Are you a young changemaker who wants to make a positive impact in your community? The United Nations Alliance of Civilisations (UNAOC) is pleased to invite youth-led organisations to apply for the 2023 edition of its Youth Solidarity Fund (YSF). The call is open to organisations from eligible countries whose work seeks to promote peace and social inclusion through better understanding, respect and collaboration across borders, cultures, faiths and beliefs.
Created in 2008, YSF responded to calls for action from young civil society leaders around the world on the importance of strengthening the funding revolution for youth-led organisations. To date, YSF has funded and supported 73 youth-led organisations in more than 40 countries around the world.
In its tenth edition, YSF continues to provide comprehensive support to youth-led organisations, with a particular focus on the role of young people in promoting peace, respect for other religions and cultures, preventing violent extremism, addressing the root causes of intolerance, stigma and identification, and countering hate speech and its impact on young people. It contributes to the implementation of various global policy frameworks, involving young people in building lively and inclusive societies.
Financing
- Through a competitive evaluation process, YSF will award seed funding of up to US$ 25,000 for the implementation of planned and impactful projects that use intercultural and interfaith dialogue and are with the obligation and mission of the UNAOC.
Eligibility
Open to:
- Organisations led by young people registered and operating in one of the eligible countries;
- Organisations led by registered young people with projects initiated and managed by young people.
To be eligible, applicant youth organisations must meet all of the following criteria:
- Being proud of young people: the majority of the decision-making roles within the organisation are held by women and men between the ages of 18 and 35;
- Be a non-governmental, non-profit organisation (except national youth councils) registered in the country of operation as a charity, trust, foundation or association;
- Have been officially registered and operational for a minimum of two years before the deadline for applications on the basis of funding and project implementation (operational in April 2021 or earlier);
- Be registered and operating in one of the countries mentioned above;
- Have a democratic governance structure and decision-making mechanism, including consultative processes in the formulation of priorities and policies;
- Have the ability to demonstrate adequate and consistent monitoring, evaluation and record-keeping of their activities, including project evaluation reports and financial accounts;
- Having a gender perspective/balance reflected in its employees, beneficiaries and activities;
- Not adhere to or affiliate with violent ideologies or antagonism against any particular country, culture, religion or belief system, ethnic group, gender, etc.; and
- Has not received funding from previous editions of the YSF or has not received support from the Intercultural Innovation Hub.
All projects submitted must meet each of the following criteria in order to be eligible and analysed by the Selection Committee:
- Source: The project was developed and written by young people;
- Target audience: The project mainly targets young people. Gender balance among project participants is ensured;
- Objective: The project contributes to advancing the UNAOC's mandate to promote a more socially inclusive world by building mutual respect between peoples of different cultural and religious identities;
- Management: The project is run by a youth-led organisation and meets all the eligibility criteria mentioned above;
- Project Coordinator: The Project Coordinator is demonstrably affiliated to the applicant organisation and is between 18 and 35 years old at the time of application;
- Duration and timetable: The project must be implemented within 12 months of starting. Final reports must be submitted no later than one month after the end of the project;
- Location: Project activities are implemented in the country(ies) mentioned in the list above (see the geographical coverage section);
- Budget: The organisation must guarantee its ability to implement all the elements of the proposed project with the funds requested. The amount requested must not exceed 50% of the organisation's annual budget in 2022. Donations provided by UNAOC will not exceed US$ 25,000. The scope of the project and the amount requested is not a determining factor in the selection process. Projects with smaller budgets are encouraged to apply. Please note that the average grant in the 9th edition of the YSF was US$ 15,000. The proposed budget will cover 90 per cent of the costs associated with direct project activities, and only up to 10 per cent will cover the Project Coordinator's salary/fees. The cost of office rent, utilities and the purchase of technical equipment (e.g. computers, copiers, printers, cameras, telephones, etc.) cannot be part of the budget;
- Portuguese: The application and CV/resume of the Project Coordinator must be submitted in English only;
- Registration certificate and statutes:Copies of a certificate of registration and a statute must be attached to the application form. They can be sent in the original language of the country where the organisation is registered. Translations may be requested at a later stage in the selection process.
Application
To be considered complete and valid, the application pack must include the following and be submitted via the online application system:
- The application form, completed and certified by the applicant's organisation;
- A copy of the applicant's organisation registration certificate;
- A copy of the statutes/regulations of the applicant's organisation;
- An organisational chart showing the ages of the main decision-makers within the organisation;
- A biography of the current Executive Director/Manager, indicating their date of birth (one page maximum);
- CV of the project coordinator (maximum of two pages);
- A photo or scan of the identification page of the project coordinator's passport. If the project coordinator does not have a passport, please bring your national ID card.
Entries closed on 14 May 2023 at 11.59pm Eastern Standard Time in New York.
For more information, visitUNAOC Youth Solidarity Fund.
