Sources of International Funding

CAF-Charities Aid Foundation is an independent British charity that handles money for donors and other charities, forwards donations, provides assistance to large and small charities and commissions, and publishes statistics and information on the voluntary sector in Britain and worldwide.

Canadian International Development Center (CIDA) is responsible for the majority of the Canadian government’s international assistance programs in Africa, Asia, the Americas, and Eastern Europe and Eurasia.CIDA focuses on core Mild88 democratic institutions, civil society, and public administration/good governance. The website contains information about CIDA’s program in Eurasia and descriptions of projects it has supported in the past.

Charity Know How CKH is a grantmaking body which combines the funds and knowledge of 14 grantmaking trusts, charitable foundations and individuals, and the Department for International Development (DfID) of the British government.  The site includes a "Contact Finder” service for NGOs from Eastern Europe and Eurasia, a search mechanism that is available in English and Russian.

Cottonwood Foundation is a small foundation that provides grants to grassroots organizations internationally that combine activities in all of the following areas: protecting the environment, promoting cultural diversity, empowering people to meet their basic needs, and relying on volunteer efforts. Please note that the Cottonwood Foundation does not provide scholarships or grants to individuals or universities.

Echoing Green. Since 1987, Echoing Green has invested $20 million in funding over 350 Fellows to launch organizations in 28 countries. This funding source makes "strong investments" and as a result of this philosophy, it believes that "approximately 80% of our investments have succeeded, as defined by near-term sustainability." Individuals who are awarded a fellowship receive a two-year $60,000 stipend, health and dental insurance coverage, and access to a "network of social change makers and technical assistance."  The stipend can be used for any purpose related to the start up of the organization or project. Partnerships of no more than two individuals may apply for a combined fellowship for a total two-year stipend of $90,000. Examples of those who have received awards can be found on the website. "These social change agents are making a difference in almost ever program field, including education, youth development, environmental justice, international human and civil rights, economic and social justice, housing, the arts, international relief, health care, immigration issues and the digital divide.  They serve many constituencies including women and girls, the poor, children, the elderly, the disabled, immigrants, the homeless and minorities."

Eurasia Foundation is one of the major funders of NGOs in Eurasia. Its website includes a searchable database of grants it has made in the past. It also includes links to the Mild88 websites of its offices in Eurasia, which often contain bulletins about their grant programs and links to NGOs they have supported.

European Cultural Foundation promotes "cultural participation and cooperation in Europe and beyond." ECF was founded in 1954 "in order to help add a cultural dimension to the European integration process. On the operational front, we run our own programs and we award grants for innovative work in the cultural field. With our strong network of partners, we are also very active in advocating culture."

Ford Foundation's goals are to "strengthen democratic values, reduce poverty and injustice, promote international cooperation and advance human achievement." Ford’s program in Russia addresses four major areas of concern: human rights, legal reform, and legal education; civil society, local governance, and community development; higher education policy, social sciences and humanities, social policy research; and cultural institutions and media policy. In fiscal 2001 the foundation launched the International Fellowships Program (I.F.P.) and made $280 million in grants related to this major initiative. Total assets at the end of fiscal year 2001 were $10.7 billion. 

Fund Against Censorship provides legal assistance grants to journalists and news media facing legal action aimed at silencing or intimidating them.

Henry M. Jackson Foundation restricts its human rights grants program "primarily to Russia, seeking to make a lasting contribution by assisting groups that are easing Russia's transition from communism to democracy. Specifically, the Foundation looks for opportunities to support those indigenous forces within Russian society that are struggling against fascism, religious and ethnic intolerance, xenophobia, and nationalist extremism."

MacArthur Foundation, John D. and Catherine T.  The MacArthur Foundation is one of the largest in the U.S. It has assets of $4.2 billion and makes grants totaling approximately $175 million annually.

Mott Foundation, Charles Stewart  Through their Civil Society Program, the Foundation provides grants to non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Central and Eastern Europe, Russia and South Africa. It also provides funding through an Environment Program for "efforts that seek to reform international finance and trade organizations." 

National Endowment for Democracy (NED) supports projects that "promote political and economic freedom, a strong civil society, independent media, human rights and the rule of law. Programs in the areas of labor, business, and political party development are funded through four core institutes: the American Center for International Labor Solidarity (ACILS), the Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE), the International Republican Institute (IRI), and the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs (NDI)." Other areas of work are supported through hundreds of direct grants to NGOs abroad.

Petro Jacyk Educational Foundation's primary objective is "to develop a network of educational programs and scholarly centers in major universities around the world, devoted to the scholarly interpretation and dissemination of objective information about Ukraine and Ukrainians. The Foundation also sponsors other initiatives which contribute to the promotion of international awareness of Ukraine and Ukrainians."

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Social Science Research Council (SSRC) sponsors fellowship and grant programs on a wide range of topics, and across many different career stages. Most support goes to predissertation, dissertation, and postdoctoral fellowships, offered through annual competitions. Some programs support summer institutes and advanced research grants. Although most programs target the social sciences, many are also open to applicants from the humanities, the natural sciences, and relevant professional and practitioner communities.

The Soros Foundations Network of Open Society Institutes, and OSI Initiatives operate in more than 50 countries in Central and Eastern Europe, the former Soviet Union, Africa, Asia, and the Americas.
 They have contributed hundreds of millions of dollars to the  civil society development programs in the countries where they operate.  

TACIS  is one of the European Union's largest aid programs in Eurasia and has launched more than 3,000 projects in the region since 1991. A significant number of TACIS grants have been awarded for NGO projects. The web site includes information about the TACIS grants programs as well as profiles of projects TACIS has supported. For information about programs outside the TACIS region, see the page of the EuropeAid Co-operation Office.

United Nations Development Programme's  Regional Bureau for Europe and the CIS (RBEC) has programs in 30 countries of the region and offices in 23 of them. 

U.S. Civilian Research and Development Foundation (CRDF) offers periodic competitions for its Cooperative Grants Program. This program allows joint teams of U.S. and former Soviet Union (FSU) scientists and engineers to apply for one- to two-year support for cooperation in any area of civilian research and development in the natural sciences, mathematics, engineering, and biomedical and behavioral sciences. The FSU Co-Investigator must be a citizen of, and permanently reside in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine or Uzbekistan.

University of Calgary - Gorbachev Foundation Joint Trust Fund (UCGF) seks "to encourage projects between partnering Canadian and Russian institutions which will contribute to the reform process in Russia."  Its specific purpose is "to facilitate practical solutions to problems in critical areas of public policy with a special interest in, but not limited to, the design and implementation of essential social service projects." Two types of activities are eligible for funding: training projects and studies leading to policy recommendations. An advocacy plan is required as an integral part of each proposal and project. UCGF supports projects to a maximum contribution of $130,000. Projects may extend up to three years, with a completion date no later than December 31, 2004. Funds are forwarded to the Canadian partner institution, which is responsible for the financial management of the project. Deadlines for submission of Letters of Intent are March 1, June 1, September 1 and December 1.

Virtual Foundation is a consortium of nonprofit charitable organizations engaged in "building global civil society by connecting donors with community projects worldwide."

Westminster Foundation for Democracy, based in the United Kingdom, "funds projects around the world which are aimed at building and strengthening pluralist democracies."

Wildlife Conservation Society The Conservation Finance Program of WCS complements the society's International Programs, working toward the "financial sustainability of the biodiversity conservation projects and activities of WCS and its local NGO partners.  The WCS-CFP provides information, technical assistance, and direct support to initiatives aimed at creating funding opportunities, generating revenue and stabilizing income flows."

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