American experts to Brazil for collaborative engagements in key sectors like energy, technology, and public safety, fostering stronger U.S.-Brazil relations.

This funding opportunity provides financial support to organizations working to prevent the spread of ISIS ideologies among Iraqi returnees from Northeast Syria, focusing on building local capacity for detection and intervention.

The Department of States Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (TIP Office) is pleased to invite organizations to submit proposals to provide global on-demand training and/or technical assistance in support of its global Training and Technical Assistance (T) Program. The Department of State’s Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (TIP Office) announces an open competition for projects in support of its global Training and Technical Assistance (T&TA) Program. The TIP Office manages foreign assistance programs dedicated to combating human trafficking outside of the United States. The TIP Office awards grants to combat all forms of human trafficking—sex trafficking, child sex trafficking, forced labor, domestic servitude, forced child labor, and the unlawful recruitment and use of child soldiers. The Department of State’s annual Trafficking in Persons Report (TIP Report) provides a diagnostic assessment of the efforts of governments to combat human trafficking and shapes our foreign assistance priorities. More information is available at: https://www.state.gov/international-programs-office-to-monitor-and-combattrafficking-in-persons/. The TIP Office’s Training and Technical Assistance (T&TA) program aims to increase government and/or civil society capacity to combat human trafficking. T&TA is most appropriate for addressing specific knowledge or other capacity gaps through targeted, short-term interventions. The TIP Office can provide training and/or technical assistance on topics spanning all 4Ps – Prevention, Protection, Prosecution, and Partnership. However, prevention is not often a direct or dominant focus for individual T&TA interventions, it is instead frequently integrated into the T&TA interventions through the lens of Protection, Prosecution, and/or Partnership. T&TA interventions are most often initiated by requests from U.S. Embassies abroad, or sometimes from our T&TA implementing partners. The TIP Office reviews requests for T&TA on a rolling basis throughout the year. Selected T&TA requests are then referred by the TIP Office to the relevant implementer, depending on the type of assistance requested, the implementer’s areas of expertise, and funding availability. The timeline to complete T&TA activities will depend on a variety of factors such as strategic priorities and country contexts. The selected implementer should be able to create an intervention concept note and budget in response to the specific T&TA request before the intervention is approved for implementation. The selected implementer should also expect to work closely with TIP Office staff throughout the development and implementation of interventions and activities. T&TA interventions can be standalone or they can lay the groundwork for or complement other programming, but they do not take the place of longer, multiyear programs. Individual T&TA interventions can sometimes also be structured in phases, with each phase being subject to TIP Office approval. T&TA activities may be conducted in countries across all regions of the world, so the scope of T&TA implementers’ capabilities must be global. The selected applicant should be able to respond to unanticipated requests for assistance in any country and/or region, with few exceptions. Some examples of what past T&TA interventions have looked like include, but are not limited to, the following: • Review of and edits to draft legislation or implementing regulations on a 24-hour turnaround; • Development and adoption of Foreign Government National Action Plan over the course of five months from receipt of request to final adoption; • Targeted technical assistance on the process to accede to United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC) and the Palermo Protocol; • Rapid diagnostic needs assessment on anti-trafficking capacity gaps of specialized anti-trafficking practitioners conducted within four weeks of initial request, followed by the development and delivery of a tailored training curriculum; • Tailored trainings delivered to law enforcement, prosecutors, and judges on how to build a human trafficking case in a country with limited resources and low capacity; • Tailored trainings delivered to shelter staff to improve identification, screening, and assistance of victims of trafficking, as well as technical assistance to develop necessary tools, such as screening forms and risk assessments; • Creation and implementation of a training series curriculum tailored to psychological and legal service providers to victims of trafficking in urban and rural locations both virtually and in-person, delivered over the course of several months; • Regional training for law enforcement and prosecutors, tailoring the materials for applicability across various participating countries in the region. While some T&TA activities can be conducted remotely, and the ability to provide some programming virtually is an asset to the T&TA Program and to the selected implementers, the majority of T&TA activities are conducted in-person. Because T&TA interventions can take place in settings where utilities, such as internet connectivity, are unreliable, the TIP Office will not be able to consider applications whose model of T&TA delivery is entirely remote.

This funding opportunity supports non-profit organizations and educational institutions in organizing a six-day summit in Manila for emerging leaders from ASEAN countries to address regional security challenges and strengthen U.S.-ASEAN partnerships.

The U.S. Department of State Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor (DRL) announces an open competition for an evaluation project that contributes to building a portfolio of evidence regarding inclusive human rights in Ukraine. In support of this goal, DRL seeks to promote the use of sound data and generate findings on what works, for whom, and why in democracy and human rights programming abroad. Projects should support the following objective: the rights of marginalized, underserved, and at-risk individuals in Ukraine are recognized and respected within a democracy, rights, and good governance framework.

This grant provides funding to state and local courts, as well as eligible nonprofit organizations, to obtain expert assistance for diagnosing issues, developing solutions, and implementing necessary changes within the judicial system.

This grant provides funding for U.S. organizations to facilitate a four-week exchange program in the United States for young adults from Russia, focusing on civic engagement and leadership development through interactive activities and cultural immersion.

This grant provides funding to U.S.-based organizations to facilitate mentorship and training for international music industry professionals, enhancing their collaboration with American counterparts and promoting cultural exchange.

This funding opportunity provides financial support to nonprofit organizations in South Africa to help high-achieving, low-income students navigate the U.S. college application process and cover associated costs, enabling them to pursue higher education in the United States.

This funding opportunity supports nonprofit organizations and academic institutions working to empower civil society in Sri Lanka's Northern and Eastern provinces by promoting advocacy, human rights, and economic development, particularly for marginalized communities.

This grant provides funding to U.S.-based nonprofit organizations and academic institutions to promote American film and media through international cultural exchanges and professional development programs.

This funding opportunity provides financial support for organizations to enhance digital connectivity and literacy in Paraguay by establishing secure internet access points and training rural communities.

This grant provides financial support for U.S. undergraduate students with limited financial means to study or intern abroad, promoting international understanding and educational opportunities.

The Public Diplomacy Section (PD) of the U.S. Embassy in Luxembourg announces an open competition for organizations to submit applications to carry out programs strengthening bilateral ties between the United States and Luxembourg on Remembering our Shared History. The U.S. Embassy Luxembourg invites proposals from non-governmental organizations, think tanks, government institutions, academic institutions, and individuals for programs strengthening the bilateral ties between the United States and Luxembourg and Remembering our Shared History, including, but not limited to: Programs that highlight significant WWII events, untold stories, and any elements of U.S.-Luxembourg collaboration that provide unique context, perspective, and meaning to the long-standing alliance between the Unites States and Luxembourg. Programs focused on youth and youth education to ensure the memory of WWII is not forgotten by the younger generations in Luxembourg. Programs that foster truthful recognition and remembrance of the tragedies of the Second World War and particularly the Holocaust Program activities such as historical/cultural exhibits, film screenings (movies/documentaries) and lecture series, book discussions, various media platforms (broadcast media, social media, etc.) and other types of public outreach campaigns. All programs must engage Luxembourg audiences. All programs must include a U.S. element or connection with U.S. experts that will promote increased understanding of U.S. policy and perspectives. Any speaker paid with grant funding must hold U.S. citizenship. Please review the complete NOFO on the Funding Opportunities page on our website: https://lu.usembassy.gov/grants-program/ or in the related documents tab on the announcement on grants.gov for information on how to submit a Statement of Interest.