PeaCE Travel Funds Opportunity. Request for Applications

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Peacebuilding through Capacity Enhancement
and Civic Engagement (PeaCE)

TRAVEL FUNDS OPPORTUNITY

Request for Applications
April 2017

Eurasia Partnership Foundation in Armenia (EPF-Armenia), Eurasia Partnership Foundation in Azerbaijan (EPF-Azerbaijan) through Caucasus Research Resource Centre in Georgia (CRRC-Georgia), and International Alert (IA), hereinafter the Partners, announce a Request for Applications (RFA) for Travel Funds Opportunity. The Travel Funds Opportunity is part of the “Peacebuilding through Capacity Enhancement and Civic Engagement” (PeaCE) programme funded by the European Union under the Instrument contributing to Stability and Peace (IcSP).

The PeaCE programme aims to re-engage Armenians and Azerbaijanis from geographic areas affected by the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in peacebuilding activities, as well as revive the peacebuilding process within and between these societies. The Partners expect that interested civil society actors and grassroots will be able to contribute to bridging the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict divide via implementing innovative in-country, bilateral or multilateral peacebuilding initiatives. 

The Travel Funds Opportunity is an instrument that enables individuals to travel and have joint meetings and discussions in a mutually convenient place. These meetings and discussions should facilitate the process of their mutual engagement in the design of peacebuilding initiatives that aim at building trust and confidence across the conflict divide. These initiatives should focus on (but not limited to) one or more of the following areas and target groups in random order: 

Target groups: 

  • Youth
  • Refugees and IDPs
  • Persons with disabilities (as a result of the conflict)
  • Ethnic and religious minorities
  • War veterans. 

Areas: 

  • Education
  • Human and leadership capacity building and development
  • Civic activism related to peace and conflict transformation
  • Human security and management of emergency situations
  • Women’s participation in and contribution to peace and stability
  • Peacebuilding awareness
  • Dialogue between different social groups
  • Policy relevant advocacy and research.

The beneficiaries of the Travel Funds Opportunity may use the newly elaborated peacebuilding initiatives to apply to a complementary Peacebuilding Funds Opportunity that the PeaCE programme will run in parallel to the Travel Funds Opportunity; however, the beneficiaries of the Travel Funds Opportunity will have no priority in the Peacebuilding Funds process. 

From the technical point of view, a Travel Fund is a service contract between an individual and one of the Partners, in the amount of up to €500. It should cover the travel-related expenses (transportation, accommodation, meals) of an individual or a group of individuals for a meeting with a counterpart or a group of counterparts coming from geographic area(s) across the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict divide.  

Individual beneficiaries of the Travel Funds Opportunity may have an institutional affiliation with for-profits (e.g. media outlets, small and medium enterprises) and non-profits (NGOs, foundations).

While elaborating an application, applicants should follow the format of the application Form (Annex 1). In particular, applicants should (a) describe the purpose of the meeting with the counterpart(s) from a geographic area across the conflict divide; (b) describe the logistics of the expected travel; (c) indicate the name and contacts of the counterpart(s); and (d) indicate whether any of the counterparts also apply for a Travel Fund. Applicant should also elaborate a summary budget indicating major cost categories (transportation, accommodation, meals) expected during the travel.

Submitted applications will be assessed by the PeaCE programme’s Evaluation Committee. The following criteria will be used:

  1. Relevance of the meeting to the purpose of this Request for Applications;
  1. A brief overview of future peacebuilding initiative(s) that will be discussed during the suggested meeting, and their relevance to the peacebuilding agenda of the PeaCE programme;
  2. Suitable track-record of the applicant, e.g. educational background, professional affiliation, engagement in similar initiatives in the past (if at all);
  3. Cost-efficiency of the suggested travel budget;

The selected beneficiaries of the Travel Funds Opportunity will sign a service contract with a relevant Partner. The Partners will assist the awarded beneficiaries with networking, as well as will advise them on the nuances of publicity regarding their engagement in the PeaCE program. The Partners will also include the awarded beneficiaries into the PeaCE programme’s mailing list to keep them updated on programme-related developments and opportunities.

The total awards pool for the Travel Funds Opportunity is €30,000. Applications will be accepted any time during the PeaCE programme’s duration (but not beyond July 2019) until the above total pool of funds has depleted.   

Applications can be presented in English or Russian. The applicants are requested to follow the template as presented in the Annex 1: Travel Funds Application Form. 

Within a month after the submission of an application, the PeaCE programme’s Evaluation Committee will make a decision on the award or rejection. In exceptional cases, the Evaluation Committee may request that the applicant should revise his/her application before a Travel Fund is awarded. 

Applicants should submit their filled-in Application Forms to [email protected]

 

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