Trag fondacija logo
Donate

Category: Grants

Open Call for Applications for Travel and Learning Grant in the Western Balkans

 

 

Trag Foundation, with the financial support of the Rockefeller Brothers Foundation, announces a Call for Proposals for the Western Balkans Travel and Learning Fund.

Trag’s mission is to contribute in building active and open local communities by providing assistance to joint initiatives of citizens in these communities. Trag does this by providing financial support, promoting philanthropy, and other types of support when needed.

Trag Foundation has been investing in knowledge and learning opportunities for its extensive list of partners and grantees for many years. Trag understands and appreciates the value of providing opportunities for continued learning and exchange, which is particularly important for the Western Balkans countries, often on the margins of the mainstream trends and knowledge. For that reason, Trag is proud to be able to provide further additional support to civic activists, policymakers, and researchers from the Western Balkans who seek to strengthen connections within the region, as well as bring more recent insights from wider Europe and the world back home, for the benefit of their communities and society at large.

The aim of the Call is to support the participation of qualified individuals in various conferences, study groups, and exchange programs, that are aligned with the RBF’s Western Balkans program strategies in:

  • supporting efforts to improve transparency and accountability in governance;
  • strengthening constituencies for reconciliation and enduring peace;
  • advancing sustainable development, focusing on renewable energy and healthy environments; supporting the development of indigenous philanthropy to advance social transformation.

 

Who can apply?

 Applications are open for registered civic organizations and individuals from Western Balkan countries.

 

Individuals applying for the support must be representatives or belong to one of the registered organizations. Individuals may be employed, volunteer, advisor or consultant in the organization. Individuals who receive support will be obliged to sign a memorandum of cooperation with the organization they cooperate with.

 

Applications from profit initiatives, state institutions and government bodies, local authorities, public institutions, educational and cultural institutions, international organizations, political organizations and parties will not be considered.

 

Within the Western Balkans Travel and Learning Fund, Trag Foundation will provide financial support for participation in various conferences, study groups, and exchange programs in Wider Europe.

 

Applicants are encouraged to submit proposals related to the programs that are focused on the following topics:

 

  1. Closing political and public space for citizen participation
  2. Undeveloped indigenous philanthropy
  3. Lack of effective incentives for socio-economic development in remote and rural areas
  4. Deteriorating levels of local social service provision
  5. Prevailing gender inequality
  6. Lack of rule of law and weak democratic institutions

 

 

Which expenses are covered?

 

  1. Travel and Logistical Arrangements – support for arranging all aspects of domestic and international travel, including air and ground transportation, reservation of lodging, and handling of all payments for meeting costs and other project expenses, such as participation fees, travel stipends, etc.
  2.   Travel Insurance and Medical Emergency – health and accident insurance policy should represent a constitutive element of grantees’ travel budgets. Relevant support in medical emergencies will be an integral part of the insurance policy.

 

What is the amount of the donation?

Through this Call, Trag Foundation will provide financial support ranging from $2,000 to $4,000 USD to between four to six grantees.

 

The duration of projects:

The projects should last from one to three months (November – January).

 

How to apply?

 

Interested associations and individuals are invited to submit their proposals by filling out the online Application Form.

 

Applications can be sent no later than November 27 at midnight.

 

For any inquiries or clarifications related to the call, we invite you to contact the Trag Foundation team via email at prijave@tragfondacija.org.

More information on the selection proces is available in the detailed text of the open call.

 

Applications open for “Our local foundation – community has a say!” programme in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Trag Foundation, with support by Charles Stewart Mott Foundation and Porticus Foundation, started accepting applications for the “Our local foundation – community has a say!” programme, with the goal of encouraging establishment of foundations in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Informal groups of at least three people from the same community, who are ready to learn, work and develop, and raise EUR 15,000 from individuals and companies in their area, can apply. Trag Foundation will double the raised amount, in order to provide a capital contribution for founding the foundation, and the initial budget for supporting initiatives on a local level.

The “Our local foundation – community has a say!” programme will, in addition to the money, provide mentorship, advisory support and networking with stakeholders to interested groups of citizens, and then long-term support to initiatives from their area, whether those are cultural, sports or educational content, initiatives oriented on improving infrastructure, the environment, or on revitalisation of public spaces.

“The idea of the Trag Foundation’s programme is to encourage the selected informal groups of people to form community foundations that are sustainable in the long-term and independent in the near future, which can openly and flexibly support local initiatives, and thus contribute to their surroundings. With this programme, we want to encourage groups to establish communication with the community from the very beginning, to continuously listen to their needs, and define priorities for their work and support in that manner.” – said Marija Mitrović, Philanthropy and Partnerships Director at Trag Foundation.

Within the current context, it should be highlighted that community foundations in many countries play a key role in addressing the effects of the pandemic. In Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Tuzla Community Foundation has been conducting the “Solidarity against Coronavirus” for months already, raising funds for necessary medical equipment for health workers, funds to help socially vulnerable pupils attend online classes and other necessities for families that found themselves on the brink of poverty.

A similar programme was launched in Serbia in spring 2020, and it resulted in choosing four informal groups from Niš, Pančevo, Šabac and Stara Pazova, that are in the process of establishing community foundations.

In order to apply for the programme, a group consisting of at least three or more people can complete a simple form on the website www.lokalnefondacije.ba by January 29, 2021, until 5 pm. After careful examination of all applications, Trag Foundation will choose and contact the groups that will participate in the “Our local foundation – community has a say!” programme.

More information about the programme can be found at www.lokalnefondacije.ba/english.