Media Training & Development Funding Opportunity 2020

[administrator]

The U.S. Embassy Belgrade is pleased to announce an open competition for applicants to submit proposals to carry out grant projects as part of our Media Training & Development (MT&D) Small Grants Program.  Please carefully follow all instructions outlined in Media Training & Development NOFO FY2020. Required application forms are available on the right hand side of the page - https://rs.usembassy.gov/media-training-development-funding-opportunity-2020/ 

Program Objectives

The purpose of the Media Training & Development (MT&D) Small Grants Program is to fund individual projects that support the strengthening of the Serbian press and ensure the free flow of accurate information to keep Serbia’s citizens informed.

Grant projects take any number of forms, including workshops, courses, public debates, conferences, role-playing sessions, TED Talks, hackathons, online projects, summer camps, online projects, or other activities.

In light of social distancing measures, and to limit the spread of COVID-19, we welcome creative proposals that utilize video conferencing, distance learning tools, etc.

Activities should focus on audiences in Serbia, but we also suggest applicants consider putting together regionally-focused proposals that include participants or partners from neighboring nations.

Program Themes

The Embassy is seeking applications that focus on the following themes:

• Journalism Training & Education
• Managing News Outlets
• Expanding Public Debate
• Diversity of Views
• Countering Disinformation
• Media Freedom / Role of the Free Press in a Democracy

Eligible Applicants.

The following Serbian and American entities are eligible to apply:

• media outlets, journalist unions or associations, student groups, civil society organizations/non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and think tanks.
• public educational institutions.
• individuals if they have a demonstrated capacity to carry out the proposed activities in the application

Note:  To be eligible for consideration, every Serbia-based applicant must be registered in the territory of the Republic of Serbia (Agencija za privredne registre – APR).

Funding Restrictions

You CANNOT apply for a grant from the Public Affairs Section of the U.S. Embassy in Belgrade if:

• your project involves partisan political activity;
• your project involves charitable activities and/or the distribution of humanitarian aid;
• your project is a fundraising campaign;
• your project is commercial in nature, i.e., you are making money from this project.

Application and Submission

Required application forms are available on the web page listed above. Please carefully follow all the instructions in the Media Training & Development NOFO FY2020

Please follow all instructions below carefully. Proposals that do not meet the requirements of this announcement or fail to comply with the stated requirements will be considered technically ineligible and will not be considered for funding.

Please ensure that: all documents are in English; the proposal clearly addresses the goals and objectives of this funding opportunity; all budget items are in U.S. dollars.

Before You Submit Your Application:

• Read through the above guidelines one more time to make sure you understand what is required and confirm that your project meets the program’s intent.
• Carefully review the application to make sure it is complete and free of errors. Applications which do not include the required information or do not comply with the requirements of the Program guidelines will be considered technically ineligible and will not be reviewed by the review panel.
• Make sure the application is neatly typed and easy to read in English. (Perfect English is not required but the proposal must be understandable to an English speaker.)
• Ask someone who does not know anything about your project to read your proposal to determine if it is understandable. Remember that the members of the review committee will not know anything about your proposal until they read it.  If they cannot understand what you plan to do simply by reading the application, chances are it will not be approved.
• Ask someone with experience applying for grants to look at the application and provide advice on how to improve your application.

All application materials must be submitted by email to belgradepress@state.gov no later than June 30, 2020, at 23:59.  If we do not receive a complete project proposal at the above address by the deadline, it will be considered technically ineligible and will not be considered for funding.

As a backup, we strongly recommend that you also send a paper copy via post (postmarked before the deadline) to the following address:

Media Training & Development (MD&T) Small Grants Program
Public Affairs Section (PAS)
U.S. Embassy
Bulevar Kneza Aleksandra Karadjordjevica 92
11040 Belgrade

https://rs.usembassy.gov/media-training-development-funding-opportunity-2020/