National Grants Programme

Transcription

1 National Grants Programme Supporting NGOs within and beyond CEE borders Call for CEE NGO Local Environmental Projects The Regional Environmental Center for Central and Eastern Europe hereby announces a Call for Proposals to support NGO National Environmental Projects. This project is financially supported by the Danish Environmental Protection Agency (DEPA), Division for Eastern and Central Europe (DANCEE). NGOs from CEE countries are invited to apply. The maximum grant fund per project is 10,000 EUR and minimum amount 5,000 EUR. Background The damage to the environment in Central and Eastern Europe presents risks to human health and the natural balance of life. Significant problems of air, water and soil pollution, traffic congestion, deforestation and more still remain to be addressed. At the same time, CEE countries are blessed with many relatively clean and pristine natural areas. The remediation of polluted zones and protection of rich biodiversity must take place simultaneously. Accession to the European Union increases the pressure on Central European governments to solve environmental problems without hindering economic growth. Non- governmental organisations (NGOs), established by and working for the public, are key players in the development of civil society in the CEE. Environmental NGOs form one of the biggest and most active civil sectors in the region. Working together on environmental activities, people have been rebuilding a sense of community purpose, improving their local environment and introducing a new generation to their responsibilities to the world around them. NGOs function as a vehicle for public participation. They serve as channels of communication with the public and also voice the public s concerns towards the government. They have great expertise and willingness to carry out the practical elements of protecting the natural environment. It is important that NGOs realize what role they can play in society and how they can serve most efficiently as intermediaries between the government and citizens. They can build up different structures, based on principles of democracy and transparency, making use of a number of legal and informal tools such as the media. The need for support programmes is, therefore, more crucial than ever. Eligibility Registered not-for-profit, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) from CEE country may apply for a grant. National Grants Announcement page 1

2 The objective of the project This Call for Proposals is intended to provide support to CEE NGOs in carrying out environmental projects on nationally specific areas, to be defined by each country. This will be done through a competitive granting programme, at the national level, that will encourage democracy development; strengthening civil society, improving public awareness about enlargement and environment; improving transparency in the enlargement process by establishing co-operation between governmental organizations and nongovernmental organizations and implementation of EU environmental policy. National scale grants are directed at NGOs with, at least, some experience in running projects which deal with issues of nation-wide importance, include inter- and intra- sectorial cooperation, and enable the NGO movement as a whole to participate in environmental decision making at the national level. NGOs applying for these grants should be well developed, and experienced on environmental issues as well as on the management side. They should be equipped with basic infrastructure in the form of an office, phone, fax, , and paid staff. Further to this the programme will enable NGOs to: 1. Participate effectively in the environmental decision-making process; 2. Cooperate with local authorities and central government on environmental issues; 3. Develop their voice on environmental issues; 4. Raise public awareness of the environmental aspects of the priority issues and to foster a wider discussion within the countries; The total Grant s funds (with amount range from 5000 to EUR per grant) available per country are presented below: Country Amount Calls Duration Hungary EUR 1 Macedonia EUR 1 Lithuania EUR 1 Poland 25,000 EUR 1 (UN territory) Kosovo 20,000 EUR 1 Total 115,000 EUR 5 The project period must not exceed 12 months and implementation must begin within one month of the award announcement. The project must be completed by December Environmental topics This project intends to support and develop the involvement of NGOs in the CEE countries on nationally specific areas, defined by each country with brown environmental priorities as preference. National Grants Announcement page 2

3 Country Topic Hungary Waste (household/consumption patterns) Macedonia Sustainable Development in Urban and Rural Areas Lithuania Waste (household/consumption patterns) Poland Waste Management (UN territory) Kosovo Waste (household/consumption patterns/ waste management) Application process This project intends to support and develop the involvement of NGOs. In CEE countries a local languagegranting scheme will be carried-out over period of one year. The calls for projects will be open and competitive. Different stakeholders (local authorities, academic and scientific organisations, local business) are invited to cooperate with NGOs. Only registered NGOs may apply. Step 1- Choosing the partners Following the call for tender on National Grants, NGOs should begin to look for partners from other sectors of the society (government, institutions, university and businesses), which are working on similar topics. For some NGOs this will be a new challenge, for other, it will be familiar. The NGO is recommended to find partner organizations using the following resources: 1. Personal contacts, other NGOs, local universities, libraries and agencies. The country office Director/representatives should be able to help the applicant. Step 2 Concept Paper Phase (see Concept Paper Form) NGO should use the concept paper form to propose the project concept. This proposal is shorter and simpler than the Full Proposal Form. The basic information, emphasizing the partner or partners should be included as well as a short introduction to the project. As outlined in the format, the NGO should estimate the amount required from REC in order to complete the entire project. The REC country directors/representatives will evaluate the Concept Papers. When registering the Concept Papers, Country Office staff will pre-screen the eligibility of the projects proposals according to the following criteria: The Concept paper address the country specific brown issue and the project have a nation wide impact. The application is following the REC standards (form is completed, the budget and the timeline are within the limits, Cooperation statement is signed); Applicants are eligible to receive a REC grant. The concept papers, which meet these restrictions, are entering the first stage of the evaluation procedure. Projects will be chosen based on three standards: National Grants Announcement page 3

