U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
U.S. Embassy and Consulate in Ecuador
Notice of Funding Opportunity for Alumni :
Funding Opportunity Title: Alumni Funding 2022 Funding Opportunity Number: PAS-SEC-FY22-01 CFDA Number: 19.040 – Public Diplomacy Programs Deadline for Statement of Interest: March 15, 2022 Maximum for Each Award: $25,000 USD Minimum for Each Award: $10,000 USD
A. PROGRAM DESCRIPTION
The Public Affairs Sections of the U.S. Embassy in Quito and U.S. Consulate General in Guayaquil are pleased to announce an open competition for funding, as part of the Inspira Ecuador network. This Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) specifically targets alumni of U.S. Embassy and U.S. government programs who fall under the Inspira Ecuador network.
Inspira Ecuador is a network of Ecuadorian alumni of U.S. government/U.S. Mission programs. An alumni is a person who has participated in an U.S. Department of State funded exchange program, a program funded by the U.S. Embassy or Consulate in Ecuador, or a person who has received a grant for Public Diplomacy funds.
For 2022, Inspira Ecuador aims to continue to engage with our alumni audience in community service projects and alumni-led events. Inspira´s mission is best captured by the words of U.S. President John Quincy Adams: If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.
Alumni may apply as individuals or through their organizations (if educational or non-profit) for projects that support professional development, encourage climate change action, promote diversity and inclusion, revive the economy through entrepreneurship and innovation, combat disinformation, among other ideas.
Special consideration will be given to:
- Projects that clearly demonstrate alumni leadership and community engagement.
- Projects that support professional development, including English language learning.
- Project that strengthen the Inspira network.
- Projects that promote diversity and inclusion for underserved communities.
- Projects that support efforts to combat climate change.
- Projects that engage with diverse alumni individuals through mini grants.
- Alumni applying in teams.
- Projects that include a volunteer component.
- Projects implemented in or around Loja that promote arts as part of the Loja Living Arts Festival, since this year the United States is the guest of honor.
If you have any questions on whether you qualify as an alumni, please contact the Public Affairs Section at contactocultural@state.gov
Purpose of Grants: Funding is available for alumni proposals to engage with other alumni in the Inspira Ecuador network and support their communities through projects that highlight shared values between the United States and Ecuador. All programs must align with one U.S. Mission Priority and/or one U.S. foreign policy theme. We are particularly interested in proposals that fall into one of the following Program Priority Areas:
B. PROGRAM PRIORITY AREAS:
- Promote diversity and inclusion: Projects that promote diversity and inclusion by supporting human rights, racial / ethnic equality, gender equality and the empowerment of women, and projects that can improve the lives of at-risk youth, women, or marginalized communities.
- Climate Change Advocacy: Projects that aim to combat climate change, raise awareness through education or alumni led volunteer activities on climate change actions, or that improve environmental sustainability.
- Economy: Projects that help revive the economy via entrepreneurship, innovation, and corporate social responsibility.
- Information: Projects that combat disinformation, either through promoting press freedom and improving the quality of investigative journalism or through strengthening citizen awareness and education.
The following types of programs are not eligible for funding:
- Activities that do not contain a distinctly U.S. component
- Programs relating to partisan political activity
- Development projects/programs
- Infrastructure/construction programs
- Individual scholarships
- Personal development
- Programs that support specific religious activities
- Fund-raising campaigns
- Lobbying for specific legislation or programs
- Scientific research
- Programs intended primarily for the growth or institutional development of the organization
- Programs that duplicate existing programs
- Social travel/visits
- Venture capital
- For-profit endeavors
Anticipated program start date: All programs must start before September 30, 2022.
This notice is subject to availability of funding.
Funding Instrument Type: Grant, Fixed Amount Award, or Awards to Individuals
Program Performance Period: Proposed programs should be completed in 12 months or less.
C. ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION
- Eligible Applicants
This call for proposals is exclusive to alumni of U.S. Mission Ecuador programs. An alumni is a person who has participated in an U.S. Department of State funded exchange program, a program funded by the U.S. Embassy or Consulate in Ecuador, or a person who has received a grant for Public Diplomacy funds.
If you have any doubts as to whether you qualify as alumni, please contact the Public Diplomacy Department at contactocultural@state.gov
The Public Affairs Section encourages applications from alumni through:
- Registered not-for-profit organizations managed by alumni, including think tanks and civil society/non-governmental organizations with programming experience
- Individuals
- Non-profit or governmental educational institutions managed by alumni
For-profit or commercial entities are not eligible to apply.
D. REQUIREMENTS- HOW TO APPLY:
Important note: For the initial pre-selection stage, the U.S. Embassy and Consulate require applicants to submit concept notes. Please submit the required information below:
- Send a concise concept note (no more than three pages), in English that includes:
- A brief introduction of the alum/alumni presenting the project.
- Description of the proposed program (who, what, why, when)
- Description of U.S. component (1 paragraph)
- Summarize goals, objectives, outcomes, performance indicators, beneficiaries, strategy for conducting monitoring and evaluation activities, and proposed timeline
- The estimated total budget amount (individual budget line items not required at this stage)
Any concept notes that do not contain the information above will automatically be rejected.
Alumni and/or their organizations may only submit one concept note for this Notice of Funding Opportunity.
E. NOTICE OF FUNDING SELECTION PROCESS:
The Public Affairs Sections of the U.S. Embassy in Quito and U.S. Consulate in Guayaquil will review and analyze the quality and feasibility of the proposed project and whether it aligns with the priorities of the U.S. Mission in Ecuador. We will select eligible and qualified applications based on the following criteria:
- Program areas addressed are aligned with stated priorities
- Objectives and expected outcomes are clear
- Participants are clearly described
- Budget requested is reasonable
- Proposal is viable, reasonable, and executable
- Compliance with required information and documents
- Applicant is able to measure program success against key indicators and provides milestones to indicate progress toward the goals outlined in the proposal. The program includes output and outcome indicators and shows how and when those will be measured.
Applicants whose concept notes are selected will receive a notification and invitation by April 15, 2022 to submit a full proposal application expanding on the program idea and will be invited to participate in a virtual workshop where details for the preparation of full proposals will be discussed.
Qualified full applications will undergo a second merit review. Each proposal is evaluated by an internal “Mission Grants Panel” to determine the project’s potential to advance U.S. policy priorities.
F. DEADLINE:
The deadline to receive concept notes is March 15, 2022, at 11:59 PM Quito time. The concept notes will be reviewed before April 15, 2022, and finalists will be asked to submit full proposals that will be due May 15, 2022. All awards will be required to start before September 30, 2022.
Concept notes must be submitted via e-mail to Contactocultural@state.gov no later than 11:59PM on March 15, 2022. The e-mail must contain the following text in the subject line:
Subject: PAS-SEC-FY22-01 ALUMNI and the title of the Program (in English)
G. APPLICATION AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION FOR SELECTED ORGANIZATIONS AND INDIVIDUALS
Applicants who are invited to prepare full proposals after the initial Notice of Funding review process will be provided with detailed instructions and will be invited to attend a virtual workshop where specific information regarding the preparation of full proposals will be discussed.
H. FEDERAL AWARDING AGENCY CONTACTS
If you have any questions about the Notice of Funding application process for alumni, please send your inquiry to Contactocultural@state.gov
Note: We do not provide any pre-consultation for application-related questions that are addressed in the Notice of Funding Opportunity. Once an application has been submitted, employees of the U.S. Mission cannot discuss the competition with applicants until the entire proposal review process is complete.
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