The U.S. Department of State’s U.S. Embassy Tbilisi Public Affairs Section is offering the Public Diplomacy Small Grants Program to foster U.S.-Georgia cultural and educational ties.

The U.S. Embassy Tbilisi Public Affairs Section (PAS) of the U.S. Department of State is accepting applications for the Public Diplomacy Small Grants Program. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis and awarded pending funding availability.  This is an Annual Program Statement, outlining our funding priorities, the strategic themes we focus on, and the procedures for submitting requests for funding. Please carefully follow all instructions below.

Purpose of Small Grants: PAS Tbilisi invites proposals for programs that strengthen cultural ties between the U.S. and Georgia through educational and cultural programming that highlights shared values and promotes bilateral cooperation. All programs must include an American cultural element, or connection with American expert/s, organization/s, or institution/s in a specific field that will promote increased understanding of U.S. policy and perspectives.

Examples of PAS Small Grants Program programs include, but are not limited to:

·        Academic and professional lectures, seminars and speaker programs;

·        Artistic and cultural workshops, joint performances and exhibitions;

·        Cultural heritage conservation and preservation programs;

Professional and academic exchanges and programs;

Priority Program Areas:

·        Strengthening democratic culture, institutions, values, and civil society

·        Catalyzing more diverse and inclusive economic growth and opportunity

·        Promoting inclusion in society, for example, reaching out to people with disabilities, minorities, and socio-economically disadvantaged communities

·        Engaging local regions, especially in ethnic minority, high mountain, Internally Displaced Person (IDP) regions, and Russian-occupied territories

·        Supporting Georgia’s Euro-Atlantic integration and countering Russian malign influence

·        Promoting innovation and STEM education

Participants and Audiences:

Priority audiences include youth, girls and women, seniors, people with disabilities, and communities outside Tbilisi, as well as audiences less-reached by other existing programming

For additional information please see the Notice of Funding Opportunity, attached.