4 The project is national and it has a nation wide impact. The problem described in the Concept Paper is of national priority and cooperation is the best way to solve it. The Problem, Goals, and Methods to achieve goals are clearly, but briefly described. The concept paper present the realistic objectives and goals, which are in line with the objectives of the whole granting process; Approach and methodology to solving the identified problems are briefly described; Cooperative partners from different level (Governmental bodies, Institutions, University, Business) etc of the society are involved. Step 3 Proposal preparation (see Annex A, guidelines for a full proposal) At this point, the country office will choose a number of NGOs to prepare full project proposals, based on their concept papers. NGOs will be notified if their projects were chosen. The partners should meet together and jointly write the full project proposal. One representative from one NGO must be designated as the project leader for the whole project. The co-operating partners must agree on the project leader, and must agree that this manager has the responsibility for managing the funding for the project. The NGO should follow the standard guidelines for writing a project proposal, as well as when developing it should pay special attention on projects objectives and project indicators, which are included in this project announcement. Step 4 Selection of Grantees based on full Project Proposal Project proposal are accepted in local languages and decisions are made on the base of evaluations done by independent local advisory boards. A panel of experts in the brown issues field will judge the completed project proposals prepared jointly and agreed upon by the partners. Grant selection will be based on the project s excellence and feasibility, the presence and number of co-operative partners, and the probability of measurable environmental impact in the country. The selection will be made based on well-defined criteria prepared by the country office. (Sample evaluation criteria are suggested in the evaluation procedure section the National Grants project guidelines). Step 4 NGO notification (Awarded and rejected) Once the winning project proposals are selected, the NGOs are notified and awarded. They are also provided with information on financial management and reporting requirements. CONTACTS For more detail information on project application procedure, as well as project guidelines, the REC country office should be contacted. National Grants Announcement page 4

5 Format for Concept Paper on National Grants (This is a protected document. You cannot modify the forms, but you can type the appropriate data into the fields provided. The maximum length of the texts is limited; the number of available characters is indicated. If you prefer to prepare this information on a word processor, please answer all of the questions listed below on 3 to 5 pieces of paper. Co-operating Partners must sign Appendix A. If more than 2 Partners will work together, please make copies of Appendix A and sign. This Concept Paper should be brief). NGO Information NGO Name: NGO Registration Number: NGO Bank Account Number: NGO Address, phone number, fax and Name of Individual Preparing this Report: Address, phone number, fax and if different from above, for correspondence: Project Description Project Title: 1) Statement of the identified problem. Please describe the brown issue, your project will address: 2) Action Plan: On your own paper, describe the actions you will take to address this environmental brown issue. (300 characters) (300 characters) National Grants Announcement page 5

6 Estimate the total budget for the project Funding Required From REC: Funding to be provided by Other Sources: List of Co-operative Partners: Signature Date Contact Names Contact your Country office Applications may be sent by mail, fax, or , postmarked by National Grants Announcement page 6

7 Statement of Co-operation Name of Project This Statement of Cooperation is to show that the Partner agrees to work together with the leading NGO to write a full project proposal for the REC. If this Concept Paper is selected, we plan to meet and write the proposal. If the proposal is selected, we plan to implement the project together. We all agree that the named Project Leader from the leading NGO is responsible for presenting all of the materials to the REC Country Office. The Project leader is also responsible for managing the finances of the project. Name of Project Leader: Signature and date: (PLEASE stamp your name) Name of Partner: Name of leader of your partner: Signature and Date: (if you have an official stamp, please stamp here). (Note: If more than two organisations will co-operate on this Project, please make copies of Statement of Cooperation. The Project Leader should sign each copy, and the partners should sign one copy. For example, if there are only two partners, the Leader should sign one Statement of Cooperation and send it to the Partner. The partner should sign it. But, if there are three partners, the Leader should sign two Statements and send one to each partner. Each partner should sign one copy.) National Grants Announcement page 7