Open call: Travel grants for Civil Society Organisations

A new call of a project co-funded by the EU. The Transatlantic Foundation (TF), in cooperation with the Black Sea Trust for Regional Cooperation program of the German Marshall Fund of the United States, is launching a dedicated call for proposals for individual travel grants aimed at fostering regional networking, exchange, and cooperation among Civil Society Organisations (CSO) representatives, civic activists and leaders, informal groups representatives from the six Eastern Partnership (EaP) countries.

This initiative complements the program (Enhancing the Resilience of Civil Society in the Eastern Partnership (ERICS-EaP)) by providing opportunities for CSO representatives, civic activists and leaders, informal groups representatives to actively engage in existing regional networks, forums, and cooperative endeavors.

Call objectives: 

• Facilitate participation of CSO representatives, civic activists and leaders, informal groups’ representatives in ongoing regional networking activities.
• Facilitate the exchange of ideas, best practices, and knowledge sharing among civic actors across the EaP region.
• Increase the visibility of civil society initiatives within the Eastern Partnership.
   

Scope:

• BST will award 50 travel grants over the course of the next two years and a half of maximum EUR 1,500 each to enable CSO representatives, civic activists and leaders, informal groups’ representatives to participate in existing regional networking events, forums, and cooperative initiatives.
• The grants are intended to support travel expenses incurred by civil society representatives for active participation in this type of activities and events.
   

Eligibility Criteria:

• CSO representatives including leaders, staff, volunteers, civic activists and leaders, informal groups’ representatives based/active in one of the six EaP countries (exception: exiled CSOs). 
• CSO representatives, civic activists and leaders, informal groups’ representatives actively engaged in the organization’s activities and capable of contributing meaningfully to regional networking events.
• The participation of the CSO representatives, civic activists and leaders, informal groups’ representatives should contribute to the goals and development of their organization.
   

Application Process

Interested CSOs representatives, civic activists and leaders, informal groups’ representatives are invited to submit applications in response to this call for proposals by filling out in detail the following form and by attesting the official invitation to the event (please provide an invitation letter of email).

Submission Deadline

You can submit proposals continuously, and they should be sent to ineagu@gmfus.com.

Selection Criteria

Proposals will be evaluated based on the following criteria:

• Relevance to the objectives of the call.
• Potential impact and contribution to regional networking and cooperation capacity of the represented civic entities. 
• The timeliness and purpose of the convening.
• Budget justification and cost-effectiveness.

Grant Terms

• Each selected CSO representative will receive a travel grant to cover approved expenses related to their participation in the regional networking activity.

Grant recipients will be required to submit a brief report detailing their participation and outcomes achieved following the completion of the activity